Factor one- Characteristics
Accommodations
Home languages
Twenty one students- 11 male, 10 female
Two students with IEP's- one with autism with adaptive living goals and the other with ADHD and learning disabilities with all academic goals.
Flexible seating- four students are allowed to use chairs instead of sitting on the carpet.
One male student has a 504 for medical reasons- he is allowed a rocking stool to sit on and frequent bathroom breaks. He also benefits from having someone read all directions aloud to him.
12 students are on or above grade level for math, 9 are one grade level below for math.
Five students attend LLI- reading intervention services daily for more one on one reading instruction.
All students speak English, one student speaks Oromo in her home- her family is Ethiopian.
All students are seven and eight years old
One student is new to the classroom- the only student who was not in the same first grade class as the rest of my students.
Classroom Characteristics
Table setup- suggested seating
There are no assigned desks, only tables that they are suggested to sit at
Many of the lessons and discussions occur on the carpet space.
Routine
Mornings always start with morning meetings and lead into math
Math begins with a number talk and leads into workshop time. Students work with their partner to finish their must-dos for the week. Reflections as a class are done at the end.
Technology
The entire class switches to ELA and the other second grade class works on math.
Afternoons consist of recess, lunch, project time, quiet choice, and specials classes.
No smart boards or overheads used (Reggio Emilia approach)
Laptops
Lexia for ELA
Dreambox program- can be done in workshops during the school day, but also used as home practice.
Both teacher and student led approaches
Lessons are started with teacher lessons and are typically followed by student led choice activities or project time.
Follows Common Core standards but a RE approach mixed with project-based approach.
Responsive classroom
social-emotional development techniques to hold students accountable for their own selves and their peers. Community meetings are done weekly in the classroom to provide students with time to make requests, appreciations, or apologies.
School Characteristics
Prek- 5th grade all under the magnet teaching approach of Reggio Emilia and project-based.
Food Prints
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300 students- mostly Caucasian, all mostly all live walking distance or short driving distance.
Lottery to get in- school does not offer public transportation except for students who require it by IEP.
Each class participates in food prints once a month. They work together to grow their own food and cook meals for themselves and classmates.
The foodprints lesson takes almost three hours and incorporates other areas of academics into it. (writing, art, math)
Community meeting
Once a month the school gathers together and has community meetings about social issues or important topics.
Programs
Specials classe- PE, studio, French, library.
Special Education intervention services- STRATEGIES
LLI- learning literacy intervention for students without IEPs who need additional reading support
Before and aftercare for students
School Demographics
695% non-hispanic white, 18% black, 7% multiracial, 5% hispanic/latino
Community Characteristics
NE Washington, DC location, but anyone who is eligible in DC is welcome to come to SWS. There is a lottery pull, however.
Students arrive to school via metro system, car, or walking.
Location is close to areas of low economic status and high economic status.
Diverse student pull of different financial needs.
City location
Close to many different small businesses, museums, experiences for students. Often collaborate with SWS for field trips.
diverse population of races, ages, socio-economic status, and more, so the students at SWS are surrounded by diversity and external factors.
Community/ school auction
Each year SWS has an auction for fundraising. This is where the school gains the most of its external funding.
Annually, companies, government employees, and other community members donate time, money, and experiences to the school which has a huge impact on the school.
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