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Task 1 Knowledge of Students and the Learning Environment

In this task, you will demonstrate the knowledge and skills that pertain to
your understanding of your classroom regarding your students, the school,
and the community, and you will identify the implications of these factors on
instruction and student learning.
This is the template you will use to complete this assignment. We have
included links with further information and/or details for different sections
throughout this task. While it is not a requirement to view each Further
Information Link, it is advisable. The links will be highlighted in yellow.

For this task, you must submit the following:

1. Written Commentary of a maximum of 21,000 characters that:
● responds to all parts of the guiding prompts;
● references your artifacts to support your written evidence;
● and describes, analyzes, and reflects on the evidence
2. Four different types of artifacts (maximum of seven pages), including

Maximum
Number of
Artifact Textbox Pages Location

the Contextual Factors Chart 3 1.1.1

the Instructional and Support Resources Chart 3 1.2.1

one ​completed​ Getting to Know Your Students

2 1.2.2
document

a document that demonstrates communication 1.2.3

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with students’ families

Further Information Links:

● Overview of PPAT
● How Should I Start?
● What Should It Look Like When I’m Done?
● What Happens After I Finish Everything?

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Step 1: Factors, Resources, and Protocols
The following set of activities asks you to identify and reflect on a variety of
factors and resources that can be used to communicate and cultivate
partnerships with students and the community.
Further Information Link: ​What Should I Know to Complete Step 1?

Activity 1: Completing the Contextual Factors Chart

Complete the second column of the ​Contextual Factors Chart​ by providing
the requested information listed in each section of the first column and then
respond to the guiding prompts below.
Further Information Link: ​Instructional Strategies and Learning
Activities

1.1.1: Community, District, School Contextual Factors That Influence

Instruction
Guiding Prompts (Refer to the ​Contextual Factors Chart​ to respond to the
following prompts.)
a. Identify your chosen community factor. Based on your chosen
community factor, identify and describe one possible instructional
strategy and one learning activity that you could use in your classroom
to further student learning. Provide a rationale that explains how the
identified strategy and activity connect to the chosen factor

b. Identify your chosen school/district factor. Based on your chosen

school/district factor, identify and describe one possible instructional
strategy and one learning activity that you could use in your classroom
to further student learning. Provide a rationale that explains how the
identified strategy and activity connect to the chosen factor.

Textbox 1.1.1: Community, District, School Contextual Factors That

Influence Instruction

Type your response to 1.1.1 in the textbox below.

a. The chosen community factor for the suburban public school would
be the number of students living in single parent households, 31% of
students are living with one parent or guardian. As students living in
single family homes have fewer opportunities to work one-on-one
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 with adults or peers, I would choose an activity that would allow
students to get one-on-one instruction and allow them to work with
their peers. An instructional strategy I choose to use is experiential
instruction to give students hands on, and if possible, real life
experience in their lessons. The learning activity that the students
will participate in will be working together to create a bridge out of
bobby pins and gumdrops. The students will work together to create
a structure that a toy car could go across and I will give one-on-one
guidance as needed. This strategy and activity connects to the
chosen factor of students living in single family homes because the
students are able to get the support and guidance from their
teachers and peers that they may not get from living in a single
parent household.

b. The chosen school/district factor I have chosen to use is the percent

of students who are English Language Learners (ELL) within the
district. The total percent of students in the district that are ELL
students is 5.9%, the majority of which speak Spanish. The
instructional strategy I chose to use is interactive instruction which
best suits those students who are ELL. I will provide all students with
activities that introduce the simple Spanish words and phrases,
students who are ELL will help their classmates with the correct
pronunciation or to help them remember how to count. We will learn
the days of the week and how to count to ten in Spanish. I chose
these activities because it will introduce all students to vocabulary,
counting, or other basic phrases that may not have yet experienced.
The strategy and activity connects to the chosen factor of students
who are ELL because it allows the ELL students to be a part of the
lesson, helping to teach their classmates while introducing their
heritage to their classmates and will provide all students with
understanding and knowledge of other customs and cultures.
Required artifact for this textbox:
• the Contextual Factors Chart (maximum of three pages)

Insert completed Contextual Factor Chart Link Below (remember to

remove identifiers and share your document)

Google Doc URL:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1I8aIJQzREz1DWIXFRu0wPwAki24xRP3u/vi
ew?usp=sharing

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Activity 2: Responding to the Identified Resources
Many resources that are already available to teachers can be leveraged to
support learning and promote positive relationships.
Complete the ​Instructional and Support Resources Chart​ by identifying
available resources within your teaching context that can support your
instruction. Then respond to the guiding prompts below.
1.1.2: Available Resources to Enhance Student Learning
Guiding Prompts (Refer to the ​Instructional and Support Resources Chart​ to
respond to prompts.)
a. Select two resources from the completed Instructional and Support
Resources Chart, and explain how you would use each in your
classroom to support student learning.

b. Select a particular characteristic that you listed under Knowledge of

Individual Students in the Contextual Factors Chart. Based on this
selected characteristic, explain how a resource from the Instructional
and Support Resources Chart, different from the two discussed in the
previous prompt (Guiding Prompt a), could enhance student learning.

Textbox 1.1.2: Classroom Demographics and Knowledge of Students

Type your response to 1.1.2 in the textbox below.

a. The first resource I would use in my classroom to promote student

learning would be Creative Curriculum. The curriculum provides the
students with hands-on experiences during the lessons, in a variety
of ways from books and poems to singing and dancing. Students are
able to participate in studies that involve recycling, clothing, trees,
construction, and balls. The curriculum provides students with
multiple opportunities to explore writing, reading, math, art and
music. I would use this resource to support student learning by
having the students participate in a project on recycling where they
bring in items from their home and community and learn how they
can be used in various ways. From taking a milk carton from the
school lunch and using it as a planter instead of throwing it in the
trash, to what to do with material to recycle it if you are not able to
reuse it in new and different ways.

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 The second resource that I would use in my classroom to promote
student learning would be the smartboard provided in the classroom.
I would use this in various ways, from having the students interact
with it by writing numbers, letters or shapes on the board during a
lesson to using it to take my students on virtual field trips around the
world as they are unable to take actual field trips away from the
school. Students would be able to visit anywhere from a recycling
facility in town to a museum in France.

b. The characteristic that I chose would be the students that speak

English as a second language or the English Language Learners
(ELL). The resource that I would use to enhance student learning
would be the iPads with access to eSpark Learning which provides
students with foundational skills, literacy, vocabulary and is
personalized to each student. I would use this resource along with
working with the students one on one to provide them with real
world experiences with the language and provide help and support to
the student when and where needed.

Required artifact for this textbox:

• ​The Instructional and Support Resources Chart (maximum of three pages)

Insert completed Instructional and Support Resources Chart Link

Below (remember to remove identifiers and share your document)

Google Doc URL:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pvR-eSaQhZujCajU-Vz9oQ5r5lLHYVNh/vie
w?usp=sharing

Activity 3: Understanding Classroom Norms, Protocols, and

Agreements
Every classroom operates according to sets of norms, protocols, and
agreements; some of these norms, protocols, and agreements are
established by the teacher or the school, whereas others are created by
students and teachers working together. Access and review the norms,
protocols, and/or agreements for the classroom to which you are assigned
and then respond to the guiding prompts below.

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1.1.3: Norms, Protocols, and Agreements
Guiding Prompts
a. Describe one example of a classroom norm, protocol, or agreement.
Explain how the norm, protocol, or agreement facilitates instruction,
enhances student learning, and/or impacts the learning environment.
b. Describe one example of a technology norm, protocol, or agreement.
Explain how the norm, protocol, or agreement facilitates instruction,
enhances student learning, and/or impacts the learning environment.
c. Identify and describe one norm, protocol, or agreement that you and
your students could create together. Explain how the norm, protocol,
or agreement would facilitate instruction, enhance student learning,
and/or impact the learning environment

Textbox 1.1.3: Norms, Protocols, and Agreements

Type your response to 1.1.3 in the textbox below.

a. One example of norms, protocols, and agreements are when the

students arrive into the classroom they wash their hands, greet the
teacher, and make a safe keeper promise. This procedure facilitates
instruction by teaching the student that there are steps and rules
they must follow once they are in the classroom. By doing so the
students learn what is expected from them, not only when they enter
the classroom, they also learn that they are expected to follow other
norms, protocols, and agreements in the classroom. By learning to
do these simple tasks in the morning it then enhances their learning
throughout the classroom and school by knowing what is expected of
them so the students are better able to focus on what is being
taught. By following norms, protocols, and agreements it gives the
classroom order and it fosters a calm learning environment for the
students to become submersed in the lessons and activities
throughout the day which impacts the learning environment

b. One example of a technology norm, protocol, and agreement is the

use of iPads in the classroom. Each student is given 15 minutes of
time, twice a week to use the iPad. The protocol is that the student
must be sitting down when using the iPad and when the timer goes
off, to let the teacher know, then they can go to a different center. If
they ignore the time, the student loses their iPad time the next time
they are supposed to use it. The norm lets the student know they
will get to work with the iPad twice a week and that in order to work
on the iPad that they must be sitting down so as not to drop the
tablet. The agreement of only having iPad time twice a week for 15
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 minutes teaches the students that while they will have time on it, it
will be limited and they do have to share the tablet with other
members of their classroom and there will be a consequence if they
ignore their time limit. St​udents learn what is expected and how to
behave when on the iPad, and what they should be doing while they
are working during their assigned iPad time, by following the norms,
protocols and agreements students’ learning is enhanced.

c. One norm, protocol, or agreement that my students and I create

together would be the rules and expectations of the classroom.
Through working together the students will grow in their sense of
community in their classroom and take more responsibility for their
actions if they help to create the expectations for themselves and
others in the classroom. It helps the students to understand what is
expected of them throughout the day, whether the teacher is
providing instruction for the class, they are working in groups, or
they are enjoying freetime in the classroom with the classmates. By
creating rules and expectations in the classroom it impacts the
environment by the students becoming more focused and aware of
expectations throughout their day and providing a calm working
environment for themselves and others.

Step 2: Knowledge of Students

It is essential that teachers embark on a continuous journey of deeply
knowing and understanding their students. There are multiple ways to get to
know your students and appreciate their lived experiences, cultural and
linguistic assets, academic strengths, and unique learning needs. This set of
activities asks you to describe how you are cultivating relationships with
your students (e.g., through working with students to create rigorous,
relevant learning opportunities) and acquiring increasing in-depth knowledge
about each student’s academic and nonacademic strengths, skills,
competencies, and interests.
FURTHER INFORMATION LINK: ​What should I know about Step 2?
Activity 1: Getting to Know Your Students
Create or choose a meaningful, whole-class activity that honors and values
your students as unique individuals (e.g., student interest activities or
projects, journaling, short biography). Give each student in your class the
opportunity to participate in the activity so that you can gather information
relevant to your students’ interests, and then respond to the guiding
prompts below.

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1.2.1: Getting to Know Your Students
Guiding Prompts
a. Based on the compilation of information from the results of the Getting
to Know Your Students activity, analyze one example of how this
information would influence a whole-class instructional decision you
would make. Provide a rationale for your decision.

b. Using one student’s completed Getting to Know Your Students activity,

analyze how this information would influence an instructional decision
you would make for this student. Provide a rationale for your decision.

Type your response to 1.2.1 in the textbox below.

a. Using the student interest inventory I discovered many of the

students wanted to learn about letters and numbers. I would utilize
this information to create lessons that teach students about letters
including letter sounds, how to write the letter, and how letters make
up words. By compiling and analyzing the information it influences
whole-class instructional decisions I make because I learn the
interests of the students and am able to base lessons on what they
are wanting to learn or have an interest in learning.

b. Using the Getting to Know Your Students activity, one of the

students in the classroom stated that she wanted to learn more
about colors. She is often found in the classroom in the art center
drawing and painting with her classmates. To promote this student’s
engagement and learning in the classroom I would use this
information to create an unit on art, where the students learn about
not only colors, they would also learn about different types of art,
including: drawing, painting, and clay. By using one student’s
completed Getting to Know Your Students activity and analyzing this
information, it would influence my instructional decisions for this
student and class because I would be able to provide hands-on
opportunities where the students create their own works of art to
explore their own natural artistic talent and provide a time where the
class is able to share their artwork with their families. Thus
furthering their knowledge of art while taking into consideration what
the student is wanting to learn.

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Required artifact for this textbox:
• ​one ​completed ​student sample from the Getting to Know Your Students
activity (maximum of two pages)

Insert one ​COMPLETED​ Student Interest Inventory Below

(remember to remove identifiers)

Google Doc URL:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1S4JsruvRDkoc7n2FNDYWZP4b_FjgyI7O/vi
ew?usp=sharing

Activity 2: The Focus Students

A core feature of exemplary teaching is getting to know and understand your
students as unique individuals. This means not only valuing and appreciating
their backgrounds and personal histories but also recognizing the various
ways in which they demonstrate competence (i.e., have mastered an area of
learning). Identify two Focus Students who reflect different backgrounds and
personal histories. Then respond to the following prompts.

1.2.2: The Focus Students

Guiding Prompts
a. Describe each identified Focus Student’s cultural and linguistic assets,
lived experiences, and academic strengths and learning needs. Explain
how each of these two students contributes to the learning
environment of your classroom.

b. Based on your knowledge of Focus Student #1, identify and describe

one possible instructional strategy and one learning activity that you
and this student could create together to use in your classroom to
support this student. Explain how the identified strategy and activity
reflect your understanding and appreciation of this student’s cultural
and linguistic assets, lived experiences, academic strengths, and
learning needs.

c. Based on your knowledge of Focus Student #2, identify and describe

one possible instructional strategy and one learning activity that you
and this student could create together to use in your classroom to
support this student. Explain how the identified strategy and activity

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 reflect your understanding and appreciation of this student’s cultural
and linguistic assets, lived experiences, academic strengths, and
learning needs.

Type your response to 1.2.2 in the textbox below.

a. Focus Student #1 is a Hispanic girl who is learning English as a

second language. Outside of school her family only speaks Spanish
and in our classroom she is fully immersed in learning English with
little to no Spanish spoken to her throughout the day. She is
extremely intelligent and can answer questions you ask of her, as
long as she is able to point at the answer. Her learning needs are
more one on one English instruction and support to learn the use of
the English language. We have begun learning words in Spanish to
help Focus Student #1 better understand what we are wanting her to
know and so she can better communicate with us her understanding
of what we are asking her to do. Whether it is counting, naming
colors, or identifying letters of the alphabet.

Focus Student #2 is a little boy who is learning about

social-emotional control and how to help himself gain composure
when he is working with his classmates and the teacher may be busy
with another student. He is learning how to take deep calming
breaths when he is disappointed that a friend did not want to play
with him or if a classmate knocks down the block tower he was
building. This student is the youngest in his family and one of the
youngest in the classroom so he is still learning how to self-regulate
and calm himself in the midst of upset and disappointment. Through
helping Focus Student #2 learn how social-emotional techniques help
him self-regulate, we are able to reinforce the knowledge of the
other students in the class and provide them practice to continue to
be successful in self-regulation.

b. One instructional strategy we have begun using for Focus Student

#1 is interactive instruction, we are learning about colors and their
names in the classroom. Together we could create a learning activity
that involves learning about colors, creating a game where the
students have to say the color in English and Spanish. While sitting
in a circle and reviewing colors, students would say the English name
for the color when the neighbor on their right touches their right
knee, the student then touches their own left knee and says the
same color in Spanish, and then touches their neighbor on their left
on that student’s right knee, continuing the activity around the circle
until everyone in the class has had a turn. The identified strategy
and activity reflect on my understanding and appreciation of the
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 student’s cultural and linguistic assets, lived experiences, academic
strengths, and learning needs because while is learning how to speak
English in our classroom, we are showing the we have an interest in
her native language and are willing to learn words and phrases in
order to be able to communicate with her.

c. One instructional strategy we have begun using for Focus Student

#2 is indirect instruction, by teaching him problem solving skills to
use to help him self-regulate and problem solve with his classmates.
One possible learning activity that Focus Student #2 and I could
create together to use in our classroom would be a chance to role
play how to handle upset and disappointment. Together we could
think of a scenario of when something made him upset and use that
to work together to create an activity to use with the rest of the class
so that the next time he or anyone else in the classroom became
upset they would be able to reflect on what they learned and use
that to help them problem solve with their classmates. Such as when
a student knocks over a tower he is building in the blocks center,
instead of him becoming upset, hitting his classmate or knocking
over their tower. What could he do first? Stop, take a deep breath,
and tell his classmate “Stop, I don’t like it when you knock over my
tower. Will you please help me rebuild it?” Focus Student #2 and I
could teach this to the students in class during learning time,
allowing his classmates to role play with him and each other on how
to handle disappointment and frustration. The identified strategy and
activity reflect on my understanding and appreciation of this
student’s cultural and linguistic assets, lived experiences, academic
strengths and learning needs because while he is teaching his
classmates how to self-regulate and maintain control of their
emotions, Focus Student #2 is also learning these skills that will
continue to grow and mature as he grows older.

Activity 3: Communicating with Your Students’ Families

Equally as important as developing relationships with your students is
cultivating partnerships with your students’ families. There are multiple ways
to foster these partnerships (e.g., face-to-face parent/teacher/student
discussion circles, interactive family nights). Based on your knowledge of
your students, create one communication method that you will use to learn
about and connect with your students’ families/caregivers.

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1.2.3: Communicating with Your Students’ Families
After creating ​and ​using the communication, respond to the guiding prompts
below.
Further Information Link: ​Your Communication Method
Guiding Prompts
a. Explain how your method of communication conveys the importance of
cultivating positive relationships with students and their families. Use
examples from your communication to support your explanation.

b. Explain how your method of communication fostered interaction

among you, your students, and your students’ families. Use examples
to support your explanation.

c. Describe the overall response you received from your communication.

How will this response impact an instructional decision you will make
in your classroom? Use examples from the responses you received to
support your analysis.

Type your response to 1.2.3 in the textbox below.

a. My introductory communication conveys the importance of

cultivating positive relationships with students and their families
through my letter by letting the families know that I am excited to
meet them but also by letting them know that I am willing to work
with them if they are unable to meet at the time specified in the
letter. I let the families know that I want to hear about any questions
or concerns they may have while their child is in my class. I also
provide the families with multiple ways to contact me in the letter:
through mail, email, phone, and even through text using the Remind
app.

b. My introductory communication fosters interaction among myself, my

students, and their families by providing them the time and
opportunity to meet face-to-face and one-on-on to ask any questions
they may have or discuss any concerns they may in regards to their
child. By doing this I was able to learn more about my students and
their individual needs from their families. I was able to learn that one
student had a food allergy, but I also learned that another student
was an English Language Learner that was entering our classroom
with little to no experience speaking English with anyone. I also

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 learned that two of my students were held back for a growth year to
help them learn social-emotional control. I also learned that one
student lost her father over the summer and was still learning to
understand what it meant that he had passed away. With the
information given to me by the parents I understand better the
needs of my students and am able to create my lesson plans around
their needs and understanding.

c. The overall response I received from my communication with the

parents was extremely positive. I had one parent that had to
reschedule the time when she was able to come in and meet the
teacher as she was a teacher herself and it interfered with her being
able to meet her students on the same day. Another response I
received was in regards to the two students that were held back, the
previous year they had been in the same class together as well and
often played with each other during large group instructional time.
With this information, I was able to create a seating chart that
benefited the learning of these two children, as well as the ability of
the rest of the class to learn without being distracted by the
behaviors of these two students.

Required artifact for this textbox:

• ​your communication with students’ families (maximum of one page)

Insert your communication method link in the textbox below

(remember to remove identifiers)

Google Drive URL:

URL:​https://drive.google.com/file/d/115OAmBaQm8DveEyg3OcJVoZAw-4c
ZpEE/view?usp=sharing

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