Service Learning Service Experience

Service learning provides child development students an opportunity to get along with children, and learning about the ideas on how the instructors create their lessons. In this service experience, I have learned the way that the instructors teach their lesson, a clear and interested lesson always attract children attention and have them involve in the activities. In addition, demonstration is another important factor while holding a lesson since sometimes children are unable to get the actual meaning about what to do, or they have a hard time to process the steps; then the demonstration gives children a better understanding that they can copy and do it well. My lesson of this project is “An Insight Understanding of Horses.” Project Ride’s
mission is to improve physical, emotional and social functioning through participation structured and safe problem (projectride.org). In this lesson, I tried to give the children a brief description about the horses to let them gain more insight knowledge about the horses’ basic activities and their food, which will test children’s cognitive skills while they exploring the pictures. My goal is to improve the children’s vocabulary level and their cognitive skills; by the end of this activities, children will gain more knowledge about the basic of horses. I held my lesson at Project Ride at 3:15 in the afternoon on April 19th.
Project Ride is a nonprofit institution, which provides horseback riding to children with special needs, such as brain injuries, cerebral palsy, learning disabilities, developmental delay, and so on.. In this service learning project, I had an opportunity to teach and talk to the children. The children who were in my lesson would gain information about the horses’ favorite food and activities. I did know which child I would teach since Project Ride has different children in each lesson. Children come in to ride and leave in half hour. I tried to make the lesson for the children around ages five to seven. Due to the volunteer hours at Project Ride, I found out that attracting children’s attention and interests are important. Dewey stated, “he believed that the interests and background of each child and group must be considered when teachers plan learning experiences” (Mooney, 2013, p
16). After talking with the instructor and professor, the familiar horses might be able to attract children’s attention.
I tried to take pictures of the horses at Project Ride so that the children would recognize the horse, and they could be able to find out their favorite horse. I did some research on what the horses eat regularly and what they usually do. I had the twin boys, who are about seven years old in my lesson. For purposes of confidentiality, the pseudonym of the children will be Jack and Jay. I made the lesson into two parts, food and activities. First, I asked the children to find a picture of horse with a name on it. They went around the arena and found the picture they were familiar. As they found the picture, they were excited and told the instructor whom they found. Next, I gave them the options. They could find out either a picture of activity or food, which they thought the horse would like. The two children in my lesson have some basic knowledge about the horse; both of them found a picture of food, hays and wheat. I had them come back to the blue barrel. I asked them, “Do you know what is this on the picture?” Jack and Jay knew the food name of the picture. I showed them a verb, likes, and put the two pictures Jack and Jay found and the verb together to see if they could tell the sentence. Jack and Jay are smart that they could say the sentence out clearly and
correctly.
Secondly, I had Jack and Jay to find out another picture of horse with a name on it and a picture of activity that they think the horse might like. They went around the arena again. As they found the two pictures, I had them to go through the color palms, across the white palms, and come back to blue barrel. Jack was the first one finish the task. I was going to show him the other verbs with a preposition, but he might think I was going to give him the same verb. After I asked him what he found, and before I showed him the verbs, he told me the sentence already, “Lucky likes jumping.” As I showed and asked him the other verb, he could also say it correctly, “Lucky likes to jump.” At the same time, Jay came back with the pictures he found. I asked him the same questions. He recognized the horse picture and knew the verb that I show him, “Buddy likes to drink water.” It is obviously that both Jack and Jay have strong grammar skills and cognitive skills.
It was challenge because when I write my lesson plan, I did not know who I was going to teach, and I did not know the children well. Dewey thought it was important for teachers to observe what kinds of experiences the children are interested in and ready for (Mooney, 2013, p 18). I had a hard time on direction that I cannot tell others’ left or right, also I cannot tell when I am not on that position. When I asked Jack and Jay to make turns, I made them meet each other when they were on the arena. Overall, I would say my lesson is successful. The boys told me that they were excited to find out the familiar horses on the rail. Additionally, Tthe results showed the children could be done and learned what I expected in the lesson. The children were able to connect the verb and pictures together, and more than what I expected, they are good at grammar that they said the form of the verbs for the singular correctly.
What I learned from the lesson? Before the lesson, knowing the children well is a factor that teachers need to consider. After the lesson, I found that other than a clear and interested instruction, self-confident is also important while teaching children. What I would have done differently? I would ask if it is possible to be sure whom I am going to teach so I could know more about the children and make an appropriate lesson plan for them. Additionally, Jack and Jay are smart that they finished the task in a short time made my lesson ended in fifteen minutes. I had to come up with some ideas in a short time. I would pay more attention to the time management on each step in order not to finish the lesson early or late, and prepare one or two more activities in order to keep the lesson last for the entire class when I teach the smart children. Therefore, knowing the children well, clear and interested instruction, and self-confident are important for teaching a lesson.