Webber Middle School will support and challenge all students to learn and grow to their

highest potential. This relatively new school, opened in 1990, follows an exclusive set of

prompts and programs for the attending students. Students are placed on an expectation that is

healthy and challenging to the mind. Rather than allowing students to be aware of their

misfortune, they are pushed to find what their minds are capable of in terms of creativity and

behavior. This is most visible by the schools integration of assessment grades. The children are

encouraged to work in a culture that is based on teamwork, positivity, and responsibility. My

classmates and I often reflected on the amount of group work that takes place in our classrooms.

The teachers promote that because they want to see the student body succeed rather than a select

group of kids. One of the programs exclusive to Webber is the Webber Aeronautics Ventures in

Education (WAVE). WAVE focuses on space technology which includes a simulated space

launch in a mock-up shuttle that has been decorated by students of recent years. 80% of

attending students participate in music programs including jazz and orchestral band which shows

their continual focus on the arts. When I attended a drama play in April, I was pleased to find two

of my students in lead roles (and they both exceeded my expectation). Finding the challenge that

students need to reach their full potential is complemented with Pre-Advanced Placement

courses in core curriculum classes. As with every Poudre District school, Webber emphasizes on

the 6 Ps: Prompt, Polite, Positive, Productive, Persistent, and Proud. These are reflected well in

classroom settings from what has been shown to me. Although the school believes that every

student should push themselves to be the best they can be, there is a relaxed climate that flows

through the hallways. Students will often be found roaming through the school or sitting at their

lockers doing assignments during class time. As is the norm with Fort Collins schools, Webbers

demographic makeup consists of 79% white students and 12.7% Hispanic students. Another 9%
is made up of Asian, black, and students with two races. A larger middle school of the district and

the state, Webber Middle School currently teaches 805 students.

I have two students that Id like to talk about. Carla is a student in Mrs. Kaups history class on

black days. She is currently reading at an estimated 1st grade level which often causes her to

build anxiety quickly in class because she tends to fall behind. However, Mrs. Kaup and the

faculty do their best to help her stay on track and scaffold her to a level of understanding. She

likes to talk about news and look at photos of historical figures but because of her needs, she

cannot learn about the them through the textbook. She can articulate big ideas well and keep

calm, but needs to have tests read to her because she is unable to discern what the questions are

asking. When I read her test to her, she chose the first answer for almost every question because

it was clear that she could not understand the question or did not listen actively in class because

of her needs. Unfortunately, I have not seen her since the beginning of April, but I hope that she

transferred to another classroom and is getting one-on-one time with a teacher to help her

succeed. Another student, Bianca, is one of my personal favorites in the class. When I first came

into her class, I felt it necessary to help the teacher calm the students down by using verbal

reminders. She was the only one who spoke up about it and asked the teacher if I was there

solely to tell students to be quiet. She has standard interests including music and clothes, but she

comes from a different home environment than most of the student body that I connect deeply

with. Since the beginning of the semester, Bianca and I have built a mutual relationship that is

beneficial to both of us. I apologized for stepping over the line on the second day and since then,

she has asked for my help exclusively whenever she has trouble with assignments.

The classroom culture is a welcoming one. Mrs. Kaup wants all her students to feel that

they can express themselves without judgement and bring something new to the table. This can
cause distractions easily in the class but I imagine that if Mrs. Kaup practiced more discipline,

less students would answer questions and be less willing to share among their groups what they

found. Students sit in collected desks of four. Certain groups sit together (the sporty boys, the

gossip girls, quiet students collect in the back desks) but are generally productive with their

friends. From all the assignments, so far, the teacher wants her students to figure out answers by

themselves. The most recent test involved little lecture and a lot of group work which made for a

lot of collaboration in preparation for the test (including a special district-implemented version of

Powerpoint presentation for information on battles). Mrs. Kaup is great at making any additional

reading or information on the content accessible using Google Classroom. She answers almost

any questions the students may have and lets them know what needs to be copied in her lectures

by highlighting words on the board. The demographic of regular 7th grade history consists of an

even number of both boys and girls with a handful of black and Hispanic students. The Pre-AP

class consists of mostly white students with a few Hispanic students. The boy and girl ratio is

even, having a few more girls than boys.

In Mrs. Kaups classes, she practices a few different forms of assessment. Aside from the

paper-copied tests and homework, a lot of her assessment comes from checking for

understanding during group work. Students work on projects together almost all the time. They

rarely made a project together, but they all collaborate and share ideas on historical analyses.

Kaup lets her students practice student self-assessment in some of her classes, prompting them to

write test questions for the next assessment. These assessments play a role in future activities

throughout the semester. Sometimes a change in the day could be as simple as ten extra minutes

of review or more integrated as a project based around a period that few students had background

knowledge on. As Ive mentioned, Kaup is close and open with her students. There have been
multiple times that Ive heard them be completely honest with her about where they stand on a

topic or assignment. It makes for a productive and safe classroom environment where students

can address their concerns without fearing judgment from their peers or the teacher.