1. Is it clear to the pupils what they are and aren't permitted to do?

I think it is clear to the students what behavior is acceptable and what behavior is unacceptable. Most of this seems to be established by Allison's reactions to behavior and the children are probably familiar with this by now. When a child was behaving poorly, it did not seem to surprise them when they were  reprimanded.

2. Are there rules posted in the room?

I was actually shocked to see that no rules were posted in Allison's classroom.

3. How does the teacher handle disruptions that occur?

I think that Allison did not want to take away from the class time or enjoyment by focusing too much on misbehaving students. She would give a brief verbal warning or just say the child's name and give them a firm look for 5 seconds or so. If the inappropriate behavior continued, she would tell the child to sit out away from the class until they were able to control themselves. If the children were engaged in an activity that involved movement she would maintain a close proximity to a child who was behaving poorly. In the most extreme cases of inappropriate behavior that I observed this week, she would remove the child from all activities for the entire class period or warn them that a phone call would be made to their parents.

4. Is the teacher consistent? Are the rules in force for all students? every day?

I do not think that Allison was very consistent with her classroom management. Some behaviors were not allowed sometimes but then allowed other times. Also, I feel that she gave too many verbal warnings for some, and not enough for others. She talked to some students numerous times throughout a given lesson.  I feel she should have punished them a bit more after so many disruptions.

5. How does the teacher deal with undesirable students behavior?

I think that my answer for number 3 deals with this question as well. I can add that Allison at times did offer explanations as to why she asked students to behave a certain way. For example she would say, "When you interrupt the learning process it acts like an eraser and no one can learn anything" and so on.

6. How does the teacher provide for individual student differences?

For students with special needs, Allison makes a point to compliment them for their accomplishments. For example, there was a girl in one of the first grade classes with a cognitive disability who was singing loudly during one of the songs. Allison made it a point to tell her that it was the best she's ever heard her sing. Also, with a student who typically has behavioral issues, Allison seemed to let some things slide that she may not have let slide for children without these issues. Like a child in another first  grade who had really behaved poorly the first time I saw him was better behaved the second time around. He was quieter and more attentive, however he sat slightly off of the circle and sat on his feet, not his bottom. Allison did not try to make him correct this because it was more important that he was paying attention to the lesson as well as letting other students focus on the lesson by no interrupting.

7. How does the teacher foster respect for students?

I believe that Allison fosters respect by modeling respect herself.