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Charles L Spragg Elementary School

Page history last edited by Hannah Caughey 8 years, 11 months ago

 

Partner institution: Charles L. Spragg Elementary School

Website: http://ehcs.k12.nj.us/

 

Contributors (2015):

Hannah Caughey

 

Instructions:

Contributors: for details on what is required in each section, please look at the Guidance Notes

Contents: 

Placement Information

Accomodation

Transport

Social life

Things to do, things not to do

Useful Contacts

Before you go

Placement Information

Charles Spragg Elementary School is based in New Jersey and educates children from preschool through to third grade. I completed nine days of work experience here, equivalent to 63 hours. I travelled to Newark on the 7th of March and returned home to Birmingham on the 25th of March. During my placement, I worked in a Kindergarten Inclusion classroom during the first five days and a Second Grade Inclusion classroom during the final four days. Although I was based in this school and these classes, I was given the opportunity to visit a local middle school and also observed lessons in a preschool class and self contained special education classes.

 

The school is small, friendly and welcoming. The classes mostly consist of around fifteen students. The school is situated in a deprived area where many families live in poverty. The placement was easily organised via email and all staff were good at replying to emails which resulted in fluent and regular communication. The staff were great throughout my placement; interested in my research and always willing to support my studies. Staff were open to being interviewed and observed. I was particularly interested in researching how USA settings support children with Special Educational Needs, staff were extremely helpful with allowing me to conduct this research; one of the teachers invited her relative in (who works in a local SEN school) so I was able to gather information from her and I was also taken to a local middle school and met the SEN curriculum coordinator/ supervisor of special projects. 

 

As well as observing lessons, I was able to take photos of classrooms and work 1 to 1 with children who needed extra support with literacy and numeracy. My participation in helping the children's learning was encouraged and staff made me feel valued and capable by allocating me with different roles throughout the placement. I was given the opportunity to plan and present a lesson about Great Britain which I really enjoyed. The local press were invited in who took photos and interviewed me. This was a great experienced and has really developed my self esteem. 

 

An area of the Kindergarten Inclusion classroom: 

 

 

The Second Grade Inclusion classroom: 

 


 

Accommodation

I stayed with my auntie and uncle in New Jersey. The house was 30 minutes from the setting however the journey seemed shorter. If completing an international placement and travelling alone, I would recommend staying with someone you know. The prospect of completing a placement on your own in a different country is daunting enough, so having support from familiar people in comfortable accommodation is important. I had access to wifi which I also think is crucial to allow the completion of work and to stay in contact with people back home. It was nice to be able to use Skype contact course friends and discuss placements. It was also useful having access to a printer as throughout my placement I kept thinking of things that needed printing and signing. 

 

The accommodation was based near the beach with lots of restaurants, shopping centres and casinos nearby. Due to the many tourist attractions nearby, I believe it that there would be plenty of assess to hotels, bed and breakfasts and rented accommodation in the area. I noticed a particularly high number of bed and breakfasts in Cape May which is a town in New Jersey. It would probably be too difficult to travel to this placement everyday from Cape May however it is a lovely place to stay for a night or two. 

 

The neighbourhood in the snow when I arrived: 

 

My auntie and I: 

 


Transport

I used STA travel to research and compare flight prices and eventually decided to book a return flight with United Airlines. The flight took around eight hours there and six hours back. Although it sounds like a long time, there was in-flight entertainment available (films, TV, music) which made the flights feel shorter.

 

Public transport is less accessible in the USA compared to the UK. The main method of transport used in the USA is cars. Many citizens begin to drive at a young age, the petrol is cheaper and the reliance on cars is higher due to the less efficient public transport infra-structure. I was lucky enough to have lifts from my auntie and uncle to and from placement every day. Taxi's are expensive and as far as I'm aware there were no buses which would take me directly from the accommodation to the placement setting. Renting a car is a possibility and I would imagine that that is the easiest way to travel to the placement if lifts are not available, however they drive on the opposite side of the road in America so I can imagine driving to be slightly confusing to begin with!

 

The image below shows a school bus. School buses are a popular and reliable method of transport for children attending school. Most of the children at Charles Spragg either walk to and from school or have access to a school bus service. 

 

 

Coach services are available at Atlantic City bus station. Services ran throughout the day and at cheap rates. There was a coach service throughout the day which went to New York, travel prices upon enquiry were estimated at around 50 dollars. 

Social Life

There is plenty to do in New Jersey. Egg Harbor Township is full of great restaurants. Some of the restaurants were situated right by the beach which were lovely. I would recommend Bonefish Grill, Bay Avenue Sushi and The Anchorage. I have a very generous auntie and uncle so I was able to experience many different restaurants which was great!

 

Sushi at Bay Avenue Sushi: 

 

 

A cake shop like no other!

 


 

As well as fantastic restaurants there are many shopping malls nearby. Victoria Secret shops are in almost every mall and definitely worth a visit! Tanger Outlets is a great place to socialise. Me and my auntie went there many times to buy designer clothing and gifts. Outlets ranged from Calvin Klein to Abercrombie & Fitch, many of the stores had up to 60% off! There are also some nice coffee shops and restaurants by the Tanger Outlet walk so plenty to occupy the whole day.

 

The Atlantic City boardwalk is full of gift shops and arcades. The boardwalk is right on the beach and a nice place to socialise. There is a vast choice of fast food available here and lots of cheap activities to do so a good day out if it's sunny! I would recommend playing the crazy golf and going to the arcade. If you are 21 when you travel to the USA, I would imagine going to a casino and going clubbing would be really fun; I have older cousins in America and they have told me great things about both. 

 

Wild West Casino: 

 

Things to do, things not to do

Whilst in New Jersey I would recommend travelling around the state. There are many different areas in New Jersey, all very different. Cape May is my favourite place to visit. Cape May is a small pretty seaside town which is full of interesting gifts shops and unique houses/buildings. Whilst in Cape May I would recommend going to the Cape May brewery. Even if you do not like beer (like myself) it is still an interesting trip where you can have a guided tour about the fermentation of beer and see the range of beer available. 

 

Pretty colourful buildings in Cape May: 

 

My uncle and cousin in Cape May brewery: 

I would also recommend a day trip to the Victorian town of Smithville. The style of Smithville is similar to that of Cape May, however there are many more shops. All the shops are unique and range from gardening to bridal shops. There are some cute bakeries and great wildlife to see there.

 

Two photos of quaint Smithville:  

Whilst in America I would suggest going to a Steakhouse. It seemed like a very American thing to do so I was eager to do it! I also went to go to a diner for breakfast twice which was a fun experience. There was lots of choice and was very hard to pick what to have. In the end I choice to have a breakfast wrap on one occasion and a quesadilla on the other- the portions were huge! The Golden Corral is a breakfast buffet and I have been there on trips to the USA in the past. The buffet is huge and there was pizza and ice cream for breakfast! If you ever feel particularly hungry one day then definitely go to a Golden Corral! I would also suggest a trip to Friendly's, they do amazing sundaes and desserts. 

 

Aberdeen Steakhouse: 

 

My breakfast at Denny's Diner:

 

Useful Contacts

I organised my placement with Adrienne Shulby. Adrienne is the principle of Charles Spragg and also the superintendent of schools in Egg Harbor Township so a very useful contact when organising most placements in the area. Her email address is ashulby@ehcs.k12.nj.us.

 

Before you go

-Make sure your passport is in date 

-Apply online for an ESTA- this is needed to travel into the USA

-Check the weather so you know what clothes to take, there was a lot of snow in March! 

-Keep in regular contact with the staff you will be working with- organise a schedule and share information with them about what you'll be researching and how they can help 

 

 

 

 

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