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** DCIS- Middle School **
 * Case Study: Students with Single Parents **
 * First Impressions: **
 * When I first walked into DCIS's doors, I knew this was no ordinary Denver Public School. I could see through the environmental print of the various countries flags and the decorated placards lining the hallways, along with the banners that proclaimed: Integrity!, High Expectations!, Diversity!, Reflection!, and Collaboration!, which are the school's core values. The students choose to go to Denver Center for International Studies and most take great pride in attending it. **
 * I started my first internship in an 8th grade class with my Clinical Teacher whom I will call Ms. D. In her second year of teaching since graduating the same Teacher Education program I am in, she is still finding her place as a teacher. Every day brings her different challenges as a teacher whether it is balancing grading her students' papers with designing new lesson plans for the unit, or classroom management and engaging the students. **
 * While observing her classroom, I watched the students who were high risk because of their low grades and not turning in many assignments. I watched their behaviors, and I looked at some of their work. I thought about my own experience as an 8th grader and tried to remember the challenges I faced at that age. It was a perfect age group to target because I had been going through a tough time at that age. My parents were divorced two years prior, my mom had just moved in with my soon-to-be step-dad, and I was the new kid in 8th grade. I thought, what better topic to choose than kids who live with a single parent, or go back and forth between divorced parents. This brought me to my three students, who I will call Student A, Student E, and Student G. **