I Like Differentiation

I am so interested in differentiation. I am also appreciative for it because I felt like it put together a lot of puzzle pieces that have been vaguely mentioned throughout the program so far and pieced them together in a way where I could wrap my head around it and I am not so overwhelmed by all of a teacher's responsibility anymore. I loved the addition of the affect and the learning environment to the student traits of learning profile, readiness, and interests and curricular elements of content, product, and process because I could understand the important role that both affect and learning environment have.

I really believe that learning environment is such an under-looked element of teaching because at least for me, a room that is cluttered with visual aides covering everyone square inch of the wall and cabinets seems very overwhelming and I myself can't concentrate with so much going on. I've always been like that. When I am extremely stressed, I clean my room as a start because I feel so much better. I'm not as overwhelmed and I feel like I can do it. I also feel like the learning environment goes hand in hand with Maslow's heirarchy of needs because the mood of the room will influence a students feeling of being comfortable and safe.

Chapters 3 & 4

“… I must not only learn about you, I must learn from you.”

When I read these words, my mind jumped to my past field experiences. When I was in front of the class for a lesson, it seemed liked I was more worried about the lesson going smoothly and what the children’s responses were to my questions in hopes that it would be right so I wouldn’t have to deal with how to handle a wrong idea or answer. As I reflect on that and when I think of learning from the students, three ideas pop into my mind. First, its hard in field because the class and classroom are not your own however it is still possible, but as teachers we need to feel safe and comfortable too. Those worries are affective issues that are trumping are ability to teach and learn. If we are comfortable with our class and are truly mindful of that moment then and there we can be more effective. The second idea goes with the first in that, if we are comfortable and we don’t let the those worries in the way, we can listen better which will allow us to truly try to understand what they are saying and we can learn (assess) what the student is thinking. My final thought is that as teacher we are advised to give students wait-time after making a statement or asking a question. As teachers we need to give ourselves wait-time, a moment to think about how to respond back, whether we agree with the child’s response, how to extend the discussion, or how to go about an incorrect idea. Developing this habit may be most effective when it comes to behavior issues. These ideas, I believe are direct application to reality, that will help with promoting dignity in the class.

“The persistent teacher will find another way.”

There are three things I think of when I read this. First, everything a teacher plans should be planned with the idea in the front of her mind that it might have change and it might not work and that is okay. That right there is probably the hardest thing for teachers to realize because of the amount of time we put toward our ideas and planning. This includes procedures. Second, as teachers, when a procedure doesn’t work out or an activity didn’t go as plan, ask the students their opinion, only sometimes but not all the time. Communicating this and having the students help find another way of doing something that needs to be changed is probably a good way to help build the ownership in community. The third idea is this, when something doesn’t work out or needs to be change or a new need comes around, it is a wonderful time for those teachers that are creative because it becomes a blank canvas or a problem with many possibilities to resolve it.

“Different is not a synonym for deficient.”

These words speak truth. I feel that there is a stigmatism among society that there is something wrong with a person if we say they are different or they have to do something different then most other people. I’d like to figure a way to explain this concept to young children so that as we build a classroom community, a value we seek is the understanding that what we do does not have to be the same.

Sylvia Allan & Morning Meetings

The stories that Sylvia shared with us about the girls in her class that suffered from abuse, took up much of my thoughts for a day or two after her visit. It was troubling to hear and it’s scary to think we might have to deal with that as teachers. However, it gave me hope that I could develop community among my class where they do feel comfortable and safe. I feel like the Morning Meeting allows the opportunity to build that community and helps attend to the most basic human needs as defined by Abraham Maslow. There are two ideas I liked from the discussion and that is first, the students managed the meeting, and the teacher sits back and facilitates. The second idea I like is how Sylvia made Morning Meeting her own and used it as reflection of herself. I intend to do the same.

Chapter 2: The Role of Students Needs

"emotions trump learning"

When I read these words, my mind instantly thinks of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. I also think of the importance the student trait of affect in a student’s learning. If a student has unresolved issues that have allowed emotions to build within one’s self, then most of the energy a student has will go to suppressing that emotion or feeling it. Therefore, there is little energy left for the student to engage in an academic discussion or activity. This is where it is important for teacher’s to build qualities of patience, understanding, empathy, compassion, and an ability to discover the root of problem instead of getting frustrated with the outlet of a problem.

Chapter One: Student Needs as the Impetus for Differentiation

“… we teach responsively when we understand the need to teach the human beings before us as well as to teach the content with which we are charged. … [It] is important to begin with the conviction that we are no longer teaching if what we teach is more important than who we teach or how we teach.”

This statement resonated with me because is a great reminder of why I am a teacher. With all the demands placed upon teachers, especially with standardized testing, the content can easily slip into the driver’s seat of teaching. However, if we want true success as teachers and want our students to succeed, we need to make our students and their needs the focus. We also need to put great care into our pedagogy because it is a direct reflection of what we value as teachers.

“If we risk taming…, days in school are no longer monotonous. Each day is a revelation... There is risk, of course. Perhaps our efforts will be rejected. Perhaps we will fail at creating ties with some students. Our colleagues may even disparage our efforts as an endeavor costly in time and emotions. In any case, it is wearying always to be taming… If we have connected with the students who left, we do mourn their parting, or at least feel a sense of incompleteness at not being able to continue to shepherd them, not being able to continue to shape and to follow their journeys…. We do feel responsible forever for those we tame.”

I enjoyed these words because to begin with it explains that risk brings value to teaching. However, I appreciate how it goes on to say that teaching is a burden upon the heart, but that it is in our students that leave us, year after year, we have given them a piece of ourselves and our hope to make the world a better place.

What Do You See?

First I must say that my happy place is a meadow of wildflowers. The sun is warm and shining and there is a slight breeze. The meadow is on a hill that overlooks the surrounding land. I often find myself sitting bare back upon a horse. It is there that I seek refuge in my mind.

Now as for the field of flowers as a metaphor for a classroom of children, one could easily see the faces of children as those wildflowers. Just as with flowers, students are different because of their many traits and environment. Several kinds of flowers are often found in fields. Most often there is more of one kind of flower than others. So it goes with a classroom. There always seems to be a majority and a minority whether it be race, achievement level, culture, etc. Many of each kind of flower bloom close together and look so much alike but if special attention is paid to each one, differences can be noticed. Some students may look similar however their shape, size, personalities, interests is what sets them apart from all the others. Flowers are shaped by their environment. If a flower is provided sunlight, air, water, nutrients, and space, it will grow large and beautifully. However, if a flower is crowded and must fight for nutrients, space, or water, then it will spend more energy on survival then on flourishing. So it goes with children also. When looking upon children, it’s amazing how much there is about each of them if we just stop, look, and listen.