Chapters 3 & 4

1a. How is “living what [you] believe” (Fulfilling the Promise, page 26, middle of right-hand column) both difficult and easy for teachers?

    

     Living what you believe is difficult because there are easier things to do.  It is much easier to simply stand up in front of a class and try to fill our students' brains, it is better and harder to take the time to have a differentiated class that can truly learn.  It is easy for teachers because it is often better to follow one's own conscious/beliefs than to do anything else.  Your beliefs make up who you are and how you think so it is natural to follow them.

1b. How can (might, should) differentiation affect “living what you believe”?

     A teacher should believe that every child can learn and help them to learn as much as possible by differentiating their instruction.  This differentiation puts into practice your belief of helping every child learn and grow to their potential.

1c. From chapter 4, explain what Tomlinson meant when she suggests that a teacher, early and often, should say to students, “Let’s figure this out together. Let’s make this our class.”

     She wants teachers to say this early and often because the best way for children to learn is by feeling invested in their own education.  If a student thinks that they have a say in their education and that they are valued individually by the teacher they will work harder and better in school, thereby learning more.

Sylvia Allen's Visit

Last week when Sylvia Allen came to teach us about morning meetings I learned a lot about how to create a community in my classroom.  Morning meetings are a great way to create a sense of community.  It is a safe time for students to take risks and really stretch themselves to be better.  It is here that the close connections between students are formed, because when people take risks together they become closer than they could have in any other way.  By forming this connection between students they start to work together and help one another without being asked and can learn to solve their own problems.  This time also gives the teacher a chance to really get to know their students.  As they are in morning meeting a teacher can see what is hard for them and what comes easily so they can help their students later in the day.  It also gives them a chance to hear from all of their students when they have something to say instead of trying to find time throughout the rest of they day to get recognised.

Chapter 2

The statement "...emotions trump learning" refers to humans needs outlined in Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs.  It basically states that humans have an order of things they can focus on and before someone can learn they must have all of their basic needs met.  This basically means that the brain cannot focus on anything new that is going on if the child is not feeling safe, fed, and that they belong.  I also think that this applies to the classroom because our students are not able to pay attention and learn what we are trying to teach them if they don't have their basic needs met.  I think that this also leads into our lessons and how we connect to our students' emotions.  If we teach to connect with emotion our students will remember it better because it connects with their basic needs as well as their learning of new things.

Chapter 1

I really like the quote from Tomlinson, “teachers who are willing to establish ties with students discover new depths of truth each day...”  This means many things to me.  First, exactly what it says is very true.  As a teacher interacts and establishes personal ties with his/her students they will learn more about their students everyday because the students will trust the teacher and confide more and more in them.  This statement also shows the flexability and vulnerability a teacher has to exhibit because there is no other way to learn "depths of new truths."  The best teacher is the one that is also a learner because they understand the learning process which helps them remember that they need to adapt their teaching to fit the needs of the individual learner. 

I also liked the quote at the very beginning of the chapter by Levine, "Schools are like airport hubs; student passengers arrive from many different backgrounds for widely divergent destinations. Their particular takeoffs into adulthood will demand different flight plans."  This hit me very strongly because it is such a perfect metaphor for the classroom.  Every child comes into a classroom with different story and background and they will leave as unique individuals as well.  It is what happens while they are in the classroom that will determine whether they are successful in where they go from there.  If we take the time to help each individual child and teach them what they need to know to be successful in life we are truly good teachers.

What do you see?

Just like in a field of flowers it is really the combination of the many different flowers that really makes it wonderful.  Anyone can see the beauty of the field from a distance but it is only those that take the time to look closely that really see the true potential and wonders that the field holds.  The same happens in a classroom.  When someone walks into an elementary school classroom they see the beauty of the class as a whole.  However, if the teacher gets to know their students they can really start to see these unique and wonderful differences that make up the beauty.  Every child is an individual that brings a different story and experience to the classroom and if we take the time to really learn and see them we can help our students succeed more than we could ever imagine.