"Talent is what you bring...Effort is what you give."

Nancy,

I couldn't get my picture to come up on my profile, so here is one in my post.

Thanks

Portia

There are many things that caught my interest and appeal in these readings. There are A LOT of ideas that were great. Some of my favorite in the Morning Meeting readings is that students get to hear their name said every day in an educational setting. I can remember days in elementary school that the teacher didn't even say "hi" to me, morning meetings resolve that quickly. I like that morning meetings promote emotional intelligence by using greetings, sharing personal thoughts, wonderings and events. In this technological age, I have found that even some adults have a hard time with a simple greeting. Morning meeting greetings give students the tools, practice and an avenue to try and be successful at greetings. Simple as greetings may be, it could some day land students the future job or personal success they seek because of their ability to greet. I like that the morning meeting informational packet had real life teachers using the program and the way they presented the idea of morning meetings to parents. I found that the reasoning and the tone the teachers used for the send home letters or back to school night speeches were very helpful in helping parents catch the importance.
After reading the Differentiation in Practice I felt more at ease with the practice of differentiation. I also caught the vision of why it is so important to implement differentiation in the classroom setting. Reading the different scenarios in part one of the students in Ms. Johnson’s class felt real life to me. It wasn't a fantasy setting and I felt like I could relate to the students she described to students I have had the opportunity to work with in field. I see how there are a lot of components of differentiation but the philosophies are simple: Who we teach, What we teach, Where we teach, and How we teach. The part of responsive teaching really “spoke” to me as I was reading because they helped me focus on what differentiation really is. I like how the book states that "curriculum gives students 'legs'" I never thought of curriculum in that sense, however it is so true that curriculum is knowledge and understanding for our students. Getting to know the environment in which you teach is essential. It even states that a learning environment can "make or break" your students' ability to learn. Knowing the different components of when teaching the whole class is appropriate or in smaller groups was something for me to think about because I am not totally sure how to know when to do which. I like that the book stated, “Teachers make sure that differentiation is always ‘a way up’ and never ‘a way out’.” That line made knowing what your students are using and confusing come to life for me. I know what using and confusing is, however, making instruction a way up for students by knowing what they are using and confusing is differentiation. By informal or formal assessment as teachers we know where students’ ZPD is and we can make instruction accordingly. Of course, just like the scenarios in this book, every one is different. It is our job to find a way up for our students to learn and not a way out. Finally, the quote from the baseball coach "Talent is what you bring...Effort is what you give." If everyone is trying their best, giving their best effort, learning is happening. I think it is important to have appropriate expectations for students so that they know that you expect them to give effort.