Blog 2

Tell about an opportunity you had to work with a small group.

            The second half of my time each week in Mrs. Shumway’s room is during “Daily 5.” This is when they have small group time to rotate through stations focusing on reading and writing. I read with one of the groups in guided reading. It was really interesting for me to be able to observe some of their differences in learning styles. Some of the students were auditory learners and enjoyed hearing the book read out loud. Another student was a kinesthetic learner. He had physical actions he did while mentally completing different reading strategies. Other visual learners talked a lot about the pictures and how that helped them understand the book.

            As I read with this group, I was really grateful for the public education system we have set up today.  Before public education, only wealthy boys were able to go to school. I looked at the group and saw bright little girls and sharp young boys who would not have been able to go to school back then due to wealth or gender. Public education allows all children, no matter their circumstance, the opportunity to have a quality education. 

Blog Entry 1

How does the knowledge of the way people learn related to the experience of being a teacher?

                Everyone student learns a different way. It is the teacher’s job to teach all students, no matter their learning style, the material. Therefore, it is important for teachers to understand and apply the different ways students learn as to be a more effective teacher.

                In Mrs. Shumway’s first grade class on Thursday the students were learning simple addition up to 10. It was amazing to me how many different learning styles were incorporated into this single lesson. The students were each given a work mat split into three sections. They were labeled part, part, and whole. They were then given 10 counters. They were told to take the first number in the problem and put the coordinating amount of counters in the first “part” section. They were told to do the same with the second, then to slide both parts into the “whole” section and count them to get the final answer. Students could solve the problems in a different way if they desired, but this method worked for most of them. This was great for kinesthetic learners since it was so hands on. Before the students were set loose to try it on their own, for visual learners, the same process was followed but was completed on a mimeo on the board by the teacher. Auditory learners were also catered to as the process was talked about by the teacher. The class also had a discussion as to how to find the “whole.” They came to the conclusion that you put the parts together.

                It was really interesting to watch the light bulb turn on in the student’s brains as the same concept was explained or shown in a different ways. The students each learned in their own way, and different ways of presenting the same material made sense in different ways to each student. It is so important for teachers to understand differing learning styles so they will be able to teach to each student’s individual needs.