So true... ".... remember clearly the few teachers that allowed me to explore things on my own terms and, interestingly enough, these were the experiences of school that had the greatest impact on me...."

So true at least from my personal perspeectiuve.

I have had the previlege of a whole bunch of teachers but the only ones I remember vividly to this day are the ones who managed to treat me with kindness and allowed me to " go wild " a bit from the regualr curriculum. And truely encouraged me.

I am not sure if the "Teachers" realize how important and significant little gesture(s) of approval and encouragement they bestow upon thier pupils on one-on-one basis go in fostering participation and general well being of these young ones....

I have seen it happening to atleast one young person that I know of in recent times.

Teachers do make difference and Great Teachers make Grerat difference.

DVP Rao

I think it is very important as you have pointed out to not think that all students think the same way. As a college student I feel that I am often taught it that way. Being in education classes that teach me to strive to find new ways to teach makes me think: Why don't they try it?

Several years ago one of my students explained to me why school just didn't work for him.
"Mrs Tyrol, learning is like a puzzle. I need to see the pieces one at a time and have help putting them together. Most teachers just give it to me all assembled and when they pass it to me that way and I try to pick it up, it just falls apart."

What a powerful statement and a challenge to us all!

There are so many teachers out there who still do not realize that they are the guides for their students as they journey through their classrooms in hopes of reaching their destination, a successful school year. In order to fulfill that dream, a child must be able to use their unique skills in a nurturing learning environment. Teachers must provide them with relevant learning opportunities, and they must be given the chance to dialogue with their peers so that their inquiry/problem-solving skills will develope and grow. Teachers who do not allow them the time for hands-on activities, or any activities that are tied to their environment, are not providing them with the experiences they need to do well in school. Students do not learn the same way. You can not depend on book work and lectures. Motivation and relevance are the keys to keeping students hooked. Teaching to their learning styles(auditory, kiesthetic, visual, global, analytic, etc.)is the only way to make sure you reach each individual child in your classroom. When the students see that you care enough to find a way to reach them, they will make a real effort to try and do better in class.

Your blog hit a perfect note for me tonight. I have just been working with my class on multiple intelligences, though we call it something much more exciting and appropriate for Grade 4, and in the process took the test myself and found out that my strongest SMART is music. I would have thought it was something totally different but when I look back through my life experiences I realize what a huge part music has played. The Ah ha moment for me was personal when I suddenly realized why I struggle working in groups and always want to be the leader. Working easily within a group is very low on my list. Just that understanding has had me looking more closely at my students and even though we are near the end of the school year I am encouraging them to try new things and ways to learn.

One of my students who struggles with everything except in the area of personality answered the questions and clearly came out as Group being his strongest area. Last week I put him in charge of a group rather than just a member. We talked about how this was an area he was strong in and I wanted him to try something new. He agreed and while the others in his group have given him a bit of a rough time because they are not used to him being in this position, he has grabbed hold of the opportunity and run with it and his group is experiencing success. I am so proud of him.

I love the fact that not only did Jocelyn step out of her comfort zone but you so did you when you transposed the song.

Thanks for getting me thinking.

Heather

Wow, what a very empowering story. It is so great to hear about teachers who go that extra mile and "really teach" by just changing or allowing students the opportunity to learn on their own.

I had the opportunity to attend a week long Professional Development to help in the area of Reading and Literacy. The most important thing that I learned from the teacher I worked with, was that you have to let students have the opportunity to make choices and discover on their own. When I returned from the PD, I started to step back and let me students, who are Kindergarten and First Grade age, discover newfound knowledge on their own just by picking up a book and reading. I saw amazing results in the knowledge they were learning, but at the same time, I was noticing that the students who never participated in class, were now the ones who wanted to share what they had discovered. It was such a great “discovery” on my part, to actually step back and watch the results of giving students time, choice, and different ways of going about discovering, to take that learning to the next level.

Our main goal as teachers is to teach each child and to go about doing that in a way that is effective for them; even if that means that we have to teach one concept 25 different ways. Because, if we are unable to teach each child that we encounter, then we have failed at our most important job.

Teaching today is a challenge. It is important to reach every student and seeing that little tracing goes on in schools, many classrooms have students of varying abilities not just learning styles. It is important that students all get the opertunity to understand topics. This is why I try to allow studnets to work at there own pace. Not only is this allowing studnets to complete all work and understand the topic, but many will strive to finish on the first test date. Often all studnets will test on the same day, showing that slower level students will increase there standard when placed in a general education classroom.

Heather,
I have question for Heather who commented on this interesting article. What type of multiple intelligence test did you give to your students? Is it something you can share or that I can look up somehwhere? I am interested in using this data for the beginning of the year with my 5th grade class. Having this information early on can greatly enhance the instruction within my classroom. I, as well as my students, like to work in cooperative groups. However, there are always certain students who need A LOT of motivation to work with others, but really need the extra information provided by group thinking. I would like to see how this could work in my classroom.

Tobi

Wow! That is all I can really think right now is wow! That was an amazing and an inspiring story. So often, if something doesn't work for one child, we find another child for it to work for, which is probably what most in your position would have done. Differentiated instruction is one of those areas that I constantly find myself striving to do better in. It is the key to success for our students, but it is so difficult to do. I would love to be able to take a workshop on how to better implement this strategy into my classroom.

I agree that is important for students to have an active role in their education. One way is by allowing them to choose what topic they want to learn/read more about. Another good way to address each child's individual learning needs is by completing projects over one topic, but allow each student to choose the way they would like to complete it: poster, story, song, etc. Activities such as these are when I see the children in my class truly enjoying their learning experience.