Differnet Learners in the Classroom

At first when I saw the topic for this weeks blog entry, I didn't think I would have anything to write about. But after really thinking about it and paying closer attention, I realized that the reason I hadn't noticed any special attention in Mrs. Paynters classroom was because Mrs. Paynter is an excellent teacher.

My first experience I had with an English learner named *Anna. The class had been preparing for a math test for quite some time, and it was finally time for them to be tested. After the tests had been passed out, Mrs. Paynter came to me and asked if I wouldn't mind reading the test to Anna while she graded some papers. Of course I was happy to help! Anna came and sat by me at my table and I slowly read each problem and the answers to her on the test, often times repeating them if necessary. She was very timid, but really seemed to benefit from being able to hear the words out loud. I watched her from then on to see how she did in the class, and seemed to follow along very well. There were a couple of times she would raise her hand and ask for clarification on something. She seemed to very involved in the class and doing very well. I was impressed because I know that sometimes it is really hard for students who don't understand to ask questions all the time. Often it makes them feel inferior or stupid when they ask questions too much, but she did great.

Another experience I had with an exceptional learner was a student named *Samantha. Samantha has a really hard time focusing in class, and often seems distracted by other things in the classroom. I almost positive that she had ADHD. I noticed that Mrs. Paynter tried as often as she could to call on Samantha and keep her on the same track as the other students. After spending more time watching Samantha, I noticed that Mrs.Paynter had strategically placed Samantha by specific students that were able to help keep her on track and keep her involved in the class activities. She also placed Samantha on the back row so that there would be no students sitting behind her to be distracted by her movements. It really was a very simple thing, but seemed to have a huge effect on how Samantha acted in the classroom.

I learned this week that having different learners in your classroom doesn't have to interrupt or change the way your classroom flows, you just have to learn ways to adapt so that every student can have the same learning experience as the other students. I am definitely excited to learn more strategies that can help me in my future classroom.