I have a student in my class who
has a very bubbly, outgoing personality.
Sometimes he is misunderstood for being spacey, distracted, and the
class clown. On his “Getting to know
you” survey from the beginning of the year, he wrote that one important thing
to know about him was that “he is cool”.
He was all about running for student council, and this student loves to
be the center of attention.
His personality is charming and
entertaining, yet his behavior can be distracting to himself, teachers, and his
classmates. During lessons he fiddles and draws as we speak. He does not intentionally distract others,
but his constant movement and quiet chatter sometimes causes issues with
classmates. When he is asked to complete
work at his desk or produce an assignment, he does not get started. It takes much motivation and reminding to get
him on task and working.
This past week I have learned SO
much about him just by continuing to observe him and interact with him as he
works. On Monday we placed the students
into partners to complete a comprehension lesson in literacy. During the
explicit instruction time this student looked and acted as if he was in another
world. He whispered quietly and doodled in his notebook. When he was grouped with his best friend, to
my surprise he was able to successfully complete the task. Although he did not act as if he knew what he
was supposed to be doing, he successfully got on task and stayed on task. Today as the math lesson was taught, my
teacher and I got a closer look at him and realized his chatter is not mindless
or disruptive; when he whispers he is restating what my mentor teacher or I am
saying.
Our student is special because he is so unique
in his learning style. Although he comes
off as being unmotivated, distracted, and spaced out, he pays attention in a
completely different way than most students.
His doodling and light chatter helps him stay on task and process what
we are saying. This has made me realize
how important it is for me as a teacher to observe my students and get to know
how they behave. Initially I was so quick to assume he was disruptive and
unproductive, but that was not the case.
Getting to know my students helps me realize why they do the things they
do, which can help me as I build my relationships with them. This also helps me
have a better understanding of them. It
is important to cater to individual learning styles and foster a learning
environment that is productive for all students. I am looking forward to interacting with the
students and building meaningful relationships which produce productive
learning for all. 
No comments:
Post a Comment