Sunday, March 20, 2011
How Well Do You Know Your Students?
You MUST read Josh Stumpenhorst's blogpost at http://stumpteacher.blogspot.com/2011/03/are-you-listening.html Josh is right on the money. We have to know our students in order to be their best teacher. What is their home life like? What are they interested in learning more about? What after school activities are they involved in? What are their cultural mores? It is so important to have conversations with our students. I am currently reading Conferring:The Keystone of Reader's Workshop by Patrick A. Allen. Although this book is about reader's workshop, it is also about knowing your students in order to be their best teacher. Patrick Allen says, "I want the children in my classroom and the children in your classrooms to leave our auspices with some of our words in their heads and a whole lot of our caring in their hearts." When you listen to students, they know you care about them. When they know you care about them, they will be more motivated to learn. If you want to know what children think, just ask them!
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2 comments:
Ellen,
I could not agree more! I read @stumptheteacher's post this weekend and found myself nodding along as I read. I find the same is true with yours. Everyone has a story to tell. Are we just monitoring noise levels or are we really listening to our students. Thank you for sharing!
Kelley
Well said, Mrs. Ellen! Part of my mental health class required participating in a couple of clinicals at a hospital's adolescent psych unit. Most of these children struggled with school or suffered from eating disorders and drug addictions. You'd read their files and learn that they'd seen their parents commit suicide, had been living with their grandparents because their parents were in jail or addicted to drugs, or had once been impregnated by a relative but been shamed into getting an abortion. They were all creative with so much potential, but there was no one in their life who was a source of stability. Teachers could certainly serve as an encouraging and understanding source, and often were the individuals who had to report family misconduct to local authorities.
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