Student Learning Context Ideas
We asked:
When you think about your unique group of students and the work you do with them, what factors do you have to take in consideration when you arrange your room, plan assessments, design lessons, etc. (ex. Students speak another language; you have reading levels ranging from 1st to 3rd grades; etc).
Give specific examples of how your decisions have changed or been influenced by the specific needs and circumstances of your class make-up, as well as community, district and school influences.
Below are segments taken from class members’ journal entries.
These are samples of how commentary linking to facts might be written.
The reason I use this seating arrangement is so that it reduces the amount of distraction in the classroom. The reason behind this arrangement is that my students require structure in their arrangement and need stability in their seating.
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Some of my students don’t always have stability at home or have adequate environments for homework completion at home. For that reason, I am available after school regularly and I have a high turn-out for that after school Study Club. There, I support learning and allow students to catch up on missed work if needed. I also contact parents of students who fall behind and request that they attend the Study Club.
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We have a large ELL population (
I have 12 students* eligible for services
) – I try to arrange so students can help each other (one Russian student speaks no English – two others from Russia speak English very well, so they help translate). I have to use a lot of visual cues in my lessons (pictures of objects I’m talking about, naming the object & pointing at it, etc.). I have to give directions many times, paraphrasing in different ways, in hopes one of the ways will make sense
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How this effects me, is I need to establish clear expectations from the first day. Provide small snacks for some students who don’t bring them from home. Work with other staff to get homework completed. Establish communication with parents. Let students get things off their mind before we begin a lesson. Many have a lot going on at home. Ex. They didn’t get sleep because they live in a trailer with mom, sister and brother. I try to provide a structure, yet open and safe feeling classroom where learning can happen. I want the student to feel safe and good about what they do have control over.
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In arranging my room, I place marginalized students, students with 504 plans and disengaged students near the front so I can more easily monitor their understanding and provide additional re-teaching in a non-threatening way.
Given my class sizes, I try to minimize transition time, by being intentional about movement in class for picking up materials or turning in work. I also try to provide instructions visually and orally so that students will know how to proceed when they complete a task.
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All seven of my Ell students are Spanish speaking so I have been able to get help from out ELL teacher who has all of these students in her block class.
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Because one third of my class is English language learners, I have had to change my personal teaching language in my everyday lessons. I have had to add pictures and additional examples in simple forms to all my teachings.
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. I specifically do the following within this class:
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| Use pictures
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| Mini elementary video clips (united streaming-when available)
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| Many different descriptive verbal options
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| Hands on opportunities
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| Directions on board/elmo and hand-outs
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In my class, the students’ academic abilities range from first grade levels to 5th and 6th grade levels. I need to differentiate instruction to ensure I am meeting the needs of all students. Differentiation happens in many ways: reading groups, one-on-one instruction, help from para-educators, etc.
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At the beginning of the year I had a large class of 27 students (16 boys & 11 girls). Two boys were moved from each third grade class making a 2/3 split with 19 __ graders and 6 __ graders. The two boys that were moved out come back in for math each day. I need to make sure that they feel a part of our class for that time and that I hold them accountable for behaviors and effort. I am in constant contact with their new teacher.
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This year, I have quite a menu of student behaviors to consider. Out of my 22 students:
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| There are two boys that have a history of disobedience and physical violence.
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| I also have a female student who is autistic in my class.
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| There are five students in my room that are ELL.
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| I have one boy who is very emotionally sensitive.
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To cope with all of these behaviors, I need to make sure my room is arranged in the most beneficial way. I don’t want the volatile boys to get angry with each other, or get in each other’s way. I arranged them so they are on opposite sides of the room. They are also on the ends so they don’t feel “closed in”.
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