Week 4 Post

I thought that the "Marcus:  Gifted and Challenging" and Breitfleder readings were very helpful.  The first reading was interesting because the little boy Marcus was placed in a gifted program, but was diagnosed with ADHD.  It was helpful to see how Marcus performed in both classes and it showed how much of an effect us teachers have on students abilities to learn.  The teacher allowing Marcus to hold onto a squeezy ball during group reading time was interesting, this is something I never would have thought of having a student do.  It just shows that you really need to know all of your students and make modifications to each students' learning environment so they are better able to learn.

The Breitfleder article was helpful because it discusses ways to meet specific students with special needs in the classroom.  I liked how they provided pictures and directions on how to make inexpensive visuals for the classroom.  I really enjoyed the circle time board on page 6 with the weather bear.  Students are more likely to pay attention during various lessons throughout the day if they have manipulatives to keep them attentive.  For one of the visuals, the Breitfleder suggested having individual "mini" versions of the visual so the students can all participate with their mini one, and one student will come up to do a manipulative on the bigger, teacher version.  I thought this was a great idea this way everyone is participating in the activity, and therefore getting more out of the lesson.