Eddie seems to be exhibiting signs of ADHD, much like Marcus
in today’s reading. He may benefit from having a more clearly defined schedule
that accommodates for his active behavior. By incorporating activities for
kinesthetic learners may benefit Eddie, since he always seems to be on the
move/ focused on moving things. Much like the Breitfelder article discussed,
having a visual schedule displayed in the room, complete with built in time for
moving around, for him to see exactly what is expected and anticipated may help
him to stay focused through learning times as he looks forward to break times.
Establishing a reward system might also benefit Eddie. If, for example, he can
complete his schoolwork with good behavior throughout the day, you can give him
an extra reward on top of his scheduled “active” time.
It
may also be helpful to tap into his imagination by allowing him to write
creative stories and then share them in front of the other students at the end
of the day. This could be one of his rewards for paying attention during class.
With regards to his failure to listen during science, it might be good to hold
off on bringing in visual aids until after the explanation is done so Eddie
cannot get distracted prior to learning important information.
There
could be several reasons for Jonathan’s struggles with reading. He may not
being at the same reading level as the other students because he has trouble
with processing language, especially the written kind. According to the
Breitfelder article, researchers found that using visual supports, such as
“photographs, hand-drawn pictures, graphics, or computer-generated icons
actually benefit all students especially those who have difficulty reading”. As
Jonathan’s teacher, it might be a good idea to take a step back from trying to
leave him on his own to process written directions or reading assignments; he
is obviously struggling with reading and until he has further instruction with
a specialist if possible, it would be a good idea to incorporate more visual
cues during lessons. Having directions enhanced with pictures will give
Jonathan the extra help he needs in order to complete the given assignment.
Also, allowing Jonathan the ability to utilize more picture books for reading
time will also help him in making the tradition toward reading on his own
without illustrations.
With
regards to his inability to ask for help, Jonathan may not feel comfortable
asking the teacher because he feels embarrassed or because he was never told
how to ask for help. As could be the case of Jonathan, some students might need
extra scaffolding in how to ask for help. Since he has not been asking for
help, it might be good to instruct the entire class about the benefits of asking
friends for help first before asking the teacher. This way, Jonathan is not
being singled out for failing to ask questions; instead, the teacher is
encouraging everyone to use their peers to enhance their own learning. The
teacher could also go out of her way to make sure Jonathan feels comfortable in
asking her questions. Building positive student-teacher relationships could
work wonders for his confidence in asking for help when he is confused.
Lupita
sounds like a typical ELL student who might be slipping through the cracks
because of her reserved nature and the lack of direct teacher involvement in
her learning. With Lupita, as well as the previous students mentioned, this
might be a good case for having an interview with her parents/grandmother; this
would be a good way to find out what her interests are and how she performed in
her school in Mexico. Obviously she is a bright student since she was able to
pick up how to solve a puzzle when she had no prior experience working with
such games before this occasion. For Lupita, this is her first time being
thrust into an English-speaking classroom; in these instances, it is important
to remember she is not in the process of learning both conversational and
academic English so she might not feel very comfortable in conversing in
either. As her teacher, she can provide as much scaffolding and support as
possible. Explicitly giving directions in several different ways- written,
verbally, and visually- and enriching that classroom with as much literacy as possible
will help give Lupita a chance to succeed in learning all different forms in
English.
