Differentiating means doing it differently?

So this week was a very fun one for me. I got to teach two classes back to back, third and fourth block,which was an experience. Anyone who knows anything about middle schoolers know that the lesson never goes the exact same way twice, but it went well both times. The classes are very different and third block didn't want to talk much but then again, they never really do. They require more leading to get to a conclusion or answer while fourth block gets to the conclusion or answer before I can even start the question. This made me think about differentiation and what  that word actually means because the meaning changes dramatically when you teach the same lesson twice. I had planned just to teach third and she asked me the day before if I wanted to teach fourth as well and of course I agreed. So, I went home and thought of ways I could change the lesson so that when I taught it to fourth it would better suit the personality of the class and the skill level of the students. I did some things differently with them to better fit with their work speed and our discussion was deeper because of the questions from the students. What I realized though, after I taught the lesson to both classes is that while I anticipated the discussion fourth would have and how much they would get into what we did, I forgot that third would not respond in the same manner. I watch my CE teach the two classes at least twice a week and I knew that there were significant differences in their skill level and personality and I differentiated in my lesson but not quite enough. I had never experienced teaching two totally different classes back to back and it really made me think about future lessons and what I will differently with third to get them into the same depth of conversation that fourth was able to get into.

This is where I find myself as I go forward with my preparation to be a teacher. Classes will be different and they won't enjoy the same things and that is okay. It is just important to remember that there are things that can be done to engage the classes on the same level, even though those things may be completely different. I just want third block to have the same enthusiasm as fourth and while they may never have it, I think there are things I can do differently for them that will at least raise the excitement level a little bit. Is that not the goal of differentiation after all? To get each class and each student engaged in the material in a way that requires them to make connections and learn in a way that is meaningful to them.

End of the semester crunch.

This week has been soon busy! I have had so much to do, for school and not for school. This week, my time in my classroom has been minimal I hate to say. I am hoping to go for a full day on Friday and for most of the day tomorrow.

This week I taught a lesson to my second block, with both professors observing. The class I taught is one of the classes I have not been able to see much because of my school schedule, so I didn't know really know them all that well. This made me EXTREMELY nervous, not to mention our professors are enough to make anybody nervous (just kidding but really). I also found out, the day before, that there was a new student in the class, which really added to my stress. I thought the lesson went well, until I read the comments. They were not bad but really gave me some things to think about. I also received some great feedback from my CE. She was very complimentary but gave me some constructive feedback, which I really appreciated. I also realized that children get nervous when there are guests in the room as well. The students are well behaved anyway but you could tell they were trying to make a good impression on me and my professors. I do hope though, that they warm up to me as the semester goes along. There is not much else to report this week but next week I will be going a lot to make up for this slow week!!

Always Be Prepared.

For those of you that do not know, "Always be prepared" is the motto for the Boy Scouts.  This is the quote that came to mind when I was in my classroom this week. My CE was up at the front of the room teaching and then these two boys began to talk, not quietly either. She stopped what she was doing, which was rare because she usually reprimanded and continued on with whatever she was talking about. She then said "What's the conversation about?" They both stared at her for a second and one of them said "he doesn't have a pencil." She shook her head and said "so you're not prepared and you're disrupting my class? You can have silent lunch tomorrow." She then walked over and got him a pencil out of the pencil box she keeps in the back of the room. Also, the same day, the phone rang probably ten times and someone knocked on the door and came in 6. She said that her room was like Grand Central Station. She told me later that sometimes you answer the phone and the door more than you actually teach. 

This made me think about, what type of things will I need to be prepared for?  Murphy's Law says that "anything that can go wrong will go wrong" and that's what I need to prepare for, anything. I have to be prepared when students don't have pencils and when they are talking while i'm trying to teach. Any time there are 25 twelve year olds in one room, something you are not prepared for will happen. I decided that I need to keep an open mind and just roll with whatever punches I am thrown. My CE seems to handle her punches very well and I hope that I can do the same.