This article from Edutopia, Wisdom of the (Multi) Ages Students Learn by Teaching made me think about the comment Ellin made about students teaching each other. I think this is an important factor that gets overlooked, and may be crucial to our students who struggle. How often do they get this opportunity in our classrooms? I think frequently we rely on our overachieving students to mentor others. I have gifted students who have had this happen so much that by fourth grade they are burned out and don' t want to be bothered. Other students haven't had the opportunity to play this role, and may struggle with appropriate language or attitudes towards the kids they are trying to help, often sinking to doing the work for the other student. Figuring out ways for all students to become mentors or "resident experts" as I like to call them may be key to raising interest and boost achievement. But, as this article states, it is a rarity in the United States, and alludes to high stakes testing as a possible culprit. I'm fortunate that my administrator supports this, and after watching the kids who worked with my struggling student she has decided to dedicate a part of each week to this idea across grade levels. Our plan is to have groups of classes meet twice a week to work on a project with a common theme. For example, the first term we will work on an International Project. I will teach East Asia, and students in grades 3-5 interested in learning about China, Japan, or Korea will come to me. Their projects will culminate in our annual International Festival, where we invite parents and the communtiy to participate. We are anticipating the Olympics will provide some excitement and interest.
Joy/NC/4 How children learn is as important as what they learn: process and content go hand in hand. http://www.responsiveclassroom.org _______________________________________________ Understand mailing list [email protected] http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/listinfo/understand_literacyworkshop.org
