Scaffolding is a huge part of our job as teachers. It can be challenging at first when you are just beginning to work with you students. Even though you are scaffolding something, making sure that it should not be "too easy" can be a challenge. Time is a huge factor with DI. We all want to do small groups all the time, but it's not always possible with the demands of due dates and the rigor of the curriculum. As teachers we all hope that we provide students in the classroom with different scaffolds and tricks that you hope as a teacher they apply to their work and tests when you're not always around to watch. My question I was wondering during class was, What's the key in scaffolding to make sure that the students don't question why their work is "easier" or "more difficult" than another classmates?
As an English teacher I found the graphic organizer portion of class today very useful. My students use them very often in class, and I liked exploring and learning more about the different types of organizers, and which ones would better fit certain types of activities. I am going to focus more in writing on allowing my students to choose the graphic organizer that best suits them.
To wrap up, I would like to give Kellie kudos on staying calm in class with all the craziness of her car. I don't think, actually I know, that I would not have been that calm. Hope everything worked out after we left!
Scaffolding is SO HARD! I wish I had the right answer for you, but I think it's best to go on your instinct. Also, give your kiddos the choice and you'll be surprised how often they will pick the scaffold that is right for them.
ReplyDeleteI thank you for your praise, but I seem to remember someone I know driving off a cliff and coming to work...from you, I take that as a compliment.:)
Hahaha thanks! :)
DeleteI too struggle with what to say to my students who question why so and so's work is different. I have ended up saying " everyone has different needs and I give everyone what THEY need." I need to be better at scaffolding and yesterday's class helped me see how to do that.
ReplyDeleteI feel like I'll never do well in DI instructing all the kids since I see the entire school! But I'll be trying as much as possible. After this class I'm definitely more excited to try!
ReplyDeleteScaffolding IS in fact difficult, especially scaffolding for so many different needs. The more we practice, the better we'll get. We're in it together!
ReplyDeleteComing from a classroom that had 8 IEPS and they were from the below basic to close to proficient, I felt that I was all over the place trying to accommodate all their needs because they were at all ends of the spectrum. Three of them we reading at a Kindergarten level and if I was not with them the entire time, they would not produce any work. I ended up pairing the other five with higher students to help them throughout the course of the day. This is helping me figure out how to accommodate all students.
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