Integrating Instructional-Level Social Studies Trade Books September 23, 2009

When I first began reading this article it broke my heart to read about Jon.  I felt so bad because here was a student who was a struggling reader on grade level and the teacher did not try to help him.  How can we expect students to be successful in reading if we do nothing to try to help them? 

It is so important that we try to match students to instructional-level texts.  It was found and stated in the article that “teaching struggling readers in the intermediate grades with reading-level matched texts produced substantial growth in reading fluency.”  If this method shows growth then why wouldn’t every teacher implement this in their classroom?  I liked how this article gave criteria for selecting a good children’s book.  I can refer back to this as a future teacher so that I can make sure that I am selecting good quality books for my classroom. 

The article states that “struggling readers need opportunities to read quality children’s literature written at their instructional levels where teacher guidance and teaching, as well as peer collaboration, are essential components.”  I feel that as future teachers we should all strive to provide these opportunities for the struggling readers in our classrooms.

The part of the article that stood out to me the most was in the conclusion.  It stated that “A “class” or “grade” is an abstraction;  it exists in the teacher’s mind or nervous system…No one has ever seen a “first-grade class,” or a “fifth-grade class.  What a teacher should “see” is a group of individuals, unique unto themselves.  Not until differences are “seen” is the teacher ready to teach, because learning the child must precede teaching him…Differentiated instruction is a way of evaluating and living with a group of individuals in a classroom that results in a maximum of development of each individual in terms of his interests, needs, and capacities.  (p. 3)

This really means a lot to me because it is so important that teachers take the time to get to know their students as individuals and not as a class.  Since I have been working in my internship, I have taken the time to talk with each child about what they like and dislike and some of their favorite things about school.  I learned so much about each individual child and some things that might help them with their school work.  I also believe that if a student knows that you as a teacher care about them and their growth as a student then they will want to work hard in school and show that they can do it!

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