My role as an elementary teacher has always been to meet the needs of all the kids in my class. No two children are the same. For as long as I can remember, I have been adjusting my lesson to meet the needs of different students. All my students read at the level that they are comfortable at and are even spelling at their level. I have never had a student who is ELL, but that does not mean it is not possible. I find that when I differentiate, I do without thinking. A lot of times it is driven by the students. They always ask can I do more than that or can I do this? The hardest part about differentiation is assessing kids to find their reading level or spelling level. By the time I get through one assessment and figure out the numbers it is time to give it again. Sifting through the data and what it means is the most time consuming part.
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2 comments:
I agree that is seems elementary teachers are natural at differentiation. Students always come to you at distinctly different levels. At times as the students advance to higher grade levels we sometimes overlook the differences in reading levels etc. It is not always as apparent to the teacher and we, unfortunately, sometimes slip into the "one size fits all".
As a special education teacher I understand your frustration regarding the time it takes to assess students. It would be much easier, as Connie commented - to teach in a "one size fits all" manner. However, as a parent of an elementary aged child, I am thrilled to hear that there are teachers like you out there who go the extra mile! :)
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