Stephanie Wilmore ED 231 Fall 2011 Interview Activity

Everything we learn, we learn from someone else. I cannot add up how many times I have heard this saying! It is true though isnt it? Think back to everything you have learned and where you learned it from. It has been through something you have heard on the television, on the radio, from your friends/family/teachers, read online or in a book. What I have realized though, it is how you make connections with what you have heard or read that really make the difference between hearing, reading, and learning something and really understanding it. While at Alverno College, I have read multiple books that have taught me about young children and how they learn and grow. I have also seen many examples of how students learn and grow while observing students in a classroom. While doing this interview I was able to gain new insightthe insight from professionals who have their own perspectives of early childhood education. While asking them questions and comparing their answers I was able to learn more about how to be an effective teacher. I gained professional perspectives from two Kindergarten teachers from College Park, Mrs. Kate Searing and Mrs. Lisa Sullivan. I was also able to gain insight from a Special Education teacher I went to elementary with, Miss Abbie Johnson. With their answers to my questions, all three of these professionals were able to help me strengthen my own ideas of how to be an effective teacher and gain more connections between what I have read in books throughout this semester. The first question I asked all of these teachers was this: Why is knowledge of young children and how they learn and develop important in your job? In ED 231 at Alverno College we really focus on the stages of how students learn and develop. I was curious to see how what we had talked about in class would connect to their thinking. They all agreed that to be an effective teacher, you must have an understanding of how children learn, grow and mature. Kate Searing added you can make lessons easy, but without knowing how children learn and grow you would be missing out on the actual teaching of skills and concepts. She stated that whenever she is planning a lesson she will stop to ask herself is this developmentally appropriate?Abbie Johnson wanted to make it clear that it is essential to remember that not all children develop at the same rate, especially when working with children with disabilities. She wanted to me know that in order to serve each students individual needs properly, we need to

know where they are in the development process and teachers use different techniques and different strategies to work with students who are at different developmental stages. This went along with my own thinking about my new learning about the stages of students development and learning. We are given these stages step by step to give us an understanding of how students typically grow, however you cannot say that every student learns the same because that is not true by any means. These step by step stages are to help us figure out where students are at and what we need to teach them in order to get to the next level. Asking the children to do something that is beyond their developmental level is counter-productive and will cause frustration for the children and the teacher. If you have an idea of how students grow you are able to constantly re-evaluate them. There will be some children who are more than capable of handling skills and activities that are beyond their developmental level as well as those children who perform below their expected developmental level. An example I can think of is the child who is reading far above grade level or the child who has temper tantrums in fifth grade. As a teacher, I can use the research on child development as a guide, knowing that there will be children who do not fit perfectly into the norm. I also wanted to relate this same question to how to adapt or make accommodations for children with special learning needs. I first asked Abbie since she specializes with children with disabilities. Again, she stated how important it is to understand typically developing children in order to have a better understanding of children with disabilities. My thought process was, if you are working with young children, it can be important to be aware of typical behaviors so that you can watch out for atypical behaviors. She included that sometimes these different behaviors can determine if a child has a specific disability. I thought, if you understand where a child should be developmentally, and then you know if and when they are not developing typically. One thing that stuck my and that I will always keep in the back of my mind is this: making accommodations for children with disabilities is not something that can be generalized. Accommodations need to be made on a case by case basis according to each childs needs. As a teacher, you need to look at the child and determine areas in which they struggle because of their disability. It is important to remember that accommodations are made to level the playing flied, not give the students receiving the accommodations an advantage. She gave me an example that really holds true to what she was saying. A student with hearing limitations who has trouble with reading comprehension may need to be read the questions while taking a test. This accommodation only insures that that the student understands the question, but does not give them the answer. Kate also added that understanding the typical development of a child will help you to see and identify the areas where special needs children struggle. She stated that if she didnt know what a

typical five year old was capable of she would have no frame of reference to place expectations on her students. More and more I learned that this is a very individualized process. Each child learns differently and responds differently to accommodations. Where you need to start is actually getting to know each and every student. This will be the best indicator for youif you know the individual child you can better meet their needs and much of the time the process is trial and error. Kate explained that first you recognize an area where help is needed, determine what you can do to help the child, try it out and then evaluate if it was helpful or not. I asked her to give me an example and she did. For example, a child is struggling with fine motor skills (writing, coloring, cutting, etc.). I observe for a while to determine what specific skill to target. I chose cutting. I reteach and provide intervention on how to hold a pair of scissors through modeling and guided instruction. I make the line that is to be cut thicker and darker and easier to follow. Is start with straight lines and gradually increase the complexity of the task. I could try and adaptive scissors or hand-over hand modeling. As these interventions are in place, I continually check in to see what progress is being made. The tricky part is that what works for one child may not work for another. After giving me this example she explained that after a while you will end up with a file full of possible interventions and adaptations and the task is to pick the right one for the right child. Next I wanted to know where they get information about child development and what topics do they recommend that early childhood students study before they graduate. I was given multiple answers to this question. From my Education classes thus far I have gained a lot of information from books, theories/theorist, and hands-on training. Lisa Sullivan said that she continues to update her teaching about child development through books, magazines, parenthood, experience, internet and colleagues. She also stated that getting to know your students abilities and their developmental level is important as you scaffold their learning as a class, small groups and individually. From her I learned that the information that you learn helps you to make good choices as to how you teach. This also related to what Kate Searing had to say in order to answer the question. She explained that she learns a lot by observing, talking to, sharing time with, and listening to children. Dont get me wrong, she stated, there are so many resources out there and it is important to stay current with the research, but I feel the best way to stay up to date is to be with children. Abbie Johnson added in that it is important for Education students to study the history and progression of child development, reading development (past ideas and current trends), brain research, and action research which are studies done by classroom teachers in real situations. Lisa Sullivan also added that she believes students should study classroom management, classroom design, and how to incorporate creative arts into your teaching. I found this

very uplifting because I am already learning so much about creative arts and implementing them into lesson plans. Classroom management and classroom design will be areas I will learn much more about through experience, classes, and my own research. Classroom design was a topic that Abbie, Kate and Lisa both mentioned so I decided to ask them more about it. I wanted to know what some of the most important elements to consider when designing a learning environment for young children. Based on my previous knowledge I thought about keeping the room uncluttered, having furniture that was size appropriate, and having different areas blocked off in the room so students would know what the purpose of each area was. Providing a safe and comfortable environment is the most important thing to keep in mind when designing a learning environment for children. Lisa answered my question short and simple by stating that in a classroom there needs to be a space for everything and that as the teacher you need to let the students know that you expect them to keep their class clean and orderly. Kate expanded on this answer by explaining that a teacher needs to learn how to be flexible. The key is functionality. You need to ask yourself if the kids can move from place to place safely and can they do what they are supposed to do in the space. You also need to stay organized. Does it make sense in a childs mind? Just remember, everything should have a home. Kate also mentioned that a classroom needs to have balancelarge open areas verses smaller nook areas, defined work areas verses free choice areas, quiet versus noisy areas, and teacher spaces verses kids spaces. Abbie came in with a perspective of children with disabilities. When working with children with disabilities, it is important to keep each childs individual needs in mind. For example, if you serve a student in your classroom that is in a wheel chair, you need to make sure that the isles in your room are wide enough for the chair to be maneuvered. If you are working with a class of hearing impaired students, you need to make sure that all of the students desks have a clear view of the area from which you are teaching. If you have a student with an attention deficit disorder, you may want to refrain from covering every inch of your classroom in colorful posters and pictures. Together, this all gave me a clearer picture of things to think of when putting a classroom design together. Since ED 231 really focuses on the developmental frameworks I wanted to gain an understanding of how they implement them in the classroom. I feel that language plays a huge part in students learning. I was happy to find out that Kate and Abbie both agreed with this. Kate described that an effective lesson would consider all of the developmental frameworks but some will focus more on one area (but all should be considered she added, especially in the kindergarten classroom where the curriculum and social needs of the children are so closely related.). She told me that her general

philosophy of teaching and learning tend to focus more on the social and language frameworks. When I asked her why she state, Children cannot learn and be successful if interaction and communication is not encouraged and expected. They need to talk, share, listen, and participate in language rich experiences to be able to form understandings and opinions. I thought back to myself as a learner and made the connection that I as a learner need interaction and communication in order to be successful in my own learning. With their answers to my questions, all three of these professionals were able to help me strengthen my own ideas of how to be an effective teacher and gain more connections between what I have read in books throughout this semester. While in the field, I have learned that children need and thrive on routine. Children also need time to share ideas and experiences, respond to music and movement, and feel safe and loved. Children need to make approximations and be taught behavior expectations. Last and one of the most important, children need a god model in all areas of the day academically and socially. I will continue taking classes and read books that identify how children develop. I will implement what I have read into the lessons I teach and interaction I will have with young students in the classroom. What I learn will be brought down to their level and they will learn from me and the cycle of learning from someone else will continue!