Teacher as the Expert Tailer

Animal School Video

• "Effective parents [and teachers] are always learning, studying, and customizing the instructions for their individual child"

-As educators, we need to accept that all children have their own "unique patterns of learning" ("Learning For All")
-Therefore, we need to offer different kinds of teaching experiences, ideally within a single lesson

What Do We Know About Primary Learners Already?

"During our first years of life, the brain develops at an astounding rate" (4)

"Children succeed in programs that focus on active learning through exploration, play, and inquiry" (4)

Four foundational conditions are important for children to grow and flourish: "Belonging, Well-Being, Engagement, and Expression" (7)

Building An "Entry to Learning"

When creating lessons, we should reflect on the various ways we can offer a 'learning entry' to the variety of learning styles in our classroom.

Examples

• If a student leans best through demonstration, physically perform the task
• some learn best when a task is divided into a step-by-step process
• some learn better when there are several examples
• offer a "hands-on" component

How Can We Tailor our Lessons around our Students?

LEARNING PROFILES!

Learning profile cards: "Completed by students, these cards can give teachers rich detail to inform instructional planning of content, process, and product based on interests and learning profiles. I’ve found this tool to be the best for managing differentiation with large numbers of students" (Learning Profiles)

Equity

The purpose of "learning profiles" and differentiation is to give every student a fair and reasonable chance at success.

This does not mean giving every student an equal amount of help!

However, it entails that you are TAILORING instruction to create learning entries for all students!

THE END :)