Chapter One- Part Four- Going Beyond First Impressions and Expectations

You've heard, "First impressions last a lifetime." But, teachers must make a commitment to go beyond first impressions in order to help ALL children learn and to assess them fairly. Your goal is to develop a positive and supportive relationship with each child in your class. Here are some things the authors suggest you can do to learn about your students:
*Take a walk in the neighborhood near your school with other teachers or a parent who lives in the area who can point out interesting things or introduce you to people.
*Talk to family members about their children.
*Talk to the teachers who had your children last year. Try to find out about special interests of the children.
*Make time during your day for informal conversations with children.
*Ask students about things they like to do outside of school.
*Observe students as they work and play and make notes about your observations.
*Be an active listener.

Remember... as you begin these activities in your classroom, just think of the oral language skills you will be modeling in your classroom as the students have discussions with you and their peers!

There are also some recommendations for making students comfortable not matter what their learning style or culture:
*If there are children who do not speak English, try to learn a few phrases in your student's primary language.
*Vary the structure and type of your classroom activities. Take time to review all of the cooperative learning strategies available so that your students are not pressured to speak in front of the whole group the majority of the time.
**If you do not have a "culturally diverse" class, you can still expose your students to diversity through books, posters, videos, guest speakers, etc... be sure to discuss similarities and differences in an atmosphere that conveys acceptance and caring.

Keep in mind that this is a dynamic process shaped, of course, by the students you teach! In the following chapters, we will learn about strategies that build from this base to develop a positive relationship with each of the children in your classroom and ensure their success.

So, here we are at the end of chapter one. Take a minute to think about the ways you gather information about your students. Do you really KNOW your kids? Share with us the ways you learn about your class and how you use that information! Just click on the "comment" button under this post. Whitney