Teaching To Individual Stregnths! (Inclusion and Special Abilities! )
Hello Everyone!
Today I wanted to talk about something that is very personal to me! I Believe we are seeing a shift in the ways in which we are approaching education. I believe we are starting to see a focus on the individual child and their needs which is a change from seeing large groups of children being taught to using one method that is said to be "The Best". This is a concept that I believe in very strongly. I personally believe that we need to educate and even parent to each child's personal needs and skill levels. We all know that just because a group of children share the same AGE level, doesn't mean they share the same Educational level or Developmental needs. Some in the group will be further along in understanding of things, while others will not be quite where they should be. Because of this, I believe that as educators, we need to look at the needs of the group and chose topics and subjects to teach TO the whole group, using different methods for each child's needs and skills. Now I am going to go on here to say something that I may ruffle a few feathers with, but hear me out. as a person who has special needs (being in a wheelchair my whole life) I believe that the best gift and experience that we can give our children and students (those who have special needs and those who don't alike). Is to let them FAIL yes..... letting our children fail when they are young and trying to learn new skills and understand the world around them, the best way for them to learn and become independent is by trial, error and yes failure. As long as we as adults are there to pick them back up and assure them that it's ok that their first attempt didn't work, then they will find the confidence to try, try again! in the end this is what we all want. The more they are encouraged to go back to a task and try again the more they build confidence and self esteem. I believe that the best environment for this is an all inclusive educational environment. As I mentioned before I myself have physical special needs, and I grew up in a family where I was the only one who did. I grew up the oldest of several cousins, and as a result of this we did a lot of common activities as a group. Camping, Climbing Trees, Learning To Swim, Bowling you name it! I did it all..... now I found my own way of DOING those things which was different from theirs ( this made me the cool one :) ). As I entered school I started out in "Special Ed" where my education was met where I had already developed to naturally. I believe that this is where all education should start ( a natural starting point). However that's where I was left, I was never pushed or challenged to learn anything new or beyond the level where I naturally was. This Is where my views and teaching styles differ! i believe we need to step in and learn what the child is capable of and interested in. Then learn where they are skilled, use these things to introduce topics and activities that will stretch the child's skill levels by building on their strength's and interests. This encourages the child to engage and enjoy the process. This is how I Teach in every classroom that i am a part of! I have build a business around this concept as well : http://thecreativecampus.weebly.com/ I believe that every child can Learn and Thrive INSPITE of the challenges they face in Education and Life. I hope you enjoyed this post, and I would love to hear your thoughts.
Today I wanted to talk about something that is very personal to me! I Believe we are seeing a shift in the ways in which we are approaching education. I believe we are starting to see a focus on the individual child and their needs which is a change from seeing large groups of children being taught to using one method that is said to be "The Best". This is a concept that I believe in very strongly. I personally believe that we need to educate and even parent to each child's personal needs and skill levels. We all know that just because a group of children share the same AGE level, doesn't mean they share the same Educational level or Developmental needs. Some in the group will be further along in understanding of things, while others will not be quite where they should be. Because of this, I believe that as educators, we need to look at the needs of the group and chose topics and subjects to teach TO the whole group, using different methods for each child's needs and skills. Now I am going to go on here to say something that I may ruffle a few feathers with, but hear me out. as a person who has special needs (being in a wheelchair my whole life) I believe that the best gift and experience that we can give our children and students (those who have special needs and those who don't alike). Is to let them FAIL yes..... letting our children fail when they are young and trying to learn new skills and understand the world around them, the best way for them to learn and become independent is by trial, error and yes failure. As long as we as adults are there to pick them back up and assure them that it's ok that their first attempt didn't work, then they will find the confidence to try, try again! in the end this is what we all want. The more they are encouraged to go back to a task and try again the more they build confidence and self esteem. I believe that the best environment for this is an all inclusive educational environment. As I mentioned before I myself have physical special needs, and I grew up in a family where I was the only one who did. I grew up the oldest of several cousins, and as a result of this we did a lot of common activities as a group. Camping, Climbing Trees, Learning To Swim, Bowling you name it! I did it all..... now I found my own way of DOING those things which was different from theirs ( this made me the cool one :) ). As I entered school I started out in "Special Ed" where my education was met where I had already developed to naturally. I believe that this is where all education should start ( a natural starting point). However that's where I was left, I was never pushed or challenged to learn anything new or beyond the level where I naturally was. This Is where my views and teaching styles differ! i believe we need to step in and learn what the child is capable of and interested in. Then learn where they are skilled, use these things to introduce topics and activities that will stretch the child's skill levels by building on their strength's and interests. This encourages the child to engage and enjoy the process. This is how I Teach in every classroom that i am a part of! I have build a business around this concept as well : http://thecreativecampus.weebly.com/ I believe that every child can Learn and Thrive INSPITE of the challenges they face in Education and Life. I hope you enjoyed this post, and I would love to hear your thoughts.
Till Next Time!
Your
Creativity Producer and Professional Mess Maker,
Theresa @ The Creative Campus
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