Some of the students were getting wiggly, so I threw on a Gonoodle.com video, which they loved. However, one student politely declined and chose to sit at his desk. It brought up an interesting paradigm shift for me.
It made me think about where I worked last year. The focus was on compliance. If a student was told to do something, they had to do it. No ifs, ands, or buts. There was no wiggle room. Working here, we are given a lot of freedom and I thought about the objective of the movement video: some students were having a hard time sitting and therefore needed a movement break before engaging in the next activity. If a student didn't need a movement break, wouldn't it be ok for them to opt out?
Last year, it would have not been okay for the student to not do it. I would have had to use all the skills in my tool box to get him to do some sort of movement to ensure unity in the class. This year, at my discretion, I am allowed to just let him do it. He didn't disturb anyone & anyone else who didn't want to do the quick 3-minute movement didn't have to.
Of course when it comes to things in our reading & math section, they might not get this freedom to opt out. Or should they be able to if they are able to propose an alternative activity that still gets the objective done?
With student absences, it is difficult to make sure that every student gets the exact same amount of instruction. What is the most important thing? Ensuring continued progress. Always.
No comments:
Post a Comment