tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1420999465261988717.post2924620004702280902..comments2022-12-10T01:40:01.718-08:00Comments on HALLWAY ACCESS: Where All Students LearnAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05087602694111877329noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1420999465261988717.post-49783766425778478742014-04-23T03:28:57.231-07:002014-04-23T03:28:57.231-07:00I very much agree with you here. We are a people p...I very much agree with you here. We are a people profession, in my opinion, but so many stakeholders - in and outside of education - want teachers to be focused on content. I'd bet that only a tiny percentage of teacher prep programs and an even smaller percentage of professional workshops and PD time are devoted to child/adolescent psychology. So many people instead want to talk about "toolkit" items and/or tactical systems pieces (especially, these days, around accountability), but we are missing large pieces of foundations work. <br /><br />Standards shouldn't (Sorry, again, for initial typo) be making students cry. There shouldn't be a need for "Handwriting Without Tears." We also shouldn't, though, be having parties and endless "fun time" during school. The artists among us know how to strike the needed balance. Students should feel good about learning difficult materialDavid Hochheiserhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06941377910994389182noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1420999465261988717.post-37758707633762596562014-04-23T03:26:53.091-07:002014-04-23T03:26:53.091-07:00Holy typo / auto-correct snafu, Batman!! That shou...Holy typo / auto-correct snafu, Batman!! That should have read "Standards shouldn't be making students cry." I want things taught, but never at students' emotional expense. Sorry about that. I hope I can edit and repeal my villain status.David Hochheiserhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06941377910994389182noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1420999465261988717.post-45262371981595496342014-04-22T21:00:00.504-07:002014-04-22T21:00:00.504-07:00"Standards should be making students cry.&quo..."Standards should be making students cry."<br /><br />Have you been in a Kindergarten classroom lately? Is there ANY reason whatsoever that a 5YO should be made to cry because of unrealistic and developmentally inappropriate expectations? Heck, is there a reason for SCHOOL to make a 5YO cry?<br /><br />I'm not saying it should be all easy-peasy; challenge is important for kids, to be able to stretch and grow. I see that with my own children and with my own students of all ages. But squashing kids flat with academics when they're still needing to be outside playing in the dirt is another story entirely. I am having a hard time understanding how you can reconcile that with "Students should feel good about learning difficult material." How do students feel good about material that makes them cry? O.o Color me puzzled.CrunchyMamahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14434606158400653601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1420999465261988717.post-21940585972591111562014-04-22T18:41:55.509-07:002014-04-22T18:41:55.509-07:00This comment has been removed by the author.David Hochheiserhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06941377910994389182noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1420999465261988717.post-87609693727068515912014-04-22T13:28:53.709-07:002014-04-22T13:28:53.709-07:00The biggest change I would make would be to make y...The biggest change I would make would be to make your #5 the #1, make it the starting point. If we don't understand what students are coming to us with, or through, or in spite of, or because of, if we don't consider first and foremost what they have gone through before they even entered a school building for the first time that shaped them their first 5 years or so, or what they go through at home on a daily basis, or even what they endure at school that we may not see (eg bullying), we will struggle that much harder.<br /><br />Additionally, we absolutely must also understand - and I harp on this a lot because I work with the 0-5 set - that current standards do NOT address the physical (movement, especially large-motor!), emotional (need social time and modeling), and neurodevelopmental (concrete, whole-first-parts-and-reasons-later; independent & unstructured before direct instruction) needs of early learners. Having seen my younger child, who has had CCSS-aligned curriculum for 4 years now, unraveling emotionally has been hard for me as a parent and outrages me as a teacher. Without a better understanding of what and how children learn best, and at what ages and stages they do, #'s 1-4 are a lot less likely to be successful.CrunchyMamahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14434606158400653601noreply@blogger.com