Barb Retenbach

write a blog entry about the presentation. There are no questions that you should answer but some prompts to help you:

a. How did this presentation change your view of those with Autism?

b. How will you consider autistic children in your classroom in light of this presentation?

c. How does the information you’ve learned affect your future teaching practice?

d. Was this information new, and how do you feel about it

I was really curious as to see what the presentation would be like. I have never been to a presentation like this one before. I thought it was incredible. Before this presentation I really didn't know a whole lot about Autistic individuals. Growing up one of my best friends cousins was autistic and all I remember from that was that she was a really great artist and did not talk much. Other than that I have only studied Autism in my Special Ed class briefly this semester. Barb and Lois opened my eyes to so much. Autistic individuals are brilliant, or at least Barb is and they are capable of so much more than what I had believed to be true. She has so many great ideas and such a wonderful sense of humor. I think a lot of people tend to assume Autistic individuals do not have much going on in their minds or are trapped in their bodies. This is not the case at all. Barb talked about how she is happy and enjoys her life and loves history and thinking. I will consider autistic children the same way I consider those who are not autistic. An individual with likes and dislikes, and knowledge. Just a different way of interacting and conversing. I learned that autistic students sometimes tend to relate to objects more than words. In my classroom if this is the case I will be sure to allow students to keep an object at their desk, or near them that comforts them. Also, I will be sure to find out something they are genuinely interested in and use that as a tool of discussion and learning. I think in my future teaching practice I will be more aware, and will embrace the diverse neurology in my classroom. All students are brilliant in different ways and different aspects. I won't have low expectations for any student. So much information from the presentation was new to me. I really feel like I see things from an entirely new perspective. One that I will carry with me into classroom settings and the outside world. 

Group Differences Forum

Write a brief reflection (1-2 paragraphs) on the group differences forum that you just participated in. Use the following questions to guide your reflection but you do not have to answer them.

• o What did you learn during our forum that you didn’t know before?
• o What would you have liked to learn more about?
• o How do you think the information presented in the forum will help you in your classroom?
• o What could have been done to help you learn more?
• o What suggestions do you have about the forum (changes I should make, articles to pitch or to keep, topics that should be discussed that we did not cover?)

I really liked the group differences forum. There were a lot of points and perspectives that opened my eyes to different sides I have never thought about before. I really enjoyed listening to other individuals perspectives on religion in schools and the classroom because I know my experiences with it are very different from my peers experiences. Also, I didn't know about the 100 Black Men of America group. I really found that discussion to be interesting. I am at Mooreland Heights Elementary right now for my rotation and I have witnessed African American students (Kindergarteners) say they don't like school because their siblings, parents, or other friends do not like school and thus it becomes "trendy" to hate school. I think I would have liked to learned more about poverty and school, and even more on the topic Disablities which was the group that I was in. Even just reading the article for my group I learned so much. I have nevr thought about individuals with disabilities being considered oppressed people, but in certain ways they really are. This forum made me want to know more, and do more research on specific topics. I think we decide we want to be teachers with out thinking about these hard parts of it. Diversity can be a huge hurdle in some schools or states, and learning about ways to create a positive environment will really help me in the future. I learned that we need to reject all stereotypes and assumptions and leave them at the door. To me this seemed obvious, but the group forum opened up my eyes to different types of stereotypes and assumptions that may not be so blatant. I think it was great how there were different groups, and how we got to pick the group that we wanted to be in. I chose disablities because it is something that I am interested in learning about that I haven't had a lot of experience with. I think this group forum was a great way to wrap up the semester as well. A lot of us have so many different experiences that we bring to the table and to use our experiences and knowledge from the course and combine it all in this group differences forum was very interesting. I really like that groups that are there, but I wish we could have covered gender as well. I think next time gender needs to be included, and students are asked if they would mind switching into that group I think it would be ok. All in all I really enjoyed the group differences forum. It is one of my favorite parts of the class because we really get to express how we feel about certain ideas, or what we have experienced through the eyes of a teacher or a student. I think we all learned a lot from eachother today!

PLE 10

Theories in educational psychology promote the idea that language plays a critical role in cognitive development. Examine Table 2.2 (p. 51), paying particular attention to the age range that you are interested in teaching. Consider how you might incorporate or adapt the strategies presented for use with your own students.

Language plays a critical role in cognitive development that can be detrimental to a students academic success. The idea that children's language is very limited at a young age and develops over time can be seen throught through an example using animals. When a younger child is asked to describe an animal they are more likely to descrive an animal that has the characteristics of a dog or a cat because they have seen or been around this animal in their everyday life. Once a student has developed more cognitively, and has been exposed to more language and different language they are more likely to describe characteristics of exotic and different animals. Thus, the trend continues the older they become. It is important to remember that a big amount of the words students come into school knowing come from what they have heard and picked up at home. If a student is coming from a professional home where both parents are professionals, they have dinner together, and story time this child is more likely to know more words and to have been exposed to more language. For a student who has a difficult home life, or lower class family the child is less likely to have heard the same amount or types of words as children from the professional home. In my classroom I am really going to try and make a huge effort to find time to read aloud to my students everyday. It is so important to have that reading time for students. I also want to incorporate some individual reading time for my students. This way for the students that are not getting a lot of language support at home, my classroom can help them develop their language skills. For those who have the language support at home it will help them practice. I will also have different reading and language centers in my classroom. I think to have my students surrounded by language will help them develop cognitively with their language skills. I will also use academic language in my classroom, and introduce new words in everyday converstations that can help increase language support. I will also have a word wall in my classroom where words will be added throughout the year. I hope to have a classroom that supports all students in their language development, so that they will develop the appropriate skills to succeed.