Learning Style Analysis

 Learning Style Analysis 

    Recap from the previous observation from topic 2. I saw 3 students struggling with a math lesson after seeing the teacher teach whole group, small group, and centers for 40 minutes. The following day, I asked my mentor teacher if I could meet with students A, B, and C to do a learning inventory questionnaire. I wanted to see how students like school and the survey told me so much about how they like to learn. These students vary in likes but I learned they still like school despite the fact that these students are sometimes struggling. The focus of the lesson is on students recognizing shapes and building shapes as they go. After giving the questionnaire I created shape puzzles for students to match and name for reinforcement practice. These students benefited from these smaller group puzzles because I allowed them to work with peers, work with music on, and stand around the table rather than sitting. These are the main things that stood out to me with the students. Creating healthy work habits will help students be successful in school and at home. According to Cherry, learning style inventories might be a way for students to develop study habits that keep them interested and engaged in the learning process.

Graph of learning styles

    I learned that these students do enjoy being at school, working with friends, and enjoy hands-on activities. Take a look at the graph with more information. 

Interconnection of learning styles

    Learning styles, social emotional learning, and physical development will play a heavy part in every aspect of the childs' academic career. Effective social and emotional learning programming involves coordinated classroom, schoolwide, family, and community practices that help students develop the following five key skills:  self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision making according to Weissberg. These students thrive from all three learning styles while also learning the social part of school and their emotions around their peers. I am intrigued by how the student who is labeled SPED is so similar to the general education students. Teaching a lesson on shapes help build students confidence because each stage in learning can be hit. 

    Influences on planning lessons

    The way the teacher plans the lessons can make or break a student. If all learning styles are not being utilized, a lot of students will begin to struggle. Students in first grade should know the basic shapes but when they do not like some of these students they may get uninterested. The way to keep students engaged and motivated is to relate lessons on shapes to real-life because we see so many shapes around us. According to McCarthy, making learning contextual to real-world experiences is a key learning technique with differentiating for student interests. When lessons are differentiated it helps remove the blindfold so that students are aware of the skill being taught.

 

Evaluate student growth

    Students will be evaluated when they take their end of unit assessment to test their knowledge on the skills they learned to identify 2-D and 3-D shapes, sides and corners. During the week a new mini assessment and exit tickets will count as assessments to track the students growth during the week. Instead of moving a child on that is not doing well, small group instruction and center time can help build them in the right direction to get them up to speed with their peers. I believe the exit tickets and mini assessments are great interventions to help students be successful in the classroom from here on out.

Learning Styles Implementation for Assessments

    We all have specific ways we like to learn so it is important to make sure there are a variety of ways for students to learn and show off their skills they have learned. With auditory learners, I think assessments should be read aloud and have some creativity with a song that was learned about shapes. For visual learners, assessments should be clear and neat. Pictures and cartoons will be important for these students to remember what they have learned. Tactile/kinesthetic learners need to be able to touch using manipulatives to help them on assessments. I think taking out the time to know what benefits students will help them succeed better and boost their confidence. With my own students teaching rhyming words, I have students punch in the air for the last sound they hear to determine if two words rhyming. This reaches all my students because they are able to see what is on the board, hear it/say it, and do a movement. I see this helping out students when I assess them because I see them doing the movements to make sure their answer is right. 

References: 

Cherry, K. (2020). Learning style inventory types and their uses. Verywell Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-a-learning-style-inventory-2795159

 

McCarthy, J. (2014). Learner interest matters: strategies for empowering student choice. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/differentiated-instruction-learner-interest-matters-john-mccarthy

 

Weissberg, R. (2016). Why social and emotional learning is essential for students. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/why-sel-essential-for-students-weissberg-durlak-domitrovich-gullotta