Chapter 4

One of the things that I really liked about this chapter is creating a classroom enviorment that is meaningful to the students. I loved how one of the scenario mentioned that the teacher wanted the students to be able to see themselves in the classroom. Making the classroom a place to explore, discover, and learn is essential to helping students reach their potential. Communication in a classroom is huge. Creating an environment where the students can ask questions, explore the options together and discuss the possible outcomes are very empowering. I also believe that it is important for the teacher to share their thoughts on a given topic to demonstrate to the students how they came to that conclusion and the thought process that was involved. I strongly believe that there is a needs to be alot of talking and discussing in a classroom so that students can understand their opinion about a topic, as well as others points of view, and that certainly can not happen in a quiet classroom. This also applies to the support system in that students learn to look to each other for help and in the process they learn together. Another aspect of creating support systems is giving the students the tools that they will need inorder to solve a problem that they incounter, such as word walls, math facts, or other tools relating to the current course of study that seems appropriate.