Blog Entry #3

     In my third visit to Westmore elementary I spent time in Mrs. Topham's 5th grade class. She is a young, very patient and soft spoken teacher. If I had an exceptional learner I would want him/her to be taught by this teacher. 

     Though soft spoken her techniques to  gain the attention and the respect of ALL of her students is impressive. She uses many physical and visual cues to get them to focus. They work equally well for both the normal and exceptional learners. For example, as she was getting ready to transition from one lesson to another the kids began to get a slightly more loud. Immediately without any other warning she directed them to, "touch your nose....". When she saw all of the kids had done this, she immediately transitioned to the command of, "...show me a pencil.", to which they quickly responded. She gave a final order that when completed, showed that they were ready, and she began her instructions for the next lesson. 

     She does however utilize other modifications to help some of the more exceptional students. For students who are behind in their penmanship, they are allowed to utilize computers to type their reports if they are not able to write them clearly enough yet with handwriting. 

I witnessed Mrs. Topham allow students to pair up with other students to assist in homework packets while in class. She was quick to monitor and correct them when she saw them simply copying each others' answers, directing them back towards the focus on learning from each other instead of copying answers. 

     As mentioned in my previous observation of her using physical and visual cues for self control, I see more and more of these accommodations being used throughout the entire student body in order to assist the exceptional student. The oral exam, such as the spelling test is one of them. This last visit I was allowed to administer the spelling test to the students orally-which has been a long tradition. But not only does this include the exceptional student in the learning experience but it also gives the non exceptional student a basis for learning in different modalities. So in my eyes, it's a win-win for all students. 

     The final observation I would mention is that practiced by all the 5th grade teachers I was involved with; they all allow their rooms to stay open during recess. As a 5th grader in rural Idaho I recall our school not allowing any kids to stay inside during recess unless they were sick or had a doctor's note. All kids were encouraged to go outside and play. In today's 5th grade class kids are allowed to stay indoors to work on homework of their choosing, reading a book or playing education games on the computer. This most certainly allows a beneficial outlet for all children, especially those who are exceptional learners. They (students with ADHD) can focus on either exercise to give their mind a break or others with learning disabilities can work at their own pace, with extra time during recess time.