Chapter 1 and 2

The very first thing that I noticed when I was reading was that at the very beginning there were some suggestion made to accommodate for students. I noticed that they used many words to describe change, such as; adapting, provisions made, mechanisms, support, and active planning. I like this because it made me think that there is no one way to implement differentiation in my classroom.

There are four student traits that teachers must address to ensure effectiveness. Readiness, Interest, Learning profile, and Affect are those factors. There are so many little things that affect each of these areas so I am thinking how am I going to accommodate for every different little factor that affects the four main factors for each of my students.
I really liked the metaphor of the Little Prince, it put things in perspective for me. I now see that differentiation will take time, patience, and listening. Its not just teaching to each student, you must go above and beyond and make a connection with each student.

In chapter 2 there are five needs that students seek to achieve; affirmation, contribution, power, purpose, and challenge. While I was reading about each of these needs I thought that one way that would greatly help students to achieve these needs is to have Morning Meetings and gain a sense of community in your classroom. I also liked the part at the end of the chapter that said the main part of differentiation is connecting with each child. I now understand why some teachers choose not to implement differentiation in the classroom because of the time and extra work that goes into this kind of teaching. I want to differentiate my teaching, but how do I meet all the needs of all of my students. I am only one person and I will have 20 plus students.