This is the gist of the Rah-Rah speech I gave this morning to my 31 new Fourth graders:Is everyone the same height?
Does everyone wear the same size shoe?
Does everyone learn the same way?
No, of course not. In none of those things are we all alike.
Some people are really fast at their basic math facts. Some can already read chapter books that are 300 pages long. Some draw beautiful pictures.
No two people are the same. But everyone belongs.
In this classroom we have a learning community.
A learning community is a place where everyone belongs—that’s the community part—and where everyone is trying to do their best—the learning part.
You might do your best at multiplication facts by learning strategies for finding the products, and by practicing with flash cards.
You might do your best at being a better writer by learning how to make a complete sentence, and how to organize what you write so it is more effective.
Whatever you are trying to learn, whether it’s math or writing or soccer or science, in order to do your best in our learning community there are five things you must do, and our success will be guaranteed:
- PAY ATTENTION
- ASK QUESTIONS
- TRY
- HELP YOUR CLASSMATE
- ACCEPT YOUR CLASSMATE'S HELP
No comments:
Post a Comment