Chapter Four: Teaching Students About MI Theory

Chapter four of Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom gives an inside view to teachers about how they can teach the MI theory to students. Children will attain more knowledge if they themselves understand how their minds work. When explaining the MI theory, the teacher should keep the lesson short and simple. If it is too confusing, the students will get lost. The best way to show students how they learn is to connect the lesson to their personal lives and experiences. The teacher can even give the students examples of lessons created to target a specific intelligence or learning style. I found this highly beneficial to me because when I was a student, I would have loved for my teacher to ask me how I liked best to learn. When I become a teacher, I will be able to teach my students about the MI theory. Once I teach the students about the theory and once they understand it, I will not be the only one who is aware of my students' learning styles; they will discover their own learning style as well. The students will understand what exactly it is that they need to work on (different learning styles, etc.) and what strengths that they can further improve with my assistance and guidance.

Chapter Three: Describing Intelligences in Students

Chapter three of Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom stated that implementing assessments to figure out how students learn could only go so far. The best way to discover a child's learning style is simply to observe them. Their misbehavior are the best indicators of students needing assistance with learning in the classroom. The chapter suggested that the teacher should create student portfolios. In addition to observing how a student behaves in and out of the classroom, teachers are advised to look at the student's records, ask the child's parents and the child themselves. Creating special activities for the students also contribute to assisting teachers discover students' different learning styles and intelligences. I loved this chapter because I was extremely anxious whenever I thought about how I would ever manage to assess students' intelligence and dive into depth when learning about my students. The chapter helped me become aware of students' needs and what I can do to effectively meet them.

Chapter Four: What Really Matters in Planning for Student Success

Chapter four of Integrating Differentiated Instruction and Understanding by Design expressed the dire importance of being a teacher not only of curriculum, but being a teacher of students. Both responsibilities are equally necessary and essential in educating students. Teachers have the obligation to know their students, their lives, cultures, learning styles, and interests. As a teacher, I also need to know how to create a curriculum that reaches out to my students and captures their interest while creating personal meaning. I was also extremely comforted by the thought that teaching does not aim for perfection. Persistence and perseverance in improving the students' curriculum, learning, etc. is the true goal. I will affect my students' lives in a positive way because they will be able to see that I am reaching out and working my hardest to meet their individual needs. If the students know that I am going the extra mile, hopefully they will become motivated to go the extra mile and meet me in the middle.

Chapter Three: What Really Matters In Learning (Content)

Chapter three of Integrating Differentiated Instruction and Understanding by Design presented the three-step backwards design process. This process proves to be a guide in how to successfully plan courses,units, and individual lessons. Planning backwards results in more clearly defined goals, more appropriate assessments, and more purposeful teaching. The backwards design process also helps teachers avoid the "twin sins". This will be quite beneficial for me as a teacher because I do not want to obsess over coverage of a text book, and I certainly do not want to become lost in "content overload". Planning activities that hold no clear goal or hold little long-term effectiveness is not going to help my students come away with the essential questions. For my students to be successful, I need to plan ahead with the end in mind, clarify content priorities, and assess students' understanding of the "big picture". Chapter three also clarified that when I plan backwards, stage one should never be differentiated. I need to use the same criteria in judging the response of students' assessments. Finding the practical balance between completely individualized assessments and standardized, "one fits all" measures is crucial. Enduring understandings, essential knowledge, and essential skills should be a steady focus for the majority of my learners, but how the students demonstrate proficiency can be differentiated.

Chapter Two: MI and Personal Development

Chapter two of Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom explains that nature, nurture, and personal experiences help shape the multiple intelligences of different individuals. From my personal experience, I have become a multimodal learner. However, teachers can gain an insight to their multiple intelligences by taking surveys or asking their own students what intelligence they most exercise within the classroom. If educators find themselves focusing on a particular intelligence, the teacher can make a conscious effort to incorporate other intelligences into the curriculum. As a teacher, I can learn how to strengthen my weak intelligences by partnering with a colleague, ask a student to demonstrate the way he/she likes to learn, and I could use the school resources. I would like to be able to crystallize students' once-paralyzed intelligence through discovering and understanding why students had shut themselves off from that particular learning style.

Chapter One: The Foundations of the Theory of Multiple Intelligences

Chapter one of Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom depicted the cognitive theory of multiple intelligences, which describe how individuals use their intelligence(s) to solve problems and how the brain perceives the contents of the world. The most important message underlying this chapter, I believe, is that Gardner labels the categories of learning as "intelligences" because he believes society puts one emphasis on a particular variety. However, each multiple intelligence is interconnected to the other. Therefore, educators should aim to incorporate all intelligences into their curriculum to ensure that every student has a fair chance of succeeding. Similar to the readings from Fires in the Bathroom, giving the students a fair chance is a necessary tool I will implement in the classroom to gain my students' respect, trust, and attention. I do not want to force any student to mask their dominant intelligence and use their secondary intelligence. I want to see the student's strengths and weaknesses, so when I use every intelligence in the classroom, I can assist the child in further developing his/her strength while managing to improve their weaknesses.

Chapter Two: What Really Matters In Teaching? (The Students)

Chapter two of Integrating Differentiated Instruction and Understanding by Design describes how important it is for educators to link the basic human needs of students and curriculum. High school students struggle with personal barriers to learning, identity crises, and learning disabilities. Therefore, students need teachers to have the skills to adapt to varying individuals. To be a successful teacher, I will have to adapt to learning needs and work constantly to establish positive relationships with my students. Positive relationships will be able to contribute to students' energy for learning. However, although I will exercise differentiation, I will make sure that my teaching strategies will work to the benefit of many students by using different instructions likely to serve multiple needs in one single lesson.

Chapter One: UbD and DI- An Essential Partnership

Chapter one of Integrating Differentiated Instruction and Understanding by Design claimed that because of diversity within student population (differences in culture, race, language, experience, disability, learning preferences, etc.), the education system needs integration of DI and UbD. The two cannot exist sufficiently without the other. Axioms provide goals for certain aspects and expectations for teaching. Corollaries ensure that every student will have access to the axioms. For example, in my classroom there will be the axiom (or expectation) to provide opportunities for my students to explore, interpret, apply, shift perspectives, empathize, and self-assess. I will provide a constructivist environment to ensure that students will create their own meaningful experiences.