Unit 2 focuses on the ways in which we, as educators (or future educators), choose to teach in highly intentional and individualized ways to each classroom in order to benefit students. The intentionality ranges from the textual choices, the structure of the class, group assignments, and culturally-responsive

education practices. 

I haven't started teaching yet, so I'll be approaching the content and questions from the perspective of how I can utilize these skills in the future. 

Side note: I find that explaining concepts to my cat (the process of verbalizing aloud) is beneficial in my learning process. 

Let's learn!

I'm a cat and I refuse to understand Vygotsky or Vacca.

Vacca, R., Vacca, J. & Mraz, M. (2014). Content Area Reading: Literacy and Learning Across the Curriculum -- Chapters 3 & Lee County SIOP Video

Chapter 3 of the textbook as well as the Lee County SIOP (Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol) discuss the merits of sheltered learning for English learners, particularly those newly arrived to the United States. Teachers must be aware of the differences in education background that students might have, and creating an "avenue of safety" in order for students to be comfortable sharing and making mistakes. The environment needs to be both supportive and challenging enough to encourage learning.  

Some strategies that I can incorporate into my classroom are the repeated reading strategy (which is a form of scaffolding in which repetition aids in the understanding of text), using graphic organizers/posters, adjusting text choices as needed, using images, and following the instruction guidelines of culturally responsive teaching/instruction (pg. 62 of textbook). 

Students should feel respected & safe in the classroom, which means, as an educator, I need to be sure to educate myself to make sure I'm aware of different cultural practices that may strain the teacher-student relationship if I'm not intentional! 

Being an educator in the United States means we must be prepared to discuss challenging subjects, including that of race, internal/implicit biases, cultural differences between students, and other factors that affect the classroom dynamic and the relationship between the teachers and students. While there are a variety of tactics to promote a culturally inclusive classroom, this article starts with a simple, yet ongoing, step: looking internally as the educator, and confronting personal biases that may impact teaching.