Chapter 4 - How Children Learn

What struck me most about the chapter was that after all the research and studies, after all the new words they coined to explain all these educational phenomena (metacognition, zone of promixal something) --- one thing remains true: that children learn better around caring adults.

As teachers, we were told to make our classrooms a learning environment that is non-threatening, where everybody feels loved and welcome. As teachers we have been told to be firm yet flexible, to be consistent yet able to accomodate the most challenged of learners. This is especially true nowadays; children are more "specialized," so to speak. As a mother of three I know I have had to make creative decisions regarding my own kids' rearing; my three children are different from one another as night is from day. What worked for one kid did not necessarily work for the other two.

So imagine a classroom with 20+ kids! We as teachers need to remember that each child is special; that each child will approach learning differently. Each child is motivated differently; will be discouraged for different reasons. What should remain constant is a teacher who will be the "caring adult" in our story.