Holliman’s articles over center’s was something I liked because I see them a lot in my placement all the time. I like them a lot I think that centers if done correctly can be a very effective way to do activities with students. There are things that need to happen in order for them to be successful. One thing my CT does that is really cool is she divides the students into groups based on their reading level so that way she can work with them on reading each at the same time. One thing that I have learned about stations though is that the teacher needs to be able to trust her students to handle the stations and not think of it have free time. There are moments where student think of it as free time because the teacher is not with them and end up wasting times. However I do think that stations do a great job of teacher responsibility and independent work among students. It gives the students a sense of learning on their own and even promote working with classmates. I think stations are a good thing to use, but in my second grade class it does not work as well unless there are two people to supervise so I think it would be a better thing to start in the third grad. However each class is different so it is up to the teacher to determine if the student could handle stations or not.
I do not have very much experience in centers. I honestly don't even remember having them in my classes, but I am sure I experienced them. Do you think that they are beneficial? When you say the teacher needs to be able to trust her students, do you think this is a trust that should be given right away and only taken away if the students cannot handle the responsibility or should it be a trust that is earned over time? I personally feel that the students should be given the opportunity to show they are capable from the beginning, but I know that is not always a shared opinion.
ReplyDeleteI have never observed in a second grade classroom, but my third and fourth grade classrooms have all utilized similar set ups to centers on occasion, and the students were very well organized and diligent. Do you think that the second graders could be successful at centers if there was more direction or a more efficient set up by the teacher? I don't think that centers are grade specific, and believe they could work in just about any classroom with the correct approach.
Is there anything specific you feel that centers target and really benefit in the learning environment? What do you think they bring to the table, that maybe group work or individual work might not have?
I agree that it teaches responsibility. I also think that in order for centers time to be in control is if the students have standards and expectations from the teacher. If there arnt standards and procedures set, students can use this time to visit with friends and easily get off focused. I think that centers need be done everyday or at least very often so students get into a routine and it is not something brand new. I also know that my CT benefits from center time. Who do we think benefit more, kids or the teachers and how long do we think center time should go for? Will students get distracted and loose interest a certain point?
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