Student/Teacher Project/ Multiple Intelligence Spanish Class

Ashley Elliott

SPED 535

Dr. Lori Desautels

August 11, 2013

ABSTRACT

Throughout SPED 535, I have been fascinated by the development of the teenage brain. Discovering the contrasting juxtaposed rate of development of the amygdala and frontal lobe opened new pathways of understanding for me into the “whys” behind the erratic, emotional behaviors of my student. Along with this knowledge of brain development in the teenage years, the incredible diversity of the human mind has caused me to rethink the way I teach and relate to my students. With a desire to help my students understand their own minds better, I co-taught a course during school orientation about teenage brain development, incorporating much of the information I learned in class with my own further research (materials attached). I watched young minds light up as I shared with them about the power they have to strengthen their own minds and explained to them those “whys” behind their emotions and actions. After orientation, I took the application of course material to the next level by giving the students in my Spanish 3 classes a Multiple Intelligences survey (survey/score guide attached). Below I have detailed the implementation of this survey and my plans to use it to inform my daily instruction for the rest of the school year. I am thrilled for the opportunity to teach these students as the individuals they are!

PREPARATION

To make sure I was fully equipped to explain Multiple Intelligences to my students, I researched the psychology behind them before class. I took several assessments to determine which would be the most accurate for my students and familiarized myself with all seven major intelligence types. I also took the final assessment myself to better understand my own unique learning style and how it contributes to my natural teaching tendencies.

I took the most thorough of the assessments I found, knowing I teach mostly older kids who could handle a longer survey, and tweaked it to meet my classroom needs (see Appendix A). I printed off a copy for each student and prepared the score sheet for class (see Appendix B).

IMPLEMENTATION

On my first day of class, I introduced the Multiple Intelligences quiz by asking students to think about times they had really felt engaged in learning. We went around the room and described those experiences and what types of activities they were doing at the time. After a wide variety of responses, I shared with students that I am also taking classes and had been learning about how diverse the human brain is. I explained the basics of Multiple Intelligences (without naming any categories) and talked about how each of us feels “engaged” in really different ways because our minds are so diverse and are wired to learn in very different ways. Then I handed out the assessments and had students fill in a 1-4 response for each statement, with 1 being “Not at all me” to 4 being “Totally me.”

That night, I went home and plugged each student’s responses into the score sheet and wrote down his/her top three intelligences on an index card with his/her name. I was very surprised to find that, across all of my classes, there was almost no overlap in the top three scores (see Appendix C)! This solidified for me the need to learn how to teach to these diverse minds, and I eagerly prepared the next day’s lesson to share the results and their implications with my students.

STUDENT RESPONSE

The next day, I placed the index cards on desks around the room, grouping students with the same primary intelligence type together. Once the students arrived, I shared with them the diversity of the responses and my own reflection about my need to become a stronger teacher by learning how to reach each of them in their individual strengths. I explained that I would be working hard to differentiate learning and activities for each learning type, but I would need their help in figuring out how to make it work. After explaining the strengths and preferences of each learning type, I asked students to divide into groups (or work alone, for those without a match) and list at least five ideas for activities we could do in class to support their unique learning style.

My students were so excited to be seen as individuals and to discover their own strengths! They got to work quickly and began to create lists of activities that matched their personal intelligence strengths (see Appendix D). I am now hanging these posters, along with lists of which students are which intelligence type.

FOLLOW-THROUGH

Now that I have gathered data about each student’s intelligence type and have gotten feedback from them about their ideas for implementation, I am working on ensuring that each project or activity I assign for the class contains options for multiple types of learners. Although I may not be able to hit all seven every day, I will be working to ensure that I provide opportunities for each learning type regularly, on a rotational basis. I had previously only thought about differentiation as providing different learning avenues for high and low learners. Now, after having been through SPED 535 and having implemented this plan in my classroom, I see that differentiation must happen in my classroom even with learners on the same cognitive level. I must work hard to ensure that each child in my classroom is receiving exactly the type of instruction they need at all times, regardless of academic or behavioral performance. My students and I are both thrilled to make this work!

APPENDIX A

Name:    ________________________________________   Teacher:                ________________________________________

Class:     ________________________________________   Date:      ________________________________________

Multiple Intelligences Profile

Answer the following questions with one of the following scores: 1: No way, Jose; 2: Eh, kinda; 3: Usually true; 4: That’s totally me!

1. I like to learn more about myself.
2. I can play a musical instrument.
3. I find it easiest to solve problems when I am doing something physical.
4. I often have a song or piece of music in my head.
5. I find budgeting and managing my money easy.
6. I find it easy to make up stories.
7. I have always been very coordinated.
8. When talking to someone, I tend to listen to the words they use not just what they mean.
9. I enjoy cross words, word searches or other word puzzles.
10. I don’t like ambiguity; I like things to be clear.
11. I enjoy logic puzzles such as ‘Sudoku’.
12. I like to meditate.
13. Music is very important to me.
14. I am a convincing liar.
15. I play a sport or dance.
16. I am very interested in psychometrics (personality testing) and IQ tests.
17. People behaving irrationally annoy me.
18. I find that the music that appeals to me is often based on how I feel emotionally.
19. I am a very social person and like being with other people.
20. I like to be systematic and thorough.
21. I find graphs and charts easy to understand.
22. I can throw things well – darts, skimming pebbles, Frisbees, etc.
23. I find it easy to remember quotes or phrases.
24. I can always recognize places that I have been before, even when I was very young.
25. I enjoy a wide variety of musical styles.
26. When I am concentrating I tend to doodle.
27. I could manipulate people if I choose to.
28. I can predict my feelings and behaviors in certain situations fairly accurately.
29. I find mental arithmetic easy.
30. I can identify most sounds without seeing what causes them.
31. At school one of my favorite subjects is / was English.
32. I like to think through a problem carefully, considering all the consequences.
33. I enjoy debates and discussions.
34. I love adrenaline sports and scary rides.
35. I enjoy individual sports best.
36. I care about how those around me feel.
37. My house is full of pictures and photographs.
38. I enjoy and am good at making things – I’m good with my hands.
39. I like having music on in the background.
40. I find it easy to remember telephone numbers.
41. I set myself goals and plans for the future.
42. I am a very tactile person.
43. I can tell easily whether someone likes me or dislikes me.
44. I can easily imagine how an object would look from another perspective.
45. I never use instructions for flat-pack furniture.
46. I find it easy to talk to new people.
47. To learn something new, I need to just get on and try it.
48. I often see clear images when I close my eyes.
49. I don’t use my fingers when I count.
50. I often talk to myself – out loud or in my head.
51. At school I loved / love music lessons.
52. When I am abroad, I find it easy to pick up the basics of another language.
53. I find ball games easy and enjoyable.
54. My favorite subject at school is / was math.
55. I always know how I am feeling.
56. I am realistic about my strengths and weaknesses.
57. I keep a diary.
58. I am very aware of other people’s body language.
59. My favorite subject at school was / is art.
60. I find pleasure in reading.
61. I can read a map easily.
62. It upsets me to see someone cry and not be able to help.
63. I am good at solving disputes between others.
64. I have always dreamed of being a musician or singer.
65. I prefer team sports.
66. Singing makes me feel happy.
67. I never get lost when I am on my own in a new place.
68. If I am learning how to do something, I like to see drawings and diagrams of how it works.
69. I am happy spending time alone.
70. My friends always come to me for emotional support and advice.

APPENDIX B

APPENDIX C

APPENDIX D