Professional+Reading

===This section of my portfolio looks at numerous books and articles that I have found informative and helpful in striving to become an effective and efficient teacher. By reading these texts I have furthered my understanding of some of the crucial topics that are being explored in the education profession. By comprehending these issues I feel I have bettered myself as a teacher and ensured that my students are going to get an education they deserve.===

**__Books__**


I found this text provided me with a great amount of practical information concerning differentiation in a classroom. By taking into consideration multiple intelligences, providing choice for students and using Bloom's Taxonomy to differentiate I feel I have been given plenty of information on how to effectively ensure that each child in my classroom is given the chance to learn in a manner that best suits them. By differentiating lesson plans, I can be sure that my students are learning at the best of their ability.
 * "Differentiation in Action", by Judith Dodge**

The Daily 5 and Cafe Menu books are excellent literacy resources for teachers. These two books offer excellent lessons and strategies for implementing a differentiated literacy block into any elementary classroom. The Daily 5 offers students an abundance of opportunities to learn and experience literacy in a manner which they will best understand it. I used these resources in both of my internships and will definitely be using them in my own classroom.
 * "The Daily 5" & "The Cafe Book", by Gail Boushey & Joan Moser**



**"Inclusion of Exceptional Learners in Canadian Schools: A Practical Handbook for Teachers", by Nancy L. Hutchinson**
This book proved very informative in that it provided me with practical information on how to help include students with exceptionalness into not only my classroom, but also in my lessons. It provided useful information about what to expect from certain students with exceptionalities and how to address them within the classroom.

During my first internship, this book was used throughout the school to encourage students to be responsible for their own actions. It also encouraged them to contribute their good qualities to their community. The students in the school were always talking about being proactive and ensuring that everyone was following the 7 habits of the book. This is definitely a resource that I will be implementing in my classroom.
 * "The 7 Habits of Happy Kids", by Sean Covey**

__Articles__
As the title emphasizes, this article explores the importance of not simply teaching a lesson to say that you have taught it. Instead, it is crucial that our students are understanding the content that we are teaching. In order to accomplish this we, as teachers, have to step back and look at the lesson from the students' point of view. This will help us understand if the lesson will be absorbed or lost by the students.
 * "It's Not What We Teach; It's What They Learn", by Alfie Khon**

This article investigates the importance and benefits of teaching by doing (TBD). It focuses on the teacher expressing their own thoughts and feelings to the students about problems or decisions that they are solving. By doing so, the students will be able to relate to how they may solve the same problem. Students learn from experience, and if it is not possible to give them that experience first hand, then hearing about the solutions and how they were worked through is the next best thing.
 * "Challenging Students...And How to Have More of Them", by Alfie Khon**

Although this article mainly focuses on teaching an online course, I found that it provided some practical ways in which technology can be used within the classroom. A discussion of how these technologies are beneficial and how they may lack in practicality proved very informative when choosing which type of technology you may want to implement in your own classroom.
 * "Technologies for Teaching: Strategies and Pitfalls", by Julie Meloni**

I have always been a believer in the use of technology in elementary classrooms. When technology was first introduced in schools, the main focus was middle and high schools. However, this article points out that elementary aged children are just as capable of utilizing the technology and benefit from it just as much as the older students. I feel that it is important for young children to have technology in their classrooms. Just because they are young does not mean they don't know how to use it. They have been born into an era where technology is part of their everyday lives. Technology also offers them interactive and engaging lessons to ensure they are getting the most out of their education.
 * "From the Get-Go", by Wylie Wong (EDTECH from K-12)**

Retrieved from: []

__**Videos**__
This video explores how fast our world is changing in the technology sector. Although it does not specifically address teachers, it really makes me think about how important and useful technology can be in the classroom. Technology is the preferred instrument of learning for todays students because that is the world they have been exposed to since birth. If we are suppose to prepare them for the future then we must implement technology into our classrooms.
 * "Did You Know"**

[]

This video really hit home with me because all of the information was given from the point of view of the students. As teachers we are very aware of the importance of using technology in our classrooms, but we are most likely told this information from adults who have researched the topic. I feel that when the information is given by the students it makes it more "real" and relevant for me.
 * "A Vision of K-12 Students Today"**

[]