Ms. Owens Classroom

The most valuable lesson I learned from Sheila Owen’s classroom was how she slowly scaffolds learning for students. Ms. Owens has found a good balance between doing all the work for the students and having them do all the work themselves. Ms. Owens starts with reading aloud a book that the students could not read themselves. Then she performs shared reading with the class where they read something written on the board alongside Ms. Owens. Next is guided reading where students read by themselves with the help of Ms. Owens when necessary. Finally, students read independently with no help from Ms. Owens.

What I find brilliant about Ms. Owens approach is that she gradually gives students more autonomy. Students slowly see that they are able to read and I imagine that this boosts their confidence and encourages them to read more. This creates a higher likelihood that by the time the students reach independent reading, they will actually be excited to read to themselves. Promoting ownership of learning amongst students is vital as at the end of the day, a teacher cannot learn for his or her students. Students must have their own desire to learn.