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Abstract:
Students come into class with some MIs already developed. It is our job to figure out which MIs each student have and how to engage them in lessons. The book gives us some options for figuring out which MIs are strongest in our class. By simply observing the students we are able to see the student in action. Keeping a journal of the observations can be beneficial not only for us, but also for future coworkers. Another option for learning and understanding MIs is to ask fellow coworkers about what they have observed about the student. If a student gravitates to activities that involve reading or writing when given the choice, we assume that (s)he has strong linguistics intelligence. Simple acts like this can give us as teacher a clue into the MI of our student. As teachers we can also collect documents to gain an insight of where our students have strong MIs and where they need development. If we take our time and get to know our students we will have a greater advantage in really teaching students more then just the facts. This[| video] gives us a quick overview of the MIs and how they can be used in classroom. Although the video is based in an elementary classroom, we as middle and secondary educators can learn from this video. Understanding student’s MI when they are younger help us see why an MI is stronger then another.

Synthesis:
As a class one of the major topics from this chapter was observation and reacting to students who have different MIs then we do. Observation causes us some problems because we do not see an easy way to do it. Some of us think that just sitting back and watching our students’ work will give us the information we need to know. Others of us would like to do hands on activities with our students to observe them doing a task that we know the desired outcome. Both of these methods would be effective, however it is just our comfort level with either method that would determined how we went about figure out student’s multiple intelligences. A helpful way accomplish an observation is to use a[| checklist of features of each MI.]This list would help us be more focused and understand what we are seeing when it comes to what our students are doing. Once we know how our students learn we can start to challenge them in ways that involve MIs that are not as strong. By doing this we can develop other MIs for the future. Overall, knowing each students individual MI can help us when we are planning lessons so we can find a way to incorporate all MIs in our classrooms.

-Emily H.

Emily H.
This chapter went right with what was learned in class about multiple intelligences. The results of the test that were taken I understand better how I learn. I believe that knowing about these intelligences I will be able to help my student more because I understand that my learning style is different then my students. Keeping this in mind will be important when I am planning lessons and activities. The ideas of activity centers are an idea that I like. Doing these centers, I as a teacher, would be able to see which students go to a certain center and gain knowledge about that student and what actives he or she might like to do in the future. As a getting to know you activity I would give my students the multiple intellance test so I can have an idea of that their strongest intelligence in and plan a differenated lesson around what suits the larges amount of the class. Asking the parents is another thing as a teacher I would like to do. Parents have more knowledge about their child that they can share with the teacher. I want to involve parents as long as it is benefited to the students learning. My parents have always been involved in my learning, whether it was helping me with homework or developing relationships with my teachers, they were always trying to help me gain the most out of school. I would like parents to help my teaching process by being involved with their child’s education. This is all to create the best learning experience for the student.

Phillip C.
It can be easier to determine what intelligences students are strong in by watching them in class rather than giving them a test that will classify them. The book says that it is also telling to watch how the students misbehave in class. Linguistics would naturally talk out of turn and spatial students might draw or doodle. I didn’t really think of intelligences in this sense before and found it good to learn. I can see myself paying close attention to students in my classroom now and determining how best to involve them in my lesson. It also rang true for me because as I look back on it I always got in trouble for socializing in class and scored highest on interpersonal learning on the quiz we took. I also feel that I might adopt the idea of using an observation journal in my classroom, at least for the students who are the hardest to figure out. Something in the chapter that I feel I would be uncomfortable with is collecting documents. I think that taking pictures of students in class or recording them could be more distracting than it is useful. Because of that fact I think I would utilize my own observations most and rely upon talking with other teachers, talking with parents in conferences, and talking with the students themselves to determine how they best learn. The final idea in the chapter that really struck me and reminded me of my own schooling was the special activities. Setting up stations that utilize each of the multiple intelligences would __#|work__ perfectly in a __#|science__ lab and make sure all of the students can explore what intelligence works best for them.

Ali P
This chapter seemed to coincide with the chapter we read in UbD well. It spoke of the importance of comfort in the class room and of keeping students engaged. In order to accomplish these skills, a teacher must make lessons that __#|incorporate__ all of the different intelligences. When a student is able to do a project that focuses on their intelligence they are more apt to succeed and learn the content. It is the teachers responsibility to research which intelligences each student is most comfortable with. The teacher can do this by observation and though discussion with the student. It is not only the teachers job to discover their students intelligences but to study them as well. A teacher needs to understand all of the intelligences and be able to use them in their class accordingly. As a teacher I feel that it is going to be my responsibility to study all of my students and their intelligences. I feel that it will be very challenging but worth doing to make my lessons effective. I need to study the intelligences that I struggle with most so when I get a student who is logical, I will not be searching for a way to teach them. I would like to be able to have discussions with my students regarding their intelligences and inspire them to dig deeper into discovering what their intelligences are. I also feel that it is important for my students to know what my intelligences are and to understand them. If my students and I can work together and accommodate for each others needs, we should be able to incorporate all intelligences into our class.

Jackie B.
I am so excited that this chapter is about observing and learning how to look for different learning styles. The author suggests we observe our students and what they do in their free time or see what they do when they misbehave. When I was reading about how children spent their free time interacting and doing things that correlate with their learning styles I had a thought. Why wouldn’t teachers on the first day before getting class started (s)he just sit back and observe their new students. That might be a really great way to get an idea of the different types of personalities and strengths that are present in the class. Some might think this could be a waste of time but in my opinion you’re killing two birds with one stone. You’re learning about their personalities and who they are before talking to them and you’re learning what they choose to do during their free time so you might be able to trust them to use their free time wisely in the future. It’s also really interesting that children misbehave through their intelligences. Thinking back to school, I remember I would always get in trouble for talking too much or wasting my time in class by doodling on the sides of my papers. The more I think about it and compare the more I realize that this is incredibly true. True, there will always be exceptions to this rule like any rule but I’m kind of excited to see how true this is when I get on site and compare what Gardner says to the kids that will be in my practicum classroom.

Cameron B.
This chapter discusses how teachers need to identify each students learning style in the classroom. Especially if some students are having a hard time understanding the content or seem to show no interest. Some of the students won’t do well if they are simply reading and writing but instead may need to be able to move around or work with their hands to build something.

To find out the ways each students teach there are multiple resources. A teacher can look back at a student’s report card from past years and talk with their past teachers to get feedback on what they did well and what they struggled with. Parents are also a valuable resource because they are the ones who watched their kids develop and know their activities while at home. The best overall resource for teachers will be the students themselves. No one knows more about a student than themselves. So by asking them what they like to do or would prefer doing in a class could help the teacher to design ways to incorporate their learning style in the classroom.

This is something that is helpful for me to know. Each student I have will be unique in many ways. Being able to be effective in every class by teaching the same lesson plan will be impossible. The reason, I will have new learning styles each and every class. So to ensure that I am meeting the needs of the students I am going to have find out what they are strong at or what they need more work with. That will allow me to be an effective teacher.

Nicole C.
The main thing this chapter taught me was how to gather information about students’ multiple intelligences – where they shine, where they struggle, and how they prefer to learn. The best way to do this, the text suggested, was through the simple powers of observation. Of course, it is hard to observe and remember the observations of hundreds of students a teacher has during the day. In light of this, the piece of advice that impacted me the most was: keep a written journal and write your observations there. While at first I found it to be a little creepy that I would be studying students and writing down things I notice about their behavior, responses, and interests, I now realize what a valuable tool this could be. I don’t know if I will necessarily keep thick files on all of my students, but this will definitely have an impact on how I deal with trouble-makers in the class. Instead of merely reprimanding them, I can use the resources the chapter suggests (collecting documents, looking at school records, talking with the student’s teachers, parents, and peers) to gain an accurate understanding of that student. From my data, I will hopefully be able to pinpoint the exact problem and devise a way to fix it by altering the way I teach big concepts. In this way, I can help all of my students’ multiple intelligences shine.

Tyler R.
In this chapter I learned how to investigate and find out which MI skills a classroom filled with students possess. Although there are no formal tests that will be able to find out which MI skills someone most likely follows, there are certain tests/surveys that can give hints about which ones a student follows. I think that as a future teacher, this will be a very important thing to know. I may find myself doing a survey similar to the one we did in class or the one provided in the book in order to get hints about what my students prefer most. However, the chapter also indicates that the best way for a teacher to figure out which MI skills their students possess is by observing them. By simply observing and taking notes on some of the behaviors, (or especially misbehaviors), a teacher can determine even more hints about which MI skill a student possesses. I found this to be very interesting. Some of the examples that were given in the book were so simple, but really did describe the MI skills. I think that this would be something I would be interested in doing as a future teacher in my classroom. The more I am able to figure out and learn about my students learning habits, then the more likely I am to be able to teach them successfully. Finally, the idea about communicating with other teachers was brought up again. I really like this idea and plan to do it as a teacher. I just don’t see what could go wrong by doing this. Only positive outcomes can come from discussing amongst one’s colleagues.

**Jackson F.**
Multiple Intelligence theory believes that all students have the potential of performing adequately in all eight intelligences. Teachers need to help students develop weaker intelligences by drawing upon stronger ones. In order for development to happen the teacher needs to use resources/observations to have an idea of what intelligences students have. Some resources which can be used are checklist (pg. 35), school records and other documents. Other good sources are talking to other teachers and the parents of the students. Observations are very beneficial because it gives the teacher direct information about what types of intelligences students possess. Ultimately the most effective source of information a teacher can get is to talk to the students about how they learn best. The resources/observations are only as good as the teacher makes them to be; it is essential to organize the information about the intelligences in order to teach responsively. I remember this summer going through some old binders from when I was in elementary/middle school, for years I have always wondered why teachers kept all of our stuff. Now I realize that it was a way for teachers to gather information on me and see my development as a student. Next time I’m home I will probably have a completely different outlook on that old binder. In the classroom I realize that a teacher does not need to have a blank sheet of paper on new students, but should be gathering knowledge even before the first day of classes. Having many students and not knowing anything about them until the first day could be harmful to teaching effectively. Taking an active role in learning about my students before ever meeting them could help make planning lessons easier and more effective.

Brittany R.
This chapter mainly discussed how to assess children’s MI intelligence. The idea that I like the best was going back and collecting a child’s report cards from elementary school. When I was younger I remember my report cards having checklist’s on them that were filled out by the teacher. Now that I am an adult, I realize that it would be very quick and easy to evaluate myself at an early age. The same is possible for other students that I will have in my classroom. I found it interesting when the author talked about how a teacher should pay the most attention to the child who is misbehaving. Depending on how they are acting out, the student can portray their learning style in their behavior whether it be fidgeting or talking out of turn. Also it makes sense to talk to both parents and other teachers when trying to figure out learning styles of students. If everyone who interacts with a student can evaluate a students behavior much more will be accomplished as far as creating appropriate activities for students with different learning styles. However I think the best way to talk to a child is to discuss the matter with them and ask what works best for themselves. The student will know him or herself better than most so why not talk to them direct. I feel like this would be the best approach for me to use in my classroom. I liked the idea of doing survey’s in the class so the students can evaluate themselves so I feel that I would benefit most from that.

Meng H.
Chapter 3 is about assessing MI in students. The assessments are done without standardized tests, but through observations, data collecting, and interviewing with colleagues, parents and students. There are so many ways to collect data to determine student’s MI. I especially like the one that determine students’ most highly developed intelligence by identifying their misbehaviors in class. So often the students’ misbehaviors are considered bad, because they are not paying attention or being disruptive. Only if the teacher can see the reasons behind those behaviors then maybe he or she can adjust the teaching approach to be more engaging. I would like to do a lesson with the eight different approaches so as to connect to students with different most highly-developed MI categories and at the same time use it as a way of assessment. There will be challenges in this plan though. First, keeping track or taking notes of the lesson will be tricky, so maybe a video tape of the whole class period for later analyzing would work better. Also, finding eight different ways to teach one lesson based on MI would require some creativity. In a math class, it requires a lot of logical and spatial thinking and reasoning. But those skills or intelligences are not some students’ strong suits. That means it calls for alternative ways for me to present the new concepts for those students to understand. The new concepts could be presented in the format of a text (linguistic), hands-on activity (bodily-kinesthetic), group work (interpersonal), and real life application (naturalist, intrapersonal).

Joe S.
This chapter highlights the ways to determine students’ styles of learning. It advocates highly for simply observing students as opposed to using testing to find out strengths and weaknesses, and puts a lot of focus on the way students misbehave, stating that, “these students are metaphorically saying through their behaviors: ‘This is how I learn, teacher, and if you don’t teach me in the way that I most naturally learn, guess what? I’, going to do it //anyway//!’” The author continues to recommend that each teacher use a notebook or journal to record their observations of students, and also to analyze work that comes in for tendencies or hints.

There are other methods to finding out proclivities and difficulties for each student, such as checking their school records, consulting other teachers, or talking to parents. These, along with asking the students themselves are a good way to get a basic idea of interests in question. One recommendation made by the author makes a lot of sense, and that is to ask specific teachers about specific areas of intelligences, such as asking an art teacher about spatial relations, or asking a gym teacher about bodily-kinesthetic intelligence.

Using the eight ways of learning described in the MI Theory, a teacher “can begin to describe students’ most developed intelligences so that more of their learning in school can take place through their preference.” This concept is useful in any classroom, and some students will be more receptive to one type of teaching over another. If the teacher can analyze the entire class, then instruction can be differentiated to ensure that most of the class will be in a comfortable area comfort most of the time.

Clayton P.
This chapter deals with determining the MI of students. It starts out by saying that children are well developed in all eight intelligences, but that they start showing preferences for some intelligence over others early on. The author points out that by the time they start school, some children may already be more proficient in a specific intelligence than others. It is important then to find the best way to teach these students. This chapter specifies how to describe the intelligence of these students. The author states that testing, although helpful in determining a student’s MI, is not very specific. According to the author, the best method of determining the MI of students is by observing them. He then states that observing the students’ use of free time, and even their misbehavior, can lead to determining their MI. Knowing that some teachers teach as many as hundreds of students a day, this kind of observation may be impossible in such cases. The author then suggests merely observing the students who are having (or causing) the most problems. The author also includes a checklist to aid in the observation of students to determine their MI. Conversing with other teachers, parents, and even the student is recommended in finding a student’s MI. This chapter was very interesting and important. It demonstrates how to properly and effectively find the MI of students in a way that does not detract from the regular curriculum, thus providing more information for the teacher and more classroom instruction for the students.

Andrew C
Chapter 3 gave me some great insight on how to find out what MI’s our students are. It’s interesting that I will most likely be able to tell many of my students MI’s through their misbehaviors. I guess that it makes sense that a student who is doing something disruptive in class is doing it to increase their learning not just to be annoying. I know that there are some students who do disrupt class for other reasons but there is definitely a link to the students MI’s as well. The idea of having an observational journal for students is a great idea. It might work really well if you designated a certain time during the week when each of your classes does a writing prompt and during that time you can write down a line or two about each student in your observation diary that you may have noticed in the past week. These small steps can make it a lot easier to know how to deal with and teach to each student. It is good to know that there are many ways to observe for your students MI’s. Using a combination of school files, work samples, and observational notes from parents and past teachers can give the current teacher a great idea of what MI’s the students excel or don’t in. I think that the most important way of exploring the students MI’s are by asking the students. They know them selves the best and with guidance by their teacher and parents they can truly find what areas they excel in the most.