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Synthesis - Max
When beginning teaching it is very important that your curriculum is going to teach the students something. When you have a new class you don’t always know what the students already know. This chapter shows us that as the teacher we must find out where our students abilities are so we are not teaching them the same material they have already learned. When you understand what the student prior knowledge is, you begin your lesson plans. This chapter introduces us to the Understanding by Design curriculum model that shows students how the lessons can relate to what they know so that they will be able to put meaning into what they are learning. Differentiated Instruction is a model that shows teachers how to teach to different types of learners. Everyone learns differently and it is our job as educators to teach the material to them in more than one way so that everyone has an equal opportunity to learn.
 * Abstract**

[|Understanding by Design] is a great way to teach the students the “why and how.” The teacher should show students how this material is relevant and worth learning. We have all had a class where we think all the work is a huge waste of time. This model makes it so that the students can see how the information you are providing them with is useful. How you as an educator might differ depending on your concentration. If you are an English teacher, you could assign books that have problems in it that can compare to problems in the world today and have discussions in your class to show kids that they are reading something that is important. If you’re a history teacher then maybe having discussions about how past events have made an impact on what is going on today instead of just facts and dates that happened a long time ago. There are tons of possibilities to incorporate the real world into your curriculum. We all know that everyone has different learning styles and abilities. Some people are audio learners and some are visual. [|Differentiated Instruction]is a model that all teachers should be familiar with. It is a way to teach all different types of learners. The first step is, understanding what types of learners you have in your classroom and get familiar with each students learning style. When you know that you need to plan your curriculum to fit everyone’s needs of learning. If you have audio learners you can simply start your lessons with a lecture and have them take notes. But all classes are not only audio, so for your visual learners, make worksheets and give examples of the board by drawing pictures so they can see what you’re talking about. These may not always work for everyone so then if they still do not understand the material you can create projects and group activities for the students to further understand the important material.
 * Synthesis**

Jasmyn
Axiom 4- The best way for a teacher to find out how knowledgeable the students are about as particular subject is to make an assessment in the beginning, ask them what they know brainstorm and do a survey. Once you have collected a sufficient amount of data you can begin to design the lesson plan accordingly. It would seem to be a waste of time to cover material that every student has already learned. It is easier to keep students engaged when they feel like the information they are receiving is appropriate for their age group and styles. Lesson plans may need to be revised from year to year as well as allow for different sets of intelligences. Students will only benefit from a teachers ability to be flexible when creating a plan for instruction. I have learned through my “Health Promotion and Planning” class, that it assessment and reassessment are essential to your targeted audience and increases the likelihood that they feel best served.

Seth
I didn’t “learn” anything per say in Chapter 1 that I hadn’t already heard/read in the first few days of classes in the Practicum block. As a future teacher I’m well aware that I’m going to have multiple classes of students with a number of different learning methods. Some may be, as Dr. Grace calls them, Clipboards, Beach balls, Puppy’s or Microscopes, and as a teacher I will have to find a way of teaching that can make all my students comfortable and able to take in the information presented. Carol Ann Tomlinson and Jay McTighe say that an effective teacher must address the following four items: “whom they teach, where they teach, what they teach and how they teach” (2). After the rendezvous at the campfire I began thinking about these four elements. I kept thinking about where I wanted to teach, whether it be in the East or out in Colorado, I wanted to come up with ways to make history/social studies interesting for my students. After my first few classes I began to assess ways in which I can incorporate //all// types of learners into my lesson and thanks in part to time spent in Dr. Theresa’s EDU 101, I already have a few ideas.

Jen
In Chapter one I really began to understand the difference between Understanding by Design and Differentiated Instruction. From this chapter I gained a better view of how teachers must try and meet the needs of their students while also being obligated to meet the needs of the curriculum also. The discussion of the curriculum and teaching students in the most effective way for each student allowed me to realize the complexity of a teacher’s job. This reading allowed me to take myself out of the students’ frame of mind and allowed me to experience the role of a teacher, which clarifies the various aspects of my chosen profession. Through the process of understanding Understanding by Design and Differentiated Instruction more clearly it showed me the importance of using these techniques in my future classroom and how important it is to engage students of various learning styles. These techniques also enhanced my ability to see what is most important for these students to gain from their academic experience in my classroom and how as a teacher I am supposed to find the best way to teach the curriculum and meet the students’ individual needs. = =

Brody
The first chapter of Integrating Differentiated Instruction and Understanding by Design by Carol Ann Tomlinson and Jay McTighe shows that Understanding by Design and Integrating Differentiated Instruction are complementary to one another. In order to be successful, teachers need to keep in mind who they teach, where they teach, what they teach, and how they teach. Understanding by Design is a curriculum model that focuses on the what and the how. I believe Understanding by Design would help me in the classroom because students often times don’t see how a lesson is relevant to the real world. As an educator, I need to frame the content so that it is relevant and so my students are interested in tackling it. Differentiated instruction is an instructional design model that focuses on the who, where, and how. It will positively impact my classroom because students grow at different rates due to a wide range of factors. There needs to be instructional support for all types of ability levels in the classroom so an educator isn’t catering to one specific group thus rendering the other groups useless and underdeveloping their understanding of the topic at hand.

Kim
This chapter taught me that both curriculum and knowledge are important for effectively teaching students of all learning styles, abilities, and backgrounds. In their explanations for the logic behind UbD and DI, authors Tomlinson and McTighe say that, “quality classrooms evolve around powerful knowledge that works for each student. That is, they require quality curriculum and quality instruction. In tandem, UbD and DI provide structures, tools, and guidance for developing curriculum and instruction based on our current best understandings of teaching and learning,” (3). I feel like this statement is perhaps one of the most important statements in the chapter because it explains what the core of strong, effective teaching is. I think that if you are cognizant of this aspect of teaching, then you will be able to create units and lessons that provide optimal learning for students. I understand what DI is, but I am still quite confused about UbD. I know that if you use the two together, then you are effectively teaching students, but I don’t understand what the purpose of UbD is at this point. I know that once I understand what UbD is better, I will want to use it in my teaching, but I honestly do not know how I would use it right now. The axioms and corollaries that the authors used to explain how the two practices worked together seemed incredibly general to me and did not really help to explain them for me. I’m hoping to understand UbD and how it works with DI better as I read more of the book. = =

Leighlan
UbD is teaching the standards required for the test in a way that emphasizes the basics so students understand the subject. Often the focus of conversations on course content is about how it is so hard to cover concepts in depth when the standardized tests require that students know such a large variety of random facts. So UbD is cool because it makes a seemingly impossible situation seem like the natural way to teach. DI is a way to teach and treat all your different students as the unique learners they are. This addresses the problem of having a room full of different people that learn differently and having to teach them all at the same time. When one combines these methods, all students can learn the standards, understand underlying concepts at the depth they are ready for, in ways that work for them.

Maxwell Haney
This chapter was very interesting now that I am finally looking at all these axioms from a teacher’s perspective. As a math concentration, one way that will be a good clue as to how much of the information the students are taking in would be is the results of assessments. From there, along with a connection with the student, you can teach different styles and change your lesson plan accordingly. This will produce a higher level of teaching. I like the scenarios in this book. I find them to be very helpful in connecting something with the axioms. I remember different teachers giving me word banks or letting us work in groups. Sometimes it helped a lot to be with people.

Casey Mull
In this first chapter the idea of combining Understanding by Design and Differentiated Instruction is emphasized. I was able to receive to clear definitions of what each model represented. The chapter also gave seven axioms, each with a scenario, allowing me to understand the two models clearly. The examples gave me an idea of realistic situations that could take place in a classroom.

Lillian Barry
This chapter was very important. It explains that even when we are getting multiple teaching techniques thrown at us, it is ok not to know every single child’s learning style, if we are a flexible teacher and a student still does not grasp the concepts we can then look into more steps to take with them. This chapter gave great tips to get to know our students and make a comforting learning environment (exit cards, small group work) While breaking down the four students it gave a quick glance at what I will be dealing with in my future classroom, I cannot jump to conclusions and must always practice empathy. Continuing to talk to students all throughout the year will be a very important entity to maintain.

Mike LaFreniere
I learned that in order to have an effective classroom you need to look at whom you teach, where you teach, what you teach, and how you teach it. (pg.2) Ignoring any of these factors will hurt your teaching curriculum. I also learned the importance of technology in schools because it displays different units of schoolwork that is effective for teachers to present and easier for students to take in the content of a lesson. When Smart Boards were new in my high school, it really helped me grasp the key points that my teacher wanted us to learn. The variety of scenarios in this chapter helped me gain an understanding of the effort of putting together an effective curriculum. This information will be useful when putting together a curriculum to adapt to a wide variety of different student’s learning.

Brittany Rea
 Teaching is an extremely thought involved profession. Thinking has to go into everything that a teacher does from designing a lesson plan to managing a classroom to finding ways to do everything better. Perhaps this is why Understanding by Design and Differentiated Instruction are ways of thinking rather than step-by-step processes. In the beginning it may seem hard to implement a way of thinking that may have never been attempted before but in the end it will make life simpler than any process could. It becomes natural to use the methods associated with Understanding by Design and Differentiated Instruction and once a teacher gets past the thinking about thinking part of the two methods become a seamless part of classroom instruction. More than anyone, teachers need to be thinking people and not get stuck simply going through the motions.

Kaitlyn Bartlett
In the first chapter of DI and UbD I understood what the purposes of the two ideas were. I learned that they both feed off each other to help make the classroom experience better. The scenarios within each axiom and corollaries really helped to clarify what they were trying to say. Axiom 4 was the axiom that really caught my attention. From the other reading that we have had to do, I have really liked the idea of giving students a pre-assessment to get to know them as people and to figure out where they are in their learning, with that specific material. It will impact my classroom to help monitor my success as a teacher and to help me teach different style and types of learners.