Learning Profile Poem

Responsive and Differentiated Instruction was the class

To which I was assigned

We all leaned in to listen when the project was described

I grew giddy with excitement

Ideas swirled in my head, how could I pick just one?

It had to describe me best

“Tell me about yourself,” The professor said that day,

But we were not to do this in any ordinary way.

I am a visual learner first, I learned after taking a test

I must see it to believe it

But close in second place, a single point behind,

I like to touch and try

With my hands and body, doing the project not just hearing

How something is done.

To my role as a student, this information I must apply,

I have found what works

For me to learn I use flash cards, pictures, taking notes,

Hands-on activities,

Reading directions myself, acting it out to see how it works,

Timelines and outlines

Teachers tend to teach, they say, in the way they like to learn

If this is true for me,

Then I will love to show my students things, pictures, video,

Every day in class.

Activities will abound, my students won’t sit still for long,

My class will move!

But I must be sure in my teaching, not to neglect a learner

By not using words

Those who learn with their ears I must cater to as well,

Everyone must understand before they hear the bell.

The test I took next told me of my intelligences,

Nature tops my list,

And close behind is Kinesthetic and Visual/Spatial

(No surprises there)

In the learning environment, outside is good for me,

Nature calms my soul

I like to find patterns and connect with the great outdoors

To breath it all in

I also love to move and see, combine together all three

And I am happy

Then what can this mean, when I am the one teaching?

My class will surly know

All about nature, environment, climate, the world, and

The universe around them

Games will also be played, sights and written words,

Along with things to do

Yet there is something I should be careful to remember,

Some love music,

Others love numbers and logic, some understand themselves,

Some know how to read others

Those who learn in a different way I must cater to as well,

Everyone must understand before they hear the bell.

My background I now see, as a child was quite stable

I had a mom and dad

Three siblings, a home we never moved away from

It is not so for all

As a learner I am often taught by someone similar me

Teachers who grew up like me

There experiences were things I could connect with

My parents were involved

But when I get my own classroom, I must learn a

Thing or two

My students will not all have the same culture as I

Some have just one parent

Some students will not emphasize the same things I do

Or see the world differently

I must provide, readily and quickly what they need to learn

To each student

I will give a avenues and support systems to explore

I will listen

I will make time to understand their ways and beliefs

I will ask

Those who grew up differently than me, I must cater to as well

Everyone must understand before they hear the bell.

One thing is quite obvious (I hope) when you look my way,

I am, in fact, a girl

I like to please those around me with the things I do,

Conversation is important

I am more apt to listen, I enjoy expression of feelings

I enjoy togetherness

As with before, many teachers I came across were much

The same as me

When I have a class to teach, I must take into account

The boys

Teachers tend to teach, they say, the way that they learn

I come at it as a girl

Boys do not always listen so well, and they really love

Rough and tumble play

Boys don’t aim to please and are attuned to motion

They engage physically

Stress can actually aid their learning, and action is key

To many of their friendships

Boys like to share interests more whereas girls

Share secrets

The boys that are in my classroom I must cater to as well

Everyone must understand before they hear the bell.

Responsive and Differentiated Instruction was the class

To which I was assigned

We all leaned in to listen, when the project was described

I grew giddy with excitement

Ideas swirled in my head, how could I pick just one?

It had to describe me best

“Tell me about yourself,” Professor Bremer had said that day,
But we were not to do this in any ordinary way.

–Rachael