Week 12: Instructional Environments

This week, we discussed instructional environments and what would be most conducive to learning. For all learners, the environment must be evaluated physically, in interactions, in organization, and congruence among settings. Physically, most students enjoy low lighting, a temperature balance, and fresh air. In addition, students also enjoy a balance between different types of learning, including, audio, visuals, technology, and hands-on projects. In addition to the physical environment, emotional relationships between teachers and students can make the classroom more enjoyable when the student feels safe and creates a bond of trust with the teacher. When the students physical and emotional needs are met, then learning can proceed. 

In a small group, Bella, Caitlin, and I created a list of techniques to engage kinesthetic learners. Kinesthetic learners learn best through movement and hands-on techniques. The list we created is below:
 - creating a dance or movement
 - touching body parts or making symbols with hands
 - touching or experiencing realia of the topic being discussed (a pumpkin in the fall for example)
 - allowing for fidget room
 - allowing use of a stress ball to ease anxious movements
 - brain breaks involving movement
 - center activities and small group activities

Neurologically, movement has been shown to help make more neuronal connections in the brain, stimulating learning. In a study done on children with dyslexia, movement helped those students perform better on reading tasks, also allowing for higher scores on reading-based standardized tests. Incorporating movement into our classrooms will allow students to increase the oxygen flow to their brains, allowing them to learn more effectively.

Using the Fry Readability Formula, we calculated the difficulty level of two books, a lower-level Nancy Drew book, and the first book in the Charlie Bone series. This formula took into account syllables per 100 random words as well as sentences in the same section of 100 words. We determined that Nancy Drew was at a mid-3rd grade level and Charlie Bone was at a beginning 6th grade level. Based on the formula and results, we determined that the formula basically relies on the principle of more syllables + fewer sentences = increased complexity. We developed a list of pros and cons about this formula and how it is used to evaluate reading levels of different texts.

Pros and Cons of the Fry Readability Formula

In evaluating the readability formula, we realized that there are many factors that are not taken into account when evaluating the books, as listed in the cons in the above chart. Though the formula could be a good benchmark for recommending books for students or creating variety within lesson plans, teachers should still read the books and look for other formulas of ability levels for students when assigning or recommending books.