Knowledge Base

Ashley Van Lopik, Licensed Childcare Director at the Tri-Cities Family YMCA

I have learned about culturally responsive teaching from Ashley. She has shown
me how to authentically integrate diverse cultures into the classroom through
literature and differentiation. She has also taught me about how to incorporate
high levels of thinking into the everyday learning environment for students.

Bransford, J. D., & National Research Council. (2004). How people learn: Brain, mind,
experience, and school. Washington, DC: National Acad. Press.

Doing science involves testing and observing; learners become scientists who
explore the natural world for themselves. Learning science involves developing
an understanding of concepts, fitting those concepts into preexisting schema, and
applying that learned knowledge to new situations. All learners have preexisting
knowledge of concepts, and a teacher’s role is to build on these ideas to develop
the learners’ understanding.

Buchner, K. T., & Manning, L. M. (winter 2001/2002). Exploring the foundations of

middle school classroom management. Childhood Education, 84-90.

This article is based on the theories of B. F. Skinner, Fritz Redl and William
Wattenberg, William Glasser, and Thomas Gordon. It focuses on the
effectiveness of rewarding positive behaviors and ignoring unwanted behaviors.
Middle schoolers are influenced daily by peer pressure, and this both positively
and negatively effects classroom dynamics. Middle schoolers follow each other’s’
behaviors.

Fay, J., Cline, F. W., & Fay, C. (n.d.). Love and Logic. Retrieved from
https://www.loveandlogic.com

Love and Logic practices are important to my classroom management style. It is

important for students to have a positive relationship with their teacher that
pushes them to learn responsibility, decision-making and problem-solving skills.

Hodson, D. (2014). Learning science, learning about science, doing science: different
goals demand different learning methods. International Journal of Science
Education, 36(15), 2534-2553. doi:10.1080/09500693.2014.899722
 Teachers’ instruction should be goal-oriented and student-centered, meaning
that the method of instruction will reflect what the objective is for the learner. If a
teacher wants learners to know how to do science, then the students need to do
science; you cannot learn how to do science solely from a teacher telling you
how.

Kathleen Streng, 2nd Grade Teacher at Ferry Elementary (Grand Haven Area Public
Schools)

During my teacher assisting semester, Kathleen modeled different classroom

management techniques in our classroom while searching for strategies that
worked well for our students. One she established a classroom management plan
for that particular class, she modeled consistency in the strategies. It focused on
positive discipline and logical consequences while also keeping the parents
involved in the management plan.

Meredith Long, Child Development Director at the Tri-Cities Family YMCA

Throughout my years of working at the YMCA under Meredith’s supervision, I

have learned from her about the importance of student-driven instruction,
creative curriculum, choice theory, logical consequences, and the practices of
love and logic. She models how to effectively handle difficult behaviors, and she
has shown me how to integrate learners of all abilities into the classroom.