As stated in my teaching philosophy, one of my goals in the classroom is to make the curriculum accessible to all children so that they can all achieve their own goals. One way that I scaffold in the classroom is by working individually with children. During the travel guide assignment, I had conferences with each child several times to help them with their comprehension of the literature they were given and also to help them with their writing. When two children were struggling to understand articles printed out from the Internet, I reformatted the text and also increased the font size. This proved to be effective and the children had a much better time understanding the material after this adjustment was made. This long term project was very challenging for children. It required for them to understand sometimes very high level reading material. They also had to sustain their attention for three different drafts. Additionally, they had to work to independently make edits and to include the changes that I made with the children. Throughout the whole project I reminded children to always "try their best." (Indicator 1) I also closely monitored their progress and let them know when they were producing work that reflected their ability level and when they needed to pick up the effort a little. With the English Language Learners and children who had Indiviudalized Education Plans, I gave them the extra support so that they could achieve the same product as other children. With extra support and individualized attention all of the children were able to create something that they felt very proud of. 

             I also gave extra support to students when working in small reading groups. I utilized the class's leveled books for these groups. The focus of these groups varied depending on the children's reading level. For the high level readers, I gave the books to children before we met. We would usually have discussions about the book and make text to life connections. With lower level readers, I worked with children on decoding and fluency. These small groups provided the children with an opportunity to improve their reading, comprehension and analytical skills. (Indicator 2) It was also a great way to get to know them in a smaller context. 

        Another way that equity was established and maintained in the classroom was through the use of call sticks. These sticks were a great way call on children randomly and to promote an environment where favoritism was clearly not felt. These call sticks were used during group instruction and also when the class played games such as social studies Jeopardy. Students enjoyed this method of participation. It was also a great way to keep the attention of the group when children knew that they may be called to answer a question at any point. 

               It is critical that children feel like they are being respected and that their progress is being monitored and addressed. It is my job find ways to make the curriculum accessible to all and to maintain a classroom where the morale is high and children feel excited to learn.