tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2816379396941577754.post8641910083139946691..comments2023-10-27T05:42:20.467-05:00Comments on NCTE High School Matters: Differentiating for High FliersNCTEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13158338704096862694noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2816379396941577754.post-11087465890739652092009-07-22T13:30:19.454-05:002009-07-22T13:30:19.454-05:00Thanks, Shannon, that does help. I can flatter st...Thanks, Shannon, that does help. I can flatter students into taking on bigger challenges...<br /><br />Take care,<br />KateKate Kellenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13115851854697516874noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2816379396941577754.post-51514603646441182532009-07-22T12:21:04.012-05:002009-07-22T12:21:04.012-05:00I teach at a small school, so I teach the full spe...I teach at a small school, so I teach the full spectrum, including some kids who I'm pretty darn sure were brighter than me (and I'll show off my transcript in a heartbeat, too... trust me!). I think the best way to appeal to these kids is twofold: 1) acknowledge the knowledge that they have that you don't, and don't get in a wad when they correct/challenge/or question you (that builds their trust), and 2) appeal to their innate sense that they are thinking on a higher level than their classmates. One of my truly brilliant students (who I was afraid would be bored silly with my typical Amer Lit research paper topics) was intrigued when I suggested to him (quietly, of course) that he might enjoy the challenge of researching TS Eliot's "Wasteland." I told him I'd never assigned that topic before (truthfully!) because the poem is dense and packed with allusion and symbolism beyond the reach of most high school students. He was hooked. He did enough research to write a dissertation on the poem, talked with me about it after class several times, and finally condensed it DOWN to a 10 page paper (the requirement was 4 - 6 pages). <br /><br />Hope that helps a bit!<br />ShannonShannonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10042535130248068859noreply@blogger.com