Hello. My name is Jennifer and I am currently working on getting my teaching credential and masters degree from National University. I have desired to be a 1st grade teacher since I was in elementary school. I put this dream on hold when I was promoted quickly into management while working in retail when attending college and San Diego State University. While working in retail, I felt like something was missing in my life. I began volunteering in a first grade classroom and was immediately reminded of my passion for teaching. I knew right away that it was time for me to go back to school and get my teaching credential.

While volunteering in a first grade classroom, I quickly learned the importance of differentiating instruction. Classrooms are filled with a wide diversity of students whom receive and comprehend information from various methods based on their abilities, interests, and background knowledge. For example, some students learn best visually, while others retain information better from audio. Teachers must get to know their students, assess their students, then differentiate their instructions based on the student's ability and needs. In a general education first grade classroom, I observed a teacher begin a new math lesson on multiplication by presenting the material to the entire class. At the end of the lesson, she check for understanding by asking questions and having students answer practice questions on the board. Students that understood the math lesson began their worksheet at their desks independently. There was a small group of students that did not understand the lesson and needed further assistance through differentiated instruction. The English Language Learners in her classroom had difficulty with understanding the problems on their worksheet. The teacher drew pictures to further explain the math lesson. For 2 X 3, she drew two groups of 3 apples. Then she had the students add all of the apples and put their answer on the worksheet. Other students used cubes to complete the problem 2 X 3. They had three cubes together in two rows. The teacher also had some students work in partners on the worksheet. The students were grouped based on their abilities, for example, a student of higher level ability was grouped with a student of lower level ability. It is extremely important teachers create various methods for presenting material to their students to meet all their students abilities and needs.