RE_5539

Jake reminds me of so many children we encounter in schools today. The conflict between school and home life can create conflict for any child. As I began reading, Jake appears to be a typical child from a typical working-class family who wanted the best for their child. The way in which they raised Jake was the way they felt was best based on their understanding and values; however, this sometimes is in contrast to what schools perceive as appropriate or correct. The way in which Jake’s family raised him was good for their family, but it made schooling a little difficult for Jake because what was valued at school was not valued at home and vice versa in his opinion. In order for Jake to value what was being taught at school he had to see its relevance to his life. Hicks’ states on page 104, “Sustaining interest in an activity also required that the task make sense. A task had to be something that needed to get done.” It was hard for Jake to see the relevance in many literacy activities he was asked to complete and this caused some gaps in his learning. Honestly, we can try many different strategies and tactics to get children to see the relevance in activities and lessons, but they will not always see how the knowledge will help them in the future. Yes, we still must try to make connections with children so they can see the relevance and learn what we are teaching, but we have to remember that not everyone will connect to everything. I am not saying that we should not try to get children to see the connections. We must make them aware that not everything may connect to their lives now, but somewhere down the road, the skills may be needed and there are things we just have to know and learn. I think we need to try to do activities based on students’ interest to engage them in what we are teaching. In earlier grades, it is much easier to do, but in all grades it is needed.

Although Jake did not always participate, as he should in kindergarten he was relatively successful because of the structure of kindergarten. He is a child that needs to move around and manipulate objects to learn. Reading the observations Hicks made of her work with him made me think a little more about the difference learning styles. Jake appears to be a kinesthic learner which means he learns best through movement and hands on activities. However, if teachers are not aware of this or not willing to allow for those differences it may cause conflict between the teacher and child. There is a big difference between the structure of kindergarten and first grade that I do not feel parents are fully aware. This is where children who are borderline began to become at risk of becoming a struggling reader. I found it interesting how the author spoke about Jake knowing how to “do school”. Many children have learned this and unfortunately, this will not always sustain them. Most will eventually get tired of “doing school” and begin to express their true feelings. I think Jake’s family could have made of difference in how he valued school and literacy practices at school. If I am not mistaken when Hicks or Jake’s teacher explained to his family what was going on with him at school I do not recall his family speaking with him or trying to show him the importance of participating in the activities at school. I believe that if they would have, Jake may have been more willing to change his attitude and work harder. This may not have happened, but this is just my opinion. Jake valued his family and what they thought and what his parents say about school or learning can influence their decisions at school. Many children feel this way. On page 123, it says “The stories voiced about us, by those whom we most love and value, shape our identities in ways more powerful than even the most authoritative institutional systems of social regulation.” I feel also the stories voiced to us by those we love shape who we are and how we perform. Jake’s family felt he was very intelligent because of the things he was able to do at home. I have no doubt that he is very intelligent and possibly has high nonverbal or perceptual reasoning skills, but what children do at home is not like the literacy practices children receive at school. When parents are told their children are struggling or at risk, they cannot understand why because at home they see that their child is developing well in their opinion.

I thought it was good how Jake’s family were avid readers and provided him with many literacy experiences and books at home. Most of the children that attend the school were I work do not have much print at home and only own a few books. I was glad to read that his family valued reading. You would think with them being avid readers and with the resources available at home that Jake would have performed better in school as it relates to literacy, but Jake did not see the value of what he was reading at school and therefore was unable to make the connection and continue to develop his literacy skills.

As with Laurie I wonder how Jake is doing. Will he finish school or follow in his father and leave school? Will he take over the family business or go to college? Will his views of school change early enough for him to get the help he needs before it is too late? It would be interesting to find out.