FAT city workshop

I found the F.A.T city workshop video extremely eye-opening.  Often enough, I find that this type of student really is seen as more of a troublemaker, disturbance or even a lazy student in classrooms simply because they cannot cope with the pacing of the classroom.  Thus, I really appreciated the exercizes done with these individuals, and I am really thankful that we were able to see this film.
     I really thought that the ways that Richard D. Lavoy showed the participants what school is like for children with a learning disability were very innovative.  I really marvelled at how quickly they regressed to acting like these children in refusing to volunteer to answer questions, in accusing each other of making mistakes, and in showing confusion and frustration.  I though that the fact that children with learning disabilities become obsessed with finding the mistakes of others so that they can prove that they are not the only fallible individuals was so accurate and insightful.  I have particularly noticed this in my own experiences with these children, as they are often the most  quick to pick up on the slightest inconsistencies, especially in how your treatment of them and other individuals differs.  I suppose that, often enough, they are really simply obsessed with the idea of normalcy and fitting in, and that this behaviour is simply an outflow of the frustration they feel at not being able to fully mesh with their peers.  I guess that, as a teacher, it is then really important to try and see situations from the perspective of the student before reacting to them, because these people often seem to take a great deal of their self-worth from how others see them.  Also, I particularly enjoyed his advice in regards to calliing on children with processing difficulties in the classroom.  The notion of taking these children aside and telling them that you will never call on them unless you are standing directly in front of them really seemed brilliant to me because it takes so much of the stress of not wanting to seem unintelligent out of that student's life, and really helps to let the student know that you are there to help him or her, creating a stronger and more supportive relationship.  In that way, the student can feel validated and can be more free to concentrate on what is being taught.
     Anyhow, as I'm sure you can see from the above comments, I am very thrilled and greatful that we were given the opportunity to watch this workshop.
-Rachel