Leading and Managing a Differentiated Classroom Book Review

Leading and Managing a Differentiated Classroom by Carol Ann Tomlinson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I read this book for a book/discussion group at my school. I'm a big fan of differentiated instruction and use layered curriculum (a way of formatting differentiation) in my classroom. While this book has a lot of really great advice and information in it, there are also some shortcomings. The book itself is quite short and for a new teachers probably does not give enough guidance to actually begin differentiating well in the classroom. This book seemed to focus more on trying to sell the philosophy rather than putting it into practice in the classroom (although it does provide some good examples, they are sporadic). It does provide a lot of great explanation in this area (ex: differentiation is not just a list of various activities, but an educational philosophy and approach to teaching), but fell a bit short on some of the practical applications of differentiated instruction.
I'm glad I read this book and would definitely recommend it to other teachers. I would also suggest it be read in conjunction with Kathy Nunley's "Layered Curriculum" which focuses less on selling an educator on the philosophy of differentiated education and more on putting it into place and managing it in the classroom.

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Vienna

When I told people I was going to Munich and Vienna for vacation most people had this reaction, "I love Munich/I hear Munich is beautiful.  Why are you going to Vienna?" I honestly couldn't think of a reason why you shouldn't go to Vienna, but if you need some convincing check out these pictures. It is one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. The food is also amazing.

 

View from the top of Stephansdom Church

 

 Stadtpark

 

Imperial table setting at the Hofburg Palace

   

 Best chocolate torte in the world

   

 Schwarzenberg Platz at night

 I loved Vienna so much. Of all the cities I've visited in Europe if I had to pick one to live in it would be Vienna. If you'd like to see more pictures, click here.

Munich

Last week I accomplished one of my long time travel goals of visiting Germany and Austria.  Andy and I decided to focus our attentions on Munich and Vienna.  Here are some of my favorite images we captured in Munich.

 

View from the top of Peterskirche, one of the churches in the heart of Munich 

 

Visiting Nymphenburg Schloss 

 

Experiencing the Hofbrauhaus 

 

 Seeing the Glockenspiel in action 

Just a few of my favorite moments from Munich.  You can see more here if you'd like.

Knit Teach Ride, Take Two

I took a hiatus from the blog for a while.  This occurred as a result of being much more occupied with work, various work related obligations, and completing my thesis (hooray!).  I also needed a break from blogging.  I had tried to stretch myself too thin in the blog arena by attempting to constantly post about every interest, hobby, event, and item I consumed. The blog started to lose focus, and became slightly overwhelming to manage well.

I miss blogging though.  I archived much of my old content, and decided to aim for at least one post a week.  There's a good chance said post will have to do with one or more of the following:

• Thor
• Teaching
• Knitting/Crafts
• Outfits
• Food
• Friends/Family
• Travels/Events

I don't want to try to maintain a rigid schedule like I did in the past of Monday's being weekend highlights, Tuesday's being knitting/crafts, etc.  I think it will be much more manageable for me even when I get busy, and hopefully more appealing to my readers (if there are any of you left).

If you're still reading, I appreciate it.  I have been reading others blogs even in my absence from my own.  I have not been the best commenter though, so I vow to improve on that in addition to posting.