Demonstrating "Insistence"				(mm:ss)
Reminding A. of what she needs to be doing using the "broken record" technique.
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Building Relationships with Students and Families: Working with the Variables of Culture and Connection

An Example

Building relationships with students and their families has always been an important part of my teaching work. On this page and those linked to it, I portray examples of interactions over time with "Demarcus," a student in my class. These interactions illustrate ways in which I engage with students and families to build strong relationships. In addition, I reflect on shifts in my practice related to becoming a more culturally-relevant teacher.

About "Demarcus"

"Demarcus" and I have worked together for two years and are about to begin our third; he entered my second grade class in September 2002, continued through third grade during the 2003-04 school year and will begin fourth grade in September 2004. I followed the class in which Demarcus has been enrolled up into the third grade and now will move with the class into fourth grade.

Demarcus is African American and tall for his age. He was retained at the end of his first grade year, which still both angers and saddens him, and causes him to question his abilities.

Supporting Students				(mm:ss)
D. talks about how Ellen helps students on hard days, and celebrates their accomplishments on good days.
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Demarcus has eyes that burrow into you, by turns serious, sad, angry, interested, thoughtful. Strength emanates from him. He has made strong academic gains, particularly in reading (moving from an Accelerated Reader Assessment Grade Equivalent Score of 2.6 in October 2003 to a 4.4 in June 2004, for example). He still struggles with spelling (long vowel spelling patterns in particular), writing (because he continues to dislike it) and reading fluency (he reads at approximately 80 correct words per minute when 125 words per minute is expected); he knows that, during the 2004-05 school year, he and I will work particularly hard on these three areas.

About the Narratives

I wrote this selection of narratives over the course of the 2003-2004 school year. Often, these grew out of work I did in my journal during the class writing time. I almost always shared these writings with Demarcus within a day or two, both as a way to check for accuracy and to open conversations. Demarcus would stand along side me, reading and pointing to things as I read out loud, as you'll see in the first narrative under the category "On Conversation." These shared experiences were an invaluable piece of our relationship building work.

About the Matrix

Growing out of one of the narratives is a matrix I designed to help me examine what I was thinking during the unfolding events, and the context for decisions I made and actions I took (and didn't take). I identify strategies I currently use (insistence; clear expectations; a strong relationship with parents and family) contrasted with practices and patterns of behavior true of me earlier in my career, practices and patterns I've learned were not supporting many of my students' growth and success.

Read the narrative On Working Through Difficulties first, then read the matrix (PDF) .

(Please Note: The matrix will download onto your computer. The image you first see will be much too small to read; use the "Zoom In" feature to enlarge the print; if you don't see a "Zoom In" button on the first screen that comes up, look under the "Display" Menu.)