A spin on show and tell

Flannery O’Connor’s paradoxical statement rings true.

Teachers can run the risk of failing to see emerging talent that takes an approach different than what’s considered “correct.”

The verb form of “teacher “is “teach.” According to Webster’s, it comes from the Old English word  tæcan,, the base of which was tacn, which meant a sign or symbol. So, the word “teach” comes from the idea of showing, rather than telling, and is related to the German word zeigen, to show.

Good teachers know that simply lecturing on a subject is not enough. Lecturing may work for auditory learners, but visual learners need to see key concepts written on the board, and kinesthetic learners need to interact physically with what’s being taught. That’s why some preschool teachers allow their young charges to draw letters of the alphabet in pans of half-set gelatin. It’s fun – and effective.

Michelangelo once said, “Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it.“ A good teacher knows that every student has talent inside and it is the task of the teacher to discover it.

Photo special to the Sentinel