Who is the most important kid in your classroom?

All kids are important…but is there one that you should make sure you focus more attention on? 

Kids have such differences when it comes to their learning and their levels of engagement. One of the hardest things that teachers face is how to balance your time between all students.

I feel as though a lot of teachers focus on the student who is struggling the most in the classroom, especially if they are having a hard time with balancing their time between levels.

I personally think that the most important kid in the classroom would have to be the kid who is going above and beyond, the kid who understands everything, the kid who becomes bored because he flies through his work. This is the most important kid.

Teachers seem to have a hard time knowing what to do with student’s who are gifted or who are at a higher level than their peers. Enrichment should be always available and teachers should be able to come up with ways to keep their higher level student’s on their toes.

I have always been a big fan of peer work — where students who are at a higher level work with student’s at a lower level. I feel as though student’s who are at a lower level get more out of working with a peer than a teacher sometimes. This also helps with the higher level student’s because sometimes they have a harder time explaining their thought process. Seems like a win/win.

While I feel as though all students/kids are important — we need to make sure that we are taking the time to address every student in the classroom as well as their needs. That is why I feel that right now the most important kid is the one who is the highest in the class. We forget about these kids a lot, and that hinders them and their futures.