Comprehension

Being "in tune" with your students is something I feel like grows with time and changes year to you. I find it so incredible when I hear my teacher talk about re-teaching on a day for a particular group of students, or how she had an entire plan for reading with one reading group that she completely axed within the first five minutes because the kids had no idea what was going on. Sometimes it's obvious when students aren't comprehending texts, but other times, I feel like it's much harder to make that distinction. Figuring out the comprehension levels of the more quiet students is something that I have struggled with since the beginning of my practicum. Since mid-September, I have been working with two leveled reading groups. It's one of my favorite parts of the day because I get to really interact with a small group of students and learn how they think and listen to their ideas. However, I have found that there are many difficulties in reaching students who are both ELL and on the quieter side. One student in particular won't speak while the rest of the group is very supportive of him and very outgoing and forward in sharing their ideas. I've given him the option of talking to me privately, writing answers in a notebook, or drawing pictures to help me see that he is comprehending texts, but he becomes discouraged easily and I don't end up getting much out of him. I'm wondering if it's a lack of experience, or if there is a disjoint between what I am doing and what my cooperating teacher is doing, but I am worried that there are other students slipping through the cracks like he is.