Why Can't She Remember That?

When I was reading Meier's article "Why Can't She Remember That?", I found many insightful pieces of information within it. 

One of the quotes that I took from Meier's writing to talk about was on page 243, "Each of these preschoolers, socialized in very different linguistic and cultural communities, demonstrates the ability to use language in powerful ways to negotiate relationships with other people and to accomplish his or her social purposes." To me, this quote shows that just because a child is raised or socialized into a certain culture, doesn't mean that they have to be set to just that specific culture. Children are like sponges, they just absorb all the information that you throw at them. Even though some of them don't respond as quickly as the standard warrants, it doesn't mean that the child isn't learning. 

The second quote that I found rather interesting was on page 245. "They call out. They talk to the children sitting next to them. They raise their hands to answer questions and then make comments, which may only be tangentially related to the question that was asked or to the book." When I read this, I found it hard to believe that a teacher was surprised that a preschooler was calling out and goofing around. Every teacher I have ever spoken to has said that there is at least one child who acts out, no matter what age the kids are.  Although yes, most students learn that calling out and talking out of turn is wrong, there are still kids who feel that what they have to say is very important and can’t wait. In most circumstances, I can understand why a teacher would become frustrated with students constantly calling out and misbehaving but the kids are at such a young age that they don’t know any better.

Although there were many meaningful and informative quotes in Meier’s writings, these were the two that stood out the most to me.