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Tips Regarding How To Teach

8/26/2014

Teaching is one of the most difficult professions that exists. Having taught full-time for 18 years, I am very aware of the many challenges that teachers face. Based upon my experience, here are some ideas regarding who to teach the subject matter each day.

Teachers are performers-Your classroom is your stage. Make your students feel it is worth learning from you.
Tell Stories- Most people enjoy a good story. Anytime you can use a personal experience to help your students connect with what you are teaching, do it! Years later they will remember those stories. It happened to me several times.
When teaching, think about teaching- Prepare before your class by thinking of your audience and what they need to know, not what you want them to know.
Emphasize the movement of thought- Most people use a combination of the three modalities of learning, but learning by doing is the most powerful in my opinion. Show students the process of finding answers. Also show them how making mistakes is a part of the learning process, and allows one to see what direction to go. People often try to avoid mistakes. Adopt the habit of thinking; Be willing to make mistakes to find out what to do next.
Remove the wall between the performer (teacher) and the audience (students)-Ask students thought provoking questions, encourage them to ask questions. For example, “What is missing?” “Could this be extended?” “Is there more to be seen here?” Learning is best when it is interactive.
Keep learning how to improve as a teacher- It is easy to go through the motions and do the same thing each year. Challenge yourself to provide your students with your best effort when teaching. Attend conferences and grade level meetings, join a teachers community on Google+, connect with fellow educators on Twitter, or learn a new technological skill that can be used in your classroom (e.g Google Drive). If you don’t try to improve your skill set as a teacher, you will quickly become bored as will your students.
Teach the class you have rather than wishing you had a class like a previous year- Teaching is challenging, and you can’t hand select your students. Helping a struggling student succeed proves your value as a teacher. It doesn’t take much effort to teach a student that is motivated and a high achiever.

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Five Things All Teachers Should Consider

8/25/2014

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Here are 5 important things that all teachers should consider during their careers:

1. Children should not be intentionally humiliated, hurt, or embarrassed .

2. It is your job is to teach until a student learns.

3. Don’t be afraid of making mistakes. Be willing to say "I'm sorry" and students will learn the same.

4. Encourage every child to do his or her best, and never be afraid of a challenge.

5. Modeling is the most powerful way to affect a child’s learning.

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Childhood: A Time Of Wonder

8/24/2014

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Childhood is a treasured time in everyone's life that should not be taken for granted. Its delights can be endless. Due to changes in society, the current generation of children are having to grow up much faster than their parents had to. Do some of the following activities with your 6-12 year old to maximize that wonderful part of their lives where they are ripe with wonder and imagination. Remember it is never to late to enjoy these activities at ANY age!

Develop their curiosity about things.
Look at a leaf through a magnifying glass. And see wonder exists out of ordinary sight.
Collect a jar of lightning bugs at night.
Tell the difference between circada and cricket sounds. They’ll be hearing things all their lives that sound like one thing, but are actually another.
Play flashlight tag with their friends and discover the joys of summer nights.
Develop a sense of adventure. The younger the better.
Be assigned chores. Even if it’s just cleaning their room.
Spend hours building a sand castle on the beach, then watch the evening tide wash it away.
Climb up the inside of a lighthouse.
Watch a chrysalis turn into a butterfly. You can buy them on-line.
Find their way out of a maze.
Watch a windmill.
Go to camp. Learn they can live without you. And you, without them.
Listen to a storyteller at the library.
Bait a hook. And take a fish off one. Learn that life is messy. Even some of the best parts.
Roll in the snow. Even if they live in Florida.
Sit on the roof and get another perspective of their world.
Develop the art of listening. Without interrupting. And remember what’s being said.
Learn to say “I’m sorry”.
Develop the courage to support a friend.

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