5 Things Teachers Wish Parents Knew

 

Have you ever wondered what it was like to be a teacher? If you are honest, you will admit that it seems like a pretty easy job. Teachers get their summers off. They get two weeks off for Christmas, a week off for Spring Break, and three or more days off for Thanksgiving. However, there is more to teaching than what meets the eye. The following are five things that teachers wish parents knew.

Your Involvement Is Key

Yes, we want you to be involved in your child’s education. In fact, you play a key role in your child’s education. You can do what we can’t. You know your child intimately. You know what he or she likes and doesn’t like. You are the biggest influence in your child’s life. And, you know what it will take to motivate them. So, yes, we want you to be involved. We love for you to check-up on your child. We look forward to seeing you at Parent-Teacher Conferences and other school events.

Keep Us Informed

Don’t keep important details from us. We need to know what your child is allergic to. We need to know what medicines he or she is on. And, we need to know what your child’s interests are. If there is a death in the family, let us know because this can influence your child’s grades and behavior. Although you may not want to divulge that you and your spouse are going through a divorce, it could help us to better understand why you child is acting out in class.

Be Careful What You Say

Monitor what you say in front of your children. Whether you want them to or not, you children come back to school and repeat the things that you have said. They don’t mind let their teachers know just how you feel about them.

Teachers Have Lives Outside of School

Parents seem to forget that teachers have lives away from school. So often parents call after-hours or on weekends. When this happens, teachers are nice and address your concerns, but they find it frustrating.  A good rule of thumb is to call during the teacher’s planning time. If this is simply not possible, then call before it 7:00 P.M. and avoid calling on the weekends and avoid calling on Friday nights all together.

It Isn’t About the Money

Contrary to what some parents may think, teachers are definitely not in it for the money. In fact, compared to other professions, teaching does not pay well. And, most teachers end up spending what little money they make buying school supplies and other materials for their classroom.

Fun Things to Do in Your Classroom with Fabric

 

Fabric can be used for many different ways to make fun and educational things for your class.  All you need is the material and an active imagination to get students interested in fabric and excited about learning.

*Class Quilts

Quilting isn’t just for little old ladies. You can get your students involved in quilting by make a classroom quilt using  small scrapes of fabric. Before beginning your classroom quilt, it was also be interesting to teach the students the history of quilting. Once this is done, let the quilting begin.

This quilt can be used to display each of the students’ names or it can be used feature a book, a story, or other lesson that you have just completed. You can then display the on a wall in your classroom or in the hallway.  Your students and parents will be excited to see the classroom quilt.

*Banners

Classroom banners can be designed for a specific event or just to show your class pride. They can also be used to summarize a recently read book or even a monthly theme like apples, clowns, or holidays. Banners are quick and simple to make, and they are a lot of fun for students to design.

*Tote bags

Halloween, Christmas, Thanksgiving or Mother’s Day-it doesn’t matter.  Students can use fabric to design totes for any season or any occasion.  This is a fun and quick activity that you and your students will both enjoy.

You and your students can make tote bags for any season or for any different activity.  Depending on the age of your students, you may have to pre-cut the fabric and do the sewing and ironing.  However, this is a fun way to make something that is not only cute but also useable.

Fabric can be used in several different ways in your classroom.  You can make classroom quilts, banners, totes, and other objects with fabric.  Making these items can be educational as well as fun. 

http://www.quilting-in-america.com/History-of-Quilts.html
http://www.ehow.com/how_4869601_make-banners.html

How to Encourage Creative Thinking in Primary Children

Getting your primary students to think creatively may seem impossible. In reality, primary students are at the right age to develop their creative thinking abilities. So, what can you do to help facilitate the creative thinking process? Read on.

*Encourage questions

Young children are naturally curious. They will ask questions about almost anything. Instead of discouraging their many questions, educators should encourage them. Yes, some of the questions they ask may sound silly. However, these silly questions are your primary students’ way of formulating creative ideas and concepts.

*Allow them to make decisions

Encourage your young students to make some decisions. Young children often like to take the initiative. They begin to imitate the adults around them, and they want to do things their own way. So, let them. These decisions can be something as simple as which coloring crayons to use to color the grapes on their coloring sheets. Letting them make decisions will allow them to learn independence and encourage creativity.

*Allow them to make mistakes

It is hard to watch your students made decisions and then fail. However, it is through these experiences that primary students learn how to come up with creative solutions to their problems.

*Praise their efforts

Always praise your students’ efforts. Praise will increase their self-esteem, and motivate them to keep trying. By praising your primary students’ efforts and creative ideas, you are encouraging them to try new things and letting them know it is okay to be different.

*Open ended questions

Ask your primary students open-ended questions. These questions shouldn’t have simple “yes” or “no” answers. They should make the students think. It may take a few times for your students to adjust to these types of questions, but once they do, they will begin to use their imaginations.

*Read to them often and discuss what you have read

Books offer students a way to use their imaginations. Reading takes them to magical worlds and foreign lands. It offers them an escape from the “real world”. By listening to you read, your students are using their imaginations and learning how to think creatively. So, read to your students often and discuss the stories that you read as a group.  

*Print rich room

Create a reading friendly room. Have print everywhere. Keeps books and age appropriate magazines readily available for your primary students.

*Model Creative Thinking

Model creative thinking for your primary students. Young students are very impressionable. So, let them see you working on creative projects. Work through problems out loud so that the students can see how you solve problems. And, definitely let them see you read.

As a teacher, you have a wonderful opportunity to cultivate your primary students’ creative abilities. Encourage them to ask questions, to use their imaginations, and to “think outside the box”.

How to Get Your Teaching Staff to Work Together

 

Working in teams is almost unavoidable in any work setting, and teaching is no different. But, how do you get a diverse group of teachers to work together toward a common goal? The following are some great strategies that you can use to get your teaching staff focused and to keep them motivated.

Identify goals

The first thing that you will need to do is to get the entire staff together. During this meeting, both long and short term goals should be discussed. As a team, develop a plan of action for accomplishing those goals. Once you have identified the goals for the staff and developed a plan of action, you should have regular staff meetings in order to assess progress and to encourage the staff to stay focused on those goals. You can also invite guest speakers to come periodically to help keep your teaching staff motivated.

Clearly define expectations

As a principal, superintendent, Lead Teacher, or other person of authority, it is up to you to provide the staff with clearly defined expectations. Each teacher should know what they are expected to do, what the expected outcome is, and how that outcome works toward the overall goal.

Build teams

Once you have discussed the school or district’s main goal with the staff and clearly defined your expectations for them, you can then decide if you want your staff to work as one large group or if you want to divide them up into smaller teams. Working as one large group can be almost impossible in a large size school. So, in this instance, a smaller group would work more effectively than a larger one.

Now, you must decide how to group your staff. You can place them in groups according to their subject areas or you can opt to mix the different subject areas.

Leadership roles

Once the staff is divided into groups, you should delegate leadership positions. The teams should have one person who is in charge of keeping the team on track. This should be a person who is a decision-maker and a visionary. They should also have good interpersonal and communication skills.

Active participants

In order to successfully accomplish your goals, each member of the teaching staff must be active participants in the group. With the stresses of dealing with students, parents, and trying to meet state and federal standards, it can be easy for staff members to attempt to avoid the added responsibility. This is a mistake. All of the teaching staff needs to be fully committed to working toward the school’s mission. They should not be passively watching their co-workers do all the work. So, how do you get these teachers motivated?

 One way to keep teachers actively involved in the team is to rotate leadership positions. Each team member should have to take a leadership position at some point during the project. Another way to get disengaged staff members involved is to assign them projects that interest them and fall within their area of expertise. Ask them to share their ideas and opinions. People tend to work harder when they feel their work and their opinions matter.

Value diversity

Don’t try to beat your teaching staff into one mole. Celebrate each of the member’s diversity. This diverse group can bring a variety of different points of view to the table. They can also offer their expertise in different areas.

Getting a diverse group of teachers focus on a common goal may seem difficult. However, it can be done effectively by identifying goals, defining expectations, embracing diversity, and getting everyone actively involved.

http://video.about.com/management/How-to-Build-a-Teamwork-Culture.htm
http://humanresources.about.com/od/involvementteams/a/twelve_tip_team.htm

Things that Make a Teacher Ineffective

Some teachers are highly effective and well-liked while some are not. What makes the difference between a teacher that is liked and respected and one who is disliked by her students? The following is a list of things that can make a teacher ineffective and unpopular.

Inconsistence

A teacher who is inconsistent can cause chaos in the classroom. Her students don’t know what to expect on any given day, and the rules are always changing. This can may the teacher ineffective and unpopular with her students.  A wise teacher knows to have a consistent routine that her students can follow. This gives the students a sense of security because they know what to expect.

Shows favoritism

It is imperative that a teacher never play favorites. She should never give one student more attention than the rest. And, she should never give one student special treatment. The other students will immediately notice this behavior and resent her because of it. To prevent showing one student preference over another, a teacher should make rules that apply to all of her students. And, she should treat each student the same.

Lack of flexibility

Teachers who are too rigid quickly become unpopular with students. An effective teacher knows that the world and her classroom are always changing. She knows this, and she is willing to change. She knows that some days will not go the way that she has planned. A teacher who is effective and respected is open to new ideas and techniques. 

Lack of empathy

Compassion is an important trait for a teacher. It shows her students that she is concerned about them and the things that matter to them. A teacher who lacks empathy will be viewed as cruel and uncaring. This will make her unpopular with her students.

Negative attitude

The words that a teacher speaks can affect a student’s life years after they have left that teacher’s classroom. If a teacher has a negative attitude about learning, her subject area, or her students, it can influence how her students view the subject area and how they behave in her classroom. An effective teacher realizes that her actions and expectations are an important component in her students’ achievements. So, even if she does not like a subject or one of her students, she does not display these feelings.

Lack of planning

A teacher who is unprepared and disorganized can quickly become unpopular with her students. A lack of planning can lead to bored, disruptive students. A wise teacher knows to be prepared. She prepares lessons for all of her students. She has designed her lessons to actively involve all of her students. And, she plans for the whole class period.

Lack of confidence

A teacher who lacks the confidence to make eye contact with her students or to speak in a clear, concise voice may also be disliked by her students. Because of her lack of enthusiasm for her subject matter, her students may find her difficult to understand and dull.

Teachers who are disliked and unpopular tend to have several things in common. They are not consistent, lack empathy, play favorites, and have negative attitudes.

 

http://voices.yahoo.com/tips-being-successful-teacher-11906762.html

http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/playing-favorites

http://www.ehow.com/info_8759542_negative-teacher-behavior-student-behavior.html

http://voices.yahoo.com/5-traits-effective-teacher-12083126.html

 

Ways Teachers Can Set Good Examples for Students

Setting Good Examples for Students

Teachers hold the future in their hands.  Aside from parents, no one else has a greater influence on children.  It is because of this influence that teachers should set good examples for their students by doing the following:

Demonstrate positive decision-making skills:

Each day brings with it new challenges and new opportunities to show students the importance of making good decisions. A teacher can demonstrate the thinking process for the students by going through a process called thinking out loud. Thinking out loud is when the teacher encounters a problem and verbally works through that problem. This will allow the students to know what the choice is and how the teacher comes to a decision.  Students get to follow the thinking reasoning process from start to finish. 

Admit mistakes and apologize

Everyone makes mistakes.  The key is to admit the mistake and apologize.  Because little eyes are watching, it is imperative that the teacher demonstrate good citizenship by apologizing as soon as the mistake is identified.  This shows students the importance of taking responsibility for ones mistakes.  By apologizing in front of the students, the teacher is repairing the mistake and setting a good example for students to follow.

Demonstrate Fairness

Fairness is extremely important.  Students can quickly pick up on favoritism, and it should never be a part of the classroom.  By giving all students the same opportunities, the teacher is demonstrating fairness. 

Be Flexible

The world is in a constant state of change.  Nothing stays the same.  When things do not work out as planned, the teacher can point this out to the students and then demonstrate a positive attitude while handling the change. 

Show Respect

One of the most important lessons that a teacher can teach is respectfulness. It is important students learn how to treat people. It does not matter if the other person is another teacher, an administrator, a parent, or simple a student.  They deserve respect.

Teachers influence students in many different ways. By demonstrating good decision making skills, recognizing mistakes and apologizing for them, and being fair and flexible a teacher can provide good examples for students.

Creative Ideas for Teaching Fairytales in High School

 

Fairytales are for children, right? Yes, small children do enjoy fairytales. Parents and teachers can use them to teach young children about friendship, values, and morals. However, it doesn’t have to stop there. Fairytales can be used with older children. In fact, high school English teachers can use fairytales in their classrooms. The following are great ways to turn fairytales into learning instruments.

Identify story elements

A secondary English teacher can use fairytales in order to teach their students to identify story elements.  I like to have my students do this using a graph organizer. With the graphic organizer, I have them list the different story elements from the fairytale.

Complete plot lines

High school students can find it difficult to identify the climax of many stories or novels. It order to help make this easier, I like to have my students practice identifying the plot sequence using fairytales and plot lines. Once the students have read the fairytale, I have them write a brief summary of the fairytale. The students can then take that summary and identify the different parts of the plot and place them on the plot line.

Creative writing

Fairytales are fun and comforting. Most high school students will have heard the fairytales before and be familiar with them. Many fairytales have several different versions. I use fairytales to help their students think creatively. The students can take those old, familiar fairytales and changing them around or creating alternative endings.

Vocabulary

Fairytales can even be used to teach students vocabulary. How?  Have the students replace some of the simple words in the fairytale with more complex words. This forces the student to locate and correctly use synonyms.

Comparison and contrast

Students can be taught comparison and contrast using fairytales. I assign my students to take two different fairytales or two different fairytale authors and compare and contrast them. The students can do this in an informative essay or on a graphic organizer.  

Journal writing

Everything can be turned into a writing project, and fairytales definitely can. Have the students to reflect on the fairytale and how it relates to real-life events in the news or in their own lives. The students can also discuss any lessons or morals that they have learned from the fairytales.

Problem solving

Fairytales can also be used to teach problem-solving. I can assign their students a fairytale, have them identify the problem or conflict in the story, and then brainstorm alternative ways to resolve the conflict in the story.

Yes, high school English teachers can use fairytales in their classroom. They can use them to teach their students creative writing, problem solving, story elements, and vocabulary skills.