Teacher Tips/Training

Posted by Tammy Andrew

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how to improve students’ writing skills. Whether formal report writing, technical writing or brainstorming I’ve found many students who don’t think that it matters as much if they are not in English class. I think the key lies somewhere within the thoughts of having more writing assignments in classes not traditionally associated with writing and using technology, such as Web 2.0, to encourage better writing skills.

A question from Lynne Myavec, a middle school principal, turned my thoughts in a new direction: using journals as a professional development activity for seasoned teachers. We as teachers can use journal writing, a tool for teaching students, to improve our own teaching. It can be self-reflective or collaborative. It can be in a notebook or a blog; kept to ourselves or shared in some way.

And, who knows, perhaps that journal could help spark some ideas to use in the classroom in order to improve the writing skills of students.

Posted by Tammy Andrew

My first year of teaching I didn't realize how valuable a good seat arrangement could be. I was a floater - a teacher with no permanent classroom - and at the mercy of the host teacher's choice. In every room but one the chairs were in rows and columns. That other one was a computer lab and had tables and chairs set up with an aisle down the middle. The next couple of years I still floated, but started to encounter different host teachers with different room arrangements. Once I was provided with my own room I had an idea of what I liked, but it still took a couple of years before I found a favorite.

As for seating charts, it depends on what class I am teaching. My courses are primarily computer science or technology and I have students switching between computers and desks during class. For these classes I prefer to not keep a chart unless behavior or learning needs require a student to be assigned a specific computer or space in the room. When I teach math or science I base it on the needs of the learners and the age and maturity of the students. I always assign seats in a freshman class, whereas a mixed class I will allow them to choose if a majority of the students are mature enough to be given the responsibility.

I know teachers who frequently rearrange desks and others who love the circle or rows. I know some who would never consider a seating chart on the first day of school and others who cannot live without one. For all of us it is a learning experience; we have different teaching styles, subjects and classroom dynamics and need to discover for ourselves what works best.

Posted by Tammy Andrew

The disorganization of my file cabinets is a stark contrast to my checklists. My students quickly learn that if they need me to do something for them and I don't write it down on the list I am likely to forget to do it. Same goes for preparing for classes to start, I must have my list. I have actually forgotten seemingly obvious things such as putting the posters back on the wall and setting up books for checkout because they were not written down. I always start from my old one, which usually has a note or two about what can be done differently, might add an item depending on the circumstances for that school year.

As I did my initial look through of that list last week and tweaked it for the upcoming year I also put it together in a readable format for other teachers to use. I divided it into to sections, one for elementary teachers and one for middle/high school teachers. I hope it helps you accomplish all that needs to be done, too!

Posted by Tammy Andrew

As the end of my summer teaching position quickly approaches I find myself already looking ahead to fall. I know my teaching schedule, but will not have my student lists until shortly before class starts. I wonder if my room will be ready or if I'll have to search out some of my furniture or equipment in other classrooms. I think about how to change the layout of the furniture to better promote learning. But I know these are thoughts that are curious but not productive.

I also find myself with some time to get ahead. Since my organizational skills are somewhat haphazard (I still am using the hanging file labels I inherited in a file cabinet 12 years ago even though I no longer have the cabinet and never put papers under a label that would make sense) I have been searching for ideas as to how to better organize my files. I am also going through some binders of lesson plans and project ideas and getting rid of old ones that are no longer useful and reorganizing the keepers. This is a project I never have time to do during the regular school year.

A friend mentioned teaching philosophies recently and I found myself reflecting on my own philosophy; what events and educational philosophers contributed to it and how it has changed over the years. Though the needs of students are not far from my thoughts while teaching I found it refreshing to revisit the ideas of past and present contributors to our educational system.

Posted by Tammy Andrew

I require a research paper in my computer systems course, and no matter how structured I make it I am lucky to receive ¼ of the papers written well. The structure I use, expectations I put in place and the grading rubric are similar to what my students receive in their English classes when writing a research paper. It is almost as if once they walk out of English class all knowledge of formal writing flies away.

I spoke with an colleague about this and showed her some of last fall’s research papers. She was amazed at the low quality of the writing exhibited by most of the students, several of which were in her advanced English class that semester. I selected a few of these students and asked them why their writing quality was so different between her class and mine and received the overwhelming response that they didn’t think the quality mattered as much because they were writing for a computer class.

Writing across the curriculum is not a new idea and many schools enact it in various forms. But students still think that once they reach middle school subjects are separate; math stays in math class and writing skills are for English teachers. Searching for strategies online can be frustrating; there are plenty of guides for writing research papers for students but not to help teachers create them. I have found some strategies that are helping me.

Posted by Tammy Andrew

A few years ago my district offered a series of workshops about writing across the curriculum, specifically the Collins Writing Program. Through these I realized that including more short writing assignments in my technology class might improve some of the challenges I faced with teaching some of the competencies. I have now tried a variety of assignments and found an overall increase in comprehension.

What I didn’t expect was the resistance I would face by the students. Brainstorming is fine. Assignments requiring one or more sentences frequently are choppy or provided as bulleted lists. Research papers range from beautiful to disaster, with over half the class in the disaster category. From speaking to several students, I find that they do not view classes outside of English (and some social studies courses) to be places to practice writing well.

And it is not limited to my school. This summer I decided to try something new. I am requiring my students, who come from a variety of schools worldwide, to provide details and accurate descriptions for programming assignments. Out of six students in my advanced class and nine in my introductory class I had four advanced students and three introductory who provided good detail in the first assignment. That changed to six and six respectively by the fourth assignment. By the end of this week, two and half weeks into the session, I hope to see all students providing good to excellent detail in their writing.

I am taking this experience back to my home classroom this fall. Hopefully, if I push a little harder, I can get my students to hone their writing skills while learning new technology concepts. It may only be details that I emphasize for now, but other writing skills may follow if they realize that it does matter.

Posted by Tammy Andrew

We have all heard the joke about the best part of teaching being June, July and August. Usually, it means that the best part are 3 months of vacation - okay, 2 if you teach public school in New England. I have found that it is the best time for professional development, but not always through formal training.

On several occasions I have taken an online course or district workshop in the summer. Online courses provide the opportunity to take a class without having to travel or worry about class availability in my area. District workshops are a low stress way to collaborate with colleagues while gaining valuable professional development experience.

Last summer I decided to take the summer off. I stayed home, planning to do nothing school related. By August I realized that my summer vacation had become a relaxed way to improve myself professionally. I would spend some time web surfing for ideas, watching how children learned from their summer activities, and reflecting on my successes and failures.

This summer I have returned to my summer teaching position. Though I am still in the classroom I find the short summer classes allow me to try new ideas before using them in a full school year. I also am able to collaborate with other faculty members with a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences.

Relaxing during the summer can provide opportunities for reflecting. Vacations can be a way to experience history or different cultures and then bring those experiences into the classroom.

How do you improve your teaching during summer vacation?

Posted by Debbie DeSpirt

Students give the gift of time for Dads on Father's Day on Sunday, June 15, 2008. Springtime is a busy time for the average dad who is cleaning the outside of the home. Garages need to be organized, weeds pulled, gutters cleared, and the occasional paint job.

Best gift for dads' are coupons to do one of his jobs big or small. Students can write a voucher to their dad to organize the garden tools, or spend 1 hour assisting him with the lawn. As well, they may choose to do indoor chores to aid them during the week. Students do not need money to create a gift that their dad will appreciate.

As well, students may choose to give their dad time to spend with them. Often children do not have all the same interests as their parents. Students create a coupon to spend 2 hours watching a football game or an hour playing dad's favorite video game.

Father's Day is less than a week away, but students can create a voucher book in less than an hour. Coupons are great gifts because dads can redeem them at anytime.

Posted by Debbie DeSpirt

As a Substitute Teacher, I am in an array of schools throughout the year, as I prefer the flexibility of choosing my own schedule. However, at times, teaching part time can become lonely as there is limited connection with the school community.

Today was one of the days that made me be thankful for being a part time teacher. For the past two days, I taught a wonderful primary class and at the end of the day I received several written thank you letters. Often at the end of the day, my students will verbally thank me but the letter is an added treat. Thank you letters from students tell me that my one day is very important in their lives.

As a teacher I can connect with them in the moment of now or just aimlessly go from class to class. As I teach in the now, my purpose is for them to learn something new. Today, as I asked my students what they learned, one student replied, "I learned how to ask for things nicely". A simple comment as this tells me I made the right decision to be a Substitute Teacher.

Posted by Debbie DeSpirt

Bring music into the classroom to keep students motivated for the last month of school. Junior and Intermediate students begin to act up in the final month because they are aware most of the grades have been calculated for their final report card. It is difficult to keep these students engaged because grades were their motivator.

Fun is another excellent motivator and music can initiate this with the older and younger students. Put on a Oscar Peterson (well known Jazz musician) song to initiate a creative writing paper. Play the song for a few minutes and have students put their heads down, with their eyes closed and just listen. After you have played a small part students are to write about the images created in their head and write a story. Students will be more engaged in this activity because the music has excited them to write.

As well, music can assist in writing, art, and social studies. Play music from a time period and have students write about the atmosphere at the time based on the music. Students will have to listen if it was a sad or happy time and make conclusions based on the music. Students are learning even though a grade may not be given for the assignment.

Last month of school can be tiring for the teachers and students because all want the summer to commence for relaxation. Add a little music to the classroom to stimulate the students and teacher.