In Your Bag of Teacher Tricks…

Actually, I was trying to come up with a title for this post and couldn’t think of a creative one. This is basically the activities you come up with when your lesson ended faster than you expected. Sometimes I think I have a difficult lesson and then everyone seems to understand right away and finishes early. Or I thought I had an easy lesson and then no one seems to get it. This means you have to regroup and think of something different (otherwise known as monitor and adjust). Plus you don’t want to give your students too much free time or chaos could possibly reign. I remember being observed by an administrator when my lesson ended sooner than expected and luckily I was able to do something that enhanced my lesson that I hadn’t originally planned to do. Here are some things I have done to help during this time.

1. Use vocabulary from the lesson or subject and play hangman.
2. I keep flash cards made up with questions to help them study for tests. The answers are on the back. I ask the students questions and if they get the answer right, they keep the card. The one with the most cards gets a prize (usually a free pencil, pen, or eraser and sometimes candy).
3. Have the students come up with questions and answers for the flashcards from the lesson that day. They write down 2 on a piece of paper and when done each person tells his question and answer. You collect these papers and use the ones you want.
4. Talk about a social dilemma and have students discuss the appropriate way to handle the situation.
5. Give drawing paper and have them draw a picture to summarize the lesson.
6. Have them number a piece of paper 1-5 and have them write down 5 things they learned in class today.
7. Have them discuss things they could do for further research on your topic of the day. Have them explain why they think it is a good thing to do and how it could be evaluated (would it be graded on content, spelling, number of facts, etc?) Students love to give their input on things like this and are excited when I use their ideas.

If you have a “bag of tricks” like this in your mind, you will always be prepared. Nothing is worse than looking like you are unprepared in front of students because they will know this and take advantage for all its worth! If you have any other ideas, please comment on it so we can add more to the list.

Useful Information for In and Out of the Classroom 11/30/07

Here are some interesting sites that I’ve found interesting this week. As a teacher, I feel we have to keep up to date concerning research in our field and current issues in the education system. I hope some of these inspire you, inform you, and even have you asking questions. Thank you for coming by and visiting!

50 Classroom Management Tips I Have Learned This Month by Soyouwanttoteach. I read this blog daily and learn a lot of things from this.


Autistic girl, age 3 is selling paintings – article from the Palm Beach Post. Do we encourage our students to be creative enough and work with their strengths?


21st Century Literacies – Teacher resources from Noodle Tools. Thanks Angela for the link to this!


Child Studies May Ease Fears on Misbehavior - NYTimes article. Do you agree or disagree with this article?

Answering Personal Questions Asked By Students

A few years ago a new teacher came to me upset because the students wanted to know if she drank alcohol and if she believed in sex before marriage. I have heard the students talking about these kinds of things before. I believe in “honesty is the best policy” but I also believe that if I don’t feel comfortable answering the question that I tell them this also. I have admitted to drinking alcohol but that I believe in moderation. From this, we have had a lesson on alcohol abuse and drinking and driving. I never wanted to lie to them and then have them see me buying beer in the grocery store because then I would have no credibility with them at all. In the same fashion, I state from day one that I will not discuss sex or anything illegal with them and I stick to this. I do not want them to talk about sex issues among themselves in my class unless it is in a specific planned lesson. By doing this I feel that I am teaching them that there are appropriate places to have certain discussions. I guess I’m a conservative but I was brought up to not discuss certain things in mixed company. Many of us older teachers learned this from our parents but when students are growing up in a home where 2 parents are working, possibly in 2 jobs, sometimes the finer points of social skills go untaught. As teachers, we need be good role models for our students by teaching them honesty as well as handling tough situations appropriately and that it is okay to not answer personal questions.

Teaching Social Skills

Many times teachers are expected to teach their students social skills. I am not saying it is fair or right but unfortunately we are put in the position to teach our students these skills. Sometimes I’m able to incorporate reading into the lesson and sometimes the students learn some history about social skills from earlier times which they find interesting.

Here are some skills that I have taught in my class.
 "Manners" & positive interaction with others
-approaching others in social acceptable ways
-how to asking for permission
-how to make friends and how to be a good friend
-sharing toys/materials
 Appropriate classroom behavior
-work habits/academic survival skills
-listening
-attending to task
-following directions
-seeking attention properly
-accepting the consequences of one's behavior
 Better ways to handle frustration/anger
-counting to 10 before reacting
-positive pep talks to yourself
-reflecting on your behavior and your feelings through writing
 Acceptable ways to resolve conflict with others
-using words instead of physical contact
-seeking the assistance of the teacher

These are some strategies I use to teach these skills.
 Put students in small groups. Small groups give students a chance to observe others, practice with peers, and receive feedback.
 Close the classroom door and turn off TV and radios to remove distractions.
 Explain the lesson and how it will benefit them (this may help them obtain and keep a job, result in less trouble with teachers/parents, impress their boyfriend's/girlfriend's parents when they meet them, be able to convince the police to let them go when stopped).
 Identify expectations of behaviors by all students
 Tell them what behavior is being taught or practiced in this lesson
 Show them by modeling this behavior with another student or adult.
 With the steps provided on a handout, have them:
-discuss when the behavior could be used
-role play showing the right and wrong way to handle the situation using the skill.
 Provide feedback (with lots of encouragement and specific praise)
 Practice, practice, practice through homework assignments, review sessions, assignment
to real life settings, and surprise "tests"
 Encourage parents and family members to help your students practice at home.

Successful Math Lessons

My favorite math lessons involve money but of course I taught teenagers so this always caught their interest too. If you can relate a lesson to how they will use the skill with money, you will usually have them engaged in learning. The skills I taught depended on the ability level of the student. Once I taught the student the skill, I would make up a list of steps they would follow. Then I would show them how I used these steps by modeling the behavior. Sometimes I would have them tell me what step I needed to follow before I actually did it. After I modeled the skill, I would have them practice it as I guided them through each step. Once I monitored that they understood the skill, I would have a game for them to play using this skill. My students loved games especially if I promised a prize (this could be a free homework pass, free 3 min. break pass for bathroom or water, pencil, pencil eraser, highlighter, etc.). I tried to make the games with answer keys so they could either self correct or check each other’s answers. After the game stage, I would give them simulated “real life” situations for them to use the skill. Since I followed the same procedures for every new skill, learning something new was not so overwhelming or intimidating. I hope this helps make your lessons more successful.

Here is a “recipe” that I used for each lesson:
 1. A list of steps
 2. Teacher Modeling of the Strategy Steps
 3. Guided Practice
 4. Independent Student Practice
 5. Opportunities for Generalization