Innovation Goes Mainstream: Reflections from Sean Banville

Fourteen years ago, a student at my college asked to use ‘the computer’. His next question stumped me. “How do you turn it on?” I failed in my attempts to help him. How was I to know the power button on the Apple Mac was on the keyboard? I was an EFL teacher! I made lessons for students in my neatest handwriting with my pencil. No need for technology.

Today, I am webmaster of six websites. I have two podcasts, RSS feeds, and a Twitter account. I blog, glog, ning, and create mp3 files, HTML and Flash exercises for class. I use Google docs, digital storytelling, voice threads, wikis and a whole lot more. No need for pencils.

My students love their laptops. They carry them around like Charlie Brown’s pal Linus clings to his blanket. It’s astonishing how many of my class come equipped with their computer and charger but totally forget their pencil and coursebook. Thankfully, the latter is the digital version so I can display it on my Smart Board. My students really get down to work when lessons are computer based. When pencil-equipped, they can get down to some serious doodling.

My students are not familiar with the term Web 2.0. To them, it is simply “stuff we do (all day) every day. They don’t see it as innovation nor experience any manifestation of “new technology” phobia. Ducks to water, pretty much. Same with my two small children (six and eight).

Now, some teachers I know have a reluctance to use these “new technologies”. This is rather peculiar. Laptop computers are two decades old. Smart boards have been around for a decade. We all use e-mail, visit blogs and make stuff on the computer. Web 2.0 is really no longer a term that describes innovation. It’s wholly mainstream. Neither is Web 2.0 stuff new technology – it’s simply ‘stuff’. The myriad of amazing new online things to use in class are just tools. Same as a pencil.

I understand the reticence of teachers who fear dipping their toe in and using these tools. My initial thought when trying another one is “here we go again”. I encounter a small obstacle in thinking it’s a pain to once again register, log in, and then figure out how it all works. Luckily, most of the Web 2.0 stuff out there today is more intuitive to use than my school’s Apple Mac was to turn on way back when.

What I have learned in my very interesting journey from pencil to digital tools is how great the rewards are of engaging students’ interest with computer-based and online materials. In addition, I fully understand that getting over the hurdle of spending a little time to get to grips with the latest tool is definitely worthwhile. I feel happier as a teacher being equipped with all the mainstream tools such as pencils, podcasts and even plurks.

Of course students still need their pencils and notebooks. A healthy balance of traditional tools (pens, pencils, paper) and mainstream tools (digital stuff) is required.

But innovation is now also mainstream, not something we expect future teachers will introduce into the classroom. We should use what the students use. In teaching ESL/EFL, we can easily incorporate new tools while helping students with digital and traditional literacy. They need to know the vocabulary of social media and Web 2.0 tools as much as they need ‘parts of the body’ vocab from Unit Three.

IMHO, there is more hands-on, authentic language and reality on all of the digital tools mentioned above than in coursebooks. Technology integration provides great language practice and motivation. It’s also collaborative, exciting, interesting, and mainstream.

Sean Banville is the webmaster for various ESL materials websites and has plans for many more. He has a Master’s degree in TEFL/TESL from Birmingham University, and  spent thirteen years teaching in Japan before relocating to the UAE in 2006. He recently became an enthusiastic member of the Twitter community, and is gearing up to enter the world of blogging. His web-based projects include the following:

• Breaking News English (previously reviewed here on Lesson Mag)
• ESL Discussions
• Famous People Lessons
• ESL Holiday Lessons
• News English Lessons
• Listen a Minute

Photo Credit: SeanBanville.Com

How To Work Around Paper and Copy Limits: Guest Post from Tom DeRosa

Teachers are used to working with limited resources, but few issues impact your daily instruction as much as limits on paper, the number of copies you can make, or both. In my career, I’ve dealt with all three. There were schools with strict copy quotas per teacher or department, overworked machines that broke down weekly, too few copiers for a large campus, or no direct access to copy machines at all.

At my first school, we had a part-time “copy person” who was the only one authorized to make copies. If you needed copies, you had to get them to her several days in advance at a minimum. On the other side of this issue is paper, which is subject to similar restrictions. Plus, if you have a printer in your classroom, paper seems to become even more scarce.

 As a teacher who always created a lot of custom materials and didn’t rely on textbooks, this was a source of endless frustration, as I’m sure it is for many others. Out of necessity, I developed a series of simple teacher hacks based around three principles: Learn how to use all of the copy machine’s features. Use The Three R’s. Make copies without a copier.

Learn How to Use All of the Copier’s Features

There’s a basic set of features almost every copier has that will limit your paper use and the number of copies you’ll make.

 Double-sided printing.

First, there’s no reason to ever print anything single-sided. Technophobic teachers don’t bother to figure out how to do this, which doubles the amount of paper used. Remember, you don’t need a two-sided original to make a two-sided copy either.

 Multiple pages per sheet.

Even if you use only the two pages per sheet conversion, you’ve just cut your paper use AND copies in half. Combine it with #1, and you can turn an eight page original into only 2 pages and 4 copies.

 Resizing.

 Sometimes fitting things onto a smaller number of pages is just a matter of scaling something down, which the copier can do for you. While you may use an extra copy or two to get the size you need, if you cut a page or two from your print job, the paper you save for your job adds up quickly. Sometimes you can actually fit a little more than the multiple pages per sheet function if you resize yourself. A regular 8.5″ by 11″ page reduced to 60-70% will often easily fit on half a page. Find the right number by noting what percent the copier uses when it does multiple pages per sheet for you, and increase the percentage a bit.

Scanning and emailing.

Newer copiers actually let you scan any document and email it yourself as a PDF. If this is available, you can eliminate the need for printing tons of extra copies for absent-minded students, or even yourself. Scan it, then print it on demand later.

The Three R’s

Reduce.

The easiest way to reduce copies is to print only a “class set” (enough copies for your largest class) to be reused throughout the day. If students work in pairs or groups, your class set will shrink even more. Generally, the larger the original document, the more you should lean towards the class set, even for tests. Remember, anything your students can write can be written on their own paper, including their

work if you require that. Once you remove spaces for answers from your handouts, whatever the subject may be, you’ve probably eliminated several pages from your original.

 If you have a printer in your classroom, whether school issued or your own, procuring ink can be an expensive and difficult task as well. Reduce the amount you use by printing in a low-ink mode (sometimes called draft, economy or fast mode), printing only specific pages, or utilizing a program like Green Print to eliminate anything you don’t want to print (like ads and menus from websites, for example).

Finally, ask yourself this question whenever you feel the urge to copy: “Do I really need to copy this?” If it’s a very short assignment, for example a handful of open-ended questions, is it really a big deal to put it on the overhead or board and have students copy it (or just answer it)? You don’t want your class to be known among students as the one where “all we do is get handouts”.

Reuse.

Reuse every single-sided paper that crosses your desk. You’ll likely get tons of these from school officials, but you’ll also have a surprising amount left over from things you print after you’re done with them. I kept a special box for these near my desk, because it has tons of uses: scratch paper for students (and me), printing non-official documents on my classroom printer, and as a canvas for cutting and pasting together the originals I would later copy for class. It’s amazing how much paper you go through for stuff you only need temporarily.

Obviously if you’re making class sets, you’ll be reusing copies throughout the day, but remember that you could save your class sets and reuse them in subsequent years or semesters to save even more.

Recycle.

Okay, so you won’t reduce the number of copies you make or paper you use by recycling, but you’ll send the message to your students that you’re trying to cut paper waste. Hopefully, they’ll do their best to follow your example.

Make Copies Without a Copy Machine

Your own classroom printer.

I’m a big proponent of having your own printer in the classroom, preferably a multifunction one that also scans and copies. They’re very affordable, and in a school with limitations and problem copy machines, it will make your life a lot easier. You can make single copies very quickly or print on demand from your computer. This saves you from emergency runs to the copier and doesn’t make a dent in your copy quota. If your school copier doesn’t have the scanning capabilities described above, this is your way of avoiding the copier altogether.

Have a home printer.

If having one in your classroom isn’t an option, you should absolutely have a multifunction printer at home. You can get a lot of prep done that might normally require a copier, if only to make one or two copies to create your originals. You can even print out class sets (using the low-ink setting of course) when time or access to the copier at school is an issue.

Scanning.

Finally, the ability to scan documents is completely necessary if you’re serious about cutting down both paper use and the number of copies you need to make.

Tom DeRosa lives and teaches in McAllen, Texas. The owner and author of TeachForever.Com, he has also written several pillar articles of note. Included are 52 Teachers – 52 Lessons, The Golden Girls’ Guide to Telling Great Stories (fantastic), and Why We Need to Change the Way We Teach Math.

Photo Credit: Teach Forever

Guest Post from Karen Schweitzer: 20 Professional Development Resources for Teachers

For most teachers, education doesn’t end when a degree is earned. The teaching profession demands continuing education, and in certain cases, advanced education. Fortunately, there are many online resources that can help teachers with professional development. Here are 20 resources for educators to explore:

NCATE – The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) accredits schools, colleges and departments of education. The NCATE website is a good place to find lists of accredited institutions and scholarship resources.

 NEA – The National Education Association (NEA) is an advocate for teachers and students. Members can access classroom management and professional development resources as well as web and print tools.

 AFT – The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) is a teacher’s union that offers many interesting resources on their website. Teachers can view salary surveys, education news, and publications and reports on a wide range of topics.

 ASCD – The ASCD is a non-profit organization with members in more than 100 countries. The organization offers an excellent professional development survey on their website as well as several other professional growth resources for teachers.

NBPTS – The National Board for Teaching Standards (NBPTS) is a non-profit organization that was formed to advance the quality of teaching in schools. NBPTS offers information about education standards on their website and provides numerous development tools for teachers.

RISE – RISE (Resources for Indispensible Schools and Educators) is a non-profit organization that dedicates itself to connecting teachers with low-income public schools. Teachers can use the RISE site to search and apply for jobs.

PBS TeacherLine – This PBS site is an online professional development resource for teachers. TeacherLine provides standards-based graduate-level courses for credit as well as a few free resources to encourage professional growth.

Thinkfinity – The National Verizon Thinkfinity Training Program provides many free training opportunities and resources for educators and after-school practitioners. Offerings include state-specific professional development, instructional videos, and free courses for graduate credit.

Learner.org – Learner.org offers many free professional development video courses to teachers. Courses cover a wide range of subjects and provide information on how to teach today’s standards-based curricula.

Teachers Network – The Teachers Network is an advocate for teacher leadership and student learning. The organization provides many free professional development resources for teachers, including articles, how-to’s, and lesson plans.

Teacher’s Domain – This online teacher library provides free digital media for the classroom and professional development. Teachers who register for a free account can store and share resources online.

TeachersFirst – TeachersFirst offers a series of free online education sessions for teachers. Known as OK2Ask, these sessions last approximately one hour and can be attended from any computer with an Internet connection.

The Teacher’s Podcast – The Teacher’s Podcast provides PD resources for teachers who are interested in integrating technology into the classroom.

We the Teachers – We the Teachers is a social network for teachers. It is a great place to meet other educators and discuss professional development opportunities.

The Apple – Created for current and future educators, this social network provides career advices, education resources, message boards, free job postings, and many other online resources.

Applebatch – This K-12 teacher community was created to help teachers advance their careers. Teachers can join groups in their profession, share resources, build their network, and apply for new jobs.

TeachAde – TeachAde is a social networking site for teachers and other education professionals. Members can network with other educators around the world, search for resources, and create resources of their own.

FolioSpaces – FolioSpaces is a unique social networking system that can be used to create free electronic portfolios.

Fund for Teachers – Fund for Teachers is a non-profit organization that provides teacher grants and other professional growth resources. New grants are awarded each year.

Scholarships and Grants for Teachers – This blog post provides information on a wide range of grants and scholarships for future and current teachers who are pursuing continuing education or degrees in education.

Guest post from education writer Karen Schweitzer. Karen is the About.com Guide to Business School. She also writes about online colleges for OnlineColleges.net.

Other articles from Karen:

Tuition-Free Education Courses for Teachers

25 Free Apps and Web Sites for Tech Loving Teachers

40 Places to Find Free Lesson Plans

Ten Tips for First Year Teachers

 

The first year in the trenches can be overwhelming, to say the least. You come out feeling prepared only to realize very quickly there’s still lots to learn. You’re on your own now though, so leaning on your advisors and host teacher from your internship are no longer an option, particularly if you landed a gig half way around the world from where you studied. Here are ten general tips I wish someone had given me my first time out of the gate.

Find a pal or two you can trust.

I don’t mean to sound like a pessimist, but reality is reality. Office politics is just as rampant in schools as it is in any other office setting. Fly under the radar for a while until you get a grasp on who’s trustworthy and who’s not. Then form a professional alliance to give yourselves a safe haven for venting and admitting weaknesses it might not be in your best interests to admit to an administrator or professional mentor. (More on that in a bit.) Suffice it to say, find some friends. If one of them happens to be on your grade level, even better.

Stay off the high maintenance bulletin board bandwagon.

There are plenty of durable designs that can go the distance for the entire year with only an occasional swap out of art work or title lettering. The key is using them in a way that is functional, so students don’t get bored. You also don’t want to look like a slacker if you’re trying to land a permanent gig, so putting up something lame and leaving it there to fade and look dated is out too. Cloth is a great way to go to resist fading and avoid excess staple holes. Bulletin boards for older grades can often stretch for an entire quarter at least, depending on how long a particular theme goes. Mixing and matching these with a few of the year long boards will help keep your sanity. Leave the late night apple tracing to those who have no desire for a life. Even if you eventually decide you want to be included in that group, you’ll have plenty more to worry about in the first few years. Trust me.

Choose your mentor(s) carefully.

If you eventually decide you want to make classroom décor and high maintenance management systems your entire life, fine. But don’t let an ill chosen mentor who’s never managed to find a proper life – work balance make you feel bad if that’s not the lifestyle you’re choosing for yourself. Even if it is, you likely won’t be able to do so for the first few years. There’ll be way too much on your plate to tackle with regards to basic skills and experience.

Everyone wants the mentor who’s found balance between work at home, rocks the classroom without making it their life, and seems to have everything streamlined with extreme precision while not having a high maintenance professional routine. The problem? Most of those people know when enough is enough and aren’t necessarily going to be among those who sign up to mentor a first year teacher. It’s certainly not always the case, but a fair number of Betty Brown Nosers find their way onto the school district’s mentor list. Betty Brown Nosers whose constant sucking up to the powers that be over the years have provided them with a fair amount of weasel room and political clout. Fair? Maybe not. Accurate? Absolutely.

I’m not saying don’t ever trust your mentor. I’m not even saying there aren’t phenomenal people out there who will be willing to step up to the plate for you. You might even be lucky enough to have a mentor who also ends up being on your pal list eventually. But many school districts require you to have one for the first one or two years of your teaching career. While it’s true they are there to guide and support you, it’s also true that they are there at the school’s request and have earned enough of the administration’s trust to be selected for the job. It’s not much of a stretch to assume their loyalties will be divided at best, which means admitting certain weaknesses or professional difficulties could come back to haunt you at contract extension time. Choose carefully.

The secretary can be your ally. If you let her.

It can be very easy to get into a negative long term relationship with the downstairs secretary. Particularly if you’re the newbie and all the other teachers on staff have had years to develop a relationship where they feel comfortable asking favors. That being said, you may notice a fair number of educators treat the para-pros and support staff like second class citizens, or worse, non entities. I’ve had to work with a fair number of school secretaries in my career, and I can only honestly think of two that were nearly impossible to work with. The rest were people I grew to have fantastic relationships with through trust building and mutual respect. Sometimes a situation will present itself where you are able to develop a camaraderie right off the bat. If it does, take the opportunity. You likely won’t be sorry.

Document all chats with administrators.

Even if you have to take a legal pad to each meeting and start each conversation by quickly jotting down the date, time and attendee names, this can really be what saves your neck should anything arise later on where you have a different version of events than those in charge. If you can afford a voice recorder, great. Otherwise a pad and paper or some peel off Post-It notes you can stick in a file will do just fine. You can always collate and key them in later if the situation warrants it. In my entire teaching career, I’ve had to use this information less than five times. At least one of them was before I was wise enough to have been documenting. Like I said, these are tips I wish I had been given. We all wish it could be about student motivation and the coolest lessons ever all of the time. For those times when it isn’t, just have your protective ducks in a row.

Streamline your sub system.

Unless you’re a super hero, you will need a substitute teacher more than once each year. Having a few things streamlined and consistent will keep things easier for both of you. A binder or reference folder with critical information, check lists and procedures is a great place to start. So is a set of hanging files with any seat work handouts for each day of the week in day by day folders. Teachers editions should all be in an easy to find location, and a selection of time filler activities and always allowed classroom games is a nice gesture. Remember, you work in the same room every day. Even if you have a repeat sub, they are in different classrooms every day. They also may only get to your room once every two-three months, after which time you may have made changes. It’s very disorienting to be a substitute teacher. Making their job as seamless as possible just makes things easier while you’re gone, as well as when you return.

One main classroom helper a day is more than enough.

I’ve seen some amazingly difficult classroom duty systems over the years, folks. Systems that take an entire bulletin board of rotating wheels and clips to display, and a notebook to document. I don’t know whose bright idea it was to set the industry standard as different helpers for every single duty in the classroom and rotate them out every day, but I do know that it has never worked for me. I pick one helper a day, and if there’s something they can’t get to or need help with, they get to pick who helps them out. I start at the top of the classroom list, and work down every day to the next person. If they are absent, they miss their turn until it comes around again. Done. This is also easier for those students who have a hard enough time keeping the important rules and procedures straight, let alone a daily chore chart that’s too complicated for even the teacher to remember without a reference book.

Use your free periods with precision efficiency.

This one plays out differently, depending on where you work. You may only have one free period per week, or a couple a day. This is largely a result of the number of specialists your school district is able to hire for things such as art, music, PE and foreign languages. Whether or not you have aides or other support staff to shop for supplies or make copies also factors into the game. While there’s nothing wrong with taking a break occasionally, I like to use these blocks of time for basic classroom housekeeping such as paper grading, art framing, running off of homework copies and getting set up for a science lab or art project when the children return. Last period on Fridays is a particular gift, as it allows you to get completely organized for Monday morning and the rest of the following week without having to stay late or come in on the weekend. It can be extremely easy to get sucked into grade level or mentor meetings on your free periods. Fight hard to keep them open for things that benefit your classroom’s functioning directly. Sliding the other meetings until after school will help ensure they are kept as brief as possible

Enlist room parents early and often.

You’ll need to tread as carefully here as you do with a mentor for obvious political reasons. Aside from that, I’ve often found parents to be my staunchest allies against political mine fields I might otherwise have fallen prey to. Intense classroom projects and implementing new procedural systems are enormous projects even with paid aides, which I’ve rarely had. Involved parents can help you with overwhelming tasks, pitch supply ideas to the PTO and drum up volunteers for field trips you might not otherwise be able to take with only two chaperones. (Think water park, jungle hike or glass bottom submarine.)

Operate in bulk.

This can come in just as handy in a classroom as it can when stocking a pantry. Certain items will be needed throughout the school year, so it just makes sense to get a large enough supply to last a while. Construction paper, index cards, glue, craft supplies, various individualized math quiz sheets for on the fly review, classroom checklists, file folders, bandanas and more come to mind.

Got another great tip for a first year teacher? Are you a first year educator struggling to make your mark? Sound off in our comment section and join the conversation.

Photo Credit: Chicago 2016

Classroom Coupons: An Easy No-Cost Management Tool

Free homework pass. Kids who try hard but forget to bring assignments from time to time really dig this particular coupon. You can even hand them out individually as a group reward that they can redeem whenever they each want or need to.

One more chance coupon. This is basically a get out of jail free card when they would otherwise be completely busted. You’ll need to keep it within the bounds of reason and safety, of course.

Five extra points on a test or quiz grade. Perfect for that tough subject a student is trying so hard to pass.

Drop the lowest grade in a particular subject. If you teach multiple subjects, you can get a serious amount of mileage out of this one.

One more day on a homework assignment. Kids that are involved in a ton of extra curricular activities have a tough time juggling everything sometimes. One of these per quarter isn’t overdoing it by any means, and lets the kids know you’re there for them.

Retake a quiz or test. It’ll have to be a different quiz or test likely, in order to make sure they aren’t just doing it to get a look at the questions in advance.

Work at the teacher’s desk. This will continue to work to a fairly high grade level.

Ask the teacher to do something crazy. Personally, I have this hilarious ape face I make and can (or could – I haven’t tried it recently) recite all fifty states alphabetically in song. Students think it’s hilarious when you have to take a risk, and it makes you more real to them overall. Give it a whirl.

Private lunch in the classroom with a friend. Again, even the high school students like this.

Be up to five minutes late to class with no questions asked. They’ll all need to use this at least once a quarter. As with the rest of these coupon ideas, handing them out sparingly will make them seem more valuable.

Select the music the rest of the class gets to work by. Obviously, you’ll need to set some boundaries for what’s appropriate. Overall though, they want to be able to listen to the music so they’ll pick something within the bounds of acceptable.

Remarkably, even the students who have trouble remembering to tie their shoes will manage to not lose these coupons. What can I say? It’s magic. Do you have another coupon idea? This list is more for intermediate to high school grades, but ideas for younger grades are also appreciated.

Photo Credit: EEE PC

Six Strategies for an Inviting Classroom

While structure and the feeling of a serious learning environment are important, an inviting classroom where students feel secure and welcome is also critical to achieving inclusion for all students. Here are six different strategies for increasing the comfort factor of your classroom.

Lighting.

Yes, you’re going to have the traditional florescent ceiling lights no matter what you do. And yes, they are necessary for consistent illumination of class-wide seat work. But for those special little areas where you gather for story time, small group work, center activities or that special reading niche the students love to go to after they finish assignments, a task light creates not only some extra direct lighting for the task at hand, but some groovy atmosphere as well.

Special seating.

A couch, rocker, hammock, floor cushions, bean bags and stuffed back rests all create a special atmosphere for students of all ages. I’ve seen high school kids get as excited about couch time as primary and intermediate level students. You can still require them to have something to work on in those spots, but make them a special situation. A reward for good behavior, allowable only after completed assignments, or for center time only are all examples of how you can work in special seating in an academically appropriate way.

A therapy animal.

Generally, this is some sort of smaller class pet like a fish in a tank, a rabbit or even a ferret. However, this can turn into a maintenance issue for the teacher, and a logistical issue for room parents as well during school vacations. If you and your room parents are up for that, fine. But if you have a progressive school district and the money to put into some serious formal training of your own personal pet, consider a therapy dog. This requires that as a teacher you want to own your own dog, and have an interest in providing your dog with opportunities both in the classroom and local hospital wards. Personally, I’ve had to provide a successful inclusion experience for a fairly diverse group of students over the years and happen to believe the counselor’s office isn’t the only appropriate place for a therapy animal. Children really do relax when there’s an animal in the room. Reading to a pet is an excellent ESL or special needs education strategy, as I’ve touched on previously.

Snack tins.

These work great for crackers or the occasional candy treat. They are air tight and keep the bugs out in tropical or desert environments. It’s also nice to have a whole grain backup for the kiddos who forget snacks. For some kids, that’s what helps keep the stomach growlies at bay until they get free lunch later in the day. It’s an affordable strategy to implement, and often one your PTA can support you with. Or, if your parents are open to it, add crackers to your classroom restock list.

Unified storage.

One or two cabinets with lockable doors is probably a necessity, especially if you are teaching in a school that is routinely used as a storage shelter or have students with extra special needs where boundaries are concerned. They don’t have to look cold and uninviting. In fact, a coordinating couple of shelved cabinets can signify a place where all the special treasures are kept. It also keeps things visually simple and grounded for autistic or easily distracted children. For any open shelving storage, consider going with matching baskets, clear containers or mesh metal bins to provide a coordinated, organized look. If you can’t do it, then you can’t do it. But if classroom budget and PTA support permit, I encourage you to give it a whirl. Many children are easily distracted by what they perceive as too many options, especially if they haven’t been raised with a great deal of structure on the home front. Having an organized room helps them get into the groove academically.

An idea wall.

You could do this in a number of ways, but one of the coolest and most affordable ways I can think of is by using Idea Paint. The cost is much less than larger white boards, and having a large block of open writing space that’s only for creative brainstorming session that can’t fit on the board is fantastic. I think this is a fantastic way to provide structured learning yet set a subtle backdrop that promotes out of the box thinking. Walking the line between classroom creativity and guided instruction can be tough, especially where the inclusion of special needs students is concerned.

 

These are my top six picks for affordable classroom setup, something I consider a critical and integral component of successful classroom management. Other management articles here at LessonMag.Com include Four Hot Tips for a Smooth Running Classrom, Reviews that Rock, Twenty-five Ways to Say Good Job, Learning Centers for Less, Classroom management Hacks and Low Cost / No Cost Student Rewards. Do you have a unique suggestion for setting up an inviting classroom that promotes creativity as well as structure and academics? How do you allow for the inclusion of students with any type of need?

Photo Credit: Liz Marie

Four Hot Tips for a Smooth Running Classroom

Looking for some simple, affordable ways to make things go more smoothly on the classroom front? Here are four great management hacks to get it done on the cheap and easy. Bonus? They work in classrooms from K – 12, making this one of those classroom tip articles high school teachers can actually benefit from.

Using upside down binder clips for a cheap direction card holder.

These things are good for more than portfolios and snack clips, you know. If you’re looking for a quick and easy way to have a free standing set of project instructions, skip the stress of custom cutting a cardboard easel you’ll only have to store later. Use a couple of small binder clips with the handles pulled back to support an index card with the directions written on it.

Rotating student-led group centers.

Need some strategies for getting the job done during paid hours when cum folders and report cards are due? Get together with the other teachers in your grade level or wing and plan a few centers each to host in your respective rooms. Break all of the students from the combined rooms into separate working groups and assign each group a responsible student leader. Make sure the centers you establish are all easily implemented by the students themselves, and establish the rules that they have to pick everything up and reorganize the centers when they rotate to the next one. If you have the right number of centers set up, you can run this program in the mornings or afternoons for several days in a row. One year, it worked out with my colleagues that we got a full five days of half-day center time.

Make them a mix of different fun activities with a range of academic topics. The students don’t get to do this very often, so discipline isn’t a huge issue. This leaves you and your fellow teachers with enough time during the actual school day to get the extra burden of cums and report card data off you plates without donating even more of your valuable time for free. If you run the centers in the afternoon and coordinate certain matching lessons in your individual rooms in the morning, you’ll be able to have at least one of the centers in each room be a station for seat work catch up and jump start time on homework. I’m not advising a full week of half-day play time. You’ll definitely want quality center activities that support your current theme and academic program. Especially if you’re needing administrative support. What I am suggesting is a way to work smarter, not harder. As educators we work hard for our money, and need all the tips we can get to accomplish such a phenomenally enormous job in the short amount of time we are given each school day.

Rubber band balls.

Tired of having loose rubber bands floating around your desk drawer, adding to the chaos? Try making your own rubber band ball, or saving it as a project for that student who is always done early. You’ll be more organized with your desk supplies. Bonus? These things are just plain fun to have around.

DIY folding screen.

A simple folding screen from core doors with locking caster wheels attached can be a huge help in the inclusive classroom.  Need an impromptu learning area when the rotating reading specialist comes? Looking for a divider to reduce visual distractions during reading group time? This is a budget friendly way to get the job done. It’s also great to create a divided learning area for a home school corner, for those who follow that educational path.

Do you have another great classroom tip? We’d love to hear about it. Don’t forget to sound off in the comment section below.

Photo Credits: Tifotter , Gideon Strauss

Supporting Teachers: Eight Ideas for Administrators

 

Are you a school administrator? Feel like you’re herding cats on a regular basis? Do you appreciate and respect the independence of your staff, yet wonder how to balance that with needing them to fall in line when necessary? With the free-flow of creative energy comes at least a moderate need for the same thing you recommend your staff provide to their students: structure. Read on.

Being left to your own devices in the classroom can be both a blessing and a curse. Teachers have the autonomy to plan and schedule their day in a way that best meets the unique needs of their students. Or do they? Remember that while in your mind something may have been decided and dealt with hours ago, chances are there is a large percentage of your staff who remain unaware. So while as an oh-so-understanding admin you may feel they’ve had all morning to readjust their schedule accordingly, they may have only just found out that you need to pop in with the school nurse for just “fifteen minutes”.

You may also be the fourth or fifth person who has needed to interrupt them in the past ninety minutes. Add a couple of last minute assemblies into the mix, and is it really a great surprise to find every grade level chair in the building knocking on your door in a nearly nuclear state of irritation? Here are a few tips to at least help you grease the wheels of reciprocal understanding:

Screaming fast, wireless internet.

Throughout the building. Not only does this provide total flexibility and efficiency in the classroom, it also promotes the best possible use of specialist periods when teachers are left to float during art or foreign language blocks and yet still expected to be performing their duties to the best of their abilities. Having wireless internet access makes it easier to post online homework assignments, spelling lists, etc. It also allows for more streamlined parent communication via email correspondence. Bonus? If you put out a memo, you don’t have to wait until sixth period to give your teachers a shot at seeing it. Remember, just because you’ve disseminated the information doesn’t necessarily mean it has been received.

Acrylic sign holders.

There are many sizes available, but the 8 ½ x 11 size is the easiest one to design and print classroom signs for, in my humble opinion. It also saves on teacher sign  wear and tear and laminating costs. Signs can be created for various themes, quotes, concepts and more to provide professional looking classroom atmosphere. It’s also a much more streamlined look to have all the signs the same size from the hallway, and in a similar position by the door of each room. If teachers want more than the standard one sign, consider having a few for each room. One for the teachers name, another for the class schedule and a final one for individuality. Having the basics done for them before they arrive at the end of the summer gives them more time to get cracking with academic planning and to be available for any meetings you need them for.

Inventory everything by room number.

Actually, this one’s for both teachers and admins. For schools where the staff rotates in and out with frequency (for example on the international teaching circuit) and various circumstances ( typhoons, earthquakes, war evacuations) cause the supplies and equipment to be thrown into chaos, having everything assigned to a pre-numbered room can be a real sanity saver. For that new teacher that is left to rummage through the pile in last year’s supply closet, knowing if she sees something with a particular number that it belongs to her room is a huge relief. Figuring out which three teachers’ names have been assigned to her same room over the past few years is an absolute pain in the neck. Do both parties a favor and inventory by room. Seriously.

Communication boards with attached writing utensils.

These things are fabulous to have on the outside of the door. If a teacher takes the kids outside for an on-the-fly science activity or next door for a shared academic movie with another class, support staff will be able to find them easily. Don’t forget the wipe off cloth and cleaning solution.

Respect their time.

Seriously, respect their time. I know every administrator out there thinks they already do this. News flash? It rarely feels that way from the position of the classroom instructor. Countless last minute assemblies, four separate interruptions during the last hour of school for individual handouts that could have been collated and handed out earlier with the rest of the home communication bulletins, three separate trips to the nurse’s office in one week and support services for students that run late and throw off other group activities are just a few shining examples that come immediately to mind. And don’t get me started on the old “surely you don’t mind me redirecting the time you’ve already donated by coming in early with an unexpected hallway meeting.” It becomes very difficult to be a good sport about every other school employee’s emergency or administrative scheduling conflict when they happen all the time. Particularly if the reciprocal support isn’t there for things like . . . oh, I don’t know . . . let’s go with extreme discipline issues. (Yes, that was sarcasm.)

Cumulative records and class list support.

Personally, in my entire career I’ve only had one school ever do this in a way that was helpful. At the beginning of each year when the class lists were received, they were broken down and coded according to the type of additional support services each child received. Also noted were eyesight and hearing issues, special meds, last year’s teacher placement and general reading levels. From this document it was a simple matter to do appropriate “close to the board” seating assignments, scheduling sessions with specialists, plan initial language assessments, etc. This saved numerous hours of preliminary cum folder research at an already crazy time of the school year. It also made it more difficult for the class placement balance to be thrown off inadvertently when the category totals were already there for the releasing grade level teachers to see at the end of the year when these decisions are handled. (Cum folders are a huge professional issue for me, so definitely look for some follow up articles on this subject  in the future. )

Standard, basic issue, equipment kits.

With as much money as teachers end up spending on their own classroom, I personally think it’s more than fair to expect that some basic infrastructure be both provided and restocked when necessary. A few items on my list? Chalk, glue sticks, single and three hole punches, stapler with staples, teacher and student scissors, eraser, white board supplies if appropriate, widget, staple remover and PE supplies such as a playground ball, hula hoops and jump ropes.

Distribution boxes.

Attached to the wall, and somewhere close to the door on the inside of the classroom should be some sort of container to hold memos, book club forms and other home to school communication. It should also house a slot for communication the admin offices want returned to them and the admin staff should be the ones to both distribute and collect these communication bulletins. For those who are about to remind me of the teacher mailboxes, I have to jump in ahead of you with the following: I can count the number of times admin was finished handing out bulletins to me by my last trip to the teachers’ room on one hand. In my entire career. On one hand.

I know some schools are doing their part with online postings of school issues and parent email lists, but the reality is many districts are just not there yet. Additionally, the old run down to the classroom at the last minute to hand the teacher a separate piece of paper that you interrupt her class time to explain and then in turn ask her to explain to her class really doesn’t cut it Gilligan, I’m here to tell you. It’s a double interruption and highly annoying.

Seemingly simple ideas? Yes. But you’d be surprised how often schools fail to set up these systemic types of support systems, thereby increasing the classroom stress factor exponentially. Most every suggestion on this list can be incorporated very affordably. Consider it an investment in the overall occupational health of the professionals you lead. Additional ideas? Sound off in the comment section below.

Photo Credit: Kim Howarth

Setting the Tone: Strategies to Start the Year Off Right

School Bus

 

We all know how we start the year with students directly impacts what is to come . . . and just how smoothly it will go. Following are a few ideas to get things flowing in the right direction.

Post an inspirational quote on the door, or at the entryway.

Something about striving for excellence, or perhaps self esteem. This is a great way to establish atmosphere from the start.

A horizontal line of clocks above the board at the front of the room.

Starting with the city your classroom is in, and moving from left to right, put a sign under each clock with the name of a different international city. If you have pen pals in a particular city, include that one as well. Set each clock to the appropriate time zone for its corresponding city. This decorative element is fun, unexpected, and sets a serious academic tone in your room. It’s also very grown up, making it excellent for high school students as well as classrooms as young as the fourth grade, where feeling more grown up is a huge priority.

A math assessment.

On day one. Pick whichever one you deem fit for your new students. A quiz, or perhaps the annual grade level pre-assessment from your school’s selected math series. If the series does not provide a pre-assessment, there should be a yearly review from the previous year’s grade level. Consider using that. Not only will it provide you with hard data on whether or not your students’ skills have atrophied over the summer, but incorporating this on day one will send the message that you mean business. Math is considered serious subject matter, and starting off with an assessment on mathematical content will ensure your students will take you seriously as well. Obviously middle and high school teachers who don’t instruct on every single subject will need to consider alternative assessments or activities, but for general elementary teachers, this is a winner.

Post the latitude and longitude of your location outside your room.

A simple “welcome to” sign will suffice. You can determine your accurate longitude and latitude by using either a GPS, Google Earth, or this link from the USGS.

Letter writing.

Since basic letter writing skills start getting covered as early as first grade, and reviewed for years afterward, they are a great activity to assign the first day of school. The basic elements are quick to reintroduce, the assignment is assessable at a glance, and it allows for a variety of ability levels to participate without being singled out. Whether you have the students write away for freebies, compose a thank you letter to last year’s teacher, or choose a favorite author to write to, the important thing is to have a hard copy of an entry level writing sample for each student. From here you can gather multitudes of information on exactly how you should implement your initial language arts program.

A walk through practice session of the admin-approved fire drill procedure.

You might also include a tour of key locations such as the nurse’s office, where to line up after recess, the cafeteria, etc.

Pack your evacuation bag.

This one is more for your peace of mind. The details are covered in the previous bomb bag post, but suffice it to say an emergency departure bag is a good idea for any teacher in today’s society.

These are my top seven picks for beginning of the year elements to include. I deliberately left off the covering of the class rules, because I know you’ll all do that anyway. The purpose of the piece was to provide solid strategies for professionals at multiple grade levels that would help set a productive tone. My hope is that I’ve achieved that purpose. I believe I have. Have a great start to the school year, everybody.

Photo Credit: KB35

Reviews that Rock! Great Ideas for Covering Test Content

Tired of the groaning whenever you settle in for a topic review in class? Here are some ideas to use when getting ready for a big test, and also some strategies to keep the material fresh all year long. Bonus? Many of these ideas can be used as team activities, or as sponge activities when it’s time for transition.

Chalkboard Relay.

This is particularly great for math questions. Divide the class into two teams, and have the front person from each team at the board for each question, racing to see who can get the correct answer first. Keep score with tally marks on the chalkboard to see which team finishes in first place. This could also work with spelling word reviews, or reading off definitions to see who can come up with the correct term fastest.

In the Bag.

This was covered in depth in a previous post. Basically, you can save any spelling word cards, study cards from previous class units, etc. For an impromptu review, have one student select a card with a spelling word on it and hold it so the rest of the class can’t see. Then let them call on a student to spell the word correctly and use it in a sentence. The class members swap out once a correct answer is provided.

Topic Riddles.

This is sort of a reverse “Twenty Questions” type of thing. Have several clues for each word, concept or answer. Then ask who / what / where am I based on the answer you need to receive. You could be going for a character in history, a type of biological plan, an astronomical phenomenon, etc.

Lining Up.

This is more of a time to do the review, rather than the activity itself. Each student can line up when they answer the question, or if you are already lined up as a group and they are waiting to get dismissed, let them leave the room if they answer the question and go to the back of the line if they mis it. I like to only send them back one time so it stays fun and keeps things on track time wise.

Roll the Dice.

I saw this my first year teaching at a workshop and it has served me well at multiple grade levels. Basically, you have kids divided into 3-4 teams with a few people (6 or less) in each team. You ask the question and every team confers together for the answer for an allowed amount of time. Then, whatever team’s turn it is waits for you to roll the dice. Each member of the team is assigned a number, so when the number on the dice comes up, they know which team member will need to answer the question. If that person gets it wrong, the question goes to the next team to try to answer it, with the dice getting rolled again. What I like about this is every team has to review the material for each review question, and within each team, every member HAS to be included because they never know who will get called on. Everybody has to stay focused on the activity and material if they want a chance to get points. This is another one of those ideas that can be used from early primary through high school, adult education, or even at the university level if you were so inclined.

Random Trivia.

Quotes from book characters or historical figures, math questions, spelling, riddles, all kinds of ideas would work here. You can use the strategy in a relay, with line up or dismissal transitions.

Review Puzzle as Learning Centers.

This is great for an extra time activity when students are finished with their seatwork. Use the page protector strategy to save on consumable resources.

There you have it. Seven simple ways to provide solid, attention – grabbing content reviews in the classroom. Got a slamming suggestion of your own? Sound off in the comment section and share the love.

 

Photo Credit: Editor B.

Career Hack: Teach to Travel

Sign up to save the world and left feeling like a chump after seeing your first paycheck from the local school district? Here’s an alternative way to maximize the perks of your career choice. It only requires a sense of adventure.

If you haven’t considered overseas teaching and the bargain travel opportunities it offers, perhaps it’s time you started looking into it. Here are just a few of the benefits you can generally expect from a quality international posting:

· Round trip air fare once a year

· Paid, furnished housing and utilities

· Small to moderate shipping allowance

· Affordable regional travel from your posted location

· Tax free salary

· Opportunities for highly paid on-the-side tutoring

How much can you expect to make? It varies by school and by region. Certain parts of the world are known for lower salaries it’s true, but it isn’t unheard of to snag a reasonable salary at a particular school. On the other hand, certain areas are reputed to pay much higher, with the odd school paying less than you might expect. Some strategies to start searching for an overseas post?

· Job fairs. Several take place each year in various parts of the world. A popular one here in the states is the annual event at the University of Northern Iowa.

· Classified ads. There are many places to find current opportunities with this approach as well. TIE-online,Serious Teachers,and the ESL Caféare a few places to start.

· Service organizations. The Peace Corps is likely the most well known one, but there are others out there to explore.

· Placement services. Head hunters are hardly unique to education, but a fair sized niche industry has evolved here as well, particularly for East Asia and parts of the Middle East. Posting a “position wanted” ad on serious teachers will likely net you several calls, and of course International School Services has been around forever.

Are there details to consider before hopping on a plane to the other side of the world? Absolutely . And you will definitely want to ask around for references and other information any school offering you a position. The important thing to remember is, if you are truly interested, you can do it. Others have managed successfully and so will you if you decide to take the plunge. Who says you can’t see the world on a teacher’s salary?

Photo Credit: Nattu

Twenty-five Ways to Say Good Job!

Every teacher needs an idea bank of ways to provide positive reinforcement. Looking for a few ideas to keep from sounding repetitive?

 

Here’s a list of twenty-five ways to give verbal praise, many of them useful at all grade levels.

 

1. Rock on!

2. That’s awesome!

3. I can tell you’ve been practicing.

4. That’s very colorful.

5. I like how neatly you’re working.

6. You really followed directions.

7. Way to show what you can do!

8. Bravo!

9. That’s fantastic.

10. Great work.

11. You did that very well.

12. Nicely done.

13. Exciting work, that’s for sure!

14. Look at the detail you put into that project!

15. Wow, you’re fast.

16. Excellent.

17. Incredible job.

18. Good presentation.

19. You’re a rock star.

20. You read that very well.

21. Way to manage your time!

22. You were very responsible with that.

23. You aced that assignment!

24. I can tell how hard you worked on this.

25. Very impressive!

There are many ways to say good job. These are only my top picks. If you have any other great verbal praise phrases, don’t forget to share them with us below. Happy teaching!

Photo Credit: AstroGuyz.Com

International Job Seeking Resource for Teachers: It’s Serious!

Looking for an extra employment resource for overseas classroom positions? Here’s one I tried out when we were on the road for a few months, with rather decent results.

The web site? SeriousTeachers.Com.The premise? Simply post your profile and resume for free. Schools and head hunters who are also registered get to post job openings that you can respond to individually, and they will also approach you if you have qualifications or interests in your profile that meet the types of jobs they offer. The first contact will be through email, and then you’ll progress from there, depending on how great the match is.

As with any type of resource like this, you will want to do your part to ask around the circuit about a particular school, ask for other teachers for school quality references, etc. However, I have to say that I consistently got serious offers, although none that were quite the right fit for me at the time. There was even one that was from a school where some good friends of ours used to work, so they were able to provide references to both the school and us. How cool is that?

If you are looking for a place to start exploring your options without a huge initial cash outlay, Serious Teachers could be for you. Have a success story about the site, or any other type of experience you feel people should know about? Feel free to sound off in the comments section below.

Photo Credit: Angela 7 Dreams

Learning Centers for Less

Need some cost conscious ideas for independent, fast working students? Following is a list of my favorite cheapies.

Listening centers.

Whether it’s the old fashioned book and tape set you still have, or an audio book file for an I-pod, listening centers are a powerful supplement to any language program, and fantastic for ESL support.

Deck of cards and a set of math tables.

This is a super cheap center idea that requires two people to play. Basically, both players agree ahead of time whether they are playing an addition, subtraction or multiplication round. One person draws two cards, while the other has the math table with answers. If the card drawer gets the math answer right (checked and verified by both partners), they keep those to cards and start their own pile. If not, the cards go back in the pile at the bottom. Then it’s the next person’s turn. The round progresses until the cards are gone. The person with the most cards in their stack wins. Bonus? This is a great way to use up those old decks of cards that may not be complete. You only need to different value cards with each turn.

Word puzzles in sheet protectors.

These work better if you have the answer key as well. Put the blank puzzle back to back with the answer key and slide them into a sheet protector. Using a dry erase marker and an old clean sock, students can check their own works, clear the boards and try again. Consider having a few out for variety. You could also use math problems as well for extra drill and practice.

Computer with learning games.

Whether it’s online activities, or games from various educational software programs, having a computer available during down time is a great way to supplement your students’ computer lab schedule and provide valuable technical skill enhancement for those who may not have a computer at home. Having a goal of a laptop for day-long use for every student is a lofty goal, but the reality is many schools are far from being able to make this happen. If you have at least one computer with internet access in your room, consider making it available.

Simple crafts.

In my humble opinion, the simpler the better when it comes to setting up a craft center. And while I’m sure there are many out there who would disagree, I think the multi step, paints and brush, huge mess art projects are much better suited to whole group lessons where as a teacher you are more available to provide guidance and structure. Centers are something I like to use as flexible sponge activities, and simple crafts fit the bill. Some ideas? Safety pin bead crafts, friendship bracelets, basic summer camp yarn and stick weavings, etc.

Board games.

Whether it’s a homemade option celebrating the weekly vocabulary words, or a game of Body Boggle, age appropriate board games are a great way to keep children occupied academically in between seatwork assignments and group activities.

Silent reading station.

To make it feel a bit more special than “just read quietly at your desk”, consider letting those done early be able to read silently in a fun seating area like a classroom couch, bean bag or rocking chair. Sometimes, it’s all about switching up the details.

This is obviously not meant to be a fully inclusive list, just a list of the simplest ideas I could think of for shoestring teaching budgets. One thing’s for sure, I’ll definitely be on the lookout for more teacher resource books to review and blog about in the upcoming months. Got another great time consuming cheapie? Don’t forget to sound off in the comment section below.

Photo Credit: Liz Marie

Classroom Management Hacks : Six Simple Strategies

Looking for classroom control from day one, but not interested in spending three days custom laminating name cards and pocket charts? Believe me, I hear you. This article provides streamlined management strategies that will still let you have a life. Read on.

Behavior Points.

A simple, budget friendly way to acknowledge group behavior. Here’s what you need: a chalkboard and chalk.

That’s it. If you want, keep track of points using a pencil and a special corner in your plan book in case they accidentally get erased. Use an unobtrusive corner of the chalkboard and draw a chalk cloud with the title “behavior points” inside. At the beginning of the year, you can use a lower number for the class goal and make the goal daily, with a reward of stopping early to play a few minutes of 7-Up, for example.

Later in the year, you can try a higher amount and have the reward take place whenever they accomplish it. Usually, a larger reward is in order for a larger point accomplishment. For example, 150 points might earn them a class movie and popcorn. You can flex the number of points and the goal time depending on your class needs and grade level. I have used this at all grade levels in several different countries. It works every time, and is simple and cost effective to maintain.

The Clean Desk Fairy

Clean desk issues can really slow things down academically. Having an end of the day “desk inspection” where the students do not line up for buses until their desks have been checked for neatness works well for various grade levels. On the days you miss, have the “clean desk fairy” leave a note on the board and a chocolate kiss or new pencil on those desks that are exemplary. Need to pinch pennies? Free paper passes issued from the teacher don’t cost anything, and are just as popular with the students as store-bought treats.

Reinforcement Charts

One of the most cost effective systems I’ve found is to purchase one of those reinforcement charts at the teacher store. You know, the ones with a space for the names down the side, and a full poster board sized grid with quarter inch squares running all the way across. Instead of using stickers, they make rubber stamps that fit into those smaller squares which in the long run is much less expensive. Or, to make it even more affordable, have the students color in a square every time they are caught being good. This enables a daily visual for which students need to be “caught being good”, and the students enjoy competing for the lead position. It reinforces graphing skills as well. If desired, you could do something special with the top behavior student at the end of each quarter. Students at all grade levels love this, and it is the most convenient way I have ever found to keep track of positive behavior.

Need an idea that’s even more extreme? Laminate the chart to the wall and use dry erase markers. It’s an affordable green teaching idea, and you can re-use this chart as many times as you need to with a little DIY white board cleaning solution.

Craft Sticks.

These things really come in handy for classroom management on the cheap. Check out the previous poston craft stick uses in the classroom. In addition to several craft ideas, you’ll also find some great management tips on how to include every student every day, incorporate a dirt cheap running program for PE and streamline your classroom communication in a way that you can use from year to year. Score!

Classroom Study Hall.

If your learning schedule allows it, try incorporating a brief study hall at the end of the day. Students who run into problems during daily independent work time can have one on one time with you. Those finished can assist with room organization, handouts, last minute announcements, etc. Admittedly, this can be tough to pull off without the right schedule. However, I did one year and it was one of the best things I ever tried. The students and I both benefitted tremendously, and the last few minutes of the day turned from chaotic to calm on the very first day we implemented the system. If you are blessed with a supportive administration, see what you can do about convincing the powers that be to allow the last class session of the day to be left to the classroom teachers. Chances are, the specialists will appreciate a chance to get organized for the next day’s room hopping schedule as well.

Daily Helping Hands.

Rather than struggling to develop an elaborate job schedule and chart with a spinning wheel or cards to pull and file, just have a daily helping hand to deal with all jobs. If a particular task is too much for one student, they can select a responsible friend to help them with it. Just go down through your grade book in order and select the next student each day. Simple, easy to maintain, and every student gets to help. This will free up your time (especially if you teach younger grades) to work on other important classroom management issues.

That’s it. Classroom management as cheap and easy as I can make it for you. Got another cheap idea that’s low on effort and high on the get a life scale? Share the love.

Photo Credit: Liz Marie

Low Cost and No Cost Student Rewards

We all know that student rewards are a necessary part of successful classroom management. But how do we keep things rolling smoothly without going broke? Easier said than done, I know.Here are a few things I’ve used over the years, as well as some interesting ideas I’ve run across recently.

Earn a movie.

I usually use the behavior points to let the class earn this as a group, and try to set the activity aside for the end of the day. I either use a video from my own collection, the school library, or ask one of the students to bring in a good one that we vote on ahead of time. This is usually a big reward that doesn’t come along every day. They have to have MAJOR points to earn it. It’s also helpful if you can schedule it on a day when you have lots of admin stuff to do, such as set up for open house, get ready for conferences, calculate mid-quarter reports, update cum files, etc.

Free homework pass.

This works at all except the very young grade levels. You can do up a bunch (4 or 6 to a page) and run them off for the whole year. Just fill in the student name and date, then sign your name.

Free time or recess.

Again, this works for all levels. I prefer ideas that do so, because as someone who has spent most of my career overseas accepting various grade level assignments, I need a professional “bag of tricks” that I don’t have to reinvent every time I move or switch grades.

A structured class game.

Outdoor and inside games apply. Just choose something appropriate to your grade level.

One more chance pass.

Ran across this idea quite recently. It’s similar to the homework pass, but is used for kiddos to get themselves out of a situation caused by a lapse in behavioral judgement. Even the well behaved kids need these from time to time. I love this idea and think it has major potential. Just make up a bunch like you would with the homework passes and have them available for individual rewards.

Take back a bad grade pass.

This was from the same place I saw the one more / second chance pass idea. Usually, I drop the lowest grade for the kids in each subject area at the end of each quarter anyway. But this would be a great replacement idea, so they don’t feel they are entitled to that extra bit of help. Keep some photocopied ahead of time and you’ll be set for the year.

Erasers, pencils, individual candies.

These fall into the low cost rather than the no cost category. I pick them up on super sale or ask the PTO to help me out. It’s really helpful to have them on hand some days, particularly at the beginning of the school year and when you get back after winter break.

A stamp on the good behavior graph.

These are inexpensive charts and your school or PTO should have no problem providing them for you. One chart can get you through an entire quarter, and a miniature rubber stamp that fits in the small squares is WAY less expensive than getting stickers. There is also very little prep to this. You just put each student’s name on their own line of the graph and write the title at the top. . . done. A good place is on the inside of the classroom door.

I hope these ideas are helpful. When I first started teaching, I thought I had to have a reserve bank of reward ideas that was a mile long. That really isn’t necessary. A few for group rewards, a few for individual, some larger, some smaller . . . it will be more than enough to get you through the year smoothly.

Photo Credit: P.P. Digital

Extreme Teaching: What’s in YOUR Bomb Bag?

Those of you used to teaching under nearly constant threat of evac will be used to these. For those who are only starting to explore the overseas option of working in intense locations, this article will be a primer. Either group will likely benefit from the list of ideas. Read on for some strategies to make the unexpected classroom evacuation process as smooth as possible.

For whatever reason, I was not introduced to this concept until I went to work for an American school in Kuwait. We were required to be able to get out on the fly with our students, as well as maintain intact administrative data such as grades, attendance, parent contact information and lesson schedules. For extra fun and excitement, we never knew how long an evac might last before we were either cleared for re-entry or picked up on site. So emergency rations and student entertainment options were key. After getting several of these events under my belt, I developed the following list, and always kept my bomb bag (otherwise known as a go-bag or storm bag) stocked with these items.

Your grade book.

Obviously, you’ll need to have it out almost daily for attendance and grade recording. But instead of putting it away in your desk and always needing to remember it in an emergency, make the bomb bag your permanent stash location. You’ll be ready to rock and roll on less than a moment’s notice, and your boss will think you’re a rock star.

Pens and pencils.

You don’t need a bunch, just a couple of each for note taking, attendance at evacuation collection / check point, and marking off who gets picked up early by parents when these things drag on . . . and they do. Trust me.

Parent contact info.

Even if you think it’s just a quick drill, you never know when it’s an actual threat called in by some wacko. It can take longer than you might think to get the building cleared for re-entry. If you have to leave the building after lunch time, chances are the parents will be willing to just come pick up their kids. Check with admin first to see what they want, but we found that sitting out in the desert sun of the Arabian Gulf was way too intense to monkey around with, even with loads of extra water. If we even suspected it was going to be a long haul, we started calling parents as soon as possible.

Toilet paper.

Enough said.

Water.

Hydration is critical, and the more nervous your students are, the higher their rate of aspiration is likely to be. Make sure you have at least one two liter bottle with a squirt top to start off with. You can give each child a drink that way without having to touch mouths or carry cups. Your administration will need to coordinate additional drop offs.

Crackers or other simple snacks.

You don’t need enough to feed an army here, and they don’t need to be the fanciest variety available. Just a couple of sleeves of your standard soda crackers will suffice. Something to soak up the nervous stomach acid and take away the hunger pains if you have to beat it before lunch.

Your current read aloud book.

If you teach older grades and don’t do this, consider keeping a great collection of short stories on hand. Anything that will enable you to gather your group under a tree (hopefully there’s one available) and keep them focused. If you do have a read aloud you are currently enjoying with your class, make the bomb bag your storage location for that as well. You’ll always have it if you need it.

Your lesson plan book.

Chances are your schedule is in here as well, and if you truly are forced to migrate with your kids to the nearest refugee camp, you can all get things up and rolling in a hurry if as a staff you know how to get back to your old routine as soon as possible.

Playing cards and other simple light-weight entertainment options.

The read aloud title is only going to get you so far. Long term sitting and listening will get old after the first half hour or so. Having a deck or two of cards along with some simple review questions, or an inflatable ball to play hot potato with will add to the maintenance of calm.

Sunscreen.

Something you can spray on is what I recommend, but whatever you are able to get is better than nothing.

A clipboard and loose leaf paper.

This will assist you with management checklists on parent communication and keeping score on any class games you are able to play.

These are the main items that helped keep me sane during repeated school evacs. If you have spent time under such conditions, or just want to be prepared for the unexpected . . . feel free to share your thoughts below. Just an extra thought? My students in Kuwait were old pros at this, and the term bomb bag didn’t upset them. In fact, it was the term the administration used as well. However, if you are in suburban America and your students have never dealt with this before, you may want to refer to this as an emergency bag or the fire drill bag. The important thing is to have it on the ready.

Flickr Photo Credit: P. Body

Skip the Insanity: Open House Ideas for Real People

Did open house creep up on you again this year? Your secret is safe with me. Read on for some strategies to help you pull off a successful evening on the fly.

This subject is somewhat dear to me, because no matter how hard I seemed to try, parent night arrived every year leaving me feeling, once again, less prepared than I wanted. Especially during the early years of my teaching career. And the advice I got from all those workaholic would-be mentors with good intentions? Please. If you are new to the teaching arena, do yourself a favor. Skip the advice of the well meaning individual encouraging you to stay late cutting out apple coasters for dozens of people, and get a life.

Here are some simple strategies to pull off a low stress open house night with the parents. Bonus? None of them will break the bank or leave you feeling off kilter in the classroom.

Art Work.

Lots of it. You’ve got from the very start of the school year to pull off one or two fabulous projects. Back them with larger colored construction paper for a makeshift art mat and post neatly in rows and columns for a dramatic statement. Parents dig it.

Wall of Fame.

If you caught my initial post on Year Long Bulletin Board Ideas, you’ll remember the Wall of Fame idea. Use it. If you start on day one by pulling out an excellent piece of completed work from a particular student, this sets the tone for all of them to want a spot on the board. Keep a basic checklist in your grade or plan book so you will be sure to pull one piece for each student prior to open house. (Hint: if you do this every quarter you will also be prepared for each parent-teacher conference session and any unexpected drop-by.) You don’t have to have all the student samples from the same assignment. In fact, it’s better if you don’t. It’ll give the board more diversity and more accurately represent an overall picture of the type of work produced in your classroom. Starting off with this on day one sets a tone for quality work, and ensures that you are ready to roll on open house night.

Coffee.

Both you and the parents will need it. Make it a big pot.

Journal Entries to Parents.

Assign a note to the folks in each student journal as the morning language activity. There will be plenty of time to correct errors, or you could even make the editing process part of that night’s activity. Leave the journals open to that page centered on a neatly organized desk with a sharpened pencil. Each student’s parent can write a note back to them.

Digital Pictures.

If you have a camera, or the school will provide you with one, start snapping pictures from the first day of school. Put them all into one folder on the class computer and have a slideshow running as a conversation piece during the open house session. Determined to go the extra mile? Incorporate them into a class blog and include a post for that night where parents can comment in real time on the blog page itself and even have the capacity to update with images from the event.

Snazz Up the Sign-in Sheet.

Chances are, the administration will want you to record this data anyway. Bring in the sheep by promising a door prize. Nothing fancy, but hopefully something the students will get excited enough about to pressure . . . ahem . . . I mean, encourage their folks to show up for. Like say, a small stack of free homework pass certificates to use throughout the year? A simple three column chart will suffice. In the first column, a list of student names. In the second column will be a place for the parents to sign their name. In the third, a slot to record their ticket number. (Snag a roll of them from the lunch lady or have the PTA pick up a roll for you.) Then, rip the parent’s ticket in half, giving one to them and putting one in an empty jar. Require them to be present to win and draw the ticket at the end of the evening.

Get the Students Involved.

They are usually more than willing to help you get cleaned up at the end of the day and set up for the event. Have a clean desk contest if you really need to “amp up” the encouragement factor.

Have a Simple Activity or Demo.

Got a telescope and know how to use it? You could be good to go if there’s an event right outside your classroom window or exit door. Or, try simulating a crater by having a tall sided box of flour and a giant marble. Another idea would be a simple open microphone night using a karaoke box and microphone. Let the students read poems they have written or tell a joke. The trick is to not plan anything that requires the necessary arrival of a certain group of students or a particular number.

Work in the Pizza Hut Book It Program.

I love this program. And believe it or not, it’s been available in more than one overseas school location. Pizza Hut gives you a stack of tickets allowing each student who achieves a particular reading or language art goal (determined by you) to receive a free personal pan pizza when they stop by a Pizza Hut with their ticket signed by the teacher. I suggest that for the first quarter of the year at least, this is an excellent way to promote sustained silent reading at home by making the first goal the completion of a specific book to be read with the parents. Have a list of questions to be completed and when the students arrive at open house with their completed question card, you can hand over their first Book It coupon of the year. That way, everybody has the opportunity to get a prize on open house night.

Open house night doesn’t have to be horrific. Doing a little bit from day one and having a few low prep, low stress tricks up your sleeve can have you ready to roll in no time!

 Flickr Photo Credit: Miss K.

Online Portfolios: Rocket Fuel for Teaching Careers

Stuck in the initial stages of teaching where you are jumping through mentor hoops at every turn? Use it to your advantage. Rather than just doing the basics and posting a static set of pictures and lessons, you can turn this short term headache to your long term benefit. I’ve developed a list of ten points to consider. Read on to find out what they are.

If your university or current first professional year admins are requiring a portfolio, fine. However, I highly encourage you to already have one set up that suits your needs and incorporates theirs for the short term. Why? Whether you plan on globe trotting with your career, following a military or other internationally employed spouse with it, or just want to be prepared for the unexpected, being ready in advance for a career switch is easier if it’s an ongoing project. Bonus? If you do it the way I’m suggesting you’ll have a career long opportunity for self marketing, whether or not you leave your original job. (Although, chances are you will eventually.) Here’s what I recommend doing:

Register your name as a dot com.

Immediately. You can do this before you ever leave for college, even as a young adult. Develop your personal domain name as a professional space to document your favorite resources, thoughts, examples of your work, etc. It’s OK if you have interests other than teaching. There can eventually be a space for that. The key is to keep it professional enough that those hiring can view it at any time and be impressed. If you want a separate blog for fun, consider an unrelated title or pseudonym. You never know when your tastes will change or you may seek employment with a more conservative school district. Use this as a medium to document your professional development by posting reactions to texts, articles, conferences and workshops.

Consider book reviews and the reviewing of various classroom consumable products.

While your tastes will evolve over time, it’s actually a great way to document your career and justify any evolving philosophies.

Consider ad revenue and affiliate links for the books and products you recommend.

Even if you only bring in fifty dollars per month, it should cover the cost of basic web hosting. Bonus? Well designed ad placements show you’re serious about what you have to say and add an unmistakable professional element to your site.

To accommodate the initial career portfolio requirements, consider a section on “current projects” and allow a portion of that space to digitally document administratively required portfolio elements.

However, and this is critically important, do NOT allow the team to drive you towards a site redesign. First, it isn’t necessary. Second, it’s not their place. If they can honestly not see that you are still meeting your responsibilities within a subcategory on your site, you may need to consider a different mentor team or quite possibly an alternative place of employment. Your life and career are too short to be held back by individuals who can’t get with the program. I apologize if it seems like I’m being negative here. I know there are loads of fabulous people in the field. I also know there are some individuals who are seriously behind the times. I don’t have anything against traditional methods. In fact, I now lean towards several of them more often than I ever would have predicted earlier in my career. I do have something against the practice of holding developing professionals back in the interest of pressing a personal agenda of not wanting to get yourself up to date.

Stay current.

Based on what I just wrote above, I think it’s also important to note that I don’t necessarily think this needs to be done in the form of unnecessary and costly coursework. When you must, or when you personally want to, great. However, most of the time you can do this on your own much faster than any classroom instructor could ever help you do so. If you are a self motivated self learner, reading journals, surfing the net and simply listening to kids will keep you way ahead of the curve. Document this on your web site in the form of a blog. Bonus? Regular updates will help you gain better search engine results. Oh yes, don’t forget a pdf file of your current resume.

Learn to take great digital pictures.

This is a super and affordable way to record fabulous bulletin boards, the tricky-to-write-about steps in a great art project, document examples of stellar student work and more.

Take credit for the curriculum you write.

Let’s face it. Rarely will you work for a school that will not expect you to work on lesson ideas on your own time. In exchange for this, why do so many of us feel the need to hand over the lessons for the school to use long after we leave? Post the lessons in a professional format on your own site. People will have to go there to get the information, generating more traffic and ad revenue for you. If you eventually develop enough of it, you may have the makings of your own book or subscription web site. (Case in point, this web site, TheLessonMachine.Com .)

Get some photos taken of yourself in action.

Enlist a parent, classroom volunteer, friend or teaching assistant on days when you are doing anything from the traditional to the super cool. Don’t forget to document anything multicultural. Pictures with captions are simple, to the point, and powerful.

Keep up with this throughout your career.

Once the base work is done, it really won’t be that much work. You’ll always be out there and ready to go. Bonus? Any toxic insecure boss will also know this and hopefully bear it mind before they start harassing you at a time of year it would be difficult to replace you. Yes, there are some awesome administrators out there. There are also some condescending people on power trips. Be ready.

No potential employer will be able to ignore a prolifically documented curriculum collection, boatloads of creative bulletin boards, and photos of you engrossed with your students in kick butt educational activities. Need some more references from around the web? This link will help you get started on what to include and avoid with your online portfolio. This one will give you some pointers on effective front page design. Good luck, and great teaching!

Flickr Photo Credit: Liz Marie