Random Thoughts

Great quote for Growth Mindset

Show a little Kindness to our Peers

Learning English is hard for native speakers, imagine how hard it is for our multilingual students!

Inspire students to find their voice

Motivational

Conversation starter

Should Dramatic Play be only for Preschool and Kindergarten?

Fourth and Fifth graders love dramatic play! What! You say. That is only for the little ones. I really encourage you to try it in your classroom. You do not have to have the little kitchens set-up in your classroom but you can implement the concept of dramatic play using little portable centers. Fourth graders need to be able to add and subtract decimals. Fifth graders need to master the addition and subtraction of decimals with regrouping and start multiplying the decimals. Do your students want more worksheets to practice or do they want to make real life connections why they need these skills.

These concepts are difficult to master but imagine if you set-up a grocery store. What concepts could you integrate into your multiple subject classroom? I use the grocery store dramatic play center to teach:

Report Cards for Teachers

How do I do this?

Every trimester, while I am doing report card grades, I have the students complete a report card for me. They really like helping me improve as a teacher. Most students take the form seriously and by the end of the year I usually have 100% participation. Their name is optional.

Letter grades are given for the following:


I also request a written response for the following:

I read them. I do some serious reflection. I actually average my grades (easy if you use a Google Form). Any area that I find lacking, we have a discussion. The discussion focus is not, "What I did wrong" but "How can I improve?" "What are some solutions?"

I model what to do when a statement is mean or disrespectful. Example:

Student: You teach stupid methods for simplifying fractions.

Teacher: I feel hurt when you use the word stupid. I need clarification. Did you mean that the method I use to teach simplifying fractions is confusing?

Student: Yes

Teacher: Did other students find the method I used to teach simplifying fractions confusing? (acknowledge that this is an area of growth for you) Does anyone have any suggestions for me to improve my teaching of simplifying fractions?

Students are very observant and often have great solutions. I have learned just as much from my students as they have from me.

Teachers’ hefty salaries are driving up taxes, and they only work 9 or 10 months a year. It’s time we put things in perspective and pay them for what they do – babysit.  We can get that for less than minimum wage.

That’s right. Let’s give them $3 an hour and only the hours they worked; not any of that silly planning time, or any time they spend before or after school. That would be $19.50 a day (7:45 to 3:00 PM with 45 min. off for lunch and plan– that equals 6 1/2 hours).

Each parent should pay $19.50 a day for these teachers to baby-sit their children. Now how many students do they teach in a day…maybe 30? So that’s $19.50 x 30 = $585.00 a day.

However, remember they only work 180 days a year. I am not going to pay them for any vacations.

LET’S SEE…That’s $585 X 180= $105,300 per year. (Hold on. My calculator needs new batteries.) - Author Unknown

FYI:

Spiral learning is a teaching method based on the premise that a student learns more about a subject each time the topic is reviewed or encountered. The idea is that each time a student encounters the topic, the student expands their knowledge or improves their skill level. 

Scaffolding is breaking up the learning into chunks and providing a tool, or structure, with each chunk. When scaffolding reading, for example, you might preview the text and discuss key vocabulary, or chunk the text and then read and discuss as you go.  

Accepting all is the heart of teaching.

Reflect every day to make sure I did not fall into the fool category!

The things I need to remember when dealing with behaviors.