How Do We Show Our Students That We Love Them? Classroom Management by Joel Wagner - November 8, 2009May 30, 20160 When I was struggling to find hope early in my career as a teacher, I came across a few pieces of advice given by King Solomon from the Proverbs: He who spares his rod hates his son, But he who loves him disciplines him promptly. — Proverbs 13:24 This one jumped out at me as I realized I overlooked way too much misbehavior. I came to understand that by continually letting the students misbehave because I wanted them to like me was actually counter-productive and instead it made them respect me less. More than that, it showed me that whereas I thought I was being loving, I was actually being hateful. That helped me a whole lot as it set me on a
All Time Best Teaching Advice Classroom Management by Joel Wagner - November 17, 2007July 5, 20104 As I have been reading the interviews for the Reader Appreciation Month (by the way, there is room for another 7 interviews. If you don't send them in, they end on Wednesday!), I have been amazed at the depth of knowledge of some of the readers of this blog. I was going through my Google Reader the other day and came across a post by Gxeremio entitled Best (and worst) advice. In it, he lists some of the best teaching advice he has received. Additionally, he points to some standard "wisdom" that really isn't all that wise. It made me think... If I were to give only one piece of advice to a brand new teacher, what would it
Less Stress: Deepen Your Relationships With Students Stress Reduction by Joel Wagner - October 24, 2007June 13, 20122 Wow. I love my students. I am amazed that I haven't written more on my blog about this fact. As I search through my blog, I have come to the realization that I probably come across as some heartless disciplinarian who expects nothing more from his students than that they be quiet all the time. This is about as far from the truth as you can get. In fact, I love my students very much. I came to the determination three years ago that classroom management was a key element of demonstrating my love to them. You see, when we allow them to waste their education, we are showing unconcern for them rather than courtesy. One of my key scriptures as
Less Stress: Deepen Your Relationships With Friends Stress Reduction by Joel Wagner - October 23, 2007July 5, 20100 A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. Proverbs 17:17 Some of the greatest stress relief I have had since moving away from my family has been with friends. Either other teachers as well as church friends or even other friends you have met through other social activities. Maybe hooking up with college or old high school buddies. Whatever it is, hanging with friends is a great stress reliever. Just sitting and talking about things unrelated to school can be great. Sitting and talking about things related to school can also be great. I learn a lot from my teacher friends. Some of my greatest learning experiences are when I am trying to help them