5 Signs You’d Be A Great Teacher Classroom Management New Teachers by Jason Phillips - July 2, 20190 Are you thinking about becoming a teacher? Teachers are one of the most important parts of our workforce as they train our future leaders. Their care, compassion, and educational training make them one of the most important people in schools and colleges. As a teacher, you will interact with children and students on a daily basis - the words you tell them will be ingrained in them long after your lecture ends. Becoming a teacher means taking up a lot of responsibility, but if you have fun while you’re doing it- it will never feel like a burden! If you are thinking about the job prospects and salary, then being a teacher is one of the safest professions to get into.
4 Digital Safeguards For Modern Teachers Blogging & Technology by Joel Wagner - August 6, 2017August 6, 20171 I started my teaching career in 2002. Our world and the digital landscape have changed dramatically since then. Navigating this new landscape can be challenging for teachers who want to engage students with the latest technology, but also protect themselves from some of the pitfalls that this always-connected world brings with it. Here are four digital safeguards you can easily get started on this week that could help your teaching life. 1. Create a free "school-only" Google account "But my school provides me with an email address, why would I do that?" That's a great question. Why should we even bother doing this? Once upon a time, this was a non-issue. Now, the idea of opening a browser window on a projector in
Six major barriers to teachers using technology Blogging & Technology New Teachers by Jason Phillips - January 8, 20178 The use of advanced technology in education has been severely affected by frail digital literacy skills. However, experts agree that despite being spiteful and prevalent, it is a concern that can be solved. Sadly, some issues caused by technology can’t be addressed; at least, not yet. Six main impediments are harming the system, and they’re categorized in 3 main groups: • Impediments that cause trouble, but to some degree, can be fixed • Impediments that tough to handle and demand substantial resources to be fixed • Impediments that can be fixed by teachers and educational institutions Digital literacy Both the young and the old are affected by digital literacy. And no matter how hard we try, this concern won’t get fixed by itself. That’s because
5 Tips For Effective Parent-Teacher Communication General by Tess Pajaron - August 18, 2016August 18, 20162 One of the major downfalls for young teachers is poor parent-teacher communication. Too often we forget that parents can be some of the best allies we have in reaching our students, and that we all have a common goal. Early positive communication is the single most effective way I have found to avoid later conflicts down the road. In today's article, Tess Pajaron tackles the issue of effective parent-teacher communication. While it might be the kids that you see every day, parents are a huge deal when it comes to doing your job effectively. A parent can be an ally behind the scenes, supporting our work and encouraging their children to trust in us and take our lessons seriously. Getting a parent on board requires
10 Mistakes New Teachers Make (And How To Avoid Them) New Teachers by Joel Wagner - August 8, 2016February 6, 202025 If you're anything like me, you gained a great deal of academic knowledge about your content area in college and very little actual knowledge about getting students to stay quiet long enough to learn from your abundant knowledge base. Over the years, I have observed young teachers enter the profession and make many of the same mistakes. I have compiled a list of 10 mistakes new teachers make. Nobody makes all of the mistakes, but invariably we all go through a few of them within our first few years of teaching. Mistake 1: Many new teachers try to be "the cool teacher" and end up being "the pushover" I get it. We all want to be liked by our students. The mistake many teachers make is that they
Level Up Your Teaching: Engaging Students Through The Power Of Classroom Games General by David Reeves - August 5, 2016August 4, 20162 Learning only happens when students are engaged, but unfortunately, teachers continue to struggle with engagement, especially when children enter middle school. One way to keep kids engaged and improve student retention is through classroom games. Games — in the classroom and outdoors — that incorporate an educational component get kids excited about learning, and are a great tool in the arsenal of teachers of any grade level, but especially when students are nearing or in middle school. Here are some tips to help make your classroom games effective. Take Advice From Game Designers As a teacher, you know that classroom time is valuable. You don't want to fill it with anything that is wasteful, so are games worthwhile? Games are effective at motivating,
10 Ways to Integrate Social Media into Everyday Class Lessons Blogging & Technology by Amy K. Williams - August 2, 2016August 1, 20163 In recent years, many schools have cautiously begun to let up the reins on electronic device usage. Countless teachers each year find themselves in hot water over inappropriate use of social media. I know teachers on both the pro and con side of using social media. Today, Amy K. Williams explores some of the potential benefits that you can have if you decide to integrate social media into your teaching. 10 Ways To Integrate Social Media In The Classroom Far too often, we hear about all the negative aspects of social media and how it is harming our youth. It’s easy to dismiss social media as a resource in the classroom due to the tales of cyberbullying, online predators, and sexting. However, we need to
July 2016 On SYWTT Blogging & Technology by Joel Wagner - August 1, 20160 July 2016 was a great month as I continue getting back into the blogging groove of things. Below are some highlights. I discovered Pinterest and began to see that many of the articles on my site don't look so great on there. As a result, I began making images to go along with my new articles. Additionally, I have begun going back through the archives to create images for some of the more popular older articles. As time progresses, I will get to more and more of them. Along with that, I continue going back and adjusting formatting of old articles, as web standards have changed quite a bit since 2007. I have also started work on curating some of the articles by creating resource
New Teacher Resources New Teachers by Joel Wagner - August 1, 2016August 6, 20177 So you got that elusive first teaching job. Congratulations. If you experience is anything like mine has been, you now get to spend a few days learning district policies, and then get thrown into the classroom with minimal further instructions. Over the last decade or so, I have been very interested in helping new teachers navigate the difficulties of their first few years, and have written extensively on the topic. This Resource Post contains links to these articles. The Foundation 10 Mistakes New Teachers Make (And How To Avoid Them) 10 Things To Do Before The First Day Of School 10 Things I Wish Someone Had Explained Before My First Teaching Job 10 Things A First Year Teacher Should Do Learning New
Things High School Students Can Do Right Now To Go To College Debt-Free General by Rachael Everly - July 30, 2016July 30, 20160 Tuition is a major concern for anyone who has plans to attend university, whether that be for undergraduate study or graduate programs. As teachers, we want to guide our students in ways that will help them have the best chances for success later on in life. Today, Rachael Everly brings us some suggestions that we can offer to the future college students in our lives that will reduce costs and even allow them to attend college debt-free. Heading to college fills you with a liberating feeling and will give you a lot of freedom from all aspects, whether it is about social independence, financial liberty or educational solidarity. This feeling is accompanied by a sense of intimidation and petrification from parents or financial personnel. Student loans
Professional Email Etiquette For Teachers New Teachers by Vera Marie Reed - July 29, 2016July 28, 20162 As an educator you know that in this increasingly digital world, email is a primary source of communication between colleagues as well as with students. Communication through email is no longer a luxury but a necessity for working. We often create and respond to emails without considering the appropriate etiquette involved with professional emails. Being familiar with the professional email etiquette is necessary not only for your professional relationships as a teacher but is also useful for teaching to your students. Many students do not consider their emailing etiquette especially when communicating with their teachers. Teaching students the correct forms of email etiquette can help them carry over these habit into their own professional lives. Whether you are communicating with a
10 Things To Do Before The First Day of School New Teachers by Joel Wagner - July 28, 2016August 9, 20160 As the new school year approaches, many new teachers find themselves entering the ranks of professional educators for the first time. Maybe that's you. Or maybe you're a college student beginning your student teaching process. Or a new teacher who experienced a bit of frustration last year. Whatever the case may be, the new school year brings with it a certain sense of excitement and nervousness. This article explores 10 things to do before the first day of school. If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail Any experienced educator can tell you that the best school years are those that start off on the right foot. And those same people have just as many horror stories of problems that stem from poor planning. As
How To Avoid Arguing With Students Classroom Management by Joel Wagner - July 21, 2016July 21, 20160 Many students like to argue. It's a fact of life. And arguing is normal, isn't it? Or is it? This article explores some ways to avoid arguing with students. Great teachers don't have arguers Have you ever noticed how you can walk into a classroom and hear the teacher talking, and the students being quiet? They are given directions, and nobody challenges the assignment. What is it that makes that happen? Below are a few things that set great teachers apart and help them avoid arguing with students. 1. Great teachers don't accept excuses Excuses are often a student's way of asking for help. When we accept an excuse, we enable students to remain helpless. As a general rule, I don't give away easy answers. "What's the
101 Ways To Make Students Hate Your Class Classroom Management by Joel Wagner - July 20, 20161 We've all had our share of students whose purpose in life seems to be making our own life miserable. If you haven't, well you're in luck. Here is a list of ways to make students hate your class. 101 Ways To Make Students Hate Your Class Be boring Be mean Be inconsiderate Be confrontational Be negative Be consistently sarcastic Be impatient Be satisfied with good enough Argue with students Yell at students Threaten students Pick favorites Don't learn names Misspell names Don't try to pronounce names correctly Discourage students Focus on insecurities Compare students unfavorably with their siblings Compare students with other students Don't allow students to use the restroom in obvious emergencies Haphazardly allow a "revolving door restroom policy" Makes lots
5 Ways To Make Your College Application Stand Out Beyond The Essay General by Vera Marie Reed - July 13, 2016July 14, 20160 As we approach the beginning of the new school year, high school teachers will undoubtedly be approached by seniors for help with college applications. What do you tell them? How can you help? Writing a great essay is a good start, but there are other ways to make any college application stand out, and the best time to begin addressing that is now. In today's article, Vera Reed explores some other ways we can guide our students toward making their college application stand out. Going above and beyond the call to duty is simply one of the things that great teachers do. So while you technically don’t have to help your students with their college applications, going the extra mile to do so will