We are halfway through the Total Teacher Transformation series. I’ve been pretty much forced to take a break from it because of the busyness of the end of the school year. It will resume next week. This week, I plan to do a wrapup of the 08-09 school year. I just thought I should drop … Read more
This is an article in the Total Teacher Transformation series. Click here for a complete table of contents. As discussed last time, part of gaining respect from students comes from being respectful. The second element of earning the respect of your students (and their parents), comes from being respectable. No amount of courtesy to your students can … Read more
This is an article in the Total Teacher Transformation series. Click here for a complete table of contents. As we’re going through the transformation, one of the key things to remember is that you must remain respectful to your students. As I’ve written before, classroom control is essential. Some of us have a naturally abrasive personality, and … Read more
This is an article in the Total Teacher Transformation series. Click here for a complete table of contents. One of the biggest difficulties that many teachers face is grasping the reality that treating students equally is often not even remotely fair. In fact, fairness in most circumstances necessitates inequality. One hallmark of a great teacher is that … Read more
This is an article in the Total Teacher Transformation series. Click here for a complete table of contents. When I was a new teacher, I had some really good classroom rules and expectations and consequences all lined up. It was good on paper. Unfortunately, I didn’t follow through consistently at all. If one of the “bad kids” … Read more
This is an article in the Total Teacher Transformation series. Click here for a complete table of contents. I took the day off from blogging yesterday because it was Mother’s Day and I play in a mariachi. If you don’t know what that means, I started playing serenatas (Mother’s Day Serenades) at 6pm Saturday afternoon, wrapped up a … Read more
This is an article in the Total Teacher Transformation series. Click here for a complete table of contents. What a wild week this has been! I’m surprised by how much even going over these classroom management basics on here has impacted my teaching. When I preach this stuff, I sort of have to force myself to follow … Read more
This is an article in the Total Teacher Transformation series. Click here for a complete table of contents. I hope that this series so far has been useful for some of you. I’m not getting an overwhelming amount of feedback specifically on the series, but I guess I really can’t complain about over 40 (non-spam) comments in … Read more
This is an article in the Total Teacher Transformation series. Click here for a complete table of contents. Yesterday we looked at making phone calls and using parent pressure as a motivator for classroom management. Today, we’re going to go with a slightly more high-brow alternative, and one that tends to be more effective over the long … Read more
This is an article in the Total Teacher Transformation series. Click here for a complete table of contents. Face it, misbehavior has been around only slightly longer than behavior has been. As teachers, we are often expected to fill every possible role in the lives of the students. Unfortunately, that can’t always happen. Sometimes our control and … Read more