(no subject)
* The Austrians are having a run off election between the Greens and a very far right party. Best of luck to the Greens.
* The Australian election is a mess with a hung Parliament and I'm going to need to see how things shake out before I can say anything sensible.
* "In the last few days, there have been 3 major terrorist attacks:" http://gwydionmisha.tumblr.com/post/146886477822/5ullen-in-the-last-few-days-there-have-been-3
* My advice to new teachers from elsewhere:
Let me share with you the best tool I ever put in my teaching methods box.
Before class starts they will be talking and milling etc.. When you want to start, hold up your hand and in a loud carrying voice, count down from five, with our fingers as a visual reinforcement. They will catch on and gradually quiet and turn to look. Glare at anyone still talking at one if there are any. Then say, “Good. You all got it. I respect that what you have to say is important, so the count down gave you time to finish what you were saying before we started, but what I have to say is important too, so you’ll know that when you hear the count down it’s time to get ready to listen.” Then introduce your self, preferably with a little joke included. I had one about my name. The exact wording of the above isn’t that important, but you want to reinforce the idea of the countdown, what it’s for, and the idea of mutual respect.
The countdown really works for getting silence for all ages including rooms full of teachers, who are the hardest to quiet down. Doing it first thing establishes boundaries and puts you in charge right away. The idea of mutual respect is particularly important with adolescents, but it is a good idea just generally. It is the start of a good relationship with them. It tells them you plan to treat them like people, but you’ve also set a boundary at the same time. Trust me, it really helps. If you can toss in a joke it helps establish that you are good people.
It is far easier to teach them if they like, respect, and trust you all at once, particularly if you teach middle school, which was my area.
Seriously, the countdown is magic for getting silence and attention when you need to talk. It feels like the slow count is longer than just calling for attention, but if you do that you end up ineffectively demanding individual stragglers stop talking, which takes longer and puts you in a weaker position.
My other advice for new teachers is 1. pee early, pee often. You do not want to get short. 2. bring hard candy and have a water bottle handy for emergencies. 3. The magic phrase to use with rules lawyers who are disobeying while technically follow the exact wording of a direction is “I thought you were brighter than that.” Look and sound terrible sad and disappointed when you say it. Only about one out of 100 8th graders will keep arguing and the rest will immediately do whatever it is you wanted them to do. The 100th kid’s friends with look at the arguer and there expressions will generally win you compliance. 4. Never turn something into a direct confrontation is you can handle it tactfully. 5. Move around. A lot. Do it when you are talking. Do it when they are working. Go were the most noise is and hang out there. Often your presence will quell trouble before it escalates. You can more easily spot kids having trouble with the assignment and be on hand as needed. For groups that are off task, I generally entered the conversation and gently steared them back towards what they were doing. Again, it looks slower, but I had a ridiculously high compliance rate on projects, homework, group work, etc., and a very low referral rate. 6. During SSR time, read, but sit with whoever is talking until someone else makes noise, then go sit with them. People will catch on it’s a punishment and again, it is a gentle way to get compliance that is way less disruptive than shushing or direct confrontation. 7. A lot of ELL students and kids with below grade reading skills will act out to hide they are having trouble in front of friends. I found that if I could make help look like punishment that dorky teacher is inflicting (along the lines of the sit with the noise makers in SSR), the student could better accept academic help with out losing face in front of friends. 8. Always intervene in hate speech/sexist/homophobic/racist/ableist language unless the kids beat you to it. Work up a set of one or two sentence interventions. For example, never let them use “gay” to mean stupid. If you show leadership in this, the students of good will will feel empowered to step in themselves and the classroom atmosphere is better if you do this. There are few things more beautiful than watching a group of girls go after the kid who just mocked a special ed student, or a mixed gender pod argue down a middle school homophobe.
Just generally, if you make it clear with everything you do that you like and care about them and are rooting for them to succeed they will try really hard to live up to your belief in them. Talk to them like people. Pretend that if they know the the right thing to do, they will do it. 9 kids out of 10 will try to prove you right. The 10th watch like a hawk. Make it clear by your demeanor that you are sad and disappointed when you have to send them to the office because you thought they were better than that and you want them to do well, but you absolutely will do it.
Never ever make a threat you aren’t willing to carry through on.
Give the kids with bad reputations a fair shake. They will love you for it and try harder.
Come down like a ton of bricks on that kid who pokes the disabled kid until ze explodes. This is the one thing I will hold against a student for more than one day, because this kid is generally causing more trouble without you seeing than the rest combined and what ze is doing is cruel. The kid with ADHD got to start fresh with me everyday. The kid with serious anger issues from a crappy ass home like got to start out fresh with me every day. Instigator kid? I’d tell every other teacher on that kid’s team what I saw zim do so they could watch zim too. It’s one of the worst types of bullying and I was really big on keeping my kids safe inside the walls of my room. I might not have much say in the rest of their day, but inside my room the rules were fairly applied, they knew what to expect, and hate speech and bullying were not allowed ever.
Remember that it's hardly ever about you. They are sleep deprived and under incredible stress. Even the ones seemingly doing well are under a massive amount of pressure and some of them are dealing with terrifying real life stuff from divorce to domestic violence to substance abusing parents to homelessness or threat of homelessness. You'd lash out too. Don't take it personally. You do have to punish them if they cross the line, but often if you notice behavioral changes or warning signs of escalation before it gets to that point, you can take them aside and quietly ask if they are all right. It is a lot easier to deal with things before it gets to them screaming curse words, starting fights, etc..
Remember also that for a portion of your students you may be the only model of stable adulthood in their life. It is important to model boundary setting, calm, polite negotiation, compassion, empathy, etc.. They need you to be this for them because there home lives are chaotic. They need routine and setting where all the rules make sense and the adult behaves predictably. They need an adult who genuinely cares if they are in trouble. They need someone to model kindness and ethics. You can't save all of them, but you can be a part of the solution by making the hour or hours they spend in your room good.
You are going to make mistakes, but keep trying. Read books, talk to peers, try new things. You are going to come home and weep after the bad days, but the more tools you have in your box the more good days you will have.
* There is reason to think the ozone layer might be healing. Projections suggest at the current rate it might be fixed mid-century.
* "Bottled Water Donations in Flint, Michigan Have Plummeted, But Crisis Remains:" https://mic.com/articles/147717/bottled-water-donations-in-flint-michigan-have-plummeted-but-crisis-remains?utm_source=policymicTBLR&utm_medium=main&utm_campaign=social#.7UBfADodm
* Sunday's pain is what I, with my chronic pain and high pain threshold, count as "impressive" even without counting the ankle I sprained rather badly yesterday without noticing. Call today a barely meets the minimums sort of day.
* We had a ton of Goth lilies this year, but they are near done. The first yellow lily was ready yesterday. The Goth lilies smell like mold and dust, which I suppose suits them, while the big yellow bloom fills the whole apartment with rich floral fragrance. http://gwydionmisha.tumblr.com/post/146886061677/we-had-a-ton-of-goth-lilies-this-year-but-they
* "Sunday Sweets: Disney Wedding Cakes:" http://www.cakewrecks.com/home/2016/7/3/sunday-sweets-disney-wedding-cakes.html
* "About Hydra Cap:" http://taibhsearachd.tumblr.com/post/146882713714/about-hydra-cap
* "How to help Flint, Michigan:" http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/how-help-flint-michigan
* Help pay for cat food, litter, meds, medical copays: Paypal Lethran@gmail.com
* Donate to help refugees: http://donate.unhcr.org/international/general
* A list of LGBTQA Charities: http://awkward0w1.tumblr.com/post/126399233673
* Want Game of Thrones without the creepy? We desperately need new players. We are very inclusive. "Game of Bones MUSH:" gobmush.wikidot.com
This entry was originally posted at http://gwydion.dreamwidth.org/622882.html. Please comment there using OpenID.
* The Australian election is a mess with a hung Parliament and I'm going to need to see how things shake out before I can say anything sensible.
* "In the last few days, there have been 3 major terrorist attacks:" http://gwydionmisha.tumblr.com/post/146886477822/5ullen-in-the-last-few-days-there-have-been-3
* My advice to new teachers from elsewhere:
Let me share with you the best tool I ever put in my teaching methods box.
Before class starts they will be talking and milling etc.. When you want to start, hold up your hand and in a loud carrying voice, count down from five, with our fingers as a visual reinforcement. They will catch on and gradually quiet and turn to look. Glare at anyone still talking at one if there are any. Then say, “Good. You all got it. I respect that what you have to say is important, so the count down gave you time to finish what you were saying before we started, but what I have to say is important too, so you’ll know that when you hear the count down it’s time to get ready to listen.” Then introduce your self, preferably with a little joke included. I had one about my name. The exact wording of the above isn’t that important, but you want to reinforce the idea of the countdown, what it’s for, and the idea of mutual respect.
The countdown really works for getting silence for all ages including rooms full of teachers, who are the hardest to quiet down. Doing it first thing establishes boundaries and puts you in charge right away. The idea of mutual respect is particularly important with adolescents, but it is a good idea just generally. It is the start of a good relationship with them. It tells them you plan to treat them like people, but you’ve also set a boundary at the same time. Trust me, it really helps. If you can toss in a joke it helps establish that you are good people.
It is far easier to teach them if they like, respect, and trust you all at once, particularly if you teach middle school, which was my area.
Seriously, the countdown is magic for getting silence and attention when you need to talk. It feels like the slow count is longer than just calling for attention, but if you do that you end up ineffectively demanding individual stragglers stop talking, which takes longer and puts you in a weaker position.
My other advice for new teachers is 1. pee early, pee often. You do not want to get short. 2. bring hard candy and have a water bottle handy for emergencies. 3. The magic phrase to use with rules lawyers who are disobeying while technically follow the exact wording of a direction is “I thought you were brighter than that.” Look and sound terrible sad and disappointed when you say it. Only about one out of 100 8th graders will keep arguing and the rest will immediately do whatever it is you wanted them to do. The 100th kid’s friends with look at the arguer and there expressions will generally win you compliance. 4. Never turn something into a direct confrontation is you can handle it tactfully. 5. Move around. A lot. Do it when you are talking. Do it when they are working. Go were the most noise is and hang out there. Often your presence will quell trouble before it escalates. You can more easily spot kids having trouble with the assignment and be on hand as needed. For groups that are off task, I generally entered the conversation and gently steared them back towards what they were doing. Again, it looks slower, but I had a ridiculously high compliance rate on projects, homework, group work, etc., and a very low referral rate. 6. During SSR time, read, but sit with whoever is talking until someone else makes noise, then go sit with them. People will catch on it’s a punishment and again, it is a gentle way to get compliance that is way less disruptive than shushing or direct confrontation. 7. A lot of ELL students and kids with below grade reading skills will act out to hide they are having trouble in front of friends. I found that if I could make help look like punishment that dorky teacher is inflicting (along the lines of the sit with the noise makers in SSR), the student could better accept academic help with out losing face in front of friends. 8. Always intervene in hate speech/sexist/homophobic/racist/ableist language unless the kids beat you to it. Work up a set of one or two sentence interventions. For example, never let them use “gay” to mean stupid. If you show leadership in this, the students of good will will feel empowered to step in themselves and the classroom atmosphere is better if you do this. There are few things more beautiful than watching a group of girls go after the kid who just mocked a special ed student, or a mixed gender pod argue down a middle school homophobe.
Just generally, if you make it clear with everything you do that you like and care about them and are rooting for them to succeed they will try really hard to live up to your belief in them. Talk to them like people. Pretend that if they know the the right thing to do, they will do it. 9 kids out of 10 will try to prove you right. The 10th watch like a hawk. Make it clear by your demeanor that you are sad and disappointed when you have to send them to the office because you thought they were better than that and you want them to do well, but you absolutely will do it.
Never ever make a threat you aren’t willing to carry through on.
Give the kids with bad reputations a fair shake. They will love you for it and try harder.
Come down like a ton of bricks on that kid who pokes the disabled kid until ze explodes. This is the one thing I will hold against a student for more than one day, because this kid is generally causing more trouble without you seeing than the rest combined and what ze is doing is cruel. The kid with ADHD got to start fresh with me everyday. The kid with serious anger issues from a crappy ass home like got to start out fresh with me every day. Instigator kid? I’d tell every other teacher on that kid’s team what I saw zim do so they could watch zim too. It’s one of the worst types of bullying and I was really big on keeping my kids safe inside the walls of my room. I might not have much say in the rest of their day, but inside my room the rules were fairly applied, they knew what to expect, and hate speech and bullying were not allowed ever.
Remember that it's hardly ever about you. They are sleep deprived and under incredible stress. Even the ones seemingly doing well are under a massive amount of pressure and some of them are dealing with terrifying real life stuff from divorce to domestic violence to substance abusing parents to homelessness or threat of homelessness. You'd lash out too. Don't take it personally. You do have to punish them if they cross the line, but often if you notice behavioral changes or warning signs of escalation before it gets to that point, you can take them aside and quietly ask if they are all right. It is a lot easier to deal with things before it gets to them screaming curse words, starting fights, etc..
Remember also that for a portion of your students you may be the only model of stable adulthood in their life. It is important to model boundary setting, calm, polite negotiation, compassion, empathy, etc.. They need you to be this for them because there home lives are chaotic. They need routine and setting where all the rules make sense and the adult behaves predictably. They need an adult who genuinely cares if they are in trouble. They need someone to model kindness and ethics. You can't save all of them, but you can be a part of the solution by making the hour or hours they spend in your room good.
You are going to make mistakes, but keep trying. Read books, talk to peers, try new things. You are going to come home and weep after the bad days, but the more tools you have in your box the more good days you will have.
* There is reason to think the ozone layer might be healing. Projections suggest at the current rate it might be fixed mid-century.
* "Bottled Water Donations in Flint, Michigan Have Plummeted, But Crisis Remains:" https://mic.com/articles/147717/bottled-water-donations-in-flint-michigan-have-plummeted-but-crisis-remains?utm_source=policymicTBLR&utm_medium=main&utm_campaign=social#.7UBfADodm
* Sunday's pain is what I, with my chronic pain and high pain threshold, count as "impressive" even without counting the ankle I sprained rather badly yesterday without noticing. Call today a barely meets the minimums sort of day.
* We had a ton of Goth lilies this year, but they are near done. The first yellow lily was ready yesterday. The Goth lilies smell like mold and dust, which I suppose suits them, while the big yellow bloom fills the whole apartment with rich floral fragrance. http://gwydionmisha.tumblr.com/post/146886061677/we-had-a-ton-of-goth-lilies-this-year-but-they
* "Sunday Sweets: Disney Wedding Cakes:" http://www.cakewrecks.com/home/2016/7/3/sunday-sweets-disney-wedding-cakes.html
* "About Hydra Cap:" http://taibhsearachd.tumblr.com/post/146882713714/about-hydra-cap
* "How to help Flint, Michigan:" http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/how-help-flint-michigan
* Help pay for cat food, litter, meds, medical copays: Paypal Lethran@gmail.com
* Donate to help refugees: http://donate.unhcr.org/international/general
* A list of LGBTQA Charities: http://awkward0w1.tumblr.com/post/126399233673
* Want Game of Thrones without the creepy? We desperately need new players. We are very inclusive. "Game of Bones MUSH:" gobmush.wikidot.com
This entry was originally posted at http://gwydion.dreamwidth.org/622882.html. Please comment there using OpenID.