Modernize Your Teaching

Holiday Break ideally gives us as educators an opportunity to reflect on what has—and hasn't—been working in our classroom and to resolve to make mid-year adjustments.

A goal we have for our students is for them to be "appropriate" risk-takers in the classroom and to be confident and assured enough to move outside their comfort zone. 

We also know that we need to model this attitude/outlook for our kids. 

In my first months at Trinity I have incredibly pleased with the experimental ethos that drives our program and pedagogy. (One can take this for granted, especially being at Trinity for many years, but rest assured those new to Trinity very much appreciate this ethos.) 

As such, below is a summary of an article entitled 5 Resolutions to Modernize Your Teaching in 2014. 

Enjoy the weekend!

Joe

-----

The modern teacher juggles a dynamic sets of roles and tasks, from friend, coach, and leader, to agent of literacy, technology pioneer, and stoker of curiosity. 

To help you get started on your personal list of classroom resolutions and goals, here are five great ideas that can be implemented in any level of class.

I will experiment with technology that scares me: ‘New Tech’ doesn’t necessarily refer to a completely different piece of technology being used each week, but rather to a commitment to try new ways of using tech in your teaching. Whether you’re using old technology in new ways, or new technology in traditional ways, challenge yourself to do something “scary”–nothing literally terrifying, but rather an app or method of student access to content or digital communities that forces you to learn new things. The idea is to push yourself out of your comfort zone as you continue to modernize and refine your craft for 2014.

I will consistently try new approaches to learning: For example, No-Plan Friday. Don’t confuse ‘no plan’ with ‘no planning’! ‘No plan’ teaching is a great way to get students excited for a lesson each week. You still need to plan the objectives of the lesson, but you can leave the activity unplanned. Start the lesson with a discussion about the goals and objectives you want students to be working towards that day. Then, see where the conversation leads you. Allow students to share their creativity by working on open-ended and mostly unstructured work. This can really help to target different learning types, as each student can choose what works best for them. Some may work in small groups, while others choose to work alone. At the end, each student or group should share their creation with the class. Thismakes for interesting presentations as the class is treated to a variety ofskits, stories, newscast videos, or informational posters.

I will teach through moments: Commit yourself to building stronger relationships with your students. Make a point of speaking with at least one student each day about something completely unrelated to classwork or school activities. Some students seek out their teachers to share stories and build bonds, but this resolution can certainly help you to show all your students that they are important and valued members of your classroom community. Don’t forget to share some stories about yourself as well!

I will create a system that honors students: One idea? An end of the month Ceremony. The last school day of each month is a great time to highlight the successes of your class and students. Put some time aside to acknowledge the students that have been working well, putting in good effort, or helping their community.Highlighting personal successes can go a long way as well – if you know a student advanced his level in karate, mention it to the class! If a studentdeserves to be thanked for something, do so! Allow students to raise their and to give thanks to others as well (the impact of “thanks for letting me play with you at recess” shouldn’t be underestimated). Allowing a bit of time to celebrate successes and give special thanks can only add glue to the bonds students forge with you and with each other.

I will think literacy backwards: Literacy Monday is one way to try this. In Literacy Monday, challenge students to read something new each weekend, and take up the challenge yourself! This might be a great time for you to catch up on new trends in your field by committing to read at least one new article each week. Students can choose from stories or articles related to their personal interests. It’s important to let your students choose what they read (even if it means reading walkthoughs of video games each week), as the goal is to help them recognize the benefits of literacy in their personal lives. Each Monday, open a discussion where students can share some information about what they read. You, as the teacher, can even start things off by sharing what you learned in your article.