Hello Everyone,
Welcome to the 28th edition of the Teaching with a Feather newsletter, the last one for 2018.
I am sure you are counting the days till the final day of term 4 and looking forward to enjoying your holiday break.
Holidays also give you some time to sit back, reflect on the previous year and think about what you want to change, how you will change and what is worth keeping.
I have included a few ideas worth considering for 2019. Firstly a question, how do you link your school values into your daily classroom program? You may be continuing at your current school or starting somewhere new. Each school will have a core set of values. Follow the links to see easy strategies that will integrate school values into your everyday teaching program.
There is a parent question relating to school and classroom rewards. It's worth considering how you want to approach using a reward system in 2019 with your new students.
Read the positive feedback from a TWAF team member and find out what a difference writing instructions made.
Finally a 'What if...' activity for those last weeks of term.
Have a wonderful break, seek out new ideas and make some changes because that's what keeps you fresh, invigorated and ready for the school year in 2019.
Kind Regards
Robyn
robyn@teachingfeather.com
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How Teaching with a Feather
Strategies Integrate and Enhance
School Values
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All schools have a core set of values.
These may include: Respect, Caring, Integrity, Friendliness, Resilience, Confidence, Caring, Honesty, Trust, Responsibility, Being your Best, Team Work and Fairness.
How does your school teach and integrate the selected values into the day-to-day life of every student?
Does your school provide a process that highlights the behaviours of students who demonstrate your core values?
How do you integrate the core values into your daily teaching and behavioural management?
Here is a selection of Teaching with a Feather strategies that contribute to the development of school values. Integrate the ideas within your daily teaching program. They make a positive difference to the way students think, speak and respond.
Recommendations:
Learning and Life Tips
The Good Morning Greeting
One Word that Makes a Big Difference
Solo, Partner or Group
The Class Cheer
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Who and What will be Managing
Your Students in 2019?
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Parent Concern:
A parent has been in touch expressing concerns over the number of rewards her daughter receives at school. These include classroom awards which comprise of stickers, certificates and lollies plus school awards of certificates.
The parent is pleased that her daughter is acknowledged for her achievements but too many are given and too often. The awards are tossed onto the kitchen table by the daughter when they arrive at home and are taken for granted.
The parent is concerned that the teacher relies on the rewards to manage the students and often the reward systems make little or no difference to the problems that still occur in the classroom.
Will you use a ‘rewards system’ to manage your students in 2019?
Why?
What’s the purpose?
Is it to control and manage students?
What other forms of rewards could you use?
Is the reward system doing the students thinking ie the students are performing the accepted behaviours to get a reward?
What other options could you use?
Please check out the following link for alternatives.
Teachers as Motivators
One Ups
Notes Make a Difference
The Morning Meeting with a Difference
Four Feedback Ideas
Using reward systems to manage students can be just as stressful as the problems. You have to manage the systems, give awards regularly, check that awards are received by all, tally up the table points, remember to give points, hand out stickers, buy stickers, put coloured buttons in a jar and still problem behaviours continue.
Traditional systems are not always the best alternatives. In 2019 be brave, break from tradition and be different!
Remember all Teaching with a Feather strategies are designed to promote and provide positive behaviour outcomes.
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How the Written Word
Made a Difference
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Feedback from a TWAF member
I was having difficulty keeping a group of older students on task. They wandered off, didn’t complete the activities I told them to do and generally ‘loafed’ about for much of the lesson.
You suggested that I write down the tasks as a list, put it on display and have each student report to me as they completed the activity. They were required to tick off each task when finished.
Outcome:
It worked! The students were happy to read the instructions and self direct to complete the assigned tasks. No oral directions were given by me, all the instructions were written in detail and the resources required were at hand.
Giving students independence demonstrates you value their ability to think for themselves, use problem solving skills and persistence to complete a task.
By writing instructions you are saying to your students I trust you to get on with the job. I am here to observe and acknowledge your results.
There is no requirement that every lesson you give students requires you to be on the stage providing instructions, handing out resources and organising students.
All students can and will respond to this easy strategy. Putting your trust in students to manage, organise and complete activities without you leading the discussion and questioning is a liberating feeling for all concerned.
Unless you are specifically teaching a new skill or concept there is no need to be 'on stage’. Let the students organise and get on with the activity. How many of your school values would students use?
Why not try this in the last few weeks.
Take time to write up the activity and let the students go! Observe and see the results. If some things are not going smoothly identify what it is and ‘fix it’.
- Were your instructions clear?
- Did you have all the required resources?
- Did some students have difficulty understanding what to do?
- What could you do differently next time to avoid the problems?
Use problems in a classroom as a way to develop your skills and knowledge as a teacher.
Relying on stickers and awards to manage students is not the best way to develop social skills, work habits and learning outcomes.
Without problems in my classrooms TWAF strategies would never have evolved.
No teacher wants to come to school each day and confront a re- occurence of the problems they experienced the day before, the week before and the months before. It’s wearing and stressful.
If you know of someone who is continually having a tough time in class share this newsletter with them.
If you are that person give me a call, jump on the website or email me.
Let's fix it!
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Professional Development 2019
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- Teaching with a Feather Professional Development is designed to enhance and build on the physical and communication environment established in classrooms.
- I work directly with teachers and students in the classroom, introducing and modelling classroom management and behaviour strategies that have an immediate positive impact on the way students think and respond.
- Teachers observe first hand the positive outcomes achieved by using TWAF strategies with their students.
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FaceTime Professional Development
Available Now
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Looking for advice or ideas re classroom behavioural and management techniques?
Get in touch and we can organise a personal FaceTime meeting.
Asking questions, discussing and learning new strategies in real time opens a whole new window of opportunity for you to develop your teaching practises.
If you are:
- Looking for new ideas to build on your current teaching practises,
- Having student management problems,
- Want to chat about quick and easy ideas to value add to your daily routines,
- Have had a really stressful day and want some immediate ideas - get in touch today!
What's Involved:
Contact me via email and organise a suitable time. Include any questions, concerns or areas in your current teaching and management that you would like to develop further.
robyn@teachingfeather.com
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Join the Teaching with a Feather
Community
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2019 Membership Available Now!
To become a lifetime member, access the Registration page and follow the instructions provided.
... or share your experiences using a TWAF strategy and receive a complimentary Teaching with a Feather Lifetime Membership. For all the details ...READ ON
Note: There are over 50 effective Teaching with a Feather Classroom and Management strategies available on the website including both free and member's content.
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- The TWAF newsletter is available free for teachers.
- In 2019 four newsletters will be published, one per school term.
- Please feel free to share the newsletter with your colleagues.
If you would like to receive the newsletter direct to your inbox, email me and I will add you to the mailing list.
Previous newsletters are available on the website containing personal stories from teachers who participated in a TWAF journey, new strategies, photos and extra classroom ideas and tips.
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If you have any questions re the Teaching with a Feather program please email me or phone 0422 436 398
robyn@teachingfeather.com
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A Quote to Display and Discuss
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Questions and Activity Idea for those last few weeks of Term 4:
Use the words 'What if ...' to generate thinking, questioning and discussions with your students then ... what if you actually followed up and used the ideas below.
Eg
1. What if we had no hands up in class today. What could we do instead?
2. What if the power was off today? What activities could we do that would be educational and worthwhile?
3. What if we went to another class and invited them to join us for an hour. What could we do together that would be real, worthwhile and beneficial for all of us.
What if you used this idea in this way?
Write the question and put it on display. Resist the urge to discuss and present the idea. Let the students read and get organised independently.
Add:
1. You may choose to work solo, pair or group to discuss and record your ideas.
2. You decide how to present the ideas.
3. Time allocation for this activity is 30 minutes. Please Note: Extra time will be allowed if you ask and provide a real reason for an extension.
4. If you require tips or feedback during the 30 minutes see me.
5. Please start now.
Suitable for all years levels. Just imagine six year olds getting into the task?
What if ...?
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