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7 Classroom Management Mistakes - And How to Fix Them!

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7 Classroom Management Mistakes - And How to Fix Them!

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7 Classroom Management Mistakes—and the Research on How to Fix Them

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Whether our emotions get the best of us, or we fall into familiar but unproductive habits, here are 7 common classroom management mistakes, and what the research suggests you should do instead.

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Recognizing Emotional Overload in Students

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Recognizing Emotional Overload in Students

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In countless schools I've visited as a social work supervisor, I've heard frustrations from educators centered around student motivation. I've sat in classrooms and team meetings where teachers have said things like "This student is just lazy" or "They're not pushing themselves, they're just being difficult." These assumptions, while often made out of genuine concern or exhaustion, are typically rooted in a misunderstanding of what we are actually witnessing: not defiance, not disinterest, but emotional overload.

RECOGNIZING BEHAVIOR AS MORE THAN A LACK OF MOTIVATION

We tend to associate motivation with willpower, effort, or mindset. But in reality, motivation is deeply tied to a person's emotional and psychological capacity. Students, especially those navigating stress, trauma, or chronic overwhelm, may appear disengaged, not because they don't care, but because they are functioning beyond their emotional limits. The body's stress response can look like stillness, silence, or resistance. It can look like forgetfulness, talking out of turn, or shutting down during independent work time. These behaviors are not always intentional. More often, they are signs that a student is trying to cope with internal overload in the only way they know how.

This is where the concept of emotional literacy becomes essential. Many of our students have never been taught how to identify or articulate what they're feeling. As a result, they lack the language to express what's really going on, and that often leads to behavior that adults misinterpret.

Unfortunately, many educators are also not equipped with the training to recognize these signs. Teachers are managing crowded classrooms, heavy workloads, and administrative demands, often while grappling with their own emotional strain. It's not uncommon for them to default to behavior-based interpretations of student disengagement because that's what traditional training prepares them for.

That's why we must reframe how schools understand and respond to student behavior. Yes, teachers need support with curriculum and instructional strategies, but that's only one piece of the puzzle. We also need to ensure that school staff are trained to recognize emotional exhaustion and understand how it manifests in students. This training should be practical, realistic, and embedded into the professional development calendar-not offered as an optional add-on. It should include real-life classroom scenarios, helping staff to recognize how emotional overload can mimic defiance or disengagement, and to provide actionable strategies that shift their response from correction to curiosity.

UNDERSTANDING AND RESPONDING TO STUDENT ACTIONS

For example, a student who lays their head down every afternoon might not be disrespectful-they may be experiencing sensory fatigue or mental exhaustion. Instead of saying, "Sit up and pay attention," a trained educator might ask, "Is this a moment where your brain needs a moment to rest, or do you want support to help reengage?" These gentle, validating questions create space for students to reflect and reengage, rather than feel shamed or punished for something they may not fully understand themselves.

One practical strategy is to implement monthly "behavior decode" sessions, where educators bring real classroom examples and receive coaching on how to interpret them through a trauma-informed and emotionally responsive lens. These trainings should not be theoretical; they must be anchored in the daily realities of classroom life.

EMPOWERING STUDENTS TO OWN THEIR EMOTIONS

Yet training staff is only part of the equation. To create sustainable change, we must also bring students into the conversation. Emotional literacy is not just a tool for adults, it is a critical skill for children and adolescents to develop as well. Many students, particularly those from historically marginalized or trauma-exposed communities, have not had opportunities to build this vocabulary in a safe, supportive environment. That's why we must use our existing social and emotional learning (SEL) time more intentionally.

During SEL blocks, morning meetings, or advisory sessions, educators can engage students in discussions about what it means to feel emotionally overloaded. They can ask reflective questions such as, "Have you ever felt like your brain was too full to think?" or "What does it feel like when you're trying your best but can't focus?" These conversations not only validate students' experiences but also normalize the concept of emotional fatigue. When students can see that others feel this way too, it reduces stigma and increases self-awareness.

We should also equip students with scripts and phrases they can use when they're feeling overwhelmed. Short, simple statements like "My brain feels foggy" or "Can I pause for a second?" can give students a way to self-advocate without fear of being seen as disrespectful. Even better, students should be encouraged to develop their own language-metaphors or phrases that make sense to them. For one student, it might be "I'm in turtle mode." For another, "I feel like I'm buffering." The goal is not perfect language, but personalized language that empowers them to communicate with clarity and confidence.

Consistency is key. These scripts and tools should be practiced regularly, just as we rehearse academic content, so they become second nature. And when educators see emotional overload starting to surface, they can gently remind students of their available tools. Asking "Is your brain feeling full right now?" or "Would a break help you focus better?" communicates care and creates space for students to access the self-regulation skills they've been building.

It's also worth noting that this approach doesn't lower expectations, it raises the bar for how we support students in meeting them. When we recognize emotional overload for what it is, we're not excusing behavior but acknowledging the conditions that shape it. And when students feel understood, they are far more likely to reengage with learning.

A Shift in Practice and Perspective

If we want schools to be places of belonging, growth, and healing, we must begin by examining the narratives we've accepted about student motivation. Labeling students as lazy or unmotivated dismisses the complex emotional realities they may be facing and limits our ability to reach them. Emotional overload is not a student flaw, it's a human experience, one that can be addressed when adults are equipped to recognize and respond to it.

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Recognizing and Addressing Emotional Overload to Better Support Students

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Teachers may misinterpret student actions as laziness when what their students really need is someone to address their emotional overload.

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ChatGPT Features Worth of Teachers' Attention

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ChatGPT Features Worth of Teachers' Attention

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Has artificial intelligence become a part of your daily workflow? Many educators have turned to AI tools to help them expand their impact in the classroom. From creating supplemental resources that address goals for differentiation and student engagement to tackling their inbox or correspondence in a more timely manner, the possibilities are truly endless.

With any new, fast-moving technology, particularly AI, there are numerous reasons to have pause. I call this a "healthy hesitation" when working with educators hosting a workshop or webinar. It's important to remember that this technology is far from perfect and might give you results that are inaccurate or biased.

Although using artificial intelligence can help us save time with many small tasks and scale our impact in ways we might not have been able to even imagine in the past (such as quickly creating a high-interest activity like a reader's theater for students), the output still requires an educator's expert eye to review before sharing with students, families, or colleagues.

However, if you've decided to jump into a chatbot, you can keep all of this in mind while still making the most of new features released over the course of the school year. Here I spotlight three features in ChatGPT that I think are worthy of your attention. You can find some of these features in other chatbots and AI tools, too.

Voice-to-Text Dictation

Unlike a voice chat that sounds like you are having a conversation, the dictate option in ChatGPT is perfect for sharing your ideas quickly and making the most of the built-in transcription. Many tech users already incorporate voice-to-text tools into their routine. You might use your voice to dictate a text message to a family member or enable a voice-to-text option on your laptop to take notes or even compose an email.

What I especially like about this feature, available in the free version of ChatGPT, is the ability to do a quick brain dump when you have an idea but need a little bit of extra help. Instead of composing a long prompt or a paragraph of instructions, you can simply state your thoughts in a general way, even if those thoughts aren't fully formed.

For instance, if you're getting ready to kick off a unit and need some fresh ideas, you can use the dictate feature to share (even if it's a bit rambling) some background information and say all of your thoughts without the pressure of composing complete sentences or even phrases.

It's important to remember that you don't want to share any personal information about your students, just general background information that might inform future instruction.

Organize Images in the Library

Within the free and paid versions of ChatGPT, users can now create images. If you've used other image-generation tools like Adobe Firefly or Magic Media in Canva, you know it's a great way to create customized supplemental resources for students. For example, I like to take a school's mascot or a favorite animal and use it to bring a vocabulary word to life or as part of a diagram.

The Library feature in ChatGPT now organizes the images you've created and makes it easy to see the original prompt you used. Remember that image generation isn't perfect within ChatGPT. For example, you may find that it sometimes has trouble creating accurate diagrams (that's where your expert eye and content expertise come into play). But the benefit I see with this new ChatGPT Library feature is how easy it is to find images you've created.

Use Projects to Organize Tasks

The Projects feature in ChatGPT is a helpful way to organize groups of tasks that are related to the same topic. Right now this is a paid feature in ChatGPT (as well as other chatbots like Claude), but I think it's worth knowing about. As this technology continues to evolve, paid features often become available in free plans at a later date.

With Projects, you can add reference materials and custom instructions. This could include an example of work you've already created, such as how you like to have a study guide formatted. You can upload it to the project along with any custom instructions you would like to add. Then you can come back to this project each time you are working on something similar, and the chatbot's memory, custom instructions, and the reference material you've added will all be taken into consideration as the chatbot provides an output. Of course, you'll still want to use your expertise to review material and customize the final product before sharing with others.

As you explore new features in popular tools like ChatGPT, you might find that some fit your needs better than others. If an update doesn't fit with your everyday workflow, you might decide to share the news with a friend or colleague-they might have a tip to share with you, too!

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3 ChatGPT Features Worthy of a Teacher's Attention

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An edtech expert shares how the popular AI tool can help you save time while increasing your impact.

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Abstract

What Is Classroom "Management"?

How Did We Get Here?

Reimagining Classroom Expectations

The Steps in Practice

Teachers should be cultivators-not managers-of their classroom environments.

Abstract

What Is Classroom "Management"?

How Did We Get Here?

Reimagining Classroom Expectations

The Steps in Practice

The 1st grade students were sitting in a circle around the teacher on the carpet, reading about the different kinds of bird beaks. Every student, that is, except Samuel, who was pacing in front of the door. He folded his arms and twisted his mouth into a grimace, clearly looking for the perfect opportunity to make a run for it. Spotting him, the teacher looked in his direction and said, "You have until the count of three to make a better choice."

"No," Samuel responded. "You make a better choice and move my clip back up." He was referring to the system the teacher used to "manage" classroom behavior; students would move a clip with their names up or down on a chart, based on good behavior or misbehavior. The teacher looked at me, the observing instructional coach, with exasperation written all over her face. Later, she told me, "I just don't know what to do. They don't listen. And I can't seem to get anything done."

In my various roles over the years as a teacher leader, new teacher mentor, coach, and assistant principal, this statement- I just don't know what to do-has been an all-too-familiar cry. When teachers feel frustrated and overwhelmed by students who seem to be "out of control," they try multiple approaches to "manage" behavior, from charts and point systems to notes and treasure boxes and everything in between. But what if the issue lies more in our approach?

What Is Classroom "Management"?

The term "classroom management" refers to the strategies a teacher has in place to ensure an environment in which students can effectively learn. Traditionally, this involves teaching expectations, routines, and procedures early in the school year (Lester, Allanson, & Notar, 2017). Research suggests that carefully constructed routines significantly affect social and emotional development and reduce distracting behaviors (Ostrosky, Jung, & Hemmeter, 2003). The absence of structure has been associated with negative behavioral, social, and academic outcomes (Whisman & Hammer, 2014). In addition, when teachers struggle to effectively manage classroom behaviors, they report higher levels of stress and lower levels of job satisfaction (Kwok, 2018).

In my experience, there are two extremes of classroom management. At the one end is the teacher who appears to have no control over the classroom culture, which typically manifests as students talking while the teacher is (and therefore unable to hear instruction or directions) or students off-task during work time. This indicates that control has shifted to the students. At the other end is the overly controlled classroom, with a rigid set of rules and procedures. The power rests solely with the teacher, who is unwavering in how, when, and why they offer consequences. Both extremes are the result of a power imbalance, and the assumption is that the power needs to be in the teacher's favor for effective classroom management.

How Did We Get Here?

Only about half of all U.S. teacher education programs have a course on effective strategies for managing classroom behaviors (NCTQ, 2020). Though this is up from 23 percent in 2013, only 14 percent of current programs require candidates to model and practice these strategies in clinical situations (NCTQ, 2020). This means that a large number of teachers enter the profession unprepared to effectively cultivate a culture of learning.

While more districts now offer professional development on relationship-centered and trauma-informed approaches to classroom management, not all teachers attend these sessions or have the support they need to go from theory to practice. Thus, teachers may turn to more traditional strategies (clip charts, notes home, time-outs, treasure boxes, discipline cards). The problem with these practices is that they fail to take into consideration the differences in how and why students behave the way they do.

As students readjust to in-person learning, at a time when the pandemic is still changing our country, it is important that we remain sensitive to the vast differences in students' experiences and their varying degrees of trauma. There should be a focus on student/teacher relationships, with teachers as cultivators -not managers-of their classroom environments. I'd like to share common management missteps and suggest how teachers can move from classroom "manager" to "cultivator."

Reimagining Classroom Expectations

Classroom culture is, in my opinion, one of the most crucial components of educational practice-the one that must be in place before all other practices can work. A culture where students are aware of what is expected from them, both academically and behaviorally, and where they feel safe, supported, and part of a community, is necessary for high academic achievement.

One of the biggest classroom management mistakes is focusing on rules rather than relationships. In this set-up, students are expected to "obey" certain conditions or receive a consequence if they don't. This militant says the classroom belongs to the teacher and makes it a challenge for students to remember everything they need to avoid doing (Deci & Ryan, 2016). More recently, the trend has been for teachers to develop three to five value-focused "rules" (i.e. Be Respectful, Be Prepared). Though easier to remember, because any number of behaviors could fall under "be respectful" or "be prepared," and because students' understanding of these values can differ depending on background, culture, and experience, students may find themselves unintentionally in violation.

It is important that students have a clear understanding of what we expect of them, and why. One way to do this is to work as a class to create a series of "norms" for how everyone will "behave" when together. These are different than rules because they are collaborative rather than a list of demands made by the "authority figure." Specifically, norms represent an agreement among all community members about how they will treat one another. I find it works best when the norm begins with "We will ...", when the class comes up with no more than 3-5 norms, and when the norm is well-defined.

One teacher I work with begins with three charts of paper, each with a relationship written at the top: student to student, teacher to student, and student to teacher. The teacher starts the process by including his or her non-negotiables (for example, "we will respect one another") and then opens a class brainstorming session. The class then votes on their top 5 norms and defines clearly what each norm looks like in action. To further solidify commitment, students can sign the bottom of the page. Because students have a sense of shared ownership in the creation of classroom expectations, they are more likely to invest in them. In addition, by supporting student autonomy rather than just telling students what not to do, we promote intrinsic motivation, which supports academic growth (Deci & Ryan, 2016).

When a teacher offers praise for "good behavior," especially relationally ("I love how John is sitting quietly waiting for directions"), there are invariably students who receive less praise than others. The problem with a focus on praise is that it assumes a student can control their behavior, or that their misbehavior is intentional.

Moreover, the absence of praise for students who have not yet learned the skills to control their behavior, who do not know what they have done wrong, or who are acting out because of unresolved trauma-rather than a desire to be defiant or disrespectful-does not change the behavior, which completely defeats the purpose of a classroom management system. Another problem comes when students begin to look to the teacher to determine whether a behavior is worthy of merit, or when students are only motivated to act a certain way because they are expecting a reward (Wigfield & Eccles, 2000).

Unlike praise, positive reinforcement acknowledges desired behaviors. There is a difference, for example, between saying "I love how John is sitting quietly waiting for directions" (praising John and attaching a teacher feeling) and "John is sitting with his eyes on me" (reinforcing John's behavior and simultaneously reinforcing the expectation for those not quite there yet).

The goal here is to acknowledge everyone equally without singling out those not complying by name (for example, saying, "I'm waiting on one person" instead of "Sam, your eyes should be on me). The advantage of this approach is that student/teacher relationships are not determined by the degree of reinforcement a student receives. It also allows for an immediate change in unwanted behaviors.

When using positive reinforcement, teachers need to first provide clear directions that include a cue to begin (when I say, "go"), what to do, and how to do it (quietly, without talking, within a certain time), and then narrate behaviors to ensure everyone knows what to do.

My state uses the RTI2-B (Response to Instruction and Intervention for Behavior) framework, which promotes problem-solving approaches and focuses on teaching appropriate behaviors as opposed to punishing inappropriate ones. However, despite this emphasis for behavior support over the last decade, it has been my observation, both as a traveling instructional coach and as an assistant principal, that many teachers in K-2 classrooms still rely on traditional, punishment focused approaches (time out, moving clips, pulling cards, sending notes home, taking away behavior points). Based on my conversations with them, this is usually because these approaches are familiar and because teachers are afraid to try something new.

The problem with this approach is that it assumes all students are deterred by the same "punishment." Over the years, I've noticed that different students are deterred by different things, which renders a centralized punishment system useless. Moreover, these approaches rely on shame and embarrassment as a means of control, which can damage a child's self-esteem (McIntosh, Sugai, Simonsen, 2020). Most significant, this type of management assumes a student knows what they have done "wrong," which may not always be the case (Romi, Lewis, & Salkovsky, 2015).

A restorative approach to classroom cultivation provides a framework for students to understand what they did wrong and why they did it and come up with a plan to do better next time. A reflection sheet, which can be adapted for all grade levels, is my favorite tool. I like to recommend this strategy when a student is struggling to meet the classroom norms, even after a "warning" or reminder. Teachers can give a sheet to students following a behavior incident that asks students to explain what happened, how they were feeling when it happened, why it was inappropriate, and how they can do better next time (see sheet examples for 1st grade ; for 3rd to 5th grade ; and for middle school and high school ). Younger students can color a picture, write responses, or explain orally to the teacher. The key to this strategy's success is meeting individually and privately with the student at their desk or the teacher's desk to talk about what happened and hit the "reset" button, so that the student knows they are resuming regular classroom activities with a clean slate. The privacy also prevents students from feeling singled out or embarrassed.

Student background, culture, and previous school experience all play a role in determining how and why students behave (or misbehave) the way they do. By ignoring these important dimensions of student identity, teachers find themselves "attempting to manage fragmented, disconnected, and incomplete students" (Milner & Tenore, 2010, p. 567). A universal application of rules and consequences "alienate[s] and marginalize[s] some students, while privileging others" (Weinstein, Curran, & Tomlinson-Clarke, 2003, p. 270).

In a classroom where strong teacher/student relationships exist, there is usually little need for rewards and consequences. Students follow expectations because they feel a sense of collective responsibility and know that their teacher cares about them. When off-task behavior does happen, students are either able to self-correct or the teacher understands why the behavior happened and is quickly able to deal with it.

I often recommend the following strategies to strengthen student/teacher relationships:

"2 x 10": Spend two minutes a day for 10 consecutive days getting to know each student on a rotating basis)

Morning Meetings and Closing Circles: Take the first and final 20 minutes of each day to establish community, get to know one another, and address key issues and conflicts occurring in the school, community, or world

Intentional Time: Eat lunch with students or play a game together at recess

Being deliberate about building relationships with students helps them know that we love and care about them, regardless of what happens in the classroom.

The Steps in Practice

When a student fails a test or doesn't understand something we have taught, we differentiate, reteach, and try to figure out why. If the goal of classroom management is to ensure an environment where students can learn, we need to be cultivators. After all, providing students with the strategies to interact with the world they live in remains the reason for why we do what we do.

References

Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2016). Optimizing students' motivation in the era of testing and pressure: A self-determination theory perspective. In Building Autonomous Learners (pp. 9- 29). Springer

Kwok, A. (2018). Classroom Management Actions of Beginning Urban Teachers. Urban Education 54(3), 339-367.

Lester, R. Allanson, P., & Notar, C. (2017). Routines are the foundation of classroom management. Education 137(4), 398-412

McIntosh, K., Sugai, G., & Simonsen, B. (February, 2020). "Ditch the Clip! Why Clip Charts Are Not a PBIS Practice and What to Do Instead." Center on PBIS, University of Oregon.

Milner, H. R., & Tenore, F. B. (2010). Classroom management in diverse classrooms. Urban Education, 45(5), 560-603.

NQTE (2020). "Classroom Management." Research Brief.

Ostrosky, M. M., Jung, E. Y., Hemmeter, M. L. (2003). "Helping children make transitions between activities." What Works, Brief 4, Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning.

Romi, S., Lewis, R., & Salkovsky, M. (2015). "Exclusion as a way of promoting student responsibility: Does the kind of misbehavior matter?" The Journal of Educational Research, 108(4), 306-317.

Wigfield, A., & Eccles, J. S. (2000). "Expectancy-value theory of achievement motivation. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25(1), 68-81.

Weinstein, C., Curran, M., & Tomlinson-Clarke, S. (2003). Culturally responsive classroom management: Awareness into action. Theory Into Practice, 42(4), 269-276.

Whisman, A. & Hammer, P. C. (2014). "The association between school discipline and mathematics performance: A case for positive discipline approaches." Charleston, WV: West Virginia Department of Education, Division of Teaching and Learning, Office of Research.

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Avoiding Common Classroom Management Missteps

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Teachers should be cultivators-not managers-of their classroom environments.

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19 Ways to Help Elementary Students Self-Regulate

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These strategies can help young learners practice an essential life skill—and foster classroom harmony in the process.

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Use this list of 107 classroom teaching strategies for your lesson plan or teaching portfolio. This can help demonstrate pedagogical knowledge and the ability to apply theory to practice.

Or, try some of these strategies out when you're low on ideas and looking for a fresh way to teach in the classroom. Note that these are just some examples of teaching strategies - I'm sure there are even more out there!
Tip: Bookmark this page so you can come back to it every time you need some new teaching strategies!
Teaching Strategies Examples (List)
Description
Flipped classrooms involve asking students to complete the reading, preparation and introductory work at home. Then, during class time, the students do practice questions that they would traditionally do for homework.
Benefits

Flipped instruction enables the teacher to offload the direct instruction elements of education like Introductions to homework. This enables teachers to spend more time on student-centered differentiated support.
Challenges

Students may not complete their assigned pre-class homework, which will undermine the lesson.
Theoretical Link
Social Constructivism / Socio-Cultural Theory: The teacher can spend more time supporting students in a student-centered environment.
Example For More
See my full article on Flipped Classrooms Pros and Cons.

Related Article: 25 Teaching Styles Examples
Description
Students learn cognitive, social, and physical skills during play tasks. Tasks can be teacher-led with specific goals (e.g. volume transfer in a sandpit) or unstructured student-led play.
Benefits

Engagement: students may be more engaged during active play-based learning compared to teacher-centered instruction.

Cognition: students get the opportunity to learn through discovery and trial-and-error, helping to build neural pathways

Social: students play together, developing communication, groupwork, and negotiation skills.

Physical: play engages fine and gross motor functions, helping to improve physical abilities.

Challenges

Many traditionalist, including many parents and potentially your head teacher, may consider play to have no educational or academic benefit.

Parents may frown upon this method for older students, despite its benefits across age groups.

Many people consider that the risks of injury during play-based learning are too high.

( Read More: Pros and Cons of Play Based Learning)
Theoretical Link
Social Constructivism. Students learn through social interaction and building knowledge in their minds through trial and error.

Play is also encouraged in all 5 Contemporary Early Childhood Perspectives (Froebel, Reggio Emilia, Forest Schools, Steiner-Waldorf Schools, and Montessori).
Example

1. Use modelled instruction to show students how to play with developmentally appropriate resource-rich toys and puzzles. Consider puzzles that require mathematical skills that link to current curriculum outcomes.

2. Provide students with the puzzles and allow free unstructured play time

3. Mingle with the students, helping them with prompting and guiding questions

4. End the lesson with a whole group discussion of what they learned during the lesson.

For More
See my full article on Play Based Learning Pros and Cons.

3. Project-based learning (PBL)
Definition
Project-based learning requires students to spend an extended period of time (e.g. a week or more) on a single project to gain in-depth knowledge about the task. The projects should be personally meaningful and give students freedom to go in-depth on areas of interest.
Benefits

Students have the opportunity to become 'experts' on topics. By going deep on a topic, students may become very knowledgeable and feel empowered.

A balance is struck between ensuring students focus on curriculum-linked projects and giving students the freedom to explore the details of a topic that are of personal interest.

Challenges

Students tend to have increased freedom using this approach. So, students need to learn self-regulation skills before beginning the task.
Theoretical Link
Constructivism in the Classroom: Students work independently using their own intellect and resources to learn. By doing personal research, students 'construct' knowledge in their minds and apply that knowledge to the project to demonstrate their knowledge.
Example

1. Teacher assigns students a research question, such as "What are the key characteristics of mammals?"

2. Students work in small groups to come up with an idea for a poster, diagram, or presentation project on the topic.

3. Teacher approves or asks for amendments of students' proposed projects.

4. Students are provided a series of lessons over a 2-week period in computer labs and in resource-rich classrooms to complete their project.

5. Teacher checks-in intermittently to ensure standards are upheld and to stimulate students to improve upon their projects.

6. The project concludes with students presenting their project to their parents.

Definition
Authentic learning involves having students learn about concepts in real-life (or near real-life) environments. Similarly, authentic assessment refers to assessments in real-life (or near real-life) environments
Benefits Challenges Theoretical Link
Constructivism: Authentic learning environments are designed for students to be active learners who 'construct' knowledge through personal experience.
Example Definition
Discovery learning involves allowing students maximum freedom within a resource-rich environment to 'discover' answers to challenges. It requires students to build upon prior knowledge and use resources available in the environment to increase their own knowledge.

Discovery learning is often held in contrast to teacher-centered approaches, as students are not 'told' information; instead, they must discover knowledge for themselves..
Benefits

Students generate knowledge for themselves rather than being told what is right and wrong.

By discovering truths, students will have a firmer understanding for the reasoning behind why something is true.

Challenges

Too much student freedom may distract students from the learning outcomes.

This can be a time-consuming technique as students discover information at their own pace. It can therefore be difficult to implement in education systems that are packed with curriculum outcomes that must be met.

Theoretical Link
Construcitivism: Students generate their own knowledge through engagement with their environment rather than having truths 'told' to them by an authority figure.
Example Definition
Setting high expectation involves requiring students to put in maximum effort during their lessons. HIgh expectations does not mean expecting all students to meet a certain standard. Rather, it means expecting each student to try to beat their own personal best.
Benefits

High expectations are necessary to ensure students continue to strive for improvement. Without high expectations in the classroom, students can become lazy and lose respect for education.
Challenges Example For More
See my full article on High Expectations in the Classroom.

7. Parent and Community Engagement
Definition
Parent and community engagement involves bringing students together with their community. It can involve bringing parents and community members into the classroom, or bringing students out into the community on field trips.
Benefits Challenges

Safety concerns often require teachers and community members to fill-in forms and complete background checks before community engagement can occur.

Finding members of the community willing to work with teachers can be difficult.

Theoretical Link
Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems Theory: Students learn within family and community contexts (children's 'first teachers') in order to respect and carry-on culturally engaged learning.
Example

1. Teacher does networking to find community members willing to come into the classroom.

2. Teacher finds relevant curriculum links that community members can help them teach about.

3. Teacher and community members meet to discuss a lesson idea.

4. Community members and teachers team-teach in the classroom.

5. Students are given the opportunity for one-on-one time with community members.

6. Students present the results of their lesson to community members before community members leave.

8. Unconditional Positive Regard
Definition
Unconditional positive regard involves teachers consistently and unconditionally viewing students as capable and competent. When students make mistakes, fail, or misbehave, it is the teacher's role to continue to let students know that they believe in the student and their abilities.
Benefits

Empowering: when students are given unconditional positive regard, they know that their teacher believes in their ability to constantly do better.

Shows Empathy and builds Trust: children come to learn to respect and trust their teacher when they know their teacher is always on 'their side'.

Challenges

Teachers need to ensure that they still let students know that inappropriate behavior or lack of effort is unacceptable. The teacher should follow-up their discipline with comments about positive regard.
Theoretical Link
Humanist theory of Education: Humanist Carl Rogers invented this approach. He believed unconditional positive regard was necessary for building students' self-confidence.

Example s

1. "Even though you did not do well today, I expect that you will come to school doing better tomorrow."

2. "The quality of your work does not match your potential. Let's talk about some strategies for improvement before you go away and do it again."

For More
See my full post on the Humanist approach to Education.
Definition
Modeled teaching is an instructional strategy that involves the teacher 'showing' students how to do a task. The teacher shows the task while also breaking it down into small steps. This helps students to see how to complete the task.
Benefits Challenges

Not appropriate as a standalone strategy. Students need to eventually try things alone to show competency. Therefore, consider matching modeled teaching up with the I Do, We Do, You Do method
Theoretical Link
Bandura's Behaviorism: Bandura blends behaviorism with constructivism by showing that learning can occur through observation only.
For More
See my full post on Behaviorism in Education, which has a segment on Bandura's modelled instruction approach.

10. I Do We Do You Do Method
Definition
The I Do, We Do, You Do method is a scaffolding strategy that provides gradual release of responsibility from the teacher to the student. It involves three steps: (1) I Do: Teacher models the task; (2) We Do: Student and teacher do the task together; (3) You Do: Student attempts to complete the task alone.
Benefits

Students are provided an appropriate balance of support and freedom.

Teacher has ample time to assess students' abilities to make adjustments to their pedagogy as they move through the 3 steps (particularly in step 2)

Challenges

In large groups, students may fall behind at Steps 2 and 3.
Theoretical Link
Sociocultural Theory: Students learn through social interaction with a more knowledgeable other (see: Lev Vygotsky).
Example For More
See my full guide on implementing the I Do, We Do, You Do method.

11. Guided Practice / Cognitive Apprenticeship
Definition
Students follow along with their teacher as an 'apprentice'. By working side-by-side, they learn the subtle little things (' tacit knowledge ') required to know in order to master a skill.
Benefits

Students get very close one-to-one interaction with an expert, helping them learn.

By learning-by-doing, the student learns not only the theory but also the skills required to complete tasks.

Challenges

An approach predominantly used for young children in Indigenous communities, which is not applicable on a wide scale in Western mass education systems.

Requires one-to-one support, which is not often available.

Theoretical Link
Socio-Cultural Theory: Rogoff studied Guatemalan Indigenous teaching methods to come up with this approach. It fits under the socio-cultural theory because its emphasis is on social interaction between master and apprentice.
Example
Common in trade schools for students studying to be mechanics, engineers, etc.
For More
See my full guides on the Guided Practice teaching strategy and cognitive fexibility.
Definition
Scaffolding involves providing support to students while they cannot complete a task alone. Then, when the student can complete the task alone, the teacher withdraws their support.
Benefits

Students feel supported while learning tasks that are just outside of their grasp at the present time.

A clear way of guiding students towards new skills.

Challenges

May require a lot of one-to-one support, which can be difficult to provide in a classroom environment.
Theoretical Link
Socio-Cultural Theory: Scaffolding was invented by Jerome Bruner ( not Vygotsky).
Example
13. Direct Instruction (a.k.a Explicit Teaching)
Definition
Direct instruction (also known as explicit teaching) is a teacher-centered approach that involves the teacher using simple straightforward language to explain concepts to students.
Benefits

Provides clear and direct knowledge to students

Is sometimes the only way to teach something, particularly when introducing a new idea.

Challenges

Students cannot consolidate their knowledge with direct instruction alone. Explicit teaching should be followed-up with other teaching strategies that involve more active learning so students can practice and demonstrate their knowledge.
Theoretical Link
Behaviorism: Traditionally, direct instruction was embraced by behaviorists who believed in teacher-centered teaching. Today, it is used in most teaching approaches.

14. Repetition (Rote Learning)
Definition
Repetition involves giving students time to retry tasks over and over again until it is consolidated in their minds. The information should be safely in a student's long-term memory before moving on.
Benefits

Repetition commits information to memory, and is often one of the only ways to ensure something is truly remembered long-term.
Challenges

Repetitive rote learning that lacks contextual background is hard to remember. Sometimes, giving context through doing tasks through real-life scenarios can be better for memory long-term.

Repetition can disengage students and demotivate them.

Doesn't account for social and cognitive aspects of learning.

Theoretical Link
Behaviorism: Repetition is central to a behaviorist approach. Pavlov, a famous behaviorist found that he could teach his dog through repetitively associating a bell with food. The dog came to learn through repetition that the bell meant 'food'.
For More
See my full post on Behaviorism in Education.
Definition
Spaced repetition builds on simple repetition. Spaced repetition involves gradually increasing the space between times you repeat something. Repetition of a task should be very common. Over time, the task should be re-examined less and less often.

The idea behind spaced repetition is that the concept being learned is re-engaged with just before it is forgotten so that it is consistently recalled into memory and gradually sedimented into long-term memory.
Benefits

Provides long-term support to ensure students remember information over a sustained period of time.

Perfect for revision and standardized test preparation.

Challenges

Can be disengaging and boring for students who tend to prefer active learning.

Doesn't account for social and cognitive aspects of learning.

Theoretical Link
Behaviorism: Spaced repetition was invented by behaviorist theorist Ebbinghaus in 1885.
Example

1. Provide students with a sprinkle of review tasks as a part of their weekly homework.

2. Start lessons (or set aside some time each week) with revision of tasks from months previously to jog students' memory.

Definition
Prompting involves providing students with nudges, guides and questions that will help them to move closer towards an answer. A prompt is a suggestion to a student that they pay attention to a particular aspect of a task that will help them get closer to the answer.
Benefits

Prompts are used regularly by teachers to get beyond blocks in student learning. Without prompts, students may never develop or improve.
Challenges

It is hard to know exactly how much prompting to give and at what stage. Students need time to think things through and make mistakes. Too much prompting too soon can prevent students from thinking for themselves.
Theoretical Link
Social Constructivism: Social constructivists believe teachers have a role in helping students to build knowledge in their minds. Teachers' interventions can help spur knowledge development.
Examples Definition
Differentiation is a teaching strategy that requires teachers to change their teaching styles and educational materials to meet the diverse needs of students within a classroom. It generally involves grouping students into several sub-groups in the classroom based on ability, skillset or learning preferences.
Benefits

Enables the teacher to more effectively address the diverse needs of students in a large classroom.

Ensures learning is more personalized in the hope that no child will be left behind in a lesson.

Challenges

Differentiation is often used as an excuse to dumb down a task - differentiated instruction should be paired with high expectations to ensure all students are working to their maximum potential.
Theoretical Link
Socio-cultural Theory: This approach acknowledges that all students have different social and cultural backgrounds. Therefore, each student requires a personalized learning approach. It realizes that one size fits all will not work because all students are different.
Examples

1. Separate students into three ability groups: Advanced, Middle, and Lower. The advanced students can be provided with project-based learning tasks to complete while the teacher works with the middle and lower groups to provide additional support.

2. Provide students with a range of tasks that addresses the same learning outcome. Students can choose between different tasks depending on their learning preferences.

Definition
Manipulatives are physical educational toys (or: 'tools') which are used to support learning. Providing students with physical manipulatives during learning enables them to visualize their learning in a 3D space.
Benefits

Students can learn more actively when they have manipulatives than when learning through teacher-centered direct instruction methods.

Helps students who need to visualize information to learn.

Creation of physical models helps students to form mental models ('cognitive schemata').

Challenges

It can be expensive to gather enough materials for all students in a classroom.

Providing students with toys can distract them from the task. Strong classroom management skills are required.

Theoretical Link
Constructivism: Constructivists including Freidrich Froebel and Maria Montessori have advocated for the use of educational toys to help students to explore and discover in student-led active learning contexts.
Examples
19. Prior Knowledge Assessment
Definition
Prior knowledge assessment entails assessing students' knowledge at the beginning of a unit of work in order to teach students at an appropriate level. If prior knowledge does not take place, teachers may teach content at a level that is either above or below a class's optimal learning level.
Benefits Challenges

Ensure you assess prior knowledge well in advance so you can plan lessons based on prior knowledge. I've assessed prior knowledge at the start of a class before and realized the lesson I planned was completely useless!

20. Student-Teacher Conference
Definition
A student-teacher conference is a one-on-one discussion between a student and a teacher to take stock of a student's needs. The conference usually involves a discussion of both strengths as well as areas for improvement. The conference should conclude with a list of goals for the teacher and student to mutually strive toward.
Benefits

An opportunity for both the teacher and student to express concerns and anxieties

Helps students to feel 'seen', valued and cared for by the teacher

Challenges

Hard to achieve in every lesson. Teachers could consider systematically conferring with one or two students per lesson until all students are met with.

There is a power imbalance in the student-teacher relationship which may prevent students from speaking candidly.

Theoretical Link
Socio-Cultural Theory: Interactions between teachers and students are important to learning within the socio-cultural approach.
Example

Print a list of your students with a column for 'achievements', 'goals' and 'struggles'. Over the course of a week, meet up with your students and discuss with them what they've achieved in the current unit of work, what their goals are, and what the barriers are to achieving those goals.

21. Fill-In the Gaps (Cloze Passages)
Definition
A simple teaching strategy that involves asking students to fill-in an incomplete piece of text. This can happen verbally (starting a paragraph and asking students to complete it) and in writing (a traditional cloze passage).
Benefits

Helps students to jog their own memories by prompting them slightly.

Enables teachers to quickly assess students' knowledge (just-in-time assessment).

Challenges

Cannot be a consistently used strategy as students also need to learn through more challenging approaches such as discovery learning and project-based learning.
Examples

1. Paper cloze passages involving a story in which the key phrases are removed.

2. Prompting questions like: "Can you finish this sentence? The first king of England was ..."

22. Peer Assisted Learning (PAL)
Definition
Has the teacher step aside and allows students to take charge of the learning environment.
Benefits

Students can often explain concepts to one another in a clear way because they're on the same level and closer in their learning journey than the teacher, who probably learned the content years ago!
Challenges

Peer assisted learning is not the same as the students doing the teaching. Students should continue to view each others as partners in learning.
Theoretical Link
Socio-Cultural Theory: students learning through collaborative discussion fits firmly into the sociocultural theory of education.
Example

1. Invite students from a grade level above to come into the classroom and act as moderators of discussions on topics of interest.

2. Pair stronger students with weaker students. Have the stronger students demonstrate their knowledge by supporting the weaker students. I find this works really well because children can often explain things in a clear language that other children can understand.

23. Poster Presentations
Definition
A poster presentation is a great way to demonstrate knowledge at the end of a lesson or unit of work. Provide the students with posters, pens, and printing materials if required.
Benefits Challenges

Can be a lazy way to achieve presentation of knowledge. Ensure the focus remains on the content and not the coloring-in or drawing pretty pictures.

Not useful for all lessons: when students can create a working model, diagram, etc. this would be preferred.

Example

1. Have students work in groups to write up their knowledge in a visually engaging way.

2. Then, have each group verbally present their poster to the class.

24. Two-Minute Presentation
Definition
Two Minute verbal presentations, like posters, are an effective way of having students demonstrate their knowledge at the end of a lesson or unit of work. Each student gets two minutes to present their knowledge on a topic to the rest of the class.
Benefits

An effective, fast way of doing summative assessment.
Challenges

It is an inefficient use of other students' time having them listen to 20 other two-minute presentations when they could be engaging in higher-order learning during that time. Students find it very boring and frustrating to sit through the assessment of other students.
Example
25. De Bono's 6 Thinking Hats
Definition
De Bono's 6 thinking hats strategy asks students to look at an issue from multiple perspectives. It can be used for groups or individuals. Depending on the hat a student is provided, they have to think from a different perspective.
The Six Hats

1. White hat: Provide the facts.

2. Yellow hat: Explore the positives.

3. Black hat: Explore the negatives (devil's advocate).

4. Red hat: Express your feelings and intuitions. Include concerns, dislikes and likes.

5. Green hat: Be creative. Come up with new ideas and alternatives.

6. Blue hat: The manager who ensures all the hats are sticking to their lane.

Benefits Challenges

I often find it's hard to get groups of 6, so sometimes one student has to use two hats.
Example Definition
A pop quiz is a short test that takes place with no prior warning. The quiz can be formative or summative. Link the quiz to rewards to keep students motivated to do well and be prepared at any moment.
Benefits Challenges

May worry some students who are unprepared.
Definition
Taking a democratic vote is a progressive education strategy that attempts to empower students in the classroom. Have students vote on what or how they will learn within the classroom. This can be done at a small scale in a lesson plan by asking students to vote on how a lesson will progress, for example.
Benefits Challenges

Teachers may lose their power and control over the class if they overuse this approach.

Just because the majority supports something, it doesn't mean it's best. A small group of students may fall behind and have their voices drowned out by the majority.

Theoretical Link
Progressive Education: Progressive educators such as Alfie Kohn advocate for empowering students through increased democracy in the classroom.
For More
See my full post on Citizenship Education.
Definition
Using non-verbal gestures are powerful ways to help students learn, as well as to manage the classroom. Educators can explicitly teach signs or use gestures common in society.
Benefits Challenges

Cultural sensitivity required. Different cultures ascribe different meanings to non-verbal gestures.
Examples
29. Environmental Manipulation
Definition
Environments have a strong impact on learning. Temperature, lighting, seating plans, colors and posters on the walls can all affect learning.
Benefits

A non-intrusive way of supporting learning.

Helps students feel more comfortable in the classroom.

Challenges

Your classroom has limitations which may prevent the ideal environmental settings.

Different students may work better in different environments (e.g. heat settings)

Theoretical Link
Humanism: Teachers pay attention to the conditions required for creating an optimal learning environment.

Classical Conditioning (Behaviorism): Students are 'conditioned' by cause-and-effect mechanisms that are subtle and that they aren't even aware of.

For more, see my full post on behaviorism in education.
Example
30. Associative Learning
Definition
Associative learning takes place when several ideas are introduced to a student that are mutually reinforcing. In the classroom, this means presenting students with several stimulus materials that help a student to recall a fact.
Benefits

Is very effective during revision for an exam.
Challenges

Has questionable long-term benefits as at this stage the concept is not yet solidly consolidated in long-term memory. The recall of information is dependant on other associated information.
Theoretical Link
Behaviorism (Pavlov's Dog): Most famously, Pavlov managed to get a dog to associate the ringing of a bell with food. The dog would salivate whenever the bell rang, whether or not there was food around.

Cognitive Constructivism: while associative learning is most commonly associated with Pavlov, constructivists also have an explanation. The more associations someone has with a topic, the more neural pathways are created connecting ideas. This helps improve memory recall.
See Also: Non-Associative Learning Examples

1. The teacher presents students with rhyming pairs to help a student associate one word with another. This can be effective in teaching vocabulary.

2. When attempting to recall a fact, you can try to reflect on where you were and what else you were talking about when that fact was first introduced to you.

31. Cooperative Learning (Group Work)
Definition
Cooperative learning is a teaching strategy that involves having students work together rather than in competition. Usually, this takes place in small groups where the success of the group is dependant on the students working together to achieve a common goal (also known as positive interdependence). See more: Cooperative learning examples.
Benefits

Minimizes destructive competitiveness in the classroom which may undermine a collaborative and collegial atmosphere.

Requires students to talk to one another which can help them learn from each other's perspectives.

Challenges

Students need to be explicitly taught group work skills before participating.

Some students may become lazy and let others do the work for the whole group.

Theoretical Link
Sociocultural Theory: Learning is stimulated when students converse with one another. They get to see others' viewpoints which may help each student build upon or challenge their existing views.
Definition
The teacher presents the students with the agenda at the start of the day. The use of visual aids may be helpful here, allowing students to see a timeline of the day's events on the board at the front of the classroom.
Benefits

Very effective for students with autism who often feel calmed knowing there is some structure to their day.

Helps relax students into a day or even a lesson by giving them certainty about what's to come.

Challenges

Any benefits that may arise lack scientific backing.
Example

Download a card set of images that represent different lesson types and activities. Use this card set to lay out a visual timeline for the students every morning.
Definition
Instead of one teacher delivering a lesson to a group of students, several teachers get their classes together to teach one lesson to a larger group.
Benefits

Teachers can be more flexible. One teacher may take the role of presenter while the other acts as a support with students falling behind.

Teachers can share the workload, particularly for preparation.

Challenges Examples

Consider having one teacher take the lead on all mathematics lessons and the other take the lead on all literature lessons. This enables each teacher to become more expert on their topic.

34. Directing Attention
Definition
Directing attention involves diverting students away from negative non-learning behaviors and towards positive behaviors by presenting them with engaging learning materials or ideas.
Benefits Challenges

Tends to be more effective with younger children than older children.
Example

Use visual aids, worksheets and manipulatives to help direct and maintain students' attention on something physical. With adults, I use flipchart paper (also known as butcher's paper) as the prop to direct attention.
Definition
Visual aids are any objects used in the classroom to attract students' eyes and therefore immerse them more into a lesson. Visual aids can have both cognitive benefits (see: cognitive tools) and engagement benefits.
Benefits

Engagement: students are more likely to pay attention if they have something to look at.

Cognition: some students may benefit from visualizing a concept to help them order ideas in their minds.

Visual learning: some learners prefer learning visually than aurally (see: learning styles).

Challenges

A visual aid needs an educational purpose. Consider why you are using the visual aid before deciding to use it.
Example Definition
Allowing students to sit where they choose, rather than having assigned seating, has had a resurgence in popularity in the past decade. A flexible seating classroom often has a range of differently organized workstations, allowing students to select a spot to sit that's most comfortable for them and which best suits the style of learning that will be occuring in that lesson.
Benefits

Can reduce sedentary periods of time by allowing students to move around more during a lesson.

Enables students to sit at a table that best suits their learning (computer table, group table, individual table, on a bean bag, etc.)

Challenges

There is often not enough space at workstations, meaning students end up not actually sitting where they choose.

Often students like to have a spot they can call their own. It helps give students a sense of place and belonging.

Example

This approach is very common in the Agile Learning Spaces and Flexible Classrooms movement.
For More
See my full post on the Common Classroom Seating Arrangements.

36. Formative Assessment (a.k.a Assessment for Learning)
Definition
Formative assessment involves assessing students' learning throughout the learning process, not just at the end. Formative assessments can take place at one point in a unit of work or regularly throughout a lesson.
Benefits Challenges

Can be time consuming to constantly assess students' abilities.

Formative assessments often lack the authority of summative assessment pieces.

Examples

1. Formative assessments can be simple stops to get feedback and ongoing questioning of students.

2. They can also take the form of pop quizzes or student-teacher conferences.

37. Summative Assessment
Definition
Summative assessments take place at the end of a unit of work and are often the formal final / overall grading of a student's knowledge.
Benefits

Summative assessments are necessary for providing a final grade for a student and are often required by school boards.

Summative assessments give students something to strive toward which may keep them motivated and encourage them to study.

Challenges Example Definition
Gamification involves implementing elements of gameplay in your lessons. This can be as simple as creating a competition out of a mathematics quiz.

Recently, computer software such as excel and programming languages have been used in the classroom as elements of 'digital' gamification.

Don't confuse gamification with game-based learning, which is discussed next.
Benefits

Gamification can make boring lessons fun, thereby increasing the engagement and motivation of students.
Challenges

Teachers must not lose focus on the learning outcomes that must be met. 'Fun' is not the goal, it is the means for achieving the goal, which is always learning.
Examples

1. Get your students into two groups and have them compete in a trivia contest based on your lesson content.

2. Give students table groups and reward tables with points depending oh how well they do.

For More
See my full article on the pros and cons of digital play.
Definition
Not to be confused with gamification, game-based learning involves the use of actual games (board games, computer games, sports games, etc.) into a lesson.

While gamification involves using elements of gameplay into lessons (points, competitions), game-based learning involves using actual games in a lesson.
Benefits

Students often love video games at home, so they get excited that they can play them in school as well.

Games can also support cognition by prompting students to complete and practice tasks to win games. See also: cognitive tools.

Challenges

Parents may feel playing games in the classroom is not acceptable. Make sure parents know your reasoning behind using games.

Ensure the focus remains on the learning outcomes, not just on 'having fun'.

Example For More
See my full article on game-based learning as well as my explanations about how to use minecraft and sandbox games in the classroom.
Definition
A coach does not stand in front of players and simply tell them what the 'facts' are. A coach stands behind a player. He watches the player and gives feedback on their performance. His job is to encourage, suggest adjustments and be the support network for the player.

Coaching is one of the great metaphors for teaching. A teacher who uses coaching as a strategy tried to emulate the role of the coach: observing and offering support and suggestions for adjustments.
Benefits Challenges

Sometimes the teacher needs to introduce new ideas, meaning coaching may not be as useful as another approach such as modeling or direct instruction.
Theoretical Link
Sociocultural Theory: In sociocultural theory, teachers tend to encourage active learning and provide social support.

41. Inquiry-Based Learning
Definition
Inquiry-based learning involves the teacher presenting a problem for the students to solve by making their own inquiries. It is similar to discovery learning, but is different in that inquiry based learning generally involves the teacher setting out a puzzling problem to solve at the start of the lesson.
Benefits

Students 'find' the answers rather than being given them by teachers.

Answers emerge out of exploration, problem solving and discovery, meaning students learn why something is true, not simply what is true.

Challenges

Significant support is required to help guide students through their inquiry. Students need to be taught how to inquire and given the right inquiry tools (such as books, appropriate websites, etc.)
Theoretical Link
Constructivism: Students learn through constructing ideas in their heads rather than being told the facts.

42. Reciprocal Teaching
Definition
Reciprocal teaching involves having students facilitate their own small group lessons. It is usually used in reading lessons.

The teacher first models how to guide group discussions before sending students off to facilitate their own lesson. In groups of four, students usually take the roles of: questioner, clarifier, summarizer and predictor. Students read stimulus materials then self-facilitate a group discussion about the text.
Benefits Challenges

Requires a lot of pre-teaching so students have the required skills for these sorts of lessons to work.
Theoretical Link
Sociocultural theory: working in groups, communicating and sharing ideas help stimulate thinking and encourages students to challenge their own ideas in order to improve them.
Example (Modelled off the I Do, We Do, You Do approach) Definition
Blended learning involves a mix of online instruction and face-to-face learning. This strategy can be employed by giving students part of their instruction as homework online and part of it in class. It differs from flipped learning because a flipped classroom involves at-home instruction and in-class practice. Blended learning can have both practice and instruction occuring at home and/or in class
Benefits

Gives the teacher flexibility to teach partially during homework time and partially in class.
Challenges

Students need access to technology at home unless the at-home parts are only reading and printouts.

Usually only suitable for university students who are short on time. Blended learning allows them to do some of the learning in their own time.

Examples For More
See my List of 10 Pros and Cons of teaching Online.
Definition
A growth mindset focuses on teaching students that they have the power to improve and succeed if they put their effort into it. The opposite would be students refusing to try because they don't think they have the power in their own hands to succeed.

Teaching growth mindsets is all about modelling positive behaviors. Include growth mindset in your lesson plans by finding points in the lesson to discuss specific strategies to move toward success, strategies for studying, and positive thinking.
Benefits Challenges

Many students have many barriers to success. If you ignore those barriers and simply say 'you can work harder', this will make students feel disempowered. Teachers need to show students the pathways to success.

Ensure the content is actually achievable for your students.

Examples

1. Break down tasks into manageable chunks so that students know the steps toward success. Then, use encouragement to motivate students to put in their effort.

2. Celebrate success to show students that they are competent and capable.

45. Culturally Responsive Teaching
Definition
Culturally responsive teaching is an instructional strategy that involves ensuring students' cultures are integrated into lessons. This includes celebrating students' cultural backgrounds when relevant and using learning styles that are dominant within your students' cultures.
Benefits Challenges

Teachers need to be sensitive to cultures different to their own.

Teachers should consult parents and community members about best strategies for the cultural needs of the students in the class.

Theoretical Link
Sociocultural theory: sociocultural theory believes
Examples Definition
Mastery learning and teaching is a strategy for ensuring all students meet a certain standard of understanding or ability before moving on.

Teachers set a benchmark of knowledge 9r ability for students to meet. Then, all assessment in this method is formative, where students are given feedback and as much time as possible to improve before progressing.
Benefits

Students are not left behind and gaps in their knowledge are not overlooked.

Students may feel less stressed or rushed with this approach.

There is no talk of inability or failure in this method as teachers and students keep working away at the task until success is achieved.

Challenges

There is not enough time in traditional school systems for this approach.

The difference in abilities between students means some students will get a long way ahead while others remain a long way behind.

Theoretical Link
Humanism: there are elements of unconditional positive regard in this approach (see Carl Rogers).
Examples

1. An example.may be that all students must get 80% on a test to progress to the next unit of work.

2. This approach is common for getting a "handwriting license" in primary / elementary school.

47. Stimulus Materials and Props
Definition
Stimulus materials are tools that a teacher provides during lessons to spur students into engaging with the lesson or thinking more deeply about the content provided. They include videos, educational toys (manipulatives), worksheets, visual prompts, objects from outside the classroom, and so on.

Without stimulus materials, the classroom feels empty and detached from real life. Bring stimulus materials into the classroom to help students make stronger connections to things going on outside.
Benefits Challenges Theoretical Link
Constructivism: constructivists encourage the use of props so that students can 'learn by doing' and be 'hands on' in their learning.
Examples

1. Place several props into a bag. Have the students put their hands in the bag and see whether they can guess what the props are.

2. Place an unusual prop related to your lesson in the middle of the classroom. Get the students to guess what it is before beginning the lesson.

Definition
Service learning involves having students meet learning outcomes while contributing to and 'giving back to' their community. This often involves volunteer work, internships and placements within the community where assistance is needed.
Benefits Challenges

It can be hard to place all your students in a service learning placement if there are many students to allocate.

It may be impractical given safety and security requirements.

Theoretical Link
Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems Theory: EST highlights that people are situated within community from whom they get their values and beliefs. By being more connected to the community, students learn who they are and how they're connected to a society and culture that surrounds them.
Example Definition
Invented by Lave and Wegner, situated learning involves learning by being embedded within a professional environment and slowly picking up the ways of doing and speaking within that context.

It has similarities to other instructional strategies outlined in this article such as service learning and cognitive apprenticeships. However, its defining feature is the slow absorption of knowledge through prolonged exposure to an authentic professional setting.
Benefits

Students learn the most important practical information required for a job.

Students learn the ways of speaking and behaving that are required within a professional situation.

Challenges

Not practical as a teaching strategy in classrooms. It works best as an apprenticeship model for new graduates from university.
Theoretical Link
Sociocultural theory: the situated learning approach emphasizes the importance of learning from 'more knowledgeable others'.

50. Sixty-Second Strategy
Definition
The sixty second strategy involves having students review one another's work in three steps which take 60 seconds each. The steps are: respond, reflect and review. This usually takes place after a student presentation where the students give a cumulative 3 minutes of feedback and reflection on the presentation.

The goal is not just to give feedback to the presenter, but for the listeners to also think about how they would have done the presentation and what their own thoughts on the topic are.
Benefits

Students learn how to give feedback to others in positive and constructive ways.

It is a great way for students to actively engage with other students' presentations.

Challenges

Students need to know how to be positive in feedback and not be hurtful.
Example
51. Thumbs Down, Thumbs Up
Definition
Thumbs down, thumbs up is a simple strategy for getting immediate feedback from students. During a lesson, pause after each step to get instant thumbs down, thumbs up feedback on whether students understand the previous step.

If there are thumbs down, the teacher should ask those students if they have direct questions or whether they might want that section to be covered again in different language or more slowly.
Benefits

Enables the teacher to gauge students' reactions in real time.

Gives the students an opportunity to give the teacher feedback immediately so that they don't fall behind or become frustrated.

Challenges

If the majority of students give thumbs up but only one or two give thumbs down, this is not endorsement to move on. Rather, the teacher should make sure no students fall behind.

52. Summarizing and Paraphrasing
Definition
For this teaching strategy, either the teacher or student summarizes something someone previously said in their own words in order to ensure they understanding each other without any misconceptions.
Benefits

In having a student repeat the teacher's statement in their own words, the teacher can see whether students actually understand something.

In repeating a student's statement in different language, the teacher can see whether they truly understand what the student means.

Challenges

The biggest risk here is in the teacher 'putting words in the student's mouth'. This may give the student a free pass.
Examples

1. The teacher explains a concept, then asks the student to repeat it without using the same words. A pause of a few minutes between the teacher's explanation and the student's response can be helpful in preventing the student from directly copying the teacher's language. As time passes, the meaning should stay but the exact words should be forgotten.

2. Alternatively, the student makes a statement, and the teacher translates it in their own words and finishes with "Is that what you meant?"

Definition
Demonstration involves showing the students a practical example of something that is being learned in class.

The difference between demonstration and modeling is that a demonstration usually:

does not involve explicit explanation of all the steps, and

is usually not followed by students having a go themselves.

Demonstration (rather than modelling) may be necessary when the concept being demonstrated is dangerous or requires expertise.
Benefits

Having something complex or theoretical demonstrated can be exciting to link theory to practice.
Challenges

Demonstrations may require expensive field trips or inviting experts and expert equipment into the classroom.
Example

A demonstration could be as complex as going to watch a space rocket launch or as simple as a ranger demonstrating how to use bear spray.
Definition
Role modelling involves demonstrating the requisite behaviors or ideal way of acting within a learning environment. Role modelling has the intention of positively influencing students into copying the teacher's positive learning behaviors.
Benefits

Students are socialized into behaving and learning in socially appropriate ways.

A teacher who sets personal high expectations for their own learning will have those high expectations flow on toward the students.

Challenges

A teacher needs to be aware that all of their behaviors rub off on students. This means they need to 'put on their happy face' despite what's going on in their private lives.
Theoretical Link
Bandura (Social learning theory): Albert Bandura believed that observation was important in influencing how people will behave and learn. See his famous Bobo doll experiment where children were more aggressive toward a doll when they observed an adult being aggressive toward it.
Examples

1. Male teachers may role model positive masculinity, such as politeness and respect to all people regardless of gender.

2. A teacher can be a role model my demonstrating engagement and volunteering within the community, insisting on respectfully welcoming guests when they enter the classroom, or having high regard and respect for reading, learning, and apologizing.

Definition
Predicting involves asking students to make predictions or 'guestimates' before a study is undertaken. The teacher may make a prediction for the students to respond to, or ask students to make predictions themselves.
Benefits

It stimulates students to think about the logical flow-on effects of the things they are learning about (such as in science: gravity, momentum, etc.)

Students are asked to think forward rather than simply react in the learning environment.

Examples

1. At the start of a lesson (before introducing too much information), ask students what they think will happen during the lesson.

2. Show the students a diagram or comic strip demonstrating sequence of events with the last few events missing. Have students fill-in the gaps.

56. Intentional Mistakes
Definition
The teacher inserts intentional mistakes into their teaching materials (such as misspellings in their presentations) or their speech in order to:
Benefits Challenges

You may risk having students believe you had made the mistakes intentionally.

Students may believe the mistakes are truths and end up believing things that are untrue.

Examples Definition
Immediate feedback is any feedback that takes place during a lesson rather than after a lesson or exam has been completed.

There are two primary types of immediate feedback: feedback from students to teachers, and feedback from teachers to students.

The feedback's purpose should be to make impromptu changes during the lesson before it is too late.
Benefits

Teachers can adjust their teaching methods in the moment to ensure the lesson is a success.

Students can adjust the ways they are going about completing a task to ensure it is successful.

Challenges

In large groups, one-to-one feedback can be difficult.

Teachers need to be able to think on their feet to make immediate adjustments.

Theoretical Link
David Schon's 'Reflection in Practice': According to Schon, successful practitioners reflect in practice rather than just on practice. Reflection in practice requires practitioners to reflect on what they're doing while they're doing it.
Examples
58. Whole Group Class Discussion (a.k.a Circle Time)
Definition
A whole group class discussion gets all students in the class talking to one another in one group. When I use this strategy, I try to get students sitting in a conversation circle. The benefits of students sitting in a circle include:

There is a neutral power structure with no one at the head of the discussion.

All students can see one another.

Benefits

Whole class discussions encourage all students to develop the confidence to share their own views publicly.

If the whole class gets into it, there can be a lot of great back-and-forth.

Challenges Examples Definition
Concentric circles is a method that builds on the whole group circle time discussion. Students sit in two concentric circles with the inner circle facing the outer circle. The students in the inner circle should be paired one-to-one with a student in the outer circle (like speed dating).

The teacher poses a question and the pairs are given 60 seconds to discuss the problem. Then, the students from the inner circle rotate one person to the right so they are facing a new partner for the next question.
Benefits Challenges

There needs to be an even number of students in the class so each student has a partner to work with.
Theoretical Link
Sociocultural theory: students learn by interacting with others to help them test, challenge and extend their own ideas.
Definition
One student takes the role of a character from a book, history, etc. They dit in front of the class and get interviewed by their classmates. The student must stay in character and answer the questions from the perspective of that character.
Benefits Challenges

Students need time to research their character and brainstorm their character's perspectives on various topics before being put in the hot seat.

Shy students or students who are not confident with the material may be intimidated by this instructional strategy.

Examples

This strategy can be linked up with strategies like De Bono's thinking hats where students would answer questions from a particular perspective.
Definition
Graphic organizers are visual aids in the classroom designed to help students visualize and conceptualize ideas and their relationships with other ideas. Examples of graphic organizers include flowcharts, mind maps and venn diagrams. Use them to help students think more deeply about topics.
Benefits Challenges

Don't stick to just one framework as the frameworks narrow the scope of thinking in exchange for depth. Mix up your graphic organizers.
Theoretical Link
Cognitive Constructivism: cognitive constructivists such as David Jonassen believe graphic organizers help students to share their cognitive load with the organizer, helping them to organize and sort ideas in their heads more effective.y
Examples

1. Flow charts

2. Mind maps

3. Venn diagrams

4. Concept maps

5. Network or family tree

6. Spider diagram

7. Compare-contrast matrix

8. Continuum

9. Series of events chain

10. Cycle map

11. Character charts

Definition
This is one of the simplest, most frequently used, but also most effective classroom teaching strategies. Students think about a topic on their own. Then, they pair up with a partner and discuss, compare and contrast their thoughts together. Thirdly, the pair share what they discussed with the whole class.
Benefits Challenges

Students need the confidence to speak up in front of the whole class. I have found some students like to have the comfort of flip chart (butcher's) paper as a prop when presenting their discussions to the class.
Theoretical Link
Sociocultural theory: learning through conversation allows students to see diverse perspectives and therefore improve on their own perspectives.
Examples Definition
Assigning group roles for students who are doing small group work is another simple instructional strategy to try. There are many group role types to be found online. I tend to use the roles of: timekeeper, moderator, notekeeper, and collector. All students should be equal discussion contributors, and this is managed by the moderator.
Benefits

Helps to structure the activity, give students certainty in what they are doing, and reduce the uncertainty from group work.

Encourages communication to get students hearing other students' ideas and perspectives

Challenges

Students must be explicitly taught the group roles and need time to practice them.
Theoretical Link
Sociocultural Theory: By communicating with peers, students widen their perspectives and (with more knowledgeable peers) have their knowledge scaffolded.
Example

1. Ensure you model the group roles before beginning the activity. Consider using a fishbowl method by having a sample group sit in the middle of a circle modeling the roles to the rest of the class.

2. For the class's first attempt at group roles, structure it very clearly by getting the students to follow a clear step-by-step guide. Slowly release responsibility to students when they are ready.

Definition
The barometer method gets a measure of students' opinions by asking them to stand on a line from 0 to 10 (1 = strongly disagree, 5 = unsure or conflicted, 10= strongly agree).
Benefits

Students tend to find this a non-intimidating way of sharing their opinions.

Can be a good way of getting students talking. Once they stand on the line, you can ask them to explain why they stood where they did.

Challenges

It may be beneficial to prevent students from taking a neutral "I don't know" stance without sufficient defence of this position.
Theoretical Link
Critical theory: The barometer could be paired with critical theory if students critique assumptions in society with a focus on the perspectives of marginalized groups.
Examples Definition
Cognitive tools are educational technologies designed to promote thinking beyond what a student can do without the technology. This might include using wearable technologies to help students map out their own movements to then test their knowledge of geography, use of excel sheets to create financial estimations, etc.
Benefits

Educational technologies can help us do things we couldn't do without them.

Can engage students who love computers and technology in learning tasks.

Challenges

Teachers must ensure technology use is focused on helping students learn more or at a higher level of critical thinking than if they didn't have technology.
Theoretical Link
Cognitive Constructivism: this approach, invented by david Jonassen, emphasizes that computer technologies should be used to extend and promote higher-order cognition.
Examples
See my full article: Examples of Congitive Tools in Education.

66. Anticipation / Guestimation
Definition
Anticipation and guestimation is an instructional strategy designed to get students thinking about the consequences or flow-on effects of actions. Teachers ask students to make predictions based on limited knowledge about a topic
Benefits

Students often have to use mathematics and logical reasoning to succeed in this task.

Students are required to be resourceful and seek clues that will show them the possible consequences of action.

Challenges

It is important to strike a balance between giving enough information to make informed guesses and not too much information that the students can deduce the full answer.

67. Silent Conversation
Definition
A silent conversation is a way of getting students to communicate without having them speak up in front of the class. Students write their responses to a prompt on sheets of paper but cannot speak while doing so. They should then also write responses to one another's points so that they are 'conversing' through writing.
Benefits

Students who are shy to speak up my be more willing to participate, especially if their written response can stay anonymous.

It can often be easier to respond in writing than speaking because students have time to reflect and think about the wording of their response before writing it.

Challenges

Only one student at a time can write their response. Consider what other students will be doing during this time.

Students must be competent writers.

Theoretical Link
Sociocultural theory: we learn and extend our knowledge through social interaction. By seeing others' points, we can improve or amend our own.
Examples

1. One way to do this is to have a flip chart paper sheet (butcher's paper) on a wall with a discussion prompt written above. Have students walk up to the paper intermittently thought a lesson to write responses to the prompt. After the first few students write their responses, the rest of the students must respond not to the prompt but to the answers written by previous students - how can they add to or challenge what someone else has already said?

2. The second common way of having a silent conversation is to pass a piece of paper around the class and have students write their responses to conversation chains on the piece of paper.

Definition
A devil's advocate is someone who argues for an opposing point of view in order to stir up an argument and poke holes in other points of view. The devil's advocate does not necessarily need to believe the points they are arguing. Either the teacher or students can be the devil's advocate I'm this teaching strategy.
Benefits Challenges

Students and parents may interpret you devil's advocate position as an attempt to teach unsavory views in the classroom.
Theoretical Link
Critical theory: A devil's advocate can help students with skills desirable within critical theory, like seeing views of people who are not commonly heard in society and the capacity to critique dominant narratives in society.
Examples

1. The teacher can note in their lesson plan moments when they believe there are opportunities to play devil's advocate role promote debate.

2. The teacher can give students debating points where one person acts as devil's advocate and another as the person defending the dominant perspective.

Definition
Strategic pauses are one of the most important tools in a teacher's toolbox of teaching strategies. A strategic pause is a gap between statements to let a point sink in or linger, or to give students a moment to think about an answer before the teacher moves on.
Benefits Challenges

Can leave students confused

Requires follow-up and knowledge testing

Theoretical Link
Cognitive load theory: Too much information at one time can cause a student to lose track. Time is required for the mind to interpret, sort, stack, save and withdraw information in their mind ('create cognitive schemata').
Examples Definition
Chunking involves presenting information in manageable 'chunks' to allow students to sufficiently process information before moving on to the next section of a lesson or task.

Teachers should present only a manageable amount of information to students before giving them a chance to consolidate the information and practice their new knowledge.

Without giving sufficient time to consolidate information before giving new information to a student, the student will struggle to keep up with the information and old information may fall away before it is secured into their memory.
Benefits

Less students will be left behind, confused and disillusioned in the classroom if they are given consolidation time.
Challenges

There is often not enough time in a crowded school curriculum to chunk information well enough.

It is hard to tell how much is 'too much' information, and how long is long enough before knowledge is consolidated into memory.

Theoretical Link
Cognitive Overload Theory: If students are given too much information, their mind becomes 'overloaded' and they are unable to process more information. We only have a limited amount of working memory space in our minds. See: John Sweller's cognitive overload theory.
Examples
71. Snowball Discussions
Definition
Snowball discussions are another twist on the think-pair-share method. For snowball discussions, students start in pairs and share their thoughts and ideas together. Then, the pairs join up with another pair to create a group of four. These four people share thoughts together, compare notes, debate ideas, and come up with an agreed list of points on a topic.

Then, groups join up again to make groups of eight. The groups of eight compare points and perspectives, then join up to create groups of 16, etc. until it ends up being a whole class discussion.
Benefits

An effective strategy for promoting discussion between students. It can be useful for getting students to compare how different groups of students approach points from different perspectives.
Challenges

The class group needs to be large (20+) for enough rounds of this strategy to happen.
Theoretical Link
Sociocultural theory: social interaction helps students see perspectives that are not their own and challenge their own views. This helps them pick holes in their own points and improve their misconceptions.

72. Homework: Knowledge Consolidation
Definition
Yes, homework is a teaching strategy! A traditional approach to homework sees it as an opportunity for students to consolidate information that was taught in class. Studying for upcoming exams is often also an important part of homework.

Other homework strategies like flipped classroom are possible - see the flipped classroom discussion earlier in this article.
Benefits

Help students to consolidate information learned in class.

Ensures students have an opportunity to keep information fresh in their minds and be reminded of information learned in previous months.

Challenges

Excessive homework can impede students' rights to enjoyment, sports and extracurricular activities out of school.

Students often do not have support at home if they get stuck.

Theoretical Link
Behaviorism: repetition over time helps memory retention.
Definition
Active listening involves using strategies to pay close attention to what someone is saying. Teachers can explicitly model active listening by giving students strategies like pointing their bodies at the speaker, keeping their eyes on the speaker, nodding when they agree, and putting hands up to ask questions or clarification.
Benefits Challenges

Some students (such as students with autism) need stress balls, fidget toys, etc to help them concentrate.
Examples
Examples that show active listening include:

74. Connect, Extend, Challenge
Definition
The "connect, extend, challenge" teaching strategy is a three-step strategy designed to get student thinking about how their knowledge is progressing.

In step 1, students 'connect' what they're learning to their prior knowledge. In step 2, students think about how the new knowledge 'extends' what they already knew. In step 3, students reflect on what 'challenges' they still face: what is still confusing to them?
Benefits

This is a framework that gets students to explicitly think about how they are progressing in their learning.

The clear steps give students guidelines to help them achieve success.

Challenges

Requires prompting and scaffolding
Theoretical Link
Social Constructivism: This strategy has implicit links to Vygotsky's sociocultural theory. Students look at how their backgrounds impact their thinking, what level they are at, and what is still sitting in their 'zone of proximal development' (.e.g what they need to learn next).
Examples

Split a piece of paper into three columns to help students in this task: one column for 'connect', one for 'extend', and one for 'challenge'.
Definition
While a seemingly simple activity, this instructional strategy gets students to refine the topic they're exploring down to one simple sentence that catches the essence of the issue.

For this strategy, have students come up with a headline for the lesson as if they're a journalist reporting on the issue at hand. Get them to think about how it can be catchy, explain the problem at hand, and provide an engaging 'hook' to draw readers in.
Benefits

Helps students identify the key point of a lesson, forcing them to think about what is really important in the lesson.
Challenges

Some issues are complex and refining it down to one sentence may risk simplification.
Extension
To extend this activity, have students write a journalistic piece to go under the headline.

76. Lesson Objective Transparency
Definition
Being transparent about a lesson objective is a teaching strategy designed to help students understand the purpose of the lesson. By knowing the objective from the outset, the students are less likely to get confused about the purpose and direction of their lesson.
Benefits Challenges

Lesson objectives are often worded for adults not children, so the wording may just confuse the students at times.
Examples

Write your lesson objectives on the first slide of lecture slides if relevant.

77. Open-Ended Questioning
Definition
Open-ended questioning involves asking questions that require an elaboration in the response. In other words, it cannot be a question that can be answered with "yes" or "no".
Benefits

Students are required to provide explanations and justifications for the points they make.

Teachers get a more detailed appreciation of students' levels of knowledge.

Examples Definition
The fishbowl strategy gets a small group of students to sit in a circle in the center if the classroom with the rest of the class sitting in a circle around the group.

The students in the middle of the circle complete a discussion or task as a demonstration for the students observing.
Benefits Challenges

Many students will find doing a task I'm front of their peers intimidating.
Theoretical Link
Bandura's observational learning: Bandura argues that students can learn from observing the modeling of others.
Examples

1. Get older students from higher grades to sit in the middle of the fishbowl.

2. Or, use the fishbowl as the "we do" step in the I do, we do, you do method.

Definition
Use the four corners of the classroom as different stations for answering questions proposed by a teacher.

The stations may have answers like: strongly agree, agree, disagree, strongly disagree. Another example may be periods of time for a history exam: the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s. Or, the corners may have specific answers in the corners related to the questions being asked.
Benefits

This activity may be appealing for kinesthetic learners who want to move about to stay engaged.

Provides a visual comparison between different views of students in the class.

Challenges

When students head to the corners, the teacher needs to ask students to explain their decisions to ensure depth is achieved in the lesson.
Theoretical Link
Multiple Intelligences: The lesson can help students who are kinesthetic learners.
Definition
This strategy involves getting students to trade ideas with one another.

Students write down their answer or thoughts to a TEACHER'S question. Then, they pair up. The students give their answer to their partner and take their partner's answer. They discuss the differences between and merits of each answer.

Students then split up and find a new partner to repeat the activity.
Benefits

Writing down an answer ensures all students participate and that all students provide an explicit response.

Seeing other people's answers helps students get a broader perspective on a topic.

Challenges

Pre-plan for what to do when you don't have an even number of students in the class.
Theoretical Link
Sociocultural theory: students learn from their peers through discussion. Discussion can help broaden horizons and allows students to see multiple perspectives on an issue.
Examples Definition
Brainstorming involves asking students to come up with their initial thoughts on an issue. The thoughts do not have to be refined or correct. Instead, the students should use the brainstorming time to get their mind flowing and discussion started. Usually, this activity takes place using flip chart / butcher's paper.
Benefits

A good way to start discussion among students, especially if they don't know each other well or are shy.
Challenges

The students may need to assign some roles to group members. Consider rotating the role of 'writer' between students (usually one person writes an idea for the whole group on the brainstorming paper).
Examples

1. A good way of doing this activity is to place students in small groups and provide them a large sheet of paper to write down all their initial thoughts.

2. Students can then report all their thoughts back to the class.

Definition
The expert jigsaw method teaching method involves having students split into groups of 'experts' and then 'topics'.

First, each 'expert' group focuses on a sub-area of a topic to develop their 'expertise' as a group.

Once the initial group work discussion has concluded, the 'expert groups' split.

The teacher then forms new 'topic groups' with one student from each of the original expert groups in the new groups.

The idea is that each group in the second part of the lesson will have an 'expert' on a particular area of a topic. Every expert will be able to contribute their perspective to the group

For example, if the topic is dinosaurs, the initial 'expert groups' may get together to discuss separate issues: Group 1 will discuss extinction, Group 2 will discuss bones, Group 3 will discuss diets, and Group 4 will discuss geographical locations.

When the 'topic groups' converge, they should contain one expert on extinction, one expert on bones, one expert on diets and one expert on geographical locations. The topic group will therefore have a broad range of expert knowledge to discuss and share.
Benefits

Gives each student a sense that they have something meaningful to contribute because they will be an expert on something when converging in the 'topic' groups.

Encourages collaboration and positive interdependence in group work.

Challenges

Requires forethought and organization by the teacher.
Theoretical Link
Social Constructivism: social interaction helps students construct ideas in their minds. Each student gets to hear the expert perspective of another student who is a 'more knowledgeable other', while also acting as the more knowledgeable other when it is their turn to share their expertise.
Definition
A KWL chart is a type of graphic organizer that can be used throughout the course of a lesson to help students keep track of their learning.

The chart can be on a simple piece of paper split into three columns: (K) What I already know; (W) What I want to know in this lesson; (K) What I learned.

At the start of the lesson the students can fill out the first two columns. The first column will help the teacher assess prior knowledge. The second column will help the teacher and students guide the lesson by outlining what they want out of it.

At the end of the lesson, the third column can be filled-in: (L) What I learned in the lesson. This helps students reflect on the lesson to show them that they did actually learn something!
Benefits

Students can keep track of their own learning.

There is physical evidence of what was learned that teachers can use in students' final report card comments and teaching portfolios.

It is a good structured tool to help guide a lesson.

Challenges

It would be good if there was a fourth column for 'what I still want to know' so student can leave the lesson with more questions that can be addressed in future classes.

Students sometimes place topics in the (W) What I want to know column that are relevant but not covered in a pre-made lesson plan. This can require the student to get a bit creative in re-arranging their lesson on the fly.

Definition
A SWOT analysis is a teaching tool used to help students identify their own Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and .

It is often used at the beginning of a term or unit of work to help students self-identify how best to proceed in their studies.

A SWOT analysis starts with a piece of paper split into four quadrants. The top-left has 'Strengths', top-right has 'Weaknesses', bottom-left has 'Opportunities' and the bottom-right has 'Threats'.

There are plenty of templates online you could download also.

Students then fill out the SWOT sheet, identifying their strengths and weaknesses (e.g. 'I am organized' or 'I am time poor') and opportunities and threats (e.g. 'I have the opportunity to work with my peers to improve' or 'I have an upcoming swim meet that will take up more of my time').
Benefits

Students are taught to self-assess and plan ahead to avoid upcoming challenges in their lives.

Students can balance affirming statements about their own skills with honest recognition of their weaknesses.

Challenges Definition
Read aloud is a strategy that involves the teacher reading a text out loud to students. The strategy relies on the teacher using strategic pauses, pitch and tone changes, pace and volume changes, and questioning and comments. These reading aloud strategies help students to become more engaged in a lesson and get more out of the reading experience.
Benefits

Can be more engaging than getting students to read to themselves.

By using strategic pauses and asking questions of students, the text can both be read and analyzed at the same time. This may improve comprehension.

Challenges

I've found many pre-service teachers get nervous doing this task. Remember that people of all ages love being read to.

86. SIT: Surprising, Interesting, Troubling
Definition
A SIT analysis asks students to list aspects of a lesson that were surprising, interesting and troubling. It is useful following the viewing of a short film or reading a book about a topic that seems bizarre or a fact that is counterintuitive.

Like a KWL chart, you could do this task by splitting paper into three columns: one for 'surprising', one for 'interesting' and one for 'troubling'.
Benefits

Gets students to take a critical stance and make judgements (particularly for 'troubling')

Is a good way to take stock of students' interests in order to create follow-up lessons based on topics the students have already demonstrated concern for.

Challenges

The 'troubling' part is often hard for students to complete - consider explicitly modeling a sample response before asking students to complete it alone.
Theoretical Link
Critical theory: students can use a SIT analysis to critique the justice or inequality issues presented in a text.

87. Higher Order Thinking
Definition
When writing a lesson plan, it's often a very good idea to note any time you're encouraging higher order thinking - especially if there's a column in your lesson plan for 'teaching strategies'. This help people reading the lesson plan to see that you've been intentional about promoting higher order thinking.

Following Bloom's taxonomy, higher order thinking usually includes tasks that involve verbs like: Judge, Appraise, Evaluate, Compare, Criticize, Assess, Estimate, Deduce, Hypothesize and Generalize.
Benefits

Helps a teacher to be more explicit in their language and to ensure a lesson is challenging for students.

Ensures students are practicing their critical thinking skills rather than just repeating a teacher's 'facts'.

Challenges

For higher order thinking tasks, it's important that you don't give students the answers. Instead, give them hints, pointers and resources that will help them to come up with the answers on their own.
Theoretical Link
Constructivism: Bloom was a constructivist who believed learning happens when students build knowledge in their mind rather than just copying facts from an authority figure in the classroom.
Definition
Getting students to debate an idea is a great way of getting them to build coherent and logical arguments in defence of a position. It requires them to gather, analyze and sort facts before they present them to an audience.
Benefits

Students learn to identify positive arguments on a topic even if they disagree with it, helping them to see things from multiple perspectives.
Challenges

Students may require resources to do background research to come up with strong points for or against a position.
Examples

1. Split the class into two groups and assign each group a position for or against a statement.

2. Give each group 15 minutes to come up with some arguments for their side of the argument. Each student in the group should have one argument to make for the team. The student writes their argument down on a piece of paper.

3. Line the two groups of students up facing one another.

4. Go down the lines getting each student to make their point for or against the position. Zig-zag from one group to the next as you go down the line

5. Once the students have completed, do an anonymous poll of the class to find out which position is most convincing. For the poll, students do not have to vote for their team's position.

89. Note Taking (Cornell Method)
Definition
Note taking involves getting students to actively listen out for key points in a speech or video and synthesize it into key points for remembering later.

A popular framework for not taking is the Cornell method. This involves splitting a page into two columns.

The column on the left is a 'Cue' column. In the cue column write key words, phrases or Quotes as if they were headings or headline points to remember.

The column on the right is the note taking column. This column is larger and allows space to add detail and diagrams explaining the 'cues' that were written on the left in more detail.
Benefits

Turns passive learning during a didactic explicit instruction lesson into a more active learning environment.

Helps students organize and synthesize their thoughts.

Helps with studying for exams later on.

Challenges

Teachers may talk too fast for students to take detailed notes. Remember to use strategic pauses and remind students at strategic times that they need to be taking notes.
Examples

Feel free to download cornell method worksheets off the internet. Just look for them on your favorite search engine!
Definition
Recording a lesson involves using either video, audio or Screencast technology to save the lesson for revision later on.
Benefits

This method is very useful for students with learning disabilities who may require more time to process information. They can rewatch later on and make use of pause, rewind and slow functions during the revision.

Great for when students miss a day so they can catch up.

Challenges

Whenever you work with technology, be prepared for issues to arise that may delay the lesson.
Examples

1. Use Screencasts when teaching a lesson online.

2. Screencasts can also save your work when writing on an Interactive Whitenoard. Revision at a later date will show the steps you took in doing the 'working out'.

Definition
Word walls are sections on the walls of a classroom where teachers and students can record new vocabulary, quotes or key terms they encounter during a unit of work.
Benefits

Word walls can be visible evidence of progression through a unit.

Students can refer to the word walls when trying to explain their points and ideas to the class.

Challenges

During exams, remember to cover the word walls so students can't cheat by looking over at the answers.
Examples

Word walls can be great props for refreshing students' memories at the start of a lesson. Start the lesson by reviewing the vocabulary learned in the previous lesson.
Definition
Goal setting involves explicitly instructing students on how to set short (within a lesson), medium (within a unit of work) and long term (through the year) personal targets for success.

The goals can be for a whole group or individual.
Benefits Challenges

Ensure goals are achievable lo that students do not become disillusioned.
Examples

1. Have students prepare their daily goals at the end of the previous day or start of the current day.

2. Reflect on medium-term goals weekly.

Definition
A worked example is a completed piece of work that students can look to as models for their own work.

A worked example could be a sample of a completed diagram our 3D model, a completed essay or anything else that is a finished product of something the students are about to attempt.
Benefits

Students feel more secure knowing what they are working toward.

Students can get ideas from the worked sample that they can adapt for their Ken work.

Challenges

Sometimes students copy the sample too closely rather than using their own thinking. Consider using a sample that requires similar skills and processes but a different end product.

Make sure you spend time discussing the steps it takes from going from nothing to the completed product.

Examples

1. Provide students with past examples of creative writing pieces and discuss the strategies used by the authors.

2. Show samples that are good and poor. Get students to discuss how the poorer samples could be improved.

94. Multiple Intelligences
Definition
Students have different learning styles (or more accurately, different learning preferences).

One theory proposes that there are eight 'intelligences'. A student may have one that is dominant and others that are weaker.

The eight intelligences are:

Visual-Spatial: Prefers learning through images and visual arts. Uses diagrams to model relationships between concepts.

Linguistic-Verbal: Prefers learning through storytelling, reading and writing.

Interpersonal: Good at working in social situations, gets energy from social interaction, and can empathize with others easily. Enjoys group work.

Intrapersonal: An introverted person who prefers learning alone. They do a lot of thinking and reading but mostly like to think through things in their own time (see: intrapersonal skills).

Logical-Mathematical: Sees patterns easily. Enjoys mathematical puzzles.

Musical: Enjoys learning through music, songs and rhymes.

Bodily-Kinesthetic: Learns through movement. Prefers lessons that require moving about.

Naturalistic: Has an affinity with nature. Learns well in calm natural environments.

A teacher can integrate different activities into a lesson plan that appeal to different people's learning preferences. In this way, they create a more inclusive classroom for multiple different types of learners.
Benefits

Inclusion: Teachers can use this theory to engage students who do not learn well in traditional lessons.

Attempts to be student-centered and teach in ways that are appealing to students.

Challenges

In 2004, a detailed study in Scotland found no evidence or scientific toxic basis for the theory that different people have learning styles. Furthermore, it argued that the 8 styles in the multiple intelligences model were a arbitrarily contrived. Thus, learning styles may simply be learning preferences.

It is unclear whether a teacher should create lessons catered to a student's learning preference or help students strengthen their skills in areas students identify as their weaknesses.

If students are not given a chance to practice all "styles" (not just their preferences) they may miss important skills, such as mathematical skills or literacy skills.

Theoretical Link
Howard Gardner: The theory of multiple intelligences was invented by Howard Gardner in the United States.

95. Non-Interventionism
Definition
Non-interventionism involves a teacher taking the role of 'unobtrusive observer' while students learn. The students are left to come to their own conclusions, face up to their own challenges, and 'struggle' through the lesson.

The teacher's intervention may come through changing what they plan for the next lesson based on what they see, or lightly intervening after the students have struggled for some time.

Other reasons for intervention may be for safety or fairness reasons.
Benefits Challenges

Many parents and mentors watching your lesson may come away with a sense that you were lazy or did not do enough to help the students. This approach needs to be clearly explained and justified in lesson plans (I'd recommend referring to Montessori in your justification) and situations when you would go from observer to intervener should be spelled out in advance.

If students are struggling too much, learning may not occur - there is a limit to this approach!

Theoretical Link
Montessori Classrooms: The role of the teacher as "unobtrusive observer" was pioneered by Maria Montessori.

Montessori argued that children learn best when placed in resource rich environments and left to explore. Our interventions may impede creativity, self-belief, autonomy and self-discovery.

96. Constructive Alignment
Definition
Constructive alignment involves explicitly linking the lesson assessment tasks to the compulsory learning outcomes in the curriculum.

This is an impressive thing to see in a lesson plan.

Use language (including verbs and nouns) from the learning outcome in the assessment task. Furthermore, make sure to provide a criteria for what constitutes pass or fail.
Benefits Challenges

If the language of the curriculum objectives are complex or obtuse, it may just confuse students to use that language in their assessment task.
Theoretical Link
Biggs: Constructive alignment was invented by John Biggs who designed this method to ensure all lessons are relevant and move students a step closer to completing all learning outcomes.

97. Zone of Proximal Development
Definition
The ' zone of proximal development ' is a phrase used to explain the ideal difficulty level for a lesson.

A lesson that is too easy won't help a student progress.

A lesson that is too hard will disengage a student who just won't be able to do the task.

But a lesson that is difficult but achievable with effort will push a student forward. These lessons that are just hard enough but not too hard are lessons in the "zone of proximal development".
Benefits Challenges

Differentiation like this can lead to bug Differences in ability levels across the whole class.

You're often under pressure to teach content that is too hard for students to meet standardized curriculum requirements

Theoretical Link
Sociocultural theory: Lev Vygotsky, one of the most famous educational psychologists, invented this approach to help teachers provide lessons that are at the right level for progressing a student's learning.
Examples

1. Weave the ZDP into a lesson plan by stating that you will assess a student's current ability then teach them the thing that is the logical next.step.

2. Another way to do this is create three student worksheets for three different ability levels. State in your lesson plan that you will assess each student's ability and give them the appropriate worksheet. Each worksheet should build on the previous to help students move through their ZPD one step at a time.

98. Positive Reinforcement
Definition
Positive reinforcement is the use of praise, stickers, candy or other rewards to show students that they have done a good job.

Teachers can stack positive reinforcements so students can take steps to get small, medium and large rewards to encourage students to keep on trying and working hard consistently.
Benefits

Students get clear signals to know when they have done well.

Students get encouragement to keep going and keep trying in order to get the reward.

Challenges

Too much positive reinforcement can come across as insincere and lose students' respect. Furthermore, students may become desensitized to praise if it occurs too much. Praise 'scarcity' makes occasional praise more valuable.

Explicit reinforcements are extrinsic motivation. The best sort of motivation is intrinsic motivation (wanting to do something for the pleasure of doing it). For more, see my full guide on intrinsic vs extrinsic motivation.

Theoretical Link
Behaviorism: Positive reinforcement is believed to be beneficial for changing behavior over time. See: John Watson's operant conditioning examples.
Examples
99. Negative Reinforcement
Definition
Negative reinforcement involves the removal of a privilege, points or tokens when a student gets an answer wrong.

This is often confused with punishments. For me, negative reinforcements should not punish but be used in limited learning scenarios as part of the learning 'game'.

An example might be losing points in a gamified lesson so the student is less likely to win against their opponents. Students know it is part of the game and not a punishment designed to distress the student.
Benefits

Provides very clear messages to students about what is correct and incorrect, helping them to learn quickly.
Challenges

Parents often do not like any negative reinforces, so be very careful to set clear guidelines and use this strategy in limited circumstances.

Be careful not to embarrass students in front of their classmates.

Theoretical Link
Behaviorism: Watson brought negative reinforcements into education, arguing that repeated use of them can change students' behaviors.
Examples

1. Losing points in a class contest.

2. Failing a level in an educational computer game.

100. Drop Everything and Read
Definition
Drop everything and read (DEAR) involves getting students to stop what they are doing and read for 10 minutes.

It is a strategy that helps build students' literacy skills (especially when students can choose their own book). However, it is also useful for helping students get more depth of knowledge on a topic being taught when you give them all an article or book to read to help them have more knowledge for subsequent parts of the lesson.
Benefits

An effective way of getting students to spend intense time learning about a topic.

Helps integrate literacy into your daily activities.

Challenges

There will always be a small group of students who squirm and struggle when asked to read. Consider alternatives like the Read Aloud strategy or using videos instead if DEAR doesn't work for your class.

Make sure to follow up DEAR time with discussion and comprehension tasks.

Example Definition
A gallery walk involves a teacher placing stimulus questions on flip chart paper (butcher's paper) around the walls of the classroom.

The charts the teacher has put up are stations that students will stop at during the activity.

The teacher places students into groups. If there are 5 stations around the room, the teacher will create 5 groups.

Students get a set amount of time at each station to read the prompt questions. The students can write on the chart paper with their group response and also respond to other groups who have already written their points.

Once all students have rotated through the stations, the students end up back at the station where they began. The teacher the. gives each group 3 minutes to present to the class a summary of the comments written on the paper at their station.
Benefits

Students get to learn from others and see other groups' responses.

The students are up and moving about which may help the concentration of bodily-kinesthetic learners.

Challenges

Some students may not participate fully. Consider getting students to rotate who writes on the paper at each station to mitigate this challenge a little.
Definition
Note whenever you would encourage metacognition in a lesson within your lesson plan. This will help anyone reading it know that you've thought about giving students strategies for "thinking about thinking".

Metacogntion is about thinking about how you think. Strategies include:
Benefits Challenges

Metacognition is difficult because it requires explanation of your thinking. However, it is necessary if people want to know how to think.
Definition
Case studies are in-depth examples of an issue being examined. A case study should show how an issue or theory looks in real life. Teachers can present case studies through videos, newspaper articles, magazine articles, guests coming into the classroom, etc.
Benefits

Case studies help students to see how theories and ideas look in real life. This can also help a student understand the relevance of the topic being studied.

A case study may help students make sense of a complex idea by putting it in real concrete terms.

Challenges

Case studies might not be representative of a generalized issue - they may be outliers or flukes. Pick your case study carefully and discuss whether it is a typical or outlier sample.
Examples Definition
Educators can create 'mystery' in their classroom by carefully structuring lessons that give 'clues' to a mystery that needs to be solved by the students. Ask the students to act as detectives and place clues around the classroom (like a gallery walk). Have students move around the classroom taking notes on the mystery which will reveal an answer after thorough investigation.
Benefits

Creates a sense of excitement in the classroom, helping students to engage.

Forces students to use critical, logical and lateral thinking in order to find the answer.

Challenges

Ensure the mystery is not too far outside a student's zone of proximal development so that the mystery can be solved.
Definition
Storytelling in the classroom involves teaching through narrative-style stories rather than telling ('didactic learning'). Teachers can tell stories by reading books (see: Read Aloud strategy), turning a dry explanation into an allegorical story off the cuff, or bringing people into the classroom who have an engaging personal story to tell.
Benefits

Stories can draw students into a topic through the creation of a sense of excitement and entertainment.
Theoretical Link
Steiner-Waldorf Schools: Rudolf Steiner called the teacher the 'chief storyteller' whose role is to create a sense of enchantment around learning through stories.
Examples

1. Invite guests into the classroom who have stories to tell.

2. Use stories that have a moral of the the story, then analyze the moralistic message.

106. Newspaper Clippings
Definition
Use newspaper clippings to link topics and theories to current affairs. Teachers can bring in recent newspapers to let students search through them for relevant stories or use old newspapers to search for how a topic was discussed in the past. Alternatively, teachers can get students to search for newspaper articles online.

Teachers could also assign reading through newspapers and bringing newspapers to class as a part of their homework.
Benefits

Newspaper stories can show students how the topic being discussed plays out in real life.

They also show students how the topic is relevant to the present-day lives of people in the community,

Challenges

Newspapers are increasingly uncommon - consider adjusting this to use online news sites and printing out articles from the web.

Some topics won't have relevant news articles associated with them. Do a search in newspapers and online yourself for articles before using this teaching strategy.

107. Self-Paced Learning
Definition
Self-paced learning involves.letting students progress from activity to activity in their own time. For this approach, a teacher lays out a list of 10 - 20 lessons that students can work on at their own pace. Students work on the activities while the teacher walks around and gives support.
Benefits Challenges

Fast students will need extension tasks or personal projects to complete once they have finished and are waiting for slower students.

There is often not enough time for slower students to finish.

Conclusion

These teaching strategy examples are clearly not the only ones out there - there are probably thousands! But, in my time teaching, these have been the most effective and common teaching strategies that I have come across. Use this teaching strategies list for your own lesson plans to demonstrate pedagogical knowledge and depth of understanding of how to educate a range of different learners.

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List of 107 Classroom Teaching Strategies (With Examples) (2024)

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Use this list of 107 instructional strategies to fill-in that lesson plan or teaching portfolio with some high quality teaching strategies.Or, try some of these strategies out when you're low on ideas and looking for a fresh way to teach in the classroom!

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How can renewed approaches to mentoring help new teachers?

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MagicSchool is the most used, most loved AI platform for educators world wide. The extensive platform houses all of your AI needs in one platform - with over 80 tools designed to help you lesson plan, differentiate, write assessments, write IEPs, communicate clearly, and more. Save time, fight burnout, & promote sustainability: Think of MagicSchool as an AI assistant to lighten your load and help you shine where it counts the most - with your students! Key benefits include:

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Explore the extensive resources, including free certification courses, guides, videos, user groups, trainings, lesson materials, and more to help support you getting started with MagicSchool.

Generative AI: A type of artificial intelligence (AI) that can create new content based on patterns it learns from existing data.

MagicSchool AI: A platform that takes the power of AI and puts it into educators' and students' hands to help them use it productively and responsibly in their respective work. With over 4 million users, MagicSchool is the most used and loved AI platform built for education in the world.

Want to learn more? Check out our Resources page for free training, certifications, lesson plans and more.

We ensure that each tool on the platform is accompanied by the best AI model to generate the strongest outputs. The platform can be powered by various models such as OpenAI's GPT 4o, Anthropic's Claude, Google's Gemini, and others (and is currently powered by multiple models). While we have not trained our own model yet, we may do that in the future if we believe that it will result in better outcomes for our users.

Based on our testing, there is no 1 single model that is best for all tasks. Constant experimentation is conducted to pair tools with different models to determine the most optimal AI model for specific tasks.

We know that AI technology moves fast and therefore, it's important that we're able to flex between models to produce the best possible experience for educators. This iterative process ensures that the platform consistently delivers the highest quality responses to its users.

MagicSchool is proactive with sharing best practices for ethical and responsible usage of AI. We display these upon login for teachers and students as best practices to use AI safely:

‍ Educators:
Check for Bias and Accuracy: AI might occasionally produce biased or incorrect content. Always double-check before sharing with students.
‍ The 80-20 Approach: Use AI for initial work, but make sure to add your final touch, review for bias and accuracy, and contextualize appropriately for the last 20%.
‍ Your Judgment Matters: See AI-generated content as a starting point, not a final solution. Always adhere to your school's guidelines.
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‍ AI is a Tool - Not a Replacement for Your Thinking: See AI-generated content as something that can help assist you, but not the final solution.
‍ Monitor for Bias and Accuracy: AI might occasionally produce biased or incorrect content. Always double-check important information.
‍ Protect Privacy: Don't include personal details like names or addresses. We strive to promptly remove any accidentally submitted information.

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MagicSchool is the most used, most loved AI platform for educators world wide. The extensive platform houses all of your AI needs in one platform - with over 80 tools designed to help you lesson plan, differentiate, write assessments, write IEPs, communicate clearly, and more.

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By setting clear expectations for behavior early on, teachers can have fun with their students without losing control of their classrooms.

Whether you have been teaching for 20 minutes or 20 years, it can be easy to fall into acting like a friend with your students. In my experience, I don't realize it until students start to push boundaries.

Preteens and teens seem to have an uncanny talent for sensing when teachers are wavering in their stance. Once you shrug your shoulders or say "Well..." as you think about their request, they will pounce! This shows up in the form of attempts to get the lesson off-topic or bend the rules. "Come on, just let us have a free period today" or "The other teachers let us listen to whatever music we want during class" or "Can we sit wherever we want today? Pleeeeease!"

Proactively Set Expectations

In my two decades plus of teaching middle school students, I have found that setting the tone on the first day of school helps students respect the boundaries of your friendliness. As recommended in the classic book for teachers The First Days of School, by Harry K. Wong and Rosemary T. Wong, I greet all students at the door. I greet them with a welcoming smile and a handshake (in nonpandemic times). After I verify on my roster that they are in the right location, I ask them to find their assigned seat and start independently on an introduction task.

This sets the tone that our classroom has expectations from the very start. They realize quickly that assigned seating is a part of the class culture and working on an assigned task is required.

There will always be one or two students who start whispering or wandering around. My welcoming smile quickly turns into a neutral facial expression, followed by a firm but kind, "Please get back to the assigned task." Every single year this happens, and every single year I get the same wide-eyed expression from the kids that expresses, "OK, I guess she means business."

Use Firm-but Kind-Reminders

After this initial interaction of the first day of school, I begin to let my silliness trickle out. I tell math jokes, use content-related memes in my presentations, and maybe even sing a song along with the lesson. Nerdy teacher? Yes. Fun teacher? Also, yes.

Some students will inevitably see my silly demeanor as an entry to pushing boundaries. Occasionally, you must remind students when a line is crossed. You can warn a noisy class, "It's fun to play Kahoot, but we won't be able to continue the game if you're yelling."

This communicates high expectations with encouragement and respect. Maintain student dignity by talking one-on-one with a student who pushes a boundary. Once, in a one-on-one conversation with an eighth grader, I said, "I'm really glad you're in my class. You come up with some really funny jokes and comments. But I'm going to ask you to dial it down a little because occasionally the comments disrupt the learning for your classmates."

Avoid Potential Pitfalls

Keep your conversations about your personal life to surface topics such as pets, travel, favorite foods, movies, etc. Maintain a professional distance by not oversharing.

Follow your school's guidelines on social media interactions with students. Only communicate with students via your school's designated and monitored email or portal system.

Hold the same boundaries for all students. Be mindful about the perception of favorites or cliques.

Students will want to listen to or talk about music or other media that is not school appropriate. For adults, it gets harder to keep up with popular song lyrics or slang words-it's best not to engage in those conversations. (I know this from experience because I once told my class that I liked a new catchy pop song. They replied, "Do you even know what that song is about?!" No, I apparently did not.)

Middle school students are fun and silly, and often we, the teachers, tend to get fun and silly along with them. To maintain the professional boundaries in your middle school classroom, you'll want to consider these tips to avoid giving the impression that crossing boundaries is acceptable.

Matt Panozzo, who holds a doctorate in education, is a seventh-grade English teacher in Houston. He has a reputation among his middle school students as an engaging and enthusiastic teacher. He also has an amazing talent of balancing being fun and maintaining expectations. I asked him how he does this so skillfully. He told me:

If you're new to teaching, finding this balance takes practice and experience. Be patient with yourself. Even veteran teachers have to rein in the boundaries from time to time. The profession of education typically attracts people who are friendly, welcoming, and engaging, which sometimes can be perceived as a "friendship" by some students. Respect and firm communication of expectations will foster an engaging and fun class culture without crossing any lines.

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By setting clear expectations for behavior early on, teachers can have fun with their students without losing control of their classrooms.

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Onboarding for New Teachers So They Want to Stay

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Onboarding for New Teachers So They Want to Stay

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Help new teachers feel like part of the team by showing them the ropes, helping them meet veteran staff-and giving them some swag.

I have worked at three school sites, and each was different. I didn't know how to access the printer codes, where to get budget order forms, the school phone policies, and even weekend clearance. Most days, it seemed like a scavenger hunt that I didn't want to be on and, for some reason, one that wouldn't end. This feeling of not knowing resulted in my feeling like an outsider and, frankly, dumb. This is not the feeling you want for your new teachers! Even when I wasn't considered a new teacher, since I was new to the school site, it felt like I had gone back in time to my first year of teaching. Effectively onboarding all newly hired teachers can significantly increase their comfort levels and influence their decision to stay at the school.

5 Keys to Effective Onboarding

1. Recognizing what makes your school unique. Teaching is not simply lesson planning and grading. Many hidden tasks need to be completed each day, and each school site is different. Every school has its own culture and rules that make it unique. One school site may have a schoolwide phone policy, whereas the school down the road allows teachers to decide. One site may have a schoolwide attention signal or enforce the use of student agendas. PLC may mean something to one school and be something different to another.

School spirit alone can involve its own staff training. I have been at school sites where staff go all out (think coordinated outfits, face paint, potlucks) for school events. I have also been at sites where school events are seen as another check mark on a long list of things to do. Identifying what makes your school unique and communicating that to new hires can make them feel more like part of the team.

2. Setting up a meeting before the school year. Onboarding teachers must start before the beginning of the year's professional development. The administration needs to run these because they communicate school-specific expectations. The meeting should include schoolwide policies, district-wide policies, teacher expectations for phones, essential dates, and other vital information-for example, defining acronyms: Schools LOVE their acronyms, yet there is rarely a guide to what these stand for. Creating a PowerPoint document with "fast facts" to be distributed to the new teachers will allow them to revisit the content when needed.

3. Communicating how to communicate. Each school has a specific way they want teachers to communicate. Is it through ParentSquare? Emailing the staff roster? Communicating through team leads? When a teacher calls home, is there a specific way to log the information from the call? At my site, the administrative team took the time to show us examples and non-examples for logging behavior entries. This streamlined approach made everybody's jobs easier, and it took roughly 15 minutes.

Taking the time to communicate the communication policies will help teachers as they transition to their new role. Furthermore, the administration can share how they want to be communicated with (texting, email, making an appointment) so that the new teacher can get support when needed. Clarity with communication protocols will help new teachers feel like they are part of the team and avoid any mistakes.

4. Setting time aside for staff to have fun together. Although it is nice to have a quick getting-to-know-you activity, time should be set aside for casual conversation as well. I am guilty of not paying attention to little details when we introduce new staff. I find it difficult to keep track of all the new rules and people. In addition, I truly loathe the getting-to-know-you games!

I would much rather relax and chat as new and current staff mingle. A staff outing allows the new and veteran teachers to get to know each other. Diving deeper and allowing for actual fun will ensure that teachers feel like humans, not professional-development robots. Bowling, scavenger hunts, ice cream socials, painting classes, and even sporting events are just a few ideas that can allow an opportunity for fun!

5. Giving them some free teacher gear! Nothing screams "new teacher" like a person who doesn't have a school shirt when everybody else is wearing one. I have been there-it's not a fun feeling. Give the new teachers a school shirt, a coffee mug, a hat, stickers, or a workbook geared toward new teachers. Having a little goody bag ready to go with relevant items shows the care you intend to give to your new staff members. It makes them feel welcomed and excited.

Taking time to welcome new staff and get them the correct policies, phone numbers, and teacher swag will start everybody off on the right foot. That is how we keep good teachers in the classroom. Whether you are part of the administration, a lead teacher, or just wanting to support new staff, think about what you would want if you were new and how to create a sense of inclusion and to create meaningful connections. Nobody likes to feel like the odd one out. Every staff member can do their part to include new people. When teachers feel appreciated and included, the chances of the good ones sticking around rapidly increase.

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How to Onboard New Teachers So They Want to Stay

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Help new teachers feel like part of the team by showing them the ropes, helping them meet veteran staff-and giving them some swag.

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From fears about academic dishonesty to declining foundational skills and increased screen time, there's no shortage of concern about how students use artificial intelligence (AI). While I share many of those concerns, I've discovered how AI can also be a force for good if we use it with intention. In my experience as a math and computer science teacher, the most effective use of AI tools hasn't come through student-facing platforms or shortcuts. Instead, AI has become a behind-the-scenes assistant that helps me save time, spark ideas, and design more engaging, collaborative learning experiences that preserve the human element in my classroom.

Computer science is a rapidly evolving subject closely tied to shifting technologies. I want my students to learn current, relevant skills. Staying ahead of the curve often means building new units on unfamiliar topics. In the past, searching for ready-made resources online or jerry-rigging my own cobbled-together activities felt disjointed and unsatisfying. My efforts often had an amateurish feel that students could sense, and I wasn't proud of that.

Create Scaffolded and Refined Lesson Plans

AI chatbots changed my patchwork results. Rather than relying on apps made specifically for teachers, I've opted to use more unfettered commercial AI tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude. I've found that the paid versions are well worth it. Where AI was once surprisingly clumsy and inept at even basic algebra, the new models optimized for coding and logic are astonishingly good.

For example, while developing a unit on computer networking (a topic I knew little about), I fed ChatGPT my broad goals, specific classroom constraints, and a few initial ideas. I started with a general prompt:

"Create a unity plan for a high school introductory computer science class on networking. Include as many interactive activities as possible."

From the results of that prompt, I added constraints and features to tailor the results to my needs. I specified that the unit needed to be project-based, couldn't rely on the availability of specialized networking hardware, needed to run on just Chromebooks, and should build on students' basic Python coding skills:

"Suggest activities that involve some basic Python programming."

"How do I set up a lab sandbox environment for students in a high school computer science class to learn about the fundamentals of networking using Chromebooks?"

"Include hands-on exercises on a Linux server where possible."

The end result was a tailored unit plan with scaffolded lessons and activity suggestions, including ready-to-use materials like Google Colab notebooks. What once felt like an impossible task became one of the highlights of the year.

This approach has proven to be most constructive when I begin with a rough set of notes about what I want the unit to accomplish-allowing the AI to suggest the fine-grained structure. Standards alignment can come later; I've learned that early drafts are more useful when they're written with a focus on what students will experience front and center. While iteration and refinement are still required, the time saved and the overall improvement in depth and coherence make it worthwhile.

Save Time and Support Collaborative Learning

Even at the lesson level, AI has helped me shift from teacher-centered models to more collaborative learning. The obstacle isn't a lack of ideas; it's time. Whether designing a vertical whiteboard session using Peter Liljedahl's Building Thinking Classrooms in Mathematics strategies or preparing a review activity for the next day's introductory computer science (CS) class, the time needed to generate the critical mass of problems necessary to support collaborative activities with the right level of focus and variety is significant.

For instance, creating a tarsia puzzle or scavenger hunt might require 30 different but related problems. It's not hard work, but it's tedious and time-consuming, especially when balanced against grading, planning, and other responsibilities. Through prompt engineering, I've trained AI to generate these problem sets quickly and in multiple formats, including graphs and code snippets. This has enabled me to implement collaborative activities-Quizlet Live games, tarsia puzzles, and scavenger hunts-with much greater frequency and impact.

Beyond generating lesson content, I've used AI to help me create student-facing materials. During the Advanced Placement test review in my calculus class, we needed to drill multiple-choice problems. Rather than revert to worksheets, I asked ChatGPT for ways to make the experience more interactive. One suggestion was an escape-room-style Google Form with self-checking elements. While AI can't directly create a Google Form, I've discovered that it can write a Google Apps Script (basically JavaScript) that builds the form automatically. That saved me hours. I used the extra time to improve the activity's aesthetic appeal with images and videos, transforming a potentially monotonous review into something that my students and I found to be energizing and fun.

Formatting support is another unexpected benefit. Since AI chatbots typically return results in markdown format, I can paste content directly into Google Docs and still preserve its structure. I've used this to generate handouts, Python exercises, and even LaTeX-formatted materials for complex math concepts. I've also asked ChatGPT to create Google Sheets rubrics that are formatted for direct upload to Google Classroom. On the CS side, I've used AI to produce Python-based Jupyter notebooks, which can be imported directly into Google Colab to create interactive and dynamic student coding environments.

Fill in Gaps, Create Cohesive Lessons, and Boost Engagement

In my computer science classes, where screen use is inevitable, AI tools have allowed me to design tasks that are far more relevant, collaborative, and project-based, tailored to our specific classroom context. My entire CS curriculum is now more coherent and consistent, with AI helping to bridge gaps in my background and experience. In math, I can implement various collaborative activities more regularly, and my Building Thinking Classrooms whiteboard sessions have become more sustainable and robust.

I also integrate online activities more intentionally, always intending to deepen collaboration and boost student engagement. Paradoxically, since I've incorporated AI more deeply into my workflow, my students have been able to spend less time passively using screens and more time actively engaging with each other and with the content. By freeing up my time and expanding what I can realistically prepare, I've created more student-centered, socially interactive classroom experiences and activities that would have been out of reach without AI's support.

This is a pivotal moment for educators and society at large. As we figure out how to teach students to use AI responsibly as a tool and not a crutch, we also need to consider how we, as teachers, can harness it ourselves first. Used thoughtfully, AI can enhance and not replace our practice. It gives us time to be more creative, responsive, and connected with our students. In my classroom, AI hasn't made things less human. It has made them more so.

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How to Thoughtfully Use AI to Create Meaningful Lessons

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Using AI to enhance computer science and math lessons allows teachers to provide specific and thoughtful opportunities for learning.

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23 Ways to Quiet a Chaotic Middle School Classroom

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23 Ways to Quiet a Chaotic Middle School Classroom

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23 Ways to Quiet a Chaotic Middle School Class

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Teacher-tested attention-getting routines to help you quickly restore calm and focus to noisy middle school classrooms.

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23 Brilliant Classroom Management Strategies and Techniques

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Techniques for designing and maintaining your own ideal classroom learning environment.

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Request help from the SCSC Mentoring Specialist

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Complete this form if you need assistance preparing for your PRAXIS or Foundations of Reading exam

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About TESS

The Arkansas Teacher Excellence and Support System (TESS) provides a statewide system for observation and support of K-12 classroom and specialty teachers. Click on the flyer to learn more.

Facts About TESS( PDF)

For more information, please contact:

Arkansas Department of Education

Division of Elementary and Secondary Education

Four Capitol Mall, Room 405B

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Teacher Excellence and Support System (TESS)

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The Arkansas Teacher Excellence and Support System (TESS) provides a statewide system for observation and support of K-12 classroom and specialty teachers. Click on the flyer to learn more.

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Here are a list of encouragements that go beyond a simple "good job"

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Engaging Sleepy Students & Calming Wound Up Students

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Engaging Sleepy Students & Calming Wound Up Students

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Use these templates to plan goals for both your individual students and for your whole class

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Samples of Tier 1, 2, and 3 behavior consequences

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Samples of discipline consequences for Tiers 1, 2, and 3

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This template provides examples of a dismissal routine for elementary and middle school classrooms

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4 Ways to Positively Connect with Students

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Thinking about all the things you don't think about before the first day of school

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What changes can you make at the end of a grading period or semester that will shift the direction of your class?

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All educators experience stress. Here are some strategies to combat the weight of our requirements and responsibilities

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When lesson planning, take time to strategically plan out the questions you wish to ask. Use these stems to help in that planning

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Use the verbs on this chart as a starting point when planning targeted questions throughout your lesson/unit

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Resources for inclusive teaching

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Links to the Arkansas State Academic Standards

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Division of Elementary and Secondary Education - Offices - Learning Services - Curriculum Support - Arkansas Academic Standards

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Maria Nielsen 15 Day Overview - Win Quick, Win Often!

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Maria Nielsen 15 Day Overview - Win Quick, Win Often!

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15 Day Challenge Overview - Win Quick, Win Often

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Maria Nielsen 15 Day Challenge Checklist

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Maria Nielsen 15 Day Challenge Checklist

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Share your successes and accomplishments with the SCSC team!

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Maximize your time with your mentee by following this roadmap

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Part II_MIA_Appendix 5_20 Minute Meeting

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Observing experienced teachers is one of the best ways to improve your teaching practice. Consider the questions in this form when observing other teachers.

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Part II_MIA_Appendix 7b_Novice Teacher Observation Form

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Use this template to gain understanding into your mentor/mentee relationship

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Mentors need to be active listeners who don’t judge, preach, or lecture to mentees. Use this form to assess yourself as an active listener

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Take stock of your classroom culture

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Practical Advice for New Teachers and Education Leaders - Corwin Connect

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You've made the incredible decision to become an educator because you want to impact the learning lives of young people. Thank you, and welcome. We welcome you to this amazing profession with open arms, and with an arsenal of experience and essential tools, strategies, and lessons to help you establish a successful and satisfying teaching career.

We wanted to make it easier for you to learn and practice these techniques that research shows increase student learning. To do so, we also considered cognitive psychology research that tells us that images and illustrations can help strengthen communication and our own understanding. This helped us develop the unique format for this book: part hands-on playbook, part professional book, and all highly illustrated, it is designed to make complicated concepts more digestible and memorable.

This extensive guide for new teachers provides everything you need to impact learning from your first day on, including:

How to plan powerful learning experiences that ensure student engagement

22 step-by-step learning strategies for any grade and any subject

Detailed guidance for developing formative and summative assessments

30+ classroom videos demonstrating the techniques and strategies in action

Teaching is without a doubt one of the most challenging professions there is. But those who chose to accept that challenge are what make teaching the best profession in the world!

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Your Hands-On Guide to Thriving Your First Years of Teaching This comprehensive, visually engaging guide for novice educators is packed with practical...

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"Reading well across disciplines and within varied contexts will help students to be versatile, flexible, deep readers who can better learn from their reading, transfer skills across subjects, and use strategies to meet the unique demands of reading in each content area."
- Jennifer Serravallo

Research-based, easy-to-use lesson structures for explicit and engaging teaching

In Teaching Reading Across the Day, literacy expert Jennifer Serravallo provides nine effective, predictable, research-based lesson structures that help busy teachers save planning time and focus their teaching-and student attention-on content rather than procedures. Each of the nine lesson structures (read aloud, phonics and spelling, vocabulary, focus, shared reading, close reading, guided inquiry, reader's theater, and conversation) has its own chapter and features a wealth of resources that let you see the lessons in action in ELA, Science, and Social Studies classes, including:

An annotated teaching vignette, lesson explanation, and research notes

Tips for planning, structure and timing suggestions, and ideas for responsive teaching

Detailed planning templates and 22 accompanying online videos covering over 3 hours of classroom footage

Jen's reflections, key look-fors, and ideas for next steps

The nine lesson structures can be used with any curriculum or core program, text, and subject, making it easier for teachers to maximize explicit and engaging teaching time across the day, and simplify planning and preparation.

Jen incorporates a wide range of compelling research about how best to teach reading to every student in your class and translates the research (or the science of teaching reading) into high-leverage moves you can count on to deliver powerful lessons again and again. She also honors the art of teaching reading, helping teachers tap into their experience and hone their expertise to make quick, effective classroom decisions that take student learning to the next level.

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Teaching Reading Across the Day, Grades K-8

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Teaching students to read well across disciplines and genres relies on teachers who have the right toolset to develop and support student learning. Di...

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How to teach children to read beginning as early as birth is what Pamela Nevills, Corwin Press author, holds as a personal passion. Her interest in teaching reading began when she was a primary educator and taught students, including her daughter, who were not successful readers. At that time there were no answers to why some children learned to read easily and others didn't. Through various opportunities to advance her career, Pamela became a professional development specialist, a manager for special education programs, a special education committee member, and a leader for both county and the state of California, as well as a teacher, supervisor, and faculty member at three universities for undergraduate and post-graduate educators.

Her career path crossed that of Dr. Pat Wolfe. Dr. Wolfe encouraged teachers to understand what was happening inside a child's brain during learning. She used innovative insights from the field of neurology that, when applied to teaching reading, provide teachers with powerful tools. Thus educators, with an understanding of the human brain's capacity for learning, could plan and implement instruction to maximize the work children do to become successful readers. A key understanding was how the oral language pathway (a natural process) is coerced to function as a silent and oral reading pathway (which requires extensive brain work for most children.)

Set with new insights, Dr. Nevills began consulting and writing about the powerful process of building a child's brain to become proficient for reading. Instructional shifts have happened since the first book, Building the Reading Brain, PreK-3, which was co-authored with Dr. Wolfe, was published in 2004. Now, many years later, education is focused, again, on the needs of beginning and advancing readers. This third edition, which has been retitled Building the Young Reader's Brain, Birth Through Age 8, is ready to fill in the missing instructional pieces to build proficient readers. The author joins the many educators and parents to continue this challenge of teaching children for successful reading.

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Amazon.com: Building the Reading Brain, PreK-3: 9781412963268: Nevills, Pamela, Wolfe, Patricia: Books

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The authors provide a practical framework that teachers can lean on to regain control of their mindset and their practice—despite the many facto…

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Creating a place where kids want to learn and teachers want to stay

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Previous cards

Quote by Dick Keeler, Principal at Central Valley Academy: The authors have done an amazing job of outlining the importance of building a sense of belonging for all stakeholders in education. The focus is on building positive relationships where everyone feels welcomed, invited, present, known, accepted, involved, heard, supported, befriended, needed, and loved.This is the core of what all educators need to invest their time and energy on. Once you create this sense of belonging, you can then tap into each student and educator's true potential. The sky's the limit once you make this happen.

The authors have done an amazing job of outlining the importance of building a sense of belonging for all stakeholders in education. The focus is on building positive relationships where everyone feels welcomed, invited, present, known, accepted, involved, heard, supported, befriended, needed, and loved.This is the core of what all educators need to invest their time and energy on. Once you create this sense of belonging, you can then tap into each student and educator's true potential. The sky's the limit once you make this happen.

Dick Keeler
Principal at Central Valley Academy

Quote by Zachary S Robbins, Ph.D., Author of Restorative Justice Tribunal: Belonging in School is a delightful primer on how schools can make students, staff, parents and guardians, and community members feel welcome. Students work for people they like in places they like. This book provides a pathway to create those conditions and ensure inclusivity, connectedness, and academic success for all.

Belonging in School is a delightful primer on how schools can make students, staff, parents and guardians, and community members feel welcome. Students work for people they like in places they like. This book provides a pathway to create those conditions and ensure inclusivity, connectedness, and academic success for all.

Zachary S Robbins, Ph.D.
Author of Restorative Justice Tribunal

Quote by Summer Prather-Smith, Director of Engagement and School Climate, Santa Rita Union School District: Dr. Smith's work with our districts has been nothing short of transformative. With a deep understanding of the critical importance of creating an inclusive, supportive school environment, Dr. Smith has guided our educators and administrators to rethink traditional disciplinary approaches. Instead of punitive measures, we now focus on restorative practices, conflict resolution, and social-emotional learning. The result has been a marked decrease in disciplinary incidents and a notable increase in student engagement and satisfaction.

"Belonging in School" takes us to the next level in our journey toward creating a more inclusive, supportive, and positive educational environment. The illustrated playbook is a comprehensive guide that offers practical, actionable strategies for fostering belonging not only among students but also among teachers and staff. This holistic approach recognizes that when educators and staff feel a sense of belonging, it naturally extends to students, creating a ripple effect of positivity and engagement throughout our schools.

Dr. Smith's work with our districts has been nothing short of transformative. With a deep understanding of the critical importance of creating an inclusive, supportive school environment, Dr. Smith has guided our educators and administrators to rethink traditional disciplinary approaches. Instead of punitive measures, we now focus on restorative practices, conflict resolution, and social-emotional learning. The result has been a marked decrease in disciplinary incidents and a notable increase in student engagement and satisfaction.

"Belonging in School" takes us to the next level in our journey toward creating a more inclusive, supportive, and positive educational environment. The illustrated playbook is a comprehensive guide that offers practical, actionable strategies for fostering belonging not only among students but also among teachers and staff. This holistic approach recognizes that when educators and staff feel a sense of belonging, it naturally extends to students, creating a ripple effect of positivity and engagement throughout our schools.

Summer Prather-Smith
Director of Engagement and School Climate, Santa Rita Union School District

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Create a classroom that fosters student growth and well-being for every student to nurture a sense of belonging that lasts.

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Call and response for gaining control and attention in your classroom

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How Can I Manage the Unspoken Expectations Placed on Me?

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How Can I Manage the Unspoken Expectations Placed on Me?

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If you have not already created an account with Arkansas IDEAS, you will need to do so before accessing the PD opportunities

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Arkansas's most utilized K-12 teacher professional development resource.
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UNITED

Identifying Bullying Behaviors & Prevention Strategies
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Speak Up, Speak Out

Teen Suicide Awareness & Prevention
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Grief and Loss: School Community Support

Supporting Students & Staff Through Loss
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ArkansasIDEAS is a partnership between Arkansas PBS and the Arkansas Department of Education, Division of Elementary and Secondary Education, to provide online, statewide professional development resources and courses for K-12 Arkansas educators.
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Credit Hours Awarded

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Log In UNITED Identifying Bullying Behaviors & Prevention Strategies View Course Speak Up, Speak Out Teen Suicide Awareness & Prevention View Course Grief and Loss: School Community Support Supporting Students & Staff Through Loss View Course ArkansasIDEAS is a partnership between Arkansas PBS and the Arkansas Department of Education, Division of Elementary and Secondary Education, to provide online, statewide professional development resources and courses for K-12 Arkansas educators.

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To register for PD at any Service Cooperative across the state, you will need to have an account with ESC Works.

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Region 4 serves a seven-county area composed of 50 public school districts and 45 public charter schools, representing more than 1.1 million students, 87,000 educators, and 1,500 campuses.

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Copy of SPDG Library of MCs V1 (11 × 8.5 in)2

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Kahoot! | Learning games | Make learning awesome!

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Kahoot! is a game-based learning platform that brings engagement and fun to 1+ billion players every year at school, at work, and at home.

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ReadWorks | Award-Winning, EdTech Nonprofit Organization

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ReadWorks is an edtech nonprofit organization that is committed to helping to solve America’s reading comprehension crisis.

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Instantly access over 40,000 of the best books & videos for kids on Epic

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Seesaw creates a powerful learning loop between students, teachers, and families

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Zearn Math is a K-5 math curriculum based on Eureka Math / EngageNY with top-rated materials for teacher-led and digital instruction.

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Sign up with your school email for the best Flip experience.

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Online Puzzlemaker | Create Your Own Puzzle | Discovery Education Puzzlemaker

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Discovery Education’s Puzzlemaker provides teachers, students, and parents, the tools necessary to create crossword, puzzles, word search puzzles, mazes and more online!

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The Qualities of Exceptional Mentor Teachers

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The Qualities of Exceptional Mentor Teachers

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What Mentors and Mentees Wish the Other Knew

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What Mentors and Mentees Wish the Other Knew

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A teacher who transitioned from mentee to mentor in just one summer offers strategies that can make mentoring productive for all involved.

"You can find your student teacher's name at the bottom of the email."

The first time I saw this sentence, I had to reread it. I thought it was a mistake. I was a new lead teacher and had just finished two years in a co-teacher training program, where I worked with and learned from a mentor teacher. Though I appreciated this new opportunity to work with a student teacher, I was surprised that I had been assigned one. I had, after all, been in her place just a few months prior.

In the span of a summer, I went from being mentored to mentoring, and the experience forced me to reflect on what works, and what doesn't work, in a teacher training and mentoring model.

I started jotting notes down about what I appreciated and wished I had known as both a mentee and a mentor. I've compiled the following lists to offer insight into both sides of this professional dynamic.

What Mentor Teachers Wish New Teachers Knew

As I embraced the role of mentor, I considered the following tenets from this perspective.

Identify what you want to learn and improve. It can be overwhelming to step into somebody else's classroom, and trying to master everything that goes into teaching is, in many ways, impossible. For that reason, as a new teacher, work with your mentor to identify one or two areas you would like to get better at. Communicate these elements of practice clearly so that you and your mentor are on the same page and can work together to hone these skills. Once you've mastered these two, you can move on to identify the next two, and so on.

Use teacher language. Students rely on routines and predictability to successfully navigate their days. Teacher language-though sometimes unnatural to a new teacher-is a crucial component of this predictability; it establishes a shared vocabulary, and therefore shared understanding, between everyone in the classroom community. Every teacher has their own style-using certain phrases, callbacks, ways of giving directions, etc. When student teachers integrate similar language, they alter students' perceptions and receptivity to them, easing their way into the classroom community.

The first week my student teacher was with me, I gave her a few phrases to use if she needed to redirect a student. There was, therefore, continuity between teachers, and students immediately recognized her as being part of their classroom community.

Remember, no feedback is feedback. Student teachers typically have a number of formal observations; they can even feel, at times, like they are always being watched and given feedback. While feedback is crucial to improvement, student teachers should also recognize that not getting feedback, from time to time, can be an indicator of a mentor's confidence in them.

After my student teacher ran our morning meeting for two weeks, I stopped watching her. I knew she could handle it, and doing so ultimately boosted her confidence, providing her with some autonomy in our learning community-and opportunities to build her relationships with students.

What New Teachers Wish Mentors Knew

As I guided my student teacher, I worked to keep my own recent experiences being mentored in mind. From this vantage point, I reflected on the following pieces of advice.

Plan and map curricula together. Every teacher has a different way of planning, and some schools are more lenient than others when it comes to following a curriculum. Explaining how and why you plan lessons and units is extremely helpful. Many college programs require students to write lengthy, unrealistic lesson plans, so understanding what practical lesson planning entails makes a new teacher's life much easier.

The first time I worked with a mentor teacher, I had no idea what the end goal was; I knew where students were academically, but without context about their curricular mapping, I didn't realize what exactly we were working toward. It wasn't until I spent a second year in the same grade that I fully understood what was considered appropriate for this grade level, in this learning context. Making your process visible, even if it seems obvious to you, can remove barriers for teachers-in-training.

Explain specialist referrals and evaluations. Referrals and evaluations look different in every school and depend on factors like school resources, type, staff composition, and more. But I was admittedly a bit confused the first time I read an evaluation from one of my student's speech therapists. All of my undergrad and grad classes focused on strategies to identify and improve learning needs, but I never actually saw what an occupational, speech, or neurodivergence evaluation looked like-until I asked to see one.

Taking the time to share and explain a student's evaluation (taking proper privacy measures) is an often-overlooked but extremely beneficial act in a mentoring relationship and can ensure greater differentiation in the classroom.

Advocate for students. Making referrals for student evaluations or recommendations for enrichment or support groups often falls on the lead teacher. It's beneficial for student teachers to know the reasoning for and technical steps behind these decisions and processes. Sharing your thought process-even after the fact-and modeling for student teachers how to advocate for their students' needs, in collaboration with other professionals, is another facet of teaching that mentors can make less opaque, better positioning new teachers to meet the needs of the learners in their classrooms.

Teaching is a collaborative, experiential field. Mentoring can make the difference between effective and committed new teachers and those who struggle or eventually leave the profession. That being said, because models of student teaching, associate teaching, and other teacher training programs differ significantly across programs, it can be difficult to streamline the process according to best practices. Keeping the above ideas in mind, however, can lead to intentional mentoring that benefits both parties.

Mentors and mentees can learn a lot from each other. Considering, and discussing, what they each wish the other knew can make the relationship more transparent and productive, leading to improved learning for everyone.

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What Mentors and Mentees Wish the Other Knew

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A teacher who transitioned from mentee to mentor in just one summer offers strategies that can make mentoring productive for all involved.

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Great mentors cultivate several core competencies in themselves and their student teachers via a collaborative, supportive relationship.

monkeybusinessimages / iStock

Sixteen years ago, when I was a student teacher, I was filled with the same excitement and trepidation that I now witness in the first-year teachers with whom I work in California schools. For me, a mentor made all the difference: Mr. Antenore led fascinating discussions that made history relevant to his students, and he taught courageously for justice before doing so was celebrated.

What's more, he gave me-a new teacher-the space to take intellectual risks, the right support when I was struggling, and capacity-building resources that have stayed with me throughout my career.

I often wonder what would've happened if I had lost the student teaching lottery and been assigned a less-skilled mentor. What if I didn't have access to an environment where equity and social justice were centered? Would I still be a teacher?

After a decade and a half in education, having mentored multiple student teachers and taught social studies methods to dozens more, I have come to the conclusion that what makes mentors like Mr. Antenore special is that they honor their mentees' humanity, model teacher leadership, and embody humility, courage, and care. We can all apply these principles to become more effective mentors in our own practice.

1. Honor the humanity of your mentee

Great mentors see their mentees as equals and partners in the work of empowering students, and they collaborate with them to create the most effective professional development plan possible. I remember asking Mr. Antenore to leave the classroom from time to time during my student teaching journey so that I could develop my own voice and create better relationships with my students. He was always supportive and would check in after. The mutual trust that we built in these moments radically enhanced my self-confidence at a critical time in my development as a teacher.

2. Model teacher leadership

Realistic optimism is a powerful part of mentoring. It means being critical thinkers and analyzers of the institutions in which we work. But it also means maintaining hope that those institutions can become more just-and sharing strategies for advocacy if possible.

In my own leadership, I attempt to model this approach by advocating for the needs of students in interactions with my colleagues and administration. I also pursue advocacy opportunities outside of my district.

Great mentors have a deep commitment to equity and only speak of students and colleagues constructively. They embody professional norms in all settings, especially when colleagues disagree. At my school site, we fully include our mentees in our robust professional learning community process, as well as all staff development, to support their professional growth.

3. Practice humility, and be open to new ideas

Another facet of effective mentoring is demonstrating through your actions how you continue to develop your emotional and pedagogical capacities throughout your career. Doing so creates a culture of reciprocity and knowledge-building, as it demonstrates that you are willing to learn from your mentees as much as you are willing to teach them.

Mr. Antenore and I used to have energizing conversations about the civic meaning of our discipline and how to best deliver that meaning to students. He would inspire me with ideas about what to teach, and I would inspire him with new ideas about how to teach it.

4. Have the courage to take public risks

Risk-taking holds tremendous growth potential, and great mentors model this by implementing lessons outside of their own comfort zones. They use evidence-based strategies to meet the dynamic cultural, academic, and intellectual needs of their students and can explain the "why" behind their decision making.

As a teacher, I must be comfortable embracing change at a moment's notice. When I'm mentoring, I bring my mentee into the fold. I present my new lesson ideas to hear their thoughts. I also love to implement lessons that my mentees design, helping them work through their goals and processes along the way.

We have open dialogues about mistakes and successes and what we must do next to hone our practice, which builds mentee confidence and provides a model for mentees to then encourage productive risk-taking with their own students.

5. Nurture your mentee

Stay in the classroom as much as possible while your mentee is teaching to observe and coach them discreetly and positively. While doing so, prioritize the balance of allowing them to engage in productive struggle as they take necessary risks to support students without letting them drown to see if they can cut it.

At the end of most lessons, Mr. Antenore would guide me with cogent questioning and gentle feedback so that I could arrive at good answers to the many classroom challenges that I encountered and would continue to encounter throughout my career.

While there are many other traits that mentors can embody to best support new teachers, these five capacities center students and provide a solid foundation. In a time when schools are struggling to find highly competent educators in many disciplines, it's imperative that we ensure that those who decide to become teachers have the support that they-and their students-need to thrive. Highly effective mentors have the power to set a future teacher up for long term success, impacting thousands of students for the better.

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Great mentors cultivate several core competencies in themselves and their student teachers via a collaborative, supportive relationship.

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Promoting Teacher Retention Through Mentoring

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Promoting Teacher Retention Through Mentoring

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Administration & Leadership

The first years of teaching are hard, but a strong mentoring relationship within a supportive induction program can make all the difference.

At the start of my own career-when I was a ball of nerves and felt unprepared to teach students fairly close to my age-I was lucky to learn from an incredible mentor teacher, Jacquie, whose guidance was a pivotal reason for my staying in the profession.

Now, as a school leader, I value and support teacher induction programs-powerful tools for forging relationships that can help new teachers understand and acclimate to a school's atmosphere and culture; build instructional, curricular, and assessment knowledge and skills; and provide a pathway to greater professional satisfaction in the long term.

School leaders looking to leverage relationships for teacher retention can consider the following factors when implementing teacher induction programs.

Compensation and Training for Mentor Teachers

When structuring a strong teacher induction program, it is important that mentor teachers are acknowledged for their expertise and valued for their time. Provide financial resources to compensate teachers for the extra responsibilities involved in being a mentor facilitator, along with the cognitive and emotional investment this work entails.

Additionally, you can create the foundation for a healthy, productive teacher induction program by training mentor teachers as leadership coaches. Too often, teachers are promoted to a mentor level without skill building around critical elements of effective coaching, such as creating a safe, supportive, yet challenging environment; facilitating and collaborating using questions rather than direct answers; advocating self-awareness; and using experience to fuel professional development.

Duration of Mentoring Relationships

Ideally, a teacher induction program involves a scheduled weekly meeting between mentor and mentee for about 45 minutes. Without a preplanned weekly meeting, it is too easy to put off meeting with each other, due to the ongoing demands of the job.

Most teacher induction programs last for one school year; however, given data surrounding the teacher retention crisis, a better model would allow for continued connection across two or three years as new teachers continue to gain their footing.

The first year of teaching is a time to marry the theoretical knowledge that teachers developed during their teacher preparation programs with the realities of real-world teaching. The second (and/or third) year allows time for mentors and mentees to explore instructional coaching and guidance around professional development and to spend less time focused on low-level needs, such as orientation to the school system (e.g., attendance policies and procedural norms).

Structural Arrangement

When pairing a mentor with a mentee, consider the physical proximity of their classrooms and the grade level and classes they both teach. Aim for high degrees of similarities to ensure aligned advice and boost the chances that both participants will find the relationship meaningful. While there are some models of teacher induction programs that are evaluative in nature, I encourage a nonevaluative model to promote greater self-reflection and self-awareness.

In creating mentor-mentee pairings, you might also take schedules into account to allow for reciprocal observation times; not only will a novice teacher grow and learn from constructive coaching and feedback during planned observation times, but also it is important to build in time for observations of the mentor by the mentee. To move from theoretical knowledge to real-world teaching, it's critical that new teachers have opportunities to see exemplary teachers in action.

Framing and Assessment

Be clear on the desired outcomes of the teacher induction program, and provide a framework for each month and year anchored to the core values and institutional goals of the school.

During the first year of the teacher induction program, take into account the phases of first-year teachers' attitudes toward teaching (e.g., anticipation, survival, disillusionment, rejuvenation, and reflection). The National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education provides a framework for professional attitudes, values, and beliefs that support students' learning and development, such as fairness and the belief that all students can learn. Beyond assessment and curriculum, considering social and emotional elements of teaching may support a more balanced, whole-learner approach to the mentor-mentee relationship, acknowledging the physical, psychological, cognitive, and affective variables that contribute to teacher satisfaction.

Conclude each year of the program with a survey for both mentor and mentee. What worked? What didn't? Where is more support needed? Take the time to explore how the experience is going and where it can be improved.

Teacher induction programs offer comprehensive support systems for novice teachers, and while the model is not new in education, making a few shifts in the traditional model, as outlined above, could help uncover pathways to retain, develop, and increase the job satisfaction of novice teachers.

To ensure effective, high-quality teaching, which today includes culturally responsive instruction, the highest educational standards to date, and an expectation to serve all students well, we cannot overlook the importance of high-quality, effective teacher-induction programs. In today's competitive job market, well-designed and fully implemented teacher induction programs can improve new teachers' practice and satisfaction and serve as a differentiator that draws new teachers to your school or district for their first year and beyond.

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Promoting Teacher Retention Through Mentoring

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The first years of teaching are hard, but a strong mentoring relationship within a supportive induction program can make all the difference.

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An experienced mentor trainer shares key components of mentoring that lead to a successful partnership.

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4 Ways New Teachers Can Make the Most Out of Having a Mentor

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4 Ways New Teachers Can Make the Most Out of Having a Mentor

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A mentor can be a huge benefit for a new teacher, and these ideas will help you take full advantage of working with an experienced colleague.

First-year teachers who are matched with teacher-mentors can expect a positive partnership that spans their inaugural professional year, at least. Mentors are trained for their roles as skilled guides, and they commit to working alongside novice teachers in various ways. Just as mentors agree to dedicate themselves to the professional partnership, so should mentees consent to the mentor's expectations.

4 Guidelines to Maximize Mentees' Learning and Growth

1. Learning focused. The goal of providing novice educators with an experienced professional mentor is to support and promote the new teacher's growth. Although incoming teachers no doubt would learn through their interactions and experiences without an expert guide, trained mentors can bolster advanced professional development; provide targeted, supportive feedback; and teach novices how to reflect while illustrating its importance for all educators.

After all, suggestions that a mentor provides are based on experience as a teacher combined with quality mentor training. As such, the pair should refrain from personal criticism or comments and maintain their professional, growth-focused connection.

In the same way that teachers prepare their students for life beyond the classroom, mentors help a protégé think deeply and problem-solve for the future when mentoring is complete. Mentors' goals include guidance beyond the novice's inaugural year, as successful mentors can impact teachers into their professional future.

Mentees should be aware that reciprocal learning is an outcome of their pairing: Both teachers will learn and grow professionally. Mentors can learn about their own instructional practice through discussions, observations, and reflections with a mentee. Experienced educators are often surprised at their own growth while participating in mentoring.

2. Full participation. Mentees ensure personal success when they accept their mentor as a guide for novices working in a challenging profession. Collaborating with an experienced educator doesn't mean the novice is needy, ill-prepared, or an ineffective educator; rather, newbies are matched to provide a proactive, available consort from the beginning of their career.

Even so, some teachers view mentoring as unnecessary and negative. I've interacted with numerous novices who told me about their student-teaching accomplishments and additional expertise so that I'd cancel their need for a mentor. I encouraged these professionals to accept the collaborative vulnerability of working with an experienced colleague and trust my experience that mentoring is not meant as a punishment or humiliation but to groom expert educators who reflect and strive to grow professionally.

Mentees' full participation in mentoring includes attending all interactions ready to learn and grow. They won't, for instance, attend a meeting just to check the box that the mentor and mentee have met. Mentor and mentee will build upon agreements they made at the start of their relationship as a foundation for trust and professional growth. Over the years, I've observed many teacher-protégés who didn't "need" a mentor but who embraced the opportunity and experienced a successful, learning-focused journey that jump-started their career in education.

3. Peer visits. Feedback, suggestions, and reading are helpful, but seeing strategies in action is often the most effective way for a teacher to learn about implementation. That's why classroom visits are so important. When going to a peer's classroom, it's helpful to focus on one aspect at a time, such as classroom setup or instructional strategies. Mentees should talk with their mentor beforehand to focus the visit: what they will be looking for; how to observe without inserting personal bias.

After the classroom visit, the mentor and mentee have a post-observation discussion to reflect on what they observed and how to learn from it. The mentor will also conduct informal observations in the novice's classroom. The focus will be on one area, with a post-observation discussion for reflection and growth-producing feedback. Everyone can learn from observing or taking part in a less-than-excellent lesson. It's really about the reflection and the takeaways from the visits.

4. Reflecting. Mentors guide mentees through reflections, and these opportunities are the foundation of a mentee's growth. Mentors pose a variety of open-ended questions that help new teachers learn about their teaching and how to think about professionalism. For example, following a mentor's observation of the new teacher's lesson, a reflective question might be, "Was the lesson I observed a successful one?" and "How do you know it was/was not successful?" Mentors pose questions, and mentees learn to dig deep with reflections and answers. Mentees will learn to reflect on their own about whether an activity is effective.

When mentees understand their role and agree to the four expectations of their mentoring year, they increase the odds that they will gain as much as possible from their first year as professional educators.

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4 Ways New Teachers Can Make the Most Out of Having a Mentor

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A mentor can be a huge benefit for a new teacher, and these ideas will help you take full advantage of working with an experienced colleague.

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In the mentor-mentee relationship, a balance between strong support and high challenge can help the novice teacher flourish.

A successful mentor-mentee relationship is the result of planning, dedication, and perseverance. When new teachers pair with experienced mentors, they have many opportunities for interaction and growth, and when teacher-mentors provide novice educators with an optimal combination of support and cognitive challenge, the new teacher maximizes their learning.

Finding the "just right" balance of guidance and challenge will ensure a productive relationship that will guide the new teacher to grow professionally.

But first, to clear up any misconceptions, below are three examples of support and challenge combined ineffectively.

Ineffective Mentor-Mentee Relationships

If the mentor gives the new teacher little support or little challenge, the result will be stasis: the status quo.

When the mentor offers minimal help yet includes a lot of challenge, the novice will tend to academically and emotionally retreat because they're professionally confronted beyond their current understanding and capabilities.

In cases where a mentor offers the mentee extensive support but doesn't challenge the novice, the new professional will believe that their current knowledge and abilities are adequate because the mentor never questions their decisions or outcomes.

Specialized training helps mentors learn how to balance mentee support with cognitive challenges, as the proportions need to be just right for a new teacher's maximum growth.

So, little support or challenge, little support and high challenge, and high support with low challenge are ineffective combinations for mentees' growth. Here's how to have a productive mentor-mentee relationship.

Effective Mentor-Mentee Relationships

The optimal balance for mentors and mentees is high challenge and high support. This just-right combination promotes mentee growth through mentor-guided questioning and reflection with simultaneous development of new understandings, all with consistent guidance from a mentor.

High challenge: When teacher-mentors introduce cognitive and academic challenges, they ask open-ended questions that focus on a specific area. One excellent mentor I know guides the mentee's lesson design process by asking, "How did the math lesson you taught today compare with the lesson you planned to teach?" Nonjudgmental questioning invites the novice to think deeply about planning and instructional processes as well as the lesson's outcome. The mentee leads their own reflection by responding to questions and engaging in a dialogue with the mentor.

This mentor's high level of challenge includes meta-reflection that encourages the mentee to consider how a lesson was planned, assembled, and implemented, and what outcomes were expected versus met. Through relaxed interactions with the mentor, the new professional will gain insight into best planning practices and implementation, which is the goal, rather than a single, binary response.

Most mentees are recent graduates of universities or career-switcher teacher programs, so they begin with a foundation of theory and academic knowledge. New teachers learn how to transfer theory into practice during their first year in the classroom. Sometimes novices struggle through the transition from pre-service to in-service professionals, and they might harbor self-doubt and ask frequent questions.

To maintain a high level of challenge for mentees, mentors need to carefully consider which questions the mentee should answer and which questions should lead to reflection opportunities.
Courtesy of Amie Weinberg
Mentors should provide straightforward responses, of course, to questions about school-based rules-the professional dress code, work hours, and other objective statements of fact. However, questions like "How should I respond to...?" or "What's the best way to teach...?" might accelerate a teacher's growth when a mentor guides a deeper dive into those questions.

For example, if a classroom parent sends an email message to the new teacher asking about a child's behavior, the mentee may ask a mentor how to respond. Although experienced teachers can share expertise and likely provide an answer to the question directly, the mentor's goal is to promote continuous professional growth, so the mentor poses questions that support the mentee in that process. One possible mentor response is, "Why do you think the parent is asking about the student's behavior?" and then, "What is your goal when sending your response?"

Questions and reflections should take place even when all is going well for the mentee. Deconstructing "How do you know that your lesson was successful?" is as learning-focused as "What challenges did you encounter during that lesson?"

High support: Teacher-mentors can provide high levels of support right from the start by meeting consistently each week at the same time and place, rather than holding only sporadic discussions during stressful times. Further, the pair might email, text, or even talk on the phone during the week to interact in a timely manner between formal meetings. Also, support is most successful when the mentoring pair has forged an authentic, professional connection based on mutual respect.

Well-trained mentors will plan for strong challenges and support for the mentee that the pair's interactions will reflect. High challenge doesn't mean that mentors must always be critical of mentees; mentees welcome authentic praise from mentors. The mentor needs to maintain optimal balance between challenge and support for their mentee.

While a mentor might transition from co-planning during the first month of school to reviewing lesson plans during the second month, high mentee support doesn't mean providing lesson plans to novices or telling them what to do. Supportive mentors I've worked with are available for their mentees, engage in deep discussions about instructional strategies, and even clap and cheer for each other's students. These experienced mentors ask mentees to consider various possibilities and, occasionally, to reflect during times beyond their formal mentoring interactions. Many mentors invite mentees to observe them and reciprocate by visiting the mentees' classrooms (or viewing lessons virtually) and then sharing growth-producing feedback.

While new teacher support is essential for first-year success, mentors lead their mentees far beyond initial survival. Successful mentoring that balances just-right support with cognitive challenge benefits the new teacher throughout their career.

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In the mentor-mentee relationship, a balance between strong support and high challenge can help the novice teacher flourish.

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A Solid Foundation for a Mentoring Relationship

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A Solid Foundation for a Mentoring Relationship

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A Solid Foundation for a Mentoring Relationship

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Setting up an agreement that covers how a mentor and mentee will work together can help both get the most out of their collaboration.

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Contact Caitlyn at caitlyn.mcdonald@scscoop.org

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Contact Renee at renee.bearden@scscoop.org

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Contact Heater at heather.rain@scscoop.org

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Contact JoAnn at joann.womack@scscoop.org

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Career & Technical Education, Katie Robertson

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Career & Technical Education, Katie Robertson

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Contact Katie at katie.robertson@scscoop.org

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This form can help you determine which intelligences are strongest for you. If you're a teacher or tutor, you can also use it to find out which intelligences your learner uses most often. Many thanks to Dr. Terry Armstrong for graciously allowing us to use his questionnaire.

Instructions: Read each statement carefully. Choose one of the five buttons for each statement indicating how well that statement describes you.

1 = Statement does not describe you at all
2 = Statement describes you very little
3 = Statement describes you somewhat
4 = Statement describes you pretty well
5 = Statement describes you exactly

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This form can help you determine which intelligences are strongest for you. If you're a teacher or tutor, you can also use it to find out which intelligences your learner uses most often. Many thanks to Dr. Terry Armstrong for graciously allowing us to use his questionnaire. Instructions: Read each statement carefully.

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We know that building strong student-teacher relationships isn't the magic antidote to every classroom problem. That being said, knowing who your students are, their strengths and weaknesses, and their likes and dislikes is an extremely powerful tool. Knowing how to best communicate with each of your students can have a huge impact on the way they feel about being in your classroom (and how they behave while they're there!). With that in mind, we've created student interest surveys for every grade that will let you discover a bit more about each of the kids in your classroom.

Exploring the Student Interest Surveys

We've created student interest surveys for grades K-2, 3-5, middle school, and high school, as well as a blank version you can fill in with your own questions. Let's take a peek at each one and some of the questions from each survey.

Grades K-2

The questions in this survey are perfect for our littlest learners. Images allow students to circle or color their choices rather than having to write in most of the answers. There are questions about how they like to learn as well as opportunities for them to share their favorite things. Your students will love completing this activity and sharing their likes and dislikes with you.

Grades 3-5

For our upper elementary students, we've added more questions about their preferences when it comes to learning. They've been in school for a while now, and they're starting to know how they learn best. Questions are asked in a friendly, fun format (circle the emoji or this or that, for example) but will give you a lot of very important information about each student.

Middle School

Middle schoolers are ready for more independence, and the questions in their student interest survey reflect that. Giving your students this survey will reveal what they think should happen if a student disrupts a lesson and the best way to approach them if they're struggling. It gives them an opportunity to ask their teacher a question as well. It's the perfect way to show your class that you know they're growing up and ready for more responsibility.

High School

Similar to the middle school survey, the questions your high school students will answer have more to do with how to help them meet their learning goals in your class. What's going to make them most likely to participate in your class? Is there anything they wish they could do more of in class? What's something that all of their favorite teachers so far have had in common? By giving your students a chance to really think about who they are as learners, you'll gain valuable insight into how to create a classroom environment you all enjoy being in each day.

Get your free Student Interest Surveys!

To download your free Student Interest Surveys, just fill out the form on this page for instant access.

For more articles like this, be sure to sign up for our newsletters to find out when they're posted!

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Meghan Mathis, M.Ed., Elementary and Special Education

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Free Student Interest Surveys for Every Grade Level: Get To Know Your Class

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Let them tell you how they learn, what motivates them, and the best way to make your class a place you both want to be!

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New teachers—and experienced ones too—can find ideas here on how to stop disruptive behavior before it begins.

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Helpful Health and Rejuvenation Resources for Teachers' Wellbeing | Resilient Educator

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Teacher wellbeing is a crucial element of overall school health. Educators often experience significant amounts of pressure and stress, and don't have the proper tools or mindset to overcome these challenges. We have the right resources for educators to find that healthy work-life balance and live happy and productive lives inside and outside of the classroom.

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Tips and Tricks from Edutopia

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George Lucas Educational Foundation

Pick up strategies to build positive, compassionate classroom communities and cope with disruptive behaviors and distractions.

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Thirty Time Saver Techniques for Teachers

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Lesson Planning

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AI-powered lesson plans and classroom resources | Almanack

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Digital lesson planner and resource generator for teachers.

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Tiers of Behavior Charts for Understanding

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Tiers of Behavior Charts for Understanding

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We teachers look at Canva as a design tool for ourselves in our classrooms-it's a way we can create slides and worksheets and save time. But how often do we promote student use of Canva and work with our students to utilize its artificial intelligence (AI) features for their own projects in an appropriate and effective way? I've had some success doing that by designing assignments with principles from culturally responsive teaching to support the needs of multilingual learners.

Why Canva? It's more than just a design tool -it can be a powerful aid in scaffolding language. I use it daily, not just in the context of creating slides or handouts but also to give students linguistic support and promote their creativity and critical thinking.

Using Canva As A Language Scaffold

Canva has some amazing AI support that teachers can plan to use with intentionality for language development. There are so many ways that classroom teachers can challenge students to create while still having them build their English language proficiency. The tools described in this section can be used only by students over 13 years old-make sure to review your district policy regarding AI usage before diving into this with students.

Utilizing AI-powered Canva Magic Write: Many of us shy away from AI and are afraid to recommend it to students because we worry they will become too enabled by AI support. The beautiful thing about Canva Magic Write is that it doesn't do the work for the student. It just makes recommendations.

If you type in "Create an infographic about climate change in Chicago," Magic Write will generate an outline. In the outline, it will make a recommendation for a layout with statements like "Changes in precipitation:Present data on how rainfall patterns have shifted, leading to more frequent flooding," ina section called "Key Statistics." This is a starting point for the student to write an infographic. Using these AI tools can support language development more than we realize.

Canva Magic Media: This aspect of Canva can support students by producing AI-generated images based on commands you give it. For example, students may come across a phrase in a text that they may not understand, like "A woman wearing a lacy frilly dress." I've worked with a student to be able to command Magic Media to "create a picture of a woman wearing a lacy frilly dress." Multiple images pop up for a person to view.

There are concerns about images popping up that may not be culturally appropriate. If you find an image that looks like a stereotype of a culture or that just isn't appropriate in general, you can click on the image, then click on the report option. This allows you to give Canva feedback about its image-generation feature. Also, images that Canva has already generated in elements can be reported if they are not seen as appropriate images.

Tackling passion projects:My students have used Canva to develop tools for their passion projects. Yearly in my English class, students work with me to develop a project on a cause they care about. Usually, I do this work when students are learning how to produce rhetorical statements and ideas. First, they have to use research databases to learn more about the cause, and then they work to create an advocacy plan with an innovation for this cause. Canva comes in as they design presentations, videos, and infographics to support their ideas.

Then they enter a "Shark Tank" composed of my colleagues, who give up their prep periods to hear the presentations. They give students feedback on how they can strengthen their projects, and the students then take that feedback and put more finishing touches on the projects before I grade them.

Finding better ways to begin writing: This year, I took my students, who are majority Latino and Mexican American, to the Chicago neighborhood of Pilsen, to learn more about how art has told the story of the vibrant Mexican community there. To incorporate students' cultures, I had them work on their rhetorical analysis skills by analyzing the community's murals. Students then used the causes and messages of the murals to create their own protest signs for causes the artists wanted viewers to learn about.

Collaboration in real time: We all loved Jamboard, but you can create your own on Canva. If you go to the whiteboard feature on Canva, sticky notes will pop up in the elements. Your name even appears on them. This is a great feature for managing class discussions, content, and group collaboration.

Canva Supports Community-Building

To help develop their writing ideas, I have students create empathy maps using Canva. Empathy maps are commonly used in the business world to help understand customers and markets, but they also work well in the classroom.

I provide students with a sheet of questions they use to conduct one-on-one interviews with their peers to learn more about each other. Then, in Canva, they create empathy maps about their partners. These maps are divided into four quadrants: What does your partner think and feel? What do they see? What do they say and do? What do they hear? The partner uses the finished map to create their own work. Yes, students are in the process of creation, but they're also experiencing the benefits of community-building by learning about each other. As a final part of this process, we create a gallery walk so that students can learn about the whole class.

Culturally responsive teaching isn't just about finding books about holidays that your students may celebrate and then reading them to the class-that's surface-level work. Canva can be combined with intentional instruction to go deeper and create an enriching classroom experience.

Responses are generated by artificial intelligence. AI can make mistakes.

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This popular design tool can be used to have students engage in activities that amplify creativity and provide linguistic support.

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A set of strategies ranging from the simple-like organizing your desk and room every afternoon-to more complex ideas like turning your teaching philosophy into actions.

ZUMA Press Inc / Alamy Stock Photo

Stepping into the classroom of your first teaching job is the most joyful yet sobering point in your teaching career. It's the moment when you realize that every decision you make, big and small, will have a real impact on the lives of other humans. You've spent years learning how to teach, and now it's time to teach your students how to learn.

Feeling the gravity of this responsibility can be daunting, but focusing on a few simple principles will ease the stress of adjusting to your new role and ensure that you teach confidently from the start.

Turn Your Pedagogical Creed Into Actionable Steps

You may remember learning about a pedagogical creed in one of your college courses-that seemingly esoteric declaration made by all the great educators throughout history. Simply put, your pedagogical creed is your core belief as an educator. Think of it as your mission statement.

What is your role as the teacher? What do you believe education should accomplish for students? What are important components in a classroom environment?

Before you plan your first lesson or think about how to arrange seating, write your educational mission statement; it will be the guiding force behind everything you do. For each belief you list, consider what it would look and sound like in the classroom, as these will become the steps you take as a teacher in your daily work.

Let's take a look at one belief from John Dewey-notable philosopher, educator, and creator of the first pedagogical creed: Education is a social process and represents present life.

There are many actionable ways this belief could show itself in the classroom:

Creating pod seating arrangements of small groups to facilitate discussions.

Planning frequent opportunities for partner and group work.

Incorporating project-based learning where students use the curriculum in authentic ways to add value to their school community and world.

Facilitating Socratic seminars where students express their ideas openly and learn from the viewpoints of their peers.

Creating frequent opportunities to go out into the world and bring the world into the classroom.

These are just a few examples of ways to honor the social process in the classroom regularly and make connections between what students are learning and its authentic applications in the world. By no means does your creed have to be as exhaustive as Dewey's, but putting your educational beliefs into writing will guide you in the many decisions you will have to make as a new educator.

Place your teaching mission statement and list of actions somewhere you will see it often. This will ensure that you are living out your values as an educator from the start and incorporating these important values into your daily lesson plans.

Practical Advice for Teaching

In your early years in the classroom, capitalizing on the knowledge of fellow teachers and setting up systems for all tasks-large and small-will be extremely helpful.

The most valuable way to spend your prep time is in collaborative planning sessions. Seeking connections with colleagues will have a huge impact on your success in those initial years as an educator.

Plan with your grade team as much as possible: Frequent collaboration will spark ideas for strategies to try in your own classroom.

Seek out teachers who have taught your grade before (even if they aren't currently teaching it): Ask if they have any advice or previously created materials you can use for a specific unit or subject.

Understand the progression of learning for the students you teach: If you teach third grade, meet with teachers in second and fourth grades to understand the foundation your students should have and the next step in their learning trajectory.

As educators, most of your day involves engaging students, with only small pockets of time set aside for planning and preparation. Being highly efficient with your time can mean the difference between checking important tasks off of your to-do list and regularly taking your work home for stressful late-night planning and grading.

These next tips for keeping yourself on track are pretty straightforward, even easy.

Take 10 minutes to organize your desk and classroom at the end of the day: Set up your morning message or objective on the board, and pull the materials you will need for the next day's activities. This will ensure that your first few minutes of school are spent welcoming your students and not frantically setting up.

Set up systems for seemingly simple tasks: For example, having a copy basket on your desk in which to drop materials and designating a specific time for copying materials will mitigate frequent time-wasting treks to the copier.

Developing a protocol for student assessment can seem like an overwhelming task, but creating a simple assessment plan in your daily routine will ensure that you are highly responsive to students' needs.

Quickly assess every lesson you teach: Think about what worked well, what didn't go as planned, and what could have made it better. Allow yourself the flexibility to make tweaks to future lessons. Additionally, try collecting exit tickets to see how your students perceived a particular lesson.

Incorporate informal conferences regularly: Create a one-page document extrapolating the strategies and skills you expect students to master across a unit. On this sheet you can jot down notes when meeting with students. Not only does it cut back on paperwork, but also it ensures that you are focused in your meetings with students and give the most relevant feedback.

Have students grade their own quizzes: Not only will this help students strengthen their ability to self-assess their understanding, but also it is efficient and adds more value to your quiz by empowering students. Self-assessment is a skill that students need to be taught, but putting in the practice as well as creating clear, student-friendly rubrics and checklists will be a benefit to both you and your students.

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New Teachers: How to Start Your First Year With Confidence

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A set of strategies ranging from the simple-like organizing your desk and room every afternoon-to more complex ideas like turning your teaching philosophy into actions. ZUMA Press Inc / Alamy Stock Photo Stepping into the classroom of your first teaching job is the most joyful yet sobering point in your teaching career.

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20 Questions New Teachers Should Ask Their Mentors

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20 Questions New Teachers Should Ask Their Mentors

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Smart Questions New Teachers Should Ask Veteran Teachers

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New to teaching? Make the most of your mentor or grade-level team with these 20 thoughtful questions that will help you navigate your first year.

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4 Ways to Positively Connect with Students

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4 Ways to Positively Connect with Students

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These behaviors serve as communication, and understanding the message helps us to address the student’s underlying needs.