Pick two of the errors described in Chapter 3, pages 9-13, of "Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids" and write yourself a letter of advice about how you're going to avoid these mistakes in the coming year. Include one or two useful quotes from the chapter.
Pages 9-13
From here forward in our book club, we will give partial credit to comments that are incomplete (i.e. that don't provide all the details requested in the assignment) or that contain wacky writing errors (like misspellings, missing words or awkward sentences). Sorry, but no rewrites! 25 WBT Certification Points possible; 10 points partial credit.
Reminder: Please sign your post with your real first and last name.
Reminder: Please sign your post with your real first and last name.
Dear Brian,
ReplyDeleteDid you know that "the greatest mistake we make as instructors is making our classes more difficult to teach?" As crazy as it sounds we are making these children more rebellious.
Often times "confronting rebellious students when they have audience of their peers, will make them braver, more rebellious." So how should we go about our teaching without confronting these students in front of their peers? One way is to pull the child off to the side and talk to them about the rule they broke. This way it is between them and you. We could also just say the rule number that they broke without even saying the student's name and have the class state the rule while using the gesture. These two tips will help stop them from being so rebellious because they won't have the audience of their peers to engage them in continuing the poor behavior. So be sure to try these tips during the next school year instead of confronting these students in front of their peers.
Brian, did you know "if you think your disruptive students should be like you, you'll make them even more disruptive." Yeah, I know Brian from time to time you have told your students what a great student you were in school and how you always followed the rules and did all of your work on time. This is not going to help matters. They will continue to defy you. Instead, teach them life skills and engage your students with talking less, giving less worksheets, and have them work with partners to tell their partners what they have learned. This will help your students to do the right thing like you did when you were in school.
By trying these tips Brian, you are sure to have well rounded students who come to school ready to learn. Give them a try and let me know the outcome.
Brian
Hopkins' Hoppin' Happenings
Brian,
DeleteVery good post on two big mistakes teachers make in classroom management, and how teachers should address these issues! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear Tabitha,
ReplyDeleteYou know that there are 7 mistakes that teachers make when it comes to teaching. The two you need to work on the most to make next year even better than this year is to work more on reviewing your units and revamping the way you taught reading and math. It’s time to make sure that you use the WBT lesson plan format of instruction as well as small group instruction more in math and continue to build upon it in reading and writing next year. This means that you will have to plan a lot this summer since you have more time to plan and change things around. According to Mr. Biffle in chapter 3, “Outstanding instruction involves huge, truly mountainous amounts of labor, preparing, practicing, researching, thinking through, refining instructional units.” This is what you need to work on over the summer: research small group instruction for math and start to plan your small group instruction for the math units and reading units as well as spelling. Remember that you also want to incorporate more vocabulary instruction this year which means a vocabulary word jar and so much more. The one thing to keep in mind throughout the summer and all next year is that “Lazy teachers create classes that could care less about what is being taught and thus, are lovely breeding grounds for rebellion.” You need to plan the first six weeks of instruction and figure out how to incorporate the techniques and lessons of WBT all the while using the curriculum that has been mapped out for you by the district.
Tabitha, you need to focus more on growing as an educator and changing more this summer and next year. It’s time to continue to use more of the WBT techniques and lessons next year. Reading and participating in the book club is one way to help you succeed in growing as an educator. Signing up for the professional development that is offered during the summer is also a great way to help grow as an educator. To paraphrase the US Army it’s time for you to be all that you can be. You want your students to grow so it’s time for you to grow. “You’re a teacher. Grow, learn, transform yourself, or die by ossification. If you’re afraid to try new teaching techniques, you are petrifying yourself to death.” You don’t want to be a veteran teacher who is stagnate and never changing. Your students next year will be different and need to learn in different ways. You know the curriculum so now it’s up to you to learn and grow and change. The most important thing to remember for the next year is to make sure that you don’t make the seven most common mistakes made by teachers: control your temper; be superbly organized; fall in love with your profession; work hard at teaching, when you’re not in class; understand that your students are not your clones, and grow or die.
Tabitha
Another awesome post from you, Tabitha! Organization, solid lessons, and personal growth will help all educators avoid two of the big seven mistakes! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
ReplyDeleteDear cathleen
ReplyDeleteYou've Ben teaching long enuf that you should no this but as you are getting up in your ears of teaching , I guess we need to go over it again! Lets go over the two most important issues I have with your classroom.
First, the teachers manual (script) doesn't include everything to make an exciting 1,2,3 teach....okay lesson. Go out there and seek the most crazy effective way to engage all of your students. "Outstanding instruction involves huge, truly mountainous amounts of labor, preparing, practicing, researching,thinking through, refining instructional units. So start in the foothills of Preparing and Practicing as you move along to Research and Thinking Through don't get bogged done in the mire! Cathleen, put those boots on, and refind your units with gusto!
Secondly, as you venture out to possibly the unknown think to yousself . . 'If I don't do this.... I'm gonna grow or die. Put this picture in your head . . . .a seesaw. 'You are on one end, and your entire class of challenging students is on the other.' You must develop yourself as an educator to show your students and colleagues that seeking out a totally deeping effective units will always (okay most of the time) provide everyone an opportunity to be engaged while learning.
Last, but not least, there are seven most common teaching mistakes. The two above I believe will help you the most as you seek out new adventures to make even your most challenging students run to your classroom to learn.
Love Always,
Cathleen
Sorry, but we can give no points for this post. There are too many writing errors.
DeleteDear Laken,
ReplyDeleteAs this upcoming year approaches, you need to focus on 2 of the 7 ways to prevent challenging students from becoming more challenging in the classroom. Since you are already a bit obsessive with organization, this is not an area that needs to be focused on. Your students already know where to put every book and school supply once they are finished using them. It would not hurt for you to share your organization strategies with your fellow teachers.
Your first area to improve on to diminish challenging student’s power is pulling students aside when they are being a behavior problem in the classroom. According to Chris Biffle, “Confronting rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers, will make them braver, more rebellious” (Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Students, pg. 10). You have been working on giving Scoreboard points and using ping pong to give points for positive and negative classroom interactions, which is evident to be successful in Whole Brain Teaching. When dealing with certain challenging students, further actions may be needed. Instead of saying a child’s name, giving them a look, or having them clip down, I would like for you to call the child to your desk or in the hallway and speak with them. You can even ignore the behavior and when you have the child alone, speak with them about their inappropriate actions. Those certain students do not need more attention drawn to their behavior; these students need to feel their unsuitable actions are not fazing you.
It is evident the amount of work you do outside of school is well above the normal amount teachers put into their instruction. I would like for you to focus the majority of your outside of school hours on making all of your lessons fit the Whole Brian Teaching lesson plan format. This will prevent your challenging students from ever having the opportunity to show their unwanted behavior. During your lesson planning time, think of ways to prevent worksheet and create more partner talking. Remember, students learn better when their whole body is engaged in what they are learning. You could even begin creating social studies and science power pix for your word walls!
I wish you the best of luck this upcoming school year. As you prepare for the fall, remember “30% of our students are one, or more, grade levels behind” (U.S. Census Bureau, Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging students, pg. 12). With WBT lesson plans and decreasing negative behaviors in the classroom, all students will have total brain involvement and will increase their educational capacity! Power to the teacher!
Respectfully,
Laken
Good post Laken! You chose a very important point - not confronting students with an audience. Even better than pulling a student to the side is to use the class to help keep rebellious students in check. Using the five rules is a great way to do that. I can't wait until you read chapter 7 - it's awesome! Keep up the great work, Laken! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Vivian,
ReplyDeleteNow that we have gone over the seven common teaching mistakes let’s focus on the ones you need to work on over the summer so you will be ready in the fall to start a new year.
First you must be organized, you cannot just wing it. As a substitute you must be prepared because the day will come when the teacher does not leave instructions or plans. As stated in the book, Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids, “disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms”. Not only do you need to have age appropriate lessons and games planned. You should bring your own supplies, chalk, markers, pencils and paper. When the teacher supplies the lessons follow them and the daily schedule. Challenging students thrive on loosey goosey “let’s see, I’m not sure what we should do next” teachers. Keep to the routine they are familiar with as closely as possible.
Next do not confront rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers. “Our worst students are geniuses at rebellion”. You do not want to give them the opportunity to increase their reputation for toughness by confronting them when they are onlookers. Fortunately WBT techniques were created to deal with these challenging students.
Best of luck in the coming year,
Vivian
Vivial - you hit the nail RIGHT on the head when it comes to being a substitute. There's not a better example of how important it is for a teacher to be organized! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteSorry Vivian, I just noticed I mistyped your name!
DeleteIt's ok SMeador I knew it was me ; )
DeleteVivian I am so impressed with your post! Do you want to sub in Warrensburg, MO sometime?
DeleteDear Lindsey,
ReplyDeleteBeing a teacher, I am sure you know there are many mistakes one can make in the classroom. One great thing a teacher can do with those mistakes is to learn from them. I once read a great, yet very true quote in a book, "Bad teaching breeds challenging students." This is something that is common in any school district around the world. Everyone knows of a teacher that hates their job and could care less of how their students behave and learn in the classroom. Those students will then move on to other teachers and will they ever have their hands full with those kids! What a shame that those students missed an entire school year in an environment with no structure or motivation. I want to remind you to always love your job as a teacher. Remember all of the students that you have changed their lives in some way or another. Also, think of those smiling faces of students from you past that come to visit you as they move up through the grade levels. Lastly, do not forget about the fun moments that only teachers can share with their students. Promise me this. If you ever begin to hate your job then you must quit and find something else. Do not affect the students that walk into your room eager to learn with a negative "I don't care" attitude.
Here is another important thing to remember. Your challenging students are not you. I am sure at one point in time in your schooling a teacher thought you may have been a tad challenging. I want you to remember that when you are face to face with a fellow challenging student. Please never assume that a child is aware of the many traits of a "perfect student". You must help build their character based on each individual to become a better learner. Here is a quote that sums this thought up perfectly, "Invite students into your world; don't expect to find them already there."
Enjoy each new year as it will bring new faces and new challenges. Make sure to use this wonderful advice that I have gave you.
Lindsey
Wonderful post, Lindsey! I especially like your comment, "Please never assume that a child is aware of the many traits of a perfect student." For too many children, the classroom can be a totally different environment than their homes! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Cheryl,
ReplyDeleteBefore you begin next school year, there are a couple of things that I want you to remember. You had a rather challenging class this school year, and rumor has it that the next grade coming up has even more challenging students. According to Chris Biffle who wrote "Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Students," the "greatest mistake we make as instructors is making our classes more difficult to teach." I'm sure you don't want to do this next year, so I have a couple of pieces of advice for you from Biffle's book.
First, be sure to confront challenging students when they don't have an audience. I heard you say several times last year that John knew just how far to go with you without going over the line. When you call him out on his behavior, you're giving him an audience and taking valuable teaching time away from the class. Biffle says that "confronting rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers, will make them braver, more rebellious." Instead, try having the whole class recite the rule that's being broken and/or talk to the student privately so there's no audience.
My second piece of advice is to be superbly organized. You're already organized, but you can go even further with it. "Disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms." If you say you expect X, Y, and Z to be on a paper, then don't accept anything less. Spend some time this summer organizing your binders, cupboards, and file cabinet. Before school starts in August, have a plan on how you want the students' desks to be organized and hold them to this plan. "At minimum, there should be a place for everything in your classroom, and everything should always be in the same place."
So, Cheryl, if you pledge to try to follow this advice, I am sure it will make next year much more enjoyable. Following the WBT techniques should help also,
Good luck in the coming year,
Cheryl
Cheryl, you have given yourself some valuable advice we should all take heed of! Thanks for speaking to two of the toughest challenges in any classroom! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Sally,
ReplyDeleteIn a few months summer break will be over and you will start school with a new class of 4th graders. While you've learned much over the course of your career, excellent teachers are never satisfied with past performance. This year I want you to focus on improving, just as you would challenge your students to improve. Don't compare yourself to anyone else, but concentrate on getting better in two crucial areas.
First, stay calm when faced with challenging students. Losing your cool is very uncool for a teacher. It sets a bad example and it's not an effective strategy. The kids most likely to push your proverbial buttons probably come from loud, chaotic homes. You are an amateur compared to what many of them get at home. "If being addressed by screaming, out of control adults made our challenging kids better, then children from crazed families would be our model pupils."
Second, it's an unrealistic expectation to think your challenging students should be like you. Unrealistic expectations set you up for frustration and disappointment. "The more you look for your own shining face in your class...the more detestable you'll find students who don't mimic your values." Look for something to love about each of your students - it's there. Sometimes challenging behaviors are just an attempt by students to get someone to say, "You are loved."
Remember, every interaction with a student is a chance to put the WBT principles in to practice and enter Teacher Heaven!
Sincerely,
Sally
Right on, Sally! Recognizing the unique qualities in our students is so very important! You are on your way to Teacher Heaven! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteHey Andy,
ReplyDeleteI've been thinking about how you can avoid some problems next year. Last year the two main problems I saw were that you weren't happy and you were winging it. Yes, I saw even your best students were misbehaving terribly. Fortunately, a friend of mine told me something that was hard to hear but made sense. The sad truth is that your own bad teaching has created these challenging students. As my old friend Pogo used to say, "We have met the enemy, and he is US!"
So, how will you make next year more enjoyable and productive? First, when it comes to regaining your passion for teaching, you need to practice what you preach. You are always telling the kids that they can choose to see the cup half full or half empty. You say that there's always something good they can find in their situation; just as easily as they can find something to complain about. So, the stress of your workload, that keeps getting added to, does not have to be something to dwell on. Remember that You are becoming a better teacher. And the fear of not being the perfect teacher can become an opportunity to depend on God's grace even more. You see, it was actually that overwhelming pressure that caused me to search out help on the internet. And that's where I discovered something wonderful: Whole Brain Teaching. This method has actually given me a way to put fun back into each individual lesson. Now people say my tone is happier and I'm more patient. You should look into it.
The other adjustment you could make is to start planning lessons for next year right now during the summer. See, the more planning you do, the less behavior problems you will have. Now that it's summer, you can finally take some time to get a head start planning lessons. I understand, your principal expects "rigor." I know the time with the kids is exhausting mentally, physically and especially emotionally. And when the day is done, I can imagine you barely make the 30 minute drive, cook, clean and take care of the family. So how much time is there for grading and planning after school? You know there isn't much. On top of that, you need to be kind to yourself as well. You need time to "smell the roses," because you will treat others the way you treat yourself. So, you may not have much of a vacation this summer. But giving up some time this summer is one way to pay the price of getting better lessons planned.
There you have it for now. Keep me posted!
Andy
Andy, your determination to learn and incorporate new strategies into your classroom is to be commended! When you add in all those well prepared lessons, you can't help but be more successful in the coming year! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Julie,
ReplyDeleteWith summer here, you can rest and enjoy some fun away from the hard work of the classroom. At the same time, planning for next year is inevitable. There are some common teaching mistakes that teachers make but are easily avoidable you should keep in mind.
Sometimes students can really get on a teacher’s last nerve. They know what buttons to push and just how to push them. The teacher yells and loses control not only of the situation, but also can lose control of the classroom. Those students are looking such an opportunity to further their disruptive behavior. Remember, keep in control and speak to that student individually outside of the view of his or her peers.
Another key you need to remember is that your students aren’t you! While the majority of the time, you were a studious and respectful child in school, not all kids today are like that. Instead of letting their differences bother you, extend a hand and help them understand how to study more effectively and give them small steps to become organized.
You can be a creative and effective teacher. Keep your cool no matter what and help your students become stronger learners.
You’re teaching pal,
Julie
Hi Julie!
ReplyDeleteReflecting on how to better meet the daily challenges of students, while appreciating the individuality of each student can be daunting some days! I like your "extend a hand" suggestion to improve the effectiveness of your teaching style! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear Kathy,
ReplyDeleteI am writing to you today to help you with the problems you might face tomorrow. Please read this letter each morning for the first 3 weeks of school and then at least once a month throughout the school year. I know that repetition will put this in my long-term memory. Two things I want you to remember are “when we lose our temper with difficult kids and yell at them we don’t fix our teaching problem, we make it worse” and “grow or die”(Biffle 10).
Remember Kathy, that horrible class you had two years ago? Well, they did not get better when you yelled at them, in fact, they were worse. “If being addressed by screaming, out of control adults made our challenging kids better, then children from crazed families would be our model pupils.” (10) So, control yourself Kathy, bring your dramatic arts background to life and put a smile on your face at all times. Address each problem like a cool, controlled police officer with a calm voice and a peaceful demeanor. Kathy, remember last year when a student was making a poor choice and you didn’t get mad, you just handed him the number four-practice card. He didn’t get angry; you didn’t get angry. He came in for detention and, voilà ; you didn’t have that problem again. That is the kind of behavior you should strive for each and every time you face a challenging student.
The next thing to remember is “grow or die”. (12) The students, the curriculum, the world changes and so should you. Don’t be afraid to try new things, even if you fail. It is never failure when one is learning. Think of the quote “…teaching as a seesaw. You are on one end, and your entire class of challenging students is on the other. As your growth declines, their challenging behavior skyrockets.” (12) You love teaching, so try the WBT methods and watch your students climb to new heights in a positive way.
Power On!
Kathy Powers
Great job Kathy! We do need to coninuously remind ourselves of our goals as the year goes on. That's what these learning communities can do as well - stay connected, and keep us on the right path. We can all learn from each other! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Patrick, you have been teaching for 12 years now. Every year, you believe you get better at it and are happy you made it through the year without too much trouble from THOSE students. By now, you have mastered your curriculum and have a very good idea of the progression, but why do you think you keep having some students who just won’t participate in physical education? It is easy to claim: “they are not very athletic, so they don’t try”. What about the others who are not very athletic? What do you think you should (must) do in order to improve to the point where all students are participating in your class? As Chris Biffle mentioned in his book: Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids, (p.11) “if you don’t pay the price before you step into the classroom, you’ll pay the price as you fumble through shoddy lessons”. Your biggest challenge is to realize that, even though you know the sequence and curriculum, you must still prepare each year because you will have different students. Curriculum map aside, preparation is key. Here is some advice you learned during the summer of 2013: keep your temper under control, re-teach the expectations when necessary, stay organized, work hard during the summer months and never stop learning. There is no better way to sum this letter up then by using three words Mr. Biffle use in his book (p. 12): “grow or die”.
ReplyDeleteHi Patrick! Great job! You are SO right- "THOSE students" need to be motivated too! I am so happy to say that you have earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteDear Caitlin,
ReplyDeleteThe school year is almost over. That means it’s time to reflect on the year and choose two areas to focus on improving for the next school year. Coach B listed 7 common teaching mistakes and we are going to choose 2 to focus on. Let’s combine numbers 3 and 5, “Disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms” and “The less work you do outside of class, the more work your classes will be.” Let’s face facts; you are not the most organized person on this planet. Excellent instruction requires a lot of planning and preparation. It requires practicing, researching best practices, refining and fine tuning lessons, and LOTS of organization. Your students know where things belong in the classroom, how to move from place to place, and are engaged (for the most part). Follow the old adage “A place for everything and everything in its place”. Take 10-15 minutes at the end of the day to straighten up the classroom. Next year, YOU need to be more organized, STAY organized, and take the time to better plan out your lessons. I know you have children at home and want to devote time to them, so you need to work on finding a good balance between planning and organizing for work and spending time with your family. The book states, “If you aren’t willing to invest hours of preparation in what will turn into minutes of classroom teaching, your challenging students, or worse still, your best students will present you with the bill”. Can you afford that bill?
The second thing I want you to remember is that “confronting rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers will make them braver, more rebellious.” If you have an issue with an individual student that needs to be addressed, do so away from the rest of the class. Those challenging students love the attention they get from defying us and retaliating in from of their classmates. They truly are geniuses at rebellion. When we give in to that quest for attention we are only encouraging their rebellion.
Love and Funtricity,
Caitlin
Caitlin, good post! I agree, finding a balance between work and family is a difficult task. I have three kids, so I completely get what you are saying! There can be a balance though, that helps you stay organized at school while still having enough time to devote to family. WBT can help you do that! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Self,
ReplyDeleteYou know you made yourself a promise to keep on learning; learning new ways to reach your students, new ways to engage even those most challenging students. It’s a good thing you decided to do Chris Biffle’s book study: Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids. So let’s not make the mistake that we made last year by confronting challenging students when they have an audience. Do not let them “relish the spotlight” or “nourish their rebellion” by confronting them when they have onlookers. Remember how TK would keep on going once he knew he had gotten your attention off of the lesson and onto him. Unfortunately, you lost the attention of the rest of the class. WBT techniques will help you to engage TK and the other challengers so that they will be active, contributing students, which is what you really want. What’s important is that everyone receives a good education.
Here’s another bit of advice you need to live by: Grow or Die. If teaching is a seesaw, some days you win, other days the challenging students win. If you grow in your profession, in this case, by trying new techniques, new strategies, then, perhaps, the seesaw could be balanced and everyone wins. By engaging the student to use their whole brain, you leave little room for behavior problems. The best part of Whole Brain Teaching is that it brings the ‘fun!’ into every lesson for both the student and the teacher.
So please evoke your Power of the Teacher and try these two things this year. Remember you should keep Rule #5 as well: Keep your dear teacher happy!
The Voice Inside Your Head,
Lisa
Good job Lisa! We're so glad you decide to join the book club too! You are completely right - challenging students relish the spotlight and want your attention. WBT allows them to do both...but while on task! Wow. You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDearest Marianne,
ReplyDeleteI know you strive to provide the best learning environment for your students, however, after reading Chapter 3, Seven Common Teaching Mistakes, I noticed a couple of items from that list that you may identify with and should avoid. Firstly, “confronting rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers, will make them braver, more rebellious”. They “relish the spotlight”. Therefore remember the wise words from your college professor when she said dealing with a extremely disruptive student, one should “praise in public,and reprimand in private.” Also remember that magic WBT classroom rule # 5, “Keep your dear teacher happy”, can be used to enforce a cohesiveness between all learners and disarm a disruption. Moreover, using the “Scoreboard” can help unify your classroom and provide an opportunity to enfold the rebels with peer pressure to correct that behavior.
Secondly, grow or die! As a teacher, it's my job to grow, learn, and transform myself, or “die by ossification.” You've got an exemplary method of teaching set out before you in Whole Brain Teaching. The more you practice their strategies, “the more power you will have as an instructor to change your students' lives, and the more power your students will have to master the learning task you set before them.” That is the epitome of an effective teacher and helps qualify why we should constantly be growing.
Remember these two mistakes and their remedies to become the best teacher that you can be. You can do it, Marianne! Best wishes to you in the coming school year.
Hi Marianne!
DeleteFantastic post! Using that spotlight at the appropriate moments is a challenge some days! You are correct to point out the value of the Scoreboard and Rule 5! So glad you are choosing to move forward on your WBT journey! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear Sarah,
ReplyDeleteYou are going to a brand new school next year to teach kindergarten and you want to make it the best year ever so let’s avoid some common mistakes you’ve made yourself this past year. “When we lose our temper with difficult kids and yell at them, we don’t fix our teaching problem, we make it worse.” You have a pretty high level of patience, which is why you are a primary teacher, but every once in a while, a kid comes through that really seems to test your nerves. Don’t lose your cool with them. You don’t always know the home life and they may get yelled at constantly at home, so getting it at school is not going to help the problem. Control your temper and find positive ways to nurture their behavior to try and turn it around. Also, remember with those difficult students you may have “Confronting rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers, will make them braver, more rebellious.” Refrain from calling a child out in class. It is not going to make his/her behavior stop, but may fuel the fire because now that child has a captive audience of peers to goof off in front of. Instead, calmly take that child aside and talk with him/her to find out the problem and ways you can work together to solve it. This way, the child no longer has an audience and will be more adapt to talk with you and not goof off when it is just you and the child. Have a great year and I think you will do great!
Sarah
Sarah,
DeleteI think you're going to have a great year, too! Your thoughts on patience in the classroom are exactly right for you and your students. Yes, avoid the captive audience for challenging students! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear Diana,
ReplyDeleteDid you just read Chapter three of Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids? I saw two of the seven common teaching mistakes that cause most of your problems last year. Want a better year? Here are my suggestions taken from Chris Biffle’s book.
First you need work on WBT Mistake # 3 and get organized. Start with making your walls WBT, label supplies, reduce papers, and streamline your classroom management system. I know you felt you were organized, but I do remember many days you were looking for this and that or you changed a few assignments for various reasons. Think of the days when you insisted the students clean out their desks. What did your desk look like? What message did you send and how much time did you waste allowing some students to act out. You lacked organization and students saw it. I am sure if you tracked it on days you were less organized some students acted out.
Your second mistake was #5, not spending time outside of class on the right type of preparation. This summer you need to make a master copy of all instruction material together by unit, create a teacher binder with all important information, and most important make sure your room is WBT ready with class rules, Genius Ladder, Super Improver's Wall, and more.
Spend some major time this summer, get organized, and have a smooth class starting this fall.
Diana
You go, Diana! You zeroed in on some common problems too many teachers have! I can't wait to hear all about your first day back to school this year! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Gina,
ReplyDeleteI saw you wince while reading through Chapter 3, “Seven Common Teaching Mistakes.” I know you have spent a lot of time becoming organized and planning your lessons, but I think we both know you have two areas where you need to refine your skills. These first graders that are your ‘tough customers’ are not like you. As Coach B says, “If you think your disruptive students should be like you, you’ll make them even more disruptive.” Because everyone is not like you, build relationships with your ‘toughest customers’ and help them see that learning is an amazing experience, show them that books provide an escape, if even for a little bit. What really made you wince was what Coach B wrote about rebellious students! “Confronting rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers will make them braver, more rebellious.” It makes sense now that CG would almost chuckle after pulling all the classes’ attention to him at the beginning of the year. Remember when you started using the WBT strategies how you began to take the spotlight off of him? Please continue to learn and practice and refine the strategies you are learning. These ‘tough customers’ are ‘who they are because of bad teaching,’ Chris says. Make your job easier, not harder, so you continue to love what you do!
Keep learning,
Gina
Hi Gina!
DeleteYour reflection on not giving a challenged student an audience, and taking the time to recognize the uniqueness of each student is excellent! These are daily disciplines all teachers need to be adept at! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear Peg,
ReplyDeleteCurrently, it is summer but, it is also time to look forward to the new school year. I have learned that there are 7 Common Mistakes teachers regularly make.
The first one to focus on is that,"Disorganized teachers breed chaotic clasrooms." Begin planning the routines you wish to establish in the classroom so that "there is a place for everything and everything has a place." Structure is the foundation to having a well run classroom. Students thrive when they know what to expect and how things should be done. Part of a well organized classroom is well thought out lesson plans, being ready to go as soon as you enter the classroom, with extensions for the advanced students, activities for the students who are on course but not quite there and interventions in place for the students that need a reteach.Keeping the students actively involved in the learning process will lead to students who feel successful, keep behavior issues at a minimum and have them play an important part in their education.
When behavior issues arise always remember that "Confronting a rebellious student when they have an audience of their peers will make them braver and more rebelliious." These students should be confronted to the side quietly discussing the rules that were broken and how this behavior can be turned around to a more positive vein. This method will help the child save face, rather than trying to impress his peers. Defusing is always better than confrontation.
I hope these suggestions help you have a very fun and successful year.
Sincerely,
Peg
Hi Peg!
DeleteExcellent post on two very big challenges, organization and rebellious students, in classrooms everywhere! I predict fun and success in your classroom next year! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear Deanna,
ReplyDeleteAfter reading Chapter 3 – Seven Common Teaching Mistakes, in Chris Biffle’s book Whole Brain Teaching for Challening Kids, you started to attack every little mistake you have made. Remember we all make mistakes and you are always telling your kids that mistakes are how we learn… so take your own advice.
Of the Seven Common Teaching Mistakes two really stood out for me! Number 3: Disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms and Number 6: If you think your disruptive students should be like you, you’ll make them even more disruptive. You are the POSTER TEACHER for these two mistakes. Make it stop!
Okay, get ready for this… you have been lying to yourself! Your disorganized / cluttered classroom IS affecting your students. How often have you become snippy when a student has offered solutions for what to do next? They are doing this because they have noticed that you are not prepared. “The less class structure you have, the less structured your classes will be!”
Okay, Mrs. Schuler, face it… you were a bit of a teacher’s pet in school! You may not have been the BEST student but you always wanted to please your teacher! By expecting your disruptive students to be like you … you are making them more disruptive! Follow Coach B’s advice, “Invite students into your world; don’t expect to find them already there.”
Remember you want to be a teacher… not a zookeeper… so all the “stuff” you have learned through the years means “NOTHING, if we can’t keep challenging students from turning classrooms into zoos.”
You are already a good teacher… sometimes you need to remember that you are already doing great things for your kids! Whole Brain Teaching has made a huge difference in who you are as a teacher and in your real life! Keep on this path!
Sincerely,
Deanna
Deanna, I love your frankness and honesty! Being able to recognize obstacles in our classroom gets us that much closer to the victory line! Congratulations! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDeanna I can so relate to your post! OMG!! How often have I felt like a zoo keeper! Here's to a great year next year!
DeleteFellow Teacher Chelsea
Chelsea... thank you for your support!
DeleteDear Future Self,
ReplyDeleteYou are continuing your journey towards finding a teaching position. You know you are ready to take any challenge. You will strive to always do your best in order to provide the best instruction for all of your students. Well, things will not always fall into place. Therefore, I’ve written advice on two out of seven common teaching mistakes for you to improve upon.
First, organization is everything! Organization has many different levels. You must begin with organizing your classroom. Thus, organizing your classroom to create a positive environment where all students feel secure and comfortable. For example, organize all materials in your classroom so that you always find them in the same place. Another level to organization is your lesson planning. You must organize your lesson plans and all materials needed for you to deliver your lesson. Remember, “The less class structure you, have the less structure your classes will be.” So, for now, you can begin by collecting and organizing materials which you know will be essential. For example, collect your five classroom rules and any behavior strategies you plan to use.
Second, do not confront rebellious students. Rebellious students thrive on attention not only from the teacher but from their peers. A rebellious student will only continue his/her behavior if you nourish and attend to the behavior. Another thing to remember, “We make challenging students more challenging, we nourish their rebellion, by confronting them when they have onlookers.” Rather, begin by approaching the students using close proximity and quickly address the behavior. Second, quickly praise and recognize the student when he/she is displaying desired classroom behavior. Third, learn as much as you can about the student. Do not assume the student behaves a certain way “just because.” In many cases there are serious underlying reasons which explain their behavior.
Now that you know of two out of seven common teaching mistakes, be sure to work on the rest just as you will for the two I just shared with you.
Always here for you!
Present Self.
Hi Nancy!
ReplyDeleteExcellent post! Classroom organization is time consuming, but ultimately, time saving! Your lesson planning plays a major role here! It is very important to also understand the role teachers play in choosing appropriate responses to challenging children. You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear Erica,
ReplyDeleteI want you to think of your dream class. The students in your classroom are attentive, they are all putting forth effort, and they are passionate about learning. Your classroom is “full of orderly fun.” That is a dream classroom! In order to achieve this type of classroom you must be passionate about teaching and make it your goal to empower students to make the most of their learning. Of course not everyday will be a dream, but most days this can be achievable with implementing the Whole Brain Teaching system in your classroom.
You will encounter those challenging students who on occasion will be disruptive. They will challenge you and will want the spotlight, and you may feel obliged to lose your temper with those students and yell at them. However, this will only make it worse. “Many of our most disruptive students come from families that are filled with superbly experienced, high volume yellers.” (pg.10) My advice to you is to take three deep breaths, and then speak to that student or students in a calm manner explaining to them what is expected of them and how they made you a very unhappy teacher. And if you feel the need to confront the student about the behavior do so outside of the classroom so the student doesn’t have an audience. Students need a good role model and they “scream” for structure. So be consistent in your classroom management plan and those disruptive behaviors should decrease.
Let me end this letter with giving you the great law that governs the universe and the classroom “Grow or die.” (pg. 12) You must grow as an educator and not be afraid to try new techniques or methods in your classroom. Those methods may transform your classroom into the orderly fun you are striving for.
Erica,
DeleteVery good letter. When teachers recognize they must continue to learn and grow, the sky is the limit for what they might achieve. You are one of those that is growing as you pursue WBT certification. Good for you! Here are 25 Certification Points for you! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear the teacher I want to be,
ReplyDeleteStress can be a cruel thing that lets our emotions get out of hand. Remember, “Do not sweat the small stuff.” Losing your temper will not solve problems with disruptive students or students who will not complete assignments. WBT rules will help solve this problem along with some stress coping skills such as yoga. Students have their own set of problems they have to deal with, and you do not need to compound them by raising your voice. They, more than likely, hear enough yelling at home. Next year, strive to be more patient, kind, loving, and nurturing, and watch students respond with a more positive attitude.
The next thing I would recommend for next year is not to confront disruptive students in front of the class. This is embarrassing! How would you respond in the same situation with such a captive audience? This only breeds more undesirable behaviors. “We make challenging students more challenging, we nourish their rebellion, by confronting them when they have onlookers.” (p. 10) I suggest finding a time in the day to have a heart to heart with the disruptive student to reinforce your expectations, together find solutions, and then create a plan to carry out the preferred solution between you and the student. Also, make a date to reevaluate the plan to help the student see that you really care and that they have a say in how to help them become a better student.
You can do this girl; just let your hair down and go with the flow. This summer you are learning new techniques that will enable you to become this wonderful, nurturing teacher that will be an inspiration to others. Your sanity, as well as your students, will appreciate the time and effort you put into making your class a safe, caring, environment in which to learn.
Deborah,
ReplyDelete"Time and effort" - the 2 things that are so important to achieving an effective, efficient classroom. How wonderful you are putting forth the time and effort to bring WBT to life in your classroom. I promise you will not be disappointed. Here are 25 Certification Points for you. Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
By the way, I love your greeting!
Dear Chelsea,
ReplyDeleteI know you love WBT! You are going to have a very successful year I'm sure. Keeping in step with the whole brain techniques, you know that repetition is vital! I don't want you to get caught up in everyday teaching challenges and forget some of the most important DONT's this year. You know, we all tend to fall back into our old habits so I hope this letter serves as a reminder to remember these two important mistake that you might make!
Remember, the less class structure you have, the less structured your class will be. No more of this fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants routine. I know that can sometimes be hard for you and I know you get your most creative ideas in the moment. But that is not always what is best for your students. Your job description is not to be creative at the expense of class routine and structure. Jot your fabulous idea down and plan a round them for the next day or the next year if the moment has passed. BE ORGANIZED! Put your stapler in the same place every time you put it down! You know what I am saying to you! There is a place for everything in your room and everything should always be in that same place. Plan ahead Chelsea! It will make your life that much easier and your students behavior will reflect that. They need to be engaged and can't be if your wandering around the room looking for the test they are supposed to take.
Chelsea, gone are the days of calling out students in front of the whole class. You know better now! Confronting rebellious students when they have an audience only makes them braver and more rebellious! That's not what you want! So let's not make those critters more challenging by nourishing their rebellion.
Use all the tools you have learned through WBT and watch you and your students have a wonderful year!!!!
I'm proud of you and your desire to be a better teacher! You are awesome!
Love,
Me
Chelsea, you're right, it is so easy to fall back into old habits when we don't take the time to bring the structure and routine to our classes. Soon, in time, our "old habits" can become those great WBT techniques - there's no other option if we want our classes to truly succeed! Good post! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteOkay, Girl,
ReplyDeleteCoach just presented you with the perfect opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. In his book, he said, “Disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms.” So, your response to that will be to compose a list of some of the things you will do over the summer break to be ready for next year. Coach won’t mind if this document has dual purposes. First, that list will answer the Book club assignment. Second, because this will be your first full year of using Whole Brain Teaching, the list will help you get organized for SY 2013-2014.
• Since every morning, you are the collaborative teacher who goes into the 4th and 5th grade remedial general education classrooms to teach written language, I’m going to buy a rolling cart for you to use next year. All of your materials will be neatly organized and readily available. I will not tolerate a repeat of last year!
• During the summer, you will make posters of all of the Nxt Gen Standards (WV’s Common Core) for written language for 4th and 5th grades. You will laminate them and hang them on the bulletin board in your room, as soon as your room has been cleaned, probably by the end of July. You can attach the appropriate one to your newly purchased cart daily during the new school year.
• Because you love the WBT 5-step template, you will make the ones needed for the each of the WV Nxt Gen. You will also compose the accompanying questions for the Yes-No Way and the QT assessments. These will be saved on the computer as well as a flash drive because I am tired of all the time you waste rooting through those binders!
• You will make a flip book for each student containing the seven parts of speech. Those wall charts just didn’t cut it last year!
All right. That is a large portion of the framework you need to get done during the summer. Now, you have to make some New School Year Resolutions regarding the day to day preparations. According to Coach, “Outstanding instruction involves truly mountainous amounts of labor, preparing, practicing, researching, thinking through, and refining instructional units.”
Remember, there is no such thing as a “Special Education Lesson Plan.” General education teachers and special education teachers must develop lesson plans based on state and district standards. So, Marie, all you have to do is identify the appropriate Nxt Gen Standard, do a task analysis on that standard, and then develop accommodations. As a Special Educator, you need to be able to “shift-gears” by being flexible when a lesson isn’t working. Now, here are those resolutions.
• Because the 3rd grade students were so successful with the Genius Ladder last year, you will concentrate on that one as well as several of the other WBT Writing PDF’s. (The June Conference seems to have been custom made for you.) During the SY, you will review the specific one each evening and you will re-watch Coach’s webcast on it in preparation for the next day.
• Also, each evening you will prepare and rehearse the specific gestures and words needed for the following day.
• You will assess the students frequently using Yes-No Way and QT. If they aren’t grasping the key concepts, you will provide more oral writing practice or, maybe, new gestures should be incorporated. You could try some of the WBT toys.
• You will keep the kids engaged or you will lose them to different enticing thoughts of their own not yours! Do you remember that day in December?
• You will attend Coach’s webcasts every Monday.
Okay, Marie, here’s how I see it. Teachers (and that certainly includes you) should be lifelong learners who never stop learning and developing new teaching strategies. Teachers must be organized and always do their homework. While teachers should have high but reasonable expectations from their students, teachers must recognize that it is their responsibility to provide their students with the strategies required to meet those expectations. Teachers must have structured classrooms, engaging lessons, and flexibility.
We’ll talk again,
Nicely done! I need you to write a letter to me. You are very motivating, and I am sure the teachers whose classes you push into gain as much from your visits as their students do.
DeleteWow, Marie! I'm with Catherine! Is there any lead left in that pencil of yours? I want to hang this where I can read it every morning to start my day! You definitely earned 25 WBT Certification Points for this post! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteCatherine,
DeleteThank you for such a kind reply. I love Whole Brain Teaching because Coach B helps us break every lesson into small bites. My students really love it too.
Nancy,
DeleteThank you for the CP.
I am so passionate about WBT because my 3rd graders were so successful. I want ALL of my students to have that feeling of accomplishment.
Marie, your posts was so outstanding, you've earned a 5 POINT BONUS! Great job!
DeleteDearest Krystal,
ReplyDeleteThe 2012-2013 school year has ended and as you do each summer, I am certain you are reflecting on your past year. I bet you have celebrated all of your student’s triumphs and questioned what could have been done differently. One thing is for sure, next year’s class will be completely different from the previous.
One area that you have worked so hard on this year is the area of student discipline. You controlled classroom chaos by challenging difficult students to change their behaviors. One error that you had was confronting challenging children when they had an audience. Even though you were trying to stop a behavior immediately, this was not always the best way to handle these students. They find ammo in your words and use them to create an army of disruptive supporters.
While in your heart you want the best for each child you could stand to love each student for who they are, for you can’t make an elephant climb a tree. You tried so hard to challenge students to change bad habits and attitudes. You worked hard in the beginning but fell into resentment towards the end when they fell back into bad habits. In the words of Chris Biffle, “Invite students your world; don’t expect to find them already there.”
You know teaching is a practice, the more you continue to grow as a professional the more happiness you will have in your job. Too many teachers fall victim to this quote by Biffle, “Bad teaching breeds challenging students.” No one should make their job harder than it already is.
Yours truly,
Krystal
Well written, Krystal! The end of the school year always requires final evaluations of student progress and assigned grades! You have chosen to write one more very important evaluation...yours! You just took your first steps towards a great new school year! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Cathy,
ReplyDeleteHappy Summer Break! It is time to relax, reflect, and prepare. I know that you don’t want to hear those last two. You need to though. An educator that I have grown to respect stated, “The less work you do outside of the class, the more work your classes will be” (Biffle, 2010, p.24). If you do not prepare outside of instruction time, you feel anxious and your quality of teaching will suffer.
Do you those weekends that you did not feel like tackling school work? You avoided going into school for prep work, and you found your school bag in the backseat of your car exactly as it was Friday afternoon. You’d tell yourself that a break from school was important, both physically and mentally. Spending time with all you had neglected through the work week was a priority. You were correct. However, do not forget that feeling of panic you felt as you started your day in the classroom unprepared. Yikes!
As you move into your summer break, take steps to prepare for the upcoming school year. This summer preparation will minimize the time you need to spend as you plan for each upcoming week. Most importantly, complete the Whole Brain Teaching book club. This teaching system will be an asset to you as you move into the upcoming year. Implementation of “The Five Rules” and “Class-Yes” has proven successful in prior years. It is time to become more comfortable with the other components of Whole Brian Teaching so that you can use them daily. Chris Biffle said it best in the following extract from Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids, "You’re a teacher. Grow, learn, transform yourself, or die by ossification. If you’re afraid to try new teaching techniques, you are petrifying yourself to death" (Biffle, p. 26).
As you move through this summer preparing centers for guided math, prereading for novel studies, and growing the knowledge of what it takes to be a confident Whole Brain Teaching instructor remember his words,
Cathy
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteCathy,
DeleteYour honest self-critique, and your earnest pledge to organize over the summer, has set you on a path to success in the coming school year! Great job! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear Jason,
ReplyDeleteI’m glad to see you are returning to the classroom with a continued passion for teaching! Remember that people always make mistakes and that how you respond to those mistakes sets your course in life. Having said that there are a few mistakes I’d rather you not continue to make, specifically 7 of them. Not making these mistakes will give you more opportunities to focus on creating the experiences you want for yourself and your students!
You’ve always been pretty good at no losing your temper (Rule #1), not “calling students out” in front of their peers (Rule #2), conveying happiness within your job (Rule #4),working outside of class (Rule #5) and pushing yourself to grow (Rule #7). Keep up the good work on those! Following are a pair or rules I’d like you to take extra consideration with this year.
Rule #3 is to not be disorganized. You’ve always been pretty organized but you slacked off a bit last year, mainly in the area of writing down your lesson plans. I believe this put you on the “backpedal” a number of times during already difficult classes. There were WAY too many incidences of a chaotic classroom which leads to the confirmation that “disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms.”
I doubt you have given too much thought to Rule #6. You were an above average student and a quiet kid who did his work while trying to do the right thing. Make sure you are not trying to make your students like you. These students are often times the opposite of some of your characteristics. You job is to model your expectations and “invite students into your world; don’t expect to find them already there.”
I am excited to see you in action next year!
~Always,
Yourself!
Excellent post, Jason! Your decision to prioritize lesson planning is going to take you on a smoother path this year. You will not only be more prepared for the unexpected events of the day, your students will witness an organized model of expectations. You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteDear Jeni,
ReplyDeleteWhen you first read the chapter “Seven Common Teaching Mistakes” last year, you cried, realizing that you had made each and every mistake. This year when you read it, it was without much guilt. You have made excellent improvement! This year, you will continue to grow and refine these two areas: spend time outside of class working and not confronting rebellious students correctly.
“Outstanding instruction involves huge, truly mountainous amounts of labor, preparing, practicing, researching, thinking through, refining instructional units. If you don’t pay the price before you step into the classroom, you’ll pay the price as you fumble through shoddy lessons.” Take time to plot out the WBT 5 steps for each lesson. Plan how you are going to have students respond and talk to each other. Then think through your lesson plan, trying anticipate problems so you can solve them prior to class. Time spent outside of class will pay great dividends when you are in class, having students pay better attention and get the right amount of practice because they are not waiting for you to think through the lesson on the fly.
Remember that “Our most difficult kids, given the opportunity to increase their reputation for toughness, will cunningly defy us, if they are surrounded by their classmates.” You became adept last year at ignoring some behaviors; continue to refine this to the point that you are using mostly proximity and quiet reminders during class, and recess time chats to redirect and have students practice correct behavior.
Remember also, to allow other students the chance to redirect their classmates, instead of you. Don’t forget that you can state the rule number and their classmates can repeat the rule, uniting behind your leadership and the rules. The final key to remember: allow these kids to have the spotlight they desire in ways that are not rebellious.
Great reflection Jeni! Wait until you read Chapters 14-17. The "difficult" kids will actually find no way out but to behave. The super improver team, the scoreboard, and practice cards will work wonders in any classroom. You've earned 25 certification points. Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Marty,
ReplyDeleteI want to remind you why you went into teaching. It's because of your love for kids and to make school a fun, learning environment. You love to come up with creative ideas to spark a child's interest. You love the challenge of making a game plan of how you are going to teach everything in your standards. Most importantly, you love helping kids reach their full potential and to feel good about themselves. Stay true to yourself and love what you do. "Teachers who don't like teaching have the most challenging students." If you ever get to the point where you don't like teaching, you must find something else to do. It is not fair to the students to make their lives miserable and they will then make you miserable. Keep that love and spread it to your teaching partners and students.
Another thing I want you to remember is, "Disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms." I know you just moved into a new building this year and had many different routines to establish. This year you must know for sure what you want from your students so they aren't confused by you changing the routine because you didn't like it. When you have established what you want stick to it and make sure all students follow the directions given. Don't make promises you can't keep or threats you will not follow through with. If a student breaks a rule, give them the practice card they earned. Don't be afraid to upset them because you are sending mixed signals out to the other students. Be prepared and ready for whatever comes your way.
I know this year will be an amazing year for you because of WBT. I can't wait to see how you bring your classroom to life and bring joy to your student's hearts.
Marty
Wonderful thoughts Marty! You are so right that consistency is the key. If you say it, mean it and do it! You've earned 25 certification points for your reflection. Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Mariaan,
ReplyDeleteIt is summer break and you probably feel like you can put up your teaching shoes, right? You have worked hard all year; it has been a blast of learning and fun, you were exhausted at times, but by God’s grace you have made it. Your days of leisure have been earned, or so you tell yourself.
I would like to share something very interesting with you, which left me with a little twinge of guilt, as I read chapter three of Chris Biffle’s Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids. He mentioned some common teaching mistakes we all make, and I realized that some of these common mistakes might be lurking at your back door. Be alert and be aware, they sneak up on teachers who are not expecting them.
The first common mistake, I want to alert you to, is the assumption that summer break is purely yours to enjoy. The common mistake, which sneaks up on teachers, is, “The less work you do outside of class, the more work your classes will be.” Summer is a time to relax, but you have a responsibility to your class of 2013-2014, to be well prepared for the new school year. Please read these sobering comments from Coach B: “You don’t save yourself work by taking it easy at home, or in that last summer month before school starts. If you aren’t willing to invest hours of preparation in what will turn into minutes of classroom teaching, your challenging students, or worse still, far worse still, your best students will present you with the bill.” So you see, while your teaching shoes are put up for the summer, do not put up your planning shoes; keep working, reviewing, and revising. Now is the time to get it done; you will be glad you did!
The second mistake I would like to inform you about is those sneaky, sometimes nagging, thoughts and feelings. I know at times you feel inadequate, or not as capable as others to perform the task at hand. This is admitting defeat before you tried, you never allow this in your own students, so do not allow this in yourself. You advise them to take their thoughts captive, make sure you do the same. The WBT book states, “You’re a teacher. Grow, learn, transform yourself, or die by ossification. If you’re afraid to try new teaching techniques, you are petrifying yourself to death.” You must grow or die. The choice is yours. Since you teach your students to make smart choices, make sure you follow your own advice. I know there are some challenges ahead this year, but you can do it. This is a time to rise to the challenge, to grow, to learn. Always remember you have a Helper.
I hope you are encouraged, that these two common mistakes will not catch you off guard. Your teaching shoes might be put up for the summer, but not your planning shoes.
Now go: review, revise, and plan for the coming year.
Kindest regards,
Mariaan Carreiro
Very well written response Mariaan and very heart felt! Planning, preparation, and belief in yourself are probably the most important things a teacher can do. When these are accomplished, great things happen. How wonderful that you recognize this and are ready to be proactive for the coming school year! You've earned 25 certification points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
ReplyDeleteDear Shelley,
ReplyDeleteThere are 7 mistakes that teachers make that result in our classes being much more difficult to teach. I know you absolutely love your job and work hard to be the best teacher you can be. I understand personal improvement is important to you, so I thought of two areas you should focus on this upcoming school year.
Your first goal is to pull your challenging students aside and privately discuss their behavior. By calling them out in front of the class, you are giving them an audience to perform in front of and additionally unfairly taking away valuable learning time from the rest of your students. Chris Biffle says, "We nourish their rebellion by confronting them when they have onlookers." These students should never negatively be in the spotlight. Make conscious decisions to have special one-on-one time with your students that are challenging to meaningfully talk about their behavior and make a plan for improvement together. Possibly connect this to the Super Improvers' Wall, so they can visually see their growth and publically be recognized for their progress.
Your second goal is to spend this summer focusing on how you will use the WBT lesson plan format of instruction more frequently. How will you incorporate more vocabulary gestures, power pix words, brain toys, and the genius ladder into your classroom instruction this upcoming school year? You had such success this past year implementing the classroom rules, teach-okay, mirror, Super Improvers' Wall, it's cool, ten finger woo, because clapper, and example popper. However, there is so much more to learn and try! Chris says, "You're a teacher. Grow, learn, transform yourself, or die by ossification." Read voraciously on the new techniques you want to try, watch the YouTube videos, read other Whole Brain Teachers' blogs, and soak up as much knowledge as you possibly can at the WBT conference in Louisiana! Invest hours of preparation!
I believe in you,
Shelley
Shelley,
ReplyDeleteYou have set some great goals for yourself! With your previous experience in WBT, this year will be even more amazing! I look forward to meeting you at the LA conference! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear First Year Teacher,
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on your first teaching job! I want to help make this year as easy and enjoyable as possible. Remember the book you read, Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids, and the seven common mistakes that all teachers make? I want to remind you of two of those today, and we will cover the other five another time.
The first one is concerning how teachers who are disorganized breed chaotic classrooms which are exactly what you want to avoid. “Shooting from the hip” or winging it will not work. You must be organized from A to Z; “a place for everything and everything should always be in the same place.” This will take minute planning this first year including rules for the pencil sharpener, restroom, backpacks, and even how you want the heading on submitted work. Working hard this summer to plan and practice how you want your classroom to be organized and run will prevent chaos in the coming months.
I also want you to know that you WILL have rebellious students and “Confronting rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers, will make them braver, more rebellious.” These students are very smart in pushing the right buttons, being deceptive, and modeling what they have seen so much of their lives. Don’t just pull them aside or call them to your desk where everyone can observe what is going on; quietly pull them into the hall or confront them about their misbehavior by talking with them later. Try to think through and practice different scenarios and strategies that will be useful with these challenging students.
We will talk soon about the other five common teaching mistakes and how to avoid them. I know you will have a great first year experience.
Best wishes,
Peggy
Peggy,
DeleteGreat letter! New and experienced teachers alike face these challenges daily. Unfortunately, too many are not very successful in resolving the issues in a way beneficial to their students or to themselves. Best wishes on your first year! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Melinda-
ReplyDeleteThis school year has been great, and I know you are ready for a much needed break. Before you pack that final box and leave for summer break, I just wanted to remind you of two mistakes you have made this year. I really want you to think about these challenges and work to correct them in the upcoming school year.
First, challenging students can test even the most patient of teachers. You can't lose your temper in front of them. You are not known to yell at students, but sometimes you raise your voice. Please know that when we lose our temper, the challenging students become more challenging. Many students live with "high volume yellers," and if yelling worked, our challenging students would be our "Alpha" model students.
Second, you keep a fairly organized classroom, but let's face it, your desk and work station get messy by the end of the day. You started the year off great, but by December you were locking the door and leaving without cleaning up your high traffic areas. Now, what does that tell your students? I have to give credit where credit is due though. You always have your plans ready, and you always know what you are teaching. But, you need to put miscellaneous items away and keep them in the proper place. "At minimum, there should be a place for everything in your classroom, and everything should always be in the same place." If we expect all our students to be organized, especially our most challenging students, then we must be organized ALL of the time.
You have lots of great teaching attributes in your favor that help even the most challenging of students. You never confront a student in front of their peers, you have a passion for teaching United States History, you are always looking for new ideas to use in your classroom, and you are always willing to grow and try new things. You found WBT, didn't you? Who knows you better than me? Uhhhh, no one! So, when you read this letter again come September, remember that you are great. You are incontrol of your classroom. Don't lose your temper, and stay organized each day. Your teaching skills ROCK, Melinda!
Respectfully yours,
Me, Myself, and I
Melinda
Melinda.
DeleteOutstanding self-reflection! This letter will be valuable for you as you plan and initiate next year's lessons. As you pointed out, don't forget to remind yourself of all those strengths you also bring to class each day! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear Elissa,
ReplyDeleteAnother year is coming up and we want to make it a successful one! There are seven common teaching mistakes that you will want to avoid. Why should you make your job harder? Let’s do what we can to tame those rebellious students in your classroom.
“Confronting rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers will make them braver, more rebellious.” What these students want is attention. They thrive on it. By drawing negative attention to their behavior, you are only increasing the chances that this behavior will occur again. Other students will notice this attention and they might try to act in a similar manner. What you are doing when you confront these students is giving them power. You are also taking educational time away from your other students that want to learn. This is not fair to them.
“The less work you do outside of class, the more work your classes will be.” Don’t be afraid to stay a little late after work each day. The time you are taking now will benefit you later. Spending thirty extra minutes each day will get you prepared for your lessons. The last thing you want to do is scramble around fifteen minutes before the bell rings getting things ready. Leave school knowing that the next day’s plans are ready to go. Do not give students any time to misbehave. Be on the ball and you reap the rewards.
Good luck to you,
Elissa
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and goals for next year, Elissa! Your focus on audience choice is so important all year through! You earned 25 WBT Certification Points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Lori,
ReplyDeleteAfter reading Chris Bifle’s Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids I learned there are 7 common errors that teachers make. A couple of these errors reminded me of you.
In order for you to become a better teacher there are a couple of areas you really need to improve on. While I know you love your job and put in countless extra hours there is always room for improvement.
The first area is controlling your temper. When you yell at your students, the students only get louder. Try using a more caring calm voice talking with them not yelling at them. If screaming worked our children from crazed families would be model pupils.
Another error that teachers make is organization. While you are organized you can grow further by following through with what you expect. If you say x, y, and z on a paper then don’t accept any less.
Spend this summer cleaning out cabinets, file cabinets, and binders. Throw away the things that you have not used.
Before school starts in the fall, have a plan of how the tables in the classroom are going to be placed. Also, plan a place for all your teaching material and supplies as well as the students. Lastly, hold each student to this plan.
Best of Luck,
Lori Wessing
Lori,
DeleteYou've chosen some excellent points to work on. You will be amazed at what you will accomplish in your classroom once you meet your goals. Here are 25 certification points for you! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteDear Self,
ReplyDeleteAnother year of teaching young minds is upon us. The first thing I want you to focus on is diversity. I don’t mean diverse learners or culturally diversity. I mean your students are not you. They are original versions of themselves and you must learn to embrace them for who they are. You must “understand that your students are not your clones!” They may not be as organized as you are. Let’s face it, you are anally retentive. As long as your students are achieving the learning goals it doesn’t matter how they get there. Come on, you know your education theories and strategies. Does Gardner himself need to draw you a picture? Embrace their originality and validate them by complimenting their thinking processes. Rita Pierson said that “every child deserves a champion-an adult who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection, and insists that they become the best that they can possibly be.” The best person they can possible be is not your clone.
Secondly I want you to continue to educate and inform yourself by reading books, attending conferences, and reading journal articles that keep you abreast of the latest and greatest in education. I love that you have a hunger of learning and are always looking for ways to improve your skills as a teacher. I hope that hunger never goes away. I want you to continue to push yourself to meet the needs of all students in your classroom. Remember “you must grow” if you want to be part of the evolution of being a teacher otherwise you will burn out “or die.”
Sincerely,
Faten Ahmad
Faten,
DeleteYou have chosen 2 very good aspects of teaching to focus on. I applaud you for setting goals and realizing what must change. On future posts, please carefully proofread your text for writing errors so you can earn full credit. Here are 10 certification points for you! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear Cindy,
ReplyDeleteThere are some lessons you need to learn for your upcoming school year. Unless you learn these lessons and put them in action, you will be putting your students at risk, which is something you just don’t want to do.
This is the career you’ve always wanted to have, since you were a little girl you wanted to be a teacher, but nobody ever said it was going to be easy during the school year, so you need to really work on your lessons, both at school and at home. Use the ideas you learned as a literacy coach to make your lessons more engaging, fun, and packed with the skills/review you know the kids need. You know the basal text doesn’t have enough in it, so work harder to make it better for the kids. Ask for help if you aren’t sure of how to do it, don’t think you have to have all the answers either; there are others there to help you. Take the time to practice what you have to do, so you don’t mess it up in the classroom; make yourself the stellar teacher you are! You have the passion, but you need to work smarter for your kids and for your sanity.
Another thing, if you plan and prepare at home, you can use time in the morning to make sure you are superbly organized. Make sure you overly organize your routines for when you return to school in December. It will be hard for the kids to transition back to you, but you don’t really want to lose your position by being scatterbrained, so make sure you have everything ready so the kids can have their own supplies, that you have firm routines that you don’t change, stick with your plan, work with the whole brain strategies so you have a peaceful classroom (the kids love them and so do you). Figure out every little thing and don’t back down from this plan because someone doesn’t understand it, make sure both principals know what your doing.
Finally, don’t lose your temper when the kids get very excited and won’t listen or give you their attention. Kids are individuals who aren’t like I was when I was a little kid. I would never want a teacher to lose her temper with my late daughter, so why would I lose it with these precious babies. I can make a huge difference in their lives, I just need to be a great one for them.
Cindy, you know you always wanted to be a teacher, not just a mediocre teacher, a great teacher. Keep on growing, don’t die in there by not working hard, seeing their individuality and loving it. Create that room you’ve always wanted, work hard at it so you have an awesome year and prove yourself!
You’ll be so proud of yourself,
Cindy
Cindy,
DeleteYou have made some great observations about your teaching style. Stick to your goals and you'll be amazed at what a wonderful classroom you will have. On future posts, check carefully for those pesky writing errors. Staying with the same tense (I vs. you) is especially important. Here are 10 certification points for you! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear Dina,
ReplyDeleteThere is a lot of pressure on teachers today to have students that perform well on achievement tests. This is no easy task but Whole Brain Teaching is going to help you with that this year. Because your students will be more involved they will learn more. Let’s avoid these common mistakes to get started on the right track. It’s hard to own up to the fact that “bad teaching breeds challenging students”. It is hard to swallow that some of the well meaning strategies and behaviors you exhibit as a teacher might just be creating more challenging students. But admitting it is half the battle. Remember how you felt when you read the chapter on “Seven Common Teaching Mistakes”? Well, do you want to have those feelings again this year? Mighty Groan, NO! Well, then, let’s focus on two of the mistakes that you struggle with the most.
The first one you need to keep in mind is not keeping your cool when frustrated and raising your voice or even talking in a curt or “angry” tone can create more rebellion. You need to keep your cool, at least on the outside. The “don’t let them see you sweat” seems to apply here. No matter what just use the scoreboard and other WBT strategies to address the unruly behavior but don’t get worked up.
Secondly, you need to fall in love with teaching and working with children again. Put the last few years behind you and start anew this year with a fresh passion for what you are doing. You do not work with children to not have fun and enjoy them. Using whole brain teaching will help you enjoy your job and your students every day. The unhappier you let yourself be the unhappier your class will make you. So, find your joy in teaching again….by using WBT.
You’re going to have a great year this year, I can just feel it!
The new me!
Dina, the Happy Teacher!
Very good letter Dina! Here are 25 certification points for you! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Bethany,
ReplyDeleteAlright before we start anything I'm going to need you to breathe! I know you are freaking out about the new grade level. Yes, I realize that you haven't taught first graders before and you are nervous because you aren't familiar with the curriculum. No problem! I'm going to help you come up with some ways to have a smooth, productive, beautiful year.
You are already deserve praise for beginning the summer with a new book club to learn strategies that will help your classroom management. Within this book are some mistakes that teachers make. For now, let's focus on organization and preparation.
Instead of dreading the move from one classroom to another, think off the move as a positive. The book mentions how "Disorganized teacher bread chaotic classrooms." This is the time to clear the clutter and organize. "At minimum, there should be a place for everything in your classroom, and everything should always be in the same place." You normally start the year with everything in its place but your challenge is maintaining that organization. Just as you tell the kids to tidy before they leave, you must do the same. Before you leave for the day, make sure that you have cleaned and put away evening. Beware if stacks! Stacks of anything is unacceptable this year! Be sure to take a moment to put items away before they stack up.
Okay now more let's talk about preparation. "Outstanding instruction involves huge, truly mountainous amounts of labor," so get started! You are worried about not knowing the curriculum so learn it. Use the summer to grow and plan. Before school starts, I want you to have the first nine weeks mapped out. That means having completed lesson plans for whole group and centers. Since you aren't familiar with the curriculum you won't be able to walk in that morning and whip something up. Be prepared! The class will have less disruptions if you have confidence in the lessons. You will be confident if you know what you are teaching.
You can do this. In order to succeed you must put in the time now!
Love,
Your Inner Voice
Bethany,
DeleteVery good letter. Preparation and organization are keys to success in every classroom. On future posts, please proofread carefully for spelling and mechanical errors. Here are 10 certification points for you! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Bethany, I think you could have written that to me! I am in the same place I think. You can do this, we can do this! Have a great new year with WBT! I am looking forward to implementing mine! Fellow teacher, Dina Francisco
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ReplyDeleteDear Nicole,
ReplyDeleteEven though you are a perfectionist, we know that you are not perfect. Each and every year you reflect on the previous school year and make plans for how to improve. Luckily, you made the commitment to become a Whole Brain Teacher this year! You will have fun and your class will have fun. I have some words of caution for you, however. Chris Biffle says, "The greatest mistake we make as instructors is making our classes more difficult to teach." There are two mistakes that I would like you to focus on steering clear of.
First, don't lose your temper with kids. It may feel good at the time and the kids might be quiet for the 5 seconds you are yelling at them, but you are not solving any problems by yelling. In fact, Chris says yelling at kids can make them act worse and more defiant. Some kids are used to yelling at home. Some of them are triggered by yelling and can act even worse. There is no way around it - keep your cool at school.
The second mistake I would like to you avoid is being afraid of change or growth. Chris says that there is a great law that governs the universe and the classroom: “Grow or die.” Obviously, you wouldn't be on this amazing WBT journey if you were afraid to grow, but part of that growth is also being open to other ideas that are not your own. Just as they say, there are no two ways to skin a cat, there are no two ways to teach a class. Each teacher and each classroom is different and unique. So embrace change, grow as an educator, and listen, really listen, to other's ideas!
You can do this, Nicole! Change can be scary and it can be hard, but with this wonderful community of WBT on your side, you can do anything! Good luck in the coming year!
Nicole
Teaching With Style
Hi Nicole,
DeleteVery good letter to yourself! Here are 25 certification points for you! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
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ReplyDeleteDear Amanda,
ReplyDeleteYou must be reading this because you need reminded of some ways you have made those challenging students more challenging. You run a very organized, structured, prepared classroom, but are you letting that one or two students get to you? Are they pushing your buttons and you are letting it work? Remember to not give those students an audience. As the WBT book warns, "We make challenging students more challenging, we nourish their rebellion, by confronting them when they have onlookers." Refrain from reacting in the moment and use the WBT techniques to engage that student in the learning environment instead of creating division in your classroom!
Also, be reminded that not every child is a perfectionist like you and that it is okay! Every child is different, with different talents and struggles, and you are there to encourage, teach and inspire! As Chris Biffle puts it, "Your kids are round pegs that won't fit into your square hole." Remember to have fun and lighten up sometimes! Make learning fun for all learners.
Good luck and take heart!
Sincerely,
Your Summer-Rested Self
Amanda,
DeleteThis is a good letter to yourself with some important ideas to remember. In the future, give us a little more of your thoughts. We are eager to hear what you have to say! Here are 25 certification points for you! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear Stephanie,
ReplyDeleteDid you know, "teachers, by their teaching choices, create environments that nourish rebel behavior?" You really need to think about this as you go into a new year. You're not going have the same kids as last year. You need to "invite students into your world;don't expect to find them already there." Last year, you had the same kids from kindergarten. They knew you already and your procedures. These new first graders are here to learn from YOU! You've got to take many things in consideration as you prepare for the 2013-2014 school year and its time to start fresh. First, you know you're going to have a few challenging students. There are ways to make your challenging students more challenging and let's be honest....you've made some of these mistakes in the past. Now is the time to move forward and become a better teacher not just in reading, math and writing but getting your class under control. What do you always tell your students that get frustrated when they are not being successful? Do not give up! Practice makes perfect! So, here are some things to remember....control your temper,talk to challenging students by themselves,be very organized,fall in love with teaching over and over again,work hard even not in your class,understand your students are not your clones and it's time to grow!
Sincerely,
Stephanie
Stephanie, thanks for your persistence! You have a great list of things to remember. In your future posts, please try and give more detail to fully answer the prompt, as well as check for clarity ("work hard even not in your class"). Here are 10 Certification Points for you! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Norma-Gene,
ReplyDeleteI’m writing this to remind you of some teaching mistakes outlined by Chris Biffle, you want to avoid next year. Here are two of the Seven Common Teaching Mistakes for you to elude.
The first one to step around is losing your temper and yelling at difficult kids in class. When you do that, you are making the problem worse not better! Difficult students come from families with champion yellers so this style doesn’t have the effect you want. You will have more of an impact if you speak quietly and remain calm.
The second one is to Grow or die. It is critical that you stay engaged with other teaching professionals and educational journals. Life isn’t stagnant and teaching isn’t either. Expand your teaching techniques and ideals. Take the time to incorporate the Whole Brain Teaching techniques to increase your students’ success and your classroom happiness.
Remember, this is what you dreamed about when you were away. Your students are waiting for you!
Love,
Me
Norma,
DeleteGood letter to yourself. In the future, give us a little more substance about your ideas. We are eager to hear what you have to say! Here are 25 certification points for you! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteDear Amber,
ReplyDeleteAs you wrap up this school year and say good-bye to this group of “challenging students” who knew exactly how to push your buttons and get you to react, I want you to think about some things that you have done that has made your class more difficult to teach and that encouraged rebellious behaviors.
When you lose your temper with your difficult children and yell at them, you are not fixing the problem you are making it worse. One thing that you could try instead is confronting the student after class to address the audience so s/he does not have an audience. Sometimes, when you feel yourself getting to the breaking point of yelling, give yourself a time out by walking away and ignoring, or causing a diversion that will change the student’s behavior until you are ready to calmly address the situation without an audience.
Let’s face it, you are disorganized. Do you even know what color the top of your desk is? Did you know they make file folders to actually put papers in? Disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms. Maybe if you were more organized, your students would be too. It would be in your best interest to figure out a way to organize your classroom and stick with it throughout the year. Everything should have a place, and that place should not change 52 times throughout the school year.
Sincerely,
The Angel on Your Shoulder
Amber,
DeleteGood letter to yourself. You have set some great goals for your future classroom. In the future, please watch out for those pesky writing errors (commas and sentence structure). Here are 10 certification points for you! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear Allyson,
ReplyDeleteIn a few short weeks, you will begin your third year of teaching and as you know, there are seven common teaching mistakes amongst teachers. Unfortunately, I have seen that you are already beginning to fall into some of these mistakes, but this is your year to fix all of that! On the bright side, you are organized, so your classroom does not breed chaos in that respect.
One of the seven common teaching mistakes that teachers make today is "when we lose our temper with difficult students and yell at them" (Biffle, p. 10). Losing your temper and yelling at one child, or the whole class does not fix your teaching problem. Yes, they may feel guilty for about 1.2 seconds, say they are sorry and that they will never do it again, but they will show up the next day and do it again. Screaming and yelling is not a long term solution. You need to not let your students push you to the edge so that you get upset and raise your voice. It is not worth it and it doesn't make anything better. Try to take a deep breath and think before your address your students angry. That moment can drastically change your response in a good way.
A second common teaching mistake is when "you think your disruptive students should be like you" (Biffle, p. 11). You have a quote posted in your classroom about a classroom being like a box of crayons - all students are different, so that means they will not all be like you! I know you want to make them all be sweet angels who follow directions the first time they are given, complete all their assignments, and so on, but they are like a box of crayons. Some are bright and shiny, like you were in school, but some are dark and dull, and they will be your project for the year. Meet them where they are and go slow, and you will see them grow. Will they become bright and shiny by the end of the year? Probably not, but they will not be as dark and dull if you realize that they are not you and work with them in a calm and cooperative manner.
I believe in you! You do not have to become burnt out with this profession if you can make a few changes in your teaching. Whole Brain Teaching is the answer to your problems - I can just feel it!
Good luck!
Allyson
10 finger woo for you Allyson! Here are 25 certification points for an excellent letter. I like your metaphor comparing kids to a box of crayons. Such an important point. Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
ReplyDeleteDear Self,
ReplyDeleteYou know it's going to happen. It always does. It's that kid, the one who can find your button every single week. It's like he has a mission upon entering the room: Find Weston's button and push it. And he's really good at it.
You've done exactly what most people would do. You dread that class coming every week. You call that kid out in front of his classmates (which turns out to be exactly what they LOVE). You've ended up raising your voice. It all ends up making you and everyone else unhappy and frustrated.
Oh, no, I didn't forget that other thing that always causes problems. Not planning things all the way through. You have a great activity that the kids will love and it all falls apart. Why? You didn't think about HOW to make the activity work.
So what are you going to do about it? Let's start by not letting that kid get to you. Keep your cool, wait until after class to talk to the kid, and realize that he's not you. You'll have to work really hard to remember when the moment comes but you'll remember that it's better for everyone.
You'll also need to think through every activity in it's entirety and not just the activity itself but also the pre and post. How are you going to give the directions? How will the children move around the room? How will they get their supplies and the return them.
It's all about preparation. Be 150% prepared for each activity. Be prepared for that kid to push your button. He will... he always does. What are you going to do? What are you going to say?
You can do this!
Love,
The Self that knows better.
Gwen, I love how you addressed and signed the letter to yourself. Very creative! We do know better now, and it will make all the difference! Be careful of small writing errors in the future ("Not planning things all the way through." is a fragment). You have earned 25 Certification Points for your creativity and passion! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Sandy Sock Monkey,
ReplyDeleteYou have an exciting year ahead (returning to fifth grade after two years in a different role) and need to set a few specific goals which will make this transition easier and more rewarding. I suggest you focus on two of the seven common teaching mistakes.
First, remember, the less work you do outside of your classroom, the more work it will be in your classroom. Take this summer to really “dig in” and prepare. This is the perfect time to collaborate with other fifth grade teachers, create Power Pix, study the Common Core in depth, determine where your Super Improvers Wall will be and how you will design it, etc. Use chapter 30 in Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids as a guide. If you think about all there is to do, you may become overwhelmed and just go to the beach (I know you!). Instead, create an agenda for the summer with specific tasks, put the times in your calendar and stick to it. Your classroom will be so much better for it. Don’t forget to schedule time for a little fun too.
The second thing you should focus on is, “the great law that governs the universe and the classroom, grow or die”. Throw out the old paper files you’ve had for years and try new ideas and approaches. Remember all of the writing books your principal provided you with when you were the writing teacher? They are outdated and boring. They were boring when you received them and they are still boring today. Toss them! You have learned about oral writing, and air punctuation. Wipe your slate clean, implement the new ideas, and see what happens. Change is scary, I know, but it is the only way to grow.
Stay focused and remain open to change and I assure you it will be an amazing year.
Your WBT Conference Rejuvenated Self,
Sandy Sock Monkey
Wasn't the conference amazing! It does rejuvenate you, and energize you to make the work necessary to be ready for a great year. Good post! Here are 25 certification points for you. Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Self,
ReplyDeleteOf the seven common teaching mistakes, I would like to remind you to focus on your temper and confrontation. You do not often lose your temper but I have witnessed you allowing your emotions to take over your logic. When that one student’s behavior tips the scales, I have seen you become red in the face and grind your teeth. Do not let it show! I’ve also witnessed you scolding the class towards the end of the year when they are itching to go on summer break. You have punished by ordering heads to go down in hopes of regaining some sense of structure. Just remind yourself that this does not work! You are “engage[ing] in behaviors that make them even more rebellious”(10). They may be quiet when you raise that voice of yours but the lesson was not learned and they quickly return to being rambunctious. Don’t let your emotions take over your logic, Jenn. When that one student is trying his/her hardest to get a reaction from you and the class, do not confront them. I have not seen you confront these rebels with an audience, intentionally, but you and I both know that some peers are still listening or looking in to your private speech. I would like to say this is a private conversation, but you and I both know that a conversation involves the other person actively responding and this is not the case. These ‘private’ confrontations are only “nourish[ing] their rebellion”(10). Yes, it is true that you were not adequately prepared to deal with challenging rebels when you first started teaching, but that is no excuse and it only reiterates the importance of you continuing to self improve. Grow or die (12).
Love Always,
You
Ten finger woo to you! We've all had these moments, but controlling out own behavior is the key! Here are 25 certification points for you. Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Future Karen,
ReplyDeleteLooking back over the year with its up and downs, it is easy to see a couple of things to improve before we embark on a new school year. According to Mr. Chris Biffle, founder of Whole Brain Teaching, "The greatest mistake we make as instructors is making our classes more difficult to teach." I believe that two of these mistakes are responsible for those difficult days and weeks that threatened the collapse of your career.
The first is controlling your emotions with difficult students. It is as much your fault for influencing the environment of the class in a negative way, as the student's, when you let your emotions take the lead. Allowing the student's behavior to provoke such strong negative feelings sets the mood for the rest of the class as well. Just trying to hide that feeling is not enough. The other students in the class pick up on the physical cues and voice intonation giving away how you truly feel. It will be necessary to deal with the difficult student in private, away from the other students. Stepping back from the moment will also allow time to put the student's behavior in perspective and have meaningful talk that includes a plan in a calm authoritative manner with the student.
Along the same lines, staying ahead of the game and completely organized will reduce the inappropriate behaviors in class. Looking back, the worst times this year were when everything was coming to a head at once. Assessments were due, observations were scheduled, and reports cards were looming. Planning ahead when possible and keeping to a time management plan will reduce the stress on you and keeping the ramifications of this stress out of the classroom. Mr. Biffle says it best, "If you don't pay the price before you step into the classroom, you'll pay the price as you fumble through shoddy lessons." It is vital to keep all the extra duties and responsibilities in check so that the planning is thorough guaranteeing smoother, efficient days.
By focusing on these two common mistakes and making improvements in these areas, your next school year will find greater success.
Karen
Karen, I can't wait for you to read the chapter on practice cards! It addresses everything you mentioned in the last sentence of your second paragraph. Here are 25 certification points for you! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteJulie,
DeleteAs you have the summer for preparations, keep in minds the seven common mistakes that teachers make. Let’s start with dissecting the seven and focusing on two very important mistakes. First, disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms. Whole Brain Teaching is new to you, so dig into the meat of the reason why you love it so much. Plan your lessons with WBT in mind and find ways to make them even more inviting to your students. Structure and teaching from bell to bell is now your goal. So plan, plan, plan!
Secondly, confronting rebellious students in the presence of their peers is only to your disadvantage. Your most defiant child relishes, when you make him the center of attention. Don’t breed this behavior, just grin and find a moment you can pull the child in the hall for a chat. Practice what you will say and do, be prepared for the unexpected. Calm, collected and in control, will be the example you are setting for these children, so they can mirror your behavior. Look for opportunities to teach them how to react to situations that are stressful and frustrating.
Love, your inner self
Hit the back button and deleted my post oops..
Great post even if it was the second time you did it. 10 finger woo!
DeleteJulie, you've chosen two very powerful teaching mistakes, and set some great goals for next year! Good for you! In future posts, be careful of small grammatical mistakes (minds/mind). Here are 25 certification points for you. Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
ReplyDeleteDear Kathy,
ReplyDeleteLast year you began a new class and you had to hit the floor running. You used some WBT tactics and your students obviously benefited from the WBT tactics. Now you have the summer to prepare for the 2013-14 school year. “If you don’t pay the price before you step into the classroom, you’ll pay the price as you fumble through shoddy lessons.” C.Biffle, p 11. You can assure a year of success for your students if you take the time this summer to organize your materials for teaching and design and make your WBT boards. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that teachers get the summer off. Use this time to prepare, prepare, prepare.
Grow or die. “Think of teaching as a see-saw. You are on one end, and your entire class of challenging students is on the other. As your growth declines, their challenging behavior skyrockets.” C. Biffle, p 12 Never be content with what you know regardless of how many degrees you may have or letters you can string after your name. Always keep looking for research based tactics such as Whole Brain Teaching to better understand your students’ needs and to meet those needs.
For example, look at the common core objectives that your students have on their IEPs and begin to write WBT lesson plans based on these goals. Practice your gestures in the mirror as well as teaching in 45-second chunks. Print out the five rules and all of the colored stars you’ll need for your Super Improvers Board. Pay the price now and reap the benefits next year! Better than a rolling ten finger woo!
Mrs. Lamb
Kathy,
DeleteYou have set some great goals for yourself! In reference to your comment on self-improvement, many teachers add their own Name card to the Super Improvers Team wall. It serves as a model to students that even their teacher is continually seeking to improve each day! Here are 25 certification points for you. Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
That's a great idea. I will certainly add my name to the Super Improvers Team wall. My students already give me positive feedback like I do for them. It's so humbling when you have a child with autism look up at you and say "Thank you for being a good helper for me" when I'm helping him take his test from the regular classroom.
DeleteThanks for your feedback.
Dear Sharon,
ReplyDeleteThis past year started out on a bad note, and I definitely saw your enthusiasm and love of teaching dim. This is one of the seven mistakes a teacher can make in their classroom leading to more stress and difficult behaviors. I know you struggled and tried to mask how low you had gotten, but children are aware when we are not giving our all and not helping them develop that love for learning. I would like for you to use this study to help bring spark back into your teaching. I know it's there, so let it glow. In the book, the reference is made to "Dante's hell. "Go into a class with a negative, burned out attitude toward your profession, and your students will be waiting with pitchforks." Come back and give them your upbeat spirit and enthusiasm!Let the real you shine and show them your love for learning and teaching them.
The other thing I noticed this past year was the short amount of time that was spent on rules and housekeeping items, like being sure the children knew where everything was. I am sure with all the other things going on this was just an oversight,but it is one of the seven mistakes teachers make in their classroom that adds to problems. In addition to all the hours you spend on making preparations for lessons, it is important that the students are familiar with where things are and exactly what is expected of them. They need the structure, organization, and consistency to have a healthy and happy learning environment. In this section of the book C.Biffle states "there should be a place for everything in your room and it should always be in the same place. Some children that are in our classes don't have that structure and consistency at home and they yearn for it. Work hard on spending time showing them and getting them acclimated with all the plans, places, and work you have put into the classroom to make it a successful year. You might want to allow them to help you determine where the best place is for some of the items, and be a part of the rules and procedure making. Here's to a good year! I know you can have one of the best ever!
Sharon
Sharon...I enjoyed your post. Where do you live and teach?
DeleteKathy,
DeleteI teach kindergarten in Flowery Branch, Ga. I am so excited to learn more about this system!
Sharon,
ReplyDeleteOrganization in the classroom definitely impacts a student's level of learning, and as you pointed out, it also impactss the positive energy in the classroom! WBT organization brings Funtricity back to students and to teachers! Here are 25 certification points for you. Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dearest Rivky,
ReplyDeleteAs you already know, teaching is one of the noblest callings on planet earth. The career path you took will inspire greatness and make the world a better place. In order for you to really, truly succeed in making every kid that enters through your doors flourish under your care; you need to know what lies ahead.
There will be days that you will be tired from being up all night with the baby, days when you are in an unpleasant mood, days when it's raining and you just want to stay in bed and of course there will be the days when you just have no energy to teach at all. The list goes on and on. These are the days when your students will have a field day coming up with all sorts of antics to push your buttons and create chaos. What will you do? Well, I'll tell you what you will not do. You will not lose your temper! In chapter 3 of Whole Brain Teaching, Chris Biffle brilliantly states: "When we lose our temper with difficult kids and yell at them, we don't fix our teaching problem, we make it worse." You will leave all of your problems at the door and come into that classroom WBT style and give your kids the awesome education they deserve.
Another thing I want to address in this letter to you, Rivky, is that if you think that after a certain number of years in the field of education you can sit back, relax, and sleep through the show, you have another thing coming. Always remember what Chris Biffle, angle from heaven, writes in his revolutionary book: "You're a teacher. Grow, learn, transform yourself, or die by ossification." You have greatness in you! Work hard for it every day and your students will thank you for years to come.
Yours truly,
Rivky
Rivky,
ReplyDeleteGreat reflection and identification of those things that will create obstacles in your path! I do think we should let Coach know that he really is an "angel from heaven", not an angle! Here are 20 certification points for you!
Any angle you look at Coach, he is an angel!! I will be more careful:)
DeleteDear Russ,
ReplyDeleteYou have always been an energetic teacher, but it appears you fly by the seat of your pants most days. That can only mean one thing, but two big problems. You are not ready to teach bell to bell. Let me recommend some good advice I came across in a book I’m reading right now.
“Disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms.” Your students like to derail your teaching and when they can’t accomplish that, they just dream up ways to eat up your time by requiring discipline attention. If you go in without a solid plan, you might as well waive the white flag and let the rebels take over the class. Start with “At a minimum, there should be a place for everything in your classroom, and everything should always be in the same place.”
Now, lets step into the planning part of this opportunity. “The less work you do outside of class, the more work your classes will be.” It is time to commit to the “huge, mountainous amounts of labor, preparing, practicing, researching, thinking through, (and) refining instructional units.” This is hard work, but so much fun when you get the payoff of dozens of your students succeeding where they have struggled before. You’re going to love teaching again!
Two steps. Organize your room for teaching, and organize your mind for teaching. Now get out there and kick some brains over!
Yours in service to kids,
Russ
Great reflective letter, Russ! Planning and organization are such huge factors in how well a classroom runs. Starting there is starting on the right foot. Here are 25 certification points for you! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
DeleteDear Paige,
ReplyDeleteWow!! You have so many great things going on in your classroom! Better yet, now that you have introduced Whole Brain Teaching to your students, you just stepped it up a notch. I know you always expect the best from your students and you have very high expectation for them as well, but a very wise person once told me that the day you stop learning as a teacher is the day you need to stop teaching. Wait, that person was you and that is just like what is stated in the book Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids by Chris Biffle – “Grow or die.” So as many great things as you have going on in your classroom, you still have some things you can improve. Two of those areas are “paying the price” before you enter the classroom so that you don’t “pay it” in the classroom and calling out “those” students in front of their classmates.
I have noticed that when you teach, the lessons that are the most engaging are the ones that you put that little extra effort into and really planned out. I know you have a life outside of school and I know that much of your planning time at school is taken up with meetings, but just think of that feeling of satisfaction you have when the day is done and you know your students went home knowing a little more than they did when they woke up that morning. So I hope you can find time to at least once a day put that extra effort into a lesson that you teach. Then guess what? Soon you will realize that you start teaching this way all the time with less effort, until eventually whole brain teaching will become a way of life.
Think for a moment about sitting in a faculty meetings and there is that one teacher who seems to want all the attention. Think of how annoyed you feel when your principal plays into it and continually lets that person speak. Well, that is the same feeling that your students have when you keep playing into “those” students’ disruptive behaviors. Just like that teacher in the faculty meeting, “those” student are going to keep seeking attention as long as you allow it. Think of the relief you feel when your principal does not call on that teacher. I hope that you can give that same relief to the students in your class. It will be hard but I know you can do it.
I want to wish you continued success on your journey to teacher heaven. I know you are getting close and there may be a few detours along the way, just do not let those detours become road blocks. If you can spend a little extra time preparing lessons and by all means save your voice and time by not playing into the hands of “those” students, then you should have a smooth road ahead.
Your best friend, but your biggest critic,
Me
Paige,
ReplyDeleteNice reflection and Pep Talk on two of the challenges all teachers must face each year! I think I was at that staff meeting you mentioned! Here are 25 certification points for you! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
Dear Ruby,
ReplyDeleteThis is going to be the best year ever! Last year, you learned the basics of WBT; this year, you will be a master of the basics and can add more techniques. It will be fantastic as long as you remember these two rules:
(1) “Be superbly organized”
You have made a great start by investing hours at school this summer filing away materials by topic. You have also organized your lab supplies. Keep it up.
During the school year, train your student lab assistants to supervise clean up. Teach them the adage that Coach B quoted, “…there should be a place for everything in your classroom, and everything should always be in the same place.”
(2) “Work hard at teaching when you’re not in class”
You have already begun writing lesson plans for the fall. Keep writing. Do not lose focus. Every hour you spend preparing now will lessen your load in August. The key is to get ahead now. If you have several weeks of lesson plans prepared BEFORE class starts, you can concentrate on the students instead of the lesson plan sheets. As Coach B wrote, “Outstanding instruction involves huge, truly mountainous amounts of labor…” Remember: There are no shortcuts on the road to excellence.
By organizing the classroom and preparing lesson plans now, you are setting a course to Teacher Heaven. So take a moment to look yourself in the mirror and say, “Oh, Sweet Mama, this is going to be good!”
LYM,
Ruby
Great reflection Ruby! Here are your 25 certification points!
DeleteDear Addie,
ReplyDeleteSince you are gearing up for the start of a new third grade year, I thought there were a few things you should know to prepare you for the road ahead.
First of all, remember to maintain your composure. Losing your temper with disruptive kids is completely ineffective. You have experienced this fact in the past. Losing your temper in the classroom decreases what little respect the kids actually have for you and raises your blood pressure, making it difficult to make rational decisions. Coach B reminds us that “if being addressed by screaming, out of control adults made our challenging kids better, then children from crazed homes would be our model pupils.” By remembering to control your temper and address each and every student with the respect he or she deserves, you can better manage the class. Consequences should be administered efficiently and logically, without yelling. Kids are disruptive for attention; it’s not personal.
Secondly, remember to stay organized. Not just the students’ materials need to be organized, but your materials and the instructional time need to be organized. Remember what Coach B says about organization and structure, “…a place for everything in your classroom and everything in its place.” Every student should know exactly where every item goes on their desks, or in your classroom. In addition, lessons should be organized so that time is structured leaving no time to “wing-it” because that breeds more disruptive behavior. Being organized includes adhering to the classroom management plan in place, and following through with assignments and consequences calmly and consistently. No idle threats or spur of the moment, eventually unfinished, assignments.
Be sure to remind yourself of these facts each and every day and remember Coach B’s advice. If you remember these two things, and apply the WBT mindset to every lesson every day, your classroom will run much more smoothly and you will be in TEACHER HEAVEN!!
Best of luck,
Addie
http://iteachthirdgrade.blogspot.com/
Addie,
ReplyDeleteAwesome reflection and plan for the upcoming year! Here are your 25 certification points!
Dear Sarah,
ReplyDeleteI know that you are getting excited about starting a new year with a brand new bunch of first graders. You have been going crazy on Pinterest finding all sorts of cool ideas for lessons and activities. Your enthusiasm is a good thing but there are some things you need to keep in mind as you plan for the new school year.
Remember chapter 3 of “WBT for Challenging Kids” and how you went highlighter crazy when you read it? Well, while it is important to be aware of all of the mistakes listed in that chapter there are two errors that teachers make all the time and that I want you to be especially aware of.
The first error is “confronting rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers…” This is something that you understand all too well. Think about how you felt as a child when you would “get in trouble” and the teacher would embarrass you in front of your friends. Remember, you responded in one of two ways. You would either shut down or you would act out. When you call out your students they feel the same way. Confronting students in front of their peers will “make challenging students more challenging.” It is important that you take the extra time to get near your students and then quietly talk to them about their behavior choices. Another solution would be to address a common behavior problem with the class as a whole. For example, you could say to the class “we seem to be having trouble with rule number 2 so let’s practice.” If one student refuses to comply please don’t resort to calling them out in “public” that route solves nothing and makes your day that much harder. Work smarter, not harder and use the tools from Whole Brain Teaching.
The other idea that I would like you to take more consideration with is that “disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms.” You are doing several things well in regard to procedures and structure, but you need to step it up. In the beginning of the school year you need to be obsessive about everything. You need to tell the students in detail how you want them to perform in every situation and you need to keep those expectations until the students leave you on day 180. You have the ability to do this, think of how you expect your students to place their folders and pencil boxes just so on their desks and how they must put their white boards and markers to the left of their squares on the carpet. That is the kind of organization that your students crave. This structure will leave little room for students to get out of control and display challenging behavior because they will always know what you expect them to do.
There is one more thing that you need to be aware of… you can’t forget to follow your own procedures. You cannot let your students slack on procedures and you need to show your students that you hold the same expectations of organization for yourself. I think that the key to your success next year will be for you to think about which procedures you need to put in place in every typical and atypical situation that your students face. Write them down and study your list, get to know them well. Begin those procedures on day one, minute one, and never stray from your plan. I promise that you will see a difference!
Have a great school year!
Yourself,
Sarah King
Sarah,
ReplyDeleteWhat an excellent letter! I really like the way you tied it back to your own childhood. I imagine all of us can tell stories like that but how many of us actually do something about it in our classrooms? You have set some great goals for yourself for the upcoming year! Check out your 3rd paragraph for a tiny mechanical error. Here are 20 certification points for you plus 5 BONUS POINTS!
Dear Dan,
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to remind you that there are mistakes you can make as a teacher that could make your job more difficult. Coach B says, “The greatest mistake we can make as educators is making our classes more difficult to teach.” In the past Dan, you have made some of these mistakes from time to time. For next year I think there are two areas you can make a conscience effort to improve in.
By confronting rebellious students when there is an audience you can make the situation worse. At times you can be impulsive and want to handle the situation immediately not realizing that you could actually be fueling the rebellious behavior. For next year I have two suggestions for you. First you could write the behavior down and choose a time when there is not an audience to discuss the behavior privately with the student. Another option would be to use Practice Cards. Practice Cards will allow you to remind the student they are breaking a rule without making a big production out of it.
The second area you could improve on for next year is to increase the amount of preparation you do outside of the classroom. “Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids” reminds me of this important point, “Outstanding instruction involves huge, truly mountainous amounts of labor, preparing, practicing, researching, thinking through, refining instructional units.” You have the exciting challenge this year of using a co-teaching model. Making time outside of the school day to plan with your co-teacher is going to be crucial to reach that outstanding instruction referenced in the quote above.
Enjoy the rest of your summer! As you move closer to the school year please keep these two areas in mind.
Best Wishes!
Dan
Good reflective letter, Dan! You have chosen 2 really good areas to focus on. It will make such a huge difference in your classroom this upcoming year. Here are 25 certification points for you!
DeleteDear Heidi,
ReplyDeleteThis year you will be superbly organized! This is crucial as you teach from a cart in 15 different classrooms! You already have a great start as you have your flipcharts which include the WBT rules and a daily schedule, as well as plenty of supplemental materials. Each day after your last class, you will make sure these are updated for the next day. During August, you will create the calendars and update your lesson plans from last year. You will also schedule the common assessments, so that students can add them to their planners. As Chris Biffle says on p. 10, “The less class structure you have, the less structured your classes will be.”
The second practice that you will implement consistently is not confronting student misbehavior in front of peers. While you have been trying to do this, you need to be more consistent. “We make challenging students more challenging, we nourish their rebellion, by confronting them when they have onlookers.”, p. 10. Consistent use of the WBT techniques will help to reduce misbehavior, but when it occurs, remember to quietly redirect the student, without an audience. Tape a reminder to the top of your cart to keep on track.
You have had success with WBT. Imagine how much more when you consistently avoid mistakes! Here’s to a great year!
Nicely done, Senora Keith! I love the cue card reminder on your cart! Here are 25 new certification points!
ReplyDeleteChapter 3
ReplyDeleteTerri Brown
July 2, 2013
Dear Terri,
As you begin your first full year implementing WBT please remember the importance of not making common teaching mistakes. There are seven mistakes teachers make. Let’s begin with these two mistakes. Keep in mind that bad teaching breeds challenging students.
The first mistake to avoid is to not confront rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers, this will make them braver and more rebellious. You saw that your first year in 1st grade. Remember John Smith, you watched him look around to see who was watching his inappropriate behavior. He actually fed off the response he received from his peers. In the future, when working with students like John, start by using the Scoreboard Level 1 and working up to Level 7 if need be.
The second mistake to avoid is being disorganized. A statement to say to yourself when you are feeling too tired to make lesson plans Disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms. You have witnessed that in classrooms and at times in your own classroom. The less class structure you have, the less structured your class will be. Having a place for everything will help the students know where to retrieve and return items. This summer color coding your class library will definitely help the messiness of the library you had last year. Taking the time at the beginning of the year to set expectations and locations of materials with students will be beneficial for both students as well as you.
Please keep these two items in mind as you start your WBT journey.
Terri,
ReplyDeleteThese are two excellent goals for the coming year! Check the wording in this sentence: "A statement to say to yourself when you are feeling too tired to make lesson plans Disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms." Here are 20 points.
Dear Meredith,
ReplyDeleteI know you were convicted by quite a few of those common teaching mistakes, but let’s zoom in on the two that made you cringe. I know it hurts, but trust me, you’ll be a better teacher for addressing these issues.
First, “disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms.” Seriously, shoving papers into cabinets, frantically searching for the lesson plan you spent hours on, wading through the sea of materials on the horseshoe table, it’s all got to stop. Not only does it disrupt the flow of your lessons, but it gives your students permission to disengage.
Second, more time needs to be put into your class outside of class. I know you’re exhausted, I know some days you just have to get out of there, but what are you sacrificing in the process? “If you don’t pay the price before you step into the classroom, you’ll pay the price as you fumble through shoddy lessons.”
Here are a few suggestions to help stop the chaos: Label where everything needs to go, and then put things where they need to be right away. Make an end of the day routine to follow after the students leave, and follow it. Things to include in the routine are writing the next day’s learning targets, getting all materials copied and ready, cleaning your teacher spaces, etc. Meredith, you’re really great at creating organizational routines, but not so great at following through with them. These are small, manageable goals that will keep you feeling confident and keep your challenging students away from “CHALLENGING STUDENT HEAVEN.”
You are a great teacher who loves her children. I know you can be an even better teacher who shows her love by implementing harmony through her organization, hard work outside of school, and follow through.
Your friend,
Meredith Pearson
Meredith,
ReplyDeleteThose are 2 great goals to work on! Good luck to you as you embark on the journey to Teacher Heaven this upcoming school year. Here are your 25 certification points!
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteDear Heidi,
ReplyDeleteNow that you have finished reading the third chapter of WBT, you have been exposed to the seven most common teaching mistakes. If you are honest with yourself, you must realize that you have actually been creating the problems you have had with your most challenging students. I know that it must be difficult to acknowledge that your teaching behaviors are exacerbating the difficulties that you have experienced.
While all of these mistakes are applicable to you – unfortunately, even the one referencing the fact that teachers who have the most challenging students are the ones who don't like teaching – it is first of utmost importance that you transform your teaching into a profession that you can truly love by focusing on changing just two of these problem areas to start.
First, and most importantly, it's time to take a good hard look at your practice with an eye toward change. In mistake #7, Chris Biffle says (p. 12), “Grow or die...If you're afraid to try new teaching techniques, you are petrifying yourself to death.” I know that you are scared to change, lots of people are, but there are also all kinds of really engaging technologies that you can continue to learn about that will transform your teaching, and consequently, your relationship with your students. Don't worry that you don't know as much as some of the younger teachers or your students. And also, don't be afraid to try and fail and get up and try again. You aim to foster this mindset in your students, so don't they deserve a good role model for this type of educational risk-taking, too?!
Secondly, I know you are loathe to admit it, but over the years you have become a lazy teacher. You often don't put very much effort into your lesson planning and it shows. It's ironic that if would you put more time into your planning, you would feel less exhausted at the end of the day. When you aren't sure exactly what to expect of your students, the challenging ones will surely figure out how to pick up the slack. As Chris states in mistake #5 (p. 11), “The less work you do outside of class, the more work your classes will be.”.
I know it really stinks battling with class after class of challenging students, especially when you know in your heart of hearts that if you put the effort in at the front end, you would likely find that you actually enjoy your job. Wouldn't it be great to leave school everyday with a smile on your face instead of needing a few margaritas to wipe away the nightmare of your work day? I know you're smart and capable, so come on! Get it together and do the right thing for both you and your students!
In Solidarity,
Heidi ( a.k.a. Your Better Half)
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHeidi,
ReplyDeleteExcellent letter! Admitting our faults is the first step to a positive future. Here are your 25 certification points plus 5 BONUS POINTS!
Woo hoo!!
DeleteAndee,
ReplyDeleteI know you want to have a great year this year. Here are just two simple and common mistakes to work on. The first is to make sure that you do not confront challenging students in front of others. I know at times is seems easy to just try to “fix” the problem right then and there in front of everybody, but that does not work. You must remember that; “Our worst students are geniuses at rebellion. They know exactly what to say in defiance, exactly how to get up to, but not over the line. They’ve had a lifetime of experience and often been surrounded by skilled role models among family and friends, in being superbly, brilliantly rebellious.” (pg. 10) You should not confront them in front of others, it only nourishes them. It has never worked, so it is time to move onto something that does. Instead try to redirect them by calling out a rule number and wait for your whole class to recite the rule in support of you and your efforts to have a well-functioning class with clear and concise and fun expectations.
The second item to work on is to “grow or die”. I know you have been teaching for several years now and you would think that it gets easier. You would think that you have less to learn since you have experienced so much, but that is not true. Learning is a process and you must continue to grow each and every year. You must remember that, “You’re a teacher. Grow, learn, transform yourself, or die by ossification. If you’re afraid to try new teaching techniques, you are petrifying yourself to death.” (pg.11) Every year a new group of kids come into your classroom. Each child is unique and different. You must find a way to meet their needs. If you do not learn from your mistakes from the past you will never make it. The strategies that you have implemented in the past have not worked. Implementing these new strategies from WBT will help you, that individual kid, and the whole class.
Best of luck,
Andrea McCord
Andrea,
ReplyDeleteYou chose two very common teaching mistakes, and explained what you are going to do to fix them! Great job! Here are 25 Certification Points!
Dear Sara,
ReplyDeleteYou've done a lot of reflection this summer and learned a lot about Whole Brain Teaching. After reading chapter 3 of Chris Biffle's 'Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids', you've learned that there are seven ways that we make our challenging students more challenging. This year, to make teaching fun again, you need to focus on two of these mistakes.
First, you Sara, are going to be organized. "... there should be a place for everything in your classroom, and everything should always be in the same place." Your students need this structure. This year you are NEVER going to say "oh, just put it over there or toss it on my desk somewhere." There will be no more baskets and buckets filled with miscellaneous items. Your students will be able to follow your directions quickly because they will not be searching for any required items and your challenging students will not have a chaotic classroom in which they can thrive. You do not need 'to be nice', you need to be structured.
The second mistake you need to focus on will be on how you confront your challenging student(s). When a student is being challenging, they are begging for attention and an audience. DO NOT confront them when they have an audience. "We make challenging students more challenging, we nourish their rebellion, by confronting them when they have onlookers." WBT has so many ways to handle these students. Start by having the class restate the rule that wasn't being followed. Use the Scoreboard and engage their emotions and remind them of your high expectations. If you must speak to a student about their behavior pull them aside during recess. Sara, don't give any of your students a chance to disrupt all the great learning you have planned.
By being organized and remembering when and how to confront challenging students you are going to have a fun, successful, and pleasant year of Whole Brain Teaching! Oh Yeah!
Another nice post, Sara! Here's to a great year for you! You've just earned 25 points!
ReplyDeleteDear Dominique,
ReplyDeleteWow! New school year, new expectations coming with the new year. Let’s make this year out shine the last. After reading chapter 3 in WBT there are seven common teaching mistakes that occur in the classroom but this year we are going to focus on two of them to make this a better year.
First, and most important for you, is mistake #3: organization. While your lesson plans are structured and you know what is happening next, your classroom is chaotic. Chris Biffle states (pg. 11), “There should be a place for everything in your classroom, and everything should always be in the same place.” You always start the school year off with a home for everything but you have trouble following through with always putting it back in its place. You have to stop putting it where it is convenient and put it in its place. When school starts, and you have arranged your classroom, you should evaluate how well you put things back at the end of each day and week to see your progress.
Second, is mistake #1: controlling your temper. The most difficult students know just what buttons to push but how to not go over the line. As Biffle states (pg. 10), “If being addressed by screaming, out of control adults made our challenging kids better, then children from crazed families would be our model pupils.” This is your classroom and you are the teacher in charge. You need to remember to breathe when a student is being challenging. Breathing helps you make rational decisions and not emotional decisions. Again, at the end of the day, stop and evaluate how well you handled that situation or how poorly you handled it.
Dominique, I truly believe that if you keep these two things in mind it will be a better year. You need to remember to stop and look back on how you did each day. This will be a better year. New year, new expectations, for your students and you.
Best wishes,
Dominique
Dominique,
ReplyDeleteGreat letter to yourself! I can't wait for you to read the upcoming chapters. Things like the Big 7 and the Super Improvers Wall are going to make life in your classroom so much better and help you reach your goals. Here are your 25 certification points!
Dear Rosemarie,
ReplyDeleteI’d like to begin this letter by saying that I’m proud that you have begun to take steps to improve, not just practice, but yourself. I recall when we spoke a few weeks back that you were frustrated with you interactions with some of your students. Your exact words were, “I’m so angry all the time. I feel like I’m yelling; babysitting; not teaching.” I want you to know that I heard you and I understand where you are coming from. As I began to read Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids, I began to realize the mistakes that I was making. This reminded me of you. While I don’t have all of the answers, I did find solace and strategies in this text that have helped me and I want to share them with you.
The first thing that comes to mind is that “When we lose our temper with difficult kids and yell at them, we don’t fix our teaching problem, we make it worse.” Biffle, C. Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids (p.10) What Biffle is saying here is that when we lose our temper and yell at them the focus is no longer on teacher; it’s now about a power struggle. I will suggest that instead of engaging the students by yelling that you reign in the rest of the class using class rules, the scoreboard, or another one of those strategies. Children know how to push our buttons. We need to know how to remain calm and focus on the positives.
Another thing that comes to mind is your statement of babysitting instead of teaching. I must admit, I’ve seen you in action; and for the most part, you’re amazing. However, there was this one time when you were looking for materials and the class got unruly. In the text, it reads, “Lazy teacher create classes that could care less about what is being taught and thus, are lovely breeding grounds for rebellion.” Biffle, C. Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids (p.11) I must say that I agree with this. Going forward, make sure that all of your materials are within arm’s reach and are ready to go. This small step will help ease some of your frustration and lesson challenging moments.
So remember, don’t lose your temper and be prepared. I hope this helped!
Best Regards,
Rosemarie
Rosemarie Lee,
DeleteYour personal reflection resulted in very positive goals for the new year. Two errors in the first few lines of your post have unfortunately lowered your point award to 10. Be careful in future posts.
Hi Nancy,
DeleteCan you please be more specific as to what my errors are? I'm an extremely reflective person and in responding to posts I tend to be honest about myself and perspective. With this response, I'm not sure how I should proceed any more as it appears to have a punitive response. Lastly, as someone who is about to coach others on their classroom management and having WBT as my primary system, I need to know how to communicate this to them. Thanks in advance.
Dear Randi Jo,
ReplyDeleteWow, you made great improvements this year, but I can also see you struggled with your class. Let's reflect. Remember rule # 2 from the Seven Common Teaching Mistakes? "Confronting rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers, will make them braver, more rebellious." Ahhh...yes, of course you remember! Have you been confronting your students while their peers are around? You are giving them the tools they need to be rebellious and take over your class. When you confront the student, take the student out of the environment in which he is being rebellious. This takes away their audience and they find it less fun to entertain when they do not have a crowd to perform for.
HELLO, are you there? Wake-up! Rule #7, Grow or die. You have made mistakes, we all do. Pick yourself up, get yourself together, and transform into a stronger, better teacher! The world never stops rotating and your students never stop learning. Don't choose to be passed up. Life goes on and you are an amazing part of it!! Keep going! GROW OR DIE!
Best wishes,
Randi Jo
Randi Jo Barndt
Randi Jo,
ReplyDeleteGood "pep talk" to yourself! What will your first step be in strengthening your teaching style? Here are 20 points!
Dear Michelle,
ReplyDeleteNow that you have reviewed the seven common teaching mistakes that many teachers make, it is imperative that you take an honest look at your own teaching practices. Being a quiet person by nature has helped you to keep your temper in check in the classroom, but you do need to think about how you confront rebellious students. According to Mr. Biffle, “Confronting rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers, will make them braver, more rebellious”. (10) You have, admittedly, confronted disruptive students in front of their peers many times. Using this new insight into your teaching methods, take time this summer to reflect upon the results this type of teacher behavior has shown. Obviously, it has not been successful, as noted when the same students are repeat offenders. Take note of Biffle’s comment “...these highly skilled rebels relish the spotlight. We make challenging students more challenging, we nourish their rebellion, by confronting them when they have onlookers”. (10) Plan to implement a way to talk to these children privately, and incorporate other techniques such as the white, green, and purple card system; moving to other steps in the ladder as needed.
Secondly, make the numerous hours you spend working on classroom tasks outside of regular school hours more focused. Spend less time perusing Pinterest for “cute” lesson ideas, and more time “preparing, practicing, researching, thinking through, refining instructional units”. (11) Using the Whole Brain Teaching (WBT) lesson template as a guideline will help you prepare concise lessons that include the key WBT factors. Prepare lessons that will keep the students’ brains engaged, even noting the various times for them to “teach-okay” and “mirror words”. Make the lessons engaging and fun! Remember, what you do is crucial. “According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 30% of our students are one, or more grade levels behind. The ship of American education is not floundering in the waves, it’s gurgling toward the bottom.” (12) You can make a difference!
Michelle,
DeleteMany of us are guilty of getting lost in Pinterest. It's easy to do! You now have great goals and a clear direction forward. Please remember to sign your post with your full name. Here are 25 Certification Points for you!
(forgot full name) Michelle Shelton
DeleteDear Amanda,
ReplyDeleteThere are seven common teaching mistakes that make your job harder. According to Chris Biffle, “bad teaching breeds challenging students.” You are going to focus on getting yourself organized and confronting rebellious students. You will NOT make your class more difficult to teach.
Everyone knows you have a hectic job with lesson planning, grading, paperwork, and meeting the needs of the students. However, you need to get yourself organized. Organized teachers eliminates wasted time and will allow you more time to focus on student learning. Getting organized will take a little extra time at the beginning of the school year but will save you time down the road. I want you to buy a binder and label the dividers "calendar," "gradebook," "lesson plans," "class info," "seating charts" and "miscellaneous." Add a pouch to your binder to hold essentials, such as pens and sticky notes. Use the sticky notes to write quick notes to yourself or add things to your calendar or lesson plan. I also want you to get three trays and label them “homework”, “notes from home”, and “classwork”. You will expect your class to put their papers in these three trays. “At minimum, there should be a place for everything in your classroom, and everything should always be in the same place.”
Amanda, I want you to remember to not engage in any back and forth argument with a rebellious student. I want you to state your expectations and give clear directions but do not respond to inappropriate statements and disruptive comments. The more you engage in such behavior with students, the more they are prone to rebel and refuse to do what is asked of them.
Your goal for this upcoming school year is to be consistent. Consistency is one of the most important rules that need to be applied when dealing with a rebellious student. You can not change the rules. If Joe behaves in a disrespectful manner on Monday and that particular behavior had resulted in a certain punishment, the same punishment has to be applied for the repeated behavior on Friday. The severity of a punishment should not depend on your mood.
Amanda
Amanda,
ReplyDeleteGood post on two very common teaching mistakes. Consistency is so important when dealing with all students. An important point, though, is that Whole Brain Teachers do not punish, they practice. If a student behaves in a disrespectful behavior, they need practice behaving in a respectful manner. I can't wait until you read the chapters on the 5 rules and practice cards! Here are 25 Certification Points! Welcome to the Book Club! Copy and paste this post into a Word document. Read the Certification document (link on the right) to find more information regarding certification.
Dear Laura
ReplyDeleteThe summer holidays are just around the corner and the promise of a new set of students waits on the horizon. Wait! Hold on to that thought! Don’t let the six week break become one long sunbathe by a pool. This is the time to get ready for that new class and those new challenges.
Spend a good portion of the break preparing yourself for the fun you want to have with these new children. Read up on the latest WBT ideas, watch webcasts and think through the planning carefully for the autumn term to see how you can engage ALL the students. This will all pay off in September, because “the less work you do outside of class, the more work your classes will be’.
You may be meeting a new set of students, with 32 new names and faces to put together, but don’t forget those children are meeting someone new too - you! They need to know your boundaries and what is expected of them. Don’t fall into the trap of empty promises or punishments. Set a structure that works for them and you, and stick to it! They will be much better learners for it.
Above all, enjoy this new year and its challenges. Try new techniques. Engage the students. Turn them into teachers! “Grow, learn, transform yourself” … be the best you can be.
Love,
Laura Ward
Laura,
ReplyDeleteGood letter to yourself for the upcoming school year. I would like to hear more about how you will grow and learn. Give us more detail and include the "why" of the things you will do. This will produce a well written and in depth response. Here are 20 certification points! Save and date this post in a word processing file. In August, we'll post directions for turning it in to redeem your points.
7/22/13
ReplyDeleteDear Gena,
I was sad to hear that you are having a difficult school year. As I reread your letter I recalled some strategies I put in my teaching toolbox from Chris Biffle’s “Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids” that I believe will help you regain the joy of teaching.
You obviously have several rebellious students this year. I have learned to confront challenging students when they don’t have an audience. Rebellious students become more rebellious when they have an audience. Don’t nourish their rebellion by confronting them when they have onlookers. I wait until the class is working independently and then calmly ask the disruptive student to my quiet area. Remember that kids thrive on attention. Disruptive students have been trained to seek negative attention and it is our job as teachers to retrain them. You have to be consistant and patient with your new nonconfrontational classroom style, but it will yield positive behaviors.
Since you are limited on classroom and office space being superbly organized will help you. Students thrive in a structured environment. I have learned that my disorganization breeds chaos. I have cabinets and drawers labeled, books leveled and labeled, and supplies kept in consistent places. You might invite a friend to your classroom who is supremely organized and ask her to help you. Also, keep your promises about assignments, tests and activities. Students need to know that they can depend on what you say and do. Remember how your own children react when you promise them a something special and don't follow through.
Practice these Whole Brain Teaching strategies and your power to change your students’ lives and mastery of tasks will increase. I am excited to hear from you on your WBT journey.
Sincerely,
Gena Parkison
Very good, Gena! Good luck with your goals! Here are 25 points for you!
ReplyDeleteDear Connie,
ReplyDeleteI am happy to see you stepping into the realm of Whole Brain Teaching. I know you have been frustrated with your challenging students and white knuckling through some days. You want to do better and enjoy the teaching experience more. You want to really grow in teaching and have found a means of doing that through Whole Brain Teaching. “Grow or die.” “If you are afraid to try new teaching techniques, you are petrifying yourself to death.”
“The less work you do outside your class, the more work your classes will be.” Plan outside of class ways that you will implement Whole Brain Teaching techniques in your class. Each day, plan ways to infuse them into your lessons. If you are uncomfortable and unsure, have practice sessions at home. Go to workshops and watch videos to improve your style and get new strategies. Frequently, take time to reflect on your day, celebrate successes, and work to improve the weak parts. Sometimes it seems overwhelming to make detailed plans for each little lesson of the day to incorporate Whole Brain Teaching, so start with just making one or two lessons better at first and continue to add more to your repertoire as progress and gain expertise.
Wishing you the best,
Connie Way
Connie,
DeleteNice letter! You're off to a great start with these goals! Here are 25 points for you!
Dear Diane,
ReplyDeleteDespite July’s excitement for WBT strategies, in the blur of activity of the first weeks of school, it has been too easy to slip back into what is familiar and comfortable. Don’t worry; you anticipated this moment and made a plan. I know you keep forgetting to use the scoreboard. Make that scoreboard necklace now--cardstock in a sheet protector with yarn through the first and last holes. Hang it around your neck. Forgetting to use the scoreboard will be impossible. Get out that list of Super Improver areas you prepared in July, so that noticing areas for students to earn points would be easier. Use that printable you designed for students to list three goals for themselves. Have students use the form at least once a month. Keep a stack ready for students who want to make new goals for themselves. Tape the small forms to a folder for easy daily review. Do what you ask your students to do: “Grow, learn, transform yourself...”
Much of the students’ testing happens at the end of the year, but now is the time when your most “brilliantly rebellious” students are testing you the most. When the bait is offered, don’t bite. You would not play a chess genius in front of a group you wanted to impress; don’t play their game in front of the class. Use the WBT tools to prevent and handle this situation. Don’t talk too long. Keep the class active and fun with Teach-Okay and brain toys. Use the Scoreboard and the advanced levels. Help the more challenging students develop goals for Super Improver points.
You started using the some of the WBT strategies last year. You had the best behaved class of your 15-year career. That was not a coincidence. Like dieting, changing teaching habits is most difficult at first. Eventually the WBT strategies will become the comfortable and familiar ones! “Grow or die!”
Diane Strickland
Diane!
ReplyDeleteGreat letter! I love your energy and determination for the new year! Here are 25 point and a 5 point Bonus!
Dear Jen,
ReplyDeleteAs you approach your new year in teaching I want to remind you of two things you must be aware of: Confronting rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers, will make them braver, more rebellious and disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms.
These may seem like common sense but it the heat of the moment you must be mindful that you are the common denominator in your classroom-you set the tone. As stated in Whole Brain Teaching for Challenging Kids, “We make challenging students more challenging; we nourish their rebellion, by confronting them when they have onlookers. You give them exactly what they want when you confront them in front of their peers-even if you have spoke to them privately the previous two times! They are looking to increase their toughness-don’t give in!
I know that you recognize that many of your students have challenges at home but that is no excuse to change your expectations. You can’t say one thing and do another. This is not good for your students or you. Students need to know where everything goes and they need to know that what you say is what you mean. Your students need clear boundaries and to know your word is true. Remember Mr. Biffle said:
“ If you say one thing and do another, promise a test for Friday and then put it off until Monday, say you want X,Y and Z on an assignment and then, “to be nice” are willing to accept Q, make promises you can’t keep, or threats you can’t fulfill, your classes are headed for CHALLENGING STUDENT HEAVEN!”.
You can do this! You need to remember what is best for you and your students!
Sincerely,
Jennifer Wiggins
Jennifer,
ReplyDeleteNice letter to yourself! You are correct in your comments, "You can’t say one thing and do another. This is not good for your students or you." You had one small error near the beginning, "These may seem like common sense but it the heat of the moment you must be mindful that you are the common denominator in your classroom-you set the tone." Here are 20 points!
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteChapter 3 described seven mistakes that teachers make. All of them made me think about what I do and how it affects my students. Two that stuck out to me was “confronting rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers, will make them braver, more rebellious” and “disorganized teachers' breed chaotic classrooms.” If I was to write myself a letter would have to look something like below.
ReplyDeleteDear Katrina,
This year I really want you to focus on confronting rebellious students when they do not have a captive audience. When challenging students are surrounded by their peers during a confrontation many times they become “braver and more rebellious”. They “relish in the spotlight”. Focus on talking to them away from peers or better yet, get the whole class involved by discussing certain behaviors together. Another thing to really focus on is organization. Remember last year when there were a couple days that you didn’t have it together. The students were horrible, right? Well, do your best to be prepared every day. “Disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms.” Your challenging students thrive in chaos and they will lead others done their path. Remember to have a place for everything including supplies in your classroom, students are more likely to keep things in their spots if you are organized and expect the organization from them as well. There are many things to work on this year; however these two-confronting challenging students and being more organized-should be at the top of your list.
Love, Yourself
Katrina,
DeleteYou have set some great goals for yourself! Unfortunately, you have several editing errors. I am unable to award any points for this post.
Two that stuck out to me was “confronting rebellious students...
If I was to write myself a letter would have to look something like below.
Your challenging students thrive in chaos and they will lead others done their path.
Dear Kathie,
ReplyDeleteWhile you are now aware that there are seven common mistakes teachers make, there are two or three you will focus on this upcoming school year.
The first two go hand-in-hand. They are, Rule #3: "Disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms", and Rule #5: "The less work you do outside the class, the more work your classes will be". I understand that these are rules or goals that you honestly do strive for not only in the classroom, but in life. This year, given the tools you will learn with Whole Brain Teaching, you will work smarter toward achieving these rules/goals. You MUST continue to keep a neat classroom and practice daily procedures and expectations with your students. If they know what is expected of them and where the materials they need can be found, they will feel comfortable and be willing to learn.
In order to keep things organized therefore, you MUST stick to your lesson plans as much as possible and try to not let your students or colleagues steer you off course. Just like your students, if you know what you will be doing with your day or week, you will be comfortable and successful too!
Finally, Rule #7: "Grow or Die". Just as the book says, "If you're afraid to try new teaching techniques, you are petrifying yourself to death.". No profession should rely on techniques that were invented years, decades, centuries ago - imagine if doctors did this! It can be daunting when constantly confronted with "whiz bang learning systems" through professional development, but when you find something YOU believe in, for example, Whole Brain Teaching, then why not try it?
I especially like the passage in the book, "The more you practice our strategies, the more power you will have as an instructor to change your students' lives and the more power your students will have the master the learning tasks you set before them." This is what I would truly like to see happen in my classroom. I teach to empower my students through knowledge and a love of learning. If WBT can teach me how to make this happen, then I MUST practice WBT!
Good luck this year. Do not feel discouraged, feel empowered!
- Yourself
Katherine,
ReplyDeleteWell written letter to yourself! I like your statement, "I teach to empower my students through knowledge and a love of learning." Here are 25 points!
Dear Shannon,
ReplyDeleteYou know that you have areas of strength and areas of weakness. As you come into this next school year, let’s think about how we can improve on those weaknesses to make them our strengths!
Remember when one of your scholars was trying to get his friends’ attention by making noises and laughing? Remember how you handled it? You called him out in front of the class just because you were frustrated. What happened then? The class laughed and he escalated the behavior. Try to remember that “our worst students are geniuses at rebellion.” He knew what he was doing and just how to push your buttons. And you let him! I think you should take some time this year to practice yoga again so you remember how to control your breathing and your temper because “when we lose our temper with difficult kids and yell at them, we don’t fix our teaching problem, we make it worse.”
The other item I think we should focus on is how to balance it all. I know you are busy with work, family, your son’s sports, and other commitments, but “the less work you do outside of class, the more work your classes will be.” Working at a program improvement year 5 school is a challenge, I know. Your hours after school are spent making sure you are on the same page with your colleagues and writing unit study guides. The political hoops are an annoyance, but if you want your class to run smoothly, make sure that if you can’t stay later that you bring it home. Your fabulous husband will help, you just have to ask!
Keep up the hard work and remember to act the way you want to feel so that your kids don’t feel the stress, they feel the love.
Sincerely,
Shannon Caldwell
Shannon,
ReplyDeleteYou've chose 2 great areas to focus on! Best of luck for this upcoming school year. Here are 25 certification points!
Dear Sophie,
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 3, Chris Biffle writes, “Bad teaching breeds challenging students.” This is great news! It means that highly qualified teachers have a tremendous level of control over their students’ ability to perform, both socially and academically. As a teacher working in underserved communities for many years, you’ve heard all the excuses: “These kids get no support at home, I’m not a miracle worker, there’s no way she can focus with everything that’s going on in her life, etc.” However controversial this may be to say, you know that the #1 factor in your kids’ ability to succeed academically is the quality of the teaching you provide. Therefore, being disorganized and not working hard enough at developing your teaching skills are two of the biggest mistakes you should strive to avoid, this school year, and in truth, any school year. Stellar organizational and planning skills are key to ensure your ongoing growth as an educator.
First, I suggest you think deeply about ways to reorganize your classroom environment to help your classes run more efficiently. This year will be your third year using WBT. It’s also the first year you will get your own classroom, as a pullout ESL teacher, so it’s now time to design your WBT model classroom! Make sure you post your rules in the front of the class. Also put up your Super Improver Wall and Power Pix from day 1. Since you teach K-5, I know you’ve struggled with what Power Pix to put up. Yet, with the implementation of the Common Core, it will now be easier for you to find a logical thread to follow across the grades, so that you can put up Power Pix that are relevant to the kids you teach. You also have more wall space, now, and remember, only Power Pix that have been mastered need to be up.
My other suggestion would be for you to maximize the time you spend home planning for your units and lessons. With young children at home, this can be challenging, but since you have several weeks to yourself, this summer, manage your time judiciously, and make a daily schedule to prioritize what you feel needs to get done before school starts. As Chris Biffle states in Chapter 3, “Outstanding instruction involves huge, truly mountainous amounts of labor, preparing, practicing, researching, thinking through, refining instructional units.” The time to begin all this work is now! There’s a lot to be done, but you’re lucky to have designed all your lessons on PowerPoint, last year, so this year, you can spend more time making instructional adjustments, based on the implementation notes you wrote all year.
I predict this school year will be your best, yet. Just roll up your sleeves and start planning for it. You can do it!!!!
Sincerely,
Sophie
Sophie,
DeleteGreat job! You commented that you only post your Power Pix once they are mastered. These should be posted as soon as they are taught, and reviewed often!Here are 25 Certification Points. Have a great start to the school year!
Hi Sarah,
DeleteThanks for the CP!
I post the Power Pix we're working on (not yet mastered) on the white board. Then, once they have been mastered, I move them to my Power Pix bulletin board (which has the letter/number pix organizer on it). This year, I'm planning to allocate 5 minutes daily to review our Power Pix (I'm a pullout, ESL teacher, so I have very limited time with my kids).
Thanks so much for your feedback! Do you know if there are Power Pix out there that are just common core, as opposed to state specific? I know I could design them myself, but I thought I had seen a blog out there with CC Power Pix... I just can't remember where now! :-)
Sophie
Sophie, there are links to some wonderful Power Pix on the 3rd Grade WBT Certification facebook page. I teach 5th grade and they were all applicable to my classes too! https://www.facebook.com/?ref=tn_tnmn#!/pages/WBT-3rd-Grade-Certification/361390443978050
DeleteDear Erin,
ReplyDeleteThere are a couple things you need to keep in mind as you continue to implement Whole Brain Teaching in your classroom. First, remember, “confronting rebellious students when they have an audience of their peers, will make them braver, more rebellious.” You need to remember to control your behavior and tone of voice especially when dealing with your rebellious students. Rather than losing your cool, just stick to your classroom management plan. You have a good plan in place that will deal with these rebellious students. Instead of calling out a rebellious student in front of his peers, allow the behavior to effect the scoreboard, super improvers team, or individual consequences. Next, remember that you need to “grow or die!” “You’re a teacher. Grow, learn, transform yourself, or die by ossification.” Since this is only your sixth year teaching you have been pretty good at continuing to grow through professional development, seminars, conferences, and books. However, it is important to remember as the years progress you continue to grow. This year make sure you continue to implement Whole Brain Teaching into your classroom. Also, continue to attend the Whole Brain Teaching conferences offered in Yucaipa and other surrounding areas. Make sure you continue to work on the Whole Brain Teaching book club as you finish reading the book. Also participate on the Middle School Whole Brain Teaching Facebook page and work up the levels of a certified Whole Brain Teacher. If you keep these two items in mind this year, I know you will do a wonderful job. Remember, you are changing lives!!
Erin,
ReplyDeleteIt's sounds like a lot to do but with WBT you'll be able to accomplish these things! Here are 25 Certification points.
Dear Erin,
ReplyDeleteIt is a week before school resumes and I want to take a moment to remind you about best practice and what Whole Brain teaching will bring to your classroom this year. There are many teaching mistakes that are common among new and veteran teachers, specifically seven. I want you to focus on two that I feel will most improve your overall management and reign in those challenging children.
The first is to control your temper. You know you’re going to have students who will try from day one to see how far they can push you and try to pull you in to a power struggle- don’t give in. One idea that I took from Chris Biffle was, “If …screaming, out of control adults made our challenging kids better, then children from crazed families would be our model pupils.” How true is that? Keep that in mind, keep your cool and be a model for how to maintain composure, not how to lose control.
The second mistake that most teachers make is not being organized. I feel that being organized and working hard at teaching, even when you’re not at work will make every day go by so much smoother. These challenging kids are looking for a teaching that doesn’t stick to routine, they know when you’re unprepared and flying by the seat of your pants. Don’t give them the opportunity to take advantage of your unpreparedness. As Chris Biffle stated in chapter 3, “Disorganized teachers breed chaotic classrooms.” Don’t let this be true of you.
Good luck next week and the weeks to come,
Erin
Erin,
DeleteNice letter on two very important goals for all teachers! Here are 25 points! Keep us posted on your new year!
Dear Julie,
ReplyDeleteWell, you've made it through the first week of kindergarten and you’re still standing (sort of). Seriously, since beginning to implement “Five Class Rules”, “Class-Yes” and “Hands and Eyes” form the Whole Brain Teaching Program you have noticed that most children are very quick to respond, and attentiveness seems to be better. I know you’re trying to adhere to the program but sadly, old habits die hard. By recognizing and changing these habits there IS hope for rehabilitating yourself and those students that just drive you crazy. Commit this to memory: “Teachers, by their teaching choices, (can) create environments that nourish rebel behavior.”
First, losing your temper with challenging students doesn't fix the problem, it actually makes it worse! I realize that you have always made it a point not to yell at children, but you can lose your temper without yelling. Children are much different now than they were when you started teaching. No longer are they expected to be “seen and not heard”, and “speak only when spoken to”. Many of these defiant children are exposed to so much negativity at home that they simply tune it out at school. Therefore they are unfazed by your glaring glances and directions that are whispered through clenched teeth. Your anger is affecting only you and perhaps their classmates. Instead you MUST make speaking calmly, clearly, and yes, cheerfully, your #1 goal. Search for the good in all students and always accentuate the positive. Keep children busy and engaged by using the Whole Brain Teaching Techniques, thus leaving little room in the brain for concocting inappropriate behaviors.
Also, you must not confront rebellious students when they have an audience. I know that this old technique is intended to “shame” the offender into behaving properly, but it will actually make him braver and more rebellious. Our worst students have “…had a lifetime of experience and often been surrounded by skilled role models…(who are proficient) in being superbly, brilliantly rebellious.” The last thing a rebel is going to do is let his peers think that you have control over him. Therefore, calling him out in front of the class will basically guarantee continued infractions. Instead, I suggest that you implement the use of the “Scoreboard Game”. Start at level one where smiley and frowny points are given to the class as a whole. Award frowny points for any type of inappropriate behavior but do not single out the rebel. Be sure to keep “Oh Yeahs” and “Mighty Groans” within three points of each other and allow the class as a whole to experience rewards as well as punishments. Hopefully this system along with peer pressure will help to mold the behavior of the offending student. If level one is not effective or loses its effectiveness, then progress slowly through the subsequent levels of the “Scoreboard Game” using the “Guff Counters” and “Independents” components. Just remember, keep all specific discussion of the student’s behavior private. Don’t give him a reason to “prove” himself.
I know this is a lot to take in, but I also know that you can do it. In the long run you and your class will learn more and become one group united for the pursuit of good and knowledge!
Happy teaching,
Julie
Julia Simons
Julia,
DeleteThis is an encouraging letter, and I know these strategies will pay off during the year! You had one tiny error in the second sentence,"Seriously, since beginning to implement “Five Class Rules”, “Class-Yes” and “Hands and Eyes” form the Whole Brain Teaching Program you have noticed..." (from). Here are 20 certification points!
Dear Lori,
ReplyDeleteAs you know from your own personal experience with your past students, telling youth how you always listened and did the right thing when you were in school can lead to rebellion. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that your disruptive students should be like you, you’ll make them more disruptive.
This year, when you feel yourself wanting to tell your class how great you were, please don’t. You will think yourself later. Replace old teaching techniques that haven’t gotten you the results you have wanted with new WBT techniques. Remember this, "Your kids are square pegs that won’t fit into your round hole".
Post this quote in a place where you can see it daily and remind yourself of your intentions as a teacher, “Grow or die”. You must learn new teaching techniques. As a teacher, you must grow, learn and transform your teaching style. WBT is your new beginning to your teaching career. Continue to learn techniques that have been proven to be effective. As your growth skyrockets, challenging behaviors in the classroom will decline.
Please work hard this year, 'If you don’t pay the price before you step into the classroom, you’ll pay the price as you fumble through shoddy lessons'. Remember when you were not fully prepared for the science experiment last year? You didn’t take the time to get your materials together ahead of time. You also didn’t test out the experiment on your own before trying it with your class. As the result of you not fully preparing, students lost focus, became behavior problems and learned nothing. Write this quote in your lesson plans as a weekly reminder, "The less work you do outside the class, the more work your classes will be".
Lori Crigler
Lori,
ReplyDeleteYou have chosen three important areas to focus on this year! You had one minor writing error, "You will think yourself later". Here are 20 certification points!
Dear Dana, I know you are excited about the new year. Each year you spend time reflecting on teaching methods that you were pleased with and those that need work. This summer will be no different. First and foremost, remember that children must know that you care before you can teach. That is something that you have never had a problem with. You also know that preparation is a requirement of a good teacher. Continue to prepare! Now for a few things that you could improve on. Remember why you became a teacher. You like a challenge and last year your students didn't disappoint you. They were challenging on every front. Children come to you with a personality and it is different from yours. That's okay. Embrace their individuality. Allow them to come to you with their history and appreciate it. Don't be so quick to fit them into your "space." Why don't you fit into their "space?" After all, you are the teacher. They will watch you and learn to appreciate the differences. Next, don't be afraid. Grow with your students. Try new teaching techniques. You ask your students to try new things so test new ideas. Be committed and watch your teaching be transformed! You can do this!
ReplyDeleteDana Hoewt