Month: August 2019

Teaching Tips 2019

Specific Lesson Starter Strategies

Start with vocabulary – Post several words and let students guess the topic;

Try the whiteboard purge – Invite the entire class to write everything that they know about a new topic until the blackboard/whiteboard is full. Then asked for students to elaborate on their notes and take the time to correct misconceptions;

Start with video – Show a YouTube clip related to the topic. For example, explainers and author interview trailers;

Incomplete diagram – Provide a diagram with labels removed. Have learners try to guess as many parts as they can before turning the sheet over and viewing the answers;

Tell a story – Read or tell a story related to the topic. Students will become even more engaged if the story is a cliffhanger that you wait until the end of class to finish;

According to Online PD, the following components are useful in engaging students at the beginning of class: A) capture student interest, B) explain what will be learned, C) explain why it matters, D) relate the topic to previous knowledge, and E) tell how the lesson will unfold.

Teaching Tips Fall 2019!

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Six Strategies for Learning Students’ Names Quickly:

  1. A common strategy is to take photos of students wearing name tags on the first day of class and then create flashcards to practice outside of class time.
  2. Create rhymes to aid your auditory and visual memory: “Fred eats monkey bread.”
  3. When students tell you their names, say it back to them and confirm that your pronunciation is correct.
  4. Identify a unique physical feature and then think of a funny sentence involving that feature and the student’s name: “Tim has a tiny tooth.”
  5. Have students on the first day form into teams of two and interview their partners about favorite family rituals, hobbies, what they’re proud of, where they plan to be in ten years, and how they plan to get there. Then individuals introduce their partners by name to the class and synthesize what they learned.
  6. Use name tents until names are learned.