Tips Archive » Teaching Techniques » Self Knowledge

• Journal Keeping (1 tip)
• Building Trust (2 tips)
• Self-Motivation (7 tips)
• Setting and Achieving Goals (6 tips)
• School Mission Statement (1 tip)
• Yes, I CAN Go to College! (2 tips)

Journal Keeping

Journaling

From Karen Gronau, a second grade teacher at Seven Oaks Elementary in Baltimore, Maryland:

"Once a week each of my students write to me in our dialogue journals. They can ask or tell me anything. They write in a marble copy book that is kept in their desks. I reply after school on the same day that they write so feedback is immediate. The students get to "talk" privately and personally with the teacher. It promotes writing for a purpose and sometimes is therapeutic for them. When I reply, I model correct grammar and spelling so they learn incidentally. A couple of years ago a former student wrote me a letter five years after I taught her. Her letter told of cleaning out her closet and finding her dialogue journal. She said, "I sat down and read all the way through it. I got in trouble for not finishing the cleanup, but I also got a lot of neat memories. I'm sure glad you did this with us."

Building Trust

Weekly Communication

From Pam Johnson Taverner, a speech teacher at Clearwater High School in Clearwater, Kansas:

"I teach a one-semester speech class that is required for graduation from our 400-student high school. One of my major goals in the first three or four weeks is to establish an atmosphere of trust. I randomly assign each student a 'best friend,' whom he or she will introduce to the rest of the class: 'I would like you to meet my very good friend. . . And the MOST interesting thing about my friend is . . . .' This is a lot less threatening and more entertaining than the 'uh, well' self-introduction.

Another component that I really treasure is the 'Weekly Communication,' which makes up 10% of the final grade. The first day of class, I give all students manila envelopes, which I ask them to decorate in a way that communicates something about themselves. Some draw pictures; others create a montage of magazine photos; some tape on photos of themselves, friends, and family. All they have to do to receive an A is to DO it. Then each week, I ask that they put in their envelopes a 'communication' of at least 1/2 page. Some have chosen to write one week about parents. Others write about their dream car, dream date, dream house, or what they would do if they won the lottery. The important thing is that, if they write a half page and turn it in on time, they get an 'A.' Spelling, punctuation, and organization don't count. One-half page equals an 'A.' The hardest part is finding the time to read each one and write marginal comments or at least draw happy or sad faces in the margins. But it is worth it. We become a family in 18 weeks, and I really believe it significantly lowers the anxiety level! I think any teacher would have an altered perception of his/her students if he or she shared a 'weekly communication' with each of them."

Morning Meeting

From Nancy Mercurio, a second grade teacher at Quidnessett Elementary School in North Kingstown, Rhode Island:

"Each day before we begin our program we get together in a circle. I share any news of the day and changes in our schedule. Sometimes we do a quick review of spelling words or share journal stories. At the end I ask for announcements. When that is done, I ask for problems. This gives the kids each day an opportunity to share their stories in an organized way and to cooperatively help with some problem solving. It eliminates the need to come in the class and want my immediate attention to tell me something. They know they'll get the chance during Morning Meeting which frees me up to get started right away on attendance and lunch count. The kids know that announcements and problems need to be current, so you don't get into stories that happened last year."

Self-Motivation

Ownership

From Chris Smith, a deputy principal for Canley Heights Public School in Sydney, Australia:

"When children are given ownership of new discoveries in learning it has a greater tendency to stick. Forty years ago, a seventh grade math class saw the birth of the 'Smith Rule' which is the square root of a number plus or minus its root. I've forgotten a lot of things in my life but this is one that stuck. Ownership really counts."

Class Funeral

From a fourth grade teacher:

"On the first day of school this year I held a funeral with my class. The children made a list of all the things they could not do. I collected the lists, grabbed a shovel and a pine tree seedling. I told the kids we were having a funeral. We all walked outside and dug a hole to bury the can't lists and to plant the new seedling in the same hole. The purpose was to learn to never say can't again and the new tree is a positive reminder of that whenever we look at it. The children are ever so quick to let the others know that they are not allowed to say the word can't. The local newspaper got hold of the story and wrote about us. What a successful lesson!"

Great Grade Chain

From Lisa Skain, an upper level special education teacher at Somerdale Park School in New Jersey:

"I give my students an opportunity to show their great grades in the classroom. At the beginning of the year, I give them a different color construction paper to use as their link color. For every test or project grade that reflects A work, both in my classroom and in their other classes, the students cut a strip of their color paper, write the subject and the grade on it, and staple it to the previous link. Along with the link added to the Chain of Great Grades, the students are entitled to select a reward from the reward jar. As the year goes on, the chain becomes longer. I love to look up and see our great grades hanging around."

Building Motivation

From David Kahoun, a math teacher at Perry Middle School in Perry, Ohio:

"To build motivation in the challenging classroom, try using individualized positive comments to each student in front of the rest of the class. Identify the student's strengths and attributes that make that student stand out form the rest. Also, give some positive recommendations to the students to help build upon their achievement and success. Through this activity students become anxious to hear their positive qualities and are very attentive to know what they can improve on to reach their fullest potential. Some forethought must be taken in order to make this activity meaningful to each student. This truly is a motivator for all students!"

Silent Praise

From Miranda Aaycock, a first grade teacher at Rose Hill Magnolia Elementary in Rose Hill, North Carolina:

"I encourage positive praise without a lot of noise. When someone does something great, we do 'The Aaycock Seal of Approval'. Everyone puts their hands together and claps silently three times, holding their thumbs up after each clap, and quietly says 'Great Job'. Children, parents and fellow teachers love this wonderful way of praising children without a lot of noise."

Oral Presentations

From Pamela Martin, a fifth through eighth grade special education teacher at Perry Middle School in Perry, Ohio:

"I taught my students how to create a PowerPoint presentation and I let them make one on a topic of their choice. After scripting and practicing their speeches, my reluctant public speakers gave excellent presentations to their classmates. PowerPoint proved to be a powerful motivator!"

The Magic Ring

From Bev Bowers, an elementary school LD teacher in Southland School District in Adams, Minnesota:

"I was working with a child who would not speak. I gave her a magic ring. I told her that whenever she wore the ring, she could talk. At first, she began to talk just in our classroom. But later, I allowed her to take the ring to other classrooms and then she spoke there. It was wonderful."

Want Ads

From Sheila Schnitt, a high school special education teacher in Virginia

"Some of my students thought that school was of no value to them so I decided we, as a class, would see what life would be like if they dropped out of school then and there. We searched the Want Ads for a job that they could realistically obtain with whatever skills they had at the moment. Then we figured out the monthly salary. We created a monthly budget of things they would have to pay for each month because their parents might not let them live at home anymore if they quit school. Using the newspapers, they had to find an apartment, figure out a food budget, buy a car, and price auto insurance. When they realized what life could really be like for someone with no education or skills, some of their attitudes toward school changed."

Setting and Achieving Goals

Setting Goals

From Barbara Teetor, an achievement specialist at Tyrone Elementary in St. Petersburg, Florida:

"I started a Raise Your Grades Club for the third through fifth graders at our school. After each report card, students chart their grades and set goals for their next report card. The students that wish to participate write me a letter telling me which grades they will raise and how. After the next report card, the students who have met their specific goal(s) are invited to a celebration. This club not only recognizes what students are doing right but teaches achievable goal setting."

Road to Good Talking

From Patti Ralabate, an elementary speech and language pathologist at Hayestown Avenue School in Danbury, Connecticut:

"At the beginning of each school year, I put up a bulletin board that is essentially a road with sign posts or stopping points along the way. Each student's name is written on a vehicle or sneaker made out of poster board and placed at the beginning of the 'road to good talking'. A 'goal sheet' with the specific objectives for each student is put inside a personal folder that they make. As students practice their new skills, they receive stickers that are placed on sticker cards. When the sticker cards are full, the students take them home and move their name up on the road. When a student reaches the end of the road, the whole group celebrates with a party. Students beg for extra work and extra turns to fill up their cards. No one complains when we place their name back at the beginning of the road because it means that they will have more opportunities to earn a party for the group!"

Exit Tickets

From Arlene Toivonen, a sixth and seventh grade reading teacher at Perry Middle School in Perry, Ohio:

"To keep my students focused on the day's objective, I tell them what their 'exit ticket' will be for each day. I stand at the door as the students leave and they tell me an interesting simile, a new vocabulary definition, information from the Internet, etc. Students may not give the same answer as a student who has already exited. Students stand in line and discuss ideas. It only takes a couple of minutes, provides an orderly exit, is a good review, and increases time on task. The practice also gives me a quick check of learning. Students are actually disappointed when we don't have time to do this!"

Seeing the Future

From Connie McQuestion-Burg, a resource teacher at Martin Luther King Institute, Buffalo, New York:

"In my fifth through eighth grade resource room this year, I had the students describe themselves now, in five years and in ten years using artwork and words. The students were expected to list thoughts and goals for and about themselves on a three-column sheet of paper. They were given several stacks of magazines and asked to cut out pictures that would represent themselves and their goals. This project opened their eyes to life as a student and as an adult. It also made for lively discussion of each other. The help each gave the other in finding pictures was tremendous."

Student Goals

From anonymous:

"I ask students to set goals at the beginning of each school year. As a guidance counselor, I do not see the students every day but keep their goal cards and return them at our last session toward the end of the school year. Many are happily suprised that they made more friends, improved grades, and/or completed personal goals throughout the school year improving as they had desired when the school year was beginning."

Remembering the Daily Objective

From Mary Cummings, a library media specialist at the Rhode Island School for the Deaf in Providence, Rhode Island:

"When students get home from school, their parents are likely to ask them what they learned in school that day. So, everyday I write, �Today I learned...� on the board. I complete the sentence with one important fact that I teach during the day. At the end of the day, we read the fact again together three times. I tell the students to repeat it for their parents when they are asked what they learned in school. Both students and parents enjoy this game."

School Mission Statement

Mission Control

From Eileen Durgin-Clinchard, a retired teacher, now project director for A World of Difference in Nebraska:

"In a school in Iowa, the staff all worked together to develop the school's mission statement, with some student input. Once it was crafted it became a living document that the teachers in various classes used according to their subject area. In English, they discussed choice of words and meaning, in social studies the statement's purpose and how it related to school governance, etc. In this way, everyone knew that it was not just empty rhetoric. It was reciprocal between students and staff (teachers especially). Each had a responsibility to contribute to an environment which facilitates learning as well as achieving."

Yes, I CAN Go to College!

Practice Interviews

From Peggy Hanselman, a counselor at New Hope Solebury High School in New Hope, Pennsylvania:

"We give students the opportunity to experience a formal interview. Faculty and peers interview students interested in becoming a peer leader, asking about their strengths, weaknesses, and reasons for wanting to work with middle school personalities each week. To evaluate their judgment we ask them to respond to a hypothetical situation. Seniors who are interested in community organizations' scholarships are also interviewed at school on a Saturday. Faculty and community organization representatives interview them. Our business and guidance departments cooperate to offer mock college and job interviews during the school day. Students submit a portfolio of their work, including a cover letter, resume, grades, and awards. After the interview students receive an evaluation of their interview through their business teacher."

Fieldtrip of Dreams

From Claire Melits, an instructional assistant at Wilson Elementary School in Phoenix, Arizona:

"I work at an elementary school in a district with a high drop-out rate. Many see school as an impediment to a full-time job working for minimum wage, while others get to high school where the work is hard and they don't get so much individual attention. College is often not even an option. A teacher I work with and I came up with a great field trip idea. First we had the students perform a mock courtroom debate, one side for staying in school, the other side against. I was called to the stand as a witness, because I go to school full-time AND work. I also receive financial aid. I tried to explain to the students that it is possible and that they can do it. Many students were intrigued and hands shot up. I felt this wasn't enough, so I suggested that we take a field trip to the university I attend. I spoke to a professor of mine who is more than willing to have this class visit one of hers so they can see that higher education is attainable. My professor also suggested that we meet with student aid representatives to discuss scholarships, grants, and loans. We will also ask the university's hispanic organization to meet with us since 99% of the class is Mexican-American. This trip is planned for next semester, after the Christmas break, and I can't wait to see these students experiencing a college classroom - it's something a lot of us take for granted!"