“If I taught something to children and they did not learn it, did I really teach them anything?” Possibly. Instead posit, “If I taught children and did not teach them how to remember what I taught them, did I really teach anything?” Indeed, not. If you expect children to remember what you taught them, teach them how to remember. Continue reading
The Art of Breathing and Teaching
When teaching children, knowing when to pause and take another breath to let learning unfold is a conscious act of breath control. Effective teachers know the art of breathing. Continue reading
If You Do Not Hear A Student, Is The Child Really Present? A Cartesian Problem.
Increasingly, we are seeing the whole group of a classroom as a collection of diverse children. Some have special education challenges. Some have cultural and linguistic needs. Some are gifted and talented. And some are shy and introverted. The characteristics we once considered normal are now a small group within the diversity. Continue reading
Teaching Is Renewal By Surprises
If, as Solomon said, there truly is nothing new under the sun, why do we rise with any new anticipations? In its basic forms, classroom teaching can be nothing more than the routine instruction of a routine curriculum. Why aren’t … Continue reading
Self-inspect Your Teaching Professionally to Prevent Meh!
Classroom teaching is a black box profession. The lack of ongoing professional critiquing leaves every teacher in the uninformed position of “I will keep doing what I am doing. It seems to be good enough.” How can a teacher know if a lesson uses good instructional practices and behaviors? How can a teacher assure positive correlations between teaching and learning? Teachers are on their own when it comes to evaluating their personal teaching performances. Continue reading