The days of planning a lesson and teaching to a class as a whole are over. Teachers are now pushed to focus on each student as an individual. In the beginning, this concept can be overwhelming for teachers. However, after some practice it begins to come natural to teachers during a lesson or lesson planning. Teachers should strive to meet the needs of all of the learners in their classroom. When planning a lesson, teachers are to plan activities that will reach each and every learning type. Not everyone learns the same way. People have different ways of understanding and … Continue reading →

Ever since I began teaching I have had a class pet or class pets. While class pets can be wonderful for the students, they are also a lot of responsibility for the teacher. Before deciding that a class pet is right for your classroom, you should put a lot of thought into the time and effort that you are willing to place into caring for the animal. You must consider what will happen to the pet over weekends, vacations, and school breaks. A fish aquarium with fish is the most common class pet. This is the pet that I currently … Continue reading →

This week began my first week of bus duty for the year. Bus duty is required by most teachers in most schools. Bus duty is the duty when a teacher must look after students who ride the bus either in the mornings, the afternoons, or both. At my school, teachers only have bus duty in the mornings. The students stay in their assigned rooms until the buses leave in the afternoons. Bus duty at my school begins at 7:15. There are two teachers on duty each day. One teacher is assigned to the gym where students go if they are … Continue reading →

When I first began teaching, teachers’ assistants did the paperwork for teachers. The assistants were used to copy papers, grade papers, put up bulletin boards, and any other tasks that did not involve teaching. They usually came by the classroom and asked if you had any needs for the day. They spent most of their time in their workroom working on papers and such. Over the past couple of years, in my school, things have changed. Teachers’ assistants are now instructional assistants. They help during the instruction time. They do less of the copying and stapling and more tutoring and … Continue reading →

It is a sad fact of teaching that there are bad teachers. There are burnt-out teachers. There are teachers that need to leave the profession. For a teacher that really cares about the best interest of the children, it can be very hard to work with one of the teachers described above. So what can teachers do when they work with others that give the profession a bad name? First, mentor. Be a good example for the lacking coworker. Share and offer ideas. Perhaps the teacher just needs a push to get started. If the teacher is a veteran, perhaps … Continue reading →