Debbie DeSpirt's Blog
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Students give the gift of time for Dads on Father's Day on Sunday, June 15, 2008. Springtime is a busy time for the average dad who is cleaning the outside of the home. Garages need to be organized, weeds pulled, gutters cleared, and the occasional paint job.
Best gift for dads' are coupons to do one of his jobs big or small. Students can write a voucher to their dad to organize the garden tools, or spend 1 hour assisting him with the lawn. As well, they may choose to do indoor chores to aid them during the week. Students do not need money to create a gift that their dad will appreciate.
As well, students may choose to give their dad time to spend with them. Often children do not have all the same interests as their parents. Students create a coupon to spend 2 hours watching a football game or an hour playing dad's favorite video game.
Father's Day is less than a week away, but students can create a voucher book in less than an hour. Coupons are great gifts because dads can redeem them at anytime.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
As a Substitute Teacher, I am in an array of schools throughout the year, as I prefer the flexibility of choosing my own schedule. However, at times, teaching part time can become lonely as there is limited connection with the school community.
Today was one of the days that made me be thankful for being a part time teacher. For the past two days, I taught a wonderful primary class and at the end of the day I received several written thank you letters. Often at the end of the day, my students will verbally thank me but the letter is an added treat. Thank you letters from students tell me that my one day is very important in their lives.
As a teacher I can connect with them in the moment of now or just aimlessly go from class to class. As I teach in the now, my purpose is for them to learn something new. Today, as I asked my students what they learned, one student replied, "I learned how to ask for things nicely". A simple comment as this tells me I made the right decision to be a Substitute Teacher.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Bring music into the classroom to keep students motivated for the last month of school. Junior and Intermediate students begin to act up in the final month because they are aware most of the grades have been calculated for their final report card. It is difficult to keep these students engaged because grades were their motivator.
Fun is another excellent motivator and music can initiate this with the older and younger students. Put on a Oscar Peterson (well known Jazz musician) song to initiate a creative writing paper. Play the song for a few minutes and have students put their heads down, with their eyes closed and just listen. After you have played a small part students are to write about the images created in their head and write a story. Students will be more engaged in this activity because the music has excited them to write.
As well, music can assist in writing, art, and social studies. Play music from a time period and have students write about the atmosphere at the time based on the music. Students will have to listen if it was a sad or happy time and make conclusions based on the music. Students are learning even though a grade may not be given for the assignment.
Last month of school can be tiring for the teachers and students because all want the summer to commence for relaxation. Add a little music to the classroom to stimulate the students and teacher.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Class sizes vary from school to school. Some classes have over 31 students while others are lucky to have about 25 students. More students usually mean more issues in the classroom because students can be lost in such a large number. Behavioural issues often stem from boredom.
Keep students motivated by make them move every 20 minutes or so. Students need to move, as do adults to keep them engaged in an activity. Math does not have to be sitting through an entire lesson, students are great models for math problems. As well, they are great models to identify parts of a sentences and incomplete sentences. You can also use students to emphasize a period, exclamation mark, or question mark going at the end of sentence.
Use students as models to assist in teaching a concept from language arts to science. Students will be more engaged because they will want to be a model and because they are employing more senses in the learning process.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
As a Substitute Teacher, I have a limited amount of time to gain control of the classroom. Students in the junior grades begin their strategies to get the substitue to slowly lose their mind. Fortunately, I remember many of the tricks from switching desks, changing names, inventing reasons to leave the classroom, and outrageous behaviour.
My first defense is to greet all students with a hello and ask some about their evening. After I have greeted most I enter the classroom and ask the first student to assist with the seating plan. The best way to gain control is to know everybody's name before the majority of students walk in. I have the first student to assist with the seating plan. It takes only a few minutes and aids the teacher for the rest of the day.
Next is to show the students with limited speech, that I am the teacher of the day and expect respect. Often respect is forgotten on the substitute teacher, and students believe it is a day of no rules. Be firm but kind with the students and review the rules before classroom. As well, you may wish to write the rules on chart paper and display at the beginning of each day.
Lastly, continually focus on the positive. Stop the class to identify great behaviour and try to ignore the negative behaviour. It is best to gain control in the first few minutes of class, otherwise you may have quite a chaotic day.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Words of Nelson Mandela, former South African President will open discussions about non violence with students. Mandela's quotes can be used as a tool to engage students about life inside and outside the classroom. Mandela creates and uses other quotes to promote peace and acceptance. As well, he models his beliefs and that is key for students. Students need to see peace and acceptance in the classroom, school community, and local community.
Mandela's quotes can be the springboard to begin discussions about bullying by students and adults. Bullying has been an issue since the conception of schools but it has now entered students' homes with the introduction of the Internet. Cyberbullying targets students in the safety of their homes, creating a new type of violence for students. Many students are not aware of the damage cyberbullying and other types of bullying have on the victim and the community. If bullying is considered a part of growing up it becomes a part of our values. It is important as teachers to model problem solving strategies, good working relationships with fellow teachers, parents, and administrators and respect for ourselves.
Teachers can be inspired by the words of Mandela and bring this to the classroom to teach students life values.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Earth Day was celebrated around the world yesterday, April 22. Its inception began to educate people from all walks of life on how to conserve and protect our environment. Outside clean ups, litterless lunches, and turning off lights were just a few activities celebrating Earth Day in schools.
Students hear the buzz words to care for our environment, but are they observing the acts on a daily basis. Earth Day was established to get the world involved in protecting our environment for the year, not just one day a year.
Begin the discussions on how to protect our natural resources, but keep having students active in the goal. Litterless lunches do not have to be one day a year but rather on a continual basis. As well, turn off the lights or reduce light usage if possible in the classroom.
Appreciate our earth, by taking care of it and as teachers it is best to model to our students. Teachers can show their litterless lunch, walk or bike to school if possible, and turn off the lights in the classroom and staff room. Teachers, school administrators and the community are excellent environmental role models.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Brain teasers on the blackboard is a great way for students to begin the day. Teacher may choose for students to answer the brain teaser independently or as a group. As well, class points or prizes may be awarded for the group with the correct answer. Since the objective is for all students to learn, give points or prizes for groups that have put effort into finding a solution to the problem.
As students walk into class, they usually mingle until the teacher gets their attention. Brain teaser will have students working together and utilizing brain power before morning announcements. If students are on task, the teacher can utilize this time for attendance and morning questions from students.
Brain teasers can include soduko, word problems, riddles, word definitions, puzzles, and logical games. It is best to have a variety otherwise students will bore of the activity. In addition, have students create brain teasers to share with the class.
Books, internet, and fellow teachers are great resources for creating brain teasers. As well, create brain teasers based on a theme, holiday, and students' curriculum.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Celebrate National Poetry Month in April with your students. Poetry is an excellent reading choice as the material is usually short but there are a grand assortment of activities that can be utilized from one poetry piece.
In class, I always have a few poems to read to the class, in those few minutes between classes or to quiet a rowdy class. Most children in the primary and junior grades begin to quiet and settle when a teacher begins to read an enticing poem. Students begin to sssh their neighbour to hear the words because there is usually no picture.
April is a great opportunity to highlight poetry to your students because it is being celebrated in schools across North America. It is a time for teachers and students to share their favourite poems. Teachers can share with their class or with all students in the school during morning announcements.
I appreciate poetry because in a few short sentences I can be smiling or relate to the emotions of the character in the poem. A poem makes me think and read between their lines. As a teacher, I want students to be able to appreciate reading in all styles and I feel poety is is an enjoyable read.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Earth Day is celebrated on April 22 ever since 1970. It's main purpose is to highlight how to conserve and protect our environment for the present and future. Earth Day is celebrated all across the world to inform students on how one step makes a difference to keep our earth healthy and strong. Earth day began as a one day celebration but many schools, and communities have increased the celebration to a week or month.
Morning Announcements are a great opportunity to showcase Earth Day in the school,to highlight local, national, or global ecological issues. Each morning give a WOW fact that begins a buzz (Fresh water available for human use is less than 1% of earth's water) with the students. Announcements are also an opportunity to give advice on how to reduce,recycle, and reuse to help protect the environment. Announcements should be short, but grab the listeners attention.
Earth Day should be everyday, use this designated observance to open discussions or to begin a cause with the class. It is important for students to educate parents because we are unaware of some of the ways we are hurting our environment. David Suzuki has a new commercial to reduce waste and he asks the children to inform the parents and make them turn out the lights. Students have great power if we give them the knowledge of how to become problem solvers and thinkers.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Earth Hour goes global to take action against global warming. The lights went out last year on March 29th in Sydney Australia but this year it is a global event. Canada, U.S. Brazil, Uk, Austrailia, and India are just a few countries that are taking a stand against global warming.
April is Earth Month, before the month discuss Earth Hour with your class and begin a school community initiative for students, parents, teachers, and administrators. Invite students to brainstorm on an assortment of activities that they can participate in from 8:00-9:00 pm on March 29th. The classroom is an excellent avenue to educate students on world issues.
Earth Hour can be turned into mini social studies, math, and language arts lessons. Students can write a journal entry on Earth Hour and what there family participated in when the lights were turn out. Earth Hour has a list of number of participants in this global movement from each country across the world. Students can calculate the percentage of residents from each country participating in this initiative. Currently, Less than 0.02% of the US people and less than 1.5% Canadians have joined Earth Hour to take a stand against global warming.
As teachers, we have a wonderful venue to educate students about how our present choices affect our future. As well, how one person does make a difference.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Introduce litterless lunch to students, on their return from spring break. Litterless lunch objective is to have no waste at lunch. It is important for teachers to educate students and parents on how to have a litterless lunch. For the litterless lunch to be successful it is important for the school, students, and parents to work as a team.
For a class to reduce waste in their lunch is a gradual process. First goal may be for students to hold their drinks in reusable containers. Teacher may give statistics on how many water bottles, pop cans, and juice boxes will not go to the landfill, if each student converts to a reuseable drinking container.
Second goal might be for students to place their sandwiches in a plastic container instead of disposable sandwich bags. Teacher may ask students to show their different containers or the teacher may provide suggestions to parents.
Litterless lunch is a great goal to achieve for April to introduce Earth Month. Classroom teachers can compete against each other or schools can compete to motivate students to get involved in litterless lunch.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Another beautiful snow day in Southern Ontario, we have seen our share of snow this season. Schools have not been closed, but buses have been cancelled and schools will have few students participating. Many parents have opted to stay home and only do the treacherous drive if necessary. I decided to spend it at home with my boys and enjoy the day.
However, there are teachers at school who will have a few students or a classroom with an assortment of grades to teach for the day. Teachers must forgo their usually lesson plans and plan on the spot. Writing poems is an excellent quick lesson for all age groups.
Writing a poem has limitless options that will keep the students engaged and the teacher will not have to photocopy endlessly to keep students busy. Poetry allows students at all reading levels to participate in the activity. After writing, students can draw a picture to illustrate the poem, folowed by a poetry reading. Snow days are a good opportunitiy to teach poetry to students.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Math is a dreaded subject for many students. Today, as I taught grade 2 and had to give them 4 pages of addition and subtraction questions, you heard the class sigh. There was approximately 100 questions for the students to answer in 40 minutes and the rest was for homework.
It is important for students to know simple calculations and rote is one way for students to learn the concept but often students will begin to detest math because of the constant repetition. Students need math but it should be used in real life situations for them to understand the concept.
After giving the math, I saw all of these lost faces who understood the concept with a concrete problem but became confused with the abstract problem. As well, some of the children saw the enormous amount of work and just shut down; by twirling hair, tapping pencils, or looking busy when I came by.
As well, students would say it was too difficult when they were at the desk but were able to solve the equations on the carpet with no prompting. My math teacher in teacher's college said a child can demonstrate their knowledge in 4 questions, more is a waste of time for the student who understands and frustrating for the one who does not.
Rote has its place but 4 pages is not a beneficial way for students to learn, rather they become robots with answers but may not truly understand the concept outside the parameters given.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Happy Birthday to the Leap Year babies who will celebrate their birthday on their actual birthday, and not a day early or a day late. Approximately, every four years we add an extra day to the calendar in February to align our seasons with the calendar.
Students are aware of leap years but do they really know why they happen. Create a few brain teasers that relate to leap years to introduce students to the concept. This is an excellent year to talk about leap years because students will experience the day. Leap year activities can be created for primary and intermediate students. As students learn about the leap year they will also be reinforcing math and language skills.
Girls will appreciate the folklore of Leap year as they will not have to wait for the boys to ask them out. Years ago, boys were fined if they refused a proposal. Have your class or school have a dance on February 29th to celebrate the tradition.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
As a Substitute Teacher, I have come across an assortment of teacher lesson plans. Some of the daily teacher plans are complex, while others are very simplistic. The best teacher lesson plans are the ones somewhere between simple and complex.
Often, the big item missing from elementary lesson plans deal with health and safety. It is extremely important for supply teachers to know about all allergies and health related information for all students. At times, I am searching for epi-pens or health information. The first important element for a teacher is to ensure all students are safe. Teachers are unaware of when they will be out of the classroom and for how long, therefore it is important for health and safety information to be visible at all times.
Daily lesson plans are a bother to create but will greatly assist the teacher in her success. A teacher can easily see what was covered yesterday and what type of instructional strategies have been implemented in the pass week with a simple glance.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Flashcards are portable, simple to create, and easy to use. They are an excellent learning tool for students inside and outside the classroom. As well, no student can not benefit from using flashcards as a study or learning tool.
Flashcards are known for learning multiplication tables, ABC's, and beginning sounds and words. However, there are a multitude of uses for flashcards for for primary to medical students. I recently taught seventh graders how to create and use flashcards to aid them in studying for a science test. The students were learning as they were deciding on the pertinent information to place on the flashcards. As well, their dialogue was also assisting them in learning the material.
Flash cards are not just for rote learning but are rather a tool to break down information into simple chunks for easier learning and comprehension.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Math is a subject that students either enjoy or groan about each time they are asked to open their textbooks. Writing a story, you follow rules but the answers may all be different but correct. However, math problems have one correct answer but different strategies to solve the problem.
Students are reluctant to solve math problems because of the fear of getting a wrong answer. Implementing a variety of tools for students to use, such as the 100 chart gives them something tangible to aid them in solving the problem. Hundred chart is a tool to assist with addition, subtraction, multiples, patterns and more. It gives students a visual to decide on how to calculate an answer.
A hundred chart can be used in primary grades til junior grades, then the hundred chart can be upgraded to a thousand chart. There are many math tools for students to use and it is important to teach them all and have students decide what is the best tool for solving mathematical problems. My son prefers the hundred chart for addition problems while my nephew prefers the ruler to assist him. Hundred chart is best to be available to all students and not just a teaching resource or a resource used once or twice. Students need to understand its importance and take the initiative to use it to aid in solving math problems.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Valentine's Day is celebrated every February 14 to show our love to one another. Often the holiday is to display our affections to a special someone. However, this holiday can be quite stressing to students, because not everyone in class will always be handed a Valentine's day card. Primary students are kind and parents will usually strongly suggest they give a card to everyone in the class, but as students get older, parents have less influence.
As students enter grade 4 they are less willing to give cards to all students in the class and only selects a few friends and a special someone. Often, the amount of Valentine's day cards you receive and from whom will speak volumes to the other students.
As a teacher, create Valentine's day lesson plans that illustrate love and kindness and does not exclude some children. Students are sensitive and Valentine's day should be a fun day not a day of stress and disappointment.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
February, Black History Month is a time to introduce students to African-Americans who are a part of our history. African-Americans have impacted our lives and February is an opportunity to hear the names of forgotten and well-known African-Americans.
Otis Boykin, an African-American saves hundreds, if not thousands of lives each year with the invention of the pacemaker. Meanwhile, Garrett Morgan, saves lives with the invention of the traffic signal. Could you imagine the chaos in urban centers without this invention? African-Americans have made contributions in all areas of our lives and it is important for students to hear about their contribution to our lives.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
January 2008 has arrived and I am busily looking over my 2007 goals. With a pink highlighter, I highlight all of my successes and smile at some of the goals that I never thought would be accomplished. My goals are organized under categories to ensure I have a balanced life, otherwise my career or financial health might take too much time from my other pursuits.
Setting goals is a difficult task and it has taken me several years to learn how to write a goal. My education on goal writing has been via workshops, research, and books. Looking back on my education, I would have appreciated a teacher outlining the steps to write a goal; as it may have kept me more focused.
A lesson or two on goal setting can be short and students may create a vision board when work is complete. As well, it can be implemented into a language or art activity. Setting goals for kids is an excellent tool for self discovery.
In addition, the teacher may have student create goals for the class to illustrate the examples of setting goals or making a vision board.
Posted by Debbie DeSpirt
Teaching fractions to a class is not an easy task. Fractions is a difficult concept to comprehend. Traditionally, fractions are taught as an abstract concept but for students to understand and apply the principle students need to learn fractions concretely.
As a teacher, I have observed that students learn best if they are active in the learning process. A student who is able to apply the concept of fractions to an everyday situation is more likely to use the concept in another event. All students need to experiment with a concept for them to understand its many functions.
A great way to reinforce fractions is for students to divide pizza into pizza slices on pizza day or to divide a box of smarties equally among 4 friends. Doing is how we learn.