More Than a Paycheck: Teaching in New Orleans

What would you do if your class sized burgeoned to 45 and continued to grow and shrink as hurricane victims came and went? What would you do when you have a class full of students who may not have eaten that morning? What is your motivation?

For Katie Fone, a 3rd grade teacher in New Orleans, Louisiana, teaching was more than collecting a paycheck. We hope you enjoy this video about a teacher whose position is not just a job, but a passion.

Teaching to Learn and Learning to Teach

Students Achievement Best Practices in Small Group Setting

 By Elena Leonido, Special Education Teacher

image courtesy of www.principalspage.com

Teaching to Learn:

“I don’t want to do work!!!” and a loud ohhhh!!!! filled the whole fourth grade room, after one kid dropped his book on the  floor, threw his chair and stood still. The general education teacher was furious and sent that kid to the principal’s office. Shocked and tongue tied, I wanted to cry in disappointment. I believe I was sad both for the teacher and for the child. It was my first year teaching in America but definitely not my first in teaching profession. After a whole day of teaching, a big question was circling in my mind: “How can I help these kids?”

At first , I looked back at my 15 years of teaching, back in the country where poverty is high and but the regard for education is high too .I remembered my students from the Home Study Program who walked and swim to cross the river and walk again to get to a simple school building. These kids still want to do school work after a long hours of walking and drying their clothes and walk again everyday to get to a teacher and learn something.

I convinced myself that kids are the same everywhere. That these kids are in school because they want to learn too. After several days I found myself teaching in small group and “Johhny” was one of them sitting and waiting for whatever I have to say.

Expectations :

“Do you know that you are so lucky to be American students?”I asked and all of them looked at me with a question on their faces. Then I described how are they different from other kids of their age in some other countries. I explained how  lucky they are to have all the resources provided for their education. The school buses, materials, hard bound books, materials and not to mention their teachers. That taking all of these for granted does not make any sense at all.That I expect them to believe that they can help not only themselves but other kids in some other time, if they get a good education. That they need to give their  best shot in whatever we do in that small group to learn.


Consistent and ongoing reinforcement:

Since then, I challenged my group of students including Johnny to look for their awesomeness. To empower themselves by believing they are too blessed to be upset, too smart to be left behind and too good to be ugly. Before I start my lesson I ask this question.” What made your day today?” “What can you do to improve yourself?”I prepare  interesting activities that can move their cognitive, and psychomotor domain and most importantly at the end of each lesson I touch their affective domain by letting them feel that they can do it. We usually sing the lines of the song that says ‘Give me all best shot !!! “ Yes, yes, yes, yes “when they encounter challenging question from me.

Learning To Teach:

“When I grow up, I will be a teacher and I will help kids in your country, Ms. Leonid.o” A voice from a child beside me echoing in my ear, while I was getting all the assignments that my kids completed in that small group .I was certain that was the most sincere remarks that I have ever heard from a kid in my teaching years. Yes, it came from Johnny’s mouth and believe it or not I had goose bump all over me.

I praised Johnny immediately and reassured him that he will make  a good teacher and teach students like him.

Reality check ? Yes, kids are the same everywhere. Reassurance, motivation and support and empowerment still work with them. Adults should give them chance to discover themselves and blossom. Like an ugly caterpillar to a beautiful butterfly.

Youth?

Still the hope of the future!!!

Ma. Elena Leonido
Special Education Teacher
Norfolk Public Schools
Virginia ,USA
(After grading, planning and teaching, I continue to learn by taking up professional courses and trainings and continue to teach students no matter what their circumstances are)

Student Achievement through Checking for Understanding

A Post on Student Achievement Best Practices

 By Sara Campbell, Chemistry Teacher

Save your seat today for Conscious Teaching's FREE Webinar on April 25! 

image courtesy of tarahighschool.org

A lot of times it is easy to forget that achievement is more than a number.  It is students understanding of the concept and their explanation that truly determine achievement.  As a chemistry teacher I am lucky enough to have the same students the entire year.  Just like Amy I also have a questionnaire that I give my students.  I sue this questionnaire to see what their interests are.   This allows me to tie the chemistry aspect into a real life application in order to give them something they can understand. 

Whether they test good or bad, I always have my student’s "pair share" certain topics.  This allows me to see what they truly understand.  I also use whiteboard when we are working out problems or discussing new topics.  The whiteboards are a great way to check for understanding.  In my class, all whiteboards must have something written on them.  If they do not know the answer then they must write what part of the topic they are struggling with.  Not knowing is not an option in my classroom. 

Last Friday, I gave my students a 15 quiz questions.  The averages for all four of my classes ranged from a 55-65.  Knowing that this was not acceptable I decided to review the main objectives and my students go over each of the quiz questions.  They each had to defend why they choose that answer.  If it was not the correct answer then as a class we collectively decipher not only what the correct answer but why it is that answer. 

My name is Sara Campbell and I am a 2nd year chemistry teacher.  I am working on my pre-Ap and AP certifications this summer. I currently teach 11th graders and love every minute of it.  Teaching is a rewarding experience and I look forward to it every day.  My goals are to increase the rigor and grow as teacher in any way that I can.

New Teachers Know It All

Here's a guest post from Deia Sanders, a teacher from Mendenhall Jr. High in Mendenhall, MS!

 As the school year quickly approached, we were in our staff development meetings staring at familiar faces we had missed all summer and excited about the new faces that had joined our team.  It was my turn to speak.   I had gone from a classroom teacher to the new title of Master Teacher.  Part of my new duties now included professional development and new teacher induction.  Today’s talk was to be about Classroom Procedures.  

As I stood and presented about the procedures for entering the class, going to the restroom, leaving class, getting in groups, going to the bus, riding the bus, etc…  I could see on the new teacher’s faces that in their mind this was overkill.  And when I said this needed to be rehearsed for the first couple of weeks of school, I could feel the deep breaths of doubt exhale from their bodies. 

Actually, I guess everyone could feel it, because that’s when a second-year teacher I had mentored stood up and said “I know this sounds like too many procedures, and I doubted it when she tried to tell me this last year, but I didn’t do these things and I paid for it all year.”  Yes!! That was the testimony I needed to get buy-in from these teachers… or so I thought. 

As the first day came the nervous first year teachers were following the Power Points on procedures and practicing in the classrooms and halls.  I was so proud to see the progress.  But by day 3 and 4 their routines were waning and their thoughts had turned in to trusting these nice, quiet junior high kids in their classrooms.  It was a stark contrast from the experienced teachers who were turning their class around for more practice when procedures were broken, correcting mistakes, and addressing issues before they happened. 

As the year progressed, the new teachers who doubted the importance of drilling procedures and expectations for two weeks, showed their inexperience with their loud classrooms, low homework return, and chaotic lines as they trekked back and forth to the cafeteria and assemblies.   It reminded me of warnings from my parents about my own behavior as a child, which I didn’t heed, and eventually felt the consequences of.  As much as we tried to help the teachers regain control, the expectations are set with the first impression, and it’s difficult to recover when they don’t take you serious.

Just the other day I was talking to a new teacher who was reflecting on his experience so far this year. He was sharing that next year he would start out like we suggested, and had learned his lesson. It seemed like the appropriate time to warn him about “spring fever” and how wild the kids would get as the weather warmed. Once again I was given that same look of doubt that they had with my procedure warnings in the beginning, and again I related to how my parents probably felt when I was a teenager and thought I knew it all.  I immediately knew that once again they would have to walk through the fire to feel the flame.

So… it’s almost March and here we go again!