If a doctor, lawyer, or dentist had 40 people in his office at one time, all of whom had different needs, and some of whom didn't want to be there and were causing trouble, and the doctor, lawyer, or dentist, without assistance, had to treat them all with professional excellence for nine months, then he might have some conception of the classroom teacher's job. ~Donald D. Quinn

Tis the season! Report Cards go home
Friday, December 10th.

Good Luck with Conference Week!

Classroom Managment

MAKE PROACTIVE MODIFICATIONS TO YOUR CLASSROOM

By: Bettenhausen, Sherrie, Intervention in School & Clinic,
Jan98, Vol. 33, Issue 3

1. Establish a climate of safety and predictability. Set a tone for positive relationships with students. Model cheerful, supportive, enthusiastic actions. Maintain a high ratio of positive attention to negative attention with students. Have realistic expectations for student learning.
2. Provide a structured learning environment. Establish a routine and stick to the schedule. Alternate high- and low- interest activities to maintain student focus. Remember to take regular breaks.
3. Organize your classroom space. Place desk and work areas facing the chalkboard and away from windows. Be sure students can easily see presentations and displays of rules and assignments. Place students with cognitive or behavior challenges closer to you.
4. Set clear expectations and follow through consistently. Make sure students know and understand the established rules. Catch your students being good. Encourage students to support each other in following the rules.
5. Provide a wide range of learning activities. Use a multisensory presentation style. Vary grouping arrangements and types of materials. Allow students to demonstrate knowledge in different response modes.
6. Keep students with special needs away from distractions. The student's work space should be as far from the door, pencil sharpener, and windows as possible. Seat the child with learning difficulties next to good workers.
7. Adjust assignments as needed. Shorten or break up tasks into smaller, manageable parts. Allow extra time for students to complete tasks. Whenever possible, let students use their best response mode for tests and assignments.
8. Give one direction at a time. Be concise and brief. Have students paraphrase the direction to ensure understanding. Use a positive tone and reinforce student follow-through.
9. Use proximity to manage behavior. Move about the room in an unpredictable pattern. Look around the room as you move. Notice when a student is doing well and praise either publicly or privately.
10. Give a warning for negative consequences. Catch problem behavior before it escalates. Be brief but firm. Give feedback privately.
11. Provide incentives or rewards. Use privilege or activity rewards and vary the selections frequently. Draw up a contingency contract or use cognitive behavior management to help students monitor and evaluate their own behavior.
12. Help students improve organizational skills. Use assignment notebooks. Color-code notebooks, folders, and activities. Do periodic desk checks to help students organize their work space.
13. Experiment with cross-age or peer tutoring. Target skills or content with peer tutoring pairs to promote academic independence. Use tutoring to foster social skills, positive relationships, and self-esteem.
14. Use volunteers or paraprofessionals in the classroom to maximize learning. Allow students the opportunity to work with a variety of adults. Enable students to receive extra instruction or personalized attention by maximizing the classroom environment.
15. Involve parents. Communicate a collaborative spirit between school and home. Make parental requests and expectations clear. Create a daily school-home progress report to enhance interactions.
16. Manage your time and your schedule. Reduce down time in your classroom and improve the efficiency of organizational activities. Be prepared and seek a balance between teacher-led instruction and seatwork. Make sure independent work assignments are relevant and at the student's ability level.
17. Assemble surefire work folders. Provide folders with meaningful tasks that children can do without assistance. Students can work on these tasks while waiting for assistance or after completing assignments.
18. Establish procedures for specific activities. Teach and model the procedures for basic classroom functions such as collecting assignments, handing in work, and sharpening pencils. Make sure students understand the protocol for participating in class and leaving the room.
19. Keep your room uncluttered and well organized. Avoid seating students near high traffic areas. Have extra supplies such as pencils and paper on hand. Make your desk and classroom an example of an organized and efficient work space.
20. Use interactive teaching styles and techniques. Alter the tone and speed of your instruction. Redirect students who are drifting. Involve students by asking frequent questions at varying levels. Repeat yourself when necessary. Write important points in vibrant colors on the board.

Better Teaching Newsletter

The Better Teaching Newsletter is published once a month and it gives both Elementary and Secondary Teachers practical tips for their students, parents, and classrooms. Below is a short summary of those newsletters. You can view the entire newsletter by selecting the link under the Better Teaching Newsletter page.

The September Elementary Edition of Better Teaching articles include RTI in the classroom (Part One of a Three Part Series), “What is the difference between a rule and a procedure” and sharing expectations with students and families about achievement. Throughout the newsletter there are strategies for adapting whole-classroom activities for different levels of learners and it includes classroom ideas on how to improve student achievement.

The September Secondary Edition of Better Teaching articles include how to help students set realistic obtainable goals and how to make connections with students’ families. There are classroom strategies for helping students that are out of school (with an illness) involved in your class. It gives lesson planning tips for creating a Face book page for a historical figure.

YOU DID IT, you made it through
New Teacher Orientation!
Best of Luck Next Week!

The Count Down is On!

Throwing Starfish

While wandering a deserted beach at dawn, I saw a man bending and throwing as he walked the endless stretch toward me. As he came near, I could see that he was throwing starfish — abandoned on the sand by the tide — back into the sea.

When he was close enough, I asked him why he was working so hard at this strange task. He said that when the sun arose, it would dry the starfish and they would die.

I told him he was foolish because there were thousands of starfish on miles and miles of beach...one person alone could never make a difference.

He smiled as he picked up the next starfish.

“It makes a difference to this one,” he said,
as he hurled it far into the sea.

I abandoned my writing and spent the morning throwing starfish.

~ Isaac Asimov

Welcome to District 97!

Hello New Teacher and Staff Members we look forward to meeting everyone in the next few weeks.
Lynne and Faith