New Techniques for Term 2

I am feeling pretty good about Term 2. I am far from being a seasoned teacher, but I keep learning and steadily improving. I am trying some different techniques that we learned in our training. I implemented daily “Do Now!” for my 8^th and 9^th grade classes in hopes that they transition into my classroom quicker, with less talking, and with their mind more focused on the current subject. For all you non-teachers, Do Now is a technique where the teacher writes a question or activity in the same place every day. The learners know to check the Do Now and start working on it immediately, without waiting for everyone to be seated. It is short, so it can be finished quickly, and the teacher can use it to start the day’s lesson. This is working well but they still need practice on starting it quietly, independently, and without any reminder from me. Practice, practice, practice!

Another new technique I am trying is instead of giving a transgression for talking or other misbehavior (3 transgressions=detention), I am making them write a 100-word essay with topics such as “Why is the teacher upset with me and what can I do about it?” or “Why is talking without permission disrespectful to my teacher, to my classmates, and to myself?”. Apparently, this was lost in translation because the first offenders simply wrote the topic question ten times, so it exceeded the 100-word requirement. They did not understand that they were supposed to actually answer the question and use their own words!

All for now with all my love  

PS – I recently discovered a path through a veld, a small field, from town to the location. It looks pretty rural but it’s not. There are garbage piles, old tires, and all kinds of debris. I still like it.