Online SignUp Blog by SignUp.com

SignUp.com Parent Teacher Conferences

Guides, Checklists and Tips for Parent Teacher Conferences

 SignUp.com not only provides the easiest, online schedule tools for planning Parent Teacher Conferences, but their brand NEW Parent Teacher Conference Idea Center offers tons of resources, checklists and best practices too.

What you'll find in the SignUp.com Idea Center:

• Parent Teacher Conference SignUps
• Follow-Up Parent Teacher Conference Guide
• Parent Teacher Conference Checklists for Parents
• Parent Teacher Conference Tips for Teachers
• Ways to Get 100% Parent Attendance at Parent Teacher Conferences
• Free Classroom Printables

Visit the SignUp.com Idea Center today to find everything you need for all of your Parent Teacher Conferences coming up. 

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week!

Teacher Appreciation Week | 2016

It's that special time of year again . . . Teacher Appreciation Week! Our KUDOS to all the GOOD work teachers and school staff around the country do, day in and day out. We celebrate YOU this week and always.

Teacher Appreciation Resources:

Unique Teacher Appreciation Events

5 Teacher Appreciation Resources

Teacher Appreciation Lunch Themes

End of Year Class Party and Teacher Gift Guide

Bullying Prevention on the Playground

What Parents & Educators Can Do 

Worried about bullying in your child's school? Looking for insight into bullying prevention programs for kids? You might want to start at the playground.

In a thought-provoking and eye-opening post from PlaygroundProfessionals.com called "Take a Stand - Preventing bullying, interpersonal conflict and violence on the playground", Dr. Sherryll Kraizer, executive director of the Coalition for Children, and author of the “Take A Stand Program for the Prevention of Bullying” program, shares how vital the playground environment can be for helping prevent bullying. Read an excerpt of the post below and the entire thing here.

Bullying, intimidation and interpersonal conflict have been a part of playground management for generations. Children struggle with being called names, being picked on, being excluded, not knowing how to make friends, or being the ones acting unkindly or aggressively toward others. For too long, adults have believed that bullying is just part of growing up, that there have always been kids who are jocks and kids who are geeks, those who are in and those who are out. This acceptance has prevented adults from stopping this pattern.

We know the statistics, that 15 percent of students are bullied regularly and that 80 percent of middle school children admit to bullying behavior at least once a month. What we need to recognize is that all forms of bullying are abusive. They are also opportunities to teach children how to get along, how to be considerate people and how to be part of a community or group. The playground is part of this learning process for problem-solving, shaping behavior and coping skills, and teaching young people how to be good citizens.

When developing a playground, school or community-based plan to address and prevent bullying, it is necessary to . . .

>> Read the entire post over on PlaygroundProfessionals.com <<

Related:

What is Cyber Bullying?

3 Real-World Tips for Parent-School Engagement

 

Parenting in the Digital Age | Homework Hints & Tips

5 Homework Tips and Tools That Can Really Help Your Child (and You!)

Reeling from the most recent parent-teacher conference? Battling day in and day out to get your child to complete and turn in homework? You’re not alone! Parents just like you are searching for new tools and ideas to make homework time less stressful, easier, and well, more fun! Our friends at “Inspire” by Gamer Parents!, have 5 great tips to revolutionize your homework world – check it out:

1. Use Online Flash Cards: “Inspire” by GamerParents is bringing a whole new twist to the digital flash card movement. What if your child had to answer a multiple choice flash card on their phone in order to return to the game they were playing or the Instagram feed they were checking out? Inspire’s patent-pending technology gives parents the tools to help their kids study anytime, anywhere – the Inspire apps literally override any other app your kid is using and locks it until they answer the question.

With an intuitive, inexpensive online toolkit from "Inspire", parents and students can quickly build their arsenal of digital flashcards based on the subject and curriculum they’re using in class. Parents can then set up a framework for when and how often kids see the flashcards on their devices based on how well kids answer them, i.e., if the student answers a question wrong, Inspire's responsive timer will subtract 3 minutes from the timer's time and next flash card will appear 3 minutes earlier than normal. If the user answers a question correctly than the timer will add 2 minutes to the time allowed to play. Learn more

2. Study, Don’t Cram: Did you know it’s been scientifically proven that you are more likely to retain important information in your long-term memory through the spaced repetition and reinforcement of that information over time (versus cramming it all at once)? A great homework tip for truly helping your kids . . . regularly reviewing material that they will be quizzed or tested on. A University of California study revealed that 90% of students who studied with flashcards using this spaced repetition method performed better on the exam than their ‘cramming’ counterparts. Learn more on Examtime.com.

3. Use the Cloud: In the digital age, there’s no room for “I left it at school” excuses. Free cloud sharing platforms like GoogleDocs and Dropbox make it easy for students, especially high schoolers, to work on and save homework papers, projects, presentations, you name it - and access them from anywhere at any time. Help your kid securely create their own cloud sharing account so they can enjoy doing their homework in their favorite surroundings outside of the house – school, the library, a coffee shop, you name it. Bonus tip: “Inspire” by Gamer Parents turns all devices into truly, smart devices with digital flashcards that make it easy for kids to study wherever they are. Learn more



4. Switch It Up: Understanding how we learn can be key to overcoming homework struggles at home. KQED.org shares in their Mind/Shift article, How Does the Brain Learn Best? Smart Studying Strategies, that varying study environment and schedules can help reinforce the learning material your child’s brain is covering. If your child gets stuck on a problem for a long time, taking a walk, even hopping on social media for a minute can allow for “mental incubation” of the material and incite flashes of insight towards solving it. The article shares that even “Quizzing oneself on new material, such as by reciting it aloud from memory or trying to tell a friend about it, is a far more powerful way to master information than just re-reading it, according to work by researchers including Henry Roediger III and Jeffrey Karpicke.”

5. Open Access to Classmates: Find easy, accessible ways for your child to communicate with other classmates on homework, projects, and even tutoring time. Skype is a great free tool with secure log-in that allows your student to call their classmate for free over the internet and even share their computer screen if working on a presentation together. Group messaging apps like Voxer and GroupMe can also assist your student in connecting with other classmates about school-related work; and Remind connects teachers with students via simple, secure SMS messaging on their mobile device. Are you a teacher? Learn how "Inspire" by Gamer Parents! can be used to help your students study more successfully! Click here

Bonus tip: Homework overload is an all-to-common reality for students even as young as kindergarten. The success of completing and turning in loads of after-school assignments can affect a young person’s attitude, stress levels and self-confidence in a negative way. When it comes to homework time, make sure your child has some voice in when and where homework gets done – making it their choice helps foster a positive environment for them to receive encouragement and focus on homework they’re choosing to complete themselves.

“Inspire” by Gamer Parents! is a great tool to help your child study over an extended amount of time, even when they’re using their phone for something else. Not to mention, there isn't a day that goes by in which a student cannot use Inspire - school breaks, snow days, sick days, etc, all students can learn at their own pace with Inspire and never lose progress! Learn more

3 Real World Tips for Parent-School Engagement

Engaging & Involving School Parents

By: Devorah Heitner, Raising Digital Natives

In my work with schools, I’ve seen many happily engaged parent communities. But sometimes, things go wrong--often unexpectedly. School roll out initiatives that they think will benefit students and parents feel out of the loop. Sometimes parents get confused or upset. Or parents use social media to discuss frustrations with a school decision, without communicating directly with administrators and teachers.

What's going wrong? Instead of reacting defensively to the criticism that parents express, schools can do research to better understand parents' concerns. When parents have concerns, they should do research too. Who put in place the policy that you object to. Was there a reason offered? Find out as much as you can BEFORE diving into a crusade!

1. Focus groups are a great technique to truly uncover and understand parents' perspectives. If the school is changing its approach to grading, parents will need a LOT of help understanding the reasons and what this means for their kids. Anxiety is a typical response to a big change in the what many parents see as the most important indicator of how their child is doing in school. Surveys can miss the nuances, focus groups allow you to delve deeper into particular issues. It's often difficult for parents to see the wider benefits of such initiatives.

2. When you have a new initiative, consider bringing in an outside voice to speak to parents. You could bring a speaker about new approaches to educational technology and digital citizenship, standards based grading, nutrition, bullying, student voice, sex education, etc. Anything new happening at school is worth several community-wide conversations, as well as smaller group chats, social media engagement and possibly even an old-school flier or bulletin board display!  Some events can be led by parents, some by school personell, and others by an outside speaker.

3. Finally, schools need to be sure there is a place for parent feedback. Sometimes administrators get upset when parents use district social media to air their concerns….but they haven’t always made a more appropriate space available. If schools do make a parent feedback page or regular coffee with the principal or other mechanism available, they should make sure to publicize the results so the wider community knows that feedback is responded to! Crucially, empowering teachers to address parental concerns will go a long way toward successful implementation. Parents first line of communication with school is usually their child’s teacher.

Ultimately, keeping parents engaged and informed about what’s happening at school is an ongoing and dynamic process. Very often, a few small changes can have a huge impact on improving parent engagement and improving the tone of parent-school communication!

 

About the Author: Devorah Heitner, PhD is the founder and director of Raising Digital Natives, a resource for parents and schools seeking advice on how to help children thrive in a world of digital connectedness. 17,000 people have viewed her recent TEDx on Empathy in the Digital Age. An experienced speaker, workshop leader, and parent coach, Dr. Heitner speaks at schools across the United States. She is writing a handbook for parents, titled, “Raising Your Digital Native.” Dr. Heitner has a Ph.D. in Media/Technology and Society from Northwestern University she is delighted to be raising her own digital native, too.

3 Ways to Engage Young Kids in Science Education

STEM Resources for Parents

Thanks to our friends at Educents for this great post! 

Ever wonder why your young one can't stop asking "Why? Why? Why?" Observation and investigation are key traits in developing young minds, and the "why" behind how things happen is key to problem-solving and critical thinking. Engage your young learner in STEM education and exploration with these 3 FUN ideas:

1. Join the Magic School Bus Science Club! If you have children (ages 5-12) who enjoy the Magic School Bus books or videos–and if you like doing science experiments with them–then you'll LOVE The Magic School Bus Science Club! Developed by a team of Harvard graduates, scientists, and educators, the award-winning Magic School Bus Science Kits are delivered monthly right to your doorstep. Children will explore science through experiments that will spark an interest and curiosity in science.

SPECIAL OFFER: Through the end of the week you can receive 55% OFF a year’s subscription through Educents…and FREE shipping in the Continental United States! Ships to Canada for $2/month. Just use code VS10 at checkout and you'll receive an additional 10% off the already discounted price - bringing the total to just $9 per month, DELIVERED! Each kit includes a colorful manual based on The Magic School Bus characters, as well as everything you need to complete at least seven experiments related to that month’s theme. Get it now!

 

2. Celebrate Seasonal STEM Activities: The fall and winter months provide a ripe atmosphere for scientific experimentation and STEM fun! From learning about the link between natural light and sleep to a great fall leaf challenge and bonus cold weather science experiments, this list of seasonal STEM activities is must - click here.

3. Introduce Your Kids to Coding: Looking for the science of the future - try computer science! If your child enjoys gaming or has expressed an interest in computer programming, it's truly never too early for them to start learning. Pique their interest with free coding and programming sites including Code.org and Code Monster - great list over on MommyPoppins, click here.

More about the Magic School Bus Science Club:

What is included?

1 year subscription includes 12 Magic School Bus kits + FREE SHIPPING in the Continental USA (Ships to Canada for $2/month).

Each kit includes:
Detailed, large 12-page colorful manual that is full of experiments and topic information
Each manual is based on the popular Magic School Bus books and TV series
Includes an adult section so that adults with no science background will find the kits easy to use
Materials and information necessary for a range of interactive experiments
Online Clubhouse for further exploration on each kit topic
Certificate of Completion

Kit Topics:

Would your family have fun with this? If so, now’s a great time to sign up:

Through the end of the week you can receive 55% OFF a year’s subscription through Educents…and FREE shipping in the Continental United States! Ships to Canada for $2/month. Just use code VS10 at checkout and you'll receive an additional 10% off the already discounted price - bringing the total to just $108/yr. That's just $9 per month, DELIVERED!

The first kit will ship on December 15th! You can even create and print off your own gift cards to let your children know about the surprise. Enjoy your exploration alongside Ms. Frizzle!

4 Seasonal STEM Activities for Kids

Kids' STEM Experiments and Activities

Peaking interest in science and technology is easy this season with fun, fall-themed STEM activities and events for kids > check out our top 4 picks:

1. Bright Schools Competition: Get your middle schooler to check Snapchat later and instead engage in a top-tier STEM competition that draws on a love of video, science and teamwork. The Bright Schools Competition (brought to you by the National Sleep Foundation and National Science Teacher’s Association) is a national video competition that helps students (and teachers) explore links between light and sleep. A team-based endeavor with thousands of dollars in cash prizes and STEM grants available, the Bright Schools Competition is a must for your budding scientist this year. Learn more and register today > click here.

2. Halloween Science Experiments: Kitchen science is a hoot this season with fun (and simple) experiments kids love. Find a good use for that extra Halloween candy with structure building and dissolving experiments straight from the classroom – more ideas here.

3. Fall STEM Challenge: Help kids young and old get out in nature and enjoy the wonder of the changing seasons with the Fall STEM Challenge from TheEducatorsSpinOnit. From walking to collecting and documenting leaf colors, shapes and sizes, this fun DIY challenge also involves a hands on craft for kids - click to learn more.

4. Cold Weather Experiments: As those fall temperatures begin to drop, your child’s imagination can peak with fun weather-based science experiments. Learning states of matter, freezing and melting temperatures, even a touch of chemistry is easy with fun cold weather experiments from LemonLimeAdventures – click here.

More about the Bright Schools Competition: 

Registration open! Projects due Jan. 29, 2015. Winners announced April 2015. Teachers and parent leaders can become coaches and help students form a team of 2 to 4. Participants are asked to explore the correlation between light and sleep using scientific inquiry or engineering design concepts. Awards include:

Student Awards

All students receive an entry certificate to acknowledge their hard work in the competition.

First Place: each student on the winning team receives a cash prize of $5,000

Second Place: each student on the winning team receives a cash prize of $2,500

Third Place: each student on the winning team receives a cash prize of $1,500

Teacher Awards

First Place Team – technology package (e.g. Vernier Deluxe Middle School Probeware Package – up to $1000 value), all-expense paid trip to one NSTA conference and one year membership to NSTA (total value: $3000 )

Second Place Team –all-expense paid trip to one NSTA conference and a one-year membership to NSTA (total value: up to $2,100)

Third Place Team – one-year membership to NSTA and a gift certificate to the NSTA store (total value: up to $500)

 

10 End of the Year Bulletin Board Ideas

Bulletin Board Ideas for End of School

Start the countdown to the last day of school in style with a colorful and creative bulletin board that will get your students itching for Summertime!

Summer Bucket List via Charlotte’s Clips and Kindergarten Kids

 

***

Future So Bright via The Techy Teacher

 

***

Cruising to via First Grade Blue Skies

 

***

This Year Flew By via MPM Ideas

 

***

Catch the Wave via Clutter-Free Classroom

 

***

Hang In There via Becoming Martha

 

***

Leave As Friends via My Classroom Ideas

 

***

Up Up and Away via Blog Lovin’

 

***

Only _ Days of School via The Classroom Creative

 

***

This Year Was a Hoot via Apples and ABC’s

***

Related Posts: 

 10 Spring Bulletin Boards

7 Fun (And Educational) Rewards for Students

Classroom Party Ideas

10 Spring Bulletin Boards

Bulletin Board Ideas

Spring into learning with fun and creative bulletin boards that will add lots of flare and color to your classroom or library!

Un'BEE'lievable via HandMeDownIdeas

* * * 

Hoppy Spring via MPMSchoolSupplies

* * *

Floras via Unpolsimdesal

* * * 

Spinning into Spring via Pinterest

* * * 

We're Buggy About Spring via TrinityPreschoolMP

* * * 

Color the Situation via MPMSchoolSupplies

* * * 

Kinder "Garden" via MyClassroomIdeas

* * * 

Raining Books via Flickr

* * * 

Spring Is In The Air via Pinterest

* * * 

Synonym Flowers via Indulgy

* * * 

Also see:

Winter Bulletin Board Ideas

7 Fun, Educational Rewards for Students

Pun-tastic Bulletin Board Ideas

 

 

Bulletin Board Ideas | February

8 Bulletin Boards for February

Whether your classroom is diving into Black History Month or sweetly celebrating Valentine's, there is plenty of February inspiration for your bulletin boards - check out our faves:

 

Peace Hands (via TheClassroomCreative)

* * *

Sweet Reads (via SchoolLibraryDisplays)

* * *

What's Your Dream (via AllAboardThePattiwagon)

* * *

We are the same, we are different (via Mrsungerkinders)

* * *

Love Is In The Air (via TheClassroomCreative)

* * *

Us at 100 (via Mrswilliamsonskinders)

* * *

President's Day (via Tunstalltimes)

* * *

Bunch of Sweethearts (via Pinterest)

 

Also see:

Winter Bulletin Board Ideas

 

7 Fun (and Educational) Rewards for Students

Teacher Tuesday | Class Reward Ideas

Encourage acts of kindness, good behavior, responsibility and dedication with these sugar-free, real-life rewards for students.

 Homeworkopoly via Monarch Madness

Join school assignments with favorite board games to create the ultimate student reward. When your students complete and turn in their homework, give them a chance to roll the dice and land on spot, granting them a community lunch, homework pass or other custom prize they can use during the week.

* * *

 QR Codes via Teachers Pay Teachers

It’s time to face the music and embrace the unavoidable digital age in the modern classroom. This program allows teachers to print out QR codes on that correlate with a reward. When you want to tell your students “good job,” then have them randomly select a QR code and reveal their prize using technology.

* * *

 Student Coupons via Teachers Pay Teachers

Take the traditional route and create your own custom coupon cards students can redeem when they complete assignments, clean their area or don’t get in trouble for the week. Be as creative as you like and even let students swap roles with you as well.

* * *

 Blue Strip Rewards via Teacher 2 Teacher Help

Give your students something they can collect, such as blue strips they can accumulate to redeem for one big reward. From stickers to donuts to lunch on the teacher, your students will want to keep earning strips to go big or go home.

* * *

 Classroom Lottery via Simply 2^nd Resources

Have your students test their luck by giving them a scratch off when they complete their homework assignments at the end of the week. Watch their excitement as they unveil a show-and-tell opportunity, new crayons on extra time on the class computer.

* * *

 Warm Fuzzy Jar via A Love for Teaching

Instill kindness in your classroom by rewarding your students specifically for acts of kindness. Every time your students commit a considerate deed, give them a fuzzy ball they can contribute to the class jar. When each student adds to the jar and it becomes full, reward the class with a party they’ll love.

* * *

Build a Rainbow via Pinterest

Create a bulletin board in the classroom and give students a piece of a rainbow they can build on the board, as they show improvement in their behavior, practice sharing and keep their area clean. If students complete their rainbow by the end of the week, reward them with sticker book, a homework pass or let them read their favorite book to the class.   

 

Parent-Teacher Conference Do's & Don'ts

Parent-Teacher Conference Tips for Teachers

Pumpkins, parties and parent conferences, oh my! Make the most of your parent-teacher conferences this busy Fall season with these helpful Do's & Don'ts:

Do: Schedule classroom parents for conferences with free online signup sheets. Allow parents the convenience of signing up for their conference slot from their computer or smartphone; and rely on automated reminders to help everyone remember! More info here

Don't: Send a reply-all email to parents and expect not to stress out over sifting through 30 replies to schedule parents.

* * *

Do: Offer ways for parents to attend remotely, i.e. via Skype, Facetime, Google Hangout, in case their busy schedule or possible emergency prevents them from getting to the school.

Don't: Wait to the last minute for straggling parents to sign up; email them or message them from your VolunteerSpot parent-teachere conference signup with reminders to fill a slot or find a way to work with their schedule.

* * *

Do: Use social media to get the word out about parent-teacher conferences. Tweet, facebook, include on the class blog and in the eNewsletter. More ideas here

Don't: Send a flyer home with students and expect it not to get lost in the shuffle.

* * *

Do: Be prepared for each conference to discuss the individual student in a positive and encouraging way. Remember, it's a collaborative conversation with parents, not a tell-all. More tips here

Don't: Find yourself struggling to remember specifics you want to discuss with parents. Jot down notes for each conference and be prepared with these extensive resources for teachers here

 

Apps & Tools to Help Any Teacher

Our Fave 5 Teacher Websites & Free Tech Tools

Teachers thriving in the digital age are pioneers in exploring online tools and apps to help manage their classrooms, curriculum, and time. To help, check our our fave 5 sites that all teachers should be checking out (and loving):

1. WeAreTeachers – This can literally be a teachers go-to online trove of information & resources to help with professional and educational development. There are resources on building curriculum, latest news and hot topics for teachers, grants and contests, and so much more. This site will soon offer a My Binder feature to help teachers manage all of their important information. WeAreTeachers also offers community blogs to help connect teachers everywhere! 

2. VolunteerSpot - Quickly and easily manage class helpers, p-t conferences, weekly readers, tutors, class party and field trip helpers, and service learning and exam proctors with free online signups sheets and parent scheduling.  Ditch the clipboards and simplify your life getting more parents involved with the convenience of signing up online from their computer or smartphone. Plus, automated reminders keep everyone on track!

3. EduBlogs – EduBlogs is an amazing blogging service that helps students, teacher and parents communicate in a safe and secure environment. Whether you want to connect with a classroom elsewhere or create your own classroom blog, EduBlogs ensures that every blogs content is for education only and no inappropriate ads or content will be available to the children. Blogging is also a great way to get the kids engaged and revamp classroom learning for the digital age.

4. Carson-Dellosa -  Carson-Dellosa makes learning fun by offering teachers (and parents and students) wonderfully creative products that engage young minds in super fun ways. Activity workbooks, stickers, worksheets, flash cards, puzzles, games and classroom decorations make Carson-Dellosa a one-stop shop for education materials. Commor Core curriculum materials also make Carson-Dellosa leaders in the education field.

5. Twitter -  A home for educators all ove the world, Twitter is connecting teachers of all grades and school types in weekly chats and twitter parties. Talking about best practices, blended learning, common core, flipped classrooms and more, twitter is a haven for teachers and school staff to communicate, collaborate and share. Additionally, Fast Follow by Twitter becomes a simple and reliable alert system for teachers to keep students and parents updated. To use it, all you need to do is setup a Twitter account and ask parents (and older students) to text Twitter’s shortcode of 40404 with the message “follow [your Twitter username].” From there, parents will start receiving all of your updates via text message in real-time.

6. Pinterest - (I know we said 5 tools, but we can't leave out Pinterest!) Last month, Pinterest announced the launch of Teachers on Pinterest, a hub where you’ll find everything from lesson plans for different grades, to classroom decorating ideas, and topics like fun with phonics. They are working closely with Edutopia — an online resource an thought-leader for educators—to build out this education-focused community on Pinterest.

Common Core Teacher Tools

Common Core Activities  for the Classroom

“These (Common Core State) standards will help teachers, students, and parents know what is needed for students to succeed in college and careers, and will enable states, school districts, and teachers to more effectively collaborate to accelerate learning and close achievement gaps nationwide.”

- Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education

Personalized learning, a strong curriculum and continual assesment proves the Common Core's success in the classroom, and according to a recent online survey, 65% of teachers feel they are unprepared to teach the Common Core. With workbooks, activity sheets, task cards and thinking mats, Carson Dellosa Publishing continues to be a reliable resource and tool for teacher to help their students excel in the classroom.

1. Engage Students Every Day! With Common Core 4 Today Workbooks available in math and language arts, for K-Grade 5 – Download a FREE 2 week sample today! Your choice of subjects and grades.

Click here for your free samples --> http://vols.pt/CDBlogger

2. Organize and Display! With Common Core State Standards Kits K-5, Grades 6-8 available in August.

3. Apply Critical Thinking Skills! With Common Core Task Cards and Thinking Mats for K-Grade 5 (product images attached)

Find these and other teacher-designed, teacher-tested Common Core products from our valued sponsor at carsondellosa.com or a retailer near you! 

It Takes One | Teacher Tuesday

As a resource for school leaders, parent groups and educators, we at VolunteerSpot love to share inspiring content from wonderful teachers around the country.  Don't miss this piece, originally published on TexasPrinciple.org by 5th grade teacher, Todd Nesloney.  Read an excerpt below and the entire piece here.

* * *

It Takes One
By: Todd Nesloney

I have always been a firm believer that every one of us holds the power to dramatically impact a life.  As educators, we have that unique opportunity to impact many lives, and every year that impact grows drastically.  Whether you teach kindergarten students, coach Jr. High kids, answer the phones in the office, or clean the floors, you have the opportunity to change a life.  

I know we’ve all heard how important of an impact educators have on kids.  Sometimes though I feel we forget the power we possess as teachers.  The power to change lives.  Sometimes we don’t get to see the impact we’ve had until many years later. Sometimes we don’t ever get to hear about or see the impact we’ve made.  As a new school year approaches, I felt now was a good time to remind ourselves and to prepare ourselves to change lives.

How can we do that?  How can we change a life?  Well here are a few things that I’ve found really make a difference with kids...

Don’t be afraid to show your “kid” side.  

We all have a playful side. A side that we’re definitely afraid to show in public. Don’t be afraid to show that side in your classroom or school. Sometimes we just need to let loose and act silly with our kids and show them that there are times that it’s ok to be a little silly. It gives your students another perspective on who their teacher is.

Find what they’re passionate about and bring that into the class/school.

 This one is huge. To be an educator that impacts students you have to have your finger somewhat on the pulse of what is “cool” to them.  Take the time to find out what they like to do for fun or what sport they like to play.  For boys, bringing in problems with their sports heroes is always huge!  Find out what music they like to listen to or some of their favorite artists.  Download a few songs and play them in class (the appropriate songs of course).  Kids light up when they hear a song they know playing in class, and many times they work even harder on things when music they enjoy is playing in the background.

 

Click to read the rest of this amazing post . . .

 

About the Author:

Todd has been teaching at Fields Store Elementary for 6 years now.  He worked two years teaching Science and Math in fourth grade and has spent the last 4 years teaching 5^th grade math and social studies.  He is currently “Flipping” his classroom and finding great success in thinking outside the box.  Todd is passionate about instilling a sense of learning and inspiring his students to be the best they can possibly be.  Todd is extremely active on Twitter, is a co-founder of EdCampWaller, and also a co-founder of “The 3 Tech Ninjas”, which is a training company for teachers to learn how to bring more tech into their classrooms.  Todd is a SMART Exemplary Educator, Star Discovery Educator , Flipped Class Certification Teacher for Sophia.org, part of the Remind101 Advisory Board, and one of the National School Board Associations “20 To Watch”.

 

Follow on Twitter: @TechNinjaTodd

Website:  tnesloney.wix.com/math

Blog:  nesloneyflipped.blogspot.com

Email:  todd.nesloney@gmail.com

Tech Ninja Website:  www.the3techninjas.org

Tech Ninja Facebook:  www.facebook.com/thetechninjas

EdCampWaller:  http://edcamp.wikispaces.com/edcampwaller