Teachers know the
beginning of every school year is a huge challenge and a whole lot of work.
Secondary teachers are sometimes reassigned to different grade levels which can
mean an entirely new set of literature materials. Going from teaching American
literature to teaching British literature requires a completely new mind-set,
and the lessons and materials will not transfer. Another challenge could be
teaching one class of freshmen ESL students, two classes of senior AP English,
and three classes of sophomore English. You don’t think this happens? Well it
does. I know. I taught English and creative writing for 35 years.
Tip 1: Using Technology
Can Really Simplify Your Life
Recently, some really
exciting advances in technology have made teaching more interesting and more
convenient. Now, because of Google Drive, Microsoft One Drive, DropBox, and
other innovative web sites, students can view their assignments online, do
their work online, and turn in their work online. Many times, paper is not
required. Going paperless is a truly revolutionary improvement for teachers.
Often they are given an allotment of paper to last the entire year and must
spend their own money when they run out. And even if they do have an adequate
supply of paper, they must use a copy machine before they can distribute the
lesson pages to their students.
Teachers no longer have to
stand in line at a copy machine to use the pages in my book. I recently converted
my Simple Steps to Sentence Sense
book into a Google Drive Interactive Notebook. It is now available in my store
and teachers can purchase one step at a time or a bundle that has all eight
steps.
If your school has Chromebooks,
iPads, or other devices students can use to use to access the Internet, be sure
to search for Digital Products on TeachersPayTeachers.com and other educational
websites.
Tip 2: Use Software That Individualizes
Instruction
I recently learned about a
company whose philosophy is to be as helpful to teachers as possible. They
offer 24/7 technical assistance. I find that especially important because their
product is innovative and unique.
EdTech Software’s Shelfit
Reader is an ebook reader that allows students an amazing level of interaction.
It is possible to embed videos, audio files, and worksheets within the ebooks,
and to create quizzes with answers. The quiz scores may be exported to a grade book. Teachers can provide personalized and
individualized lessons and adapt to different learning styles.
The company carries all
major publishers and many smaller ones, so the selection of ebooks is vast and
eclectic. Now, teachers can select ebooks
for their students to use and then customize those books to suit their own
teaching styles.
The software can be
assessed from any device as long as there is an Internet connection. The
books may be downloaded at school for reading at home if students do not have
Wi-Fi in their homes.
Click here to take a look at
this new innovative reader and see what it could do for you and your students. *EdTech
Software provided me with compensation in exchange for this sponsored blog
post. However, all the opinions expressed here are my own.
3) Use Rubrics to Grade Writing
Assignments
ELA teachers often
struggle with exactly how to assign a fair grade to compositions that their
students write. The grading process should always include a way to give
students frequent chances to succeed and feel good about themselves. One way to
do that is to be sure that students know exactly what you expect from them when
you give them an assignment.
A teacher simply cannot
expect students to do everything perfectly, nor does s/he have the time or the
inclination to grade every aspect of every paper every time. I always let
students know exactly what I was looking for by showing them the rubric I would
use to grade their papers, and we would go over it together before they began
their first draft. A rubric is the best method of expressing your expectations
and of providing meaningful feedback.
Look for writing lessons
sold on TeacherPayTeachers.com that include a rubric. If you want to make a
rubric of your own, visit http://roobrix.com/. This website is free and helpful.
Several of my writing assignments contain rubrics. Here's one:
4) Use a Grading Scale Chart to Save Time
When you create your
lessons, be sure that there are sufficient items on each worksheet or test to
allow students to succeed. If there are only five questions or five sentences
on a worksheet, students can get only one of them wrong without jeopardizing
their GPA.
For example, if students
are asked to locate the verb in a sentence, and there are only ten sentences,
it would be easy to get a low score since each answer would be worth ten
points. Be sure to use a grading scale chart to speed up the process, so you
won’t have to do the math. You will find my Grading Scale Chart in my store for
only $3.00, or you can access this one online for free: http://quickgra.de/.
5) Be Prepared
The first few days of
school are crazy busy. In secondary schools, much of the time is spent dealing
with students being added or dropped from your class as students’ schedules are
adjusted and class loads are balanced.
The paperwork piles up,
and yet you meet another class of new students every hour or so. What to do?
The answer is to be
prepared with meaningful activities to engage your students while you take care
of the tedious, yet necessary details. Be sure that your students are busy and
actively involved from the moment they enter your classroom until the bell
rings. The more prepared you are, the more likely you are to start the new year
off successfully.
I have a product that
includes a series of activities that introduces your students to each other and
to you and provides a sample of their writing and their oral presentation
skills. You can use these activities to make the first few days of your school
year informative and productive. Getting to Know You Activities for the First
Few Days of School is available in my TpT store. You will find several Back to
School first day activities on Pinterest and on TeachersPayTeachers.com.
Thanks for reading and I hope the beginning of your 2016-17 school year is a breeze.
