Tag: teaching

Education, K-12, Motivation, Philosophy

What Do Your Students Take Home?

Terri Eichholz
tweeted by @poida
image tweeted by @poida

As a GT teacher, I only see most of my students once a week.  I worry a lot that, once the classroom door closes behind them at the end of the day, the hours we spent together quickly fade. That’s why I try to do my best to connect our class activities to their real lives.  Every once in awhile I like to shock or provoke them into considering something that can’t easily be forgotten. Ethical discussions like The Trolley Car Dilemma tend to “stick.”  Students bring them up weeks later – sometimes even the following year.  Yesterday, my 2nd graders went on a field trip where some of them ate fried insects.  I’m pretty sure they won’t forget about that any time soon.  In fact, I’m pretty sure I won’t forget about that any time soon.

I guess that what I hope is, at the end of the day, when a parent asks a child, “What did you do in school today?” the child can give a better answer than, “Nothing.”

No, I take that back.

At the end of the day, what I really hope is that the parent doesn’t have to ask the child, “What did you do in school today?”  I hope that the child is so excited about her day that she will blurt out a summary without any need for prompting.  I hope that the child will sit at the dinner table and say, “We talked about this today.  What do you the rest of you think?”

I hope the child thinks about how much his teacher cares about him.  I hope the child thinks about questions that still need to be answered.  I hope that the child doesn’t dwell on what he was taught, but on what he learned.

And, most importantly, I hope the child can’t wait to learn more tomorrow.

Education, Fun Friday, K-12, Motivation, Parenting, Philosophy, Teaching Tools, Videos

The Kids Need to Know

Terri Eichholz

I can’t think of too many better ways to start a Phun Phriday than with a new video from Kid President.  I don’t even have to watch the video; as soon as I hear that giggle, I’m in a better mood!

In Kid President’s most recent video, he asks people, especially celebrities, (and most especially Rainn Williams Wilson) to tell what they think kids need to know.

I’m not a celebrity – or Rainn Wilson – but I figured I would add my advice to the mix.  Here’s what I think kids need to know:

  • “You are a genius, and the world needs your contribution.”  Angela Maiers
  • “Not every day is going to offer us a chance to save somebody’s life, but every day offers us an opportunity to affect one.”  Mark Bezos
  • “…always try to be a little kinder than is necessary” J.M. Barrie
  • “There is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” Winnie the Pooh

and, of course…

“Don’t stop believing, unless your dream is stupid… then get a better dream and keep going, keep going, keep going…” Kid President

Below, you can see Kid President’s video, and one student’s response.

What do you think the kids need to know?  Blog or tweet it, and use the hashtag #thekidsneedtoknow


Careers, Education, K-12, Motivation, Videos

This is Why I Teach

Terri Eichholz
from here
Click here to see a video of these two men discuss what it means to be “visionary and brilliant.”

I know.  I just posted an inspirational video yesterday, and here I go again.  When I saw this article on BrainPickings.org, though, I realized that the two Neils – Gaiman and deGrasse Tyson – verbalized something that I believe wholeheartedly.  If I ever appear to be good at what I do, it’s because I genuinely love my job.

But if I couldn’t be a public school teacher for some reason, I think I would probably want to be Neil deGrasse Tyson 🙂

Education, K-12, Teaching Tools

Actually, There IS Such a Thing as a Stupid Question

Terri Eichholz

adler

I’ve often questioned the saying that there are “no stupid questions.” In my experience, very few absolutes are true.

I understand the sentiment of the statement, of course.  As a teacher, I want my students to feel comfortable with speaking up when something does not make sense.  And I certainly don’t want to stifle anyone’s curiosity.

But you’re probably never going to hear me say, “There is no such thing as a stupid question.”  Because I’ve heard some really dumb ones over the years – all of them spoken by yours truly. They are stupid because they: are counter-productive, usually reflect my own lack of planning or inflexibility, and sometimes make me want to sink into one of the drawers of my filing cabinet as soon as they escape my lips.

“Weren’t you listening when I gave the directions?” is a stupid question.  If a student is asking me about something I just went over, he or she either didn’t hear it, can’t remember it, or doesn’t understand it. In my case, it’s usually the second one.  Since I teach different grade levels each day, I sometimes forget that my younger ones can’t keep track of multi-step directions.  Of course, there are students who chronically tune me out when I go over instructions. After 20 years of research I’ve discovered that asking that question every time does not solve the problem.  As for not understanding the actual instructions, that rarely happens.  Applying them to the work at hand might be the challenge – but that’s just part of the fun 🙂

“Why do I hear people talking?” Yes, I’ve said this before.  And it’s to my students’ credit that they have never responded, “Because your imaginary friends want your attention.”  This question is not only stupid because there is no good response, but also because I am trying to encourage more collaboration.  What I need to do is teach more about the right ways to collaborate instead of wasting time and effort on trying to keep my students quiet.

“Could you please speak up?”  is probably what I should use for the rare times when I do need a silent classroom.  For some reason, I still say this, and it still has the exact same result it had when I first started teaching.  A quieter child.  I have tried varying my tone, rephrasing it, and using examples to no avail.  “Pretend you’re outside at recess!” is just as effective.  The only thing that gave my shy kids a voice was when I had a wireless mic and speaker system in my classroom.  My current school does not have a sound system, but I’m thinking of creating my own.  In my portable classroom, the heater overpowers these timid speakers, and they often have excellent contributions.

“Does that make sense?” When I ask a whole group this question, of course no one is going to shout out, “No, that was completely confusing!”  One solution is for me to talk less, so they have less to decipher.  When I do need some immediate feedback, I try to employ student response systems like Socrative or good, old-fashioned thumbs up/thumbs down.  The best way to tell, of course, is to take a good look at my audience.  If you know your students, you can pretty much tell by the looks on their faces if they “got it” or not.

And my favorite stupidest question ever:

“From now on, when we blow the recess whistle, would you boys please hold your balls?”  I only said it once – back when I was a 5th grade teacher to a bunch of students who kept dribbling basketballs while in line.  Yep, dumb.  But definite proof that stupid questions do exist.

So, do you have any to add to the list?

Careers, Education, K-12, Motivation

Find Your Voice as a Teacher

Terri Eichholz

Start-with-Voice

The other day, I came to the sudden realization that I am the worst teacher ever.

Actually, it wasn’t so sudden.  I’ve suspected it many times over my decades-long career.  Coincidentally, these moments often occur when I am at a meeting with other teachers who share awesome ideas they are using in their own classrooms.

I usually try to counter these incidences of self-doubt by thinking of some of the not-so-great teachers I had as a child.  “At least you don’t do that,” I remind myself, recalling the Biology teacher who spent entire class periods espousing his religious beliefs.

But then I think of the teacher who’s entire class raised thousands of dollars for a charity, or people like Principal Salome Thomas-El who championed inner city kids to becoming chess champions.  “You don’t do that, either,” I tell myself glumly.

One of the advantages of being a connected educator is that you learn of great things that teachers are doing all over the world.

One of the pitfalls of being a connected educator is that you learn of great things that teachers are doing all over the world.

Yesterday, TechNinja Todd (@TechNinjaTodd) posted a fabulous article that addresses this horrible self-criticism that many of us suffer from.  Todd Nesloney, who will be going to the White House as a “Champion of Change”, wrote, “I am Me, and I Can’t Be You“, in which he fully admits that he has days that he feels like he isn’t doing such a great job – especially when comparing himself to some of the other fabulous educators he wants to emulate.

But Todd realized something, which I have learned as well.   The common thread among effective teachers isn’t that they are all doing the same thing with their students.  The common thread is that they are all using their own unique strengths to help their students make the best of their own unique strengths.

A few years ago, I decided to work on pursuing a personal goal of becoming a writer.  I wrote every day, and hated it.  The words were stilted and uninspiring.  I dreaded writing.  And then I realized it wasn’t working because I was trying to write like the authors I admired.  I was trying to write something that wasn’t me.

I have returned to a love of writing because I returned to my own voice.  Of course, if you read my stories, you would probably recognize some of the great authors who have influenced me over the years – just like, if you visit my classroom you would see some of the amazing teachers who have inspired me since elementary school (some of them have even been fictional). But you’re also going to find elements that reflect my own personality.  And, in the case of my classroom, it will be infused with the personalities of my students.

When we teach, we must use our own voice.  If we are not passionate about our teaching, I guarantee less learning will take place.  The true miracles happen in the classroom when our voices join together with our students’, and the result is a fantastic story that has never before been told.

Education, K-12, Motivation

I Think Louisa May Alcott Might Have Dreamed Up the First Genius Hour

Terri Eichholz

Angela Maiers is one of my real-life heroes, with her advocacy for passion-driven education, the You Matter Manifesto, and the Choose 2 Matter campaign.  (Don’t forget to check out her recent interview with Brad Waid and Drew Minock on the #2GuysShow.  It is fabulous and motivational!)   But long before I encountered the works of Angela Maiers, I ran across the works of Laura Ingalls Wilder, Lucy Maud Montgomery, and Louisa May Alcott – all of which included main characters who became teachers.  Each fictional teacher contributed to the teacher I am today, for they all shared one characteristic – they cared deeply about their students.

I have been re-reading Alcott’s Little Men (the sequel to Little Women) with my daughter.  In this novel, Jo, the vibrant tomboy of the first novel, opens up a boarding school for young boys, most of whom are homeless.  Now that I am reading this book as an adult, I am struck by the teaching methods that Jo and her husband use – a mixture of traditional and uncommon techniques that surely would have been considered highly unusual during Alcott’s life-time.  The compassion that Jo feels toward her charges is evident in every decision she makes.

In one chapter, a prodigal has returned to the school, and his fierce devotion to everything outdoors spurs Jo, her husband, and “Uncle Teddy” to give all of the young men a space to display their collections of rocks, bugs, and all things “important.”  (I still remember one of my own teachers who offered us each our own space on the classroom bulletin board to exhibit whatever we desired.  It remains one of my educational highlights to this day!)

Once they open their “museum”, the boys are urged to not only show off their collections, but to learn about them as well.  You can see below where I started getting goosebumps as I made the connection to our class Genius Hour.

From: Little Men, by Louisa May Alcott
From: Little Men, by Louisa May Alcott

I could be wrong, but I think, just a couple of pages later, Alcott might have also proposed the original version of TED Talks and the precursor to e-portfolios…

From: Little Men, by Louisa May Alcott
From: Little Men, by Louisa May Alcott

The point is, I think we all know, deep in our hearts, that one of our jobs as educators is to help our students to pursue their passions.  Even fictional teachers from the 1800’s understood the importance of letting people know how much they, and their interests, matter.

(To see some more of my real-life education heroes, please visit my page of “Engaging Educators.”  And, for more about Genius Hour, you might want to take a look at the Genius Hour Resources page.)