July 24

This Week’s Lessons

1. Staff Development Day usually results in foggy brains after being inundated with new information and resources, which are great but can be overwhelming after a holiday. Solution – If you present on SDD you finish the day feeling much lighter – you didn’t need to take in your own session!

2. Found a new quote to tell some of the older students who seem to grumble about anything and everything ‘You get what you get, and you don’t get upset’.

3. It is extremely exciting to be teaching the ‘Government’ unit of work when a federal election is being held in the middle of the term!

4.  I have developed a new term planner, two A4 pages that include the activities for each day in each session. Allows me to block out days where I know nothing will get taught (such as the athletics carnival) and allows me to visualise how many days, sessions, etc are available to teach everything I need. One copy  in the program,  one in the diary and one taped to the desk in the classroom!

5. Check your appointments. Preferably 3 times. Not checking resulted in an awkward late arrival at an important function. Unlike me to be tardy, must not happen again!

April 30

This Week’s Lessons…

1. The day one of your students forgets lunch is the day the canteen will be closed. LESSON – Have a snack bag ready.

2. When you risk it and get to school later than normal, that will will be the morning where everything snowballs. LESSON – Hide in your classroom. Lights off!

3. When you find an AWESOME website (Scholastic’s StudyJams) check that it PLAYS ON A MAC. You have made this mistake before. Home PC = Classroom Mac = Stalling time while class get restless. LESSON – Get to school earlier and check before class!

4. Life education rocks. So many good strategies for engaging students from inside Harold’s Van. If only I had carpet walls…sigh. LESSON – Ideas are everywhere.

5. Another successful engagement tool for boys, using Brain Busters… Make it a competition and Voila! Intense Interaction. LESSON – Make More!