Tips to foster friendships for the students in your class.

In order to form healthy friendships, students must develop interpersonal skills to learn how to communicate and engage with peers. It is important to remember that children learn best through example. Teachers should remain to be a good role model for their students, expressing positive attitudes and values towards other people. Children will be more likely to do the same with their own friends.

Image:  http://primetimeschools.com/blog/2011/06/social-skills-children-need-to-make-and-keep-friends/ 

Tip 1 – Encourage play dates

Communicate to parents the benefits of students visiting other student’s houses to play. Students will be provided with multiple opportunities to listen to their friends and their friend’s family and sharing toys. They will also be exposed to different family dynamics and cultures that the students will learn to accept and value. Try to observe the social dynamics in class and discuss with parents with students their children are compatible with.

Tip 2 – Teach the essential ingredients of a healthy friendship

Explain to your students how honesty, trust, respect and loyalty are the essential ingredients to a healthy relationship. Make sure you provide your students with easy to understand definitions to these things, as they may not truly know what they mean. Role playing scenarios are a great way to involve students in the learning process of what makes a good friend.

Tip 3 – Group involvement in tasks

Program lessons that involve students’ in group work. This will provide students with the opportunity to spend time with their class peers and to develop communication skills. Especially for students that are shy, group work will help them develop socialisation skills with peers they are familiar with.

Tip 4 – Positive values and attitudes

When students are encouraged to interact with peers, they will form better values and attitudes about school and learning. When their friends are present, they tend to enjoy the school environment more.

Tip 5 – Piaget’s theory of play

Piaget’s theory of play explains the important link between child’s play and cognitive enrichment. It is integral to students’ social development that they are provided with the time to simply play games. This is a great way to teach them important social skills such as taking turns, listening, cooperation, leadership and sportsmanship. The more that can practice and understand these concepts, the better friend they with be. The good ‘ol saying, “treat others the way you want to treated” is an important mantra to be expressed with your students (Red Chair Press 2012).

Tip 6 – Learn to live in someone else’s shoes

It is important for your students to realise how another person is feeling, especially in their friendships. Discuss with your students the different situations their peers may be placed in and how this makes them feel and how they think their friends feel. Teaching them how to recognise how others may be feeling or another person’s point of view is an important milestone to building friendships.

Tip 7 – You must crawl before you walk

You must not force your students to interact with particular children or form friendships. This sort of pressure will not do any good and will only overwhelm your students and may turn them off the idea of making friends. Instead, provide your class with a little advice and encourage them to interact independently. Let them figure out what works for them at their own pace (Red Chair Press 2012).

Tip 8 – Clubs and Sports

Research social events of the local area that may be of interest to your students. Activities such as visual art classes, performing arts workshops, sporting teams and Girl Scouts or Boy Scouts are an effective way to include students in a social setting where they already have a common interest in the extracurricular activity. Provide this information in class newsletters so the parents are informed. If there are families who may not be able to afford the registration of these activities, organise a round robin event with the involvement of other schools competing.

Tip 9 – Social Skills Rule!

Collaborate with your students in the making of a class behaviour agreement that consists of a list of social rules that the students believe negatively impact friendships. For example: not to snatch things off others, keep your hands and feet to yourself, don’t call people names e.t.c.

Tip 10 – Be a good role model

Remember to be a good role model. If your students see you engaging in conversation with other teachers, the children’s parents and talking to the class about friends of your own, they will begin to learn what friendship means and what it takes to maintain one.

Reference:

Dray, S. (2011). How to teach children healthy friendships, last accessed: 19/10/2012, http://www.livestrong.com/article/512426-how-to-teach-children-healthy-friendships/

Red Chair Press (2012). Tips to Foster Friendships for Children, last accessed: 19/10/2012, https://www.redchairpress.com/blog/tips-foster-friendships-children

Steuber, E. (2012). Activities Promoting Friendship Between Children, last accessed: 19/10/2012, http://www.ehow.com/info_7954424_activities-promoting-friendship-between-children.html

Managing Stressful Situations

This section will provide you with a number of resources you can use in the classroom to defuse negative behaviours when students get restless in the classroom. They can also be used a ‘brain breaks’ for students, or alternatively used as transitions between lessons.

http://tccl.rit.albany.edu/knilt/images/2/2f/Science_classroom.jpg

’20 minute Brain Breaks’ –

 http://www.minds-in-bloom.com/2012/04/20-three-minute-brain-breaks.html

‘Roll Some Brain Breaks’ –http://yourtherapysource.com/files/Roll_Some_Fun_Freebie2.pdf

‘Ten Simple Activities to Encourage Physical Activity in the Classroom’ –

http://yourtherapysource.com/files/10_simple_activities_classroom.pdf

What Makes a Good Program?

What should be in a program?

- Evidence that you have thought about the children in your class

- Evidence that your program reflects the school policy that in turn should reflect the community the school serves

- School mission statement

- School aims

- Student profile

- Student needs analysis. Include in this comments about special needs children

- Evidence of integration

- Rationale and aims for each KLA e.g. ‘This year I want the children to’

http://www.raritanval.edu/uploadedImages/faculty/hsse/full-time/suk/chalkboard.png?n=7579

Units of Work

-       Outcomes & foundation statements

-       Indicators relating to how the children may achieve the outcome

-       Duration

-       Teaching learning activities (the crux of your program)

-       Assessment strategies. Try to date these if possible (plan when you will do things)

-       Unit evaluation

-       A statement about how the unit integrates with other KLAs

Perspectives

-       Aboriginal education

-       Gifted and talented education

-       Student equity

Setting Out

 Try to keep your program simple. Integration saves you time. Worksheets should be in a resource folder. Keep photocopies to a minimum.

Happy programming! 

Toovey, J (2012)

Classroom Management

See the following link for a guide to ‘Promoting and Managing Positive Pupil Behaviour’  (EPD Team 2009). http://www.belb.org.uk/Downloads/i_epd_promoting_and_sustaining_positive_pupil_behaviour.pdf

http://nyteachers.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/edi-700-blog-classroom-management.jpg 

For further tips and tricks for managing your classroom effectively see the behaviour management plan available on this blog, or alternatively visit the following links and watch these fantastic videos on Youtube:

Part One: ‘Creating an Effective Learning Environment’

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvlR7o81x2Q&feature=channel&list=UL

Part Two: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuDh9juNFsQ

How to Manage Student Dynamics in the classroom?

An effective classroom management system is integral in the creation of a learning environment that is supportive, calm and most importantly organised. You may have found that other teachers at your school have provided you with some advice or teaching methods that they believe will be useful. But before you implement the strategies, you must sit down and carefully analyse the student dynamics in your class. You must ask yourself: will these techniques suit my students’ learning styles and classroom behaviour? As we already know, all students are different and we must acknowledge that some techniques that are a success in one class may not necessarily be useful in another.

Below are some links that you may find helpful in making a start on building your skills to improve your classroom management.

• Class Dojo
• Bill Rogers

References:

No Author (2012). Classroom Management – Creating a Learning Environment, Setting Expectations, Motivational Climate, Maintaining a Learning Environment, When problems occur, last accessed: 21/10/2012, www.education.stateuniversity.com/pages/1834/Classroom-Management.html

Image: reflectiveteacher.com.au

Behaviour Management Strategies

The following students are entirely fictional and solely aim to provide student teachers and educators the support in how to confront student dynamics in your class and what strategies may be useful to implement. As I always say though, all students are different and what strategies that may work on one student may be a complete failure towards another so tread carefully!

Katie, the enthusiastic helper

Katie, is an enthusiastic member of the learning environment who willingly volunteers to help in particular tasks in order to be able to control the management of the students and the classroom. The other teachers have even told you that she can almost run the classroom if you have to step out. Although this originally seems a strong, positive addition to your class, it will be important to ensure other students get turns being the class helper to fairly share the responsibility. Some of the students are already complaining that Katie is overly controlling during group work. She eagerly wants to control her group, the activities and the teacher as well.

schoolofrock.wikia.com 1 

Strategies:

• Make a class volunteer weekly timetable, which will randomly allocate class chores to the students in pairs and will be changed on a weekly basis. Chores may include: taking the roll back to the office, handing out work books, turning off electrical appliances on dismissal of classroom 
• During group work, explain the whole class that it is important that each person in the group chooses a role, for example: chair person, gophers and scribe. It is also important that these roles change so students all get a turn at each role.
• Katie is such an enthusiastic learner and should be utilised when you think the time is right. For example, as the other teachers have suggested, if you need to step out of the room, Katie may be the perfect helper to step in. However, it is important that you instruct Katie to be nice and not authoritative towards her peers.
• Whenever you feel that Katie is stepping on your toes, explain to her calmly that you are grateful her helping attitude but it is your turn to be the leader at that moment.
• Reward other students in your class that are showing initiative and leaderships skills with class peers. This will show Katie that she is not the only student with such skills.

Sally, the addictive reader

Sally supposedly does not do anything else but read. She also rarely talks and you almost have to MAKE her get out of her seat when it is time to go somewhere else. Her mother insists that she is gifted.

flutteringbutterflies.com 

Strategies:

• It is great that Sally loves to read, but she needs to learn that there is a time and a place for such activity as she needs to be involved in other learning experiences. Take Sally’s book away and place it on you table and tell her that she will get it back either when it is break time or when she has finished her work. This will encourage her to participate in the learning environment.
• The reason she rarely talks is probably because she is always reading. Once her book has been taken away, program lots of lessons around group to provide Sally and the other students to interact.
• Organise a weekly or daily Drop Everything And Read (DEAR) session that will reward students, especially Sally, to read.
• The count down warning is an effective classroom management technique to encourage students to follow instructions. Students never want you to get to one because they know this is always followed by a disciplinary consequence. 

Dale, the bewildered boy

Dale started attending PHPS a year ago. DoCS removed him from his mother and he is now living with his maternal grandparents. He is 18 months behind in his outcomes.

Strategies:

sumupfilm.blogspot.com 

•  I have posted links on information about who DoCS are and their roles so it might be a good idea to read this first.
• Although Dale is 10-11 yo, he may still be experiencing some separation anxiety being apart from his mother so you must ensure that he is included in a sensitive learning environment. This my involve creating a R&R space in the classroom where Dale might want to spend some time on his own.
• When handing out homework, hand out one sheet that the whole class gets, but then another sheet that involves content each student needs improvement in or can further challenge them. Providing Dale with this extra homework will support his academic growth and development.
•  Research tutoring in the local area that may help Dale to climb back up the outcomes ladder. This private, out of school time tuition, will provide Dale with the opportunity to work at his own pace and not be embarrassed by working through year 3 work.

Sam, the unique learner

Sam has been diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome. His parents have also recently separated and he has not been dealing with his new domestic arrangement very well. Apparently it was an acrimonious separation and there was a court order in place and Sam’s mother has full custody.

aspergers911.com 

Strategies:

• First, you must ask yourself: Do I know what Asperger’s Syndrome is? If you require further information, look through our other posts on our blog or make an appointment with the school councilor to talk about your student and Aspergers.
• Because Aspergers is a condition that can mildly or severly effect a personal social development and peer interactions, it may be difficult for Sam to communicate how he is feeling. Make up some cue cards that have a facial expression on each card and the emotion it is showing undernealth. If Sam if feeling a certain way, he can hold up a particular card to show you.
• Weekly visits to the school councilor may also be needed as a regular checkup on his emotional well being and to determine whether or not it is effecting his school work.
• Celebrations such as father’s day will have to be carefully implemented during this time as you will have to be extremely sensitive for Sam. To remain inclusive, encourage Sam and other students in similar position to choose another male significant other such as a grandparent or an uncle or a sports coach.
• Sam may not be able to concentrate on tasks for lengthened periods of time due to stress or lack of sleep. Provide Sam with tasks that involve short bursts of cognition or provide Sam with lots of breaks in between.

Prisca, the traveller

Prisca only has limited English. She was one of several new children from the one family who were starting at the school on Monday. The family had fled from Sudan and had been waiting for many years to enter Australia via a refugee camp in Kenya. In class, she is very withdrawn and very quiet following Sally around the classroom. Prisca was good with numeracy but struggled with her English and her written work.

salem-news.com 

Strategies:

• Prisca will require an English as a Second Language (ESL) Support Teacher in your classroom to help her with school work.
• Prisca’s family probably speaks limited English also so you may need to apply for an interpreter to meet with Prisca’s family and talk about her class progress.
• To help Prisca working at her own pace, encourage her to draw pictures with her writing, almost like a comic strip so she can show the process in her writing. Over time, she will be able to gradually take out the pictures and just write.
• Provide Prisca with praise on her achievements in Numeracy. Simple as that, to boost her self confidence.
• Prisca is probably very withdrawn because she is unsure about the new country she is now in, where people do not speak her language. Implement learning experiences where we translate Australian songs and words around the classroom into her home tongue. This may make Prisca feel more at home.

     Reference: 

    Sburlati, S (2012) 

 

Gifted and Talented Students

It is particularly important for teachers to understand and identify to the best of their ability in the interest of the gifted and talented students and the class in its entirety.

The identification of a student’s gift or talent is an important part of the teacher’s process of recognising and catering for individual student needs within the classrooms. A gifted or talented student may exhibit a few or many of the ‘gifted and talented characteristics’ set aside by Silverman (1993, cited NSW DET 2004b). Whilst not all of the gifted and talented characteristics are seen as positive, it is still important for teacher to recognise the attributes of giftedness in order to be aware of the student’s educational needs.

Within the gifted and talented category there are six types of profiles that have been developed by Betts and Neihart (1988). 1. The High Achiever, 2. The Challenger Type, 3. The Underground Student, 4. The Dropout, 5. The Double Labeled and 6. The Autonomous Learner (Betts & Neihart, 1988). Each category varies in the presence and strength of characteristics found in individual students, as they will each differ in intellectual level, strengths, weaknesses and mental cognition (Silverman, 1993). It is because of this diversity that a broad range of criteria is employed to identify these gifted and talented students.

Gagné’s (2004) Differentiated Model of Giftedness and Talent (DMGT) assists in the identification of gifted and talented students. Gagné’s model determines not only the difference between gifted and talented, a gifted child being one who demonstrates “untrained and spontaneously expressed superior natural ability” (Gagné, 2004, p1), a talent based child identified by a “superior mastery of systematically developed abilities” (Gagné, 2004, p1). Gagné’s model also identifies and the natural abilities of a child and the domains that influence them.

For a teacher the identification of all students potential abilities, whether or not they be gifted or talented, is fundamental to providing a developmentally appropriate learning program (Vygotsky 1978). It is through this knowledge of each student’s potential abilities, skills and interests that programs can be designed that will provide ongoing opportunities for all students, enabling them to be challenged at their own levels of learning and mental cognition (Bloom 1956). Through differentiated learning a gifted and talented student can easily participate in lessons that utilise diverse levels of thinking and expectations in accordance with each students learning capabilities, whilst ensuring that the program is meeting each and every students mental and educational needs (Tomlinson 2000).

It is imperative that teachers identify students that demonstrate gifted or talented abilities within their classroom. This identification allows teachers to create a program that will engage the students and challenge them whilst encouraging higher-order thinking skills, problem solving and creativity (NSW DET, 2004c). As with all students under a teacher’s care, it is the aim of the teacher to ensure each student receives the very most out of their education.

DEC G&T Documentation

G & T Acceleration

G & T Curriculum Differentiation

G & T Identification

G & T Parent Info Pack

G & T Policy Guidelines

G & T Policy Implementation

G & T What are the options?

References

Betts, G.T. & Neihart, M. (1988). Profiles of the gifted and talented. Gifted Child Quarterly, 32(2), 248–253.

Bloom, B.S. (Ed.). (1956). Taxonomy of educational objectives: e classification of educational goals. New York: Longmans, Green & Co.

Gagné, F. (2003). Transforming gifts into talents: e DMGT as a developmental theory.In N.Colangelo&G.A.Davis(Eds.),Handbookofgiftededucation(3rd ed., pp. 60–74). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

NSW DET (New South Wales Department of Education and Training) (2004a), Policy and Implementation Strategies for the Education for Gifted and Talented Students, State of NSW, Department of Education and Training, NSW

NSW DET (New South Wales Department of Education and Training) (2004b), Policy and Implementation Strategies for the Education for Gifted and Talented Students; Support Package, Identification, State of NSW, Department of Education and Training, NSW

NSW DET (New South Wales Department of Education and Training) (2004c), Policy and Implementation Strategies for the Education for Gifted and Talented Students; Support Package, Curriculum Differentiation, State of NSW, Department of Education and Training, NSW

Silverman, L.K. (1993). A developmental model for counseling the gifted. In L.K. Silverman (Ed.), Counseling the gifted and talented (pp. 51–78). Denver: Love Publishing Company.

Tomlinson. C, (2000). Reconcilable differences: Standards-based teaching ad differentiation, Educational Leadership, Vol 58, No.1, pp6-11

Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind and society: The development of higher mental processes. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press

Image: http://www.ops.org/TECHHUB/Portals/1/Staff%20Folders/T_Tessin_Mary/boy%20thinking.jpg

Gardner's Multiple Intelligences

Student’s strengths are catered for when linking the multiple intelligence theory and differing levels of Vygotsky’s ZPD in guided and discovery teaching to assist students to learn. Combining these theories assists students to develop schemas and learn to transfer information as well as perfecting various skills and talents they possess (edutopia 1997). Gardner first discusses the seven intelligences in Frames of Mind, his first full-length statement about his multiple intelligence theory in 1983. Gardener names his seven multiple intelligences as: Linguistic, Mathematical and Logical, Visual and Spatial, Bodily Kinesthetic, Interpersonal, Intrapersonal and Music. In the later years of his career, due to research and great consideration Gardner revised his seven intelligences. With reflection by Gardner there appeared to be three particular potential possibilities: a naturalist intelligence, a spiritual intelligence and an existential intelligence (Scherer, M. 1999). He concluded that the naturalist intelligence merited being added to the list of intelligences (Gardner, 1986). With the spiritual intelligence Gardener came across difficulties settling on the 'content' of spiritual intelligence.  The unsupported claims with regard to truth value, 'and the need for it to be partially identified through its effect on other people’ (Gardner.1999). The final, revised candidate is the moral intelligence. In his research, Gardner began by asking whether it is possible to define the 'moral domain'. He suggests that it is difficult to come to any agreed upon definition.

The key principles of the MI theory are; Pluralisation: That it is important to accept that intelligence is beyond logical-mathematical and linguistic but is often an individualised blend of dominant and submissive intelligences that make each of us suited to particular vocations or interests. Contextualisation: Intelligent behaviour performs better where the context is familiar and meaningful to the student and Distribution: The IM theory is linked to the Vygotskian theory where the interactions with significant others aids our intellectual functioning. (Vialle et. Al 2008, pp.133)

Multiple Intelligences Revisited By Rolf Palmburg

Free Multiple Intelligences Test (Manual Version)

Multiple Intelligences Survey

Multiple Intelligences Image - Brain Storm

Multiple Intelligences Pin Wheel Image

REFERENCE LIST

Edutopia 1997, Big Thinkers: Howard Gardner on Multiple Intelligences, last accessed 24/08/2010, http://www.edutopia.org/multiple-intelligences-howard-gardner-video

Gardner, E. H 1983, Frames Of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences, 10^th edn., pp. xxiv, Basic Books, New York, USA

Gardner, H., & Hatch, T. 1989. Multiple intelligences go to school: Educational implications of the theory of multiple intelligences. Educational Researcher, Volume 18, Pn. 4-9.

Gardner, Howard.1999. The Disciplined Mind: Beyond Facts And Standardized Tests, The K-12 Education That Every Child Deserves, New York: Simon and Schuster.

Scherer, M. 1999 'The Understanding Pathway: A Conversation with Howard Gardner', Educational Leadership 57(3)

Vialle, W., Lysaght, P. & Verenikina, I. 2008 Handbook on Child Development 2E, Cengage Learning, South Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Vialle, W. 2010, Multiple Intelligences and Effective Learning, Lecture notes, EDFE202, 24 August, 2010. Faculty of Education, UOW