Welcome to Teachers At Risk
An honour
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Edublog AwardsSep
12
Emotions affect a student’s learning
Filed Under "At-risk" students, Behaviour Management, Special Education | 6 Comments
Those of you who have read my post about Nine things my students have taught me about classroom management and teaching will know that when I talk about classroom rules on the first day of class,I tell my students since they are in high school they are experts at knowing what behaviours make a classroom work well so that learning and teaching can go on. Then, I ask them to come up with a short list of rules for our class. Once that’s done, I have them create posters outlining the rules and put them up on the walls. The posters act like road signs on a highway reminding students how to behave.
I was delighted to learn that one of my students in my grade nine locally developed math class, a class for very weak math students, told another teacher that he liked my class because I thought he was smart. I had to smile because this is exactly what I hoped for when I told his class that they were experts at knowing what behaviours were conducive to learning and teaching.
This particular math class is for students who are really weak in math and often the kids think the class is for losers and don’t want to be in the class. It’s a self-esteem issue with them. They don’t want to be in what other students call the loser math class. I’m constantly challenged to find ways that boost my students’ self-esteem to the point where they will be open to learning and success. The negative emotions they bring to class really thwart learning.
No doubt about it. Emotions affect a students learning . The student who knocks on my door and asks me with tears in her eyes if she can talk to me about something, or the student who comes to me in a rage over something someone has done to him is not ready to learn . It doesn’t matter how great my lesson is, if a kid’s world is threatened there will be little learning going on. Given the emotional roller coaster that kids are on in their teens, emotions often get in the way of learning. That’s why it is so important for a student to have a good relationship with a adult at school. That’s why it’s so important for me to be sensitive to the emotional state of my students. I’ve found that a little empathy goes a long way and tomorrow will be another learning opportunity for my troubled student.
One way that I have found that I can be empathetic to my students is to respond to the journals I have them write. Sometimes I have students write journal entries every day, sometimes just on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. I actually prefer to have them write everyday. Stuff happens everyday. It’s amazing what students will tell me in their journals. I’ve had wonderful two way conversations with students over the years who would never say anything in class but were willing to tell me about important things in their lives in their journals. I would simply read their journals and make comments. And yes, I even have my math students write journals. I think it’s important for students to be given the opportunity to reflect on their lives and tell someone what they feel.
Sometimes students have difficulty getting started when writing a journal or they worry about spelling, grammar or punctuation. When I see this happening, I get my students to write a timed journal. I give them a choice of topics and then tell them to write like crazy for five minutes not worrying about spelling, grammar, etc. After they have written for five minutes (I use a timer) I get them to count the number of words and record that number below the entry. Then I get them to create a bar graph for each journal entry. When they’ve completed five entries, I ask them to pick their favourite one and edit it and hand in a good copy to be marked. It’s amazing how the quantity and quality of their writing improves over time.
What I’ll do is share with you some of the journal topics I give my students. But since I don’t have them with me at home with me right now, I’ll bring the handout home and post the list of topics for you within the next couple of days. Maybe someone else can also share their favourite journal topics as well. The more choice kids have, the better.
Sep
3
Bookmark Meme
Filed Under The way I see it | 4 Comments
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Ms. Whatsit tagged me for a Bookmark Meme. How intriguing-a bookmark meme. It would be interesting to see what people are bookmarking. Although my blog and podcasts are mostly about education the way I see it, I’m interested in a lot of other things that I don’t really bring into my blog. Here are some of my bookmarks that reflect my other interests. Interestingly, I am an avid gardener but haven’t bookmarked a site.
Knitting at Knoon – I’m a visual learner and the short videos on different knitting skills have been helpful over the years.
Brooklyntweed – I’ve recently discovered this knitting blog and really enjoy Jared’s creativity.
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Radio One – I’m addicted to listening to the CBC. I even listen to it while I’m using my laptop. Now that many of my favourite programs are available as podcasts, I don’t have to miss them and can download them to my MP3 player.
A Buddhist Podcast- I find what Jason and Karen say often challenge me to think about things in a different way, a more helpful way.
Tricycle- the independent voice of Buddhism - I find this site also helps me deal with the craziness of life.
Fly Lady – This site is so interesting on many levels. It has all kinds of motivational tips for tackling all kinds of, dare I say distasteful, tasks.
Now I wonder what Jason and Karen, Jared, Lisa, and Chris have bookmarked recently.
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