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What to Do When the Honeymoon is Over: Addressing Student Behaviors

September 12, 2017 by Inspired Together Teachers Leave a Comment

You got off to a great start to your school year. Your students were respectful and well behaved. You started actually teaching content and meeting the standards. You were feeling confident that you might even be a rock star teacher.

And then reality set in.

There was a side conversation here, a set of rolled eyes there. One student bravely challenged you, another blurts out silly answers. Your call for attention is ignored.

The honeymoon is over.

Students are getting comfortable, and their true characteristics have started to appear. No, they are not demons, but they are people with different personalities. Those personalities have started to assert themselves, sometimes in annoying and disruptive ways.

This is the time to recognize those student behaviors and address them. You can’t wait for all the little disrespectful comments or incessant talking to disappear on its own. If ignored, the problems will likely grow worse.

What’s a teacher to do?

We’ve got a few suggestions. Consider some or all of the following:

Discuss Expectations.

If you haven’t already done so, have a class discussion about expectations. What do you expect from them? What do they expect from each other? From themselves? It is a good idea to talk about why we have particular expectations; people are more motivated when they know the reasons behind rules. A student may not discontinue a negative behavior when the reason is “because I said so” but might because another student shares that he wants to learn so he can get a good job and support his family. Consider creating a rights and responsibilities chart.

Create a seating chart.
Perhaps you already have one, but likely it was built without knowing your students. This is a good time to reevaluate. Separate the talkers. Mix the students who regularly participate throughout the room. Put students whose physical movements are distracting towards the back or sides of the room. If student desks are in large groups, divide them into smaller pods. If students protest the new chart, calmly tell them you would love to let them choose their own seats but because they weren’t making good choices you reserve the right to make their choices for them. A seating arrangement isn’t the answer to all of your problems, but it can be a start.

Look at your lessons.
Are students sitting quietly for long periods of time? Is the work challenging, engaging, and meaningful? Do students have some choices in activities, materials or how they present their work? Do students have some opportunities for social engagement and working with partners or small groups? Is there opportunity for movement? Student behaviors are likely to be more positive during active, engaging lessons.

Look for attention seeking students.
These students may wave their hands wildly in the air, not just because they know the answer, but because they want everyone to see them. They may give silly answers out of turn or make inappropriate comments aimed at the general class. The class clown is usually an attention seeker. They can be disruptive, but endearing.

Do not give in to them by answering their blurted or silly questions. Once you realize which students are demanding attention, try not giving them attention when they seek it. Find more positive ways to let them know you are aware of them. For example, you might call them by name as they enter the room and make a friendly comment. Ask them to turn the lights down for a video or pass out materials. Building relationships goes a long way with attention seekers, after all, your attention is often what they want.

Look for oppositional or defiant students.
These students are driven by many needs. Some feel threatened, others are overly anxious. Some want to manipulate others, while some are driven by a need to uphold a reputation. They may smirk, give cheeky answers, or refuse to do something. They may show little concern for other’s needs. They may be asserting their independence or demanding control. For some students, defiance has been a survival tool.

These can be tough student behaviors to handle, but you can win over an oppositional student. Do not yell, criticize them, ridicule them or berate them in front of their peers as these responses can make the situation worse. Do not threaten them or box them into a corner.

Be ready with a few stock statements. Though they are pushing your buttons, try to stay calm and speak in a soft voice. Don’t give them the fight they may be looking for.

“You can’t make me!” is followed by, “No, I can’t. You make your own choices.”

“I’m not doing that.” is followed with, “Then you earn the consequences of your choices.”

“I hate you!” is followed with, “I can see that you are angry. I’ll leave you to calm down and then we can talk in a minute.”

Try one-on-one discussions. These students are often motivated by their own goals rather than yours, so try to help them see how what you want them to do will help them reach their own goals.

Talk to them about their behaviors in ways that describe the behavior without judging. These students may think school is impersonal and unfair, if you can show them differently, they will begin to respect you.

Working with an oppositional or defiant student takes time and often some tough love. Talk to the guidance counselor, social worker, or another teacher to get some ideas for how to best work with the student.

Every teacher faces challenges in the classroom. Don’t take it personally. Continue to build a good relationships with your students because good relationships will almost always improve student behaviors.

Take care of yourself, make time to eat well and get some exercise. Get enough sleep too, because you will make better decisions when you are healthy and well rested.

Lastly, don’t be afraid to reach out to more experienced teachers for help. Find your mentor or ask a trusted colleague for advice when you need it. Some days, students try the patience of the best of teachers. You don’t have to go it alone.

Here’s to strength and confidence!

P.S. Do you want more information about preventing problematic student behaviors? Enter your name and e-mail below and we will send you our free guide to motivation and management!

Positive Notes for Days You Really Need Them

September 5, 2017 by Inspired Together Teachers 9 Comments

For many years I have a kept a worn and faded old manila folder in the bottom drawer of my desk. It is labeled with a Sharpie: Positive Notes for Days I Really Need Them.

This folder is where I stashed the letter from a parent, thanking me for the extra attention to her son. It is where I put the note from a girl in middle school who tried my patience more days than not. I spent many hours with her after school, discussing appropriate behaviors and encouraging her to live up to her potential. A few months after I left that school, she mailed me a letter apologizing for her bad behavior. She told me that she felt safe with me, and that she had learned a lot more from me than she had ever let on. I was flabbergasted.

In my folder, there are also notes from principals, and my positive recommendations. There are a few notes that I jotted down after having a conversation that boosted me just when I needed it. There are funny cards, like the hand drawn one given to me after my sister-in-law died with the heading, “Houston, we have a problem.” He meant well.

Other notes make me cry, like the one from Todd, who even as a twelve-year-old lived life fast and took chances. I remember him, with his sandy hair and his goofy grin. He also tried my patience, but then he would make made me laugh and I never could stay mad at him for long. At the end of the school year, he wrote that he would miss me. I later learned he died young. It broke my heart, but I was not surprised.

There is also a note from another young man who danced with addiction, contemplated suicide and thankfully, didn’t die young. The words, “Thank you for everything,” mean much more to me than the four words he wrote. I know that what they really say is thank you for not giving up on me and not letting me go and believing in me when I didn’t believe in myself. I spent sleepless nights over him, and knowing that I reached him keeps me going on days when being an educator seems too hard and I just want to quit.

As a teacher, you are going to make a difference to someone. It is the nature of our profession that sometimes you will never know how you might have affected someone. Fortunately, other times you will know. People will thank you. You will get scribbled cards, written in crayon in messy first grade writing that say, “You are the best teacher.” You will get a grateful e-mail from a parent or a guidance counselor. Someone will tell you that you are doing a great job.

You need to get yourself a folder or box or an accordion file and save every single one of those positive notes. Save them for days that are difficult, and there will be plenty of those. Save them for when you are working too hard, and not making enough money and it just doesn’t seem worth it. Save it for those day when a parent makes you cry and days when the students are acting out and you are tired of dealing with it all.

When you are down or struggling, take out that folder and start reading. Those messages, notes and cards will lift you up. They will encourage you and remind you that what you are doing matters. They will feed your soul and revive your spirit.

It is human nature to focus on the negative things we experience. If you are going to make it as a teacher, you will also need to focus on the positive. You need to know that someone appreciates your hard work, that someone notices, and that someone cares.

You need to be reminded that you are doing important work and that you are making a difference.

Get yourself a folder and start collecting your positive notes now.

Our best,

Taking Your First Steps As a Teacher

August 29, 2017 by Inspired Together Teachers 1 Comment

Have you ever watched a toddler try and take their first steps?

Of course, they staggered to and fro, eventually falling. Despite the disappointment the child may have felt, the cheers from the onlooking adults were those of admiration and joy. The adult knew that the child was taking the first of millions of steps and that the steps would become easier with time, eventually coming to the point where the child would put one foot in front of the other and do so while talking, reading, and possibly even using those same legs to run races and go places far away…someday.

But for the child just learning to do that task that would eventually become second-nature to them, those first steps weren’t easy.

So, beginning teacher, don’t be too hard on yourself.

Your first steps won’t all be easy either.

You will fall. You will have bumps and bruises, though we hope more figuratively than literally. Your daily audience, in the form of your students, will see you make those mistakes. But just as children are resilient, they are also forgiving. They do not expect you to be perfect. Nor should you expect that of yourself.

Some days you will feel like you are running a race in which you are as light as air. Other days, your feet will feel as if filled with lead. Just when you think you have something figured out, you will falter and your near-confident steps will become uncertain and cautious again.

But each day you are learning and growing, just like your students. Each day you walk a bit further or do so with more grace. As the weeks go by, tasks that required lots of intentional work at the beginning of the school year will occur naturally. One day, relatively soon, you will be caught off guard by the fact that without thinking you had effortlessly completed a task that had required so much thought only a few weeks prior.

Your fans, including your family, friends, and co-workers will be in the sidelines cheering for you. They have the benefit of watching you and seeing the tremendous steps you are taking each day. So, when you share with them that you are struggling, and they tell you not to worry that you are doing a great job, don’t begrudge them. They knew you when you weren’t even walking in the teaching world yet. And though you may be troubled that you aren’t running yet, from their vantage point they can see how purposeful your walk has become without you even noticing the ease at which you now take those steps.

No one expects you to run a marathon at first. No one expects you to figure out walking with your first steps into the teaching world. However, your students expect you to get up after each fall, shake off the dust, and try again. When you fall down, in whatever task it is you are trying to achieve as a new teacher, get back up. Take that next step. Keep putting one foot in front of the other until it becomes automatic. Each day, each week, each month you will learn more and more. Your mistakes will become your best learning experiences.

Can you imagine if, as a toddler, you decided the whole “walking thing” was just too difficult to keep trying? Where would you be now? Certainly not where you are. The same applies to teaching. Those first steps won’t all be easy but once you start walking, you will be amazed how, in no time at all, you will be running. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other.

Best of luck,

An Open Letter to a First Year Teacher from a Second Year Teacher: What I Wish I Had Known

July 25, 2017 by Inspired Together Teachers 1 Comment

Dear First Year Teacher,

Welcome to the first year of teaching. Have a blast. Your students and principal can’t wait to have a first year teacher full of energy and enthusiasm. Have fun and pay attention. The year is going to fly by. Keep a journal, blog or just take notes in your lesson planner because you are going to learn a lot. Here is what I wish someone had told me before I began my first year last August.

Try not to stress, and when you do feel stress somehow hide it from your students. Students and staff can sense stress and do not respond well to it. A teacher who has high energy and enthusiasm should balance that with a calm demeanor. Calm does not mean passive or lazy. Breath, walk away from tension, and take care of yourself. I am talking to you Type A, first year teacher. Do not be the first one in the building and the last one to leave at night. Go home, eat healthy, exercise, see your friends. Enjoy your life outside of school. It will make you a better teacher, I promise.

Focus on the students that are not behavior problems. Teachers and staff have a tendency to focus on the frequent flyers, the students who are acting out on a regular basis. Do not fall into that trap. Most students are wonderful: kind, hard-working, positive.

Speaking of focus, don’t put too much focus on students with academic problems and or parents who expect special accommodations for their student. Follow the IEP and accommodations plan but be aware of going above and beyond for only one student. Some parents scream for extra attention, help and communication with the teacher. Be careful, this is not always helpful to that particular student, or the other students in the room. Redirect your energies and pay attention to all of your students. The squeaky wheel should not always get the grease.

People can be mean. Don’t let this throw you off your game. Listen and learn from people who offer advice in a substantive and meaningful way. Otherwise, just tune the mean people out. Assume that their meanness will be counteracted by others in their life or the building.

On the other hand, when people give your criticism, and good teachers must have criticism, listen. Resist defensiveness and embrace curiosity. Remember: administrators, parents, teachers and students do not respond well to defensive behavior. Take a deep breath, put on your poker face and open yourself to criticism when it is given with good intentions.

Watch what works in your classroom and abandon what doesn’t even if your administrator, famous/successful teachers or professors say it is the best way to teach. Be a scientist in your own classroom and when you see evidence of growth: pounce. Take notes, look at data, listen to students, and repeat what you think is working.

Find a friend. Teachers don’t always welcome newcomers. Conversations with colleagues can be awkward, and you might feel like an outsider. Find the people in the building that are like you and make an effort to connect. Stop by their room for a chat or try to sit next to them during meetings. If your teacher’s lounge and lunchtime crowd gets negative, don’t join in. Be the positive teacher in the room.

Keep track of success and celebrate it with your students and yourself. Leave notes for yourself in your lesson plans when things go well and when they don’t. Praise students and yourself more and criticize less. Do not give students fake praise, but praise them for actual growth and achievement in all areas of school and life.

Be patient. Remember you have years to get better as a teacher, and students have many more years of school ahead of them. Do not think you need to help them climb the whole education mountain in one year. You are only supposed to lead them part of the way. They will make progress in your classroom and next year’s classroom and so on.

Some subjects are harder to teach than others. Don’t get discouraged. I teach ancient world history to sixth graders. I wish I had worried less about making it to a certain place in our textbook my first year and focused more on engagement, cooperative learning and critical thinking. My new goal is that my students are more open to the idea that our world is shaped by nearly all time periods, regions, religions, and ethnicities. Yet, somehow, the people of the world are more alike than different. The number zero was “invented” in at least two different completely disconnected civilizations at about the same time period and for different reasons. When my students discover that fact, I want them to say “wow!” That is a much easier goal to reach than hitting page 492 by June 1st.

Continue to love your students. This is not always easy, but it is essential to being a great teacher. Love them in the agape sense of love which to me means be present and open to their uniqueness in this world. Know their favorite sports teams, foods and how many siblings they have. Ask about their dance competitions, basketball tournaments and favorite video games. The more open you are to the person they are becoming the more they will surprise you with their capacity to grow academically and emotionally. Your classroom will pulsate with enthusiasm, engagement and energy if you keep an open heart.

And at the risk of repeating myself, have fun. At our end of the year class discussion, all my students talked about one thing they wished they had done differently in their 6th grade year. The answers ranged from not being so scared at the start of 6th grade, to reading more books in the beginning of the year, to reaching out to new classmates sooner. I said, “I wish I had had more fun with all of you.” Don’t make that mistake. You have worked hard to get your own classroom – now enjoy it.

Good luck and best wishes for a fantastic first year,

Heather Trees

Heather Trees is a TYT Tribe mentor and a sixth-grade teacher at Mazzuchelli Catholic Middle school In Dubuque, Iowa. She teaches social studies, religion, and language arts. Her greatest passion is inspiring a love of reading in all students. She believes there are no nonreaders just children who have not found their gateway book into a love of reading. Last year her 24 students read 437 books, many from her classroom library.

Teaching is a second career for Heather. She has a BA in theater and communications from Northwestern University and an MA in Journalism from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern. Her first career was a television journalist and nightly news anchor at TV stations in Iowa and California. After taking time to stay home with her children, she began a career working with children in a school library, which led to her returning to school to get her teaching credential.

The Essential Thriving Teacher Summer Handbook

June 25, 2017 by Inspired Together Teachers Leave a Comment

We are in Toronto this week, planning for some exciting things to coming later this summer. In the meantime, we are delighted to share this post, written by Colin Rust, one of our TYT Tribe mentors. We think you will enjoy his advice, which he delivers with both sincerity and humor. You can read more about Colin and our other mentors here. You can also watch TYT tribal leaders videos on our Facebook page @TYTtribe. While you are there, don’t forget to follow and like our page for more fun and helpful information.

Have a great week everyone,

The Essential Thriving Teacher Summer Handbook

by Colin Rust

There lies, deep within the calendar year, a magical three months. Three months that harken back to a time of juvenile freedoms and vacations. I am speaking of those three magical months; June, July, and August. Every teacher hears it about it every year from their friends and family not in the business, “teachers are soooo lucky, they get the summers off.” Guess what? They are right. We are lucky! What other profession gives you the chance to stop what you are doing on the daily, regroup, and relax? Can you imagine if every profession did that? The world would be in mass chaos! We as educators are given this time off, this beautiful time off, so why not use it to the best of our abilities?

This handbook will give you an idea of what I do during my summer as a thriving educator.

#1 Netflix Binge, seriously, you deserve it, no really, you do.

I bet you thought I was going to jump at you and say that the first thing to do is to painstakingly comb through your last year’s lesson plans in a month’s worth of reflections. That comes later. I truly believe that the first thing you should be doing during this break is relaxing. Think of it! Although we do get the summers off, we work our tushes off during the school year, fearing taking personal vacation days and making sub plans. Summer is the only time we as educators can take a breath and not feel guilty about letting 25 kiddos down.

I am not here to tell you not to binge watch 3 complete shows on Netflix for the first 2 weeks of summer. That is exactly what I did. Have I spent the whole day in my pajamas? Yes, yes I have, and that is okay. We shouldn’t feel guilty for sleeping in until 10 am or sitting and reading all day. Thriving teaching requires us to take this time to recuperate. Teacher burnout is a real thing, and personally I believe it should be listed on WebMD. Spend time with your kids, pets, and friends. Stay out until midnight on a Tuesday. You deserve it.

#2 Keep those skills sharp, like those fancy knives sold on Infomercials

In some school spheres this next item in the guide, may be considered a cardinal sin. So, those of you say, “it’s my summer go away,” look away and skip this section because you aren’t going to like it. My next tip for your thriving summer is to tutor. Yes, tutor, as in teach a student during the summer. Before you throw your rocks and tomatoes, hear me out. Tutoring a student during the summer allows you to keep your skills sharp. It is a non-threatening way to come up with new teaching ideas, a time where standards don’t really matter, and a time where your principal or district isn’t standing over you with their curriculum pacing guide, tapping their finger on their watch. (Side note, I am SOOOO blessed with an administration that doesn’t do this. Thank you for no curriculum police.)

Now, I am certainly not saying that you bog yourself down with 5 students twice a week during regular school hours. Start small, one or two students. I recently finished tutoring a past student of mine for just one week. It was quick and painless, and we both had an excellent time. Like I mentioned above, tutoring allows you to keep your skills fresh and even to try new things. Items and lessons you use in the small scale world of tutoring may prove incredibly useful in your upcoming year. Think of it as a birthday party magician practicing for the Vegas stage.

#3 Pick Up a Book!

I could sum this section up in one word: READ! Read a book you’ve always wanted to read but didn’t have time. Read the novelization of that popular Netflix series you just binged. Read with abandon. Spend the whole day reading. There is no better feeling than opening up a book, falling deep into the world of the text, and only coming back out when the sun is setting and you realize all you’ve eaten today was a sleeve of Oreos (once again you’re on summer break, treat yo’ self).

I, personally, like to set a summer reading challenge for myself. One summer, my goal was to read the entire “A Song of Ice and Fire” series by George R. R. Martin. This year I don’t have a specific series, but I am going to read a lot of fourth grade recommended books so that I can genuinely recommend them next year to students. During the school year, I find myself bogged down with lesson planning and other items, that I don’t have the same opportunities to read. Pour yourself a very large cup of coffee and jump into a new book; make some new friends, see new places, and get lost in the story.

#3.5 Pick up Another Book, Make it Professional this time!

While you are spending the day reading, I would suggest that every other book that you read has a bit of professional development to it. We as teachers should also be learners. Books that help you professionally can only improve your teaching methods. Find the right topic, and the right author. I personally enjoy professional books that are written in a narrative form. I enjoy books on reading and how to create community in the classroom. The biggest tip I can offer for this, is find an author that you will enjoy reading. Find someone who speaks to you as a teacher. For example, I am more likely read to something catchy and upbeat, full of real world examples. You might prefer a book that is highly scientific. We must always work to improve our teaching, and the summer is the best time to learn new methods through professional texts.

#4 Role reversal

This connects to the last section a whole lot, but I thought it was important enough to get its own number, and I am writing this guide, so there. During the summer it is important, so very important, to do a little bit of role reversal. Teachers, it is time to become the student. Take classes during the summer. I am sure that your district, or a cohort of districts, offers many classes throughout the summer. These courses ( I am going to assume) are mostly free to you. So take them! Give up a Monday and take a class.

Taking classes can have two major benefits. The first benefit is a lot of these classes will focus on initiatives in your district. If you take the summer classes you will get a head start on something the district will be rolling out in the near future. Now, tell me, don’t you want to be the cool kid who already knows the new science curriculum? Yeah, I thought so.

Another benefit of taking classes, especially through the district, is that you get the opportunity to work with other teachers from your district. Teachers who work at different schools, teachers who teach different types of students, and teachers you don’t know. The best thing about meeting other teachers is that by nature teachers are compulsive sharers. Whether or not it’s a “look at what I do” move or a “here’s how I conquer that problem” move, we love to share. Taking district professional development allows us to meet up with more of our species and get new skills to use in our classrooms.

#5 Ain’t no party like a teacher party, because a teacher don’t stop

During the school year teachers are constantly running around with their class, running to the copy machine, and running to an endless amount of committee meetings. My last tip for the summer is to hang out with other teachers in your school! Yes that’s right, hang out with the people you see all year. If you think this is a controversial topic, I will give you permission to skip it, it’s okay, I’ll wait. Yes, hang out with the other teachers from your school. During the summer you have the incredible opportunity to create a strong community in your school building. I believe it is important to get to know your co workers outside of the school culture. If all you get to know about your co workers is their class management line up technique, your school community will be lacking. Go to a trivia night, go see a movie, or heck set up a messaging app where you can share summer hijinks including dinners and vacation moments. When you build a strong community within your staff it can only have positive effects on the students.

So, there you go, my top five agenda items for this summer. There are many, many more, but this is a good start. Of course in between all of these items, I will be obsessively reflecting over the past year, but that’s not fun to write about. Summers are a magical time. A time that we can use to better ourselves as teachers and individuals. A time where we can forget what day it is, forget to shower, and to live in the moment. It is also a time to get a jump start on the next nine months of teaching.

So the next time someone makes a smug remark about how lucky you are that you get three months off, smile, tip your head, and tell them, “yep, I sure am.”

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The Essential Thriving Teacher Summer Handbook

#1 Netflix Binge, seriously, you deserve it, no really, you do.

#2 Keep those skills sharp, like those fancy knives sold on Infomercials

#3 Pick Up a Book!

#4 Role reversal

#5 Ain’t no party like a teacher party, because a teacher don’t stop

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