31 Teaching Truths

Photo by Fischer Twins via Unsplash

11. Mixing it up now and then is just as powerful as solid routines.

The surprise factor. The juicy, delicious fear of not knowing what's about to happen in the lesson. The eagerness. The heightened awareness. You need all of this this just as much as your students do. Have solid and comfortable/comforting routines. And mix them up now and then.

31 Teaching Truths

Photo by Fischer Twins via Unsplash

10. Routines are powerful.

Routines are like paved paths through a beautiful, well-groomed park (aka your day). They get you from point A to point B in a relatively efficient manner, everyone knows what to expect from them, the sights you see and the stops you make along the way are comfortingly familiar. After you've walked the same path for several weeks in a row, you can close your eyes and walk it in your sleep. Key words: efficient, comfortable.

If you know me, or if you read Truth #3, you know this isn't the end of this story. Stay tuned for Truth #11 tomorrow.

31 Teaching Truths

Photo by Fischer Twins via Unsplash

9. Take care of yourself.

Easier said than done, right? You could work 24/7 on lessons and grading and professional development and classes for your masters degree and gathering books from the public library and buying classroom supplies with your own money...and you still would never be caught up, let alone ahead of the game. So since you can't ever get caught up (not for more than a day at a time in a good week), remember Truth #4 and let something go so that you can go out to dinner with friends, or watch Antiques Roadshow, or get that exercise routine going, or catch a couple extra hours of sleep.

If you're not a happy, healthy PERSON, how are you going to be a happy, healthy TEACHER?

31 Teaching Truths

Photo by Fischer Twins via Unsplash

8. Admit when you're wrong.

Let it be no big deal that you added wrong, spelled incorrectly, or forgot someone's name momentarily. Admit your error, apologize (or laugh) and move on.

If it's less trivial -- you misinterpret a situation on the playground based on observation or assumption and when you get all the facts you realize you had it all wrong -- admit it, apologize, and move on. Or, if you realize that you didn't handle a classroom situation as well as you could have (hindsight really is 20-20), call the parent, admit you were wrong, apologize and move on.

If you are breaking the law, get out of your classroom and get help.

31 Teaching Truths

Photo by Fischer Twins via Unsplash

7. Imagine your students' parents can see and hear you.

They try your patience and fray your nerves, but they are someone else's one and only sugar plum. So take a deep breath, access your last shard of patience, and treat your students with dignity and respect no matter what. Don't stoop to their level. Don't be sarcastic and rude and mean. Remember, every single student in that room is watching how you treat both the overachievers and the underachievers. They are either learning the language of power or the language of compassion -- the choice is yours.

31 Teaching Truths

Photo by Fischer Twins via Unsplash

6.  There will never be another class like this one.

If you've got a tricky class, this is important to remember. You can do this! You will learn lots and become a better teacher.

If you've got a fabulous class, this is important to remember. Every single day you need to appreciate your students and let them know how thankful you are for them and for their good work.

31 Teaching Truths

Photo by Fischer Twins via Unsplash

5. Read. And while you're at it, write.

Do you want every student in your class to be a voracious reader? Then you should be one, too. Do you ask your students to take risks as a writer? Then you should take those same risks, too.

31 Teaching Truths

Photo by Fischer Twins via Unsplash

4. Do your best.

Do your best, but don't ever get lulled into believing that your best is the same on every day in every situation. Sometimes my best is a survival best, a "just get through this day" best. Other times, my best is thoughtful and research-based. I love my best the most when it sneaks up out of nowhere and surprises me with an idea so perfect I couldn't have tried to imagine it!

31 Teaching Truths

Photo by Fischer Twins via Unsplash

3. Follow your students.

There are definitely times when a teacher needs to lead, but some of my most powerful teaching has been when I got out of the way, and when I followed. Or when I really listened to my students.

Early in the year, I started pointing out patterns or math equations in the date. My students see these number patterns everywhere now. And all. the. time. (I have to remind myself that I have created this "monster," so I shouldn't get annoyed.)

We have a place on a bulletin board for Homographs, Homophones and Homonyms. Noticing words has also taken off like wildfire. They know they don't have to ask permission to grab a sticky and put one up, but they still tell me when they find one. At dismissal yesterday, looking out to see if it was still raining, "Ooh! Sprinkle like what the rain does and sprinkle -- the thing on a donut!"

On Friday, we talked about how writers challenge themselves in order to become better writers. I told them about this March challenge I've given myself to warm up for the April Poem-A-Day challenge. The words were no sooner out of my mouth than the student (who earlier had pointed out that INVISIBILITY is important in our new read aloud, Walk Two Moons, just like it had been important in REFUGEE. Um...Wow...) said, "There's 30 days in April and there's 29 of us -- 30 if we count you -- so you should just write a poem a day about US!"

And you know what? I think I will.

31 Teaching Truths

Photo by Fischer Twins via Unsplash

2. Indoor recess isn't always as bad as it seems. The key is having plenty of options available.

Yesterday there were two students playing chess, a future astronomer watching a YouTube channel that features easy-to-understand videos about the cosmos, a group of students playing Clue, a girl working to get her reading response assignment finished early, and a couple of girls who created the Empire State Building from wooden blocks by using a reference photo on the iPad.

31 Teaching Truths

Photo by Fischer Twins via Unsplash

1. Being a part of a supportive and collaborative team (be it grade level or subject or building) is one of the most important safety nets for the high wire balancing act that is also known as teaching.





I am not going to join the Slice of Life community because I cannot commit to being a good part of the group -- reading and commenting regularly. But I do want to try to blog daily during March so that my poem-a-day project in April won't be such a shock to my system!