Turning the Tassel

It’s been a long time between posts because I have been distracted lately. I’ve been getting regular casual teaching work at a local school, my oldest child has moved back home, I bought a new car, and my graduation day was last month.

Graduation day was quite warm and myself and many of the other graduands were sweltering in our academia clothing as we waited outside the hall. We all felt very special when the audience stood as we entered the hall behind a kilt-wearing gentleman playing the bag pipes. At the beginning of the ceremony we were instructed by the Vice Chancellor to ‘turn our tassels’ and I’m sure we all felt a sense of pride that we had achieved something very special.

The ceremony was long and drawn out for many of the family members who came to offer their support and congratulations. Towards the end of the ceremony all of the graduands were asked to stand and recite a small thankyou message to the audience. We thanked our families for all of their support over the previous four years and many of us had to wipe away tears. I am extremely grateful for the support of my family. Studying for my degree was extremely challenging and I often wonder how I was able to make it through. I know that my family endured a tired, absent, and often cranky mother and wife. I feel that I am still recovering from the challenges of university study eight months later. I put a tremendous amount of time and energy into my degree and my academic results were very pleasing, so pleasing in fact, that I was awarded the University Medal. A great honour for me considering I barely passed my Higher School Certificate back in 1984.

Time fillers.

One thing I have learned very quickly is that new teachers need an arsenal of quick educational time fillers. These are class games that you can play when a lesson finishes early and there is only ten minutes or so until the bell.  They can also be used as transitions between lessons. The internet has a wealth of time filler ideas but it takes a long time to sift through them. So, I have compiled a short list here that I have had success with in the classes that I have taught.

Alliteration Names

• Students think of a word to describe themselves that begins with the letter of their name. Throw a bean bag from person to person as students recite the other person’s alliterative name: Lazy Louise throws it to Clever Craig who throws it to Silly Sam etc.

Inspirational Initials

• Ask the students to think of an imaginative way to use their initials: LD- Lovely Diamond etc. This is a great way to talk about adjectives and nouns. The letter of their first name could be an adjective while the letter of the second name is a noun.

Book Titles and Authors

• Think of some book titles and some funny related author names: This is great when you separate the students into small groups. Give them a time limit and see how many they can come up with.

‘Treasure Hunt’ by I. Digg

‘The Galaxy’ by C. M. Starrs

‘Togetherness’ by U. N. Me

Squiggles

• Choose a student to draw three different squiggles on the whiteboard. That student then moves to the back of the room and faces away from the whiteboard. Choose three students to turn each squiggle into a drawing within a certain time limit. Those students then sit back down into the group. The student who drew the squiggles returns to the front of the room and chooses the drawing he or she likes best. The student who drew the drawing then takes a turn to draw three new squiggles.

Buzz

• Nearly every class I have taught asks me if they can play this game. It’s suitable for younger students. Students stand in a circle and count to 10 or 20 (over and over) one at a time around the circle. When they get to an allocated number such as 9, that student must say ‘Buzz’ and sit down. I use days of the week with younger students and when they get to ‘Sunday’ that student must sit down. For older students continue counting past ten using multiples of certain numbers: students say ‘Buzz’ and sit down when they get to 6, 12, 18, 24 etc.

Noughts and crosses with a twist

• Draw a noughts and crosses grid on the white board and label the top  1, 2, & 3 and the side  A, B, C.  Choose two students to play, one is noughts and the other is crosses. They need to turn away from the white board so that they can’t see it. Explain that they need to visual the noughts and crosses grid in their mind. The top left square is 1A, the top middle square is 1B, the top right square is 1C. The middle square in the second row is, of course, 2B etc. Have them take turns calling out a position while the teacher fills out the grid. If a nought or a cross has already been placed in a square and the student repeats this, the teacher pretends to write the request again. The winner can remain to challenge another player or two new players can take part.

Guess my number

• This is a mathematics game that involves two players and the whole class. I make two cardboard circles and use a paperclip to attach a number card to each circle. This then slips onto the head of each player (but be careful not to show the number cards to the class or the players). Turn the players to face the class. The class then multiplies the two cards together and calls out the answer. The two players can then face each other to see their opponent’s number. The first player to identify their own number wins. Subtraction, and addition can also be used or for an added challenge, change the result so the class has to multiply the numbers and add 1 etc.

New Blog: Splodge Podge Art

I decided to start a new blog where I can share my primary art lessons. I felt that this blog was not the place for them. I will add new art lessons whenever I can. Please visit when you get a chance. Splodge Podge Art.

Art 2: Happy Monsters

If you are looking for some inspiration for art lessons a great place to start is Patty Palmer’s website Deep Space Sparkle. It is jam-packed with colourful ideas, examples and instructions. The lessons are compiled into grade levels but I find you can adapt lessons to suit the age group you are teaching. You can also purchase and download some PDF lesson plans from the site. Kudos to Patty- a wonderful site.

I found a great lesson from Patty’s site that I used the other day in a combined Kindergarten/Year 1/Year 2 class. I read ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ by Maurice Sendak and we talked about the illustrations. I drew an example of a happy monster on the whiteboard while the children watched. They helped me by offering suggestions for my monster as I drew.

I gave each of them an oil pastel to begin drawing their own monster and I showed them how to fill their page. I didn’t want tiny little monsters on a large piece of art paper. I also told them not to fill the monster in with oil pastel. They were to just draw the outline and paints would be used to add colour.

I was really pleased with the results and so were the children. The Principal of the school liked them too and said he needed some new artwork for his office

Here’s to dedication.

I like to be in control. Unfortunately, as a relief teacher, I am often not in control.  Not only do I not know where I will be working from day to day but I don’t know what work the teacher will have left for me to complete or even if the teacher has left any work at all. Because I like to be in control, I admit that I would rather teach my own lessons than try to muddle my way through the lessons that are left for me.  The other morning, I received a 6.50am phone call from a school. I answered the phone trying to disguise my sleepy-I-just-woke-up-voice.  A Year 1 teacher was ill.

“Yes! Absolutely…I’d love to come in.”

You beauty! Today I get to teach my own lessons…or so I hoped.

I had a feeling the moment I walked in the door of the classroom that I was going to have a good day. It was immaculate. There was a place for everything and everything was in its place. The teacher next door popped her head in and introduced herself. She handed me something that I was not expecting…two pieces of paper with typed instructions for the day’s activities. The teacher I was relieving had emailed them to the school that morning. The detail of these instructions was amazing. She had everything written down with time slots allocated. She had descriptions of locations of everything that I needed, so I didn’t have to go searching around the classroom for books and other stationery.

Besides easy-to-follow details about teaching and learning activities, her instructions also told me:

• how to reward the children.
• where the stickers were.
• what time to pack up from each activity.
• what time to send children to get the lunches.
• where to put the lunch boxes after the children had finished eating.
• that particular students would need extra help with letter formation/spelling etc
• where I was to go for playground duty.

The instructions went on and on. Anything I needed to know was written down. Truly amazing. As a result, my day went perfectly. The children were settled and they kept me on track. If I wasn’t sure of anything, they were eager to help. It was an absolute pleasure teaching this class and it was all because of the organisational skills of the dedicated teacher I relieved. I think she may have suspected that she was going to call in sick the day before.

Tired mathematics skills

While I wait for regular teaching work, to keep my hand in, I’ve been volunteering at one of my local primary schools. Every Monday I help out in a Year 6 maths group for about an hour. The Year 6 maths classes at this particular school are separated into ability groups. I help out with the top maths group. Not so difficult I hear you say. Let me just say that maths wasn’t one of my better subjects when I was at school.

Now it has been 26 years since I graduated from high school and although I completed my teaching degree last year, in primary education they tend to teach you about pedagogy rather than the subject itself. I completed three mathematics units at university and these units focussed on how to teach maths rather than how to do maths. Let me explain:

To teach mathematics to primary aged school children I was taught to:

• Use lots of manipulatives (counters, base-ten material, unifix blocks etc)
• Keep it relevant to everyday life.
• Don’t move too quickly (give them time to master new concepts).
• Ask lots of questions and have the students ask lots of questions and explain how they arrived at their answers (communication).
• Model how to apply strategies and how to reason (working mathematically).
• Teach them how to reflect on their learning.

I wasn’t reminded of how to convert fractions to decimals, nor how to find the area of an irregular shaped object, nor even how to find the area of a triangle for that matter. Brushing up on basic mathematics skills is my responsibility. Needless to say my brain gets a bit of a work out every Monday morning when I help this top maths group. I enjoy it because not only do I get to peek inside a classroom and watch an experienced teacher strut her stuff but it also gives me an opportunity to refresh my tired mathematics skills.

Today we were converting millimetres to metres and metres to kilometres and centimetres to metres and millimetres to centimetres…..oh bother….time for a nap.

Interactive whiteboard confidence.

It seems the universe was listening when I proclaimed my plea for work. Since my last post I have had four days work. Hardly something to do cartwheels over, but pleasing nonetheless. I mentioned in an earlier post that I have had limited access to interactive whiteboards, so I am pleased to say that I completed a two-day DET Interactive Whiteboard Basics course last week. This was time well-spent because I now feel that I can walk into a classroom and use the IWB with confidence.

On the first day of the course we covered:

• How the IWB works.
• How to set up and orient the IWB.
• How to use and care for the IWB.
• Desktop settings with Notebook 10 Software.
• How to work with the Notebook Interface.
• How to create graphics and text objects.
• How to change the properties of objects.
• We had an in-depth look at the gallery sampler and dragged images to the Notebook work area.
• We manipulated objects using the six basic skills; linking, locking, cloning, layering, grouping & adding sound.

On the second day we created our own lessons and shared them with the class.

I now have the Notebook software installed on my computer and I have been practising my new-found skills. I intend to create lessons using this software for each key learning area and for each grade. I’ll then transfer the lessons to a thumb drive so that I will have them with me whenever I am called to teach. I can use them when the teacher has left limited or no instructions for the day and I can also use them as a fill-in activity to keep the children engaged during those times when lessons are finished early.

I started creating some kindergarten mathematics lessons using the NSW Unit of Works document as a guide. I created a ‘home page’ and linked it to the other pages in the file.

I know that kindergarten children love to interact with the IWB so I made the most of the ‘dragability’ feature. On the multiplication/division page, children have to roll the interactive die to determine how many animals to drag into each ‘paddock.’ Depending on their ability, they can then use the interactive pen to write a number sentence to describe the farm they have created.

Similarly, on the ‘whole numbers’ page students drag the cards to make matching sets in the grid. I will continue to create digital lessons for each stage (K-6) so that I have a repertoire of lessons to call on. I can modify them as I use them and I will share them here on this blog when I have finished them. Small beginnings, but at least it is a start.

I want to teach!

I’m frustrated. I can’t get a teaching job. I can’t even get casual work. This is the fifth week of the 2010 school year and I sit at home twiddling my thumbs waiting for the phone to ring. I blitzed my university studies. First Class Honours…for what…a piece of paper that I can frame and mount on the wall? I want to teach! I’m excited, eager and enthusiastic. What do I need to do?

I can’t teach anywhere in NSW because I can’t relocate. I have a family and a home. My husband has a successful business & we are happy where we live. I have to stay put and try to scratch around for casual work….like an old chook looking for worms. There aren’t too many worms in this patch of grass either. Casual teachers seem to be a dime a dozen where I live and their numbers are growing all of the time.

I have given my personal details to eleven schools in my local area. Should I approach more schools? I have been contemplating offering myself as a volunteer at schools where I would like to work and today I decided that, that is what I would do. I contacted a school and told them that I was a qualified teacher and I would like to offer my services as a volunteer. The Principal said that he would ask his teachers at the next staff meeting if any of them are interested in my assistance. Fingers crossed. I believe the secret to gaining employment is not so much what you know but rather, who you know. I wonder if other teachers will jump at the chance of having another qualified (although inexperienced) teacher in their classroom to help out or whether they will shy away from such assistance.

I hope that somebody will take me up on my offer because it will give me more experience, more confidence and maybe a few doors will open for me.

Brief encounters with an interactive whiteboard.

My first encounter with an Interactive whiteboard (IWB) was during my first year at university in 2006. One of my tutors was a primary school teacher and she had recorded herself teaching with an IWB (brave woman). She showed the DVD of her lesson during a tutorial and I was gobsmacked. I had never seen anything like it before. My mind raced and I couldn’t stop thinking of the potential ways that it could be used in the classroom. Unfortunately the university didn’t have any IWB’s installed at the time so after that tutorial my excitement was pushed aside while I continued with my studies.

Disappointingly, not one of the classrooms where I completed the practical experience components of my degree had an IWB installed, so I had no opportunities to use them in the classroom. There were however, a few occasions where I was in a school library or another teacher’s classroom and I had a chance to play with one but I never had the opportunity to become familiar with the software. The university finally installed an IWB during my third year of study. I was able to engage with it a few times and my enthusiasm was renewed. As a result, the total amount of hands-on experience that I have had with an IWB, prior to being let loose in the classroom as a ‘real’ teacher, amounts to…oh…about 15 minutes.

As a new teacher I have found myself alone in strange classrooms staring at IWB’s that are connected to computers that I don’t have passwords for. When I do have access, the teacher I am relieving has usually left instructions detailing how he or she wants me use it. The day passes fairly quickly and my mind is focussed on getting through the work that the teacher has left for the class, so opportunities for experimenting with IWB’s have been very limited.

I have found that children are usually more engaged when the lesson includes the use of an IWB. When I say ‘engaged’ I feel that they are more focussed on the discussion that is occurring. They seem to stop fidgeting & most of them appear eager to interact with it. I have also found that children are an excellent resource for clues and tips about using the IWB. One time, after I had used the IWB as a glorified whiteboard, I was erasing some lesson notes with the erase tool. I had just dismissed the class for lunch and one little boy, on his way out of the classroom, came up behind me and offered his assistance.

He asked, “Mrs D, can I show you an easier way to erase all of that stuff?”

“Absolutely,” came the reply from the frazzled Mrs D.

Then he encircled the lesson notes with his finger and tapped on the board. Magically the notes disappeared. I thanked him profusely and sent him out to lunch.

The desire to become familiar with the IWB has found me staying in the classroom at lunch time. When I have been lucky enough to escape playground duty I have raced up to the staffroom to grab a cup of tea and then rushed back to the classroom to explore and play with the software. I have spent a few lunch breaks clicking on the toolbar icons to see what they do. Of course, lunch breaks are short and I have to prepare for afternoon sessions, so my time spent exploring the IWB has been limited.

So what can an inexperienced relief teacher do to improve her IWB technical competencies?

So far:

• I bought a book about teaching with the IWB ~ ‘The Interactive Whiteboard Revolution’ by Chris Betcher & Mal Lee.  (Great book, I highly recommend it.)
• I have joined IWB nings such as the SMART Board Revolution and the Interactive Whiteboard Revolution where I follow the IWB usage conversations of experienced educators.
• I follow blogs such as The Whiteboard Blog by Danny Nicholson which has great resources, links, ideas and advice for using IWB’s in the classroom. iLearn Technology is another great blog as is Integrating Technology in the Primary Classroom.
• I learn a great deal about e-teaching from my Twitter PLN.
• I have checked out the resources at the SMART tech training centre.
• I’m on the lookout for online courses that include a beginner’s perspective (if you know of any please let me know.)

I realise that the IWB is just a tool and no amount of clever technology will replace quality teaching. Although I don’t know a lot about technology I approach teaching with an open mind and I am eager to learn. I believe that the IWB, in the hands of a competent teacher, can enhance the teaching and learning environment. The possibilities for providing children with stimulating lessons are endless and I look forward to the day when I have my own class. Bring it on.

17 things I keep in my relief teaching bag.

The 2010 school year began this week and teachers have been busy settling their students into a routine. Because I am a new teacher and do not have a permanent position, I sit and wait for the elusive phone call from the schools that have my name on their relief teaching list. I occupy myself on the Web with Twitter (see my previous post) and education blogs and try to keep myself enthused and excited about the wonderful world of education. In doing so however, I feel envious of all of the teachers who do have permanent positions. Anyway (enough with the violins) just in case the phone does ring, it’s time to turn my attention to my relief teaching bag and the contents contained within.

There are two things that I never assume when I arrive in a new classroom;

1.  There is a complete teaching plan for the day.

2.  There are adequate educational materials to use.

Because of this, I have a teaching ‘bag of tricks’ that ensures I am prepared for anything. My bag contains the following:

1. Children’s literature – A good relief teacher never leaves home without some great children’s literature. I can whip a book out and read aloud from it whenever I have a spare ten minutes or I can plan an entire day’s activities around one book. I love Dr Seuss, Mem Fox, Pamela Allen, Roald Dahl, and Paul Jennings.
2. A book of children’s poetry. I have based many writing lessons around poetry. Consider Michael Rosen, Stephen Herrick, and Elizabeth Honey.
3. A collection of lesson activities that do not involve the use of work sheets – I have a mantra- ‘death to all worksheets’- which is just as well because I can never get to the copy machine in the morning anyway.
4. A pencil case- filled with spare pencils, pens, erasers, sharpeners etc.
5. A whistle- for PE lessons.
6. A cute little brass bell with a koala on top- I use this to gain attention when needed.
7. A coffee mug.
8. Stickers and other extrinsic rewards- I try not to use these too often because I am not a huge fan.
9. A hat for playground duty.
10. A small, soft bean bag- used for circle games.
11. A collection of cool educational problems for fast finishers. At times I have found some students try to finish their work quickly so that they can attempt these problems. (This gives me an idea for another blog post.)
12. A collection of educational games that can be used as time fillers and bribes.
13. Art and craft supplies. Some of my art lessons involve the use of supplies that aren’t easily found in the average classroom storeroom, so, I take my own. I have watercolour pencils, oil pastels, chalk pastels, soft graphite pencils, food colouring, charcoal and some coloured inks. Of course, these don’t fit in my bag of tricks, instead, I keep them in a plastic crate that I leave in my car.
14. A kitchen timer- “OK you have 5 minutes left.”
15. A diary. Relief teaching is all about being in the right place at the right time. A few times now I have been munching away on a sandwich in the staffroom and the Principal or other teachers have approached me and asked me if I am available to work on another day.
16. Pain relief (for obvious reasons).
17. Chocolate (also for obvious reasons).

Some days I don’t need my bag of tricks because the teacher has everything organised and spelled out for me but it is always with me just in case.