Friday Five: Resolutions for Educators

Posted by Leslie

What would an upcoming new year be without some fresh New Year’s Resolutions?! This week’s Friday Five offers our top five resolutions for educators looking forward to starting 2012 off on the right foot.

1. Open up to new ideas. Plan to try one new technology tool or teaching technique each month.
2. Stress less. We’re guessing this is already on your list, and we hope you’re searching for ways to implement stress-reducing strategies in the classroom. Set up systems and procedures to help your classroom run more smoothly or utilize online organizational tools to help you stay on track. You can check out our 5 Free Web Apps for Teachers post for some great ideas.
3. Go global. Skype for the Classroom makes it easier than ever for teachers and students from around the globe to connect, collaborate and exchange knowledge and teaching resources online. If you prefer the good old-fashioned pen pal, check out Worldwide Classroom for some international resources.
4. Expand your personal learning network. Look beyond the walls of your own school or district to connect with other educators. There are so many resources available that can help you discover professional development tips, tools and resources that can help you enhance your classroom and add to your teaching skills. We posted our top online tools for professional development back in November. Use this as a jumping off point.
5. Update your lessons. Review old lesson plans and adapt them to make them more relevant to today’s students. Maybe they need a complete overhaul, or maybe you just need to refresh your pop culture references. Either way, finding new ways for your kids to connect with the material can really impact the results.

Our resolution? To bring you all the tips and tools we can to help you make 2012 the best teaching year of your career. Cheers to 2012!

(Image via The Telegraph)

Friday Five: Do’s and Don’ts of Classroom Blogging

Posted by Leslie

In this week’s Friday Five, we’ve put together a list of the top five do’s and don’ts of classroom blogging to get you started on a creative student blogging project.

1. DO make sure it’s safe. Internet safety is crucial, and parents will want to ensure their child is blogging in a secure environment. Kidblog is a great platform to kick off a student project. Teachers maintain complete control, and privacy controls allow you to limit access to classmates and teachers or make their writing password-accessible so parents can sign on to read their children’s blogs.
2. DON’T forget to establish rules and guidelines. Teaching your students how to blog provides you an opportunity to educate them on appropriate online behavior. Before you start, make sure your classroom blogs are in line with your school district’s policies and regulations. Click here to read a few teachers’ blogging rules and guidelines for second grade through high school.
3. DO teach students the essentials before jumping in. Host a blogging workshop to get them excited about it. Find out what they know, discuss why they’ll be blogging in class and what kind of topics you’ll cover, go over the mechanics of blogging and be sure to review the rules and guidelines for posting and commenting on other students’ blogs. Check out how one teacher taught her students how to blog on paper first.
4. DON’T forget about Twitter. Utilize the hashtag #comments4kids to give your students’ blogs exposure and increase engagement. Comments4Kids aims to promote more comments for class and student blogs. The hashtag allows students and teachers to find blogs to review and comment on, and people from all over the world will comment, reply, retweet and share their own students’ blogs. Read about one teacher’s first experience with #comments4kids here.
5. DO start small, and DON’T get discouraged. You want students to feel comfortable and excited about your blogging project. Make sure your first assignment is a confidence booster such as an easy, introduce-yourself topic. Give blogging some time. Some students pick it up right away and others find it challenging, but blogging offers an excellent opportunity to teach students myriad valuable skills in a meaningful and fun way. Stick with it!

(Image via Blog Hackz)

Fun Ways to Reduce Holiday Stress in the Classroom

Posted by Leslie

Teachers know that the classroom is no haven from the hectic holidays, and students aren’t exempt from the stress. While teachers try to take advantage of the last few weeks to reach curricular benchmarks, students can struggle to keep up—especially when parents pull them outside their normal routines to shop, attend parties and prepare for family obligations.

That stress, according to research, increases the likelihood that kids will exhibit learning problems. Even typically good students may have a difficult time paying attention in class, staying on task and transitioning from one activity to the next. Tame the tension this year with a few activities that are fun for the whole class.

• Get into a good mood.
A positive frame of mind can help ward off stress and make the classroom a calmer place. Try starting the day off with a happy message to shift feelings from negative to positive. Some ideas: Ask students what they’re grateful for, have them say something they like about the person on their left, or have them talk about what they hope to do over the holiday break!
• Take a laugh break. A good laugh is the ultimate stress buster, so be sure to pencil in some silly time this holiday season. Read a funny holiday story or sprinkle in a few cute animal YouTube videos. Get your students laughing with playful classroom games that support learning. You can find ideas here.
• Head outside. Physical activity is one of the fastest ways to reduce stress, and stepping outside in the crisp air can help invigorate you and your students for the rest of the day. Take a break to soak in a little sunshine by taking a stroll around the playground. Start a rousing game of kickball or volleyball to incorporate some vigorous exercise while students enjoy working as a team.
• Throw a dance party. This tip gives you two stress busters in one: music and movement. Music can influence moods, reduce stress and energize us, so turn on some upbeat music and encourage your kids to burn a little extra energy by moving around the room. This can be especially helpful on those inside-recess days! Not in a dancing mood? Let your students rock out in their seats. A toe-tapping beat will still stir up those feel-good chemicals and add a little extra excitement to the day!

Despite the great things about the season, stress can creep into your classroom faster than Santa slips down a chimney. Think about incorporating a few of these stress-busting tips to lower anxiety and amp up the fun this holiday season.

(Image via Mighty Goods)