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May 2009
Vol 6 No 5
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Teachers.Net Gazette Vol.6 No.5 May 2009

Cover Story by Matt Levinson
Schools and Facebook: Moving Too Fast,
or Not Fast Enough?
Schools can draw a line in the sand, with zero tolerance rules written into school handbooks, or they can shift with the changing sands of social networking and utilize social networking and Facebook to enhance teaching and learning.


Harry & Rosemary Wong: Effective Teaching
Teachers Are the Greatest Assets
On the first day of school, the teacher across the hall commented to me that my students are "always so good!" It's not the students; it's the procedures that have proven to work. The First Days of School helps me to manage my class, so that I can be an effective teacher.


Columns
»Comedy Highlights from Room K-1! Sue Gruber
»What Will Your Students Remember? Leah Davies
»My Mrs. Krikorian Todd R. Nelson
»Discipline Is a Liberating Word Marvin Marshall
»The Busy Educator's Monthly Five Marjan Glavac
»Help! Too Much Talk! Not Enough Work! Barbara Pressman
»Mayan Sites and Paris Easy on the Purse Josette Bonafino
»The Little Things that Count in Our Schools: Doing Something Different, Simple and Powerful Cheryl Sigmon
»Teacher Morale Matters Dorothy Rich
»Team Management - It’s in the Cards Rick Morris
»Teaching and Learning for the 21st Century Hal Portner

Articles
»The Document Camera: A Better Way to Present! Joe Frisk
»Need a Teaching Job? Here’s Where to Find One Alan Haskvitz
»Make Twitter an Ally in the Classroom! Alan Haskvitz
»Teaching Is... Bill Page
»Celebrating True Heroes Graysen Walles
»Digital Pens & Touch-Screens Tim Newlin
»12 Ways to Improve and Enhance Your Paraprofessional- Teacher Experience Susan Fitzell
»May 2009 Writing Prompts James Wayne
»Using Photographs To Inspire Writing VII Hank Kellner
»How to Increase the Number of Physics and Chemistry Majors Stewart E. Brekke
»Bibliotherapy Booklist for Elementary Students Lisa Bundrick
»8 Ways to Make Math Magical at School Steve Sherman
»5 Brainteasers Steve Sherman
»What Will You Do For Shy Kids? Marjie Braun Knudsen

Features
»Apple Seeds: Inspiring Quotes Barb Stutesman
»Today Is... Daily Commemoration Ron Victoria
»The Lighter Side of Teaching
»Photo Tour: 3rd Grade Classroom
»Teacher Blogs Showcase
»Carol Goodrow's Kids Running Printables
»Dolch word activities, end of first grade test, first grade memory book, map and geography lessons for all levels, IEP progress, and graduation ceremonies songs
»Video Bytes; Are You Going to Finish Strong?, Antarctica, Ted Talks - Sir Ken Robinson: Do schools kill creativity?, How Big Is Will?, The Sling Shot Man, Styrofoam Cup vs. Deep Sea
»Live on Teachers.Net: May 2009
»New Teacher Induction Programs
»Newsdesk: Events & Opportunities for Teachers


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Cover Story by Matt Levinson

Effective Teaching by Harry & Rosemary Wong

Contributors this month: Matt Levinson, Sue Gruber, Leah Davies, Todd R. Nelson, Marvin Marshall, Marjan Glavac, Barbara Pressman, Josette Bonafino, Cheryl Sigmon, Dorothy Rich, Rick Morris, Hal Portner, Joe Frisk, Alan Haskvitz, Alan Haskvitz, Bill Page, Graysen Walles, Tim Newlin, Susan Fitzell, James Wayne, Hank Kellner, Stewart E. Brekke, Lisa Bundrick, Steve Sherman, Steve Sherman, Marjie Braun Knudsen, Barb Stutesman, Ron Victoria, Rita Sheffield, Carol Goodrow, and YENDOR.

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Barbara Pressman

Advice for Substitute Teachers
Archive | Biography | Resources | Discussion


Help! Too Much Talk! Not Enough Work!
Barbara helps substitutes get students’ attention back after open discussion and provides tips for keeping middle and high school students engaged when it appears their teacher has left too little work.
Dear Barbara - Advice for Substitute Teachers
by Barbara Pressman
The author of Substitute Teaching from A to Z (McGraw-Hill, 2008)
Continued from page 1
May 1, 2009
How can I avoid my class falling apart during the last ten minutes of the period?

Dear Barbara,

I have been subbing at our middle and high school for a few months now. The students know me, and I feel like I have their respect.

When the classroom teacher leaves enough work, the day goes well.

But some teachers leave assignments that take twenty to forty minutes to complete, and the period lasts fifty minutes!

I hate to see the behavior fall apart, when things have gone so well for most of the period. Do you have any advice on how to avoid that noisy last ten minutes?

Justin, from Vernon, CT

Dear Justin,

Students get into trouble when they have nothing to do. When classwork is completed, most teachers tell their students to read silently. They would prefer to talk! As the noise level escalates, you (the sub) need to control the volume. Now you become “the enforcer”. This is a job title you will want to avoid.

My advice is to spend as much time as possible, at the beginning of each class, introducing the lesson. Leave just enough time for students to finish their work before the bell rings. This kind of pacing can be a challenge, but you will improve with practice.

Here are some ideas to help you stretch out the first ten minutes of class:

  1. Put your name on the board and introduce yourself. Tell students something about yourself, to make a connection.
  2. Ask students to review yesterday’s assignment for you. Tell them you’d like to know what they have been working on in class.
  3. Go over all directions slowly. Check for understanding.
  4. Begin the work as a group. This sets a tone to enhance interest, and gives them confidence to begin working independently.
  5. While students are working, walk around the room and give assistance when needed. This shows students you care about their success.
  6. If some students finish early, have a fun worksheet on hand, such as a crossword puzzle, word find, or sodoku. Have a variety of worksheets available.

If you are aware of pacing your lessons, the rewards will be worthwhile for you and your students!

Barbara



» More Gazette articles...




About Barbara Pressman...

Barbara Pressman is an adjunct professor at the College of Education, Florida Atlantic University. She has been a classroom teacher for more than 20 years, and a supervisor for student teachers for 10 years. She currently mentors Substitute Teachers as well.

Teachers.Net asked Barbara how she came to be interested in writing for substitute teachers. Her response:
I have subbed for many years during my teaching career. When my children were small, I found subbing to be a wonderful "free lance" job. At that time, I took on a 6th grade long term subbing assignment, which led me back to full time teaching. Upon retirement, I went back to subbing once again.

Barbara is the author of book
Substitute Teaching from A to Z (McGraw-Hill, 2008), available in all major bookstores and Amazon.com. To find out more, visit: www.substituteteachingatoz.com

Substitute Teachers:
Barbara invites you to submit your question by email. Your question could appear in a future column!


Barbara Pressman Articles on Teachers.Net...
Related Resources & Discussions on Teachers.Net...

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