Inspiring Students Today

Since the students I work with have emotional problems, it is important to meet those needs first and foremost. It is difficult for anyone to learn new things while dealing with emotional issues. We learn and remember best when we are relaxed and in a low stress environment. It is important to understand something about what upsets each student in an E. D. class and to have solutions for those emotional issues. For example, you are not going to teach to a student having a panic attack (a common problem with emotionally disturbed students). You must first calm the student and provide the necessary atmosphere for learning. Students do not learn in the midst of chaos. A quiet calm, reassuring voice is often called for, and at other times a stern warning has to be given to restore order. Each day, each hour and each moment require constant adjustment. One of the keys in keeping these types of students calm so learning can take place is to make sure the assignment is tailored to their i...

My idea of assessment has evolved over the years to the point where I have one primary focus on assessment. That focus is to make sure the student (a human being) understands that an assessment does not define who they are. Too often a young impressionable teenager translates an assessment as a validation of being inadequate in some way. For that matter, adults are often hurt and discouraged over assessments of any kind.  Assessments should tell as where someone needs help and open a door for building them up rather than criticizing and rebuking them for being inadequate in some area. At some point everyone will fail in math, everyone will fail in science and PE and so on, but every child has a gift, every human being has a gift. Yes, assessments should point out a weakness, but it does not define us. One weakness is another’s strength. One child is an exceptional artist and another excels at math, but every child has a gift. Assessments should be tempered with kindness and enco...

Good classroom management requires a lot of determination. In many circumstances, it will test even the most determined, organized and enthusiastic person in the world. The more difficult the class, the more organized you had better be. You may be able to take a break with an IB class or honors class and actually work quietly at your computer planning upcoming assignments. In a classroom with students that struggle in school, have difficulties out of school and have numerous referrals, taking a moment to catch your breath is not an option. In these types of classes, you are racing in a marathon, and there is no time to stop if you intend to finish the race. You are teaching from bell to bell, and from the first bell of the day till the last day of the bell. Not only that, but you are most likely dealing with issues at lunch, after school and then calling parents at night. My point is that not all classes require the same level of classroom management. Not every business requires the s...

Unfortunately what works well one day can easily become a disaster the next with emotionally disturbed students. Staying calm, building a good rapport with the students, listening, collaborating and always being willing to change with the moment is a strong point of mine, and something that thankfully is going well. If you lock yourself into expecting a specific outcome from the same procedures each day, your classroom will be chaos in no time at all. Each day requires a self reflection of how to best deal with a behavior of a student. What I have always been good at is to not categorize every student's behavior under specific labels. Each of us wakes up each day with different issues to face. If a student wakes up to find out their mother has stage 4 cancer, it is my job as a teacher to listen, and finally to treat that student in the same way I would hope someone would treat me. Every human being wakes up to different days each day. As a teacher it is my job to be open to what ea...

I think one thing that is going well in my class is exposing my students to new experiences. I work with students who are emotionally disturbed, often times from foster care or group homes. A common thread that runs through most of my students is poverty. For the most part, they lack what most people consider basic needs - being able to order pizza, nice clothes, getting out to a park, etc. To partially remedy this, I have worked hard on, for example, making pizzas. Students learn to fold pizza boxes; they make the dough from scratch; they weigh ingredients out on scales so they learn ounces, grams, etc; they learn radius and area of a circle; they learn the cost of pizzas, they learn about the quality of ingredients and multiple other skills. The most important part of this is teaching them to be the 'best' at something. You see, we don't just make a basic pizza, but my students understand how to make the best pizza. I have confidence in them to be the best at this and the...