Summer is Over... Back to School We Go!
A brand new year begins, teachers are excited to meet a new group of students and students are excited to meet their teacher. There is a buzz of happiness around the school as school supplies come in, textbooks are passed out, and expectations are taught. In the background, teachers are thinking about the beginning of year assessments that must be administered, the paperwork that needs to be completed, and the lesson plans to be created and taught. Before long, the stress starts to put teachers into survival mode. The truth of the matter is, if a teacher doesn't start off the year building the foundation for their classroom, the rest of the year will be a downhill spiral of frustration and burnout. This foundation is... RELATIONSHIPS!
Starting the Year Off Right
All teachers, especially new teachers, struggle to organize all of the millions of things needed to be done on a daily basis. In reality, the single most important thing for a teacher to do in the beginning of the year, is build relationships with the students in their classroom. It doesn't take a brain surgeon to figure out how to build these relationships, an open mind and an open heart are the key ingredients.
- SMILE! :)
- Ask questions about their interests and their summer. Engage them in meaningful conversation.
- Set a routine! Students like to know what is coming next. Run your schedule the way it will run all year long.
- TEACH expectations! Students forget all school and classroom expectations over summer break. Teach them how to be students again.
- Tell them a story about you. Share pictures of your life and family. Give the students a chance to connect with you!
- Laugh and have a little FUN!
The first days of school have building relationships and teaching expectations as the top priority above all other items on the agenda. Michael Linsin (2012) noted "There is no room for weak first impressions, no room for indecisiveness, and no room to leave your students bored or uninspired." Starting the year off right, building strong relationships from the beginning sets the tone for the remainder of the school year.
It Doesn't Stop with the Students
It is the end of the first day of school, the students go home, and the teacher is exhausted. Building relationships does not end when the students leave the building, one of the most powerful relationships is still yet to be made. Within the first 10 days of school a teacher must connect with and form a team with each child's family. As cited by Nancy Ratcliff and Gilbert Hunt (2009) "Undisputed evidence exists supporting the position that children are more apt to succeed not just in school, but throughout life, when schools and families work together to support learning (Henderson & Berla, 1994)." Within the first 10 days of school a positive phone call home makes a difference in the minds of the parents and the students.
All too often, parents, especially parents of students in poverty, receive their very first phone call a few weeks into school with all the things their child is not doing right. Immediately, the guard goes up and the parent is on the defensive. It is important for teachers to remember that the parent is sending a teacher their best. There is no parent that doesn't do their best each and every day to make sure their child is fed, clean, and prepared for school. Using the parent as a source of knowledge increases the likelihood of a parent wanting to support the teacher and will help the teacher better understand the child.
Within the first 10 days, teachers should call home and tell the parents something positive about their child. It can be a small as "I have really enjoyed seeing how much ______ enjoys reading graphic novels" to something more specific "I am impressed with the way _________ writes his/her answers in detail without me having to remind him/her!" A teacher must find something positive in every child and communicate it with the families before a corrective phone call is made. It will pave the way for easy communication in the rest of the school year, because the partnership has been created from the start.
As Rita Pierson puts it in her "Every Kid Needs a Champion" TED talk, "Kids don't learn from people they don't like". The fact of the matter is, students don't like teachers who don't care about them and treat them respectfully 100% of the time. It takes one wrong action to break down a relationship and 10 positive actions to rebuild it. According to PBIS (Positive Behavior Intervention Support), students must hear four positive comments to every one corrective comment for them to continue to feel success in the classroom. Keeping positive relationships year round depends on how much the kids like a teacher and how encouraged they feel through positive interactions.
The relationships built in the classroom develop not only through conversations, hugs, and high-fives, but they are deeply embedded into every lesson taught and in every interaction a teacher has with his/her student. There are many key ideas an educator must keep in mind each and every day to promote these positive relationships.
Developing Positive Teacher Student Relations (Boynton and Boynton, 2005)
Most of all, a teacher must show every child, every day how much they care about their success, their education, and them personally. It must be individualized to each child and not a whole group interaction. A child must feel valued in the classroom for who he/she is and what unique characteristic he/she brings to the table each day. High expectations must be set from day one and successes must be celebrated, both small and large. RELATIONSHIPS are the most important part of the school day, if a student is loved, a student learns.
References
Boynton, M. & Boyton, C. (2005, November). Educator's Guide to Preventing and Solving Discipline Problems. Retrieved May 17, 2015 from http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/105124/chapters/Developing_Positive_Teacher-Student_Relations.aspx
Linsin, M. (2012, July). Seven keys to the first day of school. Retrieve May 17, 2015 from http://www.smartclassroommanagement.com/2012/07/21/7-keys-to-the-first-day-of-school/
McNeely, R. (2015). Using humor in the classroom. Retrieved May 17, 2015 from https://www.nea.org/tools/52165.htm
Ratcliff, N & Hunt, G. (2009, Spring). Building teacher-family partnerships: The role of teacher preparation programs. Education, Vol. 129 (No. 3).
Within the first 10 days, teachers should call home and tell the parents something positive about their child. It can be a small as "I have really enjoyed seeing how much ______ enjoys reading graphic novels" to something more specific "I am impressed with the way _________ writes his/her answers in detail without me having to remind him/her!" A teacher must find something positive in every child and communicate it with the families before a corrective phone call is made. It will pave the way for easy communication in the rest of the school year, because the partnership has been created from the start.
Keeping the Connection
The school year continues, the parents are on the teacher's side, and the teacher knows the students like the back of his/her hand. The teacher welcomes the students to the classroom each morning with a hug or high five and the student enjoy being in the teacher's classroom. As seen in the illustration above, right around October teachers hit rock bottom at the same time that stress is at it's max. Teacher's often times lose sight of the importance of relationships and instead stress about the items on his/her to do list that have not been completed. It is at this moment, that a teacher must remind his/her self of the single most important part of their job, keeping the relationships with their students strong and unwavering.
As Rita Pierson puts it in her "Every Kid Needs a Champion" TED talk, "Kids don't learn from people they don't like". The fact of the matter is, students don't like teachers who don't care about them and treat them respectfully 100% of the time. It takes one wrong action to break down a relationship and 10 positive actions to rebuild it. According to PBIS (Positive Behavior Intervention Support), students must hear four positive comments to every one corrective comment for them to continue to feel success in the classroom. Keeping positive relationships year round depends on how much the kids like a teacher and how encouraged they feel through positive interactions.
The relationships built in the classroom develop not only through conversations, hugs, and high-fives, but they are deeply embedded into every lesson taught and in every interaction a teacher has with his/her student. There are many key ideas an educator must keep in mind each and every day to promote these positive relationships.
Developing Positive Teacher Student Relations (Boynton and Boynton, 2005)
- Communication positive expectations
- Call on students equitably
- Tell students they have the ability to do well
- Correct students in a constructive way
- Develop positive classroom pride
- Preventing and reducing frustration and stress
Most of all, a teacher must show every child, every day how much they care about their success, their education, and them personally. It must be individualized to each child and not a whole group interaction. A child must feel valued in the classroom for who he/she is and what unique characteristic he/she brings to the table each day. High expectations must be set from day one and successes must be celebrated, both small and large. RELATIONSHIPS are the most important part of the school day, if a student is loved, a student learns.
References
Linsin, M. (2012, July). Seven keys to the first day of school. Retrieve May 17, 2015 from http://www.smartclassroommanagement.com/2012/07/21/7-keys-to-the-first-day-of-school/
McNeely, R. (2015). Using humor in the classroom. Retrieved May 17, 2015 from https://www.nea.org/tools/52165.htm
Ratcliff, N & Hunt, G. (2009, Spring). Building teacher-family partnerships: The role of teacher preparation programs. Education, Vol. 129 (No. 3).
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