Beginning of the School Year Survival Guide for Teachers

The beginning of a new academic year is a chance for teachers to start a successful and enjoyable journey with their students. From arranging the classroom to planning lessons and routines, many small steps can make a big difference. For new teachers, this time can feel both exciting and a little challenging. A well laid out plan helps you stay organized, reduce stress, and focus on building strong relationships and positive learning habits from day one. But where do you start? This Survival Guide shares some practical ideas to help teachers start the year with confidence.

The Survival Guide includes:

$8.75

• Beginning of the School Year Checklist for Teachers
• Three Lesson Plan Templates that are EDITABLE.
• Six Classroom Management Rules – That’s All You Need!
• The Seven Greatest Irritations for Teachers with Possible Solutions.

The Beginning of the School Year Checklist is a four page comprehensive checklist that walks you through 88 items which ought to be established before the first day of school; these items are categorized by standard operating procedures (i.e. beginning class, interruptions, etc.) and rules as well as accountability (i.e. technology, academic feedback, etc.). Three check-off columns are provided: “Yes”, “No, but Should Have”, and “Not Required”. As you review your list of rules, procedures, and routines, check the column that pertains to your classroom. The results will determine if you have forgotten anything.

The second resource includes three EDITABLE lesson plan templates; one is a generic; whereas, the other two are specifically designed for mathematics (elementary or secondary) and reading/language arts. Checklists are featured on all three plans. Examples are: Bloom’s Taxonomy, multiple intelligences, lesson types, and cooperative learning structures. Hence there is little writing for you to do. On the mathematics lesson plan, the general math objectives are already in a checklist form. However, on the generic and reading plans, space is provided for you to write in the objectives of what you are teaching.

A classroom list of rules and/or expectations can become lengthy and tedious; the longer the list, the harder it is for students to commit the rules to memory. This resource lists six clear and understandable classroom management rules which are brief (only two words each), specific and uncomplicated. They encompass the main areas of concern and are more than sufficient to govern general behaviors in any classroom. Because alliteration is used, the rules are easy for all students to remember.

The Seven Greatest Irritations is a short, four page resource that offers a number of practical ideas about classroom management and how to eliminate those day-after-day aggravating and annoying problems that keep resurfacing in your classroom. It is perfect for novice teachers, beginning teachers or for student teachers. It is also a good review for those who have been teaching for a number of years. The seven problems discussed are:

1. Children Who Are Always at Your Desk
   
2. The Pencil Sharpener
3. Getting a Drink; Using the Restroom
4. Tattling
5. Stress – Especially at Test Time
6. Teasing
7. Unmotivated Students

By purchasing this bundle of four items, you save about 20%. Not interested in the bundle? Each item may also be purchased individually by clicking on the title of the resource.

How to Study Math and Be Successful

Math is hard work, but you can't let that prevent you from being successful.  Anyone who has succeeded in anything has put in "tons" of hard work.  Think about the Olympians and all the practice that is required to even make a local team.  How about anyone who is good at athletics?  Do football players say, "Learning all of those plays is just too hard.  I think I'll quit!"  I don't think so.  The same holds true for learning a subject, any subject whether you like it or not. Below are eleven things to know and think about before you study math or take that next math class.

1) Remember, an extra step is required to pass math. You must use the information you have learned to correctly solve new math problems.

2) You must be able to do four things....

a)   Understand the material
b)  Process the material
c)  Apply what you have learned to correctly solve a problem
d)  Remember what you have learned and apply to new material

3)     Math has a sequential learning pattern; material learned one day is used the next day and the next, etc.  All of the building blocks must be included to be successful.

4)     Math classes should be taken each semester with no breaks to enhance the probability of remembering previous material.

5)      Math is similar to a foreign language; practice it or you will forget it.

6)     Math is a skill subject.   You have to actively practice the skills involved to master it – like learning to play a musical instrument, a sport, or using auto mechanic skills.

7)     Math is a fast-paced subject.  You must learn a lot of information in each class so you are ready to move on to the next class.

8)      Society doesn’t help students.   It says it is OK to hate math, to not be able to do it. You will often hear from parents, "I was never any good at math either."

9)    A bad attitude shouldn't prevent you from doing well in math if you decide you are going to do well. You may not like history or English either, but you have to take the required classes and do well in them if you plan on passing/graduating.

10)  Math is objective, and you will receive the grade you earn. There is no talking a teacher into a better grade BECAUSE you must know the material before you can move forward, or you will fail.

11) Study to make an A on the first test in any math class. It is probably the easiest test, but it counts the same as all of the others. An A shows you know the basics you need to succeed. An A is a good motivator to do well on future tests. An A on the first test improves your confidence that you can do well.

Recognizing and Describing Patterns in Math

In this post, I will present two patterns for you to look at with the hope that you will try to dissect them and be able to answer a few questions.  Are you ready?  Here is the first one that I call Consecutive Number Series.

What counting pattern do you see in this sequence?  How would you describe the sequence of numbers that are being added?  What pattern do you see in the answers?  Can you figure out the pattern for 8 × 8 and 9 × 9?  Notice this pattern made a triangle.  Do you know what kind it is?

My next pattern I call The Eights, and you will readily see why. It, too, forms a triangle, but a different kind. Do you recognize this triangle as isosceles?  If you take a ruler, you will find that the base is 4" while the sides are both 3".

What do you think will happen if we take this same pattern and add a 0?  Notice that this pattern does not begin with adding an eight.  Can you figure out why?

I use this type of patterns with my remedial math college students because I consider it important to do some problem solving while recognizing and describing patterns.  After all, problem solving is a part of life.  It doesn't occur in a vacuum. Because students must reason about some specific content, I think patterns are a great place to begin.  Problem solving also helps students to make connections to other parts of mathematics and find some relevance to what they are learning.  And did you know, that problem solvers are typically better test takers?  So take these patterns, and create some of your own questions for your students.  Use them in a journal or as a small group activity.  But whatever you do, have fun learning and discovering patterns in math.

Investigating Math Number Patterns

Mathematics is the science of patterns.  In this post, I want to target some mathematical problems in which we investigate developing patterns.

In the first example below, you will notice we begin by multiplying one by one; then 11 by 11, and so forth. Each time we multiply, the number of digits in the multiplier and the multiplicand increases. Do you see the pattern that progresses in the answer (product)? Notice how this multiplication pattern forms a triangle? Can you figure out what kind of triangle this would be if we added a "peak" or a row at the top?

Here is another interesting pattern. In this one, instead of multiplying by 1, then 11, then 111, the answer (product) looks like the multiplier in the pattern above. Do you notice anything else significant?

Yes, we are multiplying by 9 each time. Now look at the number being added, and count the number of ones you see in each answer. Surprised? Isn’t it amazing how math is ordered, methodical and precise? Maybe that is one reason I love to teach it! Encourage your students to look for and make sense of math patterns and structure in order to deepen their mathematical understanding and retain what they learn.