Writing Prompts

In order for our students to be successful in school and in life, they must know how to communicate. Most jobs I have ever applied for required "excellent oral and written communication skills." I think we can all agree that to be a good writer, one must read a lot as well.

Reading:

• improves vocabulary and spelling
• helps develop critical thinking skills
• encourages perspective by exposing one to other cultures and places
• increases understanding of abstract and complex thought processes
• reduces stress
• adds to one's knowledge base
• improves focus and concentration skills
  
• boosts self-esteem
  

Writing:

• expands vocabulary
• develops and provides an outlet for creativity
• invokes imagination
• encourages one to find their voice
• reduces stress
• gives a sense of pride and accomplishment
  
• boosts self-esteem
  
• improves writing skills

You may think that last bullet has circular logic, but it does make sense. Writing practice improves writing skills. You only get better by doing it. Children tend to fear writing. I did when I was in school, too. Only practice (and the environment in which the practice takes place) can reduce this fear. Hence, the reason it is so important for us as teachers not only to give students frequent opportunities to write, but also to offer a wide variety of topics to write about and different types of writing to do. We need to allow children to explore their own voice and ideas in their own way. They will have enough parameters and expectations put on their work when they are adults. For now, we must encourage them to explore and take risks so that over time they can find their own "unique writer's language". See theteacherconnection.net for many writing prompt ideas. (This site has more ads, but it also has a plethora of ideas.) Here is just one that I liked:

The Present--Four Ways (Paragraph Writing)

"Here's a great writing activity for the holidays that reviews the four basic types of writing styles and that can be adapted to any grade level. My students write one expository paragraph explaining how to wrap a present, one descriptive paragraph describing what the present looks like after it's been wrapped, and one narrative paragraph describing what will happen to the present. The final paragraph is a persuasive paragraph explaining why the present is the best present given."
Submitted by: Kevin Buchman, a fifth grade teacher at Perry Middle School in Perry, Ohio. This tip was published in the NEA's Weekly "Works4Me" Email list.

But you can find other prompts on this site. Take a look at the One Minute Writer blog by C.Beth. She adds a writing prompt idea just about every day. You are bound to find some that interest you.

The Mailbox

Snoopy & Woodstock mailbox
Originally uploaded by lslphoto

Last year, while looking for magazines for my son at our public library, I stumbled upon The Mailbox magazine for teachers. I fell in love with this resource! The Education Center publishes this magazine at five levels (Preschool, Kindergarten, Grade 1, Grades 2-3 and Intermediate. They advertise being the #1 idea magazine for teachers. On this point, they may be right. Every volume I have seen was full of ideas for displays, classroom management, literacy, activities to go along with books, math fun, activity centers, organization tips, etc. The ideas are more appropriate for regular classroom teachers, however, I have adopted many ideas for use with my preschool son, and I think substitutes could glean plenty of ideas from the pages, as well.

The Mailbox also has a website (with free ideas) and a blog. Within the blog, I found a great post with some fresh suggestions to help teachers help their substitutes. Here is an excerpt:

• Come back to an orderly classroom by leaving the substitute a deck of cleanup cards. Write a classroom job on each of several cards that students can do. Ask the substitute to pass them out at the end of the day for a quick and easy cleanup.

• On large individual cards, describe your favorite classroom songs, chants, greetings, games, and time fillers. Keep the cards in a box, or hole-punch the cards and thread them on a metal ring.

Many of the posts in their blog advertise other books or products that they offer for sale, but all that I have read also include sample pages from each level that you can use without making a purchase. Also, many posts are a sharing of experiences and ideas from the readers. Take a look for yourself.

Bag of Tricks

Every teacher (ESPECIALLY substitute ones) needs a Bag of Tricks. As a substitute, your bag of tricks might include a foam ball or small stuffed animal that you toss out to kids for answers during a discussion as a way to keep them interested and engaged. It might include a CD to play a fun movement song to aid in transitioning between activities. For high schoolers you might include logic puzzles or encrypted messages. It may even include something similar to Emily Phillips’ Smiley Face which she uses for classroom management by giving the class (as a whole) a face part for every well-behaved activity, building up to a complete smiley face for an unknown surprise at the end of the day. My Bag certainly has a few of my favorite books (some with an associated puppet or stuffed animal for the lower grades). (I’m hoping that after reading my blog, you have a few blank copies of the End of Day report in there, as well.) For your own protection and use, you may want to toss in some hand sanitizer (keep out of the reach of tiny hands), latex gloves, a whistle (for outside only), the district or school’s emergency procedures, and any specific information you have on that particular school.

These “tricks” are not really tricks at all. Some are ideas and methods to help you manage the classroom more smoothly. Some might be fun activities, notes or certificates to use as rewards for great behavior. Others need to be possible lesson plans (like creative writing prompts or math relays) in case the classroom teacher was out for an emergency and was unable to leave you her desired lesson plans.

But keep in mind that some of your “bag” is figurative – it includes all the sage advice you have garnered from fellow educators (and your mom) about how to deal with children’s needs and behaviors; it includes any reading or professional development you have done; it includes all the resources and network of support to which you have subscribed. In this light, please take a look at Teacher’s Bag of Tricks blog. I have not been able to find an author, but the entries range from links to great resources, to meaningful commentary on articles and ideas to tangible suggestions for use in the classroom. I especially liked the Triple A Treatment post advocating acceptance, approval and affection for classroom management (May 7, 2008) and In Praise (July 22, 2008) about how specific praise can shape how a child thinks of himself, making our every single word important.

I hope this makes you cry....

Because if it does, then your heart is in the right place to be trusted with the hearts of our children.

In all my life, regardless of how many people might have made threats toward me or even chased me all the way home from school, I have never once been in a fight where I hit another person. There are two reasons for this. The first is that I never once thought an issue was important enough to be thrown out of school for fighting. The second is that I could not bear the thought of hitting and hurting another person (even if they were out to get me).

I have always been the person up on the soapbox, trying to protect the underdog, the innocent, the teased, the bullied, even the dismissed. As a teacher, some of my favorite students were not the ones who knew they were smart (and had the attitude to accompany the good grades). One was a class clown on whom most teachers had already given up. Another was a sixteen year old girl who had a son already and had a difficult time passing math class. (I continued to tutor her in subsequent years when she had other teachers, and she graduated, probably surprising herself.) Most of these students were not my same race, they didn't share similar backgrounds or even family structures. At times I am sure they thought I dressed as frumpy as I thought they dressed revealingly. They weren't the smartest or most successful students, and they suffered drawbacks - suspensions (one girl was caught for drugs in school), skipping, failing a test, etc. But I could not give up on them. So many already had. I know it made a difference. I may or may not have been their favorite teacher. I KNOW math was not their favorite subject. However, every day no matter what was going on with them or with me, they knew I cared. They knew I would not tease them or put them down in any way. They could count on me to listen and encourage them. And they listened. They all graduated.

Keep in mind as you enter classroom after classroom that sometimes the slightest comment or smallest gesture can affect a child's self-esteem for a lifetime. Please do not think that because you may only be there for one day that your presence or attitude does not matter. You might be the only person who ever listened to Mary or the first teacher ever to notice that William bullies Sarah every day on the playground. You might be the only teacher to giggle instead of scold when the class clown acts out, and therefore the first to make a connection with him. You cannot know what it will be, but I guarantee you that if you are always kind, listen to all (not just the attentive, attractive, good smelling, behaving ones) children with your heart, keep an open mind, treat them with respect, and never allow student to student teasing, ridiculing and bullying in your presence, you will make an impression and a difference in the lives of many of them.

If you are passionate about caring for children, you might want a tissue....

Communication....

In every aspect of our lives we face admonitions to improve our communication. We are told to communicate more frequently and more effectively. Consider the life of one individual: the thoroughness of communication with their physician could be the difference between effective treatment and bad drug interaction; the timeliness of communication with their mortgage broker could change their credit score or even their living conditions; the effectiveness of communication with their young child could convince him not to get into a car with a stranger (or not); the honesty of communication with their teenage daughter could keep her safe from teen pregnancy or STDs or change her life forever. And so on. Who could argue the importance of communicating to the best of our ability in all relationships at all times?

In the business world, communication breakdown might negatively affect this month’s bottom line, or worse, the continued viability of the company. In education, communication breakdown might cause a child to be mislabeled, affecting his school experience and self-esteem for a lifetime, or cause a problem to go unnoticed which could become unmanageable or unchangeable, or lead to bigger, class-wide problems.

To me, this all seems more like a dissertation on that which is easily apparent and, for the most part, common knowledge, than any revelation or new information at all. Why then, is it so difficult to get teachers not only to recognize the importance of effective communication, but also to practice it? Surely there are myriad answers, many involving time, prioritization of tasks and partially-met goals of perfection. Luckily, it serves us better to look at ways to improve communication, including specific procedures to follow than it does to analyze missed opportunities.

Specifically, every teacher’s best practices should include regular, meaningful two-way communication with parents, other teachers, administration, counselors, etc. Newsletters, class websites, emails, after school meetings, inter-office memos, meetings about curriculum or shared students are our mediums for this communication.

Well what about the substitutes? How do teachers communicate with substitutes and vice versa? Sometimes the teacher calls to request the substitute, but often it is a school administrator or an automated system that notifies the substitute of an opportunity to work. They do not see each other because the substitute is only at the school when the teacher is not. Some may argue that they have no reason to talk. On this point I would contend that without their communication, the learning environment suffers, and therefore, our students suffer, and that being preventable, this is not acceptable.

I think we can agree to a best practice that some teachers and school systems already implement. Our best practice includes not only emergency lesson plans from the teacher, but also seating charts and any general information on the class (and the school) regarding schedule, behavior, etc. As substitutes, we have an important responsibility in the best practice, as well; we need to leave an end of day report for the returning teacher.

This End of Day Report should include (but is not limited to – in this case more information is better) what the class accomplished that day, any problems or obstacles you encountered, specifics on behavior, information on any monies collected, and notes on occurrences that might need follow-up.

See the presentation for more detail on the End of Day Report best practices.

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

The Beginning...

Well, of this weblog anyway.

Hi! Until it’s underway a while, we won’t know what this blog will be, but now, at the time of its inception, I hope that it will become a great resource for all substitutes (especially those here in Clay County), and a place where substitute teachers and regular teachers can share best practices and what each can do to help the other. I have been on two sides of this triangle (as a student with a substitute teacher in the room, and as a teacher needing a teacher to substitute while I was out). I am currently endeavoring to explore the third side - becoming a substitute teacher.

“I just need a warm body to fill the seat.”

That is what my mom used to say when she owned a small business, and she was desperate for personnel. Of course she was joking, but sometimes a hiring process can make you wonder…. Just as when I became a teacher, I am shocked at how little they (the county or school board) need to know about me before giving me total control of 20-35 of our children.

They did require a fingerprint and pulled a background check which tells them I was never arrested. So that I can qualify for the slightly higher rate of pay, I submitted my college transcripts, which tell them a little something about my education (as you and I both know much of that happens outside of classroom doors), my interests, and my ability to work hard. But no one ever SPOKE to me. (See more on communication in the next post.) There was never an interview of any kind. No one had me perform a role play (like when I was promoted to Compensation Analyst in the corporate world) to ensure I could handle even one of myriad issues that could arise in the classroom. No one in Clay County knows if I can project my voice (yes, with much effort) or if I like or despise children (love them). In my past life working in HR, most of the interviews I conducted included asking situational questions. “Give an example of a time when something did not go your way and explain what you did in response.” “When you are busy on a task, and something interrupts you (like another teacher), how do you get back on task minimizing the amount of time wasted?” “How do you deal with ambiguous situations (like having no lesson plans)?” It seems to me that a few questions like this could give them a lot of useful information about the candidates.

Don’t get me wrong. I do understand the reasons why this level of scrutiny is not applied to the substitute pool – cost of time spent interviewing and small supply of applicants. I just feel like, yet again, the students lose in this deal. When people who lack flexibility, are less than passionate about children and their education, and lose control easily are hired to be substitute teachers, the students sense this and respond by disengaging and misbehaving. It molds their perception of substitutes into something resembling an ineffective babysitter. This, in turn, causes problems for the regular teacher and for the next substitute – no matter how qualified, his/her job will be harder. And the cycle continues. School systems (and ultimately the students) would benefit from remembering substitutes are teachers, too, and doing a better job of attracting and selecting candidates who are more qualified and have a great attitude toward students.

My sincere hope is that you find something useful within these posts, that you comment when you agree or disagree meaningfully, and that if you know of anything that would benefit the rest of us, you will let me know. And if we are lucky, our efforts will improve the educational experience of the children in all our care. Enjoy.