I am a second year student at Uni, and for my Bachelor of Education degree I have to teach a grade 5 class starting from the 3rd of January.

 

I have to teach the kids every week for about 90 minutes!

 

Anyway, I just wanted some advice from fellow teachers on this board, since I have never taught a class before.

 

Do you have any experience in teaching a class or in teaching young kids?

If you do then some advice would be greatly appreciated?

 

I am very nervous about this whole thing, and I am currently struggling to write a good lesson plan.

 

Any hands on, practical advice is welcome.

...you're in college?

Hi, I was a teacher for 7 and a half years before I changed careers but our teaching system in barbados is very different to yours. We do not have like grades and so on but I have taught ages 3 1/2 to 17. Is there anything specific that you want to know ?

What agegroup is grade 5 ?

...you're in college?

 

yes

 

why?

 

How old did you think I was?

Hi, I was a teacher for 7 and a half years before I changed careers but our teaching system in barbados is very different to yours. We do not have like grades and so on but I have taught ages 3 1/2 to 17. Is there anything specific that you want to know ?

What agegroup is grade 5 ?

 

Grade 5 I think is 10 and 11 year olds.

 

The only question I can think of right now is:

 

What should I do if a kid is acting out, how do I discipline them without being too harsh?

Grade 5 I think is 10 and 11 year olds.

 

The only question I can think of right now is:

 

What should I do if a kid is acting out, how do I discipline them without being too harsh?

 

Well you need to be firm , assert your authority from the get go without coming over as rude and dominating.

 

If they start to act out then just insist that they stop their behaviour as they are disruting the class. IF they continue then state that you will revoke some privilege or send them to the principal's office.

 

I don't know in Barbados its quite different. The kids have no choice but to obey even the ones that act out will only do so to a certain excent,. We are very strict here.

 

What subject area will you be teaching.

 

 

From a lesson plan perspectinve you need to write what the objective of the lesson will be and what do you hope for the kids to have gotten out of the lesson not you yourself but what should the kids have achieved or taken away from that 90 minutes .

 

What methods do you plan to use to ensure that this is done ,whether it be observaton of the students engaging in various activities, a written or group exercise, oral question and answer etc. Have some activities for the children to partake in to keep them interested in the lesson, especially if youre dealing wth 10 year olds.

 

DO not do all of the talking make sure that you ask them questions as you go along to ensure that they are understanding what is being taught. Don't always choose the ones that you know will answer correctly. Make sure to include as many students as you can into the discussion.

...you're in college?

 

My thoughts exactly.

I thought we were dealing with somebody in jr. high here.

My thoughts exactly.

I thought we were dealing with somebody in jr. high here.

 

agreed.

Use a lot of realia and props. Kids dig that.

This pic was taken in 2008 my very last year of being a teacher :)

Sometimes I miss the kids :(

 

they look so attentive.

I have no teaching experience, but when in doubt, give lunch detentions :)

they look so attentive.

 

they were waiting to go and do a performance for the other teachers , there was no need to be attentive as they are not in the class room setting and are from varying age levels . They were interacting with each other to kill the boredom after having to sit through a boring adult ceremony

Grade 5 I think is 10 and 11 year olds.

 

The only question I can think of right now is:

 

What should I do if a kid is acting out, how do I discipline them without being too harsh?

 

 

:laugh3: Now why did I never think of that. hmmm . Arenstar that might work but you've got to be prepared to accept the consequences.

Hi! I don't know what subject you will be teaching, so I can help you with some general things like:

 

-use a lot of visual elements (posters, flashcards, even real objects)

- If it's a language class or literature class, you may want to take advantage of their playful nature by asking them to perform something or act something out for the class, generally they love it and it's a good way of getting the clowns of the class involved.

-You may want to change the sitting arrangement according to the task they wll be carrying out. It's not necessary that they look at the board at all times. Sometimes semi-circles work best and everyone's looking at each other.

- You can make some rules with them about what kind of behaviour is accepted in the classroom and what isn't. You can make this the first day and let them take part in creating the agreement. It has to be something created by you and the kids, like a pact, and then you can all write your names to seal it. They tend to respect it if they took part of the decision.

 

I hope you find them useful.

:laugh3: Now why did I never think of that. hmmm . Arenstar that might work but you've got to be prepared to accept the consequences.

 

:laugh3: I wouldn't really do that, I think I would make a terrible teacher though because I would be too soft and the kids would walk all over me.

I think id made a good teacher.

 

 

I love kids and I literally have never met one that didnt like me.

 

They always want hugs :heart:

 

but when it comes to discepline

 

well..... my agger face even scares people my own age :P

Hi! I don't know what subject you will be teaching, so I can help you with some general things like:

 

-use a lot of visual elements (posters, flashcards, even real objects)

- If it's a language class or literature class, you may want to take advantage of their playful nature by asking them to perform something or act something out for the class, generally they love it and it's a good way of getting the clowns of the class involved.

-You may want to change the sitting arrangement according to the task they wll be carrying out. It's not necessary that they look at the board at all times. Sometimes semi-circles work best and everyone's looking at each other.

- You can make some rules with them about what kind of behaviour is accepted in the classroom and what isn't. You can make this the first day and let them take part in creating the agreement. It has to be something created by you and the kids, like a pact, and then you can all write your names to seal it. They tend to respect it if they took part of the decision.

 

I hope you find them useful.

 

 

Those are all very good

 

The program I am teaching isn't centered around one subject. I have to prepare a 90 minute class with skits, small lectures, and games to teach the kids about bullying and how to deal with conflicts.

 

My biggest concern is that the kids will go mental during the games and it will be difficult controlling them.

 

Anyway, does anyone have any advice on how to deal with shy kids?

How can I make a shy child open up and feel comfortable?

Those are all very good

 

The program I am teaching isn't centered around one subject. I have to prepare a 90 minute class with skits, small lectures, and games to teach the kids about bullying and how to deal with conflicts.

 

My biggest concern is that the kids will go mental during the games and it will be difficult controlling them.

 

Oh well, the topic you are doing is not really that interesting, especially to primary school kids. You have to make up for it by preparing really interesting materials: visuals and audio would be good. It should be fun and exciting, and something relatable to the kids. Also, one of the ways to attract them is by creating a competitive environment. Kids are very competitive. Maybe you can ask them simple questions and make it a competition for the groups (if you are having any grouping).

Anyway, if you are able to prepare something that will catch their attention, chances of them going mental will be quite low.

 

 

Anyway, does anyone have any advice on how to deal with shy kids?

How can I make a shy child open up and feel comfortable?

 

In 90minutes? That's gonna be very hard.

they didn't have you shadow an experienced teacher for a while or anything? My sister has a teaching degree and it was a long time til she taught her own class. I suggest talking about 9/11, the Bermuda Triangle and Richard Dawkins the whole class.

I'm a teacher too and you can't get a shy kid to talk just in 90 minutes. It takes a long long time...

Oh well, the topic you are doing is not really that interesting, especially to primary school kids. You have to make up for it by preparing really interesting materials: visuals and audio would be good. It should be fun and exciting, and something relatable to the kids. Also, one of the ways to attract them is by creating a competitive environment. Kids are very competitive. Maybe you can ask them simple questions and make it a competition for the groups (if you are having any grouping).

Anyway, if you are able to prepare something that will catch their attention, chances of them going mental will be quite low.

 

 

 

 

In 90minutes? That's gonna be very hard.

 

I didn't pick the topic for the class, I am part of a group that teaches Grade 5 and 6 students about Conflict Resolution.

I know the topic can be boring for young kids, but we play tons of games and have tons of activities!

 

 

they didn't have you shadow an experienced teacher for a while or anything? My sister has a teaching degree and it was a long time til she taught her own class. I suggest talking about 9/11, the Bermuda Triangle and Richard Dawkins the whole class.

 

:laugh3: I wish I could Tnspieler1012 I wish I could

 

No they didn't have us practice on real kids at all; they just showed us how to perform the various activities amongst ourselves

 

I'm a teacher too and you can't get a shy kid to talk just in 90 minutes. It takes a long long time...

 

Hopefully the shy kids will find the activities fun and they will participate more in them :\

With shy kids, it really depends on the kid and how well you know him/ her. Some are just waiting for you to address them directly since they feel they want to participate but they find it difficult to start. So you may ask them what they think instead of just waiting for them to put up their hand and they will talk that way, but not everybody is like that and, as Raphaele said, it may take a long time. What I found useful, for example with discussing certain topics is dividing the class into groups and ask them to discuss the topic among the people in the group and you go monitoring each group. You will find that many shy kids who don't feel comfortable talking in front of the whole class are able to express themselves with less difficulty within a smaller group :)

 

And remember, if one of the shy kids is putting up their hand or you see they want to say something but some other kid interrupts them, do not let that opportunity go, please. If they had the courage to speak willingly and they are ignored, they may feel even more insecure in the future.

 

As regards games, they are an excellent way to keep them interested since that's basically how a child relates to the world, by playing. However, in the classroom they should be measured. If the games keeps on and on, it may diverge from the goal it had and they will eventually lose interest in it( children have a short attention span) so don't hesitate in finishing it. They may feel you're ruining the fun, but if you see a large group is no longer involved it's better to move on to another thing.

I want to teach Spanish when I get older, but I'm only in 10th grade, but from the student's point of view, just relax and have fun with it. :nice:

 

Hi, I was a teacher for 7 and a half years before I changed careers but our teaching system in barbados is very different to yours. We do not have like grades and so on but I have taught ages 3 1/2 to 17. Is there anything specific that you want to know ?

What agegroup is grade 5 ?

 

My chemistry teacher taught in Barbados for awhile. :wacko: