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Seven Ways to Be the Teacher They'll Remember

I'll bet you have a teacher you remember from your own education. If you're anything like me, you want to be that teacher for your own students. Here are some suggestions!

Seven Ways to Be the Teacher They'll Remember: Remember that special teacher from your childhood? Here are some ideas to help you be that special teacher for your students!

Get to know them individually!
Seven Ways to Be the Teacher They'll Remember: Remember that special teacher from your childhood? Here are some ideas to help you be that special teacher for your students!

Each child has a special personality, special interests, and special families that love them. Getting to know all those parts to each child is no easy task. I find having a Morning Meeting sharing time helps getting to know them. I also have an end-of-the-day "High-Low" meeting (See THIS post and THIS post.) I also find that having private conversations, when possible, is also a great way to know them as individuals.
 

Let them get to know you!


Seven Ways to Be the Teacher They'll Remember: Remember that special teacher from your childhood? Here are some ideas to help you be that special teacher for your students!

Tell stories about yourself and your loved ones when you can fit it in. I always share at Morning Meeting as well as High-Low. I also share connections that I have with books we read and things we are learning. They particularly love when I tell about my cat!

Let them know you care!

Seven Ways to Be the Teacher They'll Remember: Remember that special teacher from your childhood? Here are some ideas to help you be that special teacher for your students!

I never miss an opportunity to let them know that I care. If someone is absent, that's my low of the day. If someone arrives late for class, I'll stop everything and let them know how glad I am to have them there. If someone is upset or hurt, I make it clear that it upsets and hurts me as well.

You may have heard it said before: they won't learn anything from you unless they know you care!
 

Be their biggest cheerleader!

Seven Ways to Be the Teacher They'll Remember: Remember that special teacher from your childhood? Here are some ideas to help you be that special teacher for your students!

Feedback is always important in the classroom. Most of the time, it should be positive. For some struggling students, that's not always easy, but I've found there's always something the child is doing well. Find that thing, and celebrate it! It doesn't even have to be academically related, but I'm sure there are plenty of those! Just a warning: not everyone wants to be singled out. Know these students, and be a private cheerleader for them. (Most students love getting notes celebrating their accomplishments!) This all reflects back to #1: Get to Know Each Child Individually!
 

Do fun things!

Seven Ways to Be the Teacher They'll Remember: Remember that special teacher from your childhood? Here are some ideas to help you be that special teacher for your students!

I'm sure you're already doing this one, along with most of the others! (Teachers who read educational blogs are always trying to make themselves better, agreed?) You probably already have a lot of tricks up your sleeve, but here are a few suggestions. 

  • Do STEM/ STEAM projects!
  • Play educational games!
  • Bring "Team Building" games into Morning Meeting. (Some ideas HERE!)
  • Include art projects and crafts!
  • Find a super fun way to present research projects!
  • Have them create puppets and put on shows!
  • Have an "Author's Night!"
  • Record and videotape educational activities! (Be careful who has access to this, of course!)
  • Do a class play!
This last suggestion is near and dear to my heart. Why? Well, not only because I enjoy performing in regional theatre myself, but also because of the excitement! Brain research tells us that memories are very much connected to emotions! (See THIS post for more information!) Whenever students come back to visit, they always mention the plays and performances we shared. Such a shared experience is also great for building teamwork and community! (Want some scripts? Try THESE, or if you want something curriculum related, try THIS!)

Keep a safe classroom!

Seven Ways to Be the Teacher They'll Remember: Remember that special teacher from your childhood? Here are some ideas to help you be that special teacher for your students!

We've all heard "Maslow's Before Blooms," and I truly believe this matters.
Seven Ways to Be the Teacher They'll Remember: Remember that special teacher from your childhood? Here are some ideas to help you be that special teacher for your students!

As classroom teachers, we probably won't be able to reach all these levels, but the very basic needs are essential before any learning is going to happen! If they don't feel healthy and safe (Physiological Needs and Safety Needs), we might as well just toss the curriculum out the window. That third level, Love and Belonging, is one we can work on as well! Again, Morning Meetings are great for building community and making each child feel like an important member of the classroom!

Be a role model

Seven Ways to Be the Teacher They'll Remember: Remember that special teacher from your childhood? Here are some ideas to help you be that special teacher for your students!

This is more of a responsibility as much as a suggestion. If the children remember you, you want that memory to be inspiring. Some suggestions:
  • Let them see you getting emotional when you read books.
  • Let them see you making mistakes, and responding appropriately.
  • Talk about something that bothered you, and what you did about it.
  • Let them see you showing kindness and respect to the other students as well as other adults in the school.
  • Write thank you cards for gifts they give.
  • Let them see you taking care of your health. Talk about the exercising you do and the healthy food you prepare.
  • Be a good listener.
  • Talk about how you stay organized.
  • Let them see you doing things you don't necessarily want to do... with a smile.
  • Be positive, even when times are tough.
  • Always say please, thank you, and all those other magic words!
  • Think out loud. Let them know the reasons for your actions.
  • Show extra respect to all the extra helpers in the building: secretaries, custodians, kitchen workers, and assistants. Let the children see that you appreciate what they do for your students.

 

Seven Ways to Be the Teacher They'll Remember: Remember that special teacher from your childhood? Here are some ideas to help you be that special teacher for your students!


 

Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards!

There are so many reasons to use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards!


Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!

In fact, here are twelve!

#1
They can be used on any device!
Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!
Seriously, any device! Desktops, laptops, iPads, tablets, iPhones, androids, you name it! It's easy!

#2
They're paperless! 
Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!

Unless you want to print out a report, there's no paper involved, ever! There's plenty of practice and assessments for the children, and you can even read all sorts of reports, but no paper!
 
#3
Kids love them!

Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!
They really do!

#4
Teachers love them!
Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!
What's not to love? Easy to use, plenty of feedback, the kids love them... and read on!

#5
They can easily be assigned for homework or remote learning!
Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!
Parents do love seeing what their children are doing, don't they? It's so easy to send an assignment to the children. (It can be sent through Google Classroom and other platforms, too!)

#6
They can be used while the teacher is with with a group!
Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!
Boom cards make great centers! They definitely keep the students engaged while the teacher is working with others!
 
#7
They can be used with partners for rich conversations!
 
Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!
When you get a couple of kids together, they have amazing conversations! These conversations help the children understand what they're learning.

#8
It's easy to differentiate!
Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!
It's amazingly easy to assign different levels of practice to different students. The teacher can look at the data and determine if the child is ready to move on to the next level.

#9
It's easy to explore and download valuable data!

Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!
It's amazingly easy to find information about what the children are doing. I've been known to share this information with students, especially if they're not doing their best on their assignments. (Yes, they've been known to "click through" just to be done) Once I show them their data, we have a little conversation and I always see improvements! (Especially on those math fact fluency systems mentioned above!)


#10
It's interactive and gives immediate feedback!
 
Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!

Brain research tells us that immediate feedback is essential in order for learning to happen. Each card of a Boom Learning deck tells the child immediately if they answered correctly or not. Even if they miss the answer, learning is happening. When they've finished the deck, they are rewarded with badges and "gems" depending on how successful they are. (These are very motivating!)

#11
It's easy to use!!
 
Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!


Boom Cards are incredibly easy for the teachers as well as the students. See THIS POST to learn more about how to use them!
Boom Learning Digital Task Cards Are Fun and Easy to Use.


#12
There are plenty of decks available!

These are some of the Boom Learning Decks I have... math skills...
Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!
 
...literacy skills... 

Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!

 ...social studies...
 
Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!

... science...
 
Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!

 
Boom Bundles are close to 50% off!

... and save money with bundles!
 
These and many other Boom Decks can be found HERE.
 

So Freebies and Dollar Deals for you to try!

Level 1 Boom Learning Fact Fluency Addition and Subtraction

 

Level 1 Boom Cards Math Fact Fluency Multiplication and Division

 

Weather Word, Plant Word, or Dessert?

 

Boom Learning Does it Float?

July General Knowledge and Trivia (I have one of these for every month, but this one is free. It's not necessary to match this trivia practice to the calendar, they can be done any time of year!)
General Knowledge Trivia for July!

There you go, twelve reasons to use Boom! Plus, a few freebies to try it now! 
 

So now, there's no excuse not to try Boom Learning Digital Task Cards!



Twelve Reasons to Use Boom Learning Digital Task Cards: Do you want to make teaching easier for you and fun for the students? Here are 12 ways!




 

 

Boom Cards are Fun and Easy to Use

If you haven't heard, Boom Learning Digital Task Cards are becoming very popular with teachers!

Boom Cards are Fun and Easy to Use: This post has links to several videos and posts that will help you get started with Boom Cards with your students.

I'm so excited about all the possibilities with Boom Learning, and I hope you are too! If you haven't tried it yet, I've collected a lot of links that hopefully will help you out. 

First of all, Boom Learning had a "how to" Webinar recently, and the 45 minute video is free on YouTube. Or, you could just watch it here!

 


If you're thinking about taking that "Boom Card" plunge, this is a great place to start.


I wanted to write a blog post about how to use blog posts, but so many already have, I've I've also collected several posts and instructions from others on using Boom cards. Here are several great posts I've found:


What are Boom Cards?

How to Use Boom Learning Cards as a Teacher  

 
How to Use Boom Cards in Google Classroom


How to Use and Assign Boom Cards
  
I'm sure if you googled, you'd find plenty more!
 
If you searched on YouTube, you'd find plenty more "how to" videos as well! In fact, Boom Learning has its own YouTube page, with plenty of instructional videos on how to build classes, assign cards, use fast pins or hyperlinks, whether or not you need to purchase a membership, how to find and purchase cards, and even create your own! 
 
You will truly be amazed at how easy and rewarding it all is!

Here's a link to the Boom Cards YouTube Channel


Many Boom Decks in all subjects can be found HERE.

What are you waiting for?

Boom Cards are Fun and Easy to Use: This post has links to several videos and posts that will help you get started with Boom Cards with your students.


Brain myths: Fact or Fiction?

What do you know about the brain. Or better yet, what do you THINK you know?

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

There are a lot of things people seem to think are facts about the brain, yet Science has proven them to be NOT true. 

Yet, there are other things that teachers should know to be fact about the brain. 

Let's have some fun with Brain Myths. Which of these are fact, and which are fiction?

We only use 10% of our brain. Fact or fiction?

We only use 10% of our brain: Fact or fiction? I've heard this one for years! What do you think? Do you think 90% of our brains are unused?

We only use 10% of our brain: that's a myth!

We all use all the parts of our brain! Sorry, Science says that's a myth.

Here's another one:

Men are better at math. Women are better at language. Fact or fiction?

Men and Women Learn Differently: Fact or Fiction? Many feel that men are better at math and women are better at language. What does Science have to say about this?


Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

Sorry, that's a myth! Men and women are capable of learning both, and any differences you might notice have nothing to do with the development of the brain!

Let's try this one:

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

Some people are left-brained, and some people are right-brained: Fact or Fiction? What does Science say?

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

All people use both sides of their brain! I know a few  people who will fight this one, but sorry, Science says no!

What about doing puzzles? Does that help the brain?


Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

Doing crossword puzzles improves the memory: Fact or Fiction? There are people out there selling all sorts of games, puzzles, and challenges for the sake of improving the memory. Is it true?

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

Nope, don't waste your money! Science says puzzles and crosswords just won't do it!

Now, about the development of the brain:

 

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

The brain is fully mature at birth: Fact or Fiction?  What does Science have to say?

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

Oh, heavens, no! The brain isn't fully developed until a person is about 25. Think of your thought process when you were a teenager, or better yet, other teenagers you know. They still have some developing to do, don't they?

What about the size of the brain?


Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

The size of your brain determines how smart you are: Fact or fiction? That age old question: Does size really matter?

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

Science says no to this one as well! If bigger brains made us smarter, wouldn't elephants be smarter than us? I'd really like to see an elephant doing scientific research!

How well does the brain work under pressure?

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

The Brain works better under pressure: Fact or fiction? Remember when you had that big project due? Didn't that motivate you to work harder?

 

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true? 
 
Despite waiting until the last minute until getting that project done, Science has proved that stress is NOT good for the brain! Seriously, had you budgeted your time, you probably would have been a better job.

Ok, now how about this one?

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

Playing classical music makes infants smarter: Fact or fiction?
Did you play classical music for your children when they were babies?

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?  

Science says there is no evidence to back this up! But I'm sure they enjoyed the music anyway!

Well, how about this one. Do your memories get stored in files, like a computer?
 
Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

 

The brain stores memories like a computer: Fact or fiction? What do you think?

 

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true? 

Sorry, the brain is far more complex than a computer. In fact, many memories are far from accurate! (Judges, lawyers and eye witnesses need to explore this!)


We were always taught that a person's IQ was constant. Is this true?

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

Your IQ will always stay the same: Fact or fiction? I always believed this to be true! Was I right?

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true? 

Well, Science has disproved this theory as well! A person's IQ will fluctuate throughout his or her whole life!

As teachers, we know that everyone has their own preferred learning style, right?

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

Everyone has a preferred learning style: Fact or fiction? As teachers, don't we know this to be the case?

Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

Sorry, Science has proved this one to be incorrect as well. It's true that including visuals, sound, or hands-on activities WILL help a person learn, but no one person has one preferred style.


Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

Here are links to some articles that back up this information:

12 Popular Facts About the Brain That Aren’t Actually True

7 Myths About Your Brain

 50 Surprising Things About Your Brain We Bet You Didn’t Know

10 Brain Myths Busted

Top Ten Myths About the Brain

Debunking 10 Brain MythsD
Debunking 10 Brain Myths

10 Surprising Facts About Your Brain

 
Brain myths: Fact or Fiction? Science has learned a lot about the brain, how many of these do you think are true?

So, you want to know some TRUE facts about the brain? Try some of these posts:

What facts do you know to be true about the brain?





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