Teacher tips Archives - Susan Fitzell https://susanfitzell.com/tag/teacher-tips/ The Modern Day MacGyver of Business and Education! Tue, 06 Sep 2011 16:56:30 +0000 en hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.1 https://susanfitzell.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/cropped-favicon2-32x32.png Teacher tips Archives - Susan Fitzell https://susanfitzell.com/tag/teacher-tips/ 32 32 Paraprofessional Tips for Teachers Working With Paraeducators https://susanfitzell.com/tips-for-teachers-working-with-paraprofessionals/ Tue, 06 Sep 2011 16:56:30 +0000 http://paraprofessionalonline.com/?p=80 Just like paraprofessionals need help dealing with their classroom teacher, often times teachers need help learning to work with their paraprofessional.

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]]> Paraprofessional TipsParaprofessional Tips: It’s all about the relationship!

The relationship between a teacher and paraprofessional is just that: a relationship, with two people, two sets of opinions, and often times, two teaching philosophies.

And just like paraprofessionals sometimes need help dealing with their classroom teacher, often times teachers need help learning to work with their paraprofessional.

The following paraprofessional tips help teachers work well with the paraprofessionals in their classroom:

  • Consider the paraprofessional an essential member of your teaching team.  Whenever possible, include the paraprofessional in planning, team meetings, troubleshooting, and any other decision where you feel input from the paraprofessional would be valuable.
  • Empower the paraprofessional to monitor behavior and support the discipline process in the classroom.
  • Discuss your goals, priorities, and plans with the paraprofessional on a daily basis.  Communication is critical, not only to the success of the students in the classroom, but also to the teaching relationship.
  • Provide the paraprofessional with lesson plans, activities, or “to-do” items as soon as possible.
  • Discuss issues with your paraprofessional, especially when the issue is related to the student he or she is working with.
  • Avoid interruption when the paraeducator is working with with a student or several students.  Interruption undermines the paraprofessional’s authority with the students, and often causes distress and possible conflict.
  • Compile a loose-leaf binder for the paraprofessional that contains class rules, expectations, a syllabus, etc.
  • Model/teach how to respond to specific behavior.
Excerpted from Paraprofessionals and Teachers Working Together by Susan Gingras Fitzell.
Paraprofessionals and Teachers Working Together

Practical Ideas and Strategies for Paraprofessionals and Those They Work With

Get this Book Now!

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]]> Manage Behavior with Strategic Ignoring https://susanfitzell.com/manage-behavior-with-strategic-ignoring/ Tue, 30 Aug 2011 16:52:06 +0000 http://paraprofessionalonline.com/?p=177 One way to manage classroom behavior is to use strategic ignoring, however it is important to know when this strategy should be used and when it should not.

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]]> Sometimes the best way to deal with student misbehavior is to ignore it.

When might it be best to ignore behavior?

  • When the inappropriate behavior is unintentional or not likely to reoccur.
  • When the student’s goal is to get attention through misbehaving.
  • When ignoring it will decrease misbehavior by not reinforcing it.
  • When it is out of your area of jurisdiction.

When is it best not to ignore behavior?

  • When there is physical danger or harm to yourself, others, or the student.
  • When a student disrupts the classroom through inappropriate behavior.
  • When a student violates class or school rules.
  • When the behavior interferes with the student’s or other students’ learning./li>
  • When the inappropriate behavior will incite other students to join in.
  • When other students reinforce the misbehavior by snickering, laughing, and otherwise giving positive – or even negative – feedback.
Excerpted from Paraprofessionals and Teachers Working Together by Susan Gingras Fitzell.

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]]> Teacher tips from my audiences! https://susanfitzell.com/teacher-tips-from-my-audiences/ Sat, 24 May 2008 20:58:07 +0000 http://susanfitzell.edublogs.org/?p=57 To help learn and remember the characters from “Romeo and Juliet,” Carla Byars has students choose a character and bring in a personal theme song for each with printed lyrics.  Debbie Swanson addresses foot tapping by placing carpet squares under their feet. “They love it and can stomp as loudly as they want.” Sarah Endecott […]

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To help learn and remember the characters from “Romeo and Juliet,” Carla Byars has students choose a character and bring in a personal theme song for each with printed lyrics. 

Debbie Swanson addresses foot tapping by placing carpet squares under their feet. “They love it and can stomp as loudly as they want.”

Sarah Endecott uses a wind chime to signal students to stop what they are doing and listen to what she needs to tell them. It’s an excellent time management tool! 

You can flash card games to help your students learn. Students write words on one side of the card and the definition on the other. These cards can then be used to play a variety of games.

 

A. Matching Game: Two students each have a set of word-definition cards. One student’s cards are word up, the other’s are definition up. They then match the words with the definitions, taking the cards away when paired.

B. Play Pictionary with the words showing.


C. Play Pictionary with definitions showing.  

 

 

 

 

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