Most teachers are given a textbook or some type of curriculum to follow. Many teachers worry that they will not be able to cover all of the material that they need to be teaching within the course of the school year. However, simply covering each lesson in a textbook from cover to cover does not mean that you are truly teaching. Teaching is about much more than regurgitating information from a book. Some teachers struggle between teaching what the students need and teaching what is needed for the tests. There are teachers who lean on both sides of this struggle. … Continue reading →

In many cases students in teacher education programs are required to create very detailed lesson plans for their teachers or supervisors. There are several different models and styles of lesson plans. One basic style is discussed below. Most lessons should begin with an opening or an attention getter. In this section you will describe what it is that you plan to do to gain the attention of the students. Before relaying important information to them, you must make sure that they are attentive to you and listening. The second part of your plan would be the lesson. This is where … Continue reading →

I would like to begin this article by stating that I am not a big fan of worksheets. However, in some cases they cannot be avoided. When looking for worksheets to use with my students I have found that in many cases they do not meet my needs. Therefore many years ago I began making my own worksheets. Computer programs make it very easy to create your own worksheets for the classroom. While word processing programs such as Word or Works can be used, I prefer a program with a few more freedoms such as a print shop program. When … Continue reading →