Fun with homophones!

10 Tips to Improve Behavior Management

1 Be in charge.

As the teacher, and the adult, you are ‘in charge’. It is your classroom and you must actively and consciously make the rules and decisions, rather than letting them happen out of habit, poor organisation or at the whim of the pupils.

Demonstrate your ‘in-chargeness’ by the position you take in the room; keep on your feet as much as possible and be where you can watch everything that is going on. Pupils should be convinced you have eyes in the back of your head! Pick up the good things they are doing (see number 3 below). Keep moving around the classroom to establish yourself as the focal point of interest and authority.

Remember that the pupils need to feel safe; they can only do this if you are in charge. Do not justify or apologise for your rules, your standards or your insistence on compliance.

2 Use positive classroom rules.

Pupils need to know what is expected of them in your classroom. Establish a set of rules, no more than 4 or 5, which make desired behaviour explicit; display them prominently in the room and refer to them frequently so that they don’t disappear into the wallpaper!

The rules should tell the pupils what to do, rather than what not to do, eg

O Don’t call out.

          P Put up your hand and wait to speak.

O Don’t walk around the classroom.

          P Stay in your seat.

O Don’t break things.

                    P Look after classroom equipment.

Praise good behaviour and refer to the rule being followed. Use the rules to point out inappropriate behaviour, “Remember our rule about …”

Have a ‘feature’ rule now and again, written on the board and tied to a special individual or class reward to be given to pupils who follow the rule.

3 Make rewards work for you.

Give pupils relevant rewards for desirable behaviours, starting tasks, completing tasks, following class rules, etc. The goal is to establish the HABIT of co-operation. Standards can be subtly raised once the habit has been established. The easiest, quickest and most appreciated reward is descriptive praise.

Other possible rewards, besides those used as a school-wide system are:

• a note home to parents
• name on a special chart which earns a later tangible reward
• being given special responsibilities
• being allowed to go first
• having extra choices

4 Catch them being good.

Praise is the most powerful motivator there is. Praise the tiniest steps in the right direction. Praise often, using descriptive praise, for example, ‘It can be annoying having to look up words in the dictionary. I can see you are getting impatient but the dictionary is still open in front of you. You haven’t given up.’ Or, ‘I can see you don’t want to come in from break, but you are facing the right direction for coming in.’ Be willing to appreciate the smallest of effort and explain why it pleases you.

Pupils will not think you are being too strict and will not resent your firm decision making if you remember to smile, to criticise less and to praise more. Tell the pupils there will be positive consequences for positive behaviour, then follow through and show them.

Stick to your guns and don’t be ‘bullied’ into giving rewards that haven’t been earned.

Some positive behaviours are easily overlooked. Try to remember to praise pupils for:

• homework in on time
• homework in late but at least it’s in
• working quietly
• good attendance
• neat desk
• not swinging on chair
• smiling
• contributing to class discussion
• helping another pupil
• not laughing at another pupil’s mistakes
• promptly following your instructions
• wearing glasses
• using common sense

Use the reward systems of the school consistently and fairly.

5 Be specific and clear in your instructions

Get a pupil’s full attention before giving instructions. Make sure everyone is looking at you and not fiddling with a pencil, turning around, looking at a book, etc. Only give instructions once; repeating can unwittingly train a pupil to not bother to listen properly the first time. Smile as you give instructions.

Don’t be too wordy and don’t imply choice when there actually isn’t a choice by tacking ‘Okay?’ on the end, or sound as though you are merely suggesting, ‘Would you like to …?’ ‘How about …?’  ‘Don’t you think you should …?’

Be very clear in all your instructions and expectations. Have a pupil repeat them back to you.

6 Deal with low level behaviours before they get big

Low level, or minor, behaviour infringements will escalate if they are

not dealt with quickly and consistently. A pupil’s behaviour is reinforced

when he gets attention for it, but don’t be tempted to ignore it. Find a

calm and quiet way to let the child know that you see exactly what he is

doing and that there is a consequence, without making a fuss, getting

upset or sounding annoyed.

Give your instructions once only. If the pupil continues to misbehave, instead of repeating your original instruction, try one or more of these actions:

• point to a place (eg on the board, on a post-it in the pupil’s book, a note on your desk) where you wrote down the original instruction at the time you first gave it
• use a description of reality, ‘Alfie, you are tapping your ruler.’
• stop everything and look at the pupil pointedly and wait for them to figure out why
• descriptively praise those who are behaving appropriately, praise the target pupil as soon as  he complies
• ask other pupils what is needed (the squirm factor)

Always follow through, even on minor infractions, so that pupils know there is no point in testing. They should know what will happen. Only give second chances after a period of good behavior.

7 The consequences of non-compliance.

Help the pupil to do whatever you’ve asked him to do. If he has thrown pencils on the floor, help him to pick them up.

If a pupil does not obey instructions straight away, do not give up. Keep waiting. Praise every little step in the right direction, even the absence of the wrong thing. For example, if you’ve just asked a pupil to stand up and he’s not doing it, you could say, ‘You’re not swearing now, thank you.’

Do not protect the pupil from the consequences of his action or lack of action. The pupil is making a choice and you will have told him this, and given a clear warning of the consequence.

A consequence should be uncomfortable and not upsetting enough to breed more resentment. The purpose of the consequence is to prompt the pupil to think, ‘I wish I hadn’t done that.’

Have a ready repertoire of easy to implement and monitor consequences. These might include:

• loss of choices (eg where to sit)
• loss of break time
• loss of a privilege
• sitting in silence for a set amount of time

8 Find a ‘best for both outcome’.

Avoid confrontational situations where you or the pupil has to back down. Talk to the pupil in terms of his choices and the consequences of the choices, and then give them ‘take up’ time.

‘Fred, I want you to leave the room. If you do it now we can deal with it quickly. If you choose not to then we will use your break time to talk about it. It’s your choice. I’ll meet you outside the door in two minutes.’ Then walk away and wait.

‘Joe, put your mobile phone in your bag or on my desk. If you choose not to do that it will be confiscated,’ then walk away and wait.

9 Establish ‘start of lesson’ routines.

Never attempt to start teaching a lesson until the pupils are ready. It’s a waste of everyone’s energy, giving the impression it’s the teacher’s job to force pupils to work and their job to resist, delay, distract, wind up, etc. Often this task avoidance is a ‘smoke screen’ hiding worries about what you are going to ask them to do.

Have a routine way of starting a lesson; a quiet activity that pupils can get right down to, without needing any explanation. Handwriting, copying the lesson objectives from the board, spelling practice (familiar key language from the current topic), mental arithmetic are good activities to set a quiet tone. Do not allow discussion or be drawn into discussion yourself – say there will be time for that later and make sure you follow this through.

If you take the time to establish this, lessons will start themselves! You won’t have that battle at the beginning of every lesson to get yourself heard.

10 Manage the end of the lesson.

Do not run your lesson right up to the last minute and then have to rush because the next class is waiting. Allow time to wind down, answer questions, put equipment away, refer to WILT and how this has been met, outline plans for next lesson, etc.

Have a short, educational game up your sleeve if there is time to spare.

Manage the pupils’ exit of the room, have them stand behind their chairs and wait to be asked to leave. Address each pupil by name and have them tell you some good news about the lesson, or you tell them something they did well today. Send them out one-by-one.

Top Tips for Teaching Practice Part 1

Teaching practice can be a a huge source of anxiety for new teachers who are short on time. This collection of resources was created for new teachers and can help save time when preparing for teaching practice, as well as providing valuable guidance and reference material along the way. These materials contain valuable information for teachers at all stages of their careers, who may be looking for some extra inspiration on learning strategies, assessment and classroom management.

1. Starters

We all know how important having a good ‘starter’ is in lessons. It can serve as that all-important hook for the remainder of the lesson and really help to motivate pupils and stimulate their curiosity. The resources below can provide you with a whole range of interesting starter activities which you can either use directly or adapt to suit your own purposes.

• A great idea to start a fun class with an Icebreaker.
• I really like this jigsaw starter activity. Great for the start of the class as students slide into class!
• The starter powerpoint is excellent. I particularly like the links between the index and the slides.

More Icebreakers:

• Mental Warm-ups!
• Key Terms Bingo
• The Intelligence of Six

Hope they work for you! Good luck!

Thinking Strategies

I came across this great website about Thinking strategies and ways to integrate them into our teaching practice to make learning more meaningful for our students.  Have a great one!

Thinking strategies

Payback Time: Lessons From The Harshest Teacher Trainers (My Students!)

I found this interesting and very brave post on the internet, hope it can help you as it´s going to help me in my teaching practice.

Students, the harshest teacher trainers?

This semester I decided to compile as much data as possible from my students and co-teachers regarding my performance and effectiveness over the past four months. The results have been invaluable as a tool for my own professional development, but I also believe that, despite the variation in contexts, they can provide some useful tips and insight for other educators too. Here are my reflections on the feedback I received and the lessons I've learnt.

I've embedded the full document with my students and co-teachers feedback at the bottom of the blog.

My Reflections

The feedback from both my students and co-teachers has been unexpectedly positive, my co-teachers have enjoyed being a part of the lessons and my students seem to have really appreciated the structure of the lessons and my passion for their education. I've been overwhelmed by how constructive (both critically and favourably) and honest their feedback has been, it has provided me with an invaluable opportunity to improve as a teacher.

I’m going to split my reflections into three sections: firstly, I’ll look at things I need to keep doing (that I have started doing and have worked well), secondly, I’m going to consider things I need to start doing and finally, things I need to stop doing!

Things I Need to Keep Doing (I’m going to concentrate here on things I don’t feel I did so well in previous semesters.)

i) Use of Short Films

The student response to the use of short films in class (usually between 1 minute and 10 minutes in length) indicates that students are really enjoying them, that they are seeing the benefit of them and that they have been extremely important a motivating and holding the concentration of my students. I think there are a number of reasons for this:

1) Teenagers now live in a much more visually stimulating world. Everything is on computers or T.V’s, and this is what the students are used to.

2) Some of my classes are very mixed ability. Short films allow my low level students to understand the general gist of what is happening, the information they get visually can help them understand and contextualize the language that is being taught. For my highest level students videos often come with very natural pronunciation and expressions, this presents a great opportunity for them to hear language how it is naturally used and challenges them to pick out language and expressions they wouldn't find in a text book.

3) Videos allow students to absorb culture as well as language. I find my students genuinely interested in other cultures around the world and video present a great way for them to explore that.

ii) Praising the Students and Displaying Their Work

It has really become apparent to me this year just how important praise is to the students. My girl classes visually show how much they want positive feedback and so it is easy to find opportunities to provide them with positive feedback and praise. At this age boys can’t really be seen to desire positive feedback from the teacher, I think this is especially apparent if the teacher is male. This means it is harder to find opportunities to provide them with positive praise and feedback. From the student feedback it seems I have done this successfully with my first grade boy classes, but not my second grade boy classes. The classes are much larger and the boys are naturally much louder and more boisterous, so it is harder to find opportunities. Next semester I really need to actively find opportunities to provide them with positive feedback.

We’ve done two activities this semester purposely designed to give the students opportunities to make some really great work that can be displayed all over the class. The feedback shows the students have both acknowledged and appreciated this. Other than this feedback I have noticed the students really taking a keen interest in other classes’ work that is displayed around the room. It seems to have created a kind of competition between the classes.

iii) Having Clear Rules

Although I have the same rules this semester as last semester, I am working at a different school that provides more levels of support when enforcing rules. This semester has shown just how important the support of the institution is in enforcing rules. As an example, last year if a student walked into class 5 minutes late eating cake nothing was done about it, although I disciplined them, the institution itself took no interest in this. This semester there are clear consequences, both from myself and the institution, regarding the consequences of a student’s actions. It has become very clear how important having your institution on your side regarding discipline is.

iv) Catering to Multiple Intelligences & Learning Styles

Something that has been made absolutely clear in the feedback from the students is the variety of learning styles and preferences the students have. The students indicated that they recognized the use of many different forms of activities, but when asked what they would like more/less of next semester and what they enjoyed/didn’t enjoy, other than wanting more short films, there was a huge variation. For me, this clearly shows the importance of providing students with a range of activities and stimuli in order to keep all students motivated and interested in class.

Things I Need to Start Doing

i) Giving Students More Time to Complete Activities

Although the students rated me favorably for this it was still one of my lowest scores, and I have to say that on reflection I absolutely agree with them. For the majority of the semester I was at conflict with my institution. They wanted me to teach key expressions every class, I wanted to teach skills. This meant I was trying to fit both into a 50 minute period and the classes felt a bit too rushed. I’ve now reached a compromise with my school; we are going to have spread topics over two classes, meaning half the compulsory amount of expressions and more time for skills. This will hopefully result in the classes being less rushed. It’s amazing just how observant and sensitive the students are to issues such as this.

ii) A Better Introductory Lesson

I started at a new school this semester and my directives were to start teaching my syllabus from the very first class. They asked me to only take up 10 minutes for introductions etc. and I used this time for making the rules of the classroom clear and introducing myself. I think this was a mistake and something I should have strongly objected to. The students have shown in their feedback that they weren’t sure exactly what they were supposed to achieve from the course, something that should have been made clear to them in the introductory lesson. Although almost all the classes adapted well I think this could be partially responsible for the behavioral problems one class faced at the beginning of the semester. Quite simply they weren’t sure why they were there. This is a mistake I won’t be making again.

iii) Explaining the Reason behind Activities

On reflection something I hardly did this semester is tell students why we were doing the activities we were doing, what skills were we practicing, what could they achieve from the activity, how is it useful for them in real life etc. This is shown in the relatively low score for ‘providing students with opportunities to practice creative thinking, divergent thinking and critical thinking’. Although I strongly believe these skills were practiced in almost every class I didn’t make the students aware of this. This is definitely something for me to bear in mind next semester.

Things I Need to Stop Doing

i) Compulsory Homework

Feedback from the students is quite clearly against homework, and on reflection I think they might be right!

Why am I giving them homework? The honest answer is ‘I’m not sure.’ Maybe because it’s what my teacher did when I was at school, maybe because I want them to see my class is serious, maybe it just felt right.

What did I achieve from it? Probably not much, the students who wanted to do it did it, and I hope gained from it (it was usually to interview someone, in English, on the topic we had done in class), but by forcing students to do it who didn’t want to meant that all they were probably doing was either copying their friends answers or making it up. Next semester I will make students aware of the reasons for doing the homework, but make it optional. This will also mean I have fewer to grade and so can do a more thorough job.

ii) Presuming I Can Motivate 2nd Grade Boys with Stamp Sheets!

The 2nd grade boys have made it very clear to me this semester they really don’t care about stamp sheets (a technique that works very well with my other classes). So, I’m going to have to think of something new, something sports related. At this point I’m not sure what, but I have a month to figure it out! For me this was a really clear reminder that we teach students, not lessons, and all students have different needs we must adapt to.

Notes

i) This is the first time I have performed such an extensive self evaluation and the amount I have learnt from it has been invaluable. I wasn’t required to do it by my school or regional office, and it took a lot of time to put together all the data, but I highly recommend doing it. The main reasons I have never done this before is firstly, because I’ve never been required to do it, and secondly, because I was nervous that the feedback might be negative. However, I really encourage teachers to do this once or twice a year as you will be surprised how much you will learn, both about what your co-workers and students appreciate in your work, and what you can improve. In terms of professional development, it seems essential.

ii) The low score for the ‘level of the exam was appropriate’ is something I haven’t mentioned as it is not something I had much (or any) control over. The results of that question have been fed back to the institution I work and it is something that we are going to work closer together on next semester to rectify.


If you took the time to read this I really hope it was useful for you. I would love to hear any comments regarding these reflections, especially if you've got any tips for motivation 40+ 17 year old boys ;-)

Teaching Portfolio

Tools to build vocabulary

Learning and most of all, acquiring new vocabulary is a matter of obsession for both, English Language Learners and Educators, here I share with you some useful strategies to help you deal with this matter.

How do you record new words? Do you use mind maps? Tables? Flash cards? Or some other way? Check out these tips and practice exercises to help you choose the best way for you! 

Word cards: http://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/exams/exam-grammar-vocabulary/word-cards
Mind maps: http://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/exams/exam-grammar-vocabulary/mind-maps
Tables: http://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/exams/exam-grammar-vocabulary/tables

Great vocabulary games!

Here´s an excellent page to find new ways to practice, review and recycle vocabulary, get flashcards and overall teaching ideas.

Teacher Christian P. Hndez.: Guidelines for new (and not so new) teachers Part ...

Teacher Christian P. Hndez.: Guidelines for new (and not so new) teachers Part ...: One of the most significant things you can do to affect student conduct is to establish effective daily events in your classroom. Doing s...





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Guidelines for new (and not so new) teachers Part 1

One of the most significant things you can do to affect student conduct is to establish effective daily events in your classroom. Doing so will allow you to be organized and appear in control. It will also allow students to take responsibility for themselves because they will know what to do. Time is also used more effectively in classrooms with established daily procedures. The tips that follow offer suggestions that will help you establish effective daily procedures in your classroom.

What You Should Do:
Set up procedures for the following classroom activities:

• Entering the classroom
• Taking roll
• Dealing with tardy students 
• Dealing with students who lack materials 
• Labeling student papers 
• Preparing to leave at the end of class 

  How To Do It: 

Entering the Classroom 

Begin each lesson with a brief warm-up or ice breaker activity such as a game, vocabulary review, etc, in the following link you can find many warm-ups or ice breaker activities to use in your classes:
Warm-ups and Icebreakers for classroom games and activities

Before students arrive, post the warm-up activity on the board and make a list of the materials needed for the lesson. If there is a new homework assignment, post it on the board, too. If necessary, remind students to sit in their assigned seats. It may be helpful (and even necessary) to attribute a small portion of a daily grade to these warm-up exercises, you can then include it as a participation grade, but being a fun, short and interactive activity, everyone would be delighted and eager to participate.

Taking Roll
Use a quick method of taking roll as students participate in the opening activity or as they turn in their homework. On the first day of school, set up a seating chart, which you can use to support the students in sitting in their assigned seats. Throughout the year, use the chart to take roll quickly. If students say someone is not absent, but the student is not in the room, simply state that to be considered present a person needs to be working or sitting down when the bell rings or when you enter the classroom.

Dealing with Tardy Students 
Have a plan for dealing with tardy students. An alternative would be to allow a small interruption, quickly update your attendance sheet and move on. Be sure to point out to the tardy student the consequence of habitual tardiness. You may be able to prevent a majority of late students by holding them accountable for lateness. For example, you might dock a student's participation grade by half a point for every three times tardy.

Dealing with Students Who Lack Materials
If you are unable to get extra copies of your books, have students who arrive without their book share with classmates whom you designate. But not bringing the school materials should have a consequence; permitting students get by without the required materials might send the signal that it is okay to leave materials at home.

Labeling Student Papers
Ask students to write their name, the date, your name, the period number, and the assignment on every paper they turn in to you. You will probably need to remind students of this often. Don´t accept any unlabeled paper, returning it immediately to the student that turned it to you and asking him to write the proper information. Explain that if you cannot determine to whom a paper belongs or which assignment it might be, you cannot give credit for the work.

Preparing to Leave at the End of Class
Everything that has a beginning should have an end to be complete, have a signal for when students may prepare to wrap up the class. For most students, the bell means it is time to drop everything, stuff it all in their backpacks, and leave or wait for their next class, lunch, or home. You can ask students not to leave until you have signaled that class is over. Request that they not pick up their backpacks or other bags until they are dismissed. Allow time for closure and clarification of assignments. Then give your dismissal signal. Try always to include a game, a song, an activity which is fun, short and interactive as a wrap-up to leave them craving for more, but also that has something to do with the day´s lesson.

To be continued………………………

 If you have any comments or more ideas on this topics, please share your insights and knowledge!

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Some tips for English Language Teaching

The number of English Language Learners is growing  all over the world, as teachers we try to respond to the needs of these students, here are a few basic best practices that might help.  Using these practices makes our lessons more efficient and effective. I include a few "worst" practices in the hope that they will not be repeated!

Modeling

Do model for students what they are expected to do or produce, especially for new skills, vocabulary or activities, by explaining and demonstrating the learning actions, sharing your thinking processes aloud, and showing good teacher and student work samples. Modeling promotes learning and motivation, as well as increasing student self-confidence -- they will have a stronger belief that they can accomplish the learning task if they follow steps that were demonstrated.

Don't just tell students what to do and expect them to do it.

Rate of Speech and Wait Time

Do speak slowly and clearly, and provide students with enough time to formulate their responses, whether in speaking or in writing. Remember, they are thinking and producing in two or more languages! After asking a question, wait for a few seconds before calling on someone to respond. This "wait time" provides all students with an opportunity to think and process, and especially gives ELLs a needed period to formulate a response.

Don't speak too fast, and if a student tells you they didn't understand what you said, never, ever repeat the same thing in a louder voice!

Use of Non-Linguistic Cues

Do use visuals, sketches, gestures, intonation, and other non-verbal cues to make both language and content more accessible to students. Teaching with visual representations of concepts can be hugely helpful to ELLs.

Don't stand in front of the class and lecture, or rely on a textbook as your only "visual aid."

Giving Instructions

Do give verbal and written instructions -- this practice can help all learners, especially ELLs. In addition, it is far easier for a teacher to point to the board in response to the inevitable repeated question, "What are we supposed to do?"

Don't act surprised if students are lost when you haven't clearly written and explained step-by-step directions.

Check for Understanding

Do regularly check that students are understanding the lesson. After an explanation or lesson, a teacher could say, "Please put thumbs up, thumbs down, or sideways to let me know if this is clear, and it's perfectly fine if you don't understand or are unsure -- I just need to know." This last phrase is essential if you want students to respond honestly. Teachers can also have students quickly answer on a Post-It note that they place on their desks. The teacher can then quickly circulate to check responses.

When teachers regularly check for understanding in the classroom, students become increasingly aware of monitoring their own understanding, which serves as a model of good study skills. It also helps ensure that students are learning, thinking, understanding, comprehending, and processing at high levels.

Don't simply ask, "Are there any questions?" This is not an effective way to gauge what all your students are thinking. Waiting until the end of class to see what people write in their learning log is not going to provide timely feedback. Also, don't assume that students are understanding because they are smiling and nodding their heads -- sometimes they are just being polite!

Encourage Development of Home Language

Do encourage students to continue building their literacy skills in their home language, also known as "L1." Research has found that learning to read in the home language promotes reading achievement in the second language as "transfer" occurs. These "transfers" may include phonological awareness, comprehension skills, and background knowledge.

While the research on transfer of L1 skills to L2 cannot be denied, it doesn't mean that we should not encourage the use of English in class and outside of the classroom.

Don't completely "ban" students from using their native language in the classroom. Forbidding students from using their primary languages does not promote a positive learning environment where students feel safe to take risks and make mistakes. What you can do is turn it into a competition, assigning or taking away points for using L1.

This is certainly not a complete guide -- they are just a few of the most basic practices to keep in mind when teaching English Language Learners or a Second Language Learner.  If you agree with the previous tips and practices or would like to add more of your own, feel free to leave a comment!

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Who took the cookie?.... Teaching tips (chant used in the Rassias workshop).

Song: "Who took the cookie?"

Here´s a fun way to sing and play this chant!

Chant used in the Rassias workshop!

Técnicas para mejorar tu comprensión lectora en otro idioma.

Cursar un programa académico en un idioma no nativo, representa un verdadero reto para el que no todos se sienten preparados, sin importar la cantidad de cursos del idioma que hayan realizado anteriormente. Por ello, es importante que sepas que al igual que todo lo que conlleva el emigrar como estudiante, la comprensión lectora en otro idioma supone  también un proceso de adaptación.  

Y aunque muchos estudiantes extranjeros se quejan de no ser capaces de leer, absorber y tomar notas, todo al mismo tiempo, sí existen varias herramientas y técnicas, que debes tomar en cuenta para evitar sentirte desmotivado al iniciar tus estudios en el extranjero y lograr el éxito académico.

En primer  lugar, debes saber que la principal manera para mejorar tu compresión en la lectura es precisamente leyendo más. Revisa todo el material que encuentres a la mano, no sólo el de tu curso, sino también revistas y libros; en este paso Internet juega un papel muy importante, pues en la red encontrarás un sin número de materiales de lectura en diferentes idiomas que te servirán para tu práctica diaria.

Lo más recomendable es que ingreses a páginas cuyos contenidos sean confiables, por ejemplo, portales informativos internacionales de renombre (como la BBC, el  New York Times, CNN, entre muchos otros), además de buscar e-books de autores reconocidos. Para hacerte más fácil el hábito de lectura, puedes iniciar seleccionando noticias, artículos  y textos sobre temas que despierten tu interés, como tecnología, arte, cultura o lo que se te ocurra.

Prepara el ambiente 

Al momento de realizar una lectura es recomendable que evites cualquier distracción, por esto se sugiere que apagues tu teléfono celular, escojas un área con buena iluminación y tengas a la mano una libreta donde tomar algunos apuntes, además de un pequeño refrigerio o una botella de agua mineral para evitar detener tu lectura. 

Para mejorar la comprensión del contenido debes:

1. Leer silenciosamente, el hacerlo en voz alta requiere mayor concentración y esfuerzo para pronunciar perfectamente las palabras, a menos que el motivo de tu lectura sea mejorar la pronunciación, lo más recomendable es hacerlo silenciosamente.

2. Realizar primero una lectura exploratoria del contenido, así tendrás una idea global  de la misma y sabrás qué frases o palabras desconocidas puedes encontrar.

3. No te detengas para buscar en el diccionario al ver una palabra que no entiendes, intenta darle significado por el contexto.

4. Lo más importante es comprender y retener las ideas y significados principales, sin detenerte en cada detalle.

5. Subraya sólo las ideas más importantes. Al finalizar toma notas de las ideas principales, para esto puedes valerte de palabras claves, esquemas, mapas mentales, etcétera.

6. Varía los temas, géneros y la complejidad de los textos. Aunque es bueno iniciar con temas que te parezcan interesantes, es recomendable enfrentarse a distintos tópicos, de esta forma ampliarás tu conocimientos generales y podrías descubrir nuevos intereses.

7. Haz pausas periódicas para reflexionar sobre lo que has leído hasta el momento y asegurarte de que has entendido.

8. Comparte lo que has aprendido de la lectura con tus profesores y compañeros de curso, de esta forma reforzaras el conocimiento y ganaras soltura en el idioma.

Si pones en práctica estas recomendaciones tendrás un gran éxito en tus estudios, notarás como se incrementa tu comprensión lectora en el nuevo idioma, leerás más rápido y será más sencillo entender en clases a tus profesores, a la vez que tomas notas.

De igual forma, puedes buscar orientación en tu universidad , la mayoría de las instituciones cuentan con servicios de asesoría académica para estudiantes internacionales, donde ofrecen diversos cursos para perfeccionar el idioma y mejorar  la comprensión lectora.

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Behavior Management

I want to share with you some behavior management strategies and techniques, put them to practice and hope they work for you!

Behavior management

For even the most experienced teacher using their favourite lesson, there are several factors they fear could mess up their well laid plans once they actually get in class. One is lack of knowledge about the class (especially new classes) which means they can’t predict very well what might happen. Another is that having mixed abilities in the class makes it impossible to predict when all the students will be able to use the language, possibly leading to boredom in some and frustration in others as you try to fit it all into the standard lesson time. This could be one reason for the third and possibly greatest fear - that bad behaviour by the students could mean there is no hope of getting through the lesson plan at all. This article aims to show you to some ways to predict, understand, reduce and react to bad behaviour in the class.

The signs of bad behaviour
As what is considered bad behaviour can vary a lot by age, culture, teacher, type of school etc., let’s first look at what you consider to be serious bad behaviour, not so serious and not bad at all. This will also help us decide what is appropriate to do when we decide how to deal with bad behaviour of those various levels.
Picture just one of the classes you teach every week and for that class mark the behaviour below with points from 5 (totally unacceptable, deserves serious punishment) down to 0 (not bad behaviour at all, maybe even a good thing).

List of ‘bad behaviour’                                                                            Points for seriousness (0 to 5)

• Laughing at inappropriate moments     
• Not standing up or sitting up straight     
• Adopting sullen, rebellious expressions     
• Practical jokes     
• Staring out of the window     
• Wearing inappropriate clothes or jewellery     
• Making noise with classroom objects, e.g. rocking chairs     
• Speaking L1 when they should be speaking English     
• Not following instructions     
• Speaking when they should be quiet     
• Making rude noises     
• Deliberately going slow     
• Refusing to do what the teacher asks     
• Doing the opposite of what the teacher asks     
• Culturally inappropriate or rude behaviour- e.g. picking their noses     
• Not listening     
• Cheating in games     
• Doodling in/ on their notebooks or textbooks     
• Not using polite language when they ask for things etc.     
• Not completing homework     
• Bad remarks, e.g. hurtful comments     
• Fighting     
• Cheating in tests     
• Bad words, e.g. swearing     
• Vandalism (or threats of) to school resources or other students’ possessions     
• Threats or violence to teacher or students     

The list above is in the order I would put the behaviour for a class of nine and ten year olds I have once a week in a private language school, but would be quite different for my home lessons, lessons in primary schools etc.
If you found the ranking task quite difficult, it was deliberately so - and is a true reflection on how difficult it can be to judge how bad something is in the class. First of all, are any of these ‘bad’ all the time? When you teach two year olds you soon realise that not joining in could be because of all sorts of reasons, and is rarely from a simple desire to make things difficult for people. Also, is the student who is defending him- or herself in a fight behaving badly? Are the students not following instructions because they simply don’t understand? Most of all, hurting someone deliberately is very different from doing so accidentally.

Dealing with bad behaviour
One solution to this inability to know for sure what is really bad is to make sure students (and their parents) know what you consider good and bad behaviour to be before the class even starts. Another is for the basic ‘punishments’ in your class to actually be things that you would do even if it wasn’t your fault or you didn’t mean to do it, e.g. say sorry, give a sweet from the teacher to the person who was hurt, same something nice, join the victim’s team etc. Of course, these might not make much difference to the child who is deliberately and maliciously misbehaving.Below is a list of some other ‘weapons’ that might be a bit more effective. Read through the list and mark each one for severity and effectiveness in your classes (1= not strict or effective, 5= very).

List of possible ‘punishments’                           Severity (1 to 5)         Effectiveness (1 to 5)

• Give them a disapproving look          
• Count down from 5, then punish if they don’t stop by that time          
• Take time off their time limit for the next round of the game          
• Take points off the team          
• Call out the name of the student misbehaving (most)          
• Divide students from their friends          
• Sit them elsewhere, e.g. boys next to girls or at the front          
• Disqualify their team from the game          
• Mime shooting the student/ wringing their neck etc. (comically)          
• Write down the student’s name (on the board or in a special book)          
• Leave them out of the next activity          
• Make them complete their homework while the others play a game          
• Give them written work while others are playing games          
• Give them something special to hold for speaking L1 etc. This is passed to next person when they are caught          
• Make them tidy up the classroom          
• Make them stand up when everyone else is sitting down          
• Make the student(s) stand in corner          
• Make them put faces on arms on desks and be quiet for 1 min          
• Stop the game half way through and start bookwork          
• Talk to them individually after the class          
• Put black marks on a special wall chart          
• Put a black mark on the student’s book          
• Make them stand up with hands on their head          
• Send them out of class for 5 minutes          
• Send them out for the rest of the class          
• Tell their home room teacher          
• Tell their parents          
• Put it on their report card/ permanent record          

The punishments are listed in ascending order of strictness for a class of seven year olds I taught twice a week in a private primary school in Bangkok, but judging effectiveness is perhaps easier. The biggest factor in making a punishment effective is how much it involves peer pressure - if you take points off their team, the team will soon make sure that it doesn’t happen again! Using team and other peer pressure doesn’t have to be just negative, as giving points can be at least as effective as taking them away. Here are some other ‘rewards’ you can use for behaviour management, to make a ‘carrot and stick’ approach when combined with the punishments above.

List of ‘rewards’
•    Give the teams not misbehaving extra points
•    Keep students in the same teams for several lessons and give a prize to the month’s winning team
•    Let students who finished the bookwork quickly join the next game as they finish
•    Put stickers on their written work for good work
•    Put stickers on a wall chart for good behaviour/ good work
•    Praise good work
•    Smile
•    Point out the best student or team
•    Give a round of applause
•    Use positive gestures - raised arms for victory, thumbs up etc.
•    Have class monitors and team captains
•    Have badges for the students with best pronunciation, spelling etc. each lesson
•    Have a favourite game to play as a reward for when the class is good
•    Give sweets or small toys
•    Write personal positive comments next to their written work

Again, it is difficult to decide which are the biggest and most effective rewards for each class, but it is important to have at least a vague mental ranking before you go into class. This is because of the most important of the top twelve behaviour management tips below - be consistent. More than anything else, if students start to think that you are showing favouritism or picking on one student or group of students, all your efforts at behaviour management are likely to come to nothing. Below are all the top twelve tips, in no particular order.


Top twelve behaviour management tips
1.    Be consistent
2.    Make sure students (and their parents) know what you consider good and bad behaviour to be
3.    Start from a blank slate
4.    Do yourself what you expect the students to do
5.    Teach good behaviour as a classroom topic
6.    Have a clear set of phrases and gestures for things you want them to do
7.    Play games where good behaviour results naturally in winning the game
8.    Be aware of energy and concentration levels
9.    Make sure the lesson is fun
10.    Bond
11.    Plan your classroom management
12.    Think about why they are misbehaving and change that

Make sure students (and their parents) know what you consider good and bad behaviour to be
There are many ways of achieving this, e.g. making a poster of class rules or a class contract, sending letters out to the parents etc.
Start from a blank slate
It needs to be possible for a student who has got into a pattern of bad behaviour to be able to start again from zero, e.g. only counting bad behaviour in the present class and trying to forget all preconceptions from previous classes, wiping points boards clean once a month etc.
Do yourself what you expect the students to do
If you don’t expect the students to shout, don’t shout to get their attention. If they aren’t allowed to use L1, don’t resort to it yourself however difficult something is to explain. If you expect them to say ‘please’, do the same yourself.
Teach good behaviour as a classroom topic
Lots of the language and topics of bad and good behaviour can be fun and useful in class, from story books about kids who wouldn’t go to bed to games where all the class mime bad behaviour with their fingers or finger puppets and the nominated ‘teacher’ has to tell them, ‘Don’t…’ to stop them all within a time limit.
Have a clear set of phrases and gestures for things you want them to do
For example, putting your finger on your lips for ‘be quiet’ and your hand behind your ear for ‘please speak’. If these are gestures that are used outside the students’ country, all the better. Again, bring this into class as a classroom activity/ game/ topic and be consistent with the gestures you use. Planning the gestures you will use before each class can also be useful.
Play games where good behaviour results naturally in winning the game
If you have a class that never listens, play a game where you whisper some of the words they need to react to. If they are too active, play a standing still game like ‘dead lions’ or ‘musical statues’. In both cases, they will also need a chance afterwards to use their natural noise and energy levels.
Be aware of their energy and concentration levels
However well you use the classroom management skills above, if your class can only usually concentrate for five minutes on one thing, there is little you can do to stretch that past tenminutes. If it’s not working, switch activities and maybe go back to it later. As you get to know a class well, you will be able to sense when they need an active physical activity to tire them out and when they need a quiet sitting down one to cool them down. Timing the bookwork so they are not restless but not too tired is also important.
Make sure the lesson is fun
Easier said than done, I know. Have a look at the Games section for some ideas.
Bond
If the students like, care about and are interested in you and the other students, and feel that you and the other students feel the same way, this is sure to stop them doing something that would disappoint the class. You can form a close connection to your students by learning and using their names and other personal information in class, e.g. their hobbies, birthdays and families. Friendly nicknames can also sometimes help. The students can bond with each other during activities where they work in teams and groups, both cooperatively and against other teams. Having activities where they give and ask for real personal information such as likes and dislikes is also useful, as is giving each student a chance to show off their particular skill in English class - be it music, drawing, football skills or using a yo-yo.
Plan your classroom management
All the things above could be brought into the lesson spontaneously, but are much easier to include if they are in your lesson plan. Having a lesson plan with flexible timings and ordering of activities helps. If classroom management is something you particularly want to work on, try having specific spaces on your lesson plan with this in mind. Examples include ‘classroom language’ that you want to include and/ or teach that day, a ‘seating plan’ to put particular people in particular places, ‘energy burner’ games, ‘cooling down’ activities and ‘reward games’.
Think about why they are misbehaving and change that
The one and only negative thing about having full command of the range of techniques above is that you might be managing the class so well that you are missing a much easier way of getting to the root of the matter. Often simply moving their chairs, turning on more lights and turning down the heating can make a huge difference. Below are some more reasons that should be possible to solve.

Reasons for bad behaviour

Physical and environmental
•    The classroom is too hot or dark (brighter and colder than a normal home helps concentration and learning)
•    Nothing in the classroom marks out where they should be, so they move around a lot.
•    They can’t move and feel restricted
•    People are too close to each other and feel claustrophobic and uncomfortable.
•    They can’t see the board, flashcards etc.
Expectations
•    The students don’t get what they expect in class
•    The students expect the class to be boring or a waste of time, and act accordingly without giving it a chance
Problems from outside the class
•    Diet, e.g. additives in drinks and sweets
•    The lesson before and after, e.g. sports that got them over excited or tired or a test
Personalities
•    Showing off to impress other students
•    It isn’t cool to be good at school
•    Personality clashes between teacher and student(s) or between students
•    They have personal or cultural reasons for reacting badly to one type of teacher, e.g. a female teacher
Understanding
•    What they should be doing isn’t clear
•    They can’t understand the rules of the game
•    They don’t understand why they are playing the game or learning that particular language
Level
•    The task/ language is too difficult/ easy
•    They feel like they have been put in the wrong level class and are resentful or nervous
Energy levels
•    They are over-excited
•    They have too much energy and need to burn it off
•    They are physically and/ or mentally tired
Motivation
•    They have personal or cultural reasons for not liking the English language
•    They are demotivated by losing games all the time
•    They are demotivated by past failure in language classes

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