Friday, March 16, 2007
Lazyness... or good teaching practice?
I really like it when the kids do the bulk of the work in class. Yesterday was the first time I had to write a whole bunch of things up on the board for them to copy into their notebooks, and it kind of sucked. Not only is my handwriting terrible (I think I'll be using the overhead or PowerPoint in my classroom), but it seems a little boring for the kids, too. Obviously, sometimes you just need to tell them some things and get on with it (in this case, properties characteristic of igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks), and the kids seem a bit too young (and unpracticed) to just take notes as I talk about a subject, but this is probably my least favorite teaching strategy so far. Maybe it's just that I'm lazy, but I'd rather they figure things out on their own, with me supervising and answering questions.
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5 comments:
Yes, the theory part can be very tedious. My kidlets are only in primary (year 2-3) and it's very painful some days to have them copy notes. In the same breath, I hate giving them handouts too.. It's a thin line to balance out.
I still think that hands-on is the best way to go, even when I was in high school I always preferred the lessons you could see, touch or watch to the pages of notes.
I envy your patience for teaching older kids!
Oh, NOW I read they're sixth graders! Still a heck of a lot older than my kiddies.. but not as old as I was thinking! (For some reason, I imagined you as a high school teacher, lol!)
I'm currently teaching 6th graders, but that is because I don't get any choice in the matter at the moment. I'd prefer high schoolers (expecially given my previous experiences with middle schoolers), but I've got a good class, so I don't mind.
no, not laziness. it is good practice to involve the kids directly in the lessons, especially at younger ages. but even my high school juniors get antsy if they have to sit still for too long. we all prefer if we can discuss things together as a class, rather than a simple "i talk, they take notes" lesson.
Yeah, it seems like my kids really like asking questions. They've definitely asked a few that I've had to look up and get back to them the next day.
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