A Professional Learning Organization
Remember you can’t pour from an empty cup! Take care of your needs first before you take care of others. If you are overwhelmed and feeling burnt out, your students will start to take notice. In order to give your best in the classroom and make meaning connections with students your health and wellbeing is crucial.
Strategy 2: Make Personalized Connections with Students
Students face many challenges that go beyond the classroom. As educators you are in a unique position to help mitigate those risk-factors by cultivating a supportive classroom environment. Take time to make meaningful connections with students by starting class with a check in or journaling activity, be available when needed, and be intentional. Provide unconditional positive regard to students even on the tough days!
Strategy 3: Cultivate Student Growth
You can help students develop the right mindset that is essential for success. Students enter your classroom with their own beliefs of self-efficacy. They may think they are either “smart” or “not smart” or “good” or “not good” in certain areas. The belief that basic qualities like intelligence and talents can’t be changed is called a fixed mindset. However, you can teach students that their abilities can be developed through commitment and hard work, which is called a growth mindset.
Strategy 4: Give Student Choices
Students learn in various ways, therefore provide them with choices for completing an assignment. Students will have more of an interest in demonstrating what they’ve learned when they have a choice on how to do so. Students will feel more empowered about their own learning.
Strategy 5: Promote Participation with Reinforcement Systems
Provide individual and group incentives that recognize students’ work habits, effort and dedication to encourage class engagement. Students find different types of incentives motivating therefore include students in providing reinforcements ideas.
Strategy 6: Prioritize Parent/Guardian Communication
Make phone calls home to introduce yourself and establish rapport with parents/guardians. Communicate clearly and frequently to discuss students’ areas of concern and improvement. Don’t forget to make positive phone calls to acknowledge the students that are doing well and above and beyond in the classroom.
Strategy 7: Collaborate with School Support
You are not alone! When you have provided multiple interventions for unengaged students and minimal progress is made, seek support from the School Counselor, School Social Worker and other support staff. Focus on a student’s strengths and build on the positive attributes of the student. A systems of support framework will help educators provide academic and behavioral strategies for students with various needs to address the concerns.