As I’ve shared before, relationships are not the point of a teacher’s work, but they are one of teaching’s most fundamental currencies and most gratifying rewards. With more American schools than ever before launching into all-online starts, many teachers are concerned with just how to build strong relationships with students from afar. The good news […]
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How to Use Mechanics Instruction that Sticks When Teaching Remotely: Thoughts from the Author, Doug Stark
As we approach the new school year, I have been thinking about how different things might be in the time of COVID-19. Will I be face-to-face with students in the classroom? If so, what will that look like? Will students have to sit six feet apart at all times? How are cooperative groups going to […]
How to Humanize Your Classroom or School When You’re Teaching from a Distance: Principles and Practices
The thing I miss most about the way school was before COVID is the human-ness of it all. Even though I’m pretty introverted, I miss the sounds of voices in the hallways, the smiles and waves and hellos and laughs and handshakes (remember those?). I miss the moments of electricity when you connect a young […]
How to Train Your Will to Want to Teach Again, Despite Everything: Principles and a Practice
You ever get those moments when it’s Summer 2020 and you kind of don’t want to teach anymore? Like you used to love teaching, be all about teaching, but then you experienced four months of turmoil and uncertainty and change and toxicity and pain and inequity and inefficiency and you’re like, “You know, I’m good. […]
How to Build Strong Relationships with Students if You’re Starting the Year Online: Principles and Practices
So you’re starting the school year as a distance educator and you have no idea how to build strong relationships with students you’ve never met in person. Before the hyperventilation kicks in, let’s center on a few grounding principles. Grounding Principle 1: You know things that work for building relationships in normal circumstances. First, you […]