This time of year is notorious for bogging teachers down. I remember thinking, middle of October, “I have how many more months of this??!!”
Time seems to stand still mid-fall. The excitement of the new year has worn off considerably, and the anticipation of Thanksgiving or Christmas break looms large.
Yet, this time of year can also be incredibly beautiful. The process of learning and growing is more evident than in August. It’s time to enjoy the process of teaching as you reflect mid-semester. Consider asking yourself, journaling responses, or discussing with your team answers to the following 5 questions:
1. Are all students part of building class identity and culture?
Consider revisiting or implementing the following strategies:
- Weekly classbuilding opportunities (Find Someone Who, Kagan’s Silly Sports & Goofy Games, and team names with Kagan’s “Uncommon Commonalities”)
- Switching up jobs or partnering students to complete a class job together.
- Student Survey to pinpoint class culture growth and holes. Limit to 3-4 questions. Example questions below.
- What excites you about our class?
- If you could change one thing, what would it be?
- Do you feel connected to others in class? If not, what would help?
2. Where have you seen heart growth?
Whatever your teaching context is, you can see and celebrate heart growth! The beauty of teaching in a Christian school is that you can overtly address heart issues with Biblical truths and one-on-one discipleship.
If your teaching context is different, look for ways that students have grown in their compassion for others and ability to restore relationships.
God has generously given us His common grace, so there’s no need to despair or neglect this question in a secular context. By trusting in and relying on the Holy Spirit, we can help all of our students to experience heart growth. This could also be the time that God uses you to speak truth and draw them to Himself.
As teachers, we should also ask this question of ourselves. Where has God grown our hearts to love and care for students in ways that might have been difficult at the beginning of the year?
3. Where have you celebrated progress rather than perfection?
November is the turning point in a student’s perception of themselves as a learner. Use this period to remind and model for students what progress looks like. Find ways to incorporate growth mindset conversations as a way to reflect on learning, especially after assessments. The process of self-reflection is key in building lifelong learners!
4. How have you built family bonds? Where might family bonds be weak and need to be strengthened?
By now you’ve already had family-teacher conferences. Stakeholder bond-building doesn’t stop at conferences, though.
Set aside 1-2 days a week to reach out to families in your class with a positive and personal note. This could be a 1-2 sentence note you email, write on a sticky note or say during a face-to-face interaction before or after school. Enjoy the process of getting to know families by building bonds with them throughout the entire year.
5. Where are students given opportunities to learn alongside others?
Even though the honeymoon phase of a new year is waning, use this mid-year reflection to add a boost to student motivation and excitement in the classroom.
Challenge yourself to introduce and practice Kagan’s Cooperative Learning Structures for at least 2 weeks.
Here are some low-prep, high-yield structures. The key is to explicitly teach, model, and practice one structure at a time. Basic instructions are listed below. For more detailed instructions, see Kagan’s Cooperative Learning book or book a Cooperative Learning training with Branching Out!
- Mix-Pair-Share: Pose a question, say, “Mix,” so students know to mingle around, say, “Pair,” and they partner with the person closest to them and share.
- Quiz-Quiz-Trade: This one is perfect for test or quiz reviews. Have students write a question they think might be on the test or quiz on one side of a notecard. Then, have them write the answer on the back. They partner with someone else, quiz each other, then trade cards. Have students do this with 5 or 6 partners. They should hopefully end up with someone else’s card by the end of the activity.
- Match Mine: This one works well for reviewing shapes in lower-elementary, characteristics of polygons in upper-elementary, or discussing character traits in any grade. Students create a picture with shapes or write the name of a character on their whiteboard. The key is to keep the whiteboard hidden (kind of like Battleship). Then, they give their partner clues. While the other partner listens to clues, they try and replicate what they’re hearing on their whiteboard. Use this link to find an excellent example of “Match Mine” using shapes.
However you find yourself answering these 5 reflection questions, my prayer for you is that God will use them to deepen your love for Him and for where He’s placed you in your career.