Behind the Blog

Behind the Blog
My name is Cindy Kruse and I've been learning from elementary students for the past 16 years. I enjoy discovering new technology and implementing it in the classroom, absolutely love literacy, and am passionate about Responsive Classroom. I am constantly striving to learn new and innovative ways to teach students in order to provide authentic, interesting, and joyful classrooms.

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Tuesday, March 1, 2011

What I Wish I Knew...

Today, I posted a response to a question on another blog: "What do you wish you knew when you first started teaching?" I quickly wrote a few lines, then as usual, I began to really contemplate this question. I thought it would be fun to answer alphabetically:

A - Always take the time to reflect on your day with improvement in mind.
B - Birthday cluster - graphing the students in your classroom is truly informative.
C - Caring for others must be intentionally taught in classrooms.
D -
Don't be afraid to admit you don't know it all.
E - Everyone needs to feel a sense of belonging, significance, and fun!
F - Find the best teacher in the school - then watch them in action.
G - Greeting each student every morning is a simple way to build relationships.
H - Have high expectations and help your students meet them.
I - Ignore the "Negative Nancy's" - they are always on the look out for newbies.
J- Just breathe - realize that there will always be something left undone.
K - Know and apply the developmental characteristics of children to your teaching.
L - Learning happens best when you build a sense of community.
M - Model everything you can - the time will come back four fold!
N - Never use sarcasm with students.
O - Only have students sitting 2 x's the number of minutes equal to their age. Use energizers.
P - Praise such as "Good Job" is empty - be specific when telling kids what you notice.
Q - Quiet time after lunch - it just makes sense.
R - Relationships are important. Take time to invest in the lives of students & colleagues.
S - Sometimes you will make mistakes, admit it and move on.
T - Talk less and listen more - you can learn a lot from kids.
U - Understand the needs of your students - emotionally, physically, and academically.
V - Very engaging lessons result in fewer behavior problems.
W - Words are one of the most important tools that a teacher has!
X - Xeric - characteristic of too many learning environments, water your classroom with engaging activities that allow students to collaborate, opportunities for student choices and relevant, authentic learning!
Y - You can make a difference in the life of every child that you teach (emphasize a different word each time you say this sentence - amazing isn't it?)
Z - Zero in on the most important things - everyone is important and anything is possible!

What do you wish you knew when you first started teaching?

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