Cheers

cheerscheers (click here for music)

I was in Boston last week and I went to Cheers. One of the teachers who went along had absolutely no idea what it meant – so I know I’m dating myself here. But really, don’t we all want to go to a place where everybody knows your name? I do remember some days when I was teaching kindergarten that by the end of the day, I didn’t want to hear my name one more time!

Earlier this week, I looked in on a lesson with a guest teacher. One of the things we are working on is providing multiple opportunities for students to respond. I became aware of how difficult it is to increase opportunities to respond, thereby increasing student engagement, thereby increasing learning (you get the picture) when you don’t know the students’ names.

Here are some simple things teachers can do to help out their guest teacher:

  • create table tents with student names
  • have some label sheets with student names pre-printed
  • use the good old cup of sticks with student names (No Hands Rule)

This could do a lot to level the playing field for the guest teacher and it can do a lot for students who really do want to hear their name.

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2 Responses to Cheers

  1. Mary Lee Olson says:

    I loved this article! As a guest teacher another method I use is to make a seating chart as soon as I get to the classroom. That way it is easier for me to identify the kiddos spots and quicker for me to remember their names.

  2. Lynn Barnes-Schuster says:

    What a talented little gal you are! You just continue to amaze me. Love ya!

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