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Hoser
Joined: 19 Mar 2005
Posts: 694
Location: Toronto, Canada
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 Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2008 5:57 am Post subject: First day teaching tips? |
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| Wednesday will be my first day in a high/jr high classroom. I will be teaching classes of 2nd and 3rd year jr high students (small classes, 20 students each). I'd appreciate any helpful tips on how to get the school year off on the right foot. Thanks. |
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Kootvela
Joined: 22 Oct 2007
Posts: 513
Location: Lithuania
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| Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2008 8:31 am Post subject: |
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| I'm not really sure how old your students are. I usually had them write me a letter during their first lesson, including info about them, their hobbies, they could draw something. I would gain some useful information about my students. And I wouldn't recommend starting the books, unless you have a syllabus to chase. For the first lesson we would play language games and spend time getting to know each other better (unless they already do!). My 2 cents. |
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ghostrider
Joined: 30 May 2006
Posts: 147
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| Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2008 11:47 am Post subject: |
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Are you an ALT or the main teacher?
I plan on doing something like kootvela said, plus go over common phrases to use, what to do when I say certain things (like "Let's work in pairs"/"...groups"), procedures (what to do and say when I enter class and when class ends, to raise hands to answer, etc.), grading system, test dates. If you're an ALT, just discuss these things with each JTE. Some won't be necessary. Often, but not always, you'll be in a 60/40, 70/30 relationship, with them dominating. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2008 12:41 pm Post subject: |
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The students will be just as nervous to meet you as vice versa. First rule: relax.
Second rule: find out from the other teachers what the classes are like.
JHS/SHS kids take English because they have to. Many/Most don't like it. They technically need English only to pass college entrance exams, and the grammar is taught by the JTEs. So, relax and enjoy the ride.
First day, show pictures of where you live. Ask them what they know of it. Use a map. Make groups think of questions to ask you. For the HS kids, teach them the RIGHT way to introduce themselves (they get this every year, so they are bored with it) and how to ask questions that will help themselves.
Show the VideoJug clip on "how to give a great handshake" and narrate it yourself. Make them practice. Go around and monitor. Enjoy. |
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Kootvela
Joined: 22 Oct 2007
Posts: 513
Location: Lithuania
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| Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2008 5:07 pm Post subject: |
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| ghostrider wrote: |
Are you an ALT or the main teacher?
I plan on doing something like kootvela said, plus go over common phrases to use, what to do when I say certain things (like "Let's work in pairs"/"...groups"), procedures (what to do and say when I enter class and when class ends, to raise hands to answer, etc.), grading system, test dates. If you're an ALT, just discuss these things with each JTE. Some won't be necessary. Often, but not always, you'll be in a 60/40, 70/30 relationship, with them dominating. |
That's very right, teach them some classroom language and do explain the system how things work. Also, write a list of rules: for students and for you. For example, 'we will keep mobile phones off in the lesson or else...' and things like that. Keep it on the wall to refer to and that does help to maintain the discipline. |
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Hoser
Joined: 19 Mar 2005
Posts: 694
Location: Toronto, Canada
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| Posted: Mon Apr 07, 2008 1:20 pm Post subject: |
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What sort of attitude do you go in with on the first day? I don't want to be Mr Strict but at the same time I don't want the kids to think that I'm a pushover and try to take advantage of that.
God the textbook pretty much sucks-for the teachers anyways. I'm browsing through the lessons and it's a little hard for me to decipher what sort of part of speech I'm supposed to be teaching-the grammar explanations are all in Japanese! It would help if there was at least a single word such as "modals" or "gerunds" or "conditional" to help clue the teacher in a little.  |
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ripslyme
Joined: 29 Jan 2005
Posts: 481
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Mon Apr 07, 2008 6:43 pm Post subject: |
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| Hoser wrote: |
What sort of attitude do you go in with on the first day? I don't want to be Mr Strict but at the same time I don't want the kids to think that I'm a pushover and try to take advantage of that.
God the textbook pretty much sucks-for the teachers anyways. I'm browsing through the lessons and it's a little hard for me to decipher what sort of part of speech I'm supposed to be teaching-the grammar explanations are all in Japanese! It would help if there was at least a single word such as "modals" or "gerunds" or "conditional" to help clue the teacher in a little.
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I don't go in as super-happy-fun-genki-dancing-english-monkey-foreigner, but I do try to keep it somewhat light. Compared to the rest of their classes, your class is going to be one of the high points of their day (week). Well, at least it should be.
At JHS/HS, I do a short self-intro, make a game out of it, and go over discipline rules. To reinforce discipline, we also make a game out of it. For example, when I raise my hand with 3 fingers in the air, the class does "Stop. Look. Listen.". The first team with all kids doing it gets a point.
The textbook, yes they're all quite terrible throughout Japan. Wait until you get into the classroom and see the Japanese style of teaching English.  |
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Sweetsee
Joined: 11 Jun 2004
Posts: 2302
Location: ) is everything
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| Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 11:17 am Post subject: |
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| Could you tell me some of the rules you go over and how you do that? |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 12:14 pm Post subject: |
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Sweetsee,
Haven't you been doing this for about 16 years now? |
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BobbyBan
Joined: 05 Feb 2008
Posts: 201
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| Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 2:06 pm Post subject: |
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I suppose this kind of thing will vary but I have small classes and I teach without a Japanese teacher. Usually, I will make sure that the ground rules are known from the beginning. It helps to be a little authoritarian at first so that the students know where the boundaries are. You can ease up a little afterwards.
If the classroom layout permits you may want to spot the troublemakers early on and make sure that they are separated from each other. |
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Sweetsee
Joined: 11 Jun 2004
Posts: 2302
Location: ) is everything
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| Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 11:02 pm Post subject: |
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More than that, Glenski. So what? I am interested to know what rules others use in high school classrooms and how they go over them on the first day.
Thanks in advance.
Enjoy,
s |
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ripslyme
Joined: 29 Jan 2005
Posts: 481
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 12:44 am Post subject: |
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| Sweetsee wrote: |
| Could you tell me some of the rules you go over and how you do that? |
It really depends on the school. At the elementary school I currently work at I only have two:
1.) the Stop-Look-Listen mentioned earlier and
2.) English please. Sometimes a kid will slip and answer in Japanese, I let them finish and then ask for it in English. The kids are really good about policing themselves though. Once the rule is established and understood, if a kid answers in Japanese, they'll actually scold each other with "NO JAPANESE!"
Similarly, at some of the more rough and tumble schools I found that having fewer rules worked better. English is not high up on their list of priorities, so you really have to just roll with it. If the kids were sleeping in class, at least they weren't disturbing others. Same with reading manga, and playing with their mobile phones.
At the higher level schools, I still let them sleep. However, for the manga/mobile phones I reminded them in the beginning of class to put these items away and have their phones in "manner mode". If they still used the items, I took them away and the students could get them back from me at the end of the day. |
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Sweetsee
Joined: 11 Jun 2004
Posts: 2302
Location: ) is everything
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| Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 2:08 am Post subject: |
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| Thanks, Rip. I appreciate that. |
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BobbyBan
Joined: 05 Feb 2008
Posts: 201
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| Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 3:09 pm Post subject: |
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Teaching a bit of classroom English never goes astray.
"How do you say....in English?"
etc... |
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