Posts by techsupport
Citing Sources
Once students reach high school, they will be writing more papers than in their previous grades. Be certain that your high school students are familiar with the three most common ways of citing sources when writing papers. Parenthetical citations. Key information that identifies the source is provided in parentheses after the cited information. For a…
Read MoreOvercoming Study Barriers
Many students avoid studying because of barriers they place upon themselves. These barriers can be easily overcome. Teach your students to recognize these barriers and how to overcome them. Hungry. Studying takes energy. A student will not have much energy if he or she is experiencing a low blood sugar level. Tell your students to have a…
Read MoreTypes of Sentences
Students should know that when writing, the type of sentence they use at a given place must be tied to the purpose of the sentence. Review these four types of sentences and the purpose of each with your students. 1. Use a declarative sentence to make a statement or express an opinion. End this type of sentence with a period.…
Read MoreImproving Writing
Here are some things you can do to improve your students’ writing skills. Encourage your students to use a dictionary and thesaurus when writing. Have these available for students to use. Point out students’ errors in written work. Have your students make the corrections themselves, providing any guidance needed. Correct errors in students’ spoken language.…
Read MoreClass Routine
Students like and need consistency. You can provide consistency by establishing a routine for your classes. By sticking to the routine your students will be comfortable in knowing what to expect throughout the class. Your class routine should have a beginning, a middle, and an end. A good way to begin your class is to…
Read MoreStudent Responsibilities
Adults recognize that they have many responsibilities. Students don`t always realize that they too have responsibilities. Make certain that your students realize that they have the following responsibilities. Attend class regularly and punctually. Complete assignments. Perform assigned tasks to the best of their ability. Demonstrate appropriate work habits. Work productively. Stay on task.
Read MoreWeekly Progress Report
Report cards are a valuable means of providing feedback to both students and their parents. For some students, it is important to provide formal feedback on a more frequent basis (i.e., weekly). Weekly Progress Reports can meet this need. Grades for the week should be provided for effort, achievement, and behavior. The student is required to…
Read MorePromoting Student Focus
Students can lose their focus for several reasons. They may lose their focus because they find the work they are doing boring. They may lose their focus because of emotional distractions such as problems at home. Or, they may lose their focus because they are trying to do too many things as once (i.e., multitasking). If…
Read MoreAnimal Differences
Many life forms seem similar, but differ in some way. Have your students use reference sources to identify a difference between each of the following pairs of animals. Alligator – Crocodile. (The head of an alligator is shorter and flatter than the head of a crocodile.) Turtle – Tortoise. (A turtle can live in the…
Read MoreGood Writing Position
Whether your students are writing in print or cursive (a disappearing form), they can improve the legibility of their writing by maintaining a good writing position. Writing in a good position promotes proper size, formation, and spacing of letters
Read MoreGraphic Organizers
Graphic organizers are visual representations of material. Using graphic organizers can help students decode, process, understand, and remember information. They can be used by students at almost any level. Encourage your students to use graphic organizers to: take notes from readings and class. compare and contrast things. predict outcomes. describe people, places, events, and objects.…
Read MoreEnding a Class
Students tend to get restless toward the end of a class session. This is especially true in the upper grades where students start to anticipate the bell that sounds the end of a class. Here is a productive way to curb this restlessness. Several minutes before a class is scheduled to end, have your students write…
Read MoreWaiting for a Response
Class discussion is a valuable teaching and learning technique. One of the most vexing problems that can occur when using this technique is the failure of students to respond. It takes resolve to accept periods of silence. Most experts recommend waiting for about 10 seconds before jumping in yourself. However, research shows that teachers typically wait just…
Read MoreGrading
One thing that has not changed through the years is students` concern about grades. If anything, it seems that students are more concerned about grades than ever. Teachers report that students` complaints about grades is one of the negatives about teaching. Here are some ideas for minimizing students` complaints about their grades. Clearly state the basis for…
Read MoreRule Cards
Rule cards can be a very useful study aid for students in any grade. They can be used in any subject. A rule card simply consists of a rule on the front side and one or two examples of the rule on the back. Students can add examples throughout the school year. By carrying the…
Read MoreSustained Silent Reading
Sustained Silent Reading is an independent reading technique that has been around since 1970. Students are provided with a block of time during the day during which they read high quality literature that has been approved by their teacher. What is novel about this technique is that during this time teachers and staff also read. There are no required…
Read More