1. Set a traffic light rule
The signals everybody's known since they were kids. In any region of the world, in any school, any student will be able to explain this basic principle of PFA. And it should be used in class! Traffic lights are a great idea for establishing discipline in the classroom. Red light means that only the teacher speaks or the individual task is being done. Yellow light means communication and answers one at a time (and the teacher also has no right to interrupt the student!), green light means real freedom of communication for a couple or team. After 5-6 lessons, the pupils react to the teacher's words several times faster, if we do not forget about the traffic light itself.
2. Take a written consent
Spend one lesson on this: agree with the children on how they will be more comfortable working. Make a list of rules, sign everything and hang it at the entrance to the office. It will be them and your comfort zone. Students quickly count your message: it is always safe in your office.
Remember that you must not break the rules. Agree not to shout or insult - do as you please
Write in the rules of punishment for violation. One day I canceled the lesson because I was not well prepared for it (the children immediately understood me because my homework had done everything). And for 40 minutes they had fun in class.
3. Give examples of life
In 2019, it is not enough to teach children to obey orders and to carry out instructions without complaining. The school has to learn, to set goals in life, to teach reflection. All this seems unnecessary to many teachers, but this is how children can understand why they need school. After all, for any subject and any topic you can find a clear and simple example from the life of students. "How are you going to win in Counter-Strike if you can't find weaknesses in your opponent's strategy? Let's find out how Napoleon did it. And this is just the most obvious banality.
Many of the actions in the classroom are already working on some skills, just the process must be meaningful. There is a list of universal learning activities - this is the simplest scheme of literate learning outcomes.
When announcing the topic of the lesson, ask the students what they need to do to master it. At the end of the lesson, reflexive the lesson, ask for a reminder of what you did and whether you achieved your goals. Simple tools that do not require time to implement. But by turning them into a system, you are taking school education to a qualitatively different level.
How to turn any lesson into an interesting one
No reservations: any lesson with a 100% guarantee can be interesting! The fact is that this concept for a child consists of many trifles. They can easily be provided by the teacher.
4. Make the lessons comfortable
Children should never be insulted or humiliated. It is necessary to respect the personal space of the pupil unequivocally. A teacher shall be obliged to leave all his difficulties, personal emotions, anger and sadness outside the classroom, or to confess it honestly to pupils and postpone the lesson until better times. He should be a person who knows how to empathize and understand the feelings of others.
5. Create an area of happiness in the classroom
Class is the area of positive, light, fun. Make every effort to create such an atmosphere, then students will want to come to you. They will know that you can always find support, that they will always believe that there is no place for aggression and anger in your classroom.
Encourage even small successes, including your own. Have you managed to beat the computer in chess at a complex level? Tell the children! Yesterday we had a great time in a cafe with friends - keep this smile and feelings for children. They will see you as an example and try to match your openness, sincerity, and friendliness.
6. Use different formats
Work should not be a duty, and homework should not be turned into a banal "jagged paragraph". The lesson should be diverse: let the students look for answers to your questions in videos, the Internet, texts, pictures. Try to alternate forms of work: Battle, round table, discussion, field of miracles, essay, blended learning - you can find a lot of chips on the Internet.
7. Consider your homework
Homework is the scourge of modern school. They kill the desire to learn from most students. Therefore, instead of the banal reading of the novel offer children to draw a geographical map: where was the main character, with whom he talked. Instead of retelling a paragraph about an ancient man, suggest that you come up with a fairy tale about him.
Put "five" if the basic conditions are met ("tools, lifestyle, art"). Write one homework assignment for several subjects, make the criteria for checking clear to the students. This way, you will teach children to take the educational process seriously, not as a duty.
8. Start with a simple
The first and most important thing is that no one says that all the lessons should be completely reworked right now. I started this text by thinking that most of the ideas (like the same traffic light) can be implemented tomorrow without much effort if you just want to try it.
9. Look for support
We need to look for it from colleagues at school, from parents, from the administration. I think if you give serious arguments to each side, then gradually you will have supporters. Take the first step, break this wall, fight with the system, do not let the scarcity prevail over the common sense ideas.
10. Think long term
Every change is a preparation for the future. You will be able to use most of the work on the second, third and even fourth circle.