Read more about each tip — all from veteran teacher @pdninja.bsky.social — here: https://edut.to/3Qz3WYf

My first Edutopia article has been published! www.edutopia.org/article/tips...

When I was the sole adult supervising 145 fourth graders for cafeteria duty, I knew I had to think of something good to keep everything running smoothly. Here's how I survived.

Pop-up challenges.

Halfway through the lunch period, I would circulate around the room and ask each table if they(1/7)

Parent communication tip of the day: When in doubt, don’t delay.

When you need to contact a parent with negative information, your initial instinct may be to postpone it to avoid a negative interaction. If you do that, however, that may very well exacerbate the situation. (1/3) #EduSky

They now will be upset at both the content of the message and the lack of urgency in transmitting it to them.

A simple, “I knew you would want to know this as soon as possible, and I really appreciate you taking my call,” sends the parent a dual message. (2/3) #EduSky

You 1. Recognize that they want to be kept informed, and 2. Acknowledge that they are taking the time from their busy day to speak with you and that you appreciate their partnership in educating their child. (3/3) #EduSky

Parent Collaboration Tip:

When communicating with a parent, balance is crucial.

It could be a character trait, an act of kindness from last week, or the effort shown on a challenging task, but every student has something positive that a parent not only wants to hear, but needs to hear. (1/3)

What do you look for when doling out praise to students? If praise results only from a narrow list of traditional achievements, such as being on the honor roll or scoring the highest in the class on a quiz, who may you be missing? One morning after I chaperoned a dance, I took a student aside (⅓)

Building student - teacher relationships is more than implementing a SEL lesson. It is looking for authentic opportunities to share positive information that acknowledges a student for being themselves.

When you need to address a student during hall duty, the best opening line is “Hi, excuse me, could you do me a favor?” Why does this work?

1. It is not threatening. 2. You are being polite. 3. The student doesn’t know what you are going to ask. (1/3)

UDL tip of the day: normalize breaks in the middle of instruction. For a mandatory MS reading program one summer, we did a mid-morning magazine break. Break expectations were outlined and happily adhered to. Students got to chat, move around, and were energized to go for the rest of the day.

Why do we reduce the workload for the day or two leading up to holiday breaks, but we don’t often do the same thing when students return from these breaks? Student stress is often higher returning from break, due to factors such as lack of sleep, parent demands during a busy holiday (1/3)

Why do we reduce the workload for the day or two leading up to holiday breaks, but we don’t often do the same thing when students return from these breaks? Student stress is often higher returning from break, due to factors such as lack of sleep, parent demands during a busy holiday (1/3)

Parent communication tip of the day: When in doubt, don’t delay.

When you need to contact a parent with negative information, your initial instinct may be to postpone it to avoid a negative interaction. If you do that, however, that may very well exacerbate the situation. (1/3) #EduSky