You’ve heard the saying, “You need a bag of tricks to be a CRT.” It's true. But it doesn’t have to be a suitcase full of worksheets or resources you lug around everywhere. Here are 5 things I believe are essentials for any CRT looking to survive & thrive within a foreign classroom. They might be of use to you this year. 1. A Mobile Phone with a Hotspot Connection I took for granted high speed Wi-Fi internet working at a school. Thrust into the unknown, equipped with my laptop full of good back up plans is a sensational idea, IF you have an internet connection. You cannot count on being able to connect to the internet at school. Come armed with your mobile phone & a hotspot connection. It will save your sanity! The greatest of planned lessons that go horribly wrong can be saved with the following: www. GoNoodle.com (An awesome brain break activity) www.smilingminds.com.au (A great way to calm kids down after lunch) www. ed.ted.com/ (Awesome educational videos on a range of topics. www. getkahoot.com/ (Great if you are in a 1:1 Ipad environment) Not that any qualified teacher would ever want to kill time, but on days where things were headed south for whatever reason, these were great to kill 20 minutes. If you’re starting to struggle with their attention or behaviour, it's great to have some kind of fall back alternative.
4. Wellbeing, Teamwork & Literacy Games If you’ve never heard of Robert Marzarno, he is a guru in education in America and written a heap of books filled with research (and teacher jargon!) . The first one my Leadership Team bought never got opened) In hindsight, that probably wasn’t the smartest move. What is relevant is that Marzano talks about the keys for Engagement within the classroom.
The 4 points that are relevant all can be incorporated into two of my favourite teaching programs of all time. Wilson McKaskills Play is the Way program, which teaches social interaction, communication, Wellbeing, resilience etc in the form of Games WHICH ARE ALL AWESOME! And secondly, literacy Games based on the VCOP & Big Write program. You do not need to know about VCOP to play quality and engaging Literacy Games but it’s awesome nonetheless.
Final Thought: THE MORE GAMES YOU KNOW THAT AREN’T JUST SILENT BALL OR DODGEBALL THE BETTER 5. CONFIDENCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The best piece of advice I’ve ever heard is about how easy it is to make a good impression by portraying and even faking confidence. Imagine you saw some flash new car pull up on the side of a road at a school. The guy who climbs out is wearing an expensive looking suit, designer sunnies and a cool haircut. You might think ‘who is that guy?’ But in truth, this guy is a primary school teacher that has rented the suit and car for a wedding. Neverthless, without that information, you might feel impressed. What’s the point of this story? Appearances matter! And I’m not talking about what you wear. I’m talking about your demenour. If you walk into a school with confidence, smile and look everyone in the eye, you will make a good impression. Just the same as you would a job interview. Even more beneficial, is the chances are the person greeting you will react with a smile and a warm and welcoming demeanour, which will alleviate some of your fears and make you confident. And in a way, each day you turn up to a new school is a potential job interview down the track. How many CRT’s have gotten full time positions at schools after firstly CRT’ing for some time? LOTS. Cons: Walking into a staffroom can be the most intimidating thing on planet earth. Pros: You will be remembered and asked back. The thing to remember is if you’re walking into a school as a CRT, you ARE qualified and capable. If you worry about not knowing enough or are somewhat unprepared, well guess what? I’ve taught for 7 years and most days of working as a CRT had no idea what I was doing! And you know what? I loved every second of it because I had a kit full of these 5 things that could fill an entire day if I needed to. If you want to know more about my thoughts about Casual Relief Teachers, check out this:
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AboutThis blog has been created to share my thoughts on Teaching. It uses my experiences, thoughts and ideas about a whole range of things related to education. Archives
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