75 Ways to Improve your teaching without really trying
We’ve put together a list of the best ways you can improve your day to day teaching and overall mindset. Our aim is to make learning for students as easy as possible, whilst also making it as informative as possible along the way. Teachers are the most influential figures in a child’s academic life, so use this advantage and have a positive impact.
1) Meet and greet your students at the start of every lesson
2) Offer jobs to the students, such as handing out worksheets, glue, etc
3) Help students to plan and accomplish their personal goals
4) Make yourself available to students
5) Incorporate online classroom games such as Kahoot
6) Ask for feedback from the students at the end of each lesson
7) E-mail parents/guardians with praise to the student
8) Talk about topics that interest your class
9) Give students time to reflect on goals and progress
10) Help develop the student’s technology skills by incorporating technology with your teaching
11) Reward your students after exams with a film, food & drink
12) Set class goals and monitor progress
13) Allow time for one-on-ones, where you and your students can discuss their progress with their goals
14) Establish routines for your class
15) Allow students to express their creativity with projects
16) Allow students time to read their own books
17) Hold a short class where students teach the rest of the class about a topic they’re an expert on
18) Establish different groups/teams within the class so students feel a part of a group
19) Be competitive in inter-class competitions
20) Normalise and celebrate differences among your students
21) Have a motivational quote on the wall. This can be changed each week
22) Have a ‘Word of the Week’ where there is an unfamiliar and unusual word and its definition written on the wall. Reward students who use the word in their writing and speaking
23) Carry spare face masks for students who may forget theirs
24) Make sure students are on task during online learning
25) Ask students to repeat important information back to you
26) Never mark books or exams the night before hand-out. Proceed to mark 4-6 books every day, instead of cramming all 30 in one night
27) Show pupils you care
28) Teach the importance of mental health
29) Make sure students tidy up after themselves at the end of the day
30) Teach with a smile
31) Encourage art within the classroom – Some students express themselves better with art!
32) Be in the classroom before your students arrive
33) Always call out bad behaviour. If you ignore it, you condone it
34) Play music whilst the students work
35) Make your academic and behaviour expectations clear
36) Incorporate a lot of non-verbal communication such as the trusty thumbs up
37) Teach study skills not just in exam season, but all year round
38) End and send your students at the end of every lesson
39) Never be too short on gluesticks, rubbers, etc
40) Communicate with the cover teachers that cover the lessons you cannot attend
41) Be interested in the class’s well-being
42) Encourage microphones and cameras to be on during online learning
43) Regularly assign interesting projects to the students to help them work at home
44) Assign tasks to students that require them to do research
45) Plan your lessons
46) Share test scores with the students’ parents/guardians
47) Encourage sport and exercise (NOT in the classroom)
48) Take them outside for some fresh air and to loosen up
49) Help develop the student’s teamwork skills by incorporating group work with your teaching
50) Let students decide how they want to learn something, whether it’s on the laptop or on paper. Remember, every student doesn’t have the same preferred learning style as each other
51) Encourage a growth mindset to the students
52) Encourage willingness to take on new challenges
53) Be flexible. Be able to teach in many different ways, and technology development over the years has allowed us to do so
54) Share personal experiences so they get to know you more
55) Allow them to share their personal experiences with you
56) Ask them about their aspirations
57) Use various different types of technology (Laptops, tablets, smartphones)
58) Build the student’s confidence by praising them
59) Discover new things together. This includes watching videos or reading informational texts
60) Watch motivational videos
61) Communicate with colleagues. Discuss good practices and learning techniques
62) Use props to teach certain topics. This might be more helpful than just saying it
63) Have a more positive tone when teaching. Students tend to listen more
64) Allow the students to have breaks after a long period of writing and learning
65) Take a break yourself. Teaching can be exhausting at times so breaks are super important
66) Display students’ work to the rest of the class. This will help set a good model for the other students, and also build confidence in the student whose work you’re presenting
67) Let the students take over
68) Dress up
69) Dress down
70) Incorporate one of your hobbies into teaching
71) Let the students regularly have a say in group decisions
72) Take the students on a study retreat
73) Pump some energy into the first and last 5 minutes of every lesson
74) Create a competition and buy a reasonably decent prize
75) And finally, have fun. Students hate boring lessons, do by making your lessons fun, students will look forward to coming to them