Teach100 Mentor


Teach100 Mentors on Required Mental Health Training for Educators

We asked our Teach100 Mentors in a survey if they'd ever had to deal with a mental health issue on the job, and startlingly, every responder answered "Yes."

With that in mind, it's easy to understand the logic behind a new bill passed in Montana recommending school employees (not just teachers) receive mental health and/or suicide awareness training.

This legislation is, for now, just in Montana, but similar laws already exist for teachers in Tennessee and other states, requiring the training in order for teachers to stay licensed. And it's no wonder there's concern around this issue: nearly all responders to our survey reported encountering…

Finding Your Niche: Teach100 Mentors Talk Transitions

Most teachers have asked their students at one point, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" But do they ever ask themselves the same question?

The reality for most of those working in education is that finding your niche--your subject, grade level, specialty, etc--is a gradual process. That's probably why most of our Teach100 mentors (58% of those who took our most recent survey) reported having worked four or more jobs in education. Sometimes it takes some trial and error to discover what you like, what you're good at, and what type of environment you want to do your job in.

With that in mind, we asked our Teach100 Mentors

Standardized Assessment: Perspectives and Solutions

Despite educators’ growing concerns, standardized testing is not going anywhere — at least not any time soon. Valerie Strauss, a writer for The Washington Post, outlined a few of these reasons in her recent article, citing money as a main reason. The standardized testing movement is a lucrative business, and the people who determine the direction of education reform are the people who are funding education reform.

Our culture’s focus on standardized testing has led to our classroom’s focus on “teaching to the test,” an understanding that teachers’ lessons and curricula should be targeted toward state standards and test preparation. The implementation of the Common Core Standards is another reason for this focus on standardization. Adopted nationwide (with some exceptions), the Common Core’s main goal is to mea…

Tools and Strategies for Classroom Organization

For teachers, organizing lesson plans can be just as challenging as drafting them. And when it comes to actually keeping a lesson on track (by starting and ending activities on time, regaining control of an unruly classroom or getting kids to turn in assignments the next day), a whole other set of challenges presents itself.

Teaching is so much more than helping kids learn: It’s also being your own administrative assistant, a disciplinarian, a scheduler and, at times, a referee.

We asked our Teach100 Mentors about their greatest challenges with classroom management, and what tools they use to organize their lesson plans and classroom resources.

 

 

What is your s…

6 Ways to Get (and Keep) Students’ Attention

Whether you teach kindergartners or college kids, regaining control of a noisy or distracted classroom can be challenging. We asked our Teach100 Mentors how they capture students’ attention.

What is your favorite method, tool or strategy for getting your classroom’s attention?
  • Use a special sound.

“Chimes. It is a pleasant, attractive sound that is not aggressive.” – Mary Tedrow, Walking to School

“I use a chime (Responsive Classroom) or a rhythmic clap. Both methods work best for me because they are auditory. The kids hear it and respond by putting their hands …

10 Reasons to Blog as Professional Development

Professional development might mean a number of things to teachers — including participating in district meetings, attending a few conferences, earning a masters’ degree or networking with other education professionals on social media. These are all great options. However, an often overlooked way to expand and develop your teaching skills may be free, accessible to everyone, and right under your nose: starting a blog.

Blogging may require a bit more effort than other popular forms of professional development, but once you get the ball rolling, you may find blogging to be a very rewarding practice that helps build your career.

Our Teach100 bloggers speak out about the top 10 reasons to create and maintain a blog:


  • Think and write more clearly
    • …

 

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