Calm is Strength, Upset is Weakness By: Dr. Fred Jones's

Can your students tell whether you are calm, upset, tired, or impatient? They read you like a book! They know even without you speaking, because they read your body language.

Do your students know how to push your buttons? Do they like to be in control? Do they want their own way?

How can kids tell when they are in control? Consider the following questions:
When you are calm, who is controlling your mind and body?
When you are upset, who is controlling your mind and body?

When you are calm, you can think. You can use all your intelligence and experience and all your social skills to deal with a situation. When you are upset, you react. Instead of thinking, you have a fight-flight reflex.

Have you ever said something in the heat of the moment that you wish you could take back? Thinking comes later. When you are calm -- when you have time to think -- you can manage a situation.

Classroom management requires calm. You never will be able to manage another person's behavior until you can manage your own.

Learning Environment

Do teachers create a learning environment where all students benefit from a variety of learning approaches, including individual and small group work in corners or learning centers, seated on the floor, or outdoors?

Quote of the day

"There are times when what makes us most effective as teachers and as mentors is putting things in context and offering a sense of perspective for our students -- as well as putting things in context and offering perspective about our students."