I remember that, when I was a new teacher, some of my colleagues told me that teachers shouldn't smile until Christmas! I tried to follow that, but I failed! I realized that when I am so serious, it actually hurts my own health because I am so tense all the time. When I go home, my muscles are very tense and my neck hurts. Because of this, I changed the way I teach.
I understand the philosophy behind it. You have to be firm as a teacher so the students won't take advantage of you and they will listen and follow directions. That is correct. But this also forgets that teachers should, first of all, be loving. A teacher who is both loving and firm is very powerful. I feel that the longer I teach, the harder it is for me to be sensitive to the students' needs. This is mostly because I think I know them already and stop paying attention to their thoughts and needs. This hurts the relationship with my students. They need my attention all of the time.
So I then ask, "How do I be less serious?" I think there are several ways.
First, we should not always act like a supervisor or police officer who is always expecting something bad to happen.
Second, we can joke around with students and let them know we are are human. Every student likes teachers who have a sense of humor.
Third, we can design fun activities, such as brain teasers, for students to loosen them up and encourage them to think outside the box. Brain teasers allow students to think in a non-traditional way. I designed a Word Puzzles and Brain Teasers Game for my students at the beginning of the school year to make the class more fun and help them relax.
I am very excited to do this game with my students soon. I will see my lovely students in two days!
I understand the philosophy behind it. You have to be firm as a teacher so the students won't take advantage of you and they will listen and follow directions. That is correct. But this also forgets that teachers should, first of all, be loving. A teacher who is both loving and firm is very powerful. I feel that the longer I teach, the harder it is for me to be sensitive to the students' needs. This is mostly because I think I know them already and stop paying attention to their thoughts and needs. This hurts the relationship with my students. They need my attention all of the time.
So I then ask, "How do I be less serious?" I think there are several ways.
First, we should not always act like a supervisor or police officer who is always expecting something bad to happen.
Second, we can joke around with students and let them know we are are human. Every student likes teachers who have a sense of humor.
Third, we can design fun activities, such as brain teasers, for students to loosen them up and encourage them to think outside the box. Brain teasers allow students to think in a non-traditional way. I designed a Word Puzzles and Brain Teasers Game for my students at the beginning of the school year to make the class more fun and help them relax.
I am very excited to do this game with my students soon. I will see my lovely students in two days!