Like Luther, many teachers could have new students in their classes in the spring semester. Luther launches these courses with value adjustment activities and recordings, just as he would do at the beginning of the year, “to make sure that we are building the community intentionally in the second half in the same way as we did in the First semester, “he said.
The second half brings many potential challenges to the regular programming of teachers due to standardized tests, graduation and professional exhaustion events. To move forward, Luther relies on technical sheets containing information on the performance and skills of students, which helps him to anticipate their forces and areas of growth. His students also keep an eye on their own progress by having a continuous newspaper of reflections they write after each evaluation.
Students answer questions like: How can I feel my process? What do my results feel?
This metacognitive practice offers students the opportunity to appropriate their own learning and buy time for teachers; Student self-reflection means that they meet Luther halfway, so not all observations and strategies are the teacher.
“Not only am I aware of the way students consider themselves learners entering the second half of the half, but they can also follow their progress,” said Luther.
Dealing with interruptions
“With a lot of interruptions for (evaluations), SAT / PSAT tests and breaks, it is much more difficult to embark on” a flow “”, according to Erin Connors, a teacher of American history and high school sciences.
The preparation of students for standardized tests eats a lot of precious teaching time. Less time means reducing flexibility to meet different needs for students and expand learning gaps, said Luther. And although differentiated teaching practices become the ordeal in all the education from kindergarten to 12th year, monitoring an effective personalized learning approach may seem more and more out of reach as the ‘School year is coming to an end.
According to Luther, he is tempting to want to run out in recent weeks and school months.
“You have so many things … It may seem almost that you try to keep the train on the tracks in class, and all these tracks are missing,” he said.
To fight against a descending spiral, Luther favors the meeting of his students where they are through integrated checks that take a few moments to set up and save time to ensure that the needs of the students are satisfied.
On days when students have extended time to work on a project or evaluation, he launches a scale from one to six on the board and asks the students to write a number so that he can see it at their office. One indicates that they are 100%ready. A three could mean that they have a few questions and would soon like a recording. A five or six means they don’t know how to move forward and need immediate support. While students work independently, Luther is able to meet with each student with each student first favoring the five and six, and head to the scale.
The pricing of time and practices to support each student can feel like a heavy launch, but asking students to self-assess and answer it is a good starting point, said Luther.
The teacher of the Sean Walsh college also cites the importance of taking perspective in the second half.
“You highlight their achievements and show them where they were at the beginning of the year and where they are now,” according to Walsh, which helps students work on their self-improvement and development with teachers’ advice. “Each student must reflect on their achievements and continue to develop their state of growth.”
Teaching practices that buy time
“If the teachers have not already started to experiment with more strategies led by the students, (the second half) is the wonderful moment to do so,” said Tucker. A good old rotation of the station is useful for all class K-12 rooms in order to provide significant differentiated instructions, continued Tucker. Having only one of the stations led by the teacher, while having both an online station and an offline station, sparkling the integrated time for personalized instruction.
Leaning on social interactions that students seek may be a useful tool. The teaching led by students and the resort’s rotations allows “students to do the cognitive heaviness and to engage socially with each other and to give a sense together in a way that should keep them more committed” said Tucker. And that saves teachers time and energy in the second half.
“Believe it or not, it is now time to slow down things, to integrate the examination of the first semester in all the new documents, and do not forget to have fun”, according to the Spanish professor of the school Julie Hawkes.
Focus on yourself and what you are passionate about
The second half is when the content becomes more difficult, but more practical, according to Oliver Yang, who teaches the chemistry of high school.
“This is also where we are starting to have more laboratory experiences and I am very excited to make real chemical reactions with my students,” according to Yang. “The first half of the school year can be a little boring with all the nomenclatures and the vocabulary that students learn.”
Like most teachers, Luther is very intentional with educational planning during the second half of the school year. He focuses on the units that are most excited to him and provide for them to take place during the key moments of the semester. For example, a class launches the second half with a graphic novel unit, one of Luther’s favorites, and in another class, they start with a Shakespeare performance unit. Some of his favorite projects are intentionally carried out at the end of the semester to arouse excitement and maintain targeted learning for a period of the year when the conservation of the interests of students is historically difficult.
Channel your own excitement as a teacher in authentic enthusiasm for the subject can disorder the students, said Luther. “Internally planning, knowing that exhaustion will come, and I think that also trying to remain present,” is the key to a second successful semester, “he continued.
Secondary teacher Erin Connors focuses on fun assignments and salt checks with students, and Yang relies on newspaper reflections and meditations all year round.
