General Workshop
When I have only a few hours with a group, I share my best ideas for teaching with less effort and more success. When students succeed, teachers are happy and energetic, willing to give the best they have to offer. Get an upward spiral going with fun and effective ideas you can implement tomorrow!
You will learn how to:
Set up a learning environment that nurtures the excitement of learning.
Use the five basic ways of organizing information to help students build a framework of knowledge.
Teach and reinforce facts, including math facts, in ways that build confidence through early success.
Make a "book" from a single sheet of paper.
Encourage higher level thinking with mapping, graphing and time lines.
Teach spelling and mechanics efficiently, in ways that translate into improved first-draft writing.
Structure time to get the best results for your time and energy.
Fun with Facts: How to Enjoy Reference Books
What sparks your students' interest may not be what's next in the curriculum. Learn to make the most of those special "teachable moments" using student almanacs and everyday reference resources. Organize the classroom to help kids integrate new learning into what they already know. Use games, puzzles, time lines, maps and passports to encourage independent learning, build confidence through early success and help children formulate a framework of knowledge which will serve them throughout life.
Spelling for Success
Your children can learn to spell well and enjoy the process, with focused direct instruction and sentence dictation. A 1000 word core list, taught to mastery and supplemented with personal words, will help children improve their first draft writing regardless of their individual talent. The ideas shared in this session will help you make the most of the time you spend teaching spelling and the mechanics of writing.
The Writing Process
Unlike the other basic "R's", writing is creative and expressive. What are reasonable expectations for children's writing at various ages? How can you create an environment that encourages children to express themselves in writing? How can you maintain positive feedback which fosters improvement? Your confidence as a teacher of writing will increase as you learn more about the process of writing from idea, to first draft, to revision, editing and final draft.
Marvelous Math Tricks
Learn a foolproof method for ensuring that children master their facts, as well as a potpourri of games and tricks to improve accuracy and enable children to compute huge problems easily and correctly. These include Krypto, adding by endings, Gelosia multiplication, and short division. You'll also learn "Casting Nines", a quick technique for checking computation which many children view as a sort of game and which will improve their accuracy, especially with large problems.
What Your Elementary Child Really Needs to Know
The amount of information in the world is reportedly doubling every few years. It is less possible than ever for children to learn all there is to know. Trying to cover too much frustrates both students and teachers, and doesn't allow adequate time for mastery of anything. This session will give you assistance in prioritizing, so that even when time runs short, you can be confident that your kids aren't missing what's most important.
Philosophy of Education
A well-formulated philosophy of education provides the foundation and focus for your teaching. What should you include in a statement of philosophy? How will putting your philosophy into words benefit your children and you as their teacher? This session will provide ideas and resources to get you started toward writing a clear and concise philosophy of education which will guide your day-to-day activities and conserve your time, money and energy!
Principles of Good Teaching
Although every home school is unique, the principles of good teaching don't change. How do you decide what to teach, analyze what kids already know, design effective lessons and evaluate progress? In addition to general guidelines, Susan will share advice from experienced teachers and home school parents about principles they consider most important for success in the exciting endeavor of teaching.
Understanding Standardized Tests
Americans have a love/hate relationship with tests. Most students are required to take one or more standardized norm-referenced achievement tests during their school years. How important are they, really? What do the results mean, and how can they be used? This session will help you understand the purpose for these tests, make it easier to interpret test results, and provide tips for preparing children to do their very best. |