First impressions

rose23

Being a NQT I want to make a good first impression with my classes on the first day of school.

I understand, being prepared, confident and dressing well is all part of achieving this. But have any teachers got tips for me in this area??

Also I want to set the ground rules from that start as I realise the importance of this for things to go as smoothly as possible during the year. Obviously I will chat to the principal about the school discipline policy etc but what else should I do? How do ye usually go about this in the first lesson with students??

theLuggage

Congrats on new job! Being NQT expect students to try you as the newbie! I think knowing what punishments to dish out is a very useful tool. If you threaten and give punishments similar to other staff it helps you fit in and seem clued into the school, students will think of you as less of a newbie. Ask other members of staff what they do as well. Also find out what the story is with detention, do you have to give it or are students put into a general detention etc. Oh and find out if you're allowed to send students out of class and who do they report to if it's allowed. Don't be afraid to make an example if things get that far.

In my first lesson with a new class I basically let them know who I am and what I'm about and what we will be doing. Consult with previous teacher if possible about work covered coz students won't have a clue! :rolleyes: Check with them that they have all books, copies etc. Lay down one or two rules but dont go overboard - you can always add more in as necessary. I usually stress "only one person talks at any time" and manners - imo most rules come down to manners anyway.

Most important be yourself! Be natural - students respond to that and can see through anything you try to put on. Oh and be consistent and don't be afraid to change tack if one approach isn't working. You might find you can be more relaxed with some classes and have to be a b*tch in others.

Hope this helps!

rose23

Thanks for the advice theLuggage.. I appreciate it!!

Has anyone got any other tips on what to do.. or more importantly what NOT to do??

spurious

Don't warn a class of a sanction in the event of misbehaviour/failure to hand up homework etc. and then fail to carry it out.

looksee

Don't give an instruction or make an order that you cannot in some way enforce. Or more important, don't look as though you are not sure whether you can enforce it.

Don't lose your temper, if you feel yourself losing your temper you are identifying too closely with the situation - for example if someone is being defiant, they are not defying you, they are defying authority. Don't take it personally.

Don't take the sullen, bored, derisive expression on anyone's face (girls are very good at this) as a reflection on your lesson. They always look like that. Yawning is not necessarily an attempt to be offensive, most of them have no idea that it is ignorant to yawn at someone.

Look confident, expect the best, enjoy teaching. Good luck.

byhookorbycrook

Primary or secondary?
Either way,keep your class diary close at hand, make a note if x doesn't bring homework, so you can remember to check next day.Be sure to read any psychological reports/IEPs, so you know who has SEN and the nature of them.Don't get drawn into a tit-for-tat exchange with a student in front of the class, speak to them quietly after class.Oh and don't get drawn into a row with a student who is doing something,say chewing gum, who tells you that Miss X always lets them chew gum. The answer here (Bill Rogers-well worth reading his stuff) is Maybe she does,maybe she doesn't but in my class we do not chew gum.

rose23

Thanks for the advice.. It really is helping me prepare mentally for this new job!!

What do ye think is a suitable sanction for a student repeatedly forgetting/not doing their homework? (Perhaps this just depends on the schools discipline policy)..But what do ye usually do to deal with this problem?!

oat

I think it really does depend on schools discipline policy. Some schools use penalty sheets, maybe you could put them on detention or you might have to go through the year head. You'll have to just check it out on the first day and speak to other teachers in the school to see how they deal with it. Good luck with your new job, exciting times ahead:D

oat

I bought myself a little notebook today, I always find the roll book gets full up with stuff so my notebook is specifically for monitoring homework

byhookorbycrook

Make sure to write private and confidential on your notebook and be careful what you write in it.

rose23

Yeah Il see what the schools discipline policy is like and Il go from there!!

Keeping note of EVERYTHING seems to be the right thing to do from the start anyways so Il try that!

oat

of course. It won't be leaving my handbag and it'll be written in french!

rose23

Im a French teacher also Oat!

Im sure I'll be creating posts on this over the next few weeks looking for ideas and tips!

oat

me too especially TY french, nightmare!!

vamos!

Hijacking thread but I actually really enjoyed teaching TY French. I did it on a modular basis. Got kids to do projects, make revision booklets for 3rd years, one oral day a week (speed dating and the likes) and French culture (films, music). Day trip to cinema, French breakfast with music and Breton dance for 1st years and 6th class from next door. I was sorry to move to a school with no TY to be honest. A year where French is really fun!

wantano

hi rose,
our school was involved last year with the NBSS and we had one excellent inservice on dealing with behaviour, I wish I'd had it on day 1 as I could recognise little bad habits I fell into on tired/ tough days. You can look up the resources on the website - there is a section there about staying in the learning zone rather than the battle zone. I had what I thought was good discipline but I found these guidelines sorted out some of the low level problems. Go into the resources section and it's called "Low - Medium Level escalation" (nbss.ie)
Someone mentioned Bill Rodgers there -well worth reading some of his material.
Also try active learning techniques - I teach languages too, there is a good book called "101 ways to teach language" i found it good.
Keep a diary of what went well for you, we all have our own style.
Best of luck!