This article, while it mostly concerns public school classroom teachers, really highlights what teachers have to deal with every day. I still don't understand why teachers are so undervalued in our society. As far as I'm concerned, a good, broadly based education is the answer to almost every societal problem I can think of.
(Of course, your definition of "societal problem" and mine might vary.)
And of course, education doesn't begin and end in the classroom, and I have plenty of issues with certain aspects of American schooling, but really. Support good teachers.
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Monday, February 06, 2012
Quote of the day
A ten-year-old (not particularly quirky) student: I have learned to always keep a Sharpie in my shoe.
I may have said this before...
...but I think it bears repeating.
As much as I love teaching quirky kids, and I do, parents, please, if your child has a diagnosis, or even just an unusual learning style, it's really really helpful for me to know that up front. I've gotten terribly impatient with past students who I thought were just not listening or not practicing, while in retrospect, I now think they probably had learning disabilities of some sort. If I know that, I can work with them better, and it eases the frustration level of everybody involved.
I understand that parents don't want their children judged by labels, and I suppose there's no way for a parent to know that I don't do that, but there's a world of difference between "typical kid behaving badly" and, say, "kid with Asperger's Syndrome getting overwhelmed."
Music can give your quirky child a way to fit into a group. Trust me on this one, I was (OK, am) quirky myself. But let me help them and help you help them by giving me the information I need to make lessons enjoyable for all of us.
Thank you.
As much as I love teaching quirky kids, and I do, parents, please, if your child has a diagnosis, or even just an unusual learning style, it's really really helpful for me to know that up front. I've gotten terribly impatient with past students who I thought were just not listening or not practicing, while in retrospect, I now think they probably had learning disabilities of some sort. If I know that, I can work with them better, and it eases the frustration level of everybody involved.
I understand that parents don't want their children judged by labels, and I suppose there's no way for a parent to know that I don't do that, but there's a world of difference between "typical kid behaving badly" and, say, "kid with Asperger's Syndrome getting overwhelmed."
Music can give your quirky child a way to fit into a group. Trust me on this one, I was (OK, am) quirky myself. But let me help them and help you help them by giving me the information I need to make lessons enjoyable for all of us.
Thank you.
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