What Kids Want...

If they only knew they wanted it...?

I have been thinking since last year what I can do to rebuild a learning culture with a group of students that have had a tough year with a different teacher. I want to create an environment that nurtures self directed collaborative learners. The link below offers me a route...

What do you think matters most to our children?

For 20 years I have been posing this question to my students. At the beginning of every school year, I would ask my students to give me advice on how to be their best teacher. I asked them to think about the times they felt most successful and to consider what the adults in their lives did to make this success possible.

EDIT: The author of this article went on to note that his students wrote furiously for many minutes  - unfortunately we differ here - my students looked dumbfounded and what followed was a mixture of things they think I wanted them to say and answers they admitted were "inappropriate".

With our lot it is like we are fighting a battle to get them to know they want anything!

We spent a few sessions on this - next time I need to find some supporting resources from other classes and students.

Next step: Our learning environment should be...

And discussion on how we can create that...

And eventually class rules.