My rules for teaching

Whenever I think about and plan out a new lesson, there are a few rules or guidelines that I always try to follow and incorporate into each one, regardless of the topic or target sentence. These are rules that I have learned from a lot of great teachers, not only those I have worked with, but also during my own time as a student.

1. Don't teach down to students. Showing a picture of a dog and asking, "what's this?" is not only insulting to the kids but also boring. Use different ways of introducing words, such as the sound of a dog barking or just showing the dog's tail, to challenge the kids and let them make the connections between their language and English. If the lesson is interesting to not only the students but also the homeroom teacher and yourself, it will be both memorable and effective.

2. Apply lessons to the students' world. At a young age, many children have difficulty with the idea of other countries and cultures. While it is important to help them become familiar with these concepts, it's also vital to make connections between English and the people and places of their day to day lives. If students can learn the words related to trains, grocery stores, soccer, and classroom objects, for example, then they can begin to think in English, which is a major step in learning the language.

3. Connect English to other school subjects. English doesn't have to always be about adverbs, prepositions, and the passive tense. It can be very interesting to cover some simple topics in science, art, or history, using English. ALTs come from some very diverse backgrounds and educations, so we should try to make use of our experiences and interests. Also, not every student enjoys studying English, but this way they may be able to use the language in service of a subject that they are interested in.

4. Engage different learning styles. Everyone has their own way of learning that best suits them (these are called "multiple intelligences"), so it's important for teachers to try and utilize a range of styles so that all of their students have an opportunity to get the most out of the lesson. Some are visual learners, who learn with pictures, whereas some are physical/kinesthetic, who learn by moving and using their sense of touch. Other styles include musical, interpersonal, verbal-linguistic, logical-mathematical, naturalistic, and intrapersonal.

5. Give students a teaching role. Of course, in the classroom there must be a clear understanding of who is the teacher and who are the students, but it can be effective to sometimes switch these roles and give the students an opportunity to lead an activity or choose the direction of a lesson. There are many games in which you can play as a class, with the teacher as the leader, and then switch into small groups with students taking on the leadership role.

These are a few of the points I try to always consider when thinking about new lessons and activities. What are some of your "teaching rules"?