Head of the Class

Experience is a great teacher.

It’s no substitute for an actual teacher, of course. And we’re not even talking about experience in terms of years. But giving a student an actual learning experience.

An experience where they show what they’ve learned and reveal gaps that need to be addressed.

An experience where they can build confidence.

An experience where they can show off a little.

It can be as simple as identifying a shape. You can say, “show me the difference between an oval and a circle and then tell me why.”

Or work with them to write a simple sentence in blue, and then underline the syllables in red. Or green. Or purple.

Draw letters that can be easily confused like 'd' and 'p', and have them explain to the class which is which, and then have them tell the class.

You can draw a handful of empty clock faces and have them indicate times of the day to show their mastery of the big hand and the little hand.

And then give them a high five with your own.

There are other little ways to encourage them with an EXPO Low Odor Dry Erase marker, including a temporary note on their school desk. Or a reminder of who gets to talk next.

Sure, you could do all that on a chalkboard, but how many kids want to draw with a white piece of chalk at their age?

Take a fifteen-minute break out of your day to be a student in their pretend classroom as they "teach" you their latest lesson. They'll get some fun study time and you'll always get a gold star for attendance.