Author of

 "Good Kids, Difficult Behavior" and "Discipline Works: 5 Main Things" http://www.thehumanconnection.net   Volume 20 March 2004

Note from the Editor:

Dear Educators and Friends,

Spring is around the corner. I know many of us are ready to abandon the winter coats! I sure am! For those of you teaching the younger grades, it means you can get outside for recess even faster!!! More time to play! Run off that energy.....

Next month's newsletter will likely have a new look as it will have a new editor. I am going back to having my own classroom after a few years away from it (working with Joyce and as a substitute teacher). I will miss hearing from you all, and hope that you will continue to send the new editor (yet to be named) your kind, thoughtful responses to our newsletters.

Check out "Ask Joyce" below for her answer to an educator's questions. What would you like to ask Joyce? See how to send in your own question below! We look forward to hearing from you during this school year. Please let us know how it went if you try some of Joyce's suggestions. Joyce really wants to be a help to you.

Have you checked out our website lately? We hope you will find it much easier to navigate, and find what you need. Check it out at http://www.thehumanconnection.net.  Let us know what you think. It has up-to-date information on trainings with Joyce (both in person and on tape), past articles, our bookstore and other useful information. If there is something you can't find there (and think you should be able to), let me know and I'll see what I can do. If you have a favorite website that you'd like to share with your fellow educators, let me know, and I'll consider it for publication in a future newsletter and on our website.
 

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Cathie @ The Human Connection

Special of the Month for our E-zine Subscribers

"Good Kids, Difficult Behavior"

Buy the Creating Safety video at $39.95 and get a free copy of Discipline That Works: 5 Simple Steps free. Order by credit card at our website (http://www.thehumanconnection.net) or by check/purchase order /credit card by calling/faxing/mailing your order in to the office; just tell us you saw our ad in the newsletter. The free book will not be part of your order form at the website but will be sent with your order. Contact info is at the end of the newsletter.

As Joyce travels and works with educators all over the country, she is constantly being asked--- "What do you do when...?" questions.  She has the greatest respect for "what do you do when questions" because usually the questioner is genuinely seeking new information and the teacher is willing to be a student.  Each month, Joyce will answer one or more of the most common "what do you do questions".  Feel free to send one of yours.  She'll do her best to answer it.  Keep in mind, her answers may be different from the customary response but they are tried and true strategies for getting students to do what you are asking them to do.  Give yourself permission to try something new! Email Joyce at joyce@thehumanconnection.net  with any questions or situations you would like input on.  Let us know if we can show the question in a future newsletter or if you prefer to keep it private. We are hoping Joyce can help address situations you encounter and by sharing these questions/answers others can benefit as well.

Question:  How do we get our students in the right mode for standardized tests?

Answer: My heart goes out to those of you who live in the cold north because here in Atlanta it is beginning to look like Spring. Yea! Whoopee! Hooray! The trees have started to bud and some are already in bloom. Boy am I ready for Spring and guess what, so are your students. Sadly, spring break is still a long ways off for many of you.

Along with spring break, it will soon be TEST TIME. Both you and your students need a break as you gear up for the BIG TEST. Hopefully, your breaks are before your test time! I know that you are already focused on making sure your students know the subject matter you are teaching. I have known many a teacher who has been frustrated and dismayed when a class tested poorly on material the teacher was certain they had mastered. That is because testing is as much an emotional process as an intellectual one. Good results require that both the E (emotions) and T (thinking) part of the brain are working together. Here are a few suggestions for helping your students' gear up for and do well doing testing.

1) Begin right now to be their cheerleader. Tell them over and over how much confidence you have in them and how you are sure they will do you and themselves proud on the tests.

2) Use metaphors that will boost their confidence. Review the material and then talk about how that file can be saved in their brain. Then tell them testing is merely a matter of pulling up a file that has been saved. Ask them for ideas for how to make sure they have clicked on the "save" button in their brain's computer. This may seem silly but it takes away a lot of anxiety about forgetting.

3) Tell them that you appreciate them working hard for you not just themselves. After all, their scores reflect on you as well as them and it's okay to tell them you are counting on them to make you look good.

4) Get them moving during the review process. The more parts of the brain that are activated in the learning process the more likely the information is permanently stored. Let them sing, dance, rap, march while they review. At the very least, get them up out of their chairs and stretching or during Simon Says in between short sections of review. By the way, Simon Says is just as much fun for a high school student as it was in elementary school.

5) Help them picture a positive outcome. Talk to them about how good it will feel when their tests scores show that they are as smart or even smarter than they thought. Build in a little competition with another group. Say, "I can just imagine the principal telling me that our class did the best of anyone in the school." Remind them that "proud" is a good feeling and you want them to have that feeling. If you aren't convinced that they will do well, cross your fingers and cheer them on anyway.

6) Teach them how to stretch and move in acceptable ways during the test. Many tests require students to sit and focus for longer times than the brain and body are really designed to do. Tell them that it is okay to stretch their arms and legs, to take three deep breaths from time to time. Teach them to shake out their hands---hands contain a lot of tension. Tell them to say "refocus" to them self after they take these mini-brakes.

Inspiration:

"It is noble to teach oneself; it is still nobler to teach others." - Mark Twain
 

Personal Energy Saver:

This is an important time of the year to protect yourself from the negativity of others. As everyone gets more and more tired, negativity gets more of a foothold. Nothing is as contagious as a negative attitude. Counter negative comments with "Yes, but isn't it great that...." Negative people will begin to avoid you, as this is very annoying to them.

Get enough sleep. I am always amazed at how many of us are trying to function on less than 6 hours sleep. Notice how your memory isn't worth much when you aren't getting enough sleep. The brain needs sleep to function properly. If you've had a rough week on this score, get two or three naps on the weekend. It may feel wicked but it isn't really a sin.

Just For Fun:

      Why was the principal worried?

 
      Because there were so many rulers in the school!
          (From - schooljokes.com)

Editor's favorite link of the month:

Here's one for all of you history buffs! "Today in History " (http://search.teach-nology.com/today/today2.pl) has a list each day of things that happened in history for several centuries. There are so many interesting facts, with something of interest for most ages.
 

The Human Connection

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Email: For info about newsletter/website, contact cathie@thehumanconnection.net

To order books, and get info on training programs, contact divinyi@mindspring.com

Website: http://www.thehumanconnection.net

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Copyright 2004 The Human Connection