Teach Like a Pirate Chapter 5: Transformation


This chapter starts off with a GREAT quote from Dave Burgess, 
"Provide an uncommon experience for your students and they will reward you with an uncommon effort and attitude."

Isn't that wonderful? And it's so true. I think back on my experiences in middle school and I can think of two teachers that I liked. I would have done anything for their praise and I loved going to their classes. One was a drama teacher and he made everything fun! The other was a math teacher....and I wasn't really even good at math. The rest of my teachers were forgettable or awful. (I may or may not still be able to sketch comics about my horrible 7th grade science teacher.) 

Dave Burgess asks a couple of great questions in this chapter too. One of them is if your kids only had to come to an end of the year exam would they still come to your class anyway? 

Mine would! I make sure they feel important and appreciated and I try my hardest to make learning exciting. I think first grade teachers have it a little easier in this department. First graders have only been in school for maybe a year or two before we get them. Learning is still new and exciting for them and they (hopefully) haven't had a bad experience with school or a teacher yet.  I have had a student tell me to let them know if I was going to have a sub because she just wasn't going to come to school if I wasn't there! I loved that! 

My dear friend, Lisa, from Growing Firsties is hosting this chapter. Head over and see what Lisa had to say about Transformation!

Growing Firsties

3 comments:

  1. I'm a little behind...my book just came today!!! Can't wait to start it :)

    Sarah
    A Sunny Day in First Grade

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  2. Hi Jennifer! Thank you for all of your fantastic posts about Teach Like a PIRATE. I love that you chose to mention the question, "If your students didn't have to be there, would you be teaching in an empty room?" It is one of my favorite questions to ask teachers in workshops. In fact, a whole new movement called Teach Like a PIRATE Day is sweeping across some schools based on this question. No set classes, teachers write a pitch about what experience they have designed for the day, and kids get a guidebook (like teachers at a conference) and choose where they want to go based on their interests. Early results have been amazing! Thanks so much for teaming up with Gina to put this blog study together...it is truly remarkable!!

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  3. Girl- we rock. The end!
    Love ya!

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