Confessions of a Blogaholic

I was reading this book called Teach Like a Champion, and while it gives some great, specific, step-by-step ideas for being a "champion" teacher, I don't think all of the ideas are...hmm--what's the word...the most practical ideas in the world. While I got a lot of great ideas (such as the "No Opt-Out" technique which basically tells you to keep working with a student who is reluctant to answer a question), I don't think these ideas quite match what I was looking for when I wrote a few weeks ago about wanting to be a better teacher.

So, I came to my own ideas for techniques and philosophies to try. I'm going to work on them in small, manageable chunks rather than heaping a whole lot of "new" on myself at the beginning of the school year.

Goal #1: Fix Attendance-Taking Procedures!
I have issues with remembering to take attendance, which is NOT a good thing! I remember to mark tardies, but I forget to mark and keep track of absences (excused or unexcused) and whether or not I am supposed to accept missed assignments for the absence. School policy is that a student who is out on an unexcused absence and fails to turn in an excuse note cannot turn his/her work in for a grade and will receive a 0 for missed assignments. The last couple of years, I've accepted pretty much any assignment without discretion simply because I wasn't doing a good enough job of keeping up with attendance. This year, my goal is to QUICKLY do attendance at the beginning of the period on paper rather than online. I can transfer my paper attendance to the online system at the end of the day or once a week during my conference period, depending on which is easier.

Goal #2: Be Optimistic About Mankind, in General, and More Specifically, Teenagers
I've realized that I always seem to assume the worst about teenagers. For some reason, I ALWAYS assume they are lying to me. When it's an excuse about homework, my first assumption is they are lying. When they tell me sensitive things, I find myself assuming they are lying for attention. This is the wrong way to approach people! There is a very fine line, though, between believing in the honesty and goodness of human being and being taken advantage of. My main philosophical goal this year is to trust in people more. Just because I may have lied about homework or lied/embellished the truth to get attention doesn't mean that EVERY teenager does it. I'm going to work on this from day one.