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How to Get a Job as a Teacher

Jennifer Wagaman — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 21:20:48 +0000

Becoming a teacher is becoming more and more difficult as the economy struggles to rebound. Teachers are still being let go and wages continue to not only be frozen but to be cut with furlough days. Still, many dream of making a difference in the life of a child and indeed good, dedicated teachers are more necessary now than ever.

Here are some tips on how to become a teacher, from preparation to accepting a position in a school:

First, in preparation, a teacher candidate needs three things:

A professional portfolio

Character Reference Letters

A Professional Resume

Once these are prepared, then it is time to apply for open positions. It is vital to keep the job search organized because teacher candidates are likely to need to send in many applications. Here are some helpful tips.

Organizing Your Job Search

Once the prospective teacher has secured an interview, it is time to prepare to wow the administrative staff who will be conducting the interview. Preparation is important at this stage as well.

Interview Help for Teachers

Interview Questions for Teachers

Once you have received your first job offer, accepted a position and signed the necessary paperwork, your job is not finished yet. Until you are tenured, you will be the first to go when budgets are squeezed and cuts must be made. Find how how to keep your position.

How to be the Best Teacher Candidate to Get or Keep a Position

Not enough info? Find out more!!

Getting a Job as a Teacher

Bulletin Board Ideas

Jennifer Wagaman — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 14:15:30 +0000

Creating a bulletin board in the classroom is time consuming and yet necessary to complement lesson plans and add to the student learning experience. Here is a great collection of bulletin board ideas:

Seasonal Bulletin Board Ideas:

Holiday Specific Bulletin Board Ideas:

Valentine Bulletin Board Displays
Black History Month
Thanksgiving Bulletin Board Ideas
Christmas Bulletin Board Ideas

Other Bulletin Board Articles:

The Importance of Creative Bulletin Boards

Student of the Week Bulletin Board

Making the Most of In-Service Days

Jennifer Wagaman — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 14:47:42 +0000

Many teachers struggle to enjoy in-service days and school development meetings, considering them to be boring or a waste of time. While some of these meetings may indeed be a waste of teacher’s time, they are important to attend and learn from in order to improve teaching skills and understand new school and district policies.

Applying New Information by Taking Notes

When at a school meeting or in-service, the biggest thing that all teachers can do to help pass the time more quickly, is to take notes. Instead of simply taking down information that is spoken, try to apply the information to specific skills or teaching strategies. Notes can include presentation methods demonstrated by the principal or other person in charge of the meeting as well as ideas that come directly from the topic of discussion.

Teachers can attempt to come up with specific examples of how and when they will use a specific tip or strategy in the classroom and write down that example in their notes. Not only will taking these notes help pass the time, but it will impress administration and the teacher may actually learn something at the same time!

Extension Ideas for Lesson on Obama’s Speech

Jennifer Wagaman — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 11:14:00 +0000

On September 8, 2009, President Obama will be speaking live to the students of the Nation. This is a highly controversial event, but one that teachers can take advantage of. It seems from the information provided, that President Obama will be speaking about goal setting for the school year, and striving to meet those goals. After the speech is over, how can teachers take this speech and provide extension activities for students?

Extension Activities for Obama’s Speech

Have students write an essay about one specific goal that they have for the school year. They should include details as to why they have this particular goal and exactly how they plan on meeting this goal.

Students can work together as a class to create a list of “class goals” much like teachers allow students to create “class rules“. Have students share lots of ideas for goals and then condense them into 3-4 really important goals. Once these are decided on, write them on a large piece of paper and have all the students sign the paper, promising to try their best to meet these goals.

Students can create a piece of artwork (coloring, painting, tissue paper art, etc.) that shows the outcome of meeting goals for the school year. Knowing what they are shooting for in the end will help to motivate them to work hard towards that goal.

For lesson plan ideas on preparing students for the speech as well as information on how to listen to the speech, visit Lesson Plan for Obama’s Speech to Students.

Read more extension ideas that will help teachers use President Obama’s speech to bring more appropriate student behavior to the classroom.

Swine Flu a Concern for Schools

Jennifer Wagaman — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 11:39:41 +0000

School is back in session for many teachers and students and the swine flu is still a huge concern. Recent news reports say that half of the population of the United States will become infected with the swine flu and that it will likely kill twice the number of people as the flu typically kills in any given year, with one scenario predicting up to 90,000 deaths.

What can teachers do to prevent the spread of Flu in their classrooms?

Teach proper hygiene. Teaching students to sneeze into their elbows is only part of the issue. If that student then wipes his elbow with his hand and grabs the ball at recess, those germs are still being spread. Look for creative ways to teach lessons about germs. Check out the germy potato experiment!

Keep disinfectant handy. Each afternoon when the students go home, teachers should disinfect each chair, desk, door knob and other materials that were handled by students. Have students use waterless hand-soap upon entering the classroom.

Felling ill? Stay home! While this may be increasingly difficult for a teacher, it is more important than ever for teachers not perpetuate the spread of any illness. Students need to stay home too, even if it means parents must lose a day of work or call in a babysitter.

It is true that the Swine Flu is simply another strain of the flu and many feel that the concern is overblown. Unfortunately, the flu does kill people, and with the numbers of diagnosed flu cases as high as it is already, outside of the flu season, some concern is warranted. Vaccines will become available, but not until October with the bulk of vaccines not available until November.

Back to School Specials

Jennifer Wagaman — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 15:59:24 +0000

The back-to-school sales are here! While it is still summer, it is time to start thinking about getting ready to go back-to-school. Amazon has set up a great back-to-school sale for parents and teachers to take advantage of now!

Here’s what you can find:

Back to school savings

Savings on everything you might need from classroom supplies to extra curricular supplies and more.

School shopping by grade

Check out the grade your child is going into for a check list of everything you need.

Backpack bundles

Find cool new backpacks already packed with great school supplies.

Looking for that perfect backpack? Look no further than:

Bags and backpacks

College students, looking for school supplies?

Check out college essentials.

Find the textbooks you need here:

Amazon textbook store.

Teaching in an Inclusion Classroom

Jennifer Wagaman — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 17:24:42 +0000

As we get ready for the new school year, many new teachers are finding themselves preparing for an inclusion classroom for the first time. While many teaching programs help prepare new teachers for the challenges that they will face, these programs can fall short when it comes to giving a clear picture of how to handle the difficulties of an inclusion classroom.

The number one important thing to keep in mind is to remain flexible. Working with children who have disabilities will provide an extra challenge and there will always be something new and different to face each day and each lesson. Remaining flexible will help the new teacher sift through each issue as it comes up and adapt to the necessary changes.

Read more tips on teaching in an inclusion classroom.

Back to School Tips for Teachers

Jennifer Wagaman — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 01:12:09 +0000

It may still be early in summer vacation, but it’s not too early to be thinking about preparing to go back to school. The preparation process is slightly different if you are a new teacher, but basically, the process is the same.

First, create or tweak your classroom management plan. This is important because only when your students are obeying the rules and on task will great learning take place in the classroom. If you are a returning teacher, think about what worked and what did not work, and find something new to add to your classroom management plan. It may also be helpful to become familiar with individualized behavior plans.

Second, create a curriculum map or review previous lesson plans. If the curriculum is new, a curriculum map will cut down on lesson planning time during the first quarter. If the curriculum is not new, reviewing the first few weeks worth of lesson plans will help prepare you for the new year.

Here are some more great tips for preparing for the first day of school.