Behavior Management or Engagement Management - Teach Like a Pirate Chapter 3

Okay - I know, its late.  I just got my book in the mail Tuesday, and I am just now getting to Chapter 3. Forgive me, but there will be at least 4 posts today on Teach Like a Pirate. 

I'm in the Ship and ready to go.  I must get caught up.

Here we go!!!

Engagement - Why is it one year a lesson works great, the students are engaged, and grasping the concept and the next year, they aren't?  My lesson didn't change?  My way of implementing the lesson didn't change? The concept to be taught didn't change? What changed, THE STUDENTS!!!! What works for one group, might not work for another group.  So how do we make it so the next years group stays engaged?  HELLO - FIND OUT WHAT THEY LIKE!!!  Sorry, all caps has to do with I just hit myself in the forehead and went DUH!!!  That is where Rapport comes in.  What isn't that helps this group of students to be engaged?

You mean that I must learn what each student likes, and get to know them?  YEP!!  So as I'm reading, I'm thinking about all those interest surveys I have seen.  Maybe I should use those, but that would be more paperwork.  That isn't much fun.  I don't have time to talk and have a here is what my life is about conversation with each individual student.  So how do we do it?  How do we build rapport?

CONNECTIONS -
        -  How did what we read in class connect to your life?  Remind you of something?
        -  Did you hear what happened on the news?  Maybe that can lead you to learning something.
        -  Hello, Writing - I have learned so much from my students through their writing.
        -  Everything we do on a daily basis, leads us to learn more about each student.

But then aren't we becoming more like friends and not teachers?  Doesn't this allow for them to take advantage of us? Not if we model appropriate behavior according do Dave Burgess.

We have all been taught to get procedures taught at the beginning to have a successful classroom.  Yea, so - Ive done that and six weeks down the road, I feel like it has been a wasted effort.  Why do it?  Dave puts it in a great way.  "Nothing is more important to me than creating the proper atmosphere right from the start. No content standard matters to me until I have established the safe, supportive, and positive classroom environment I need to successfully teach my students." (Teach Like a Pirate, pg 22)

Light bulb went off - Hello, Procedures are what create the right atmosphere.  Now it makes sense, it isn't about the actual procedure, it is about the atmosphere in the classroom it creates where a student can feel safe, supported, and encouraged.

Dave's first few days:

Day One -
      - Intro as into a movie theater
      -  Class is being hosted, not taught
      - One rule - NO MEANNESS (it is in all caps in the book too)
      - Playdoh activity (yes, he teaches High School and does this, so why can't we)
                - Create something that represents you
                       - Must be school appropriate
                - As host, I will ask you a couple questions about the item and your name
                - This allows me to go around and have conversations with students.
     - Part of building rapport is getting the students to know each others names and who each other is

Day Two -
     -  Collaborative Group Activity
     - 10 Stranded people, and can only save 5
     - Sorry fellow readers, but this is one you almost have to read to get.  I can't explain it with out rewriting they whole thing.

Day Three -
     -  Convincing the students  they can be successful no matter what their past school experience has been.

Wow, that was a long chapter.  All in all, build relationships, they are important.

Now for a brief break, and then for chapter 4. 

Hope you are having an amazing weekend.

Link up with Jana from Thinking Out Loud to see what her thoughts are on Chapter 3.  Don't forget to click on other peoples links to see their views of chapter 3.  Just click the button below to get started.