Today was the first day of the new quarter. It’s so exciting to see new faces, some who were strikingly old in age. At our school, age seems to be directly proportional to motivation. Perhaps when kids turn 18, they realize how many doors are beginning to close on them. I guess that makes them more receptive to our assistance.
I quickly realized that learning about your student is half of teaching them. Just a few minutes of “get to know you” time is invariably valuable, and often can’t be done after any teaching has occurred. Some suggest that you must set the tone by immediately giving them a task, but I disagree entirely. It makes the student more receptive to know that you truly care about them and their individual preferences. Everyone wants to be listened to, even if they are required to listen.
And patience… patience and persistence. The two sacred p’s of teaching at an inner-city school. It took me 20 minutes to convince one of my students to sit down and work with me. But it ended with a humble and mature apology and diligent working… at least until the bell rang. If you can’t give a kid patience and persistence, then there isn’t much you really seem to be able to offer them. One little slip-up with either of these, and it all goes down the drain. Trust me, I know. Once I made the mistake of giving some students the cold shoulder before disciplining them and it went so poorly that they had to be sent home. It’s really all in the approach it seems. Not in the intention.
