New Year’s Teaching Resolutions in the Classroom

At some point in our lives, many of us have set personal New Year’s Resolutions. There is nothing more fresh than the thought of a “new year” and a “new you”. However, have you ever thought about setting “New Year’s Teaching Resolutions?”

Many teachers are stepping away from personal resolutions and exploring the professional realm. Whether it is setting new standards for students, increasing expectations or setting new goals for a collective increase in attendance, goals can be collective in the classroom.

It is important to discuss the value and significance of goals with students in the classroom prior to setting the goals and resolutions.

Here are 3 Ideas for New Year’s Resolutions in the classroom:

1)      Setting up attendance competitions and rewards – This can be done by splitting groups in the class and monitoring daily attendance and tardiness or alternatively, it can be done with another class in the same year group with a more competitive nature. Rewards can include “golden time” (which is free time), pizza days or movie days, just to name a few ideas.

2)      Setting up Individual Performance Indicators with students- Teachers can sit with students and discuss their next academic goals and set personal goals to improve. It is imperative that these goals be practical and that students are provided the resources to achieve these goals. For example, if a student is asked to practice reading 5 pages a day then it is important that they have the actual books to read with.

3)      Setting up Teacher Performance Improvements- As a teacher you can set your own targets for improving student performance and grades in the classroom. Setting up a realistic plan and setting daily or weekly targets is a good start.

Like with everything in life, it is crucial to set rewards that help you celebrate your small successes which will ultimately lead you to your New Years Goal. Every step counts, even the small ones. We have to start somewhere.