New Teacher Tips - How to Use First Day of School Worksheets

In my first year of teaching and for many years that followed, I spent an inordinate amount of time preparing my own first day of school handouts. I thought it was the "hook" that students needed. I thought that teacher dominated discourse represented learning. But it really wasn't. It was actually a cover up for understanding the true purpose of what a good handout actually is all about.

A lot of teachers I know use worksheets for different purposes and when used effectively, it can be a good filler or fulfill the purpose of what you want to teach.

A good handout always supplements the lesson. You need to pre-teach material and information before it is to be processed via a handout.

When these are given too much emphasis however, students can become demotivated by the learning process, which in turn, lowers their self-esteem. You obviously want to avoid this.

Ask yourself these questions when preparing a handout whether it is for the first day of school or just a plain ordinary lesson on teaching reading strategies.

• What is the aim of the handout?
• Will I grade the handout?
• Will I go over the handout in class or collect it?
• How much percentage will I give for handouts for the final grade?
• Is my handout well prepared?
• Do students have enough information to tackle the subject matter of the handout?
• Are the instructions crystal clear?
• Do I want the students to finish the handout at home or during class time?
• Do I want to give the students an answer key for the handout?
• How much time do I want to spend talking about the handout?
• Did I preteach the content of the handout?
• Did I illustrate the task with an example?

By thinking your handouts through, you will be doing your students a great favor by aiding them through the learning process. Many students don't have enough learning skills.

Take them through the process of handling their work. Teach them a system of organization. This can include:

1. How organize a folder of their handouts.

2. What to do with finished worksheets. Perhaps you want to have a showcase of finished student worksheet. Have you considered a portfolio?

The Teacher as a Model

Model think aloud skills. By using an example to show exactly what you want, you are acting as a facilitator for the students' abilities to process information.

You can have a full lesson just teaching these life long skills of organization.

By Dorit Sasson
PressSearch.org