5 Strategies for Teachers to Make You Happy And Effective

I know how overwhelming it can be to come up with new ways to engage our students and promote learning. There are tons of strategies for teachers and it can sometimes be overwhelming to find the most effective strategies for the classroom. But don’t worry, we’ve got this! With a little bit of planning and creativity, you can implement some seriously awesome strategies to help your students succeed in the classroom.

Top Effective Strategies for Teachers

Utilize Technology

First up, let’s talk technology. Incorporating tech into your lesson plans can make learning more interactive and fun for your students. It does not have to be super complicated – using online videos or educational games can be a great way to supplement your lessons. Or, if you’re feeling really adventurous, you can try out some virtual reality experiences to bring the material to life.

Hands-On Learning

Next, let’s get our students’ hands dirty with some hands-on learning. Instead of just lecturing or assigning readings or math problems, try to incorporate some activities that allow students to participate actively in the learning process. 

Some  simple ways to incorporate hands-on learning in the classroom include:

1. Classroom Discussions/Debates: Both class discussions and debates can be beneficial in the classroom. During a discussion, students can ask questions, clarify their understanding, and share their thoughts and ideas with their classmates. Debates, in particular, can be a powerful tool for hands-on learning because they encourage students to take a stand on an issue and defend their position using evidence and logical reasoning.
2. Use manipulatives: Physical manipulatives, such as base ten blocks, fraction circles, and counting bears, can be a great way to help students understand and internalize math concepts. Similarly, word-building kits or letter tiles can be used to help students with language arts skills such as spelling and phonics.
3. Play games: Incorporating games into your lessons can be a fun and engaging way to promote hands-on learning. There are lots of board/card games, and online games can be used to teach many concepts in a more interactive way.
4. Conduct experiments: This idea is not just limited to science! Hands-on experiments can be a great way to engage students and help them understand concepts in a more meaningful way. For example, consider a math lesson on volume. Students could measure and compare the volume of different objects using water and graduated cylinders. In a language arts lesson, students could conduct experiments to test the effectiveness of different persuasive writing techniques.
5. Create projects: Group or individual projects can be a great way to promote hands-on learning in the classroom. Students could create a game or escape room for the topic you are learning about or a poster board describing the things they learned.
6. Use real-world examples: Bringing in real-world examples can help students see the relevance and practical application of the concepts that you teach. In the math classroom, students could use skills to measure and compare the dimensions of different objects in the classroom. Or, have students use language arts skills to write a letter to a local politician advocating for a specific cause.

Stay Flexible & Adaptable

Here’s the thing – every class and group of students is different, and what works for one group may not work for another. Some strategies for teachers end up being a miracle for one classroom and a recipe for disaster in another. Furthermore, what worked for your class last year may not work for your group of students this year. That’s why it’s important to be flexible and adaptable in your teaching approach. You must be open to trying new techniques and be willing to adjust your approach as needed. Surely, you will quickly find strategies that work best for your current students and your personal teaching style.

Keep a teaching journal where you can write down ideas and outcomes of different strategies to help you in this process. Maybe you tried to incorporate games this year with your class. Then quickly found that students got way too rowdy and didn’t seem to learn what you wanted them to. Instead of dismissing one of these strategies for teachers, log in your journal, what went well, what didn’t go so well, and what you may need to change for the next attempt. In the “games” example, maybe you notice that you didn’t give enough explicit instructions to students so they were confused. Students often get very excited at the thought of games so next time you may try introducing the game in small groups first so they have an opportunity to learn the rules before having the whole class play at once. 

Incorporate Movement

Incorporate breaks and movement into your lessons. It’s well-known that physical activity can improve brain function, so try to incorporate movement into your lessons whenever possible. This can be as simple as taking a quick stretch break or doing a brain break activity. These things get your students moving and energized. In the math classroom, I use whiteboards daily. All students have one in their desk and I occasionally have them answer some questions on their board. I then have students move to another student’s board and put a checkmark or question mark depending on if they agree with the answer or if they aren’t sure. I continue to have them move to another board until all answers are checked. This can be incorporated into any topic

Use Graphic Organizers

Make use of graphic organizers. Graphic organizers are a great tool for helping students visualize and organize information in a clear and concise way. Use these in your classroom to help students better understand and retain new material. These can come in the form of flow charts, venn diagrams or guided notes. Graphic organizers are extremely helpful for students who struggle with executive functioning. They are also not just for elementary students. As a middle school teacher, I incorporate graphic organizers often with the use of interactive notebooks.

Tell Stories

Use storytelling to bring your lessons to life. Everyone loves a good story. Incorporate storytelling into your lessons to help make the material more engaging and memorable for your students. Use storytelling to introduce a new topic, or as a way to illustrate complex concepts in a more relatable way. Sometimes all it takes is a quick two minute background on the topic to get students engaged. Even as a math teacher, I incorporate storytelling when introducing new topics.

For example, when introducing the concept “combining like terms” I like to personify the numbers. “A long time ago, mathematical terms decided they wanted to stick together. They made teams amongst themselves and you could only join the team if you had the same variable…” The students absolutely love it.

You’ve Got This, Teacher!!

When researching strategies for teachers, keep in mind that there are so many things that are considered to be strategies. Pretty much any thing you do in the classroom to engage students is a strategy for teachers. Continue to try different things and record your findings in your notebook. If you have a running list of different things to try, you will be able to be flexible and adapt more quickly.

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