Tips on being a better student ....by a teacher

I've been teaching in classrooms for quite some time now , working with children from ages 1-14. I've had good, bad, funny, horrible, and terrific students. I've had students I will remember forever and students that I can't wait to forget. As a teacher, all you want is to make a difference. You want to get inside that little brain and fill it with as much as you can, so when that child leaves, you have made them a better person. Unfortunately, there are many other things that go along with being a teacher that get in the way of the education part. For now, I would just like to share some tips with students ( or parents ) to help them be a better person in the classroom.

• As a student, you have to think of school as your "job". If you had a job, how would you act toward your boss? Would you talk back to your boss? Would you come into work late? If every grade you earned was an amount toward your paycheck, how hard would you work? If an 'F' earned you zero dollars and an 'A' earned you $100, would you try harder for an 'A'? ( I know this is harder for a young student to understand but it sometimes works for the older students).
• Go to bed early and try to get 8 hrs. of sleep. Whooaaaaaaa. What a thought! Yeah....it helps. It is very hard for a teacher to teach a lesson if you are sleeping and drooling on your desk.
• When you wake up in the morning, eat a BIG breakfast. This helps get you energized for the day and helps with the brain function.**Parents-- If students bring a lunch from home they will eat the stuff they like and throw away the rest ( and swear to you that they ate it all). If they bring money to buy lunch, they buy chips, candy, or soda.
• Students and parents should go through a student's backpack EVERY night after school. Even if you don't think anything important is in there, I bet there is. Teachers will often send home paperwork that needs to be read, test scores, quizzes, homework or report information that is time sensitive. BE RESPONSIBLE. Take 10 minutes and go through everything together.
• Keep a clean backpack. I have had students that have crammed every piece of work into their backpack and never clean it out. Old papers, gum, rotten apple core, p.e. shorts, candy wrappers...... not a place to keep important school work.
• Get organized. Make sure you have a way to organize your work, especially if you have different classes. Teachers don't like the excuse, "I can't find it". Individual folders will help keep papers separate and neat. It also helps if you have an agenda or calendar to write when homework and reports are due. Teachers ALWAYS give due dates , so there are no excuses!
• Be respectful and well mannered (even if it doesn't seem like the cool thing to do). Using please and thank you are great ways to show your teacher you appreciate them. Listening quietly, not talking when the teacher is giving a lesson, showing up on time.... these are simple rules that students should follow but as years go by , it seems that less and less children are being taught manners.
• Give 100% effort. A teacher knows when you have done your best and when you are being lazy. Everybody had to go through school and do work they didn't want to do but that's the way it is. If you have to do it either way, you might as well do it right the first time.
• Reward yourself for hard work and good behavior. If students are young , it is easier for parents to use positive reinforcement or treats for good grades and behavior. As children grow older, sometimes parents slowly stop the "way to go kid" or "wow, that is so special". If you are older , you can reward yourself for a job well done. Take some extra time to do your favorite hobby or go buy yourself something you've really been wanting. Everyone deserves something for a job well done!

You know, I do hope that things change a bit. As the years go on, it seems respect slips away from the classroom and teachers really need parents as a support from home. When parents and teachers work together, success can really be made.

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