Is is a simple list of effective and ineffecting teaching techniques to help aid the homeschooler. Ann Bowers has been an elementary school teacher, in kindergarten through 8th grade, for 20 years.
by Ann Bowers
Years of research studies on public education in the United States have shown that there are effective ways to teach and ineffective ways. As a homeschooling parent, you want to use the most effective ways to teach. Not only will your children learn more and learn it faster, but also they will enjoy learning more if they are not bored and frustrated by ineffective lessons. In this article, I will chart some ineffective and some effective teaching techniques.
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Ineffective Teaching Techniques
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Effective Teaching Techniques
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Lecturing
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Comprehensible input (i.e. making the information understandable), hands-on learning, use of manipulatives, use of computers, discussion, project-based research and learning, integrated instruction, questioning, et.al.
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Winging it (i.e.; not planning instruction)
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Use of state standards to plan content, use of lesson plans, use of multiple resources, determination of yearly, monthly, weekly, daily, and individual lesson goals, continuous teacher education, testing students to determine the effectiveness of the program, tying [tag-cat]homework[/tag-cat] to class work, including regular review of concepts and skills learned
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Endless hours of rote drills (Occasional drills are fine.)
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Use of computers, games, manipulatives, use of effective lesson plan format, enough guided practice, independent practice, regular review of material, regular increase in complexity of material presented, re-teaching if needed
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Cold reads (i.e.; handing children material to read without any preparation)
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Teacher reads material ahead of time and determines goals for learning, teacher synopsizes materials for the students before reading and uses continuous teaching of [tag-tec]reading[/tag-tec] comprehension
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The most effective way to teach is to plan, plan, plan! Even the most intuitive teacher cannot be effective without constant planning of instructional content and its delivery.
Bio for Ann Bowers
Ann Bowers has been an elementary school teacher, in kindergarten through 8th grade, for 20 years. She was a Bilingual Education Grant Project Coordinator for seven years and a school principal for seven. She has a B.A. in English, an M.A. in Education, and holds California Life Teaching Credentials and specialist credentials in Remedial Reading and Teaching English as a Second Language. She is retired and has started a second career as a freelance writer.
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Thank you! I’m looking for better techniques to use with my kids. I appreciate this insight!