Are the Kids Alright?

 The purpose of this blog is to uplift kids of all ages at the Shabbat table... please share...

The "emergency intervention" that I mentioned in my previous email about Prince Harry involved a new teacher who had been hired to take over a class.

One, he had zero training or experience; two, he was the third teacher in that classroom this year. Talk about setting someone up to fail!!!

I received the phone call Thursday afternoon. I was told that it was a true emergency - he was ready to quit, and had told his boss he'd give me one shot at trying to help.

Fortunately, the class was relatively small and a very nice group of students - disrupters, yes; ADD, yes; but nothing malicious.

I observed him for an hour, followed by a mentoring session.

For your table - a question - put yourself in my shoes and see if you can conjure up an image: What makes a great teacher? Are there any universals?

Not long ago, one of my children said, "So-and-so is the best teacher I ever had.”

"Wow, that's a big statement! What makes her such a good teacher? What does she do?"

Without hesitation, she gave me a whole list:

• She explains things and repeats them
• She likes class discussions
• She knows how to get the class back together
• She’s quick to say “my bad” and apologize
• She’s funny, she laughs with us and jokes with us
• She tells us stories
• She does a lot of partners
• She makes girls feel liked.

She had other teachers who had some of these qualities, but most of them were:

• Quick to anger and/or
• Horribly boring

Second question for your table - Do you agree with my daughter's criteria? Did she leave anything out?

Third question: Do these criteria (assuming you agree with most or all of them) apply to other professions as well?


Shabbat Shalom

PS - In case you were wondering, the intervention was a success! He's implementing my suggestions consistently and the entire class has been transformed for the better.

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