lost voice

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Home : 2002 : November : 6

lost voice
By Carolyn

When I first started teaching, one of the biggest problems I had was hoarseness. I began to evaluate what I was doing, and that, of course, was trying to talk over 25 kids who, collectively, had a louder voice than I did!
I no longer get hoarse, and I don't yell. Instead I quietly inform the kids that they are wasting time. They know what that means. They know that there is a consequence for wasting time, and that is lost recess. When they really go overboard with the chatter, I just sit down at my table in front of them and start correcting papers. Most of them quickly get the idea of what I am doing,

so they start getting quiet. Once they are quiet enough for me to speak, I will ask them if they are ready to resume (or start) the lesson. Of course, they are eager to do so, because they know that 5 minutes of lost time due to chatting translates into 5 minutes when we have to continue doing our lessons because we aren't finished because of the chatting.