Latest / New Teacher Talk / Ep 213: The Warm Demander Secret to Starting Your Year Strong

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Ep 213: The Warm Demander Secret to Starting Your Year Strong · New Teacher Talk

Welcome.
If you've been with us a while, welcome back.
This is New Teacher Talk.
We're Anna and Beth and every episode we sit down with
someone who has something real to offer new teachers.
Today that's Melissa Dudic,
talking with us about establishing yourself as a learner
and leader.
Think back to your first day teaching or student teaching.
What do you remember most?
Chances are it wasn't the lesson plan.
It was the feeling of trying to establish yourself,
build relationships and create a classroom where students
were ready to learn.
Hi, my name is Melissa Dudic,
and I am a Director of Curriculum and Instruction in a
large suburban high school district.
In my role,
I oversee our new teacher induction and mentoring program.
And I'm passionate about supporting new teachers as they
establish themselves as learners and leaders in their
school communities.
In my work with new teachers,
I'm always thinking about the most practical ways to
support teachers in starting the year strong.
Whether you're beginning in a new school in the first few
years of your teaching career or a veteran teacher thinking
about a strong start to the school year,
this episode is for you.
Schools are busy places and the work of teachers is
demanding.
From multiple technology platforms to daily lesson
planning, to paperwork, to communication with parents,
it can be overwhelming to know where to prioritize your
time and energy.
Today,
we're going to talk about establishing a strong culture for
learning that supports student agency right from the start
of the school year.
We'll focus on three elements that are present in every
classroom regardless of grade level or content area, time,
routines and relationships.
By the end of this episode,
you'll have a better understanding of how these three
elements communicate your values as a teacher,
along with practical strategies you can use to
intentionally plan for them from day one.
One of the ideas I come back to often is this,
our words and actions communicate our values.
Students are constantly receiving messages about what
matters in our classrooms, not just through what we say,
but through what we do.
This idea has been shaped by several resources that have
influenced my own thinking about teaching and learning.
Two that I would highly recommend are Creating Cultures of
Thinking by Ron Richart and the 12 Touchstones of Good
Teaching by Brian Goodwin and Elizabeth Ross Hubbell.
While each approaches the work from a slightly different
perspective,
both emphasize that the day-to-day decisions we make as
teachers communicate powerful messages about learning,
expectations and student potential.
For example, think about the difference between saying,
good job and saying,
I like the way you used your resources to help you get
unstuck.
The second statement communicates much more.
It highlights perseverance,
resourcefulness and independence.
It tells students what you value and what successful
learning looks like in your classroom.
Our tone, facial expressions, examples,
participation structures and use of time all communicate
what we believe about learning and learners.
If we want students to become active participants in their
own learning,
we need to be intentional about the messages we're sending
them from the very beginning.
The first element I'm going to discuss that shapes
classroom culture is time.
Every teacher gets the same number of minutes in a class
period.
The question is,
what messages are we sending through how we use them?
You've probably heard the saying,
how you spend your time reveals what is important to you.
This is true not only in our personal lives,
but in the limited time we have with our students,
often dictated by a bell at the start and finish of a
period.
What does your allocation of time with students say about
what you value in your classroom?
When you spend time at the beginning of the class period
greeting students or facilitating small group team building
and whole class community building,
you're communicating the importance of relationships as a
foundation for learning.
When you're prepared with your handouts,
slide decks and directions,
you communicate that you value making the most of your time
together.
We also know about the importance of wait time when posing
questions to students.
We know it's important to give them time to think deeply
and prepare a thoughtful response.
Here's another way to think about it.
By giving students ample time to think about a question and
not offering the answer yourself,
you are also communicating that you believe in them and
that this is a classroom where students are expected to
think and time will be given to do so.
By resisting the urge to answer the question yourself,
you're communicating something powerful.
I believe you are capable of doing the thinking.
Furthermore,
you not only give wait time but explicitly stated as such.
For example,
I'm going to pose a question and I'd like you to think
silently.
After everyone has had a chance to think,
you'll share with your partner and then I'll ask a few
students to share with the entire class.
These explicit directions not only tell students how to use
their time,
but also communicate the value you place on everyone being
intellectually engaged in the class.
Now think about how class sometimes ends.
We get caught up in what we are doing,
look up at the clock and realize the bell is about to ring.
We call out final instructions and students pack up their
belongings and dash out the door.
However,
if we want students to take ownership of their learning,
we have to give them time to reflect and consolidate their
learning at the end of class.
This time must be planned for and doing so communicates
that learning doesn't end when the task is complete.
Reflection is part of the learning process.
Reflection doesn't have to take 10 minutes,
sometimes 60 seconds is enough.
The important thing is that students have an opportunity to
pause, think and identify what they're learning.
In summary,
lesson plans should include time allocations for
activities,
not just to ensure that you get through the tasks,
but to ensure that you're spending your time on the right
tasks.
Now let's talk about routines.
Have you ever been the new person in a well-established
meeting or committee?
After a few minutes,
you realize there are norms and routines everyone follows.
Once you understand them,
you feel more comfortable participating.
Routines are important for every classroom,
but I find that they are specially crucial for new
teachers.
Having strong routines in your classroom allows you to
minimize distractions,
maintain the focus on learning and provide students with a
level of comfort that allows them to be ready to learn.
Routines provide structure and consistency for students.
When students know what to expect,
your class will run more smoothly.
So what do you expect when students walk into your
classroom and the bell rings?
If you were a high school teacher,
you might expect them to put their phone in a caddy and
have their notebook out.
Perhaps you have an opener activity on paper most days and
the students know to pick up that paper at the front of the
room before even being seated.
State these expectations clearly to students,
remind them as you greet them and stick to a similar
starting routine each day.
This doesn't mean you can't add a twist some days or mix
things up,
but try to keep a few routines the same every day.
You might also start with an agenda on the board each day
that you expect students to review.
Instead of reminding them of the first few routines,
simply greet them and remind them to check the posted
agenda.
When class begins,
thanks students for being ready to learn.
You might also have a routine for group work.
In my classroom, students knew the phrase, C3B4 me.
This meant that when working in groups of four,
if they were stuck on a problem,
they first needed to work with their three teammates,
only when it was confirmed that everyone in the group was
stuck, should they call me over to help.
Students learned quickly that if they did call me over,
I would first pause the whole group to ensure each student
had been consulted and that my help was truly needed.
This routine supported my goal of building student agency
while also ensuring that my time was spent well.
Finally,
I mentioned earlier the importance of ending class strong
by giving students time to reflect and consolidate their
learning.
It's helpful not only to build time for this,
but to also create a routine for it.
For example,
this closure time might always start with a question prompt
for students to reflect on and jot down in a journal.
The second part of the closure may vary from day to day,
but students always know to expect a second step,
followed by the prompt to clean up their learning spaces.
The key with routines is consistency.
Of course,
sometimes you'll try a routine that doesn't work and needs
to be adapted or abandoned altogether.
That's okay.
Routines and time work together.
Routines support efficient time management,
foster student agency and ownership,
and minimize distractions to keep the focus on learning.
One important reminder,
don't assume routines are understood simply because you've
explained them once.
Like any skill, routines require modeling, practice,
feedback, and reinforcement.
Finally, let's talk about relationships.
We've discussed how time communicates what matters and how
routines communicate what we expect.
Relationships communicate something equally important.
Who belongs?
Even the strongest routines are ultimately in service of
people.
That's why relationships are such an essential part of
classroom culture.
Students are more likely to take academic risks,
ask questions, share ideas,
and persevere through challenges when they feel known,
respected, and valued.
Those relationships don't develop all at once.
They grow through small, consistent interactions over time.
One practical goal I often encourage new teachers to set is
simple, interact with every student every day.
That interaction might be a greeting at the door,
a quick check-in during independent work,
or a follow-up question about something a student shared
previously.
The key is to be intentional.
It's easy to spend most of our time with students who need
help or frequently seek our attention while quieter
students can unintentionally fade into the background.
Building relationships means finding ways to connect with
every learner.
Relationships aren't separate from instruction.
They're foundational to it.
In fact,
every interaction with students communicates a message
about what we believe about them as learners.
Perhaps you've heard the term warm demander.
Warm demanders build trust and rapport while maintaining
high expectations.
They communicate both care and confidence.
I support you and I know you're capable of meeting this
challenge.
This is an important mindset for new teachers.
Building strong relationships does not mean lowering
standards.
In reality,
students are more likely to rise to challenging expectations
when they believe their teacher genuinely cares about their
success.
So how do we build those relationships early in the year?
Start with simple actions.
Learn students' names quickly and pronounce them correctly.
Greet students at the door.
Attend a game, performance, or activity when you can.
Ask students about their interests.
Follow up on something they shared the week before.
These moments may seem small,
but they communicate something powerful.
I see you, you matter here.
Relationships also grow when students have opportunities to
know one another.
Consider incorporating partner discussions,
team building activities,
or collaborative learning experiences early in the year.
When students feel connected to their classmates,
they're more willing to participate, contribute,
and support one another's learning.
It's also important to think about how relationships show
up during challenging moments.
When a student makes a mistake, struggles with behavior,
or falls behind academically,
our response communicates our beliefs.
Do students hear that mistakes are part of learning?
Do they hear that we believe they can improve?
Do they experience accountability paired with support?
The strongest classroom cultures are built when students
know two things.
Their teacher cares about them,
and their teacher believes they are capable of meaningful
learning.
When students experience that combination,
they begin to see themselves as active participants in
their own growth,
rather than passive recipients of information.
And that is ultimately the goal of everything we've
discussed today, using time, routines,
and relationships to create the conditions for student
ownership, engagement, and growth.
As we wrap up,
remember that culture isn't built in a single lesson or
activity.
It's built through hundreds of small decisions that we
communicate what we value.
How we spend our time communicates what matters.
The routines we establish communicate what we expect.
The relationships we build communicate who belongs.
Time, routines,
and relationships may seem like simple aspects of classroom
practice,
but together they create the conditions for student
ownership, engagement, and growth.
As you prepare for the start of the school year,
consider this question.
What messages will your classroom send to students on the
very first day?
Because whether we intend to or not,
we're always communicating our values.
The question is whether those messages are being sent
intentionally.
The good news is that with thoughtful planning around time,
routines, and relationships,
we can create classrooms where students feel known,
capable, and empowered to learn.
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Thanks for listening,
and best wishes for a successful start to the school year.
Thanks for listening to New Teacher Talk.
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From both of us, thank you for being here.
We'll talk again soon.