Are you a purple cow or a brown cow??? Chapter 5 Teach Like A Pirate- Transformation

So ask yourself this question:                      Are you a

                                                                              or a

We all would like to be purple cows. Purple cows are fun and exciting. That is how we all would like our students to view our classrooms. If we are a brown cow then we are ordinary. Our classroom is touching upon what is needed but not in the manner in which the students are excited.

There are two questions that were asked in this chapter:

If your students didn't have to be there, would you be teaching to an empty room?

Think about your classroom, is it one that students want to be there. Do your students come sick or not? Is the environment exciting?

Do you have any lessons you could sell tickets for?

Think about your lessons, are there any that your kids loved and wanted more of. Are they exciting, educational and keep your students on task and leaving wanting more.

These are two questions that many would not answer yes to but they are thought provoking and need to be kept in the back of your mind when creating that unit or new classroom activity or environment.

Positioning and Reframing

How do you position your lessons?  Positioning is important. How you teach will place your lessons on a scale of boring to exciting. It is how we relay the information and present the lesson that will position them with our students.

Do you reframe? Reframing is when we change the perceptions of the material by our students. many will say they hate a subject but do they hate it or how it has been taught to them? It is up to us to reframe their opinions and thoughts. Reframing is done at times with quick thinking and a simple strategy that makes it more understandable. it is taking a situation that could be detrimental and turning it into a success.

So are you a purple cow or a brown cow?