Stephanie Henson-December blog - Teach with a Sense of Urgency

    Routman makes a fabulous point that teaching with urgency does not have to be anxiety producing. As a teacher, we must multi-task and that is how I relate the theory of teaching with urgency with my own teaching style.  In an effort to "make every moment count" we, as teachers, need to find ways for our teaching to be effective and intergrative.  I find myself starting out with a plan each day (reading,writing, math) but sometimes I revamp because something occurs that allows for a teachable moment.  If a student, while reading, asks why a sentence is worded a particular way, I inaviable jump to a mini grammar lesson. Or if a student is struggling behaviorally I can find a book/text to relate the behavior, which then could led to a writing lesson.
    Another point from the chapter I latched onto was the "Top Five Things I do to Ensure Students Become Excellent Readers" (pg.43).  The very first bullet was demonstrating that I am a reader - which reminded me of sharing something I read from our Miller text (page 12) with my class. First, they were intrigued because I was reading for a class to which I'm the student. Then, the content of what I read was something to which they could relate - independent reading time impacting standardized testing. It amazed me how interested the students were and how this sharing was a springboard for additional learning for them.
    As a teacher, I'm always worried that I will not have enough time to "teach" everything.  However, I am not allowing this thought to drive my instruction. Instead I'm working at better utilization of time, such as working with small and large groups or individuals through conferencing. My mantra has changed to "quality versus quantity."