Making learning expectations clear with Maisie Smith

Maisie Smith has just qualified and starts her teaching career with a Year 3 class in a school in Basildon, Essex today! This podcast is a must listen for any teacher at the start of the autumn term because Maisie discussed the one thing that every teacher (not just NQTs) should do at the start of any school year. And what's that I hear you ask? It is the importance of making clear to her class what great learners do, what their habits are, and how they need to behave all the time if they are to succeed day after day. Maisie has already laid the foundations for this when she worked with her class for 2 days at the end of the summer term, but she realises that there is still much to do to embed the expectations into children's day to day behaviour.

During our conversation we discussed ...

• How fascinating children are because they get excited by different things and as a primary school teacher you can bring out their best qualities.
• The importance of making children feel excited about being in your class so they look forward to each day.
• How critical it is to use humour with the children to engage them and keep them healthy. You could even buy a joke book!
• How observing children gives you so much useful information that you can use to make them better learners.
• How swapping class rules (that they have had in every other class) for class learning expectations means children know what they are meant to do to be great learners, and it makes them behave well too.
• Giving children ownership of their learning and behaviour in class. This, according to assessment for learning guru Dylan William, is one of the 5 key aspects of AfL.
• How independence can be developed in children and how a simple strategy like the 4Bs can support this.
• If you praise the learning behaviour that you want again and again it makes it much more likely you will see that behaviour every day.
• The value of regularly extending the list of learning behaviours you expect children to demonstrate, so the list stays fresh, relevant and challenging.
• How questioning can be structured so children have to think more deeply and how learning to join different thoughts together helps them to form more complex ideas.
• Why asking children to justify their answers is so good for learning.