Some children have expressed concerns about making the right impression on teachers. Again here are a few ideas to help teachers and children to get along.
Meeting New Teachers
Meeting New Classmates
Meeting New Teachers - What if they dislike me?
What the children say
‘I’m worried about not knowing my new teachers.’
‘I’m worried about how the teachers might talk to me. What if they dislike me?’
‘The teachers here are very kind. I don’t know whether the teachers at high school will be as nice.’
The children we spoke to tended to feel that their primary schools were safe havens where everyone knew them and people were generally kind and friendly.
Model 1
One school has addressed the issue of getting to know teachers by including a section in its welcome booklet. In this case, the booklet is written by pupils at the high school.
‘Different members of staff will teach you for the different subjects you will take and another member of staff will be your form tutor. You find out which members of staff will be taking you and your full timetable on the Year 7 induction day. You may be thinking that the teachers you will get are extremely strict and give out detentions like hot cakes, shout lots or seem really mean. However, when you start you will find that this is rarely the case. The teachers are polite, friendly and always willing to help you - well, most of the time! So don’t be shy or afraid of teacher, they are there to help you. Remember, you can always seek help from the Year 7 pastoral staff if you have any problems or worries.’
Meeting New Classmates - Making new friends
What the children say
‘I’m looking forward to making new friends.’
‘I’m worried about making new friends.’
Activities promoting friendship making can be used at the beginning of term when pupils have arrived at their new school. Alternatively, they can be adapted for use during induction days or at lunchtime and after-school clubs.
Activities:
Model 1 - A personal poster
Model 2 - Friends by factors
Model 3 - A class question worksheet
Model 4 - Interviews
Model 5 - A timeline
Model 6 - A story board
Model 1 - A personal poster
(adapted from Bright Sparks: a good practice guide, copyright CEDC)
Prepare an A3 handout in the form of a poster with space for children to insert the following information:
My name is...........................
My birthday is..........................
I was born in...........................
At home I live with...........................
In my spare time I like to..........................
My favourite pop group is...........................
My favourite football team is...........................
Ask children to bring a recent picture of themselves to school to put on the poster. They can then complete the poster and personalise it with further information about themselves.
Ask pupils to show their posters to other members in their group. Display the posters on the classroom wall. Using the information from the posters, group children according to common factors such as:
- where they live
- the season when they were born
- similar hobbies
- similar preferences in music, sports, etc.
Each time a group is formed, the children should introduce themselves to the other members. Continue with the regrouping until everyone has met everyone else.
At the end of the session, form one large group and ask each pupil to introduce someone they have met for the first time to the rest of the group.
Ask pupils to form pairs or groups based on factors they have in common such as:
- the same colour socks
- the same number of brothers/sisters
- no brothers/sisters
- a birthday in the same month
- has the same vowel in their first name
- has the same favourite food, etc.
The variations on this theme are numerous; you could ask children to suggest their own common features.
Half way through this session, change the format to grouping based on differences by asking children to select others who have:
• different coloured hair
• different coloured socks
• enjoy different sports, etc
Model 3 - A class question worksheet
Create a worksheet using visuals that asks children to find other people in their class who fit a specific description, e.g.:
- find someone who has a pet. What is it?
- find someone who likes football. What team do they support?
- find someone who likes to eat fruit. What is their favourite?
- find someone who has a hobby. What is it?
Ask pupils to work in pairs and interview each other. Provide each child with an interview form on which they can enter information about their partner such as:
- name
- birth date
- favourite book, film, TV programme, sport, food, etc.
You could ask the children to brainstorm their own list of questions and develop the questionnaire themselves.
If you have some knowledge of the class, you may want to ask pupils to make a time-line showing important events in their lives. If possible, they should involve their family members or carers who can contribute information and anecdotes. It’s not advisable to use this activity with children you don’t know at all, since it could raise family issues that they find upsetting such as divorce or bereavement. Be sensitive to this possibility – you could ask them to create a time line that focuses on their own achievements.
Each child uses the time-line (model 5) as the basis for creating a storyboard that outlines their lives so far. They can use a combination of words, pictures and photographs. Be aware that for some children certain events in their past can be difficult to discuss and will be off-limits. They should be able to set their own agenda and be free to choose the elements they want to include
