Flash Cards—The Power of Something Simple

We had a great question on our Do2Learn Facebook page earlier this week regarding flash cards. One of our followers asked if we offered flash cards on our website. Yes, we do and I will give you the link to get to those in a bit. This question got me thinking about my first flash card experience, at least the first one I could remember. Those multiplication tables! Man, did they give me a hard time. My parent's tried all the educational tricks they could find. They used the grid, then some crazy finger trick for the 9's, but what finally worked was a good old set of flash cards that we went over and over again. I am sure my teachers and parents used flash cards to teach me things before those dreaded multiplication tables, but those earlier memories did not stick like this one. I did learn from that experience though and continued to use flash cards throughout my educational career to learn many subjects and prepare for many tests. I also loved using them with each of my daughters as we learned things from shapes, to letters, to symbols on the periodic table.

Why do flash cards work so well for all of us when we are trying to learn something new?

• You can take them anywhere. Flash cards are just that portable!

• You can study one-on-one with your student/child or turn it onto a group game/activity. Studying can be a lot of fun with flash cards.

• Flash cards make it easy to sort out what is already known from what needs more work.

• All ages of learners use flash cards. Toddlers to college students use them in learning!

Do2Learn has put together several sets of flash cards for you to download and print to use with your students/children. They can all be found here on our products page. Two of my favorite sets are the Preposition Flash Cards and the SignLanguage Flash Cards.

How To Spot A Great Teacher

Do you remember your favorite teacher?  Why were they your favorite teacher? I bet learning was fun in class and you never realized you were learning. You looked forward to going to school because you knew you were not going to be bored and that you would feel encouraged when you left school at the end of the day. Of course when you were younger you may not have been able to express your feelings in this way, but your parents could tell that you liked your teacher by how happy you were and how much you learned. Even if your favorite teacher had to scold you they did so in a way that effectively taught you how to do the right thing the next time you were faced with a similar situation.

As a parent I have witnessed both my daughters become enamored with teachers and those teachers all share some of the same qualities. Of course I viewed my favorite teachers differently as a parent then I did as a student. The qualities that come to mind time and again in those top teachers my daughters were fortunate to have are:

• Organized—they have the classroom ready to go and they themselves are structured and appear prepared for what the day may bring.

• Good listeners—this always helps form strong genuine bonds with their students.

• Makes learning fun—they know what motivates students to learn and they know that learning happens in and outside of the classroom.

• Good communication—with the parents as well as with the students. Teachers who are clear about expectations in the class with both parents and students, and are not afraid to contact parents about any issue good or bad.

• Break it down—having a teacher who can explain concepts in an understandable fashion is priceless to both a student and parent.

We are nearing the time of year where student teachers are working in classrooms with students. This means they will be graduating in a few short months and then off to their own classrooms. This is such an exciting time for those “soon to be” new teachers. Perhaps you know a student teacher or even a teacher who is still “new” to teaching and you would like to be encouraging and offer support as they begin their new career. Do2Learn has developed a Handbook for New Teachers that is specific for teachers K-5. This handbook is really a great way to show a new teacher how much you care and support them.

The Handbook for New Teachers is an essential and easy-to-use guide for K-5 teachers that is designed to make the first day of teaching stress-free and organized. Practices proven effective by experienced teachers are presented in a visually clear format, with all needed forms and examples to make them work. This handbook contains over 60 pages of reproducible forms. These include room centers and book labels, passes, parent contact letters and communication sheets, student contracts and behavior point sheets for graduated behavior levels, special education schedule forms, procedures lists, student homework and weekly folders, seating charts, work overdue and field trip notices, complete substitute teacher instructions...plus much more. Building on its teacher and special educational experience, Do2Learn has developed and tested this thoughtful and valuable resource for the new teacher.