Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 4: Develop lesson plans
• Part 2 of 4: Leading discussions
• Part 3 of 4: Knowing the lesson material
• Part 4 of 4: Developing your teaching skills
• Tips
• Warnings

Teachers of English have an important task. They teach their students to read and write well, to understand what they are reading, how to learn from their peers and how to have productive and challenging conversations. It can be difficult to be a successful English teacher, but there are steps you can take to improve yourself so that both you and your students can make time in class more productive.

To step

Part 1 of 4: Develop lesson plans

1. Choose materials that will interest your students. While classics like Moby Dick are incredibly important historically and have a lot of literary value, they can be too long, boring and seemingly irrelevant to hold your students' interest for long. Instead, assign shorter or more contemporary works, or works that you know your students will enjoy.
   • Look for literary or academic value in unlikely places: even a zombie apocalypse novel like Colson Whiteheads Zone One is about challenging and important topics that perfectly match a classic like In Our Time from Hemingway while remaining relevant to modern audiences.
2. Provide reasonable amounts of homework. While it may seem fun to have your students read a full-length novel in a week, it can be an unreasonable expectation. Your students will not be able to complete the reading and will skip pieces, read a summary, or not read at all. Encourage your students to complete their homework and get the most out of their education by giving up less homework and more homework that is directly related to class work.
   • Focus on creating a classroom environment where you can monitor the work and progress of your students. If you choose to give homework, it should be brief and directly related to your class assignments and discussions.
   • Short stories are an excellent way to assign pieces for critical reading. Just because it's less reading doesn't mean your students wouldn't be able to learn key concepts. Find short stories that illustrate what you discuss in class and use them to keep your students engaged.
3. Give homework assignments that help students understand the material. Ask students to write a short response to a reading assignment, including an interpretation of or questions about what has been read. These assignments should challenge students to think critically and formulate important questions, or to make connections between the topics of the lesson.
   • Don't give up work for the sake of work. Some commands such as vocabulary sentences and definitions are useful. However, to include reading as homework that is not related to class work, just so that your students have English homework, is stressful and unnecessary. Focus on the quality of the homework you assign rather than the quantity.
4. Focus on understanding the big picture. Focus on the students' overall understanding of the topics you teach, in addition to skills such as vocabulary. Clarify the overarching meaning of what they are learning and how it can help them elsewhere in their lives. Teach them how to learn, instead of simple factual knowledge. This will help them leave your class with a more lasting understanding and appreciation for the subject.
5. Organize your lessons to make them cohesive. Instead of jumping from topic to topic at will, you can organize your lessons chronologically or thematically. Make connections between different topics in your lessons so that your students understand how the topics relate to each other. Help them make connections and encourage them to put their ideas in different contexts. What does Whitman's relationship with nature have to do with Tennyson's, or Hemingway's? How are they the same or different, and why?
   • Organizing your lessons chronologically can make the transition from one topic to another feel natural - it makes sense to study 18th-century writers before 19th-century writers. You can also organize topics thematically so that you can study the development of a theme or idea across multiple texts.

Part 2 of 4: Leading discussions

1. Make sure you know the teaching material well. If you're discussing a short story, read it over a few more times to make sure you include the smaller details that you might not have noticed the first time. Come up with an interpretation of the work, but remember that your interpretation is not the only one possible. Make sure you are able to answer common questions from students about the work.
   • It's okay if you don't know an answer to every question that comes up. Rather than trying to compensate, open the topic to class discussion so that it can be a learning opportunity for everyone.
2. Bring extra equipment. While the focus of the discussion should be on the text itself, it can be helpful to bring in external material, such as biographical information about the author, the backstory of the text, or famous or controversial interpretations. Do some research and bring the most relevant or interesting information you can find.
3. Know what you want to discuss. Pick a few key points from the text that you think your students will find the most challenging or confusing. Consider the specific topics you want to cover and come up with a few key points for your students to take out of the discussion.
   • Keep in mind that your students have questions and interests that you may not be able to foresee. Your lesson plans don't have to be set in stone. Responding to what your students want to discuss creates a lively, engaging and productive discussion.
4. Ask questions that leave room for interpretation. You should guide your students in interpreting the text rather than discussing factual aspects. Ask "how" and "why" questions instead of "what" or "yes or no" questions. For example, 'What did Ender do to Bonzo Madrid' ('Ender's game' by Orson Scott Card) is a very simple question, while 'Why did Ender do that' is much more challenging and complex, and 'How do you know?' Asks to read accurately and pay attention to the text.
5. Ask specific questions. It may be good to start with broad questions such as "What did you like about this story", but only if they are quickly followed by much more specific questions. Broad questions do not help students to think critically about the text, and they encourage generalizations and assumptions rather than text-based arguments. In contrast, asking specific questions about specific aspects of the text will challenge your students to focus on things they may have missed, construct arguments based on the text, and make claims about details that challenge their interpretations.
6. Encourage your students to respond to each other. In a discussion, the students should not talk to you. Instead, they should focus their questions and comments on each other, and you should only intervene to move the discussion forward. They'll learn best if they work together to build their own ideas and interpretations - they won't get much out of the conversation if you just tell them what you think. Remember, you're helping them learn, and a big part of that is teaching them how best to learn.
   • Divide your students into small groups and let them discuss topics among themselves. Then have each group talk to the whole class about what they discussed with their group. Try to have each group act as an authority in a particular area and lead the class in a discussion on that topic.
   • If your students listen to and respect each other, encourage them to jump into the discussion without raising their hands and waiting for a turn. This makes for a more responsive, fast-moving and engaging conversation that can continue on its own without you. If your students are shouting over each other or if a few students are dominating the discussion, let the person who just spoke choose the next person to talk to, or find another way to allocate speaking time without having to do it yourself.
7. Challenge your students' ideas and encourage them to do the same. Try not to disagree with everything they say, but ask them to support their claims with textual evidence and encourage other students to come up with different interpretations. By challenging the students' ideas, they think more deeply about convincing arguments. It also helps them develop the skills to speak and debate convincingly with their peers.
   • Debates and arguments help make a discussion lively, engaging and interesting. If these debates start to get personal, or if students start to insult each other, try to return the conversation to the text. You have to challenge the students 'interpretation of the text, not the students' interpretation of each other.

Part 3 of 4: Knowing the lesson material

1. Read regularly. Read many types of literature, including books, magazines, newspapers, and poetry. Reading is the best way to explore challenging topics, learn vocabulary and writing techniques, and discover new material to bring to class. Depending on the level at which you teach, you should be familiar with the most important works in literary history. And you should always be able to offer reading suggestions to your students.
   • In addition to reading important literature, read just for fun. Remember why you love reading and encourage your students to do the same.
   • Be aware of current trends in reading material and try out the things you think your students might be reading. This will help you better understand their interests and engage with them outside of the classroom, which will make you a more effective teacher overall.
2. Expand your vocabulary. Make it a habit to look up new words you come across while reading. Study your favorite words and start accumulating a large vocabulary. Challenge yourself to think about words you don't know. Bet on their etymology and use similar words to find out their meaning. Don't be afraid to look up words you are unsure of and encourage your students to do the same.
   • At the same time, teach your students that someone isn't necessarily a good writer just because of using expensive words to sound sophisticated. Teach your students the difference between using a word to make a historical comparison, or using an alliteration, and using a word to impress someone with your knowledge. There are more and less useful ways of handling words.
   • Never put your students down for not knowing or understanding a word. Indicate that it is okay, because it is a difficult word. Then use a synonym, provide the student with contextual clues, or help them find them so that the student can become familiar with a more advanced vocabulary.
3. Practice your handwriting. Students should be able to read your handwriting so they can understand your whiteboard notes or feedback you provide on an essay. Write letters or journal to keep your handwriting alive and healthy, and always focus on readability rather than speed of your writing.
4. Develop your English language skills. Make sure you have a good understanding of spelling, punctuation, and grammar. You don't want to teach your students incorrect or wrong information. Use reference books and the Internet as a resource for grammar and punctuation rules, and don't be afraid to look up topics you're unsure about.

Part 4 of 4: Developing your teaching skills

1. Feel more comfortable speaking in front of the class. Learn to be confident, to stand in front of your students and speak clearly. Practice reading aloud to be able to speak loudly and clearly and make sure you don't stumble over your words when speaking in front of the class. Practice good public speaking skills so that you can perform well in class.
2. Encourage your students. Pay attention to your students and give their ideas your full attention. At the beginning of the school year, work on building a good relationship right away. Treat them as intelligent and dignified people, and respect them academically and otherwise. Try to get to know one thing from each student that they are passionate about outside of the classroom. Then encourage them to pursue their interests and curiosity and challenge them both inside and outside the classroom. If you give them attention and respect, you will find that they want to do well to be worthy of that attention and respect.
3. Make sure you are available outside of class. Encourage your students to drop by during lunch or after school. This can make a huge difference for students who have difficulty with the material or who would like to discuss further. Being available to them is an encouragement to take a genuine interest in the material, and it is a show of your respect and desire to help them learn.
4. Be strict but fair. Don't constantly yell at the students, but don't let them walk all over you. Show discipline, but don't overdo it or they will behave worse towards you. If a student has done well, tell him or her and reward the student.If a student is struggling, ask them to stay a while so you can help them figure out what's going on, or ask another student who understands the concept to help them.
5. Make sure your students understand what you are teaching. Don't speak or write too quickly. This gives the students time to listen, understand and transcribe so that they do not miss essential information. Help students absorb your lessons and encourage them to make connections between the topics and thus outside of class to better understand your lessons.

Tips

• Encourage your students to engage with the material outside of class.

Warnings

• Being a teacher is sometimes very difficult and takes a lot of time and patience.