What are /r/AustralianTeachers' favorite Products & Services?

From 3.5 billion Reddit comments

Scratch MIT is always a great one, as it doesn't just give students a chance to program with a visual language (DigiTech Curriculum) but they can build scenes and scenarios with images and avatars. This is a creative outlet, but it will need a little bit of support.

Prezi might be a good one too - this is like Slides but instead of multiple slides, it is one big canvas and the progression is controlled by changing camera angles. A little bit more engaging and creative than a standard presentation.

I'm sure there are plenty more, but these have been popular during my time.

This could depend on a few things, as there are plenty of technology options out there.

For a simple presentation without the whiteboard, you could use PowerPoint. This could include a recording of your work on the whiteboard as well.

For screen recording using a digital whiteboard, you could use an online tool like Screencastomatic. This should give you a clean video export option, but most freebies will be limited to 5-15 minutes of recording. After COVID last year, it seems the educational gratuity has dried up with those companies...

For physical recording and talking, you will likely need to get equipment like lapel mics, access to SMART Boards and screen recording software for your computer. Can talk more about these if you like. There are also integrated solutions provided sitewide depending on your available tech as well.

I don't have any specific course recommendations - the last time I tried doing a search for one, it was very specific. I think being teachers, most of the learning development and teaching techniques are covered.

Online rapid eDevelopment courses can help speed you into it - I did a course a few years back with Learning Age Solutions and the ideals behind their courses are perfect for UX and Learning Design.

And for something to try right now: jump into Articulate 360 (free 60-day trial available) and follow their tutorials to get into an eLearning Development solution today.

Understanding and using educational theories

Discusses all theories, but with more basic language than your typical textbook. Also has practical examples. Read reviews at amazon

Get a cardioid lapel wireless microphone with a USB receiver. Turn the speakers on your laptop up.

Get technology to yell at your students.

https://www.amazon.com.au/Wireless-Microphones-FIFINE-Microphone-Transmitter/dp/B074C125TN

edit: Failing that, there are a bunch of classroom management techniques that don't require you to yell at kids or even be that loud.

Call to attention:

• Identify a spot that you will call for attention.
  
• Have an action that is designated for students to shut up and listen
• stand in your spot, do that action.
• thank students who comply.
• do not be soft.

I enjoy class punishments, so the class is motivated to shut up trouble makers, which is usually a restriction on fun things.

edit2: consider practicing online. There must be some classes.

https://www.amazon.com.au/30Pcs-Carpet-Marker-Sticker-Classroom/dp/B08W5414C4/ref=asc_df_B08W5414C4/?tag=googleshopmob-22&linkCode=df0&hvadid=463552681858&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=5812605924734793633&hvpone=&hvptwo=&h...

This and any rug you want.

Is steam cleaning an option?

No worries! :)

Now I've given it a little bit more thought, one of the contributing factors towards the 'yes' attitude might be that those types of teachers are more inclined to pick up a prac student, so they perpetuate the yes culture.

Aside from saying no, and perhaps picking up this book here, don't hesitate to drop your teaching load. I dropped to 0.8FTE after my first year and it had a massive impact on my mental health and lesson quality - And depending on your tax bracket it might not make that much difference to your pay either.

If you work in the country, in the right town, you can also get free or subsidied goverment housing. It's a huge convience not having to deal with finding a house, applying, making sure it's habitable, etc, before moving to a new place.

And if you're in subsidied housing any rent you do pay is salary sacrificed. If you didn't know, that means it comes out of your income before you pay tax.

In my case I had a 60% subsidy, with my contribution of the other 40% being $250/week. I was about $80 ahead per week.

Nice! It's a great language. Do you have a good starting plan? If you don't I highly recommend Python Crash Course as a starting point.

For my Y8s I found the Miro board useful for mapping activities/discussion. I pre-emptively make a template (mind-map, forms, etc) for whatever activity we're planning to do, then screen-share it to the class.

Miro also allows unlimited user access and something I planned to try (but didn't get time to as lockdown ended) was to slowly let students gain access to the board so they could contribute themselves rather than just me doing it while they unmute/use chat function. The board shows the names of everyone as they use it so if someone does something naughty, it's easy to identify and remove them and they'd have to 'earn' back the right over time.

For my VCE classes, I run more discussions using case studies. Get the class discussing, whether with mic or on chat, and then I just link their discussion back to the content. The lower scoring kids really enjoyed this, and a few asked to do more even when we returned back to campus (usually I wait to do case discussions after the bulk of the theory is covered).

Just make sure you've done all the questions you've assigned well in advance and feel free to ask your mentor stuff.

He won't judge you for not knowing everything when you're a new teacher. Hell, I've been teaching chemistry for years and my colleagues and I still ask each other stuff all the time, especially when a student asks a tough question.

If you're willing to use torrents then download this course and it will give you extra knowledge and plenty of examples and anecdotes etc that will make it seem like you know everything. You will definitely learn things here that your mentor doesn't know so it will look very impressive.

https://www.thegreatcourses.com/courses/chemistry-and-our-universe-how-it-all-works.html

(I know I shouldn't encourage torrents but I'm assuming you're a student and the prices of these are nuts).

Haven’t had my own classroom in a while, but when I did... Big world map (my previous HoD shelled out for one that took up almost the entire side wall and I used to teach while pointing at it a bunch), the AIATSIS map of Indigenous Australia, super jumbo world history timeline (although tbh this was always just a wishlist item, I used to make my own timelines with the kids depending on what we were studying instead), propaganda posters relevant to our units, large colour printouts of sources for gallery walks, old maps and posters from National Geographic, that kind of thing. I also agree about having cognitive verb posters. A co-constructed word wall of history and topic-specific vocabulary can also be useful though I often just do this as a glossary in my class OneNote rather than on the wall. I also like to make the kids decorate by having them construct revision posters.

I don’t like to overdecorate because a) I’m lazy and b) I’m easily distracted (and don’t want kids with executive functioning issues to be distracted by the walls either).

Try this link, this is to the Australian amazon: https://www.amazon.com.au/Teaching-Frankenstein-Cautionary-Viktor-James-ebook/dp/B07H3BQ4DT/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?keywords=teaching+frankenstein&qid=1557250432&s=gateway&sr=8-1

Mathletics are pretty popular here in the schools. Another app you might consider recommending is the 2 mins math for kids! app https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.shex.twominutesmathforkids&hl=en