Hello. I teach 7th grade Language Arts. I just learned about this WBT at a conference I attended this summer. I am excited to use it, but I am a little skeptical!? My classes are only 50 minutes; we have to do a lot of writing. Will these techniques be worth the time it will take to teach my students.
The videos I've watched look like the "perfect" classroom, which I dream about but am not completely convinced that it will work. I am going into my third year of teaching and desire to see my class working the way I've witnessed in the videos! Anyone out there...I would like assurance that this will work with ELA and with 7th graders who won't do homework.....Thanks!!!

It really works!!

I have WBT with 8th graders and 7th graders - and I teach math. This last year I was at a new school, and definately started the year with some resistance. But I plugged through and they were great! Is everyday perfect? No - it never will be, but the beauty is, you can have a bad day, then tweak something and comeback and finish a great week.

WBT has made me a happier teacher - which in return helps my students to be more succesful cooperative students. They still stink at homework, they still break rules, they still act crazy on a full moon - but now I have tools (that actually work) to deal with it!!

How can we help - what are you struggling with?

Thanks for your response! I have not yet tried this in my classroom. I plan on introducing it during the first weeks of school. I have a plan in my head...it will be useful on days I'm introducing new concepts, getting the kids' attention, and just running the everyday management of my class. I can adapt to the everyday needs of my students, so I don't have a specific question at this time.
My students are extremely diverse as I live in a military community. When I watched the videos of WBT being used in the classroom, I was thrilled with the way all students were engaged and I am the type to not give up! I am going to implement this and I will post my thoughts afterward!!

Hi Grhaire,
I teach high school math and the techniques really do work. I like using the techniques because they make teaching more fun and interactive for both me and my students. You mentioned your concern with the time it takes to teach the kids the techniques. Honestly, the kids pick them up really quickly. I use the classroom rules (with gestures) to teach "Class-Yes," "Teach-Okay," and the scoreboard all on the first day of school. (I also have 50 minute class periods). I don't know if you watched my Algebra video on YouTube, but my classes were by no means perfect all of the time. I had several students who did very little their homework. Yes, due to their lack on willingness to work at home, they did not learn as much as those who did their homework. However, my time with those students DURING class was much more successful because they were definitely engaged in the lesson while they were with me for those 50 minutes. I also discovered that when I took the time to plan a good WBT lesson, I didn't need to assign as many homework problems because the kids really did seem to understand (and remember) the topics better when I added lots of gestures and interactions with their partners. Probably the hardest part for you will be trying to figure out how to teach in smaller chunks (especially with writing!). This is my biggest struggle in my upper level math classes. It's so easy for me to "talk,talk,talk." I have to constantly remind myself to let my students talk to their partner about what I just said (with gestures... when I can think of them!). Perhaps there are some English teachers on the forum that will be able to give you advice regarding the writing time. Anyway, I wish you the best of luck. I hope WBT gives you a new level of excitement when it comes to teaching... it did for me!
Take care,
Kristin DeWit

I am truly excited about what this year may bring! I do have an open mind and I realize going in that I can use class/yes and teach/ok everyday! I will incorporate and tweak the technique to fit writing! Thanks!