| How to Make Your Dog Smell Better Posted: 15 May 2020 05:00 PM PDT The odor of a smelly dog does not appeal to most people. In fact, dog odor can often cause people to think twice about either owning a dog or letting their dog spend time indoors or in a car with them. Unpleasant dog odors are many and varied, including bad breath, flatulence, scents arising from poorly maintained fur, or the animal stepping or rolling in feces. Ultimately, no matter how cute, a smelly dog is hard to spend time around, so it is important to keep your dog smelling pleasant. [Edit]Bathing your Dog - Buy some dog shampoo. For a dog that has rolled in something smelly, hasn't been bathed for a while, or looks dirty, a bath is a good start to fixing the odor issue. Buy a shampoo that is formulated to get rid of odors rather than simply trying to cover them up with artificial scents.[1]
- Conditioner is optional, depending on the type of coat your dog has.
- If your dog is suffering from a skin condition, such as yeast overgrowth, ask your vet for an appropriate medicated shampoo to use.
- Wet your dog completely. Starting from the top of the head and working your way down to the end of the tail, apply warm (but not hot) water to your dog.
- Your dog should be wet all the way to the skin before applying shampoo.
- Shampoo the dog. Squirt some shampoo into your hands. Start to lather from the top of your dog's neck to the end of its tail.
- Shampoo the outside of the ears, the legs, the chest, belly, featherings (if any), and the rest of the body.
- Be careful to avoid your dog's eyes and ears.
- Rinse the shampoo. Use warm water to wash the shampoo out of the dog's coat. Again, avoid water entering the eyes, ears or nose.
- Repeat this process for conditioner, if you choose.
- Let your dog shake the water off. Stand back and let your dog shake out as much water as possible.
- Dry your dog as soon as possible. Using a towel, dry your dog as much as you are able. Some dogs may let you use a hair dryer set on low to blow dry their fur.
- The wet-dog smell that people complain about is mainly caused by bacteria that feed on a dog's natural skin oil. Like so many other types of bacteria, they thrive in a warm, moist environment.
- The best way to control the wet-dog smell is to give your dog regular baths and to keep your dog dry as much as possible between baths.
- Keep in mind that bathing your dog too frequently will remove too much skin oil, leading to health problems. Ask your vet for advice, according to the climate, length of your dog's hair, etc.[2]
- It's best if you can prevent your dog from rolling until he has dried completely, as its wet fur will easily absorb scents.
[Edit]Grooming your Dog - Clean your dog's ears. Dirty ears are a common source of unpleasant dog odors. Clean your dog's ears when they look dirty inside, but do not clean them so often that it causes irritation.[3]
- Buy wipes, mineral oil, or an ear cleaner, available at any pet store.[4]
- Wipe the ear where wax can be seen (generally a dark brown color) and through the different crevasses in the ear. If there is a strong odor to the ear, it is most likely an infection, not just wax, and should be addressed by a veterinarian and appropriate medication.
- Ear infections are common in dogs and often accompany skin problems elsewhere on the dog's body. If your dog's ears show signs of infection such as odor, redness, swelling, or discharge,[5] look out for skin problems.
- Both skin infections and ear infections are often caused by allergic reactions to foods or something in the environment like pollen.
- Gently squirt the solution in the dog's ear and rub the ear in a circular motion. Or, better yet, use your thumb and middle finger to gently grasp the ear canal just below the ear opening. Then, open and close your fingers to break up the ear debris with the help of the ear cleaning solution.[6]
- Dogs usually find this enjoyable and will often lean into the ear massage and groan with appreciation.
- Lastly, use a cotton ball to gently wipe out any fluid from the ear canal.
- Throughout this process, do not force anything down the canal.[7] Do not use Q-tips.[8]
- Brush or comb your dog daily. This will remove some of the dirt and debris that may contribute to unpleasant dog odor.[9]
- Clean your dog's teeth. A dirty mouth leads to bad breath. For both your dog's health and odor, you should brush your dog's teeth regularly, ideally on a daily basis.
- Find a dog toothbrush suitable for the size of your dog's mouth. You can buy these at any pet store, in pet catalogs, or from your veterinarian. Find a suitable toothpaste for dogs (don't ever use human toothpaste).[10] Dog toothpaste are often flavored with such tasty flavors as beef or poultry.
- Squirt a pea-sized amount of dog toothpaste on the toothbrush.
- Gently move your dog's lip upward so you can see its teeth.
- Brush all the teeth inside the mouth for about one minute. Be sure to get both sides of each tooth.[11]
- Some dogs will not take to tooth brushing with a toothbrush right away and will require training and slow introduction to the process. Start out with the dog toothpaste on your finger, then use a piece of gauze. When your dog is comfortable with that, move up to the toothbrush so that your dog can get used to the process gradually.[12]
- Don't forget to treat your dog for being patient during this process.
- Don't scent your dog. Avoid spraying perfume or scented, deodorizing, or household products on your dog.[13]
- These may temporarily mask the odor but won't remove it or address the cause. Also, if it's not made for use on dogs, it may be unsafe, make the problem worse, or even injure your pet.
[Edit]Reducing Flatulence - Consider your dog's diet. If your dog isn't eating a healthy, natural diet, then odor may be caused by the unhealthy food your dog eats. Look into what you are feeding your dog, and check the ingredients on the dog food bag.
- Some commercial foods are bulked up with cheaper ingredients that are liable to cause flatulence, such as grains or soya.
- Even dogs eating a "healthy" diet can develop digestive problems. It is not uncommon for dogs to have food allergies that cause flatulence. Some treats can trigger digestive problems, too.
- Change your dog's food. If your dog has been eating poor quality food, shift your dog off cheap and low nutrition food onto better quality natural brands. Many cheap brands contain fillers that are undigestible and can be the cause of the dog odor, dulled coat, gas, and bad dog breath.[14]
 - High-quality natural brands are available at good pet stores or online. You can also try switching to making your own. Talk with your veterinarian about a quality dog food recipe to follow.
- Switch your dog's food gradually. Start by adding a little of the new food to the old food at mealtime, and gradually increase the amount until you have phased out the old food entirely.[15]
- If flatulence worsens when changing food, this is a sign you've changed over the food too quickly. Provide a more gradual change-over period between foods so that the intestinal bacteria can get used to the new food. A good transition period is three to seven days, reducing the old food by a little each day.
- Most dogs are lactose intolerant. If you're adding anything to your dog's diet that includes lactose, flatulence may well be the end result. Remove the lactose source and things should improve.[16] On the other hand, non-fat plain yogurt with live bacteria in it can benefit some dogs.[17] Ask your vet for advice first.
- Help your dog's digestive system work more efficiently with the addition of whole grains such as cooked brown rice.[18] Better digestion means better doggy breath and less flatulence.
- Stop the table scraps. The variety of food from the table isn't ideal for a dog's diet and can contribute to bad breath and flatulence, as well as unbalanced nutrition.[19]
- Don't let your dog eat from the trash. If this is happening, take steps to prevent it, as your dog might eat inappropriate or even spoiled food, as well as get covered in more stinky substances.
- Exercise your dog regularly. Walking, running, and playing are good ways to reduce flatulence by encouraging gut movement.[20]
[Edit]Dealing with the Anal Glands - Have your dog examined. If you believe your dog's unpleasant smell may be coming from its anal glands, take your dog to the vet. He or she will be able to tell you whether they might by overly full or infected.[21]
- Learn to empty the glands. If the vet determines your dog's anal glands are a problem, have a groomer or a vet show you how to empty your dog's anal glands properly and safely.[22]
- Be aware of possible psychological issues. If your dog releases secretions when anxious, excited or afraid, there may also be some psychological issues that need attending to.
- Talk to your vet or animal behaviorist for more ideas, since this is behavioral in origin. You may be able to minimize this problem by helping your dog feel calmer in day-to-day life.[23]
[Edit]Cleaning your Dog's Bedding - Machine-wash cloth bedding. Keeping your dog's bedding clean and free of fleas and dirt will help maintain a fresher-smelling dog. Place all cloth bedding, crate bumpers, and crate covers in the washing machine. Wash as directed on the label. For highly washable items (such as old towels) do on the hottest temperature possible. [24]
- If possible, use a non-scented laundry detergent or no detergent at all. Dogs smell things much more keenly than humans. What smells pleasant to a human will likely smell incredibly perfumed to a dog.
- Washing with hot water and baking soda will kill most smells without scent.
- Vinegar and hot water works well, too.
- If you really do need to launder with laundry soap, there are many with little or no odor.
- Avoid using fabric softeners, as they may irritate your dog's skin and are typically highly perfumed.
- Dry the bedding. Transfer items to the dryer (set on low heat) or set them out to air dry in the sun.[25]
- Clean non-washable items. Bedding items that cannot be machine washed, such as your dog's crate or a large bed, should be rinsed with the hose. If they are very dirty, scrub them out using a sponge or toothbrush and mild biodegradable dish soap.
- Repeat. Clean the dog's bedding weekly or biweekly depending on how often the smell returns.[26]
- For skin problems, in some areas it's possible to see a vet dermatologist. This might help your dog if the odor source is skin or coat related.
- There are medical products that can reduce dog flatulence. Speak to your vet about them if diet doesn't solve the problem.
- Spray your dog with dry shampoo and rub in as soon as it hits the coat of the dog. This won't mask the smell, just clean the skin and coat. Over a period of time (1-3 weeks) however, your dog will smell nice and be super clean!
- Keep dog brushes clean. Wash with hot water and allow to dry before using again.
- You can also use these really cool treats that are actually good for dogs and dogs love them! They are called Greenies and the treats look like a tooth brush. Give your dog a Greenies treat. While the dog is eating this the treat will prevent bad breath, and leave their teeth white and healthy! And the best part is they love them! They think they are a actually treat when really it's a treat that's healthy for them.
- For dog beds with removable covers, try slipping some lavender buds between the cover and bed for a clean, fresh scent. Doing so may also have a calming effect on your dog.
- Be sure that the products you're adding to your dog's coat are not causing any odor problems in conjunction with the dog's natural odor. Scented shampoos, for example, might be doing more harm than good.
[Edit]Warnings - Human toothpaste contains fluoride, which may be toxic to your dog if swallowed. Do not use it to clean your dog's teeth.
- Some dogs are naturally smellier than others. You may just need to get used to the fact, especially as your dog ages and if it has a longer coat or is bigger in build.
- Make sure you have professional help when first cleaning your dog's anal glands. Mistakes can lead to serious infections.
- Frequent odor problems may be caused by more serious health problems. If none of these strategies are effective, the issue may require a vet visit. In particular, be on the lookout for severe flatulence[27], a long-lasting urine smell,[28], any strong odor combined with yellowed eyes and gums, a swollen abdomen, or vomiting,[29], or visible issues with the dog's teeth or gums.
- Do not feed your dog chocolate, onions, grapes, raisins, tomatoes, avocados, macadamia nuts, and foods containing caffeine or xylitol. These can be harmful and poisonous to your dog.
[Edit]Related wikiHows [Edit]References
[Edit]Quick Summary |
| How to Cast a Fly Fishing Rod Posted: 15 May 2020 09:00 AM PDT Fly fishing can be as challenging as it is fun. Learning how to cast with a fly rod takes lots of practice to master, but the basic technique is actually pretty easy to understand. Start by adjusting your line so it's rigged up properly to allow for a good cast. Then, try your hand at using the overhead cast. Once you master the basics, you can try using a roll cast to approach fish quietly and in harder to reach places! [Edit]Putting the Fly Fishing Rod Together - Put together the segments of the fly fishing rod. Take the rod out of its case. Start with the 2 bottom pieces of the rod, which will be the largest ones. Slide the 2 pieces together and gently twist them to line up the 2 dots on the side. Then, slide the remaining pieces into the rod and line up the 2 dots of each section.[1]
- Don't force or twist the rod segments too hard or you could crack them.
- The segments will get thinner down the length of the rod.
- Slide the reel into the reel seat at the bottom of the rod. The small divot at the bottom of the rod is called the reel seat and is meant to hold the reel in place. Attach the reel to the rod by sliding the foot of the reel into the small opening at the top of the reel seat. Then twist the nut at the bottom of the reel seat to tighten it over the reel.[2]
- Wiggle the reel around to make sure it's securely attached.
- Make a loop knot at the end of the fly line. You'll use the end of the fly line to connect the leader (the thin line that connects the thick fly line to the tippet and fly lure) and tippet (an even thinner line that is nearly invisible to the fish and holds the fly lure) so you can string your lure. Give yourself plenty of slack in the fly line and form a loop knot at the end of it so you can easily attach the leader and change it out later if you want to.[3]
- Make sure the fly line is spooled tightly on the reel so it's less likely to form knots.
- Connect the leader to the end of the fly line with a fishing knot. The leader is a length of line that is used to transition from the thick fly line on the rod to the thin tippet that holds the lure. The leader starts thick at the end connected to the line and tapers down to a smaller line where it connects to the tippet. Tie a fishing knot to connect the leader to the fly line at the thicker end.[4]
- The leader also keeps the line from slapping the water and spooking the fish.
- The leader should be at least long to allow for adequate separation between the heavy fly line and the fly lure.
- Some leaders have metal clasps that you can use to attach to the loop in the fly line.
- Fix a tippet to the end of the leader by tying it securely with a knot. A tippet is a very thin line that attaches to the fly at one end and the leader at another. It's supposed to be nearly invisible in the water so the fish don't see the line connected to the fly. Connect a tippet to the end of the leader so it's secure and you can add a fly to the ned of the tippet.
- Use a nail knot to secure the connect the tippet and the leader.
- The tippet should be a minimum of long.[5]
- Attach a fly lure to the end of the tippet with a sturdy knot. The fly has a small hook on it that will snag the fish that takes the bait. Pass the tippet through the eye opening of the hook and use a fishing knot to connect the lightweight fly to the end of the tippet. Moisten the line to make it more pliable so you can tie a tighter knot.[6]
- Set the fly line about longer than the fishing rod. The weight of the fly line is what allows you to cast, so you need to have enough of the heavier line pulled out before you try to cast. An easy way to ensure you have enough fly line is to let out enough to reach the reel at the bottom of the rod with about of extra length.[7]
[Edit]Casting Overhead - Use an overhead cast to get used to casting a fly fishing rod. The overhead cast is the standard fly fishing cast. Mastering the overhead cast requires knowing how to properly "load" the rod, which refers to finding the tension in the line and pole to cast the fly lure. Before you move on to more advanced casts, learn to use the overhead cast.[8]
- The overhead cast is harder to perform when there are lots of low hanging branches because the line can get tangled easily.
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. For short to medium ranged casts, adopt a parallel stance so you're stable and in a better position to "feel" the weight of the fly line on the rod. Keep your feet evenly spaced apart and your weight centered rather than on the balls of your feet or your heels.[9]
- For longer casts, you may feel more comfortable standing with 1 foot forward so you can reach further behind you for a stronger cast without losing your balance.
- Hold the rod with your thumb on top of the grip. Don't squeeze too tightly or you won't be able to perform the quick stop at the end of the stroke. Keep a loose, comfortable grip and hold the rod in line with your intended target area.[10]
- Allow the rod to rest in your fingers and only squeeze the grip when you force it to stop at the end of each stroke.
- Keep the butt of the fly rod in line with your forearm.
- Make sure the reel of the rod is pointed down toward the ground.
- Lay the line straight on the ground in front of you. In order to generate enough momentum in your backswing, start by stretching out about of the line from the end of the rod. Aim the line completely straight and stand square to your target.[11]
- Make sure that the leader and tippet don't get tangled up.
- Bring the rod up and backward in 1 motion. Keep the tip of the rod low until you're ready to cast and use a smooth and fluid motion to bring the rod up and behind you. This will cause the rod to bend and load up with tension.[12]
- Think about snapping a long whip. The line should move up and overhead as it travels behind you in a large arc.
- Stop the rod abruptly once it passes a verticle position. When you straighten the rod out above your head and it passes behind you, stop its acceleration abruptly and deliberately so the line is launched behind you. Hold the rod still as the line travels backward.[13]
- Think about stopping the rod at about the 1 or 2 o'clock position behind you.
- Allow the line to unroll in the air behind you. With the rod still extended above and slightly behind you, wait for the line to travel behind you and rise as it unrolls. The energy from the backward motion will cause it to move until it extends completely.[14]
- Make sure you pause long enough to allow the line to fully unfurl.
- Move the rod forward to bring the line in front of you. As soon as the line is fully extended in the air behind you, use a smooth, accelerating stroke to bring the rod forward. The line will snap forward and form a loop in the air as it travels.[15]
- Keep your wrist straight and your elbow close to your body to generate a fluid movement.
- Lower the tip of the rod as the line unrolls in front of you. Stop the rod once it's about parallel with the ground to allow the energy in the line to propel it forward. As the line unrolls in front of you, slowly lower the tip of the rod to roll the line out all the way to the fly at the end. The line should end right where you were aiming.[16]
- Don't snap the rod down sharply or the tension in the line could cause the cast to go straight down before it has reached its target.
[Edit]Performing a Roll Cast - Use the roll cast when you're fishing in narrow waterways. The roll cast will cause the line to smoothly unroll over the surface of the water and is less likely to disturb fish, but it's also a little more difficult to perform. It's also important that the line is in water because the water anchors it and allows you to create a loop.[17]
- A roll cast is great to use when you're fishing in narrow creeks or streams.
- The roll cast is also effective if you have a strong wind at your back that is interfering with your overhead cast.
- Draw the rod up and back to drag the end of the line across the water. Start with about of line laid out in front of you on the water and the tip of your rod pointed at the surface. Use a slow and smooth motion to bring the rod back and drag the line over the surface of the water.[18]
- Stop the stroke with the rod tip high when a loop has formed behind you. As soon as your rod reaches just past a vertical position, stop and hold it in position. The line should be slack and droop behind the tip of the rod, creating a loop.[19]
- The larger the loop, the more power you can generate to cast the line forward.
- Accelerate the rod forward quickly. Once you've formed the loop with the backward motion, quickly move the rod forward to start the forward cast. Keep your hand high and the rod pointed up. The line will start to roll over the surface of the water and move the direction of your cast.[20]
- Move forward with a smooth and consistent movement rather than a short and jerky motion.
- End the cast by stopping abruptly to allow the line to unroll. As you move your rod forward, the loop will rise up. Stop your cast abruptly once it's nearly parallel with the water. The loop will roll out on top of the water and move to where you're aiming your cast.[21]
- Allow the end of the line to land gently on the surface of the water.
[Edit]Things You'll Need - Fly fishing rod
- Fly fishing reel
- Fly fishing line
- Tippet
- Leader
- Fly lure
[Edit]References [Edit]Quick Summary |
| How to Make a Lesson Plan Posted: 15 May 2020 01:00 AM PDT Making an effective lesson plan takes time, diligence, and an understanding of your students' goals and abilities. The goal, as with all teaching, is to motivate the students to take in what you are teaching and to retain as much as possible. This wikiHow will provide some ideas that will help you get the most out of your class. [Edit]Sample Lesson Plans [Edit]Creating the Basic Structure - Know your objective.[1] At the beginning of every lesson, write your lesson plan goal at the top. It should be incredibly simple. Something like, "Students will be able to identify different animal body structures that enable eating, breathing, moving, and thriving." Basically, it's what your students can do after you're done with them! If you want to do a bit extra, add how they might do this (through video, games, flashcards, etc.).
- If you're working with very young students, you may have more basic aims like "Improving reading or writing skills." It can be skill-based or conceptual. See the related wikiHow on how to write an educational objective for more specific information.
- Write your overview.[2] Use broad strokes to outline the big ideas for the class. For example, if your class is about Shakespeare's Hamlet, your overview might include covering where in the Shakespearean canon "Hamlet" resides; how factual the history described might be; and how themes of desire and subterfuge might relate to current events.
- This depends on the length of your class. We'll cover about half a dozen basic steps to any lesson, all of which should be included in your overview. You're welcome to have more, however.
- Plan your timeline.[3] If there's a lot to cover in a fixed amount of time, break your plan into sections that you can speed up or slow down to accommodate changes as they happen. We'll use a 1-hour class as an example.
- 1:00-1:10: Warm up. Bring class into focus and recap yesterday's discussion on great tragedies; relate it to Hamlet.[4]
- 1:10-1:25: Present information. Discuss Shakespearean history briefly, focusing on his creative period 2 years before and after Hamlet.
- 1:25-1:40: Guided practice. Class discussion regarding major themes in the play.[5]
- 1:40-1:55: Freer practice. Class writes single paragraph describing current event in Shakespearean terms. Individually encourage bright students to write 2 paragraphs, and coach slower students.[6]
- 1:55-2:00: Conclusion. Collect papers, assign homework, dismiss class.
- Get to know your students. Identify clearly who you are going to educate. What is their learning style (visual, auditory, tactile or a combination)? What might they already know, and where might they be deficient? Focus your plan to fit the overall group of students you have in class, and then make modifications as necessary to account for students with disabilities, those who are struggling or unmotivated, and those who are gifted.
- Odds are you'll be working with a pile of extroverts and introverts. Some students will benefit more from working alone while others will thrive in pair work or in groups. Knowing this will help you format activities to different interaction preferences.[7]
- You'll also wind up having a few students that know just about as much as you do on the topic (unfortunately!) and some that, while smart, look at you like you're speaking Neptunian. If you know who these kids are, you'll know how to pair them up and divide them (to conquer!).
- Use multiple student interaction patterns.[8] Some students do well on their own, others in pairs, and yet others in big groups. So long as you're letting them interact and build off each other, you're doing your job. But since each student is different, try to allow opportunities for all types of interactions. Your students (and the cohesion of the class) will be better for it!
- Really, any activity can be manipulated to be done separately, in pairs, or in groups. If you have ideas already mapped out, see if you can revamp them at all to mix it up. It often just encompasses finding more pairs of scissors!
- Address a variety of learning styles.[9] You're bound to have some students that can't sit through a 25-minute video and others who can't be bothered to read a two-page excerpt from a book. Neither is dumber than the other, so do them a service by switching up your activities to utilize every student's abilities.
- Every student learns differently.[10] Some need to see the info, some need to hear it, and others need to literally get their hands on it. If you've spent a great while talking, stop and let them talk about it. If they've been reading, come up with a hands-on activity to put their knowledge to use. They'll get less bored, too!
[Edit]Planning Out the Stages - Warm them up. At the beginning of every class, the students' brains aren't primed yet for the content. If someone just started explaining open heart surgery, you'd probably be all, "Woah, woah. Slow down. Go back to "take the scalpel."" Ease them into it. That's what the warm up is for -- it not only gauges their knowledge, but it gets them into your groove.[11]
- The warm up can be a simple game (possibly about vocab on the topic to see where their current knowledge lies (or what they remember from last week!) or it can be questions, a mingle, or pictures used to start a conversation. Whatever it is, get them talking. Get them thinking about the topic (even if you don't explicitly say it yet).
- Present the information. That's just about as straightforward as it gets, huh? However your format, you need to start with the information presented. It could be a video, a song, text, or even a concept. It's the very core the entire lesson is based on. Without this, the students will go nowhere.
- Depending on your students' levels, you may have to go pretty bare bones. Think about how far back you need to go. The sentence "He put the coat on the rack" makes no sense if you don't know what "coat" and "rack" mean. Give them the very basic concept and let the next lesson (or two) cultivate it.
- You may find it useful to flat out tell the students what they'll be learning. That is, give them your objective. You can't make it any clearer than that! That way, they'll walk away knowing what they learned that day. No two ways around it!
- Do a guided practice. Now that the students have received the information, you need to devise an activity that allows them to put it into action. However, it's still new to them, so start off with an activity that has training wheels. Think worksheets, matching, or using pictures. You wouldn't write an essay before you do a fill-in-the-blank!
- If you have time for two activities, all the better. It's a good idea to test their knowledge on two different levels -- for example, writing and speaking (two very different skills). Try to incorporate different activities for students that have different aptitudes.
- Check their work and assess their progress. After the guided practice, assess your students. Do they seem to understand what you've presented so far? If so, great. You can move on, possibly adding more difficult elements of the concept or practicing harder skills. If they're not getting it, go back to the information. How do you need to present it differently?
- If you've been teaching the same group for a while, odds are you know the students who might struggle with certain concepts. If that's the case, pair them with stronger students to keep the class going. You don't want certain students left behind, but you also don't want the class held up, waiting for everyone to get on the same level.
- Do a freer practice. Now that the students have the basics, allow them to exercise their knowledge on their own. That doesn't mean you leave the room! It just means they get to do a more creative endeavor that lets their minds really wrap around the information you've presented to them. How can you let their minds flourish?
- It all depends on the subject at hand and the skills you want to use. It can be anything from a 20-minute puppet making project to a two-week long dalliance with the oversoul in a heated debate on transcendentalism.
- Leave time for questions. If you have a class with ample time to cover the subject matter, leave ten minutes or so at the end for questions. This could start out as a discussion and morph into more probing questions on the issue at hand. Or it could just be time for clarification -- both will benefit your students.
- If you have a group full of kids that can't be paid to raise their hands, turn them amongst themselves. Give them an aspect of the topic to discuss and 5 minutes to converse about it. Then bring the focus to the front of the class and lead a group discussion. Interesting points are bound to pop up!
- Conclude the lesson concretely. In a sense, a lesson is like a conversation. If you just stop it, it seems like it's left hanging in mid-air. It's not bad...it's just sort of a strange, uncomfortable feeling. If time allots for it, sum up the day with the students. It's a good idea to literally show them they've learned something!
- Take five minutes to go over concepts for the day. Ask them concept-checking questions (not introducing new information) to reiterate what the both of you have done and gained from the day. It's sort of a full-circle type of thing, book-ending your work!
[Edit]Being Prepared - If you're nervous, script it out. New teachers will find solace in scripting out a lesson. While this takes way more time than a lesson should, if it would help you, do it. It may ease your nerves if you know exactly what questions you want to ask and where you want the conversation to go.
- As you teach, do this less and less. Eventually, you'll be able to go in with practically nothing at all. You shouldn't be spending more time planning and writing out than you are delivering! Just use this as an initial training device.
- Allow for wiggle room. You've written out your timeline to the minute, right? Fantastic -- but know that's only really for reference. You're not going to say, "Kids! It's 1:15! STOP EVERYTHING YOU'RE DOING." That's not really how teaching works. While you should try to stick to this plan within reason, you'll need to allow yourself some wiggle room.
- If you find yourself running over, know what you can and cannot scratch. What must you cover in order for the children to learn most? What is just fluff and time killers? On the other side of the coin -- if you have time left over, have another activity in your sleeve to pull out if need be.
- Over-plan the class. Knowing that you have plenty to do is a much better problem than not having enough. Even though you have a timeline, plan on the underside. If something might take 20 minutes, allow it 15. You never know what your students will just whiz through!
- The easiest thing to do is to come up with a quick concluding game or discussion. Throw the students together and have them discuss their opinions or ask questions.
- Make it so a substitute could understand. On the off chance something happens and you can't teach the lesson, you'll want to have a plan someone else could understand. The other side of this is if you write it in advance and forget, it'll be easier to jog your memory if it's clear.
- There are many templates you can find online -- or ask other teachers what format they use. If you stick to one it'll be better for your brain, too. The more consistencies, the better!
- Form a back-up plan. In your teaching career, you're going to have days where students whiz through your plan and leave you dumbfounded. You'll also have days where tests got moved, half the class showed up, or the video you had planned got eaten by the DVD player. When this day rears its ugly head, you gotta have a back-up plan.[12]
- Most veteran teachers have a handful of lesson plans under their belt that they can whip out at any time. If you had a particularly successful lesson on Punnett squares, keep that material for later. You can turn it into a different lesson with another class about evolution, natural selection, or genes depending on the next class' ability. Or you could have a lesson on Beyoncé up your sleeve (think the civil or women's rights movement, progression of pop music, or just a music lesson for a Friday afternoon). Whichever.
- Be prepared to divert from the lesson plan. Plan how to guide the class's attention back to you when it wanders.
- Preview new material with the students and give them their study goals a week or two in advance.
- Be clear that you will expect them to respond to questions in class by a certain date.
- After the class ends, review your plan and how it worked in actuality. What will you do differently next time?
- Remember to match what you are teaching with your state or local school district standards.
- If lesson plans aren't your thing, consider the Dogme teaching method. It involves no textbooks and allows the students to take control.[13]
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