What Makes A Good Teacher Great?

Hi all,

Welcome to my classroom website. This week we are answering the question of: What makes a teacher great. Here is a short article of 5 things that I thought makes a great teacher.

Teachers ask thousands of questions each week. They are the prime means of finding out what pupils think and to get them to think in the first place. And there are a range of techniques you can use to develop questioning skills.

  1. Avoid questions that require a single, direct answer, such as: “What is the capital of Mongolia?” There will be times when they are useful, but questions like these will discourage many pupils from responding, because they will be thinking: “There is one right answer to this and I don’t want to be seen to get it wrong.”
  2. Use questions that invite pupils to talk about what they think, such as: “What do you know about Mongolia?” This elicits information in a broader way and the stakes are much lower. This becomes about pupils sharing their thoughts with the teacher and the class.
  3. Put pupils in pairs and ask them to talk to their partner first. This alleviates the social awkwardness of being the first to speak and the numerical imbalance between teacher and pupils. Giving pupils time to discuss in pairs means everyone in the class has a safe, easy setting in which to understand and share an answer.
  4. Give time to think. Ask a question, then wait, allowing pupils time to analyse the question and consider their answer. Avoid the trap of expecting an immediate response or asking quick-fire questions. You could tell them that they have 30 seconds of thinking time, or you could count slowly and silently to 10.
  5. Encourage pupils to write something down. This helps free up space in their short-term memory, allowing them to explore the issue in more depth. Also, it means they will have something in front of them that they can reflect on.

Please tell me in a short paragraph about things you think teachers need to do to be a great teacher. 

This entry was posted in September. Bookmark the permalink.

35 Responses to What Makes A Good Teacher Great?

  1. Sama Alado says:

    A good teacher is a teacher that understands if there students are hurt, upset or even happy, A good teacher doesn’t always have to be so serious because kids want someone that is like them and that can understand them.A good teacher should never have a favorite student in there class.

  2. fabian says:

    a good teacher should understand kids.

  3. john says:

    A good teacher doesn’t just teach their students but also learns from their students. Say a student as trouble learning. You don’t just keep showing him or her over and over again just teach it in a way the student understands.

  4. Matthew says:

    I think that teachers will need to be happy to make him/her a good teacher. If the teacher is happy and excited to teach, students will be happy to learn. Joyfulness will spread across the classroom. The teacher’s smile is like the symbol of the school. a smile is all it takes to make a good teacher.

  5. Devon says:

    You have to have a good understanding towards students, give them some options. Encourage students to work hard! Be persuasive into the subjects that you do you then students will pay more attention and respect to you

  6. fabian says:

    and should coumunicate

  7. Anonymous says:

    A good teacher should make learning fun

  8. Miranda says:

    In my opinion teachers are great when they can empathize and relate to their students. This is because it makes students feel better about themselves when they know others have been where they are now. if students feel better about themselves it leaves the class in a better and happier environment. everyone wants a safe environment.

  9. Angela says:

    A good teacher should like llamas, bunnies, rice, whale sharks, wolves, hedgehogs, dragons, memes, answer our questions, be nice, helpful, and have a pet dog.

  10. Nirmay says:

    A good teacher is ready to listen to the students. A great teacher is ready to take in the students ideas and build up on them. A good teacher will let the students have fun. A great teacher will let the students have fun while they are learning.

  11. Angela says:

    A good teacher should like animals, be respectful, and bunnies.

  12. Selina says:

    A good teacher should encourage learning, find fun and abstract ways to teach, welcome different students, and embrace their mistakes. If a teacher does all these things, it makes the children feel safe and happy, and all children should be happy. Teachers should also be strict, but not to the point where the students are being tortured by lectures. It would also be great if a teacher would seem like they are happy about teaching.

  13. Sophie says:

    A good teacher should be able to have fun and make sure that the kids have fun too. If the kids can’t have fun once in a while, they will think the teacher is bossy and strict. They should also be able to communicate to others around them. If they don’t, they will be lonely and have no friends and will be used to not talking. If you are a teacher, you will have to talk!!!

  14. Peter says:

    A great teacher is social, and gives multi-answered questions.
    They will give students time to think, and will put them in groups to encourage social behavior.They will let students and encourage them to take notes, as taking notes frees up short-term memory.
    A great teacher also needs to be caring. Comforting a pupil when they are feeling down and always keeping a smile on your face is essential to build trust and positive energy in the classroom.
    A great teacher has to accept that they can also be a student. It’s not only the students that can learn at school!

  15. Daniel says:

    a good teacher should be strict, but shoulden’t get rid of all fun.

  16. Athena says:

    A great teacher will take care of students when they aren’t acting like themselves and say, “What’s wrong?” Not; “Why aren’t you acting like yourself anymore? Get back into shape!” Great teachers will think of every kid as and equal, not have favourites.

  17. Suri says:

    A good teacher should understand the students and help them if they are hurt. They should also help students learn and try to make it fun. A good teacher should also be nice and not too strict, but be strict when needed. And he/she should encourage students to work hard.

  18. Aspen says:

    I think a good teacher is one who helps their students, teaches them new things, takes them on field trips.

  19. Angelas says:

    A good teacher should be understanding, empathetic, nice, and try their best to help students answer their questions. They should be inclusive, be ready to listen to our ideas, and make the students feel good about what they do. They should let students feel free and let them have some choice of what they want to learn. A teacher should show the students why school is really fun, and why you should come.

  20. Matthew Yap says:

    If you want to be a great teacher you have to be empathetic to feel how someone else is feeling physically and emotionally. You must follow the school curriculum and add your own twist to projects. Good teachers also must give their students reading breaks, extra P. E. activities and free time at least once in a while.

  21. Brian says:

    A great teacher is a teacher that is willing to learn, to be the student, not only to teach. A great teacher IS a student, but the students are also teachers. If there are 25 people in a class, there are 25 teachers. (Also Mr. Wu Division 2 is very catchy)

  22. Fayyad and Max says:

    A good teacher is, a teacher that keeps you safe and protected, they should act cool and kid-like but they should think like an adult. A good teacher cares about the children but does not get into your face.

    Instagram@fayyad_shorty Xbox Kupajoe

  23. Brenden and Chester says:

    We liked the phrase “a great teacher thinks like a kid but acts like a adult”. A great teacher helps their kids when they need it. A great teacher asks open-ended questions, like “what do you know about Canada?”. A great teacher isn’t a teacher. A great teacher respects their students. A great teachers smile spreads spreads and blows with warmth. A great teacher should be the symbol of the school. This video really teaches us how much a great teacher means to the students.

  24. A good teacher is a teachers that cares for there students when they get hurt.They also teach there students if they do not know how to do something. A good teacher eats a lot of apples.
    A good teacher is also very kind and caring to all students. a teacher should be equal to everyone

    sub to 2hype lsk

  25. Brodie says:

    A good teacher is cool. A good teacher interacts with their students. A good teacher makes sure their students are happy and cared for when they come to school. For example, if a kid complains then the teacher could probably figure out what is wrong and how to solve the problem.

  26. Celina says:

    A good teacher takes care of there students, understands them, and shows equal respect to everyone. They try their best to educate them, and encourage them to participate in group work to get along with the others. But most importantly good teacher like to teach. 🙂

  27. Hayden says:

    a great teacher has patience for all the students, helps in any way they can, a great teacher knows the students have a life out of school. a great teacher is forgiving and respectful of all his or her students. a great teacher is not a teacher.

  28. (Unknown) says:

    A good teacher is someone who takes the time to understand each individual student; to not only be their teacher, but to be their friend. They’re not just there to teach about academics, but to make sure that school is a safe, welcoming place where that child knows they’re accepted and can receive support in whatever they’re going through. That’s what really makes a good teacher great.

  29. Mina L. ☺ says:

    A good teacher for me is someone who you can trust with your personal issues and problems that are either academic, or personal. Trust is a big thing for me, if you don’t trust the teacher, you wouldn’t want to share all your personal issues with them and then they can’t help you.

  30. Alisa says:

    A good teacher is great when they can understand and relate to a student. When a student is struggling, a good teacher should be able to insert themself in their students’ place. If they can do so, I feel that that would make that students experience with the teacher much more enjoyable.

  31. Pavyn says:

    HELLO MR.WU
    IT WAS FUN HAVING YOU

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