i want to deal with low achievers pls help me

My advice would be to consider using Audiblox (http://www.audiblox2000.com). The exercises in this program tend to help most low achievers, and there is a classroom version available.

Mary

It would help to know if your “low achievers” are low achievers across the board. Do they equally poorly in all their subjects? And can they read or is that the fundamental issue? And do they live in poverty?

I would say the first thing any “low achiever” needs is to not feel like one. Any teaching technique that plans for their success, not their failure, is the right one.

Training other teachers to do just that, though, is an enormous challenge. Most teachers are trained to assume that some will succeed and some will fail. Teachers are trained to think that a student’s failure is the student’s fault, not the teachers. As a teacher, I disagree and believe that every child who does not succeed in my classroom is a child who did not fail but rather I failed to find the right method for.

I’ve seen teachers do miracles with “low achievers” if they don’t label students in that way. If they can’t read, that’s a big issue to get around. If they are living in challenged circumstances and leave home every morning without breakfast or binders or books, you need to provide breakfast, binders and books. Kids can’t learn if they haven’t eaten or don’t have their basic equipment for school.

Once you’ve taken care of those basics, believe in your students and plan each forward step so that each student can be successful. And if you ever feel like you’re contriving their success, know that feeling is nothing more than good teaching.

Good luck.

dEarSara,
that was very nicely put and I agree.I’m sure there’s some way achild can learn if only we knew how!!

What a great attitude you have! I suggest you do as Sara suggested, and look for each child’s area of strengths and weaknesses. You would do well to consult with parents, too. Most if not all would appreciate being asked, since often they are treated as if they had nothing to offer. Find out what motivates each child. You could check with other teachers about what these chidren do well, and perhaps talk with the school social worker to see if there is anything going on in the home that could be causing academic difficulty. Sometimes young students are stuck being babysitters for siblings so parents can work or “run errands” or any number of inappropriate reasons. In some families, learning is something to be done at school ONLY. When children are home, they may be expected to participate in family activities and/or too many chores, and in some cases can get into trouble for being too studious. They could be being pushed into sports. One idea that may sound odd at first, is to find out what kind of reading material is in the home. Believe it or not, there are families that do not value having age appropriate reading material in their homes. Poor reading is always an impediment because children who can’t learn to read cannot read to learn. You might want to try to acquire some gently used, interesting books for these children, and give them out as rewards. Hope these thoughts are helpful. When you are ready, look on this website for some accommodations and modifications that may help your students learn more easily. JJ