So you’ve gone through the motions of becoming a new TEFL teacher. You’re finally legit and you’re ready to start your new profession, using all the knowledge you’ve learnt up to this stage. You’ve even found a job or you’re getting ready to look for one and the future is looking rosy. So, before you charge into your first class, here are a few factors that you should be aware of, that can be of help to you.
1. It’s important to start off with a bang
As a new TEFL teacher, you should know that when it comes to teaching, first impressions play a very vital role. So, regardless of what age your students are, it’s important that you start your class off with a flourish. Inspire them, intrigue them or entertain them but whatever you do, leave a lasting impression. Sometimes, it’s even a good idea to start off with a song, a game or an activity which will put them at ease and make them warm to you.
If you’re an introvert like me, be sure to remind yourself to always enter any classroom in an upbeat, jolly and loud manner. Train yourself to become who you need to be, while you are teaching.
2. As a New TEFL Teacher, treat and deal with each student individually
Whether it’s your first class with only one student or even multiple students, greet them individually while repeating their names back to them. In this way, you’ll be making a connection with each one personally, e.g. ask a simple question to put them at ease like, ‘Hi Todd. How are you today?’ If you’re working with children, tell them it’s good to meet them or see them again and then give them high-fives.
Remember, children respond well to physical gestures because they enjoy that side of communication where they get to move and do silly things with their bodies. By doing this, you are conveying a message to your students and anyone else for that matter, who may be watching your class, that you are able to interact individually with them. Isn’t this, after all, what real teaching is all about?
3. Be enthusiastic
I’m always amazed at teachers who sit or stand in front of the class and drone on as if they’re delivering a eulogy at a funeral. If there’s one sentence you need to keep repeating to yourself as teacher it’s, ‘Come on self, be enthusiastic!’
If you come across as being bored and uninspired, your class will follow suit and you will all soon be spiraling down together. You cannot expect your students to set the tone because it’s your class which means, you have to set the pace. This means that whenever there are lulls or awkward moments, you are the one who’s going to change the pace.
If you’re a new TEFL teacher and you’re an introvert like me, you simply act. ‘Impossible!’ you may say, ‘I can’t act.’ But I have news for you. Anyone can act and you might find out that you enjoy becoming someone else for a while. I have actually found it to be very liberating.
So, what you do is, you enter your class and find that hyper, uninhibited part of you and launch into over-exaggerated gestures with animated facial expressions. Think about it. We all have that side to us, even the shyest of us and I should know because I’ve been doing it now for more than 20 years.
You’ll find your groove and your methods to do whatever it takes to get your students enthusiastic and active. It’s important that you give yourself time and allow yourself to grow into your role as teacher and not simply run away from it. This is your chance to become a regular Tony Robbins on steroids. Enjoy the process!
4. Be prepared with an activity, a song or a prop
It’s always a good idea to have a song or an activity ready for exactly those moments when you feel your students have lost concentration and you need to change direction. I have found that students who lose concentration really bounce back quickly when you change the mood of the lesson, even if it’s only for a few seconds. Get them up on their feet and let them stretch, dance or play a quick game.
As new TEFL teacher, you will be constantly reading the signs, checking your time and assessing when to change the pace and what to use to keep your students focused and interested. And if you’re new to teaching, don’t fret. You’ll own this timing, pacing and decision-making-thing in no time – it comes with practice and experience.
5. Be prepared for your class and don’t try to wing it!
This might sound like a ‘duh!’ moment but you’d be surprised to hear that many people think they can just wing it and not prepare for their classes. If you’re presenting a new class for the first time, and you have between 40 and 50 minutes to get your point across, then I suggest you make sure you are prepared for it.
Knowing what you’re going to say, what you’re going to teach and what activities you’re going to do, will benefit not only the class in a major way, but you as well. It doesn’t help you start teaching at full speed and then somewhere in your lesson, you run out of steam or material. You don’t want to be caught in that moment of blankly staring at your students, not knowing what to do or say next.
So, it’s important that you have your lesson plan worked out and your cheat sheet close by. Make sure your timing has been calculated and your songs, flashcards, props and activities are selected. This will ensure that you’re easily covered for the duration of the entire lesson.
6. Remember, as a new TEFL teacher, you are the chief in charge of your class
If you are strict by nature, and you want your children to know this from the start, then I suggest you show them both sides of your personality during your first lesson. An example would be, when introducing yourself for the first time, to interact with each of them individually in your own friendly way as mentioned above in point 2.
If one or more students persists in being disruptive, you simply clap your hands together and, while still smiling, tell them all to behave, be respectful and to quieten down.
I have found that even the smallest smile carries a lot of weight. Remember, it’s not worth it to lose your cool. At the end of the day, they’re still just children but you are the adult and still in charge of the class.
If some students continue to be disruptive, you have the choice of addressing them and punishing them e.g by not allowing them to play the game. The school you work for might have different policies for disruptive students, so make sure you know what these policies are before deciding on your own systems.
There is a fine line between accepted naughty playfulness and obnoxious irritation and as a new TEFL teacher, you will know the difference between the two in no time at all.
7. Save your voice and use a head mic
I found out right at the beginning of my teaching career, that my voice couldn’t take the punishment. My classes were loud and lively and there was a lot of shouting going on because I wanted my kids to be themselves while learning the language. So within the first two months after I had started teaching, I lost my voice completely.
I decided from that moment on, whether I taught a class of 30 students or just 5, I would be wearing a head mic. The great thing about a head mic is that not only are your hands free but you don’t ever have to raise your voice.
So, to get the attention of your students, you simply turn up the volume, and in a neutral voice say what you need to say e.g., ‘ok, everyone sit down, please’. I found it was as if I’d just shouted it out at the top of my lungs and they would respond and quickly sit down.
Another advantage of a headmic is that you can make many interesting sounds like a helicopter, a spaceship, an alien, gunshots, etc. and, as a new TEFL teacher, it will definitely add to your repertoire of props and allow you to entertain them and hold their attention.
8. Use flashcards and realia
It’s important that when you enter your classroom, you bring some ‘tools’ along with you. If you’re a good illustrator and you want to draw everything on the board, you can but you have to be quick because there isn’t much time to waste.
If at all possible, use real objects, e.g. if today’s vocabulary is ‘knife, fork, spoon’ and ‘plate’, then show them the real cutlery instead of a flashcard. And this applies to everything you teach them: realia first and then flashcards.
9. As a new TEFL teacher, you must play games!
And then the pièce de résistance of all your classes, especially when teaching children is: YOU MUST PLAY GAMES! Have games on your fingertips and by games I include activities and skits, things to do that will break the routine in your classes. If your students know that the end result or reward in your class is going to be some sort of game or activity, they will abide by your rules and force themselves to concentrate just to play the game.
And be careful of using the threat of ‘no games today!’ because it will just mean you have to find something else for them to do. Many times in my teaching career, I often joked with my fellow-colleagues saying that the games are actually for me, the teacher. So, remember, as a new TEFL teacher, you will also need a change of pace and some excitement while you’re teaching you classes. Games will do that for you!
- For more information on how to teach online, check out this course on Udemy.
- For ideas for TEFL classroom games, see this course, also on a GRINFER and Udemy.
- Also, check out these videos on YouTube.