Sharon Campbell recently retired from an illustrious teaching career of over 30 years. Her teaching story stretches from Napa County Juvenile Offender programs, to alternative high school, to Youth Employment programs, and on to her last stretch of 23 years was as a Middle School teacher. Winner of several A+ for Education grants, she is best known for designing classrooms that meet the needs of today’s students. Her spacecraft (classroom) was used as the model for Project Based Education at the Global Educator’s conference in London, and featured in the Taiwan Commonwealth Educators Journal. In 2009, she was named California School Master: the oldest most prestigious California education award.
She recently posted her top 5 steps for effective teaching. We made slight adjustments for teachers all of ages. Enjoy Sharon Campbell’s Teacher’s Playbook:
- Students are your customers. If you don’t sell your students on the value of what it you are offering first, you may be teaching, but they aren’t learning.
- Remember your job is to open the doors of knowledge for your students, not act as though they are locked and you have the key.
- Education is not a competitive sport. If given enough time and support, everyone wins.
- The best teacher is one who remembers how up and down and confusing their own school days were.
- The best teachers are like shepherds. They lead and protect but allow their charges to discover which grass is best by experiencing it.
Take a look at Sharon’s spaceship!