I am actually itching to go! I can't wait to meet my new students and want to get teaching again. I need a routine and to be busy, so I am one of those annoying teachers who is ready for the summer holidays to end. (Sorry...not Sorry).

However - I am well aware that the start of a school year, especially if you are new, or working with new staff, can be a little stressful, so I have put together some links to old blog posts to get you started off on the right foot!

• Ice Breaker Activities (For MS/HS students...but you could also use these with teachers!)
• Culture Shock (Some visuals to help you discuss culture shock with all your newbies!)
• Approaches to Learning Posters (Remember, if you don't change displays often, they almost become invisible!)
• Global Context Posters (You can print off the ones with a blank box, to describe how you are exploring this with your students - or to add your specific exploration)
• Global Context Training 
• ATL Training
• TOK Training
• MYP Interactive Unit Planner (this was made by my good friend Carmen Samanes. I have this open every time I am writing curriculum)

​and lastly - this fantastic video: "Weird, or just Different?". This is a great video to start a discussion a out international mindedness. It's also great to show people who are going through transition/culture shock!

Send me any great 'Back to School' resources. Also, this year, I hope to blog more. Give me a nudge when I need it!

I use Calvin and Hobbes comics often to illustrate what I am talking about during presentations. I swear there is a strip suitable for everything. I recently used them to give some top tips for being a good Personal Project supervisor!

Although the Personal Project is an independent, student led project, and students should be in charge of reaching out to supervisors...sometimes we need to give them an extra nudge. A good way of making this still feel like the student is leading the way, is just sending them emails relating to their project instead of telling them what they need to do. For example 'I saw this great article, which reminded me of your topic, let me know what you think', instead of '...why haven't we had a meeting recently'. 
If there is ever a time where you feel you need to reach out to parents, then I recommend sending a formal letter to the student, with the parents cc:ed in, instead of addressing it to the student. 

During the very first meeting it is really important to have some essential agreements. These can include:

• How often you want to meet
• Where you want to meet
• How you want to be contacted (email, calendar invite, face to face)
• How far in advance you want them to contact you for a meeting
• and this is also a good time to find out where students feel they might struggle (for example, procrastination) and also a great time to learn about what other things add to their work load (clubs and sports).
  
  I've had some supervisors who have also told students about drop in times, for example 'every Tuesday during lunch, I am doing duty on the basketball court, so you can come and see me casually then'. 
  

Some tips for further meetings:

• Make sure you talk about academic honesty and document this
• Make sure you are not just checking if they are 'on track' - you don't want students to avoid you, or be afraid to come to you if they are struggling.
• Make it enjoyable - then your student will relax around you (I recommend a cup of hot chocolate and starting off the conversation by asking them about their weekend, sports club or something else non-PP related!)

This is one of the things students struggle with the most. It is likely their first long term project, and so they may put other work as their priority right up to the end. Sometimes it is very obvious when students are struggling with this, so you can easily support them. However, some super high-function students, who do extremely well in their classes, often struggle with time management too - the reason they do well in their other classes, is that there deadlines are always close and so they work towards those. A good way to mange this is to really make sure students are documenting all the work they are doing and that they are creating and sticking to their own mini deadlines.

I've shared these two videos before - but want to share them again - as they are so perfect for PP! The first one is a short advert (actually for a bank) and focusses on the 'Museum of Procrastination'. The second video is a very funny Ted Talk, 'Inside the Mind of the Procrastinator'.

Although the Personal Project is process focussed, and not product focussed....you still have students who either:

1. Know exactly what they want to make and want to skip to it, without doing research
2. Are afraid that they don't have a solid idea, and think they need to on day one - they don't realize their ideas should evolve through time and by doing research
3. Students who think that research is just reading books or journal articles in the library. I have students who have talked to a family friend who is an expert in their topic, they have done workshops, watched endless youtube videos, etc...and they don't see that this is also research.
   

As a supervisor, use the word 'research' a lot. For example, when students are coming up with their criteria, ask them how their research helped them make it. Also ask them why their topic or goal is important and for them to tell you with information from their research. Another way to really get students to talk about this, is to keep bringing it back to their Global Context!

Students are asked to reflect on all five Approaches to Learning skills (ATLs) in their report. Many will find talking about some, like communication skills quite easy. However some challenges they have might be:

• Being unsure of talking about their collaboration - as they are told over and over again that this is an independent project, they get a little afraid to say who they have collaborated with, as they worry that this is cheating. Just remind them that every great designer, leader, maker etc had to collaborate
• Self-Management skills - Students think this is just time management - steer them away from just talking about this. I supervised one student who was very overwhelmed and stressed...but was relieved when she realized she could actually write about how she has overcome this. (Affective skillS)
• Thinking Skills....If you ask a student to just write or talk about how they have improved their thinking skills...they will often be stuck. 'Thinking Skills' can sound so vague. However, if you look at the way the IB breaks this skill down, they will easily see that they have developed this. Some types of thinking skills students often develop when working on the Personal Project include:
  • "Use brainstorming and visual diagrams to generate new ideas and inquiries"
  • "Create original works and ideas; use existing works and ideas in new ways"
  • "Apply skills and knowledge in unfamiliar situations"
    
    

I have this ATL spreadsheet, which I share with my students, to help them reflect on this.

Make sure your student is documenting everything! This will make writing their reports so easy!
If a student turns up to a meeting without their process journal - reschedule!
​Make sure your student is taking notes in your meetings too!

The most stressful time for the student! Make sure they turn in a high quality first draft. Then give them feedback, but instead of just writing on the report and adding comments - give them feedback strand by strand. You might read a report, which sounds fantastic, but if it is not linked to the assessment criteria, then it might not get a good grade. 

The exhibition is a time to celebrate the success of the student. Although I am normally a super positive, happy person...I do get slightly miffed when supervisors don't come to the exhibition. Supervisors have been working with that student for the whole year, and they are possibly the only person who knows exactly what went into the project. Be your students champion. Show up and support them. (Bonus for giving them a nice card to say how proud you are!)

I recently had an idea to get supervisors to make their own mini comics, using Calvin and Hobbes comics with the words taken out. Some fantastic teachers at Pathways School Noida produced these excellent comics:

Here are the comic strips with the words taken out.
I can't wait to use these comics in my regular MYP classes too!

Enjoy!
Comment and let me know if and how you use them. ALSO let me know your top PP tips for supervisors!