Eight (not six / seven) Teaching Tips and Strategies by Mike Kinnear
Published on 04/11/2025 in Ideas for Teaching & Learning
“Must be great being a teacher. Having fun with the kids all day. And don’t get me started on the holidays. Anyway, I had a cracking round of golf last Tuesday afternoon…”
Yes, we’ve all had one of those conversations. The ones where you mention your occupation to a stranger, then spend the next ten minutes biting your tongue. The problem is, our golfer has a point. It is fun being with the kids all day. The holidays are fantastic. It’s just that our job is really difficult. Stood on your own in front of thirty unique personalities, all of whom bring different life experiences to the classroom; teaching can feel the very definition of a low support, high challenge role. At the end of most days, your head is spinning, your feet hurt and although you know it’s time to go home, there’s still six more things on your to do list. Better toss that marking into your car boot to take home, then.
Amongst all the busyness, it is easy to lose sight of the fact that teaching is a craft as well as a profession. You will have good days and bad days. Bad days don’t make you a bad teacher. Good teachers learn as they go along, reflecting on what works, and what doesn’t. Through this they expand their repertoire of classroom management techniques, start to plan lessons more effectively and develop strategies to help support our more challenging children. They continue to professionally develop beyond the ECT years, seeking expertise in order to build their skillset. And expertise is available. Widely known professional organisation such as EEF offer useful and wide ranging strategies. Organisations such as Hope Education provide both resources and professional support, particularly through their Euhu platform. There is help out there to help you to develop your craft.
I’ve taught in primary schools for 17 years, mostly in Key Stage 2. I’ve led different subject areas, mentored newly qualified teachers and worked as a senior leader. Through this blog, I’d like to share some of practical, adaptable strategies that have helped me along the way.
Practical Teaching Tips for the Classroom
Strategy 1: Worked examples
Worked examples aren’t new. I still remember my first mentor, Mrs Millington, advising me at during one of my early Maths lessons, to do questions 1 and 2 in front of the children before asking them to work independently. For me, worked examples embody the concept of show, not tell. Irrespective of what you are learning – it might be how to hang patterned wall paper, complete a crossword puzzle or to draw a tally chart, it is always better to be shown exactly what to do just before you attempt to do it. Benjamin Riley, from Deans for Impact, explains this really well here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4z4k2dCOxYs
Although relatively old technology, I like to use my visualizer to model how to complete worked examples. I set out my learning in an exercise book that mirrors the children’s, so they can see exactly what do to do. Through worked examples, I can also model my thought processes to children. Worked examples also reduce cognitive load’ by showing children exactly what to do, we can ask them to focus entirely on completing a task rather than worrying about, how best to set it out.
Strategy 2: co-operative learning / Kagan structures
I discovered co-operative learning structures, as pioneered by Dr Spencer Kagan, in my first school. I still use them most days. Fundamentally, Kagan structures help to engage students. Simple structures such as think-pair-share mean that every child needs to actively participate in the lesson. For example, I might say to my class, “Do you think that King Alfred deserved the title ‘Great?” or “If you feel angry, what calms you down?” Usually, several hands would pop into the air, the usual hands… But, if we use a co-operative learning structure like think-pair-share, every child needs to think of an answer, tell their talk partner, then listen to their talk partner’s response. Even if a child doesn’t know the answer, they will hear from someone who does. And, instead of a few children responding, everyone has responded.
Other co-operative learning structures, such as Rally Coach encourage children to teach each other, taking turns to be a learner and a teacher. This is fantastic when you introduce new methods in Maths. Pairs Check allows them to check each other’s learning, while Stand Up-Hand up-Pair Up enables children to share their thoughts straight away rather than waiting for a teacher to select them.
I really cannot recommend Kagan structures enough. They are one of my favourite parts of my teacher toolkit.
Strategy 3: Routines, routines, routines.
We all love our routines. Maybe it’s your Saturday morning exercise routine, or getting ready for a big Friday night (where do you find the energy after a week of teaching?). Children do too. Time establishing routines is not wasted. Research shows that pupils become more able to regulate emotions, such as boredom or frustration, when there are classroom rules and routines that help them to redirect their attention and minimise stress (Ursache, Blair & Raver, 2012).
My third teaching tip is to create clear routines for your class, particularly around key parts of your day such as moving around school, transition from instruction to independent learning and during the first and last ten minutes of the day. Make sure that children understand those routines and follow them. Knowing what is expected of them reduces children’s anxieties, makes the learning environment predictable and secure and ultimately, creates more time for learning. It will also reduce your stress levels.
Remember also to reinforce those routines. Establishing routines isn’t just for the first week in September. Reminding children of classroom routines of those routines, particularly after holidays, is really important.
Strategy 4: Get ready for the next day before you go home.
No exceptions, even on a Friday. Get the photocopying done, the resources trimmed and set up a plan for tomorrow. Desks straightened too. You’ll go to bed feeling smug and well prepared. No scrambling for the photocopier at 08:30am for you!
Strategy 5: Active learning
When I first trained as a teacher, the idea of VAK learning styles was in favour. This suggested that the majority of children were either visual, auditory or kinaesthetic learners and teachers should tailor their lesson plans to cater for each learning style. Now widely debunked, my early thinking about VAK has morphed into a simple principle. Get them active, get them moving.
Active learning doesn’t necessarily involve raiding the PE cupboard or making additional resources. It can be as simple as performing star jumps or dancing when chanting times tables, converting an arithmetic paper into a trail around the playground or pinning information sheets around the hall while children conduct research. Further Techniques such as graffiti maths, creating and presenting a news report and forming an opinion lines in response to an open question get children out of their seats and thinking
Drama is amongst my favourite ways to introduce active learning. Known in my school as DEAL, children love structured drama activities such as conscience alley, narrator action sound or using a magic microphone to bring characters and scenes to life. Drama shouldn’t be confined to English or Literacy lessons. Recently, my class have presented weather reports linked to the water cycle and acted out the Battle Bosworth.
Strategy 6: Mini Whiteboards
We use these every day. There are few more effective formative assessment tools than a class or group “show me” after setting a question. Immediately, you can see who understands, who is on the cusp of understanding and who needs extra help. Use them for writing lists, capturing information quickly and for emergency games of noughts and crosses. Mino whiteboards are durable, easily cleaned and useful when you choose to take learning outside of the classroom. I always make sure children have easy access to mini whiteboards and replenish my stock each year.
Strategy 7: Relationships and Rapport
Get to know your children. Find out what makes them tick. What is their cat’s name? Which football team do they follow? What is their favourite food? If a child has nobody to play tennis with in the playground, pick up a racquet and join in. Take the odd basketball shot, beat them occasionally at Connect 4. The importance of building relationships with your children is often overlooked, particularly when the curriculum is so densely packed, but it is crucial. Children will learn more, remember more and help more if they feel that you care. They won’t remember that you taught them long division, nor that you helped them to spell Mississippi, but they will remember how you made them feel.
Strategy 8: 6/7
I originally planned 6 / 7 strategies, then realised the error of my ways. It’s banned in my classroom. Ban it in yours!
Conclusion
I hope that you find the strategies within this blog useful. I know that I have and I am pleased to have the opportunity to share them with you. During the introduction, I referred to teaching as a craft, and there is no better way to hone your craft than talking with expert teachers. There are doubtless many skilled professionals in your school, but don’t be afraid to seek further advice. I still enjoy reading about teaching and love trying out different lesson ideas and strategies. One great source of these is Hope Education’s Euhu platform.
Within this blog, I have made reference to both strategies and the items needed to implement those strategies. Should you wish to source a new visualizer, or if your whiteboards are looking a bit grubby suppliers such as Hope Education can source you what you need.
Finally, be proud of being a teacher. It really is a fantastic job. Despite the pressures and the plates you spin every day, you have a job like no other. Try some of the strategies above. I hope they work as well for you as they have for me.