teaching without a voice!

[Laffytaffyx]

I teach English at a Secondary and my voice is completely gone! Any ideas how I can get by? Doesn't help that I've been off with flu and am out of the loop! Thanks

[dwarfrabbit]

As it's the last week of term, get them to write funny xmas stories. One person writes a paragraph and passes it on, the second person then reads that and writes another paragraph and folds down the original one. and so on and so on until it gets to the original writer, who opens it up and has a good giggle and then reads it out ( if they want to) should last a class! have a little bell that you can ring when it's time to pass...

I'm getting my year nines to write a sonnet for their mums or grans as an xmas present. when they're done they can work in pairs to check 10 syllables, ababcdcdefefgg scheme and pentameter stresses. Am playing nice classical music in background to inspire them. you can write all instructions on your smartboard/ white board.

another nice lesson is to take them to the library so they can pick out a novel to read over the break. They should do an oral presentation with power point on either : does a novel need a 'good' main character in order to succeed? How essential is setting to plot? or 'how does symbolism enhance writing?'

so if osted bursts through your door you can justify it in terms of educational value, but it's just a nice activity for classes that need some quiet and reflection. save your voice missus xxx

[GingerbreadPudding]

I lose my voice about once a year. I always turn the IWB on and type what I want to say on the screen. The children love it, they go all quiet while they read it. Then throughout the lesson I type stuff like
'I tan see Sue is working really hard, not sure about Jack, he's talking. If I see it one more time blah blah...'

[Nonie241419]

I borrowed chn to speak for me, and wrote lots of notes. The kids were pretty good, but I found it very frustrating as I couldn't respond to errors and queries effectively. I know my lesson outcomes weren't as good as I would normally expect.

[Littlefish]

Whatever you do, don't whisper. It's very bad for your voice and will hinder its recovery. Keep yourself and your voice very hydrated with water, warm/hot squash, honey/lemon/hot water.

[Thatssofunny]

I do what GingerbreadPudding does and type things, so they can read it on the IWB. Alternatively, I might carry a little whiteboard around with me. My class are also trained to respond to a variety of hand signals. That's mostly because there are times when I just can't be bothered to repeat the same boring instructions over and over again. (I don't talk when I want them to line up, for example. Also means that they don't talk.)
Luckily, I haven't lost my voice in about four years now. It's horrid. My sympathy. Make sure to get some rest. For me, camomile tea with honey helps.

[Laffytaffyx]

Thank you all! I work part time so I'll see how it goes. I like the mwb idea!

[Guilianna]

haha in EYFS it's a major challenge! hand signals, and lots of independent work in the environment ...

[AsBrightAsAJewel]

I use a chime bar to get class attention during noisier activities, then once they are focused I use sign language and the IWB. Luckily the novelty and sympathy goes a long way with my KS1 class, but I do have a whistle around my neck for a real emergency!