Supporting a new TA

[Littlebluebird123]

Anyone have any tips.
I'm UKS2, no huge behaviour issues.
My TA has been doing the job for 3/4 months. Never done it before, just enrolled into the level 2 course.
Mainly willing but not much initiative. Hates to just sit with a group unless it's the more able. (She's obviously bored with the less able - yawning, staring into space, silent when I'm doing input even if they are asking for guidance.)
She's lovely to talk to and able to tell me what's going on in class, ie can recognise when can have understood and when they haven't. She's also got a pretty good grasp of maths at the right level, not sure able English. She's able to do it but don't think I could leave her to explain a SPaG concept or recognise expected level writing or reading answers.
Any help/tips please?

Erm tell her? In a very nice way.
Just say oo could you sit with this group and help with input and explain what I’m saying as I go along. Spell it out to her. Tbh as someone who’s been a ta and now training to be a teacher I’d say sometimes just really clear instructions will do. Also ignoring children is poor form. Lack of initiative maybe an age thing if she’s very young just leave her a list of jobs to do and explain the morning routine to her.

I have (on a side note) experienced really awful inputs from teachers and sometimes they do make you want to fall asleep! However I’m sure your inputs are just fine and she’s just being a bit rubbish. I’m surprised she got the job tbh! Most of the TA’s at my place have degrees or are teachers who don’t want the pressure!

I have been telling her, but it's hard to give a full enough explanation in the 10 minutes I get before the kids come in. :/ We don't have any breaks together either and she doesn't work a full day so no time after school.

I honestly don't think it's my inputs. I'm not arrogant enough to think I'm fascinating, but the children are engaged so surely it can't be that bad?

And on more than one occasion, when I had only 12 children, she chose to sit to the side of me, away from the children. She'd also missed the first 10 minutes of the lesson due to her break so I don't know what she was thinking.

It's not her first job, she's not young, just inexperienced.

Is there anything I can point her towards that gives tips if she's finding it hard to engage properly with the children?

Just say "when with a group it is important to show your enthusiasm for topic and demonstrate good listening. I understand it can be boring for an adult but it is important not to show it."

"When you join me in a lesson try and position yourself closer to the children to notice who needs support and help rather than sitting beside me"

May be late for these examples but address them politely as soon as they happen and she should figure out what is expected.

What does your planning look like? And does she receive it? Do you write into your plan what you expect the TA to be doing - e.g. 'Sit with AB, ensuring focus on the input and supporting whiteboard work. In independent work, join table C, supporting them with the use of concrete resources (diennes and place value counters) to reinforce their understanding of subtraction'?

I always start a year with an unfamiliar TA by writing these things into the plan (which I send them in advance, along with the timetable showing interventions etc). Usually i don't need to after the first few weeks, but it helps set expectations. I also have a list and pile of 'general jobs' (photocopying, display work, reading, filing etc) at the back of the classroom to be done in odd moments when there is nothing specific for the TA to do.

Thank you everyone.
I'll make sure I'm more specific and have a back up list. I know it seems obvious, but when I talk through what I'd like done she seemed to understand but it's not happening.

Definitely have somewhere to write stuff. I used to write for my TA things like 'Maths - support AB on carpet with Numicon then red table' or 'Art - clear curriculum board for new work'. She could read it when she came in or I was doing the register or whatever and I never had to remember to direct her because I had it written down. Lesson stuff would take me two minutes to write at the end of the previous day once I'd marked and knew what I was teaching the next day. Other stuff I just wrote as and when I thought of it.

I think you need to speak to her our, failing that, her line manager. Perhaps they can do a bit of training on classroom working if it's something sine TAs haven't had. But she won't change unless someone says something.

I know nothing can beat quality first teaching but having a proactive, engaged TA can really help!

Sounds really frustrating op if it carry’s on just tell her like manager. We had a student in like that that in her first few days just sat away from the children yawning . Really awkward and embarrassing!