My voice doesn't carry. I am envious of teachers who can be heard from other classrooms. I can hear my neighbor teaching from two doors down. My voice does not work that way, and I am constantly fighting against losing my voice during the school year. I can handle the teaching. I just can't handle talking over students. This sent me on a search on how to regain the attention of my class without hurting my voice.
The creators of Powtoon (a fun program for creating your own educational videos) created their own blog where they give advice to educators. In one post titled, "29 Super Effective Ways to Get Your Students' Attention Without Raising Your Voice," they give advice for the best ways to regain control of the class without killing your vocal chords. I loved the variety of suggestions in this post, and I have seen many of them work in other classrooms. My favorite suggestion? Number 29, which suggests talking with an accent to get their attention. I think this would be quite amusing.
The solution that worked best for me was actually suggested in a workshop put on by Help for Billy author, Heather Forbes. She is an expert in working with troubled youth, the kids who have challenges that teachers could never imagine. She suggested using a singing bowl to grab attention. The sound is soothing, non-disruptive, and helps refocus kids. I loved the suggestion and ordered one on Amazon for ten dollars. It was an absolute lifesaver! I bought mine in March and have used it ever since. The sound is not particularly loud, but it carries far better than my voice. It makes kids stop and look and they enjoy the sound. I would highly recommend getting one if you face the same challenges as I do.
Warning: Kids love the singing bowl, so don't let them get a hold of it :)
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