The Dock

The Dock exists to serve the teachers, administrators, board members, and parents of our conservative Anabaptist schools. We want teachers to gather inspiration from the lesson plans of others. We want schools in one part of the country to have a channel with which to connect with potential teachers in other regions. We want to give parents, ministers, and teachers access to trustworthy books, articles, and talks on Christian education.

Teaching Reading

Open PDF General Advice and Teaching Tips Utilize pre-reading activities, which prepare students for what they are going to encounter in the text and get them interested in the story before they even start reading. Pre-reading...

Teacher Overload and Burnout

Open PDF The Nature of Overload and Burnout Overload can be defined as excess demands impairing mental, physical, and emotional function. One can sustain short seasons of overload. Burnout, on the other hand, is a loss of...

Setting Up the Classroom

Open PDF Your walls and room organization say a lot about your classroom atmosphere and your attitudes towards academics and your students. There are many subconscious messages that speak into the tone of your year. Think about...

Recess

Open PDF Reasons Why Recess Is Important The physical body is part of God’s good creation. Recess builds motor skills and coordination. Exercise relieves mental and emotional tension. Recess provides opportunities for learning...

Vision for Christian Education

Open PDF It is not enough to simply view Christian schools as “the same as secular, minus the bad stuff.” It’s not just what we don’t do, it’s what we do do. So what is the vision of a Christian school? And how does a teacher go...

Book Recommendations: Books for Teachers

Open PDF Pedagogy The Seven Laws of Teaching by John Milton Gregory The Seven Laws of the Learner by Bruce Wilkinson Teach Like a Champion by Doug Lemov Reclaiming the Future of Christian Education by Albert E. Green Teaching to...

Book Recommendations: Read-Alouds

Open PDF Chapter Books Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder Treasures of the Snow by Patricia St. John The Adventures of Peter Cottontail by Thorton W. Burgess The Bears on Hemlock Mountain by Alice Dalgliesh A Question of...

Study Skills

Open PDF It can be easy to assume that students intrinsically know how to study information effectively, b that is often not the case. There is a lot of value in making sure these work habits are explicitly taught, not merely...

Positive Attitudes Toward Learning

Open PDF Addressing the Question “Why Do I Need to Know This?” At some point, your students will ask the infamous question, “Why do I need to know this?” There are a variety of approaches that could be taken in the way you answer...

Student Relationships

Open PDF General Advice Helping students learn to relate to each other well can be a daunting and exhausting task. But it’s an important one. In these formative years, they are building relational habits that will stick with them...

Sportsmanship

Open PDF Good sportsmanship contains the following core elements: Empathy—good sportsmanship requires actively understanding and feeling others’ perspectives and emotions. Respect—good sportsmanship treats all with dignity,...

Cheating and Academic Integrity

Open PDF Define cheating. In the case of written work, explain what plagiarism is, why it's wrong, and how to avoid it. This is especially important for students who struggle with irrational guilt due to an overly sensitive...

Classroom Culture

Open PDF Classroom culture is a “hidden curriculum” or atmosphere that influences all aspects of school life and is shaped by beliefs, history, attitudes, practices, traditions, and relationships. Culture is always present, and...

Seating Arrangements

Open PDF General Considerations There is more than one good way to set up student desks. And beginning with one configuration doesn’t mean that it cannot be changed in the course of the year—or the day. You can create rhythms in...

Planning Programs

Open PDF Logistics to Consider: Style: what genre of program do you want to present? A dramatic Scripture reading will have a very different tone than a humorous, story-based skit. You will want to take your students’ strengths...