If you're a teacher - use your voice wisely

Unlike a lot of professionals, a teacher uses the voice all day, every working day. This is especially true of people in first (primary or elementary) schools. Explaining, calling registers, tellings off, praise, stories, playground duty, sports halls, assemblies the list is endless and they all require you to use your voice.

The way your voice sounds will effect the behaviour of the children you are teaching.

If your voice sounds excited all the time it will encourage the children to become restless and excitable.

A loud voice will encourage the children to be loud. By contrast a bright encouraging sounding voice will encourage children to be happy and a quieter (but not quiet) firm speaker will be able to get the children to listen.

If the teacher knows how to use her voice effectively, the job will become much easier and much more enjoyable.

A tired voice will sound irritable and often all that is needed is a change in the pace or pitch of the voice and this will have a dramatic effect.

Young children's attention is easily distracted - we've all seen how quickly they turn their attention to a workman in the playground while the teacher continues to talk to an unlistening class!

It also follows that the clearer the tutor speaks and the more variation that is used in the voice, the better the children in the class will speak. Children are great mimics and if the tutor speaks well the children will speak well.

There are two main skills a teacher can acquire to help speaking in class.
The first is to open your mouth. If your mouth isn't open wide enough you will always struggle to get the sound out. Look at yourself in a mirror and sya the following sentence - 'High in the pine tree'.

When you say the words 'high' or 'pine' you should be able to get three fingers on edge in your mouth.

The second point is to slow down so that the chidlren have time to take in what you've said. Pause at the end of sentences or new ideas. This will help the children to listen. Another skill that is useful when talking to young children is to use facial expression because children sometimes have difficulty in understanding the words we use and they will use the expression on your face to help them understand. A simple example is, if you're telling someone off look serious, if your're saying something light hearted look happy. Don't tell someone off with a smile on your face - this will really confude chidlren.

Reading aloud to the class should be an enjoyable time and this is a skill that can easily be perfected. Bear in mind that these skills don't only apply to reading fictional stories, being able to read aloud factual information so that yor class can easily understand has to be an important part of your job.
More information about reading aloud can be found here.

Where would you like to go next?

General speaking skills

Informative speaking

Key stage 2 and 3 speaking and listening

Return from Teacher to Home Page