Episode 191: What Didn’t Work in My Classroom This Year (And What I Learned)

As language teachers, we love sharing strategies that work. But what about the strategies that suddenly stop working? What happens when activities that worked for years begin falling apart, student engagement drops, and classroom dynamics feel different than before?

In this honest end-of-the-year reflection, I’m sharing what did NOT work in my Spanish classroom this year, and the important lessons I learned about classroom management, student engagement, comprehensible input, routines, relationships, and structure.

In this episode, I reflect on:
✨ Why some communicative activities and partner work stopped working
✨ The difference between movement and structured interaction✨ Why clear expectations without clear consequences created tension
✨ How relying only on relationships and classroom connections was not enough
✨ The importance of routines, accountability, and consistent classroom management
✨ What I learned about disengagement, scaffolding, and supporting struggling students
✨ How student feedback surveys helped me recognize important patterns in my teaching

This conversation is about recognizing that teaching is deeply connected to context, relationships, structure, and flexibility.

If you’ve ever ended the school year questioning your classroom management, wondering why certain strategies failed, or feeling frustrated by student behavior and disengagement, this episode is for you.

Resources:

• End-Of-The-Year Reflection Took with Student Survey
• Becca Silver’s episode: “Students Didn’t Meet Expectations? Why That’s Not the Real Problem”
• “How Do We Support Neurodivergent Learners in the World Language Classroom? Designing Inclusive Classrooms”
• Join the waitlist for Growing With Proficiency: The Spanish Teacher Academy
• Follow Claudia on Instagram @claudiamelliott
• Growing With CI FB Community
• Blog
• Teacher Pay Teachers Store