 In the summer I sent out a form for doing Seminary Spotlights and promised I would send a secound handout to do spotlights the second half of the year. Here it is. Like I mentioned before, I’ve been doing Spotlights from my first years of teaching and they have been great to build class unity, participation, and fun. There are many ways to do Spotlights but here is how it has worked best for me.
1. During the first week of school I pass one out to each student to fill out. Make sure you tell them not to discuss what they are writing with friends because it makes guessing too easy later. When they are filled out, I collect them in a folder.
2. Then each Friday I have the student who was spotlighted the previous week come up to spot light the next person. I semi-randomly, pull out a spotlight and then the student spotlighted previously will start to read clues. The first time, just ask any student to do it. I like to have students spotlight others, rather than myself, because it promotes getting the teacher out of the limelight, and putting the students there.
3. At any time, when clues are being given, a student can raise their hand and guess. If they guess correctly, I give them a small candy. If they guess wrong, they are OUT and cannot try to guess again. This keeps students from screaming out every name in the class.
4. Once the person is correctly guessed, then have the student share everything on the spotlight paper and ask follow up questions as desired.
5. Make sure you also put in your own spotlight paper. That will really throw them a curve ball.
They will beg to do multiple spotlights, but I hold them to only one every Friday. Click on the picture to download the spotlight paper for the second semester. CLICK HERE to see the spotlight paper I use for the 1st semester if you didn't see that before.
 As a coordinator for S&I for the last 5 years, it has not been my style to be very controlling. It has been my goal to give great tips and helps, but in the end, the teachers decide what works for them or not.
BUT… now I want to mandate something because it can be so VERY helpful to the teacher and the students. With the teachers I coordinate, I want them to do “The Spot” each class. But I would think it would be very helpful for any teacher out there.
Let me explain what that is. At the beginning of class when the devotional is assigned and put together (Song, Opening prayer, Scriptural Thought…) I want also someone to be assigned “The Spot”. That student knows that at the end of class, they will be put on “the Spot” and will need to share what was the big lesson they learned that day in class. So in other words, after you challenge your class and testify and close the lesson, they you say, “Billy, it looks like you were on the spot today. What was the big lesson you learned from class today?” And then Billy would share what he learned. There is room for variety with this. One teacher had a big yellow mouse pad that she slaps on a student’s desk to let them know they will be on the spot today. Fun idea.
“The spot” is also good because it shows you as the teacher if the big points came through. I’ve found this also makes other kids want to chime in. It also helps review what they learned and keeps them on their toes.
I am also attaching a devotional chart so it will make it easier for your class president to know what to write on the board. Some of you teachers already use something like this, but here is something for the rest of you. Naturally it is nice to have written up on the board what the opening hymn will be, and prayers, etc… But it is a pain to have to write all that up every day and then it cuts into your precious board space. Here is a solution. Have it on a paper (that is laminated with magnets on the back) that you can put up and take down easily. This also gives your class president an outline of what he needs to put up on the board before starting class. Before I laminated it, I also added a piece of red or blue paper behind it to make it stand out a bit. Naturally, you can do "The Spot" without using this devotional chart. Click on the first graphic to download the PowerPoint file. I put it in PowerPoint so you can adjust it to your own needs.
 As teachers, we are always trying to make our jobs obsolete. What I mean is, we want to get our students so good at digging into the scriptures and finding gems, that they don’t need us to help them find those treasures in the scriptures. In other words, we want to teach them how to fish rather than just handing them fish we caught in the scriptures.
On the S&I website is a wonderful set of videos of real classes where teachers are doing this training. One is a video of Sister Morgan’s class. In it she shares some powerful quotes with her class and also teaches them “Power Phrases”. Click on the image to download the “Power Phrases” and a bunch of other wonderful quotes by the Brethren concerning scripture study skills.
CAUTION: Don’t overwhelm your class by sharing a bunch of quotes all on the same day. It is probably best to just show one quote on a given day, and then have your kids try modeling that with a set of verses.
CLICK HERE to go to the link to Sister Morgan’s class or go into the S&I website and click on the tab “Improve Teaching” then, “Inservice Library” then, “Teaching and Learning Emphasis”. There will be a bunch of wonderful examples of training our students how become proficient in scripture study skills.
Sister Morgan does a great job of sharing one of these quotes and them having the students dig into the scriptures trying to model what was taught in the quote and then sharing. She also used the “Power Phrases”.
 Okay, the honeymoon is probably over in your seminary class. You might be seeing some negative behaviors starting to crop up, and you’re not entirely sure what to do about it. The handout here (click on the picture) is a list of things you might try and do as you strive to overcome some discipline problems that might be coming up around now. There isn’t one technique or strategies that will work with every student, every time. But I put together the list to help study out how to resolve the situation. I’m sure there will be some ideas that you perhaps haven’t thought of before.
Also, don’t wait to let your coordinator know about the situation. I am sure with his experience, he will have a bag of tricks and techniques to help you as he sees the situation first hand.
The third page of the handout is a behavior contract that I have used in the past. This is for when a student’s behavior is keeping others from feeling the Spirit in class. If you have tried everything else, and there is no resolution, then it is better that a student loses their privilege to take seminary, than everyone else being prevented from feeling the Spirit. In the long run, it will also be better for the student. This contract is worded in such a way that they can see the true purpose behind the contract.
Also, CLICK HERE to go to the post I had a few weeks ago that shared the ONE RULE in seminary, and other ideas.
 At the beginning of each new school year, I try to do a lesson that helps the class get a vision how their seminary class can be powerful this year. Here is the general lesson plan for that lesson and click on the picture here to download 3 graphics that go with this lesson.
I start out by asking the class who’s class this is. Answers may be “Your class” or “Our class” but help lead then to see that it is the Lord’s class and He described in the scriptures how he wants his class to go. Then I ask them what is the first thing that happens after the Welcome, and then the next. That makes the outline on the board of:
-SONG
-PRAYER
-THOUGHT & LESSON
Then next to those items on the board we dive into the scriptures where the Lord has outline how he wants each one of those to go.
-SONG -D&C 25:12 -Look for how we should sing in seminary.
o What is the difference between a “song” and a “song of the heart”?
o What is the blessing we will get upon our heads?
-PRAYER –D&C 42:14 -Look for the role of the Spirit.
o What are the common things we should pray for in our prayers in Seminary? (list)
o What is the difference between a “prayer” and a “prayer of faith”? (Actions back up what you are praying for”) How can our actions back up those specific things on the list?
o The next part of the verse bringo up the only rule I have in seminary. So I ask them:
o What do we have to have to teach?
o What if it isn’t there?
o What does this mean the one rule in seminary should be? (See handout).
o Then I show how everything can be answered by this one rule.
THOUGHT & LESSON–D&C 88:122 -Look for things we should do as a class.
o What are some things we should be doing? How?
o When “Listening” comes up, show the Chinese graphic (See handout) and show how the wise Chinese put many elements into this one word. Point out each element individually and ask why that element was included. It hopefully will teach how to listen to each other effectively, one at a time, and edify each other.
o Go through verses 123-124 also and have them look for how those things would bless the seminary class. With this I like to share the graphic how “Seminary is a Safe Place” and how we should not feel threatened to share our thoughts with the rest of the class.
I also like to share Matthew 18:20 and ask, “What does it mean to ‘gather in his name’? Then I challenge them to live the principles we learned to make this an incredible seminary class this year.
The last page is a cell phone policy that many have adopted. Use if you like.
Hope this helped.
 I’ve been doing Spotlights from my first years of teaching and they have been great to build class unity, participation, and fun. There are many ways to do Spotlights but here is how it has worked best for me.
1. During the first week of school I pass one out to each student to fill out. Make sure you tell them not to discuss what they are writing with friends because it makes guessing too easy later. When they are filled out, I collect them in a folder.
2. Then each Friday I have the student who was spotlighted the previous week come up to spot light the next person. I semi-randomly, pull out a spotlight and then the student spotlighted previously will start to read clues. The first time, just ask any student to do it. I like to have students spotlight others, rather than myself, because it promotes getting the teacher out of the limelight, and putting the students there.
3. At any time, when clues are being given, a student can raise their hand and guess. If they guess correctly, I give them a small candy. If they guess wrong, they are OUT and cannot try to guess again. This keeps students from screaming out every name in the class.
4. Once the person is correctly guessed, then have the student share everything on the spotlight paper and ask follow up questions as desired.
5. Make sure you also put in your own spotlight paper. That will really throw them a curve ball.
They will beg to do multiple spotlights, but I hold them to only one every Friday. Click on the picture to download the spotlight paper for the first semester. Towards the 2nd semester, I’ll send another spotlight paper with all new spotlight questions.
 At times, this has been a tough, and sometimes discouraging weekend and I had no idea for this week’s blog. Then as I was looking for something misplaced in my office, I found something that lifted my spirits. In a wooden box labeled “ROCK TALK” (former students, do you remember that?)
Sometimes there comes a seminary class with exceptional students which make an unforgettable class. One year I had one of those classes that you just couldn’t help but look forward to each day. One of those great students was Austin. As a Sophomore, each day just before the lesson he would say, “Brother Bushman, Bro. Bushman, I just got to tell this joke. Is that ok?...” Then the class would plead their support so then there would be the joke each day. On some days I also had a joke to share. Well at the end of the semester, Austin and Wesley (another great student!) made the ROCK TALK box to replace the shoe box, and put together a list of jokes we liked that year. So without further ado, here are those jokes from that incredible class.
What did the daddy buffalo say to his son when he left for work?
Bi-son
What’s brown and sticky?
A stick.
Where did the king put his armies?
In his sleevies.
A rope walks into a bar and the bartender says, “Hey, we don’t serve ropes in here.” So the rope walks back out and messes up his hair and ties himself into a knot. He walks back in and the bartender says, “Aren’t you that rope I just kicked out?” And the rope says, “I’m a frayed knot!”
Why do firemen wear suspenders?
To keep their pants up.
What has two thumbs and like cupcakes?
(Point to self with thumbs while saying) This guy!
What’s the difference between roast beef and pea soup?
Anybody can roast beef.
What does a duck and a bicycle have in common?
They both have handlebars . . . except the duck.
The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
What did the dog say when he slid down the tree?
Rough bark!
What did the fish say when he ran into the wall?
Dam.
What did the tie say to the hat?
You go on ahead; I’ll just hang around.
What do Mexican use to cut their pizza?
Little Caesars.
What did the blonde say when she saw the box of Cheerios?
Oohh, donut seeds.
A blind guy walks into a bar, but being blind he didn’t realize that it was a women’s bar. He walks up to the bartender and says, “Hey bartender. Want to hear a blonde joke?” The lady sitting next to him says, “Sir, before you tell that joke, you should know something. I am a black belt in karate. The bartender is a professional wrestler, and the three girls sitting around you are all professional weight lifters. All five of us are blondes. So knowing this, sir, would you still like to tell that joke?” The guy thinks for a minute and says, “Not if I’m going to have to tell it five times.”
He who laughs last, thinks slowest.
Now share your favorite joke.
One more thing, I wanted to add to my blog each week a list of official Holidays and observances for the week. Here they are below
 Official Holidays & Observances This Week
February 13th – 19th
Sunday Man Day
Monday Valentines Day & Single Awareness Day
Tuesday National Gum Drop Day
Wednesday Kyoto Protocal Day
Thursday My Way Day
Friday Pluto Day
Saturday Chocolate Mint Day
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