LDS Seminary Teacher Helper

John Merrill Kirkman
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Daily short episodes to help you become a better seminary teacher. Listen on your drive to seminary and become a better seminary teacher today. 

  1. Aug 16

    20 Nine Class Management Strategies

    Send me a message! Remember: You're Awesome! For more of my teaching resources, join my Skool page (always free) YouTube Channel for Lesson Ideas Check out my Walking with the Savior Podcast.  You are awesome! You are a hero! You got this!

  2. Aug 9

    19 Why do I use scripture study pages?

    Send me a message! Remember: You're Awesome! You’re proof that good people exist. ❤️🎉✨ -you're awz.me

  3. Aug 9

    18 What's THE Most Important Scripture Study Tool

    Send me a message! Remember: You're Awesome! Phrases you can use in your classes: Anyone need a ponder pen or ponder pencil? The pen is your ponder tool.  Pick up your pen, power up your pondering.  A pen turns reading into pondering.  Your pen is the bridge between Scripture and Revelation.  Don't just read, ponder with your pen.  A pen in your hands, put the pondering in motion.  The pen, the most powerful pondering tool.  Read, ponder, and pray lead to revelation, and the pen leads to pondering which leads to more consistent revelation. The wandering mind is the disconnected mind.

  4. Aug 7

    17 Ting Listening: The Key to Great Conversations in Class

    Send me a message! Remember: You're Awesome! More on Ting Listening. For more of my teaching resources, join my Skool page (always free) YouTube Channel for Lesson Ideas Check out my Walking with the Savior Podcast.  You are awesome! You are a hero! You got this!

  5. Aug 5

    16. The Most Important Rule in Seminary

    Send me a message! Remember: You're Awesome! Send me a message! Remember: You're Awesome! Find more of my seminary teaching resources on Skool.  Always free! Cree L. Koffard's Talk

  6. Aug 3

    15. The Power of Positive Emotion

    Send me a message! Remember: You're Awesome! Just a random reminder that you're an absolute legend. Seriously, your vibe is everything and you always bring the main character energy. ❤️🎉✨ -you're awz.me Intro/thesis — Based on Spencer Kagan's Brain-Friendly Teaching: eliciting positive emotion is one of the easiest, most powerful research-based tools for a brain-friendly classroom (~300 studies support it).Why it matters — Positive emotion broadens students' attention and improves thinking, problem-solving, learning, creativity, and test performance.Music — Use uplifting music/music videos (e.g., "Made By God," "Peace in Christ," LDS youth videos, Christian music/lyric videos).Happy recall — Have students recall a happy/proud/successful memory before tests or tasks to boost performance.Video clips — Share uplifting, inspiring videos (LDS youth videos, "On the Road with Steve Hartman" kindness stories) to spark discussion, including tying kindness to Christ. Sample: Count your blessings — Simple exercise: have students name blessings to a neighbor.Three wishes for others — Twist the classic genie question to focus wishes on friends rather than themselves.Recalling helping — Have students share a time they helped someone and felt good.Power posing — Have students stand and strike a superhero pose for 10–20 seconds to generate laughter and positive energy.Praise — Use positivity statements and peer praise (e.g., high-fives) to make positive emotion contagious in class.

  7. Jul 31

    14. The Power of Positive Attention

    Send me a message! Remember: You're Awesome!  Low-key you're awesome — and that's on period. ✨🌟💫 -you're awz.me  The Power of Positive Attention (Spencer Kagan): Positive attention shapes behavior. Publicly praising a group/team that's on task (without giving points, just naming specific behaviors) redirects the whole class more effectively than quiet signals or correction.Kagan's classroom story: A teacher had all the technical jigsaw elements right but the room was chaotic (scolding, misbehavior). Simply drawing attention to the best-behaving group and stating specifically what was good about it turned the class around within one period.Effect is temporary but renewable — praise boosts on-task behavior for about 10 minutes; repeating it on a new group sustains and extends the improvement.Positive attention sets classroom norms — it tells students clearly what behaviors are valued, which creates security and clarity, especially in new routines like small-group work.Small groups aren't inherently chaotic — the difference is structure plus positive reinforcement of what's working, not just assigning group work and hoping for the best.Practical application (scripture study/reading activities): Model the activity, then reinforce visible positive work ("I love this work, look at the highlights"), then have students point out something positive in a teammate's work — takes under 30 seconds but has outsized impact.Takeaway: Consistently and specifically praising good behavior/work — rather than only correcting bad behavior — is a simple, high-leverage classroom management tool.

  8. Jul 29

    13. Heather Johns Part 2: Micro Trainings. Don't complain! Train!

    Send me a message! Remember: You're Awesome! Low-key you're awesome — and that's on period. ✨🌟💫 -you're awz.me

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About

Daily short episodes to help you become a better seminary teacher. Listen on your drive to seminary and become a better seminary teacher today. 

Information

  • Creator
    John Merrill Kirkman
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    20
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 LDS Seminary Teacher Helper
  • Show Website
    LDS Seminary Teacher Helper

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