You knew I would eventually get to the educational stuff. So here we go, swan-diving in head-first, hoping there are no sharp rocks at the bottom. If you’re not in the field of education and you’re still reading this post…good for you! Keep reading! This blog isn’t just for educators. Fair Warning: This is the first of a series of three related blog posts. The Blog Mafia would hunt me down and chop off my fingers if I tried to put EVERYTHING I want to share about my most recent PD experience in only one post. If you ever have the opportunity to hear John Antonetti speak in person, RUN toward it…even if you have to dodge all the orange barrels in downtown Kansas City rush hour traffic…even if you have to sit in an 85-degree classroom on the fourth floor of Union Station on of one of the hottest days of the year because the air conditioner decided to take a vacation…DO IT. He is an engaging speaker who has many nuggets of wisdom to share. Totally worth it. Here are a few thoughts from his session, "The Power of Student Engagement." Let’s talk about a character Mr. Antonetti calls “Melissa Sue.” Say her name fast and with a great amount of energy and excitement…because that’s how she says it. Melissa Sue is, by some standards, the “perfect student.” She’s the first to volunteer. Her hand is constantly raised. She always answers the question. She’s the one who is compliant…the people-pleaser…the one who wants to know exactly what she should do to get an A. She’s the one who asks a question right before the bell rings that causes the teacher to hold the rest of the class back while answering it. Melissa Sue is book smart, but boy, she lacks in the common sense department. She gets good grades by being compliant, but may not be great at “making sense” of content. Got an image of Melissa Sue in your head? Good. Let’s move on to Bubba… "Bubba" is the exact opposite of Melissa Sue. This kid is street smart. He has common sense pouring out his ears. Book smart? That’s not important to him. He wants the easy way out. If you give him a math problem about a guy who buys 1,000 watermelons, he will stop you before you finish reading the problem and say, “What the %*$# does anybody need with a thousand watermelons?!” Bubba is not afraid to think differently and challenge the status quo…mainly because he doesn’t like fluff. Keep both of these characters in mind, because they will show up from time to time… Mr. Antonetti took us on a roller coaster ride of activities, which I will share throughout this three-part series, but here is one that helps us see how kids (and how we ourselves) think. Read these sentences: There was a boy. The boy was small. There was a pond. The boy fell. Now, write one sentence that describes what is going on in the above passage. Got it? We know kids can’t be grouped into only two categories…however, you’ve probably already grouped your students (or your family members, or friends) into one of two categories: Melissa Sue, or Bubba. Here is Melissa Sue’s thought process and response: Well, the small boy fell, but gosh! There’s a pond! Maybe he fell IN the pond? I don’t know…but the pond is there so I HAVE to include it in my answer, right?! So here goes: “The small boy fell in the pond!” That’s my answer, Teacher! Is it right? Well…is it??!? Here is Bubba’s thought process and response: What the %$*& does a pond have to do with this story? Why do I have to say anything about that stupid pond? Here ya go, Teach: “The little boy fell.” Who is right? Is Melissa Sue’s answer better than Bubba’s? Is the reverse true? The beauty in this activity is, there is NO one correct answer. This activity shows how we think and MAKE SENSE of information. The process of showing the thinking and justifying the answer is what we want to see. Our job as educators is to get the Melissa Sues and the Bubbas, who think quite differently, to become engaged and start MAKING SENSE of what they are learning. We have to look at something, and keep looking at it until something MAKES SENSE. For example, you look at a problem until you find a pattern that allows you to MAKE SENSE of the problem. It’s not an easy task, especially if you have students who haven’t learned how to persevere. In order for any of us to fully develop meaning and MAKE SENSE of a concept, three things must come together:
Let’s talk engagement for a sec…WE DON’T PAY ATTENTION TO BORING THINGS! Even if it means telling a funny or memorable story at the beginning of class that doesn’t relate to content…tell it! If kids cognitively engage during the first five minutes of class, they will continue to engage on a higher level the rest of the class period. Speaking of TIME spent being engaged… Did you know…humans cannot be engaged 100% of the time? If you disagree, think of your spouse or significant other, or a relative, or a good friend. When the two of you are together, are you 100% engaged with each other every second? Do you hang on his or her every word or action for hours on end? NO. How do you think wives get husbands to agree to painting the cabinets next weekend, or double-dating with the dreaded sister-in-law Friday night? Women catch men at their most vulnerable time (i.e., when they are less engaged…while watching a football game, for instance), and then move in for the kill. Husbands don’t remember agreeing to anything…so the wife pulls out her iPhone where she replays his recorded response from earlier to have proof. (I may have exaggerated this just a little, but you get the point). 100% engagement all the time just doesn’t happen! Even 80% is a ridiculous amount of time to expect someone to be fully engaged! Mr. Antonetti said – and here’s what blew my mind – we are doing well if kids are engaged 21% of the school DAY. That’s not 21% of every hour, folks…that’s 21% of the school DAY. Wow. And a side note: the practicing of “skills” is NOT engaging. This is where the road gets rocky for two subjects that are heavily skills-based: Mathematics and Foreign Language. Students practice skills to become better or faster at a process, but that’s not where the heart of the meaningful learning kicks in. Antonetti suggested we send skills practice home (these are levels 1 and 2 if you are on a 4-point rubric, or as Mr. Antonetti says, “someone else’s thoughts”), and leave the tasks that require students to apply and evaluate (levels 3 and 4, or “my [students’] thoughts”) to be done at school. Antonetti’s take: our job is to get kids to a 3. If they go above and beyond to a 4, excellent. Make that 21% engagement time count. One thing that can totally derail engagement is a stressed brain. Stressed brains do not, will not, and cannot learn the same as non-stressed brains. Stress is a major distractor. If you yell in exasperation at Bubba in front of the rest of the class for not having his homework done and he gets embarrassed, it’s going to take at least 20 minutes for his brain to start producing serotonin again. Engagement is not going to take place during that 20 minutes because he will be too busy re-hashing the situation in his mind and trying to calm down from the stress. Again, this works the same way with most adults. Another teaching technique that can derail engagement is asking questions and allowing the class to respond verbally as a chorus. When we do this, our level 2 or level 1 tasks could actually become level zero. If Melissa Sue always belts out the answer before anyone else, the rest of the class gets a free pass and disengages, because they’ve learned they can rely on her to answer for them. What motivation do they have to pay attention? One final thought…make sure to let kids explore. Don’t squelch that natural instinct. We are born being explorers. Somewhere along the way, many of us stop. Mr. Antonetti told a story about his tenure as a kindergarten teacher. His class was outside for recess, and the kids knew they weren’t supposed to go near the fence at the edge of the property. Two boys headed straight for the fence anyway. Mr. Antonetti called for them to come back, and they waved him over to the fence. They were watching a beetle, and were so excited. They said, “Mr. Antonetti! Watch!” The boys both took turns yelling at the beetle. “Arrgh!” “AYYYYY!” “AHHHHHH!!!” The beetle kept walking. Then, they took turns stomping their feet near the beetle. The beetle stopped walking each time the boys stomped. Mr. Antonetti wondered, “What’s the point of this?” One boy explained, “When you yell at the bug, it can’t hear you. But when you stomp, it can feel the vibration!” What a powerful learning moment for a kindergartner! In closing:
Yours truly, Sheri P. S. - I think I finally figured out spellcheck!!
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