Connie Hamilton
Meiri hreyfing, meira nám: Hugmyndir fyrir alla kennara
Í fyrirlestri sínum fer Connie yfir 28 hugmyndir og aðferðir á 22 mínútum til þess að efla hreyfingu og þar með súrefnisflæði, samvinnu og minnka streitu og þreytu á öllum skólastigum og í öllum fögum. Rosalega margt áhugavert og gagnlegt sem þú getur tekið og notað strax á mánudaginn.
“Movement sends oxygen to the brain, offers time to process, encourages interaction, and reduces stress.”
— Connie Hamilton
Spurningar og svör frá Sli.Do
Q1: How do you get everyone to participate? Is no one slipping away in the chaos that forms? Are all students ready for discussions with others without dodging the conversation?
You can start with protocols that are very structured. For example, a Conga Line. This would have students in two lines facing each other. They have time to respond to the partner they’re facing in the line, then when time is up, they move down the line and get a new partner. This offers less choice and allows you to facilitate it. As students get comfortable with that high level of structure, you can try a more flexible format. Such as:
Everybody find a partner.
Check to be sure everyone is paired up.
Assign a partner A/B.
Give partner A a question to ask to partner B.
When time is up, invite partner A to find a new partner and all the B partners stay put. Then return to step 2.
A couple other protocols that work well to prevent slipping away are Stir the Class and Tri-Cycle (Triad).
Q2: How do you reach those who don’t want to participate?
It’s important to try to get to the root of why they don’t want to participate. Then we address the reason, not the avoiding behavior.
If students don’t want to participate because:
They are shy - give them time alone to prepare their thoughts, maybe write them down so they can read them instead of having to come up with them on the spot. These students are usually more likely to engage if they can pick their own partners - someone they’re comfortable with. You might do this on the sly, and make it appear random. Quietly as the shy student who they would be most comfortable with and figure out a way to make it happen without drawing attention to the fact that a couple students got to pick their partners while others were randomly selected.
They lack confidence - Offer feedback before they engage with their peers to affirm they are on the right track and are ready to talk.
They don’t understand - Provide options for them to discuss in their groups. Sometimes they share answers and sometimes they discuss challenges or questions.
They are worried about social interactions - This can be complex. However, one way to reduce social tension is with laughter. So before partners or groups start working, is to engage them in a silly activity. Try searching for “Theater Games” or “Ice Breaker Activities” to find some ideas. Here’s one I like to do - it’s usually unfamiliar to them and they always laugh! Zip, Zap, Zop.
They simply don’t want to - This is not a root cause, it’s a behavior. Kindly approach them when you’re NOT doing a protocol and let them know you noticed they didn’t actively participate the last time. Ask them why. Then you can either adjust the protocol to accommodate their concerns or ask them for suggestions. It might be that they work with one person instead of a group of 4. There are all kinds of options.
A great option for this is using Clock Partners. Set up “appointment times” in advance. Perhaps the 12:00 partner is someone on the same reading level. The 3:00 partners could be students with similar backgrounds. The 6:00 partners might be students with different perspectives or levels. The 9:00 partners can be friends or someone the students feel comfortable with. When you begin using different partners, movement is built in, just to pair up with the partner. You can start with making very short partnerships for the appointment times that are less comfortable (Find your 6:00 partner and see if you got the same or different answers for number 8, then return to your seat). That might be less than a minute, but it provides them a pretty safe way to engage with another student and get some movement into the lesson.
As students get more comfortable with talking to others and moving quickly, you can increase the time and/or frequency.
Introduce Clock partners in a fun way… Let them know who all their appointment times are then try:
Find your 12:00 partner and tell them your favorite food.
Find your 3:00 partner and share a time when you laughed so hard you almost cried.
Go back to your 12:00 partner and tell them what your 3:00 shared.
Find your 6:00 partner and ask them where they’ve always wanted to visit.
And so on…
This fun and busy activity introduces the clock partners in a safe way with questions that allow them to get to know each other without pressure to respond to content. Then it’s easier to switch to questions about math or other subjects.
Q3: How to engage students that wander away when given such freedom of movement?
Not all protocols are so free - (see Q1). Ask-Ask-Trade is definitely very free, however, you don’t need to start there.
Standing Conversation (When they turn and talk, have them stand up. Then sit down when they’re done talking - no walking, just stand/sit)
Four Corners
Back-to-Back and Face-to-Face
Carousel
Gallery Walk
See Descriptions for these strategies and more here.
Templates to some protocols here.
If you have other questions you think I might help you with, feel free to reach out to me at email@conniehamilton.org
Hver er Connie Hamilton?
Connie Hamilton er kennari, rithöfundur og fyrirlesari, býður upp á hagnýta innsýn og kraftmiklar og hraðar vinnustofur. Með meira en tveggja áratuga reynslu sem kennari og skólastjórnandi, sjö bækur, eins og "Hacking Questions", býður hún upp á raunhæfar aðferðir fyrir alla kennara á hverju bekkjarstigi og hverju fagi.
