Strategies How to Keep Kids Engaged in Class by Tristan de Frondeville 2. Use Movement to Get Kids Focused Ask all students to stand behind their desks and join in simple choreographed physical movement. Because most kids find it invigorating and it's easy to monitor full participation, it may become one of your favorite ways to get kids focused and kill dead time. Here's how, for the primary grades: Teach hand-clapping patterns to accompany a chanted verse or a set of math facts. Add foot stomping or hand clapping with a partner to create variety. After an unsuccessful run with hand clapping patterns, and at the suggestion of one of my classmates (I can’t remember who, but thank you!), I taught my class that when I say: “Hocus Pocus,” they need to say back to me “We need to focus!” I taught the children this quick rhyme to help gain everyone’s attention to better focus during morning meeting. I let them practice, and they absolutely loved shouting back “We need to focus!” I was thrilled to find out that the students were quiet, engaged, and ready to listen. I did notice that after a few weeks, the responses seemed to lose a bit of enthusiasm, so I modeled again for students how the quick rhyme should work. Since October was quickly coming to an end, I thought about engaging the students with a new song for the month of November, to switch things up a bit and keep them interested. Then, I began thinking about quick rhymes that the students and I could use for the year. My list is still a work in progress, but here are a few I’m hoping to try. I included November in the list, and so far, it’s working great and the kids love it! The rhyme is something they sometimes urge me to start when it’s getting too noisy!
September: Teacher – Welcome to school! Students – We’re quiet, we’re cool!
October: Teacher – Hocus Pocus! Students – We need to focus!
November: Teacher – Turkey hop, turkey hop! Students – Look, listen, and stop!
Decemeber: Teacher - Let it snow, let it snow! Students - We’re ready, let’s go!
January: Teacher – It’s a new year! Students – Listening ears!
February: Teacher – Candy hearts, candy hearts! Students – We’re ready to start!
March: Teacher – It’s pot of gold time! Students – We’re ready, hear our rhyme!
The article, English-Language Learners Deserve to Be Understood, Mike Honda offers several tips on how to work with ELL students and engage them in their native language. I have four students who speak Japanese at home. Two of the students are beginner ELL students. After reading the articles for this week, I chose to focus on the ELL students because I feel this student population is on the rise and it is easy for these students to get lost in translation. I have begun to pull out the two beginner ELL students whenever my supervising teacher is leading the class. I use their Japanese dictionary and we translate words together. I also use pictures, and movements in addition to words. When they understood what I meant, I would then ask them to tell me the Japanese word for the English word. They enjoyed sharing their language with me. I feel like this last quote summarizes my experience working with the ELL students this week perfectly: “There's a simple saying that underlies all three of these principles: Seek first to understand, then to be understood. When teachers seek to understand, they can help children see themselves as valued thinkers and students -- and boost their chances to engage and understand” (Honda, M).
After reading “How to Keep Kids Engaged in Class” by Tristan de Frondeville I choose to try out under “Use Movement to Get Kids Focused” a stomping pattern. I choose to try an idea under the movement section as the class I’m working in is really responsive to movement breaks. So after one of our longer literacy lessons and before Mandarin I had students follow me in a stomp patter for their movement break. I taught them various stomp patterns and asked them to stomp them back. The students liked stomping instead of the other movement breaks that they are used to because it was something new and instead of clapping which is the main way the school gets the students attention. I also put a spin on this and had students if they wanted to make up a song or a chant to go along with their stomp. First I stomped a pattern and had them make up words to go with it (they didn’t have to say the same thing they could say whatever they wanted) and then I let the students pick their own stomp patterns and come up with their own chant or song. Some of the kids really got involved in this and it got a little rowdy but no time like the movement break to get a little rowdy and get students refocused and back on track.
Strategies
ReplyDeleteHow to Keep Kids Engaged in Class by Tristan de Frondeville
2. Use Movement to Get Kids Focused
Ask all students to stand behind their desks and join in simple choreographed physical movement. Because most kids find it invigorating and it's easy to monitor full participation, it may become one of your favorite ways to get kids focused and kill dead time.
Here's how, for the primary grades: Teach hand-clapping patterns to accompany a chanted verse or a set of math facts. Add foot stomping or hand clapping with a partner to create variety.
After an unsuccessful run with hand clapping patterns, and at the suggestion of one of my classmates (I can’t remember who, but thank you!), I taught my class that when I say: “Hocus Pocus,” they need to say back to me “We need to focus!” I taught the children this quick rhyme to help gain everyone’s attention to better focus during morning meeting. I let them practice, and they absolutely loved shouting back “We need to focus!” I was thrilled to find out that the students were quiet, engaged, and ready to listen. I did notice that after a few weeks, the responses seemed to lose a bit of enthusiasm, so I modeled again for students how the quick rhyme should work. Since October was quickly coming to an end, I thought about engaging the students with a new song for the month of November, to switch things up a bit and keep them interested. Then, I began thinking about quick rhymes that the students and I could use for the year. My list is still a work in progress, but here are a few I’m hoping to try. I included November in the list, and so far, it’s working great and the kids love it! The rhyme is something they sometimes urge me to start when it’s getting too noisy!
September:
Teacher – Welcome to school!
Students – We’re quiet, we’re cool!
October:
Teacher – Hocus Pocus!
Students – We need to focus!
November:
Teacher – Turkey hop, turkey hop!
Students – Look, listen, and stop!
Decemeber:
Teacher - Let it snow, let it snow!
Students - We’re ready, let’s go!
January:
Teacher – It’s a new year!
Students – Listening ears!
February:
Teacher – Candy hearts, candy hearts!
Students – We’re ready to start!
March:
Teacher – It’s pot of gold time!
Students – We’re ready, hear our rhyme!
Your idea is terrific. i hope it keeps working!!
ReplyDeleteFor Kristen:
ReplyDeleteThe article, English-Language Learners Deserve to Be Understood, Mike Honda offers several tips on how to work with ELL students and engage them in their native language. I have four students who speak Japanese at home. Two of the students are beginner ELL students. After reading the articles for this week, I chose to focus on the ELL students because I feel this student population is on the rise and it is easy for these students to get lost in translation. I have begun to pull out the two beginner ELL students whenever my supervising teacher is leading the class. I use their Japanese dictionary and we translate words together. I also use pictures, and movements in addition to words. When they understood what I meant, I would then ask them to tell me the Japanese word for the English word. They enjoyed sharing their language with me. I feel like this last quote summarizes my experience working with the ELL students this week perfectly: “There's a simple saying that underlies all three of these principles: Seek first to understand, then to be understood. When teachers seek to understand, they can help children see themselves as valued thinkers and students -- and boost their chances to engage and understand” (Honda, M).
You are getting great experience that will be very useful to you when you have your own class!
DeleteFor Mary:
ReplyDeleteAfter reading “How to Keep Kids Engaged in Class” by Tristan de Frondeville I choose to try out under “Use Movement to Get Kids Focused” a stomping pattern. I choose to try an idea under the movement section as the class I’m working in is really responsive to movement breaks. So after one of our longer literacy lessons and before Mandarin I had students follow me in a stomp patter for their movement break. I taught them various stomp patterns and asked them to stomp them back. The students liked stomping instead of the other movement breaks that they are used to because it was something new and instead of clapping which is the main way the school gets the students attention. I also put a spin on this and had students if they wanted to make up a song or a chant to go along with their stomp. First I stomped a pattern and had them make up words to go with it (they didn’t have to say the same thing they could say whatever they wanted) and then I let the students pick their own stomp patterns and come up with their own chant or song. Some of the kids really got involved in this and it got a little rowdy but no time like the movement break to get a little rowdy and get students refocused and back on track.
Great that you tried something different and it worked! Remember to keep changing what you do to keep the students engaged.
Delete