Maybe one of the biggest issues in modern education is motivating you group or Class to be engaged in the Subject. You would say that Children are uninterested, and they don’t want to learn or listen, but children are just not the way we were. These children today are not going to learn and study because we say so, but if they want to know, they will have a lot of questions. Here is what I found works the best.
So, first thing about this is knowing your class knowing what interests they have, what is their “thing”. I will not get into the how to do this, as an educator it is your obligation to know each and every child you work with. Once you know what children have as their interests and what they want, then just look through the lecture for the day, and find how can you connect their interesuje with the subject.
Best way to do this is find actual props to use during your lectures. For example, physics can be thought to a wide variety of kids with no effort if you use their favorite hobbies. Just get a ball in the class and use it to explain them what movement is, ask them why is the ball moving, ask them for their opinion, and then start by getting them to ask the right questions. You should initially get them to have fun, so by showing them the subject through their hobbies they will listen to you. It is all about you getting to them, not them listening to you. Ask them to create groups in which they will debate on the subject with no knowledge whatsoever, and then correct them through the course.
When teaching theater history to children ages 5 to 20, I found a “court house” to be the best option, because you can get them all involved into it. Get a judge, get the jury, witnesses, everything like a real court, and then just sit back and start by overruling the wrong statement, and asking them to repeat the said snetence as a crucial evidence. Get them hyped about it, they need to feel important, that is how they will be on top with their thoughts, and their concentration will be at peak.
In the court room , you can easily get the children to understand how the court works, but also, you can get them to listen to each other.
IMPORTANT: NO MATTER HOW BAD THEIR ACTING IS, THIS IS NOT AN ACTING EXERCISE, LET THEM BE CHARACTERS AND LET THEM FEEL LIKE THEY HAVE A MASK, THIS WILL MOTIVATE THEM EVEN MORE.
It is important that you know what you are doing, and for you to be in charge, but not for them to know that this is supposed to be like that. You can be the judge of the process, and if you make yourself, no matter how bad is your acting is, into a crazy, funny but smart judge as a character, they will go with it.
If you do not believe in this system, try it just once for fun, and you will see amazing advancement even with the children who were never interested about the subject. Get them to speak out of their interest. Get them to be engaged. This will give them motivation and security, so they won’t be unsafe in class. Most of the misdemeanor and attention problems do start just because of insecurity and lack of motivation.
What are you waiting for? Don’t you have a class to prepare?
Until my next post feel free to write me on my social media or e mail me for more instructions and free advice on the subject. My book will be coming by fall so if you can’t wait that long, shoot me a DM, or an E-mail, or whatever, I will gladly help.
Never forget: CHILDREN ARE THE FUTURE!
