Week Four Essential Question: How can you engage all students?

There are multiple answers to this essential question.  With any students no matter how old, I feel that developing a relationship with the students is very beneficial.  Learning about your students and their interests as well as letting them know more about you creates a "family" unit within the classroom, but this may be easier to establish within the second grade classroom rather than high school (I wouldn't know) since I have my kids all day.  I feel that developing that relationship with the children first is crucial because when there is mutual respect between the students and the teacher, the students are willing to put forth their full effort and work their hardest for your approval.

I have found that humor is absolutely crucial with my students.  If their is a boring subject, changing how I talk about it (talking with excitement for example) or trying to create a fun activity with what I am teaching can be key to keeping them engaged.  I think of it like a performance.  If the children are bored they are going to zone out so it is my responsibility to keep them engaged and interested in what I am doing.  I try to keep them on their toes so they are watching to see what I will say or do next or if I feel like I am loosing them to reel them back in.  If I see they are tired, we get up and do some stretches or move around a little just to reset their focus.  Relating concepts to their life or incorporating things that interest them really keeps them engaged because they had that prior interest before you began. 

Tying in technology, my kids are beyond enthralled when I use to MimioTeach, MimioView, and projector.  They literally inch their chairs closer and closer until they are practically on top of me just because they are so interested in what we will be doing with these amazing resources.  I tell them that only the most attentive and concentrated students will be able to come up to the board to answer questions and use the Mimio and instantly they are sitting up straight, chairs are pushed in, and they are zoned in on what I am saying. They ask to use the technology about 100 times a day everyday, even though we do use it everyday, but they want to use it for everything!  I have even had coworkers ask what I was teaching because when they walk by they tell me they are so enthralled at what I am teaching at the front of the classroom that if Gronk walked by they wouldn't even notice.