Fall is my favorite time of year! The beautiful colors of our Utah mountains amaze me but it always leaves me wishing it would last longer. As teachers, one of the things we wish would last longer is that first week of school classroom environment! The students are glued to our every word, they smile and get excited with each new task, they follow directions and look for our approval and acceptance! Ohhhh….. the glorious first days of school. AND THEN…… what happens? 

For so many of us, we feel like the environment loses its luster- just like our mountains. But does it have to??? And if not, then what can we do to keep that spark alive? Last year the teachers of Quest Academy participated in reading an excellent book titled Class Acts: Every Teacher’s Guide to Activate Learning. We were introduced to THE BIG 8 for maximizing student engagement.

EXPECTATIONS

TIME LIMITS

CUEING

ATTENTION PROMPT

PROXIMITY

SIGNALS

VOICE

TASKING

Personally, I enjoyed reading this book and then applying it in my classroom. I really learned a lot from such a short concise book! Pull your copy off the shelf and skim through it again. Refresh yourself so you can re-energize your students. If you do not have a copy borrow from a teammate or come get mine!

When you pair your fantastic explicit instructional skills with these student engagement strategies you will feel like the hills are alive with color! Remember to do your part by being EXPLICIT so that your students know what you expect them to learn!

Here are just a few key elements to keep in mind when you are incorporating Explicit Instruction-

Teachers should be conscious of delivering clear, dynamic instruction that is appropriate to students’ needs.  Your presentations should include-

1) Teacher Clarity – speaking clearly, avoiding unclear terminology and vague terms.

2) Teacher Enthusiasm – varied inflection, actively accepting student ideas and maintaining a high overall energy level.

3)Appropriate Rate of Presentation – diversifies opportunities to participate, requiring participation and adjusting to student understanding.

Here’s a little test to see how well your students really understand what you want them to learn.

ASK THEM TO RESTATE THE LESSON OR ACTIVITY OBJECTIVE BACk TO YOU IN THEIR OWN WORDS! ( if they can’t do it you know that “What we have here is a failure to communicate!” (Cool Hand Luke reference!)

Quest Academy has the most amazing group of teacher – everyone is continually trying to find ways to help their students be successful. Take a minute to think about your teaching style and how you might increase student involvement and activate and motivate those incredible minds in your classroom!

QUEST IS THE BEST!