The Last/Next Time
Teaching blog shorts to get you thinking.
The Last Time
When was the last time you offered social time to students?
Reflect on recent weeks of the school year. When were you last able to let students socialize, without a prompt? Have you been able to end class one or two minutes early, just because you could tell the group needed a break?
The Next Time
Take advantage of the next time you can offer an unstructured break.
We know that students thrive on structure within classrooms that provide sound academic challenges, and students already socialize during projects, small group work, role play, and class discussions. However, adolescents are constantly developing social health. Aside from the hallways or the lunchroom, think about offering an added chance to chat from time to time by ending class a bit early. No technology, no novels, just face to face conversation. Added bonus: jump in and be a role model for informal, interpersonal communication.
