My answer comes as a surprise: there is no deep mystery and no secret.
The truth (and non-secret) that we have to keep in the front of our minds, is that children, no matter how precocious they act or appear, are not little adults. They are still children. There are things in our adult world that will never appeal to them, so if you are to work with children, whether its holistically or traditionally, you must put your adult teacher/therapist ego-self aside, and think like a child.
There are unlimited number of ways to get a child's attention and keep it. Get on the floor with them and see the world from their eyes to find what appeals to them. If you can't find anything, then you are not observing them closely enough. Look again.
Children need structure, but they also need spontaneity. They don't respond to lecture, worksheets, drills, tests, confinement, boring rote tasks. They do respond to mess-making, challenges, things they're not supposed to do, exploration, imagination, and fun. If your therapy, yoga, phys-ed, general or special education class does not contain at least one of these elements, then you will not engage them. If you are not engaging them they will not be motivated to learn. When motivation drops, this is where we see disruptive & other undesirable behaviors emerge. We can stop it before it becomes an issue by observing what motivates a child and using it to teach them. In any giving classroom that could be 16 different things. Yes, its a challenge, but its our job and exactly what we signed up for.
As educators, its our job to inspire & motivate kids to want to learn. Part of this process is making it fun. Some of us, in the process of growing up, working our way through college, finding jobs, paying a mortgage and raising a family have forgotten how to have fun. Educators are scrutinized and stressed and are expected to cram so much work into a relatively short period of time, that we forget that it should be fun, at least part of the time. We need to find our way back to that in order to do our jobs better and have fun doing them.
So I can't give you any actual secrets because there are none, but I will give you 3 pieces of advice:
Keep it Simple:
Regardless of the electronic toys and gadgets we have now, children will respond to simplicity, as long as its fun. If its messy AND fun, you've really got their attention. An empty box, a stick, a rock, a piece of clay...a simple walk in the woods, all have potential for natural, relaxed learning. Teach children how to be safe when they play, and how to keep their friends safe. Help them invent simple games that explore concepts & include everyone. All it takes is 5-10 minutes (or more if you have the time) of simple, imaginative play daily (even for teens and older kids) and you will see how much it benefits their attitudes, cooperation & all the other work they do!
Keep it Real:
Be yourself. I cannot overstate this. Kids can spot phoniness a mile away and will call you on it. You are in a position to either build trust or teach them how to mistrust every single adult in their life. I knew a children's yoga teacher who used to change her voice when she was teaching a kids class. I don't mean that she changed her tone or vocabulary, I mean her voice changed-to an otherworldly "Glenda the Good Witch" voice that she didn't use anywhere other than in the yoga studio. She also used words that children don't normally use and they would never hear in a general education classroom-chakras & mindfulness are 2 examples. Its okay for us to say "feelings" and "paying attention" instead of these other words. It doesn't change what we are teaching, it just makes the message more 'user friendly' & more easily understood. So please use real language, your real voice and just be your real self.
Keep it Fun:
Invent games, poems or songs with the students to teach your lesson or get your message across. Rhymes can be a great mnemonic for learning as well as a way to release tension and encourage cooperation. In one classroom I worked in, we always sang instructions to the kids: (Think "Frere Jacques": ) "We are march-ing, we are march-ing, to our class; to our class... is much more fun than, "Okay guys, line up..." A friend of mine who teaches older kids, uses songs like "Cotton eyed Joe" & "I like to Move It", playing on a iPod to transition her students (dancing and laughing) to their next activity or class.
Fun comes naturally in the unexpected, so keep students motivated by doing at least one unexpected thing a week-better yet, one a day. You will find that it keeps you motivated too.
*What are some non-secrets you have that help you keep your students engaged? Please share them below in the comments!
Contact: barbara@bodylogique.com
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