How might you encourage an individual or group?
As a teacher, I would praise my students by making positive statements about papers or essays they may have written, while at the same time giving positive feedback on how they can improve on their next effort.
During classroom discussions, it's important to acknowledge each students contribution. If possible, it might be good to keep a written or mental tally of how often each student gets praised so as not to exclude certain students' praiseworthiness. At the same time, its important not to use praise indiscriminately or else the praise loses some of its effectiveness, if used too often.
2. Revive
How would you reinvigorate when boredom strikes?
If students seem restless, it might be good to let them stand up and stretch or take a water break. If teaching in a high school setting, it might be alright to have a pot of coffee brewing that students can pay 25 cents for a cup of, which would go to an agreed upon cause or charity.
3. Refocus
What kind of distractor would you create to get them re-engaged on your lessons goals?
Allowing students to simply relax and rest their heads for a few minutes might be what they need to get re-engaged in a lengthy lesson.
Starting a related game of Hangman might be what students need to refresh their brains. Other word play games that students can play with each other might help break up the monotony of the lesson as well.
4. Acknowledgement
How would you note or celebrate accomplishments?
A reward system for students' involvement might also be an idea to try out for effectiveness. Students should be able to showcase their ideas through individual and group presentations that allow time for students to gather their ideas and present them to their classmates.
5. Re-composure
What would you do to limit or change interactions that negatively influence the activity or to teach appropriate ways of being?
It's important to reduce distractions in the classroom in order to influence the best possible outcomes for the classroom environment. This might mean ensuring that students who are a distraction to each other are seated away from each other in the class. A proper structure of conducting discussion should be established in the classroom such as how students should contribute by raising hands or acknowledging what other people in the class have said.
6. Rituals
Regularized actions that situate the students into an expected series of events.
I would hope to implement bell-ringer activities as a teacher. This might be five minutes of journal time on an open-ended question related to the day's lesson or a riddle or problem that students have to work out on their own. Students might see significant news or past news from history about the specific day, which will help students get comfortable about talking in class. Other possible rituals in a social studies classroom might include the day's objectives and homework assignments on the blackboard creating a certain structure for the class.
7. Right of Passage
Semi-regular or seasonal activity or activities that demonstrate success and/or coming to a new stage of learning or experience.
I hope I could work at a school where open houses would be held after the first month or two of school. This would allow students to showcase projects that they have been working on and allow parents to view their child's progress.
After completing a unit, it might be good to give students a chance to lead the classroom in some significant way. This might mean students could teach the class for a day near the end of a unit's completion or allowing a class-chosen video to be shown after a test/evaluation day.
A change in the assigned seating of the classroom's desks or tables could be made after a new stage of learning is completed as well.
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