I led my very first lesson today! I incorporated as many elements as I could into this lesson. I've been doing an immense amount of research on how movement impacts learning, and how other factors such as colors and social interaction help move it along, too. So I created colored cards that related to the social castes together with social guidelines with how they should interact with each other and gather up the food I had provided for them. I wrote up some talking points for them, along with some discussion questions that they would run through after the activity. I made sure I related the questions closely to subjects and ideas they were reading in the book.
Colors help stimulate certain parts of the brain that allow them to learn faster and for a longer period of time. I had them stand up to find their groups, and move the tables around to get into groups. That movement increased oxygen to their brains and helped with blood flow, which helped their brain work in a more efficient way. It's also thought to increase their attention spans and learning capacity for about 15-20 minutes depending on how long they had moved and what they did. I had them relate their interactions with their own lives and their own personal thoughts, making the emotional connection that is necessary for students to care about and better understand the content.
Even with all of the science that was put into this activity, I tired to keep it loose and fun for them. I gave them colored cups, donuts, had them have fun in their interactions, and socialized with them in a loose and friendly way. This was the best part of the internship, I think. I loved teaching them and seeing the connections they made. I had students going down deep into the discussion and speaking intertextually and relating it to other projects they studied throughout the year. It was incredible seeing how many connections they made with how small of an activity I had created. It was amazing.
Colors help stimulate certain parts of the brain that allow them to learn faster and for a longer period of time. I had them stand up to find their groups, and move the tables around to get into groups. That movement increased oxygen to their brains and helped with blood flow, which helped their brain work in a more efficient way. It's also thought to increase their attention spans and learning capacity for about 15-20 minutes depending on how long they had moved and what they did. I had them relate their interactions with their own lives and their own personal thoughts, making the emotional connection that is necessary for students to care about and better understand the content.
Even with all of the science that was put into this activity, I tired to keep it loose and fun for them. I gave them colored cups, donuts, had them have fun in their interactions, and socialized with them in a loose and friendly way. This was the best part of the internship, I think. I loved teaching them and seeing the connections they made. I had students going down deep into the discussion and speaking intertextually and relating it to other projects they studied throughout the year. It was incredible seeing how many connections they made with how small of an activity I had created. It was amazing.