Back in the summer NTI classes I think I learned a lot that has benefited me in the first few weeks of class. One of the things that I think benefited me the most involves one of the behavior management tools we were given during class.
When I first heard the "I know this may not seem important to you, but it is to me" method, I thought to myself that it was the dumbest thing I had ever heard of. It just seemed so odd to me to validate the student, who was already being an issue.
So, imagine my surprise when during the first full week of class when a student was challenging me on the importance of an assignment, all that my brain could quickly pull up was the "I know this may not seem important to you" method.
Before I knew it, I had started the method. "I know this may not seem important to you," I said. "However, it's very important to me that you learn the vocabulary before we move on in the unit."
I cringed inside as I expected the room to burst into laughter from this lame attempt to control the situation.
Instead there was silence.
The student sat there with a silly look on his face, speechless.
It had worked.
I probably had the same silly look on my face when I realized what had just happened. I ran through the rest of the class with a new found confidence.
I used the same method later in the day on a kid that probably didn't even see it coming.
I'm now the king of "it may not seem important to you..." (At least in my own tinly little realm.)
I constantly have this problem in my class. There is always that one studnet that says this is stupid or this does not matter! I always struggle on how to deal with the situation. I would love to learn this technique since I did not attend the Summer portion.
ReplyDeleteNice! I'm waiting for a student to say that so I can use "the perfect rebuttal".
ReplyDeleteYou go KING!! This is GREAT!! Thanks for reminding me of this valuable phrase.
ReplyDeleteYou simply redirect them by saying something along the lines of, "I know this may not seem important to you, but it is very important to me..." and then outline why it is important to you.
ReplyDeleteSo, for example, a student complained about a crossword puzzle I gave them for a vocabulary lesson. I said, "I know this may not seem important to you, but it's important for me that you learn the definitions of these words so that as we move forward you won't be confused when we see these words again."
It's amazingly effective.
For some strange reason.
This is a great post Tuck! I hope everyone in our group reads it. Dr. J.
ReplyDelete