Jake Kallgren's List: Adolescent Development

Often, we let them go and we don't want anything to do with them. But what  we've known for a long time is that if we let kids do their own things, they'll  first seek out adult role models, but if those are not available for them,  they'll seek out teen role models. And this is the time when,  characteristically, we've given up. Parents don't attend middle school and high  school events like they did in elementary school. Kids want their privacy, and a  lot of parents capitulate to that. And we're looking at probably the most  important developmental time for the brain.

As you experience an outstanding presentation from a gifted speaker, make  mental notes to see how often the speaker changes the learning state. It may be  a change of voice, a joke, a gesture, a storytelling, or a relocation of the  speaker -- anything that allows the participants to change their state!

In classrooms where teachers are effective learning-state managers, students  know what to expect and often look forward to getting out of their seats  periodically and interacting with others, ultimately refreshing their learning  states. Some teachers say that once they get the students settled into their  seats, they want to retain that structure for the remainder of the class period  if possible.

As you experience an outstanding presentation from a gifted speaker, make  mental notes to see how often the speaker changes the learning state. It may be  a change of voice, a joke, a gesture, a storytelling, or a relocation of the  speaker -- anything that allows the participants to change their state!

In classrooms where teachers are effective learning-state managers, students  know what to expect and often look forward to getting out of their seats  periodically and interacting with others, ultimately refreshing their learning  states. Some teachers say that once they get the students settled into their  seats, they want to retain that structure for the remainder of the class period  if possible.