7. Let them Have a Break

90 minutes is a LONG time for today’s students to focus on anything, even with our station rotation models, brain break activities, and collaborative lessons.

Who are we kidding?  Most adults struggle to focus through a 60 minute staff meeting!

So what I mean by “let them have a break” is give them completely unscheduled, off-task time in the middle of your class to truly chill.  They can talk, go to the bathroom, get water, sit, stand, walk, put their head down, read a book, etc…  Want to get even more radical?  Let them play games on their phones and text (Guess what?  They’re doing it anyway).

These 5-10 minutes of freedom will pay off when you get back to your lesson because their focus will be renewed.  Most students will choose to get up and move which increases blood flow and oxygen to their brains.  Also, students will have better memory recall of what you teach them in the beginning of class and after the break due to the primacy effect.  The primacy effect basically states that students remember the first item of a list after engaged in a non-related activity.  Still not convinced?  Read this article and this one on how acute physical activity improves recall.

In my class, I would often take class “field trips” to the restrooms and water fountains.  Everyone had to get up and stay with the class.  They could talk as they wished as long as they weren’t disrupting other classes.  I firmly believe that the students learned more in a 90 minute block when they had a break compared to constant instruction and activities.

I know this may seem like surrendering control or giving up on classroom management, but really it’s pressing the reset button.  It’s saying to your students that you respect the fact that they need time to process and relax.  More often than not, they will reciprocate by respecting your instructional time in kind.  I think we have all taken a walk, gone to the gym, or watched a TV show to refresh our minds when tackling a difficult problem.  Let’s give our students that same opportunity.

Let Them Help – Ways to Promote Student Autonomy – 1 of 11
Let them Choose their Seats – Ways to Promote Student Autonomy – 2 of 11
Let them Pick their Problems – Ways to Promote Student Autonomy – 3 of 11
Let them Pick their Project Topic – Ways to Promote Student Autonomy – 4 of 11
Let them Pick their Product – Ways to Promote Student Autonomy – 5 of 11
Let them Use their Technology – Ways to Promote Student Autonomy – 6 of 11