Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Who Listens in Class Anyways?

Yesterday, I did a small exercise with my class having to do with listening and reading instructions.

My kids are notorious for not putting their name or date on papers, even though there's a sign in front of the in-bin asking if they have.

My kids are also notorious for coming to me stating they don't understand a question without reading it at least once, luckily they may have even read it once!  I always stress they should read a question at least two-three times before they ask for help!

So, here's a template of the first Pop Quiz I gave them yesterday.
 
Now, the fact that my kids enjoyed this pop quiz so much obviously was attributed to the fact that alot of the instructions on this pop quiz were silly or goofy (you need to have fun learning) shows me that they may not have gotten the real reason of the quiz.
 
I had to sit down with them afterwards before the final bell rang to discuss with them the meaning of the quiz. 
 
It was not for them to have extra time to fool around and read - it was to test HOW WELL THEY LISTEN and READ INSTRUCTIONS.
 
A pre-cursor to this quiz above was that when the come to #5 the third time, they skip it.  I gave them oral instructions beforehand explaining this, even writing it on the board.
 
Some of my kids asked me what the consquences were, I put their name on the board.  Some looked at me as I wandered around the classroom, I also put their names on the board.  Some laughed, their names went on the board.  At the end of the day, those who continually asked what the serious consequences were were not listening to instruction and I wasn't surprised by who those students were.
 
I gave each of those kids who kept asking a strike for everytime they asked, so they stopped asking very quickly.
 
I will definitely do this again, but keeping in mind I am doing it because there are those kids in my classroom who do not read or follow instructions consistently.  I knew right away who the ones were that could follow instructions and they did every single one perfectly.
 
Try this in your class, see what you might find!


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