Sep 29, 2023·edited Sep 29, 2023Liked by Dr. Kathleen Waller
This is such a great post and so timely! Super useful! I will be in the classroom for the first time in forever, starting in November teaching young students. I love, love, all about this. Esp. "As teachers, we constantly read the room. Are students getting it? Falling asleep? Confused? Hungry? In response to these situations, we sometimes plough through lessons with little success, and other times pivot in unexpected ways to bring the classroom alive again." So, so true. I like to do little improv games (from my acting days) to break the ice, anything to make those lightbulbs go off!
Edit: Lion's Breath... unrelated aside, I watched Kung-Fu Hustle the other day and Lion's Breath was a super finishing move of one of the characters. 😅 A silly movie.
Sounds like you have some cool ideas for your students! Hope it starts well ☺️ maybe you can even throw some Kung-Fu Hustle into class? Is that the follow up to Panda? This I have seen...and I like.
This is really great, Kate. Quite inspiring. I wonder how these could be applied to my own classrooms of science (beyond just refocusing attention and energy) and whether the students would be take to it. It's got me thinking :)
I think I should also apply some of this to my own writing sessions, to help centre myself.
No doubt you will find a creative way to put this in use! Although when in doubt, I always think the students can come up with something, say - using movement for a difficult concept to explain?
I love this. Students spend most of their time in classrooms in crouched postures and in uncomfortable and often undersized seats--as if the mind and body had nothing to do with each other. We pay too little attention to the body in the classroom. I’m thinking about trying some breath work at the beginning of college classes to improve focus.
Probably the college “kids” need it the most, don’t you think? Sometimes I worry about buy in with older students (and adults) but then people seem to really welcome the change. I think they recognise when the teacher is trying to help them in this way which is completely selfless. Thanks for your comments and look forward to hearing if you try some!
Yes, college students really need it, I think. I did a breath exercise once in a Chaucer graduate seminar last spring to begin a class meeting. The course was entitled “Experimental Chaucer,” so students knew to expect something different with each class meeting. It went well, but I had a couple of yogis in there, which definitely helped with buy-in.
It's great to read about the interesting exercises you did with your students and how stimulating they found them. I think there's no doubt as to the benefits of "healthy body, healthy mind", not just from the points of view of physical fitness and wellbeing but as an integrated idea to stimulate creativity. I remember as a young child in infants school in the 1970s doing moving to music in class. It wasn't just dancing, it seemed designed to stimulate imagination. Not as advanced and focused as what you are talking about but on the same lines, I think. A bit like this funny clip of Joyce Grenfell...
Oh I like this! Yes I’m sure that’s what it was for. I think kids can start to learn these connections from a very young age and then have the agency to do it themselves later. That is a funny and strange clip! She is endearing...and maybe a little frightening. :) thanks Jules!
It's from a book called "George, Don't Do That!" in which she performs monologues as a teacher trying control her class. The Christmas monologue is priceless. A bygone age, Kate - notions of how to educate young children have evolved rather!
As a primary teacher I can still relate to this article. We encourage lists on movement in class, lunch and social times as the mind body connection is so important. Last year I taught my class the story of Romulus and Remus and we put it all to movement. A yea on they still know it. The movement connects to the words and helps with their retention. Great piece.
I think primary teachers tend to be much better at this :) Then in the later years, we can get into the cycle of thinking there’s “too much to learn” to get as creative or take the seemingly extra time to use movement. Not always, but I see this shift. In reality, it makes the time more meaningful.
Thanks Garrett! And that's a really good idea. I also usually can't write in the evening. But I do think you're write that yoga could be the answer in this way! At university/college, I always did my course writing after track practice (and dinner) with pretty good results. I think there are similarities -- not just the physical exercise but also the mind-clearing nature of each. Maybe I will try this again.
I love these ideas! Another reason why online classes can be so challenging.so much static energy!
100%. I'm glad those days of online teaching are mostly a thing of the past for me!
That's a great example! For the teacher as well. I tend to move all over the room haha
This is such a great post and so timely! Super useful! I will be in the classroom for the first time in forever, starting in November teaching young students. I love, love, all about this. Esp. "As teachers, we constantly read the room. Are students getting it? Falling asleep? Confused? Hungry? In response to these situations, we sometimes plough through lessons with little success, and other times pivot in unexpected ways to bring the classroom alive again." So, so true. I like to do little improv games (from my acting days) to break the ice, anything to make those lightbulbs go off!
Edit: Lion's Breath... unrelated aside, I watched Kung-Fu Hustle the other day and Lion's Breath was a super finishing move of one of the characters. 😅 A silly movie.
Sounds like you have some cool ideas for your students! Hope it starts well ☺️ maybe you can even throw some Kung-Fu Hustle into class? Is that the follow up to Panda? This I have seen...and I like.
Thanks! Fingers crossed. This is the movie: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0373074/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk A comedy really
Oh, Stephen Chow! Have you seen Shaolin Soccer? Love that one.
Yep, of course :) Kung Fu Hustle was his next film after that.
This is really great, Kate. Quite inspiring. I wonder how these could be applied to my own classrooms of science (beyond just refocusing attention and energy) and whether the students would be take to it. It's got me thinking :)
I think I should also apply some of this to my own writing sessions, to help centre myself.
No doubt you will find a creative way to put this in use! Although when in doubt, I always think the students can come up with something, say - using movement for a difficult concept to explain?
Thank you, Nathan. :)
It'd be great to get them to try and show a biochemical process via movement 😄
I love this. Students spend most of their time in classrooms in crouched postures and in uncomfortable and often undersized seats--as if the mind and body had nothing to do with each other. We pay too little attention to the body in the classroom. I’m thinking about trying some breath work at the beginning of college classes to improve focus.
Probably the college “kids” need it the most, don’t you think? Sometimes I worry about buy in with older students (and adults) but then people seem to really welcome the change. I think they recognise when the teacher is trying to help them in this way which is completely selfless. Thanks for your comments and look forward to hearing if you try some!
Yes, college students really need it, I think. I did a breath exercise once in a Chaucer graduate seminar last spring to begin a class meeting. The course was entitled “Experimental Chaucer,” so students knew to expect something different with each class meeting. It went well, but I had a couple of yogis in there, which definitely helped with buy-in.
Sounds like an awesome class!
We had a good semester!
Ooo. So I just need to put “experimental” in front of my course titles? Brilliant!
That’s all it takes!
It's great to read about the interesting exercises you did with your students and how stimulating they found them. I think there's no doubt as to the benefits of "healthy body, healthy mind", not just from the points of view of physical fitness and wellbeing but as an integrated idea to stimulate creativity. I remember as a young child in infants school in the 1970s doing moving to music in class. It wasn't just dancing, it seemed designed to stimulate imagination. Not as advanced and focused as what you are talking about but on the same lines, I think. A bit like this funny clip of Joyce Grenfell...
https://youtu.be/ZXhHFgDRNBQ?si=JIS-Nd8ke2gzxRp7
Oh I like this! Yes I’m sure that’s what it was for. I think kids can start to learn these connections from a very young age and then have the agency to do it themselves later. That is a funny and strange clip! She is endearing...and maybe a little frightening. :) thanks Jules!
It's from a book called "George, Don't Do That!" in which she performs monologues as a teacher trying control her class. The Christmas monologue is priceless. A bygone age, Kate - notions of how to educate young children have evolved rather!
Sure but we still lose control occasionally 😂 fascinating project!
As a primary teacher I can still relate to this article. We encourage lists on movement in class, lunch and social times as the mind body connection is so important. Last year I taught my class the story of Romulus and Remus and we put it all to movement. A yea on they still know it. The movement connects to the words and helps with their retention. Great piece.
That sounds like a great project!
I think primary teachers tend to be much better at this :) Then in the later years, we can get into the cycle of thinking there’s “too much to learn” to get as creative or take the seemingly extra time to use movement. Not always, but I see this shift. In reality, it makes the time more meaningful.
Thanks Jon! Your class sounds like fun.
Thanks Garrett! And that's a really good idea. I also usually can't write in the evening. But I do think you're write that yoga could be the answer in this way! At university/college, I always did my course writing after track practice (and dinner) with pretty good results. I think there are similarities -- not just the physical exercise but also the mind-clearing nature of each. Maybe I will try this again.