It started with a conversation over birding. Having been raised to share love of bird-watching with her dad, my daughter was casually checking out a few species when she mentioned she wished she had her binoculars with her. That’s when I told her, “Did you know that some people can identify birds with other senses besides sight? If you were blind, what would you use to learn about birds instead?” This led to watching the video entitled, “Blind Birdwatcher Sees With Sound,” followed by all the other videos I recently included in an inquiry into the senses.
All this led to a fascinating conversation about the senses, absolutely packed with “aha moments” for my daughter. The baby video in the above-mentioned post particularly made us think together — we ended up talking about how important sensory experiences are for kids. That’s when she made the connection to why we call our bin filled with dry grain a “sensory box,” as well as other items in our home that she suddenly realized were deliberate choices based on her parents’ understanding of child development.
All at once, and to her delight, she was “in on the secret” on her own development as well as that of her brothers. She started to not only recognize but make suggestions to her environment when it comes to providing sensory experiences (particularly keen to share her pearls of wisdom on bettering her little brothers’ experiences). And quite apart from the learning element from it all, it has simply been a wonderful relationship-builder as well.
What does “letting kids in on the secret” look like at school?
This phrase is regularly shared by inquiry educator Kath Murdoch. She writes,
“inquiry teachers have a transparent style. It’s not just about putting learning intentions up on the wall – they constantly ensure their kids know why they are doing what they are doing.”
In another post, she adds,
“We know that for many students, school is like a jigsaw puzzle…only no one has given them the picture on the lid of the box. We know now of course that when we hold on tightly to those secret intentions, when we fail to tell kids why they are learning what they are learning…when we take purpose away from the equation – we reduce motivation, engagement and understanding.”
Letting kids in on the secret might mean…
…letting a committee of kids design the next seating chart (after discussing the how and why behind it)
…regularly discussing learning standards/objectives and what they mean and how we get there (and how kids might help in the planning to get there!)
…having meaningful conversations about metacognition, and what specific strategies we seek to better understand our own thinking patterns and self-regulation
…teaching kids to recognize their own time-use and purposes, and then gradually providing them with opportunities to exercise agency in how they spend their time (such as in this Daily 5 example).
…frequently talking about the why behind everything we do!
What about you? What are some ways you have “let students in on the secret?” What has been the impact when you see students with a greater understanding of the big picture of school?
featured image: DeathToTheStockPhoto
Wonderful suggestions, Mary. It’s making learning, and the process of learning explicit. I think it’s hugely important to “let children in on the secret” of literacy development especially: what we do when we read and write. It’s also important when working with numbers or solving problems. Thinking aloud doesn’t only assist the thinker, it helps others to see, and learn, the processes too.
Thanks, Norah. It’s not always easy, especially since we need to balance that with avoiding the trap of talking too much as teachers (something I know I’ll still need to work on when I return to the classroom), but as we work to find those moments for natural discussions, that’s key.