Engagement: How Can We as Teachers Improve Engagement in Our Classrooms?

Active time versus dead time. There should be minimal dead time in a classroom. During dead time or transition time, I use brain breaks during changeover times or play music to keep the focus on the shift of activities and when the music stops the next activity begins. Model these conversions so they become routines rather than disruptions. This minimizes dead time where students get unfocused and off-task. Also, during shifts of focus students come up to my desk and do their 1-minute check-in's this reinforces focus and allows us to get on the same page academically and behaviorally.

Warm-ups are a great way to get students curious and focused when they walk in the door. Put a picture on the smart board or sometimes I have a discrepant event taking place in the front of the room. A cup of bubbly water, or dry ice, even a compost jar will do the trick. This gets the classroom buzzing and then they write a brief reflection in their journals. Having a routine helps students get in and get organized quickly, write their warm-up, and by the bell we are ready to begin the first activity.

Let students collaborate, get up and move about, and have choice of materials. This can be easily accomplished with flexible seating: for me standing desks, round tables, communal science desks, all set up to be one large active community where students are fluid like mercury, regrouping and shifting. The makerspace has also become a focal point of the classroom, where students actively search through recyclables, materials, art supplies to find the perfect material for which they design and create their assessment. Students have choice and use it frequently to draw, write, build, even sing or rap their assigned topic.

Active, authentic learning takes place as students become more fluid and hands-on. When they feel safe to rake-risks, collaborate and even fail because they know they have a myriad of opportunities to retry and be successful. Success is instant for some students but slow for others. Let students work at their own pace, design their own experiences and own their own learning and they will become invested and will value education.