Students Tap Their Heads If They Agree

Pin It

I love this idea! 

You watch Monica Burns, a fourth year teacher, interact with her class as she conducts a lesson.  The students hold up their hands if they want to speak and while others are talking, they pat themselves on the head as a signal they concur with what has been said.  There is no yelling.  No frantic waving of a gaggle of hands.  No students blurting out.  No put-downs of other student’s responses.

Even with an ADHD student or two, Monica teaches class calmly.  She conducts class sitting patiently in her chair with only a flip chart to use, while there is calm and happy, yet engaged, learning in her class. Monica teaches a procedure where the student’s tap their own head when theyagree with an answer provided byanother student.

She teaches this signal in the start of the year when they begin having whole class discussions at their seats or on the rug.  These are the reasons she finds this signal effective:

• Gets less outgoing students involved in a discussion.
• Keeps the whole class active even when they are not providing an answer themselves.
• Unites students around a common purpose.
• Supports accountable talk prompts such as, "I agree with __(name)__ because . . . "
• Adds to a discussion by identifying students who do not support another student's answer.  ("I noticed that you do not agree with __(name)__.")
• Combats a student's frustration from not being called on; an alternative to slamming one's hand on a desk or sighing heavily.  ("Show me that you had the same
  answer . . . ")
• Stops students from calling out, "I knew that!" or "I had that answer!"
• Identifies who is not paying attention; holding all students accountable for participation.

From Teacher.Net