Being a teacher, I have come to realize that teaching young kids is not an easy job. It demands a great deal of creativity and hard work. While teachers are free to choose any teaching style or tool, its better to use all options to promote learning. Following are some of the options:
Lecture
Lecture is a good way to cover large amounts of material or complex issues. On the down side, lecture does not demand much of students and can make them passive. Lecturing is best when it puts information together in ways that have not been done before.
Individual Study and Reflection
This can also be a powerful way to handle content, especially if you give kids guidance during their study. You can begin by asking the kids to reflect silently on some passage in the book for ten minutes, giving them two or three questions to guide their thinking. This method shows kids that with a little perseverance, they can study by themselves. It also prepares them for in-class discussion.
Group Investigation and Discussion
This is a way you can make use of material already put together well by others. If you have found a great journal article, just put kids into groups and have them read the material. Once they get done with it, give them a question from the topic and tell them to discuss with their peers. It not only wakes students from lecture slumber, but it also connects them to others.
Class Discussion
Okay, class discussion is an extensive form of group discussion and it can occur only after the kids have been provided with information, either from lecture or group investigation. When using this method, students respond and work with the information they have. Naturally, class discussion and group investigation are the heart of most scientific studies.
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