A POWERFUL STRATEGY

September 20, 2007

I am becoming an expert on making concept maps colorful and I enjoy creating a nice, organized presentation of ideas. It is also good for me to read a broad amount of information so I can create a well-informed and accurate lesson plan. It is very time consuming for me because I am such a slow reaader:)!!!!! A concept map is a fun way to play with academic information. It is almost like tricking the children into learning! It is fun while at the same time requires them to manipulate essential information which reinforces learning.

I know that direct instruction is the most used strategy not only for teaching but also in our everyday lives. Our interactions with people are usually giving or receiving information so it makes it a natural extension in the classroom. While I do feel there are benefits to this type of instruction, I also believe that it is only effective for short periods of time in an actual classroom. The short-term menory capacity is limited so the information needs to be presented in chunks and frequently teachers over-use this type of instruction.

My husband used direct instruction in the classroom every day and knows that too much is not good. Because of this, he tries to make it fun through the use of storytelling, asking his kids about their experiences, and taking short breaks to even do a little goofing around with them. He has often told me that teaching is not primarily information presentation but more performance art than anything else. Of course, labs are the group work he uses in his science class so I agree that a mix of instructional strategies is beneficial.