Your students are wilting like gardenias in a downpour.
They yawn and fidget. They daydream and sigh. They struggle to follow along amid a thousand and one distractions clawing for their attention.
Television blaring in the other room. Siblings sitting just inches away. The family dog begging to play fetch.
You can’t blame them.
Learning online is b-o-r-i-n-g, especially because students associate screen time with immersive content—video games, Netflix, social media, YouTube.
And here you come with your screen shares of Judy Moody.
There is, however, something very simple you can do to combat online learning boredom. It’s a trick of sorts that also happens to be a lot more fun for you.
We mentioned it several months ago in an article that resonated with a lot of readers.
So what is it?
It’s to stand up.
It’s to drag out that old, beat-up easel or portable whiteboard and teach like you’re in person. Do this and your students will forget they’re even online.
You see, standing up gets you moving and gesticulating. It forces you to be more demonstrative and energetic. It pulls students out of their malaise and the drudgery of having to stare at one document or window tab after another.
It eliminates the talking-head syndrome, the droning, and the same old same old of laptop schooling. The truth is, no form of instruction in the world can compete with a great teacher doing what they do best.
That is, stand and deliver.
The movement, drama, passion, and physicality of effective instruction is personal and absorbing—even when received over a wireless signal.
It naturally draws the eye, builds rapport, and creates the motivation to engage right back.
The few teachers who are managing to keep their students attentive during the pandemic are those who are opening up and sharing what is happening in their own space.
They’re looking directly into the camera and connecting with actual living and breathing human beings watching from the other side.
They’re limiting the doc cams, screenshares, outside videos, and the like; using them only when absolutely necessary. The majority of the time they’re single-minded in their objective to reach in through the screen and grab their students by the collar.
They’re filming from their backyard, their porch, the local park.
They’re expanding their own imagination, and with it, that of their students. They’re getting weird. They’re wearing funny hats and embodying the characters they read about and study.
Frank Pearl, Rene Decartes, Matilda Wormwood, Othello, Jo March, Aslan, Frida Kahlo.
They’re emoting and weeping like Kate Winslet and crooning and preening like Bruno Mars.
In other words, they’re accepting no excuses from themselves despite the massive limitations of online teaching. They’re bringing the curriculum to life for their students anyway.
It starts with pushing your chair away and standing up. Do this and you’ll become a better, more effective teacher immediately.
However, once you get your sea legs, once you begin enjoying yourself—and you will—then you must let it all go. Let go of your fears and uncertainty. Let go of your self-consciousness. Let go of your ego.
Just let it fly . . . fly away.
And teach well.
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It would be nice if you had some tips for those of us who are hybrid and/or can’t use books or paper.
NAILED IT.
Thanks Michael.
Sent this article to my university student teachers.
Great “fresh” approach. Hopefully my students will try to “let it all go” in their Practicum teaching online!
(Thank you for these articles and publications)
PERFECT TIMING! We are actually going from remote to blended learning on Monday and I have so been waiting to be able to be up and away from the computer. I’m sure it won’t be without bumps, but I have set things up so that I can go back to teaching to 1/2 of the class in the classroom like I usually do, with the other 1/2 viewing through Teams. A lot of teachers have been told to just keep teaching like they did while remote and just project it on their SmartBoard for their in-person students, but that just really defeats the benefits of being in-person for me. So, I’m going to give it a go on Monday and see how it goes. Luckily I have VERY supportive administrators who are good with the trial and error approach. Wish me luck!
I have been teaching blended learning. Yes use your smart board and document camera to display. You will be socially distant and wearing a mask with you f2f students. The smart board gives access to all. I use TEAMS and upload handouts in the general channel along w independent assignments that follow up on the lesson for the day. I teach every class and small group live. Good luck coming Jill!
I love your posts. They inspire me and push me to do my best.
Do you have any ways to make telephone teaching less boring for my students? Many of my students belong to a community that doesn’t use zoom or have computer access. Some are managing well over the phone but some are bored and struggle to concentrate.
Hi, am teaching science in a country that doesn’t allow turning camera on.. and at the same time, am teaching in class and online in the same lesson. While teaching, am trying to use interactive apps if suitable for the lesson and leave fun comment to gain their attention.. but still, can’t succeed everytime, can you suggest some strategies I can use for blended learing?
I have been teaching simultaneously since September. I am exhausted double planning, but my students showed significant progress on a recent diagnostic. I stand up to teach with a tall rolling stand.
Right now all I want is a pat on the back and hugs from my students. It’s hard, so very hard and I am in my 20+ years of teaching.
So everyone… you are amazing, you are strong and I am proud to be your colleague.
You are amazing Michael! Thank you for sharing this idea for everyone! I made the switch to stand up teaching in the early fall and it made all the difference in my teaching outlook and energy! Felt like I was “really” teaching again right away!
https://smile.amazon.com/Adjustable-Ergonomic-Aluminum-Portable-Computer/dp/B07B9MHT4V/ref=sr_1_16?dchild=1&keywords=uncaged+ergonomics&qid=1611425237&sr=8-16
I use “Magic Whiteboard” – large white pieces of plastic that cling to your wall and will take wipe board pens.
Doesn’t damage your wall paper or paint.
I’m convinced! Yes, it’s that lively, personal touch that’s vital.
Standing up does indeed capture our attention differently, because it’s more unpredictable.
I really appreciated this column. I often feel conflicted about not being techy enough and simultaneously believing that too much tech isn’t necessarily good for my second graders. I teach standing up, looking right into the computer camera as much as possible, with lots of energy, and I feel like that’s the best for me. My class has very good attendance for our synchronous sessions, and maybe that’s part of the reason.
I share my screen for the document camera so I can model and they can work along with me. We occasionally watch a short video of something on my shared screen, or I walk them through a new online assignment. I read picture books the old fashioned way, sitting in my rocking chair and holding the book up to the camera, and they love it. Since I am talking and sharing directly with them, they seem more eager to talk and share directly as well – everything is modeling when we teach.
So I appreciate the validation of what I’m doing….it’s working pretty well, for what it is, and I feel more confident ignoring the constant pressure to get more techy. You’ve also inspired me to try some new elements to switch things up a bit too. Thank you.
Yes!
Thank you, Michael, for the affirmation about standing to teach.
We’ve been online since mid-March & I found that teaching from my laptop on my tall stack of books works great and I have my desk top to the side as well.
This is a one-day-at-a-time endeavor. Step by step we’ll get there, fellow teachers.
Thank you for this article. We began the year with two-thirds of the students on a hybrid (Plan B) and one-third At-Home learning (Plan D).
We were all At-Home learning from Thanksgiving Break through January 11th, (Plan C). During that time, we were meeting with them twice a day, an hour each, two days a week, with Wednesday being Office Hours, where they could check in if they had questions. I wish I had this information from the article then. It was really hard for us teachers to feel like we had to sit in front of the computer. If we were to go back to the all At-Home, I will definitely follow your advice.
We are hybrid currently (Plan B). One third of our students come to school on Monday and Tuesday (Blue Group) and another third come on Thursday and Friday (Green Group). We have a whole other 3rd of the students who are at home learning everyday (Plan D).
Do you have any advice for us on how to reach the students who are at home, whether they are the Plan D or the Blue or Green group? We thought about turning our computers on while in the classroom and allowing the students who are at home join us. The thing is, we teach the same lessons on Monday and Tuesday to the Thursday and Friday kiddos. Do you have any advice as to how to implement or change up those lessons?
Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Marie
Oh my gosh this post changed my remote teaching life! We hadn’t been remote since early December, but had a remote “snow day” today. I set up to stand during my lesson and it made all the difference in the world. Thank you!!!!
THANK YOU! I started standing for my online classes and it’s been really great 🙂 I feel much more energetic and I can tell the students are more engaged.
One key element in solving boredom in any approach to learning in involving, including and the exchange process in learning. Make the lessons where a response is required to check for alertness and understanding. Set limitations but not too strict nor allowing too much or too little time to complete. Use a variety of ways to derive at a correct response. Center the activities around the interest level of the population they are intended for. Include some information already known and some unknown subject matter. Range from very easy to very difficult, and from concrete to abstract.