7 Steps to a Language-Rich Interactive Classroom

Step 1: Teach students what to say when they don’t know what to say

Working with students that have diverse backgrounds

• Phenomenon known as learned helplessness
• What does learned helplessness mean?
• This means that each time we ask our students a question or assign a task for them to do, but do not hold them accountable for their response or performance, we send the message that they are not expected to achieve.
• Teaching students to help themselves allows them to become independent learners.
• We have to teach our students the language and habits of independent learners in order for them to become one.

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Seidlitz, J. & Perryman B. 2011 7 Steps to a Language-Rich Interactive Classroom. SeidlitzEducation

Banishing those “I don’t know”, “huh” and “what”

• How do we rid our classroom of these silent fillers?
• One solution is to teach our students how to respond differently when they are unsure about an answer to a question.
• Doing this sets the expectation of accountable conversation.
• What to Say Instead of I Don’t Know Posters
• Teachers provide the posters that are accessible in the classroom as an alternative to responding with an “I don’t know.”

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Seidlitz, J. & Perryman B. 2011 7 Steps to a Language-Rich Interactive Classroom. SeidlitzEducation

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Instead of “I don’t know” posters

• 1. May I please have some more information?
• 2. May I please have some time to think?
• 3. Would you please repeat the question?
• 4. Where could I find more information about that?
• 5. May I ask a friend for help?

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• posters can be placed on your white board, made smaller to be glued into their notebooks, or taped to their desk

Seidlitz, J. & Perryman B. 2011 7 Steps to a Language-Rich Interactive Classroom. SeidlitzEducation

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Implementing Step 1

Seidlitz, J. & Perryman B. 2011 7 Steps to a Language-Rich Interactive Classroom. SeidlitzEducation

Research Says:

• Teaching students what to say when they don’t know what to say is a metacognitive strategy. Research shows that the use of metacognitive strategies in the classroom has an impact on student performance. Duffy, (2002), McLaughlin, (2003), Snow, Griffin & Burns, (2005), and Vogt & Nagano, (2003) teach students to monitor their own thinking/understanding purposefully and then to choose a way to access help. Similarly, Lipson, and Wixson (2008) argue that teachers need to teach metacognitive strategies to students, model the strategy, and explain when and why the strategy should be used.
• This causes us as teachers to be more intentional and purposeful with the questioning we use with our students, thus making the planning portion of the lesson cycle vital.