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It seems that a lot of kids end up bored in school these days. It's not exactly fair to blame the teachers, either. Sure, many of them have been teaching the same curriculum for years and might not be quite as enthused about it as they were the first time they stood in front of a class. That isn't necessarily the problem, though. Lectures really just don't capture the attention of children. If cartoons are to be trusted, this has been the case for years. It is even tougher today, as most kids have been pretty heavily inundated with many different kinds of media. From video games and movies right down to the early years educational tools, kids are used to bright colors, fun sounds and quickly moving pictures. This makes it a bit different (and difficult) to create Civil War lesson plans, for instance, for today's students. It's not as if teachers sit down to make their social studies lesson plans with the intent to bore children, they really don't. Most of them know full well that their world history lesson plans can be exciting and interesting, and fortunately, more and more of them are seeking to create the kind of classroom structure that keeps kids engaged. It is very helpful to have lesson plans that include games or interactive elements- this really helps to keep students engaged. Letting them have some fun in the classroom is a great way to help the information they are learning to sink in. Playing a trivia game keeps their minds sharp, and letting them act out events from the period of history they are studying makes it feel personal to them. Plus, which do you think children are going to recall better- reading about something in their textbook, or watching a funny skit by their classmates? Of course, asking them questions afterwards or having them write up something about the skits is usually a good idea to make sure they got the lesson down. Most adults work the same way- think about it- do you get really excited and engaged while sitting in a large staff meeting while the person standing up drones on and on, or when you're in a small planning group where everyone gets to contribute? Now, it's likely that you'll be having a bit of both in your life, and kids will have to endure lecture time as well as fun time. You can use a Power Point presentation to help get them through the lectures- interspersed with pictures and other fun media tidbits, of course. Children will retain more information when they are interested in the subject matter. You can help them to be interested by creating a way for them to participate. Of course, sometimes the hardest part will be keeping them alert and focused for long enough periods of times. Most kids have an attention span that lasts somewhere around 12 to 15 minutes, maybe 20 if you are lucky. You need to be quick to keep them from drifting off into daydreams or just a bored stupor. This can be done by breaking the lesson up into different parts. Quick activities, such as a worksheet following a presentation can be just enough to keep them with you. It also helps to have them get up and move on occasion. Getting their blood moving in the body- even if they all just get up and jump around for a few minutes, is something that does both their bodies and minds good. When you mix things up like this, you also have a great opportunity to repeat information in various formats, which allows you to cater to the different learning styles that no doubt exist in your classroom.
Written by Kacy Suther. MultiMedia Learning LLC provides social studies lesson plans/a>, world history lesson plans and civil war lesson plans through their unique PowerPointŪ Presentation software. Students learn history through classroom social studies games and engaging technology. Learn more at www.multimedialearning.org .
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