Breaks
I have to give my students breaks in the lecture part of our day. It gives them a chance to breath and me too. It also provides a chance for them to get to know me and the other students better.
Teri,
Great way to get the breaks in and let students be a part of the class management process.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I have often gotten so excited and involved in a particular nursing topic that I forget to take breaks --- so to remedy this -- I ask for a time keeper. This student makes certain the students (and I) get our breaks. Teri "TW"
I like to give my students time for the lecture but every 10-15 mins I like to try and give them time to ask me questions / break. Really helps!!
Glenn,
Good strategy because this way your students get to reset their brains and can stay focused for the duration of the class.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I try to break up my lectures into 15-20 minute segments with activities in between to help students stay engaged.
I like to give the students breaks about every hour to help them stay focused on the subject matter. During these breaks i encourage the students to get up and move around; stretch a little bit to help wake the body up. If the body is "awake", so is the mind and the students become more involved in the subject matter.
Paulette,
This is a good way to let the students reset their brains and think about the content in a different ways. These pauses let the instructor check for understanding and then go back into the material. Like the idea of "going to the beach" as a visual and verbal introduction of the discussion time.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
When observing another instructor, after about 35-40 minutes of lecture they all would take about five minutes to discuss something off topic, she called it "going to the beach" and they all were involved in sharing something about their day to, in a sense "re-charge" them
I give my student 10 min breaks every hour so I"am able to keep thier attention.
Agreed, breaks during lecture are vital to the retention of the lectured material.
Jill,
Yes, it is. That means that the students are connecting with the content and are starting to internalize what they are learning as well as wanting to share information with classmates.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Breaks are important for keeping your audiance. Its nice to hear groups on break discussing the subject being lectured.
Breaks are good for instructors too! I can take a few minutes to look over my outline and make sure I haven't skipped over anything and even look ahead and see if I may need to make a quick announcement of any upcoming quizzes, tests etc. The students seem to come back somewhat refreshed as well.
Jaimee,
No it doesn't. I teach from 4 until 10 pm so I can appreciate what you are saying. We have snacks and take breaks because otherwise we would not make it through to the end of class.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Ashley,
Good point because yes we do need to reset our brains. If we don't then we tend to lose our effectiveness and that we cannot afford to do.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
It probably sounds silly, but I encourage my students to try and eat a small snack on their breaks. It seems like they are able to refocus easier when they do.
I agree! I believe at times that it isn't just the students that need the mental break - sometimes the teacher needs a mental reset. I teach my class with the same style as you and it seems to work effectively for both the students & myself.
Also, mini-breaks provides my students to come to me for more focused Q&A time without interuptions from their peers.
Craig,
Right you are. Student engagement and focus needs to be read and then reacted to as you move through topics. Your leadership as an educator is getting involved and they are seeing the value of what you are teaching them. This says a lot about your instructional style and how you have been able to capture the attention of your students. As a result then you can have them take a break when needed and it is not based upon a specific time but upon class flow.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
My first day of class I found out that the students wanted a break and was use to having a break in class. But as my lessons got more interesting to them and I got them more interactive in the conversations we were going way pass the time that they take for breaks and they didn't mind that at all. I guess it depends on the length of time for the class and the interest of the student.
