Teaching Tips
- Be mindful of the difference between giving praise and being encouraging or confirming the a task’s completion. Praise is sometimes good for boosting spirit; however, you want children in particular to learn to do things for themselves rather than merely for the approval of an adult or authority figure.
- Honesty really is the best policy. When working with a group as an outsider, your honesty about who you are, where you come from, and most importantly, why you’re really there to do the work, will go a long way in establishing trust between you and the participants.
- Instead of hiding frustration, honesty that you’re feeling like the group is not listening or that an attendance problem is worrying you, etc., is more useful. Raising your honest concerns can allow the group to work on the issue together.
- Structure sessions so they include clear opening and closing rituals. Repeating the same exercises each time will help to define the rehearsal/workshop space as different from the rest of the participants’ lives and will keep you from having to start from scratch each week. This will pay off immensely in focus and productivity and creates a feeling of security for participants for whom the experience feels new and risky.
- Use language that emphasizes your observations, not your judgments. Avoid asking something like, "What’s wrong?" Instead, state your observation. Wait for a participant’s response and follow up with an open-ended question. This is more likely to lead to a revelation about why something has happened so that the root cause can be addressed.
- Define a goal and recognize everyone's expectations from the start, but remain flexible. Being aware of these things will allow a group to feel that they are making progress over time, and flexibility can help keep the group engaged if they lose interest.
- Maintaining a positive attitude keeps communication free and open, so participants will feel safe to share their thoughts honestly.
- Make sure that participants are continually engaged and never seated for too long. Have groups work simultaneously. Constantly throwing out questions and prompts will keep those seated engaged and thinking about the material at hand.
- Ask a specific, directed, and challenging question for the final reflection period at the end of each workshop session.
- Learn students' names early in your workshops. They notice.
- Set aside a de-briefing session with your supervisor after each session to assess and review the day's workshop and to discuss strategies for the proceeding one, based on your observations.
- Despite any pre-concieved notions about what your project should be, keep an open mind and be willing to let the project take shape in unexpected ways.
- When conducting interviews, be sure to have a quiet meeting place.
- Be prepared for straying from the focus of the planned discussion. Support and appreciate what is being said. Allow it to drive the discussion, by asking follow-up questions pertaining to what has just been said. Then, find ways to tie the new focus into your originally planned discussion.
