Whole Brain
teaching uses attention getters to engage the students, instruction, and
collaborative learning to use the whole brain for learning the way it was
intended to. There are 7 major rules
that go along with whole brain teaching.
1. Attention Grabber- engages the
students and allows them to focus on the teacher.
2. Teach-OK- teach lessons in
educational chinks. Hit the highlights
of the lesson then students turn and teach with a partner.
3. Switch- Partners change the roll of
the teacher and student.
4. Class Rules- create class rules with
your students. Have 5 general rules and
make sure to go over each rule daily with the students.
5. Scoreboard- motivates students to do
well. It is Teacher vs students. Who ever has the most talley marks at the end
of the week gets the prize.
6. Hands and Eyes- keep short for
announcements. Students will hold their
hands together and focus their eyes on the teacher.
7. Mirror- students mirror the teacher,
increases student engagement. Teachers
can also see who was paying attention and who is on task.
These rules
do not have to be done in any specific order except maybe Teach-OK and Switch. Whole brain teaching can be introduced as
early as pre-k.
I love using
attention getters in the classroom. It
really gets the students attention and they enjoy it. Letting the students collaborate with each
other is something I want to make sure I incorporate. My practicum teacher this semester used the
Scoreboard with her class. The students
really enjoy it and try to remind each other when they get off task so they can
earn their reward.
