Made to Stick: Getting Students to Connect

Kristen Koppers – Joliet West High School; NBCT

Terra Meyer – Joliet West High School

What the author has to say…

Made to Stick Video

Connection Points

Use simplicity in your lessons Make things unexpected Use concrete language Make sure that everything is

credible Use emotion Incorporate stories

Simplicity

Make it SIMPLE• Students often don’t remember

grammar, spelling, equations, etc. because it is too much information at once.

• The students give up when the problem seems to large to solve. ex: -(2x + 4y) – 3 (x + y) + 2x - 5 = ?

Simplify: -5x - 7y + 2x - 5 = ?

Solve: -3x – 7y - 5

Unexpected

Teacher’s have trouble getting students to focus and you lose their attention…What should you do to connect???? Make your lessons unexpected and a surprise! If you break from your normal pattern students will be focused and interested in what you have to say.

For Example: Stand on a chair for the first part of the lesson or do something outrageous!

Concrete

• You want students to retain all of the information and be able to apply it later.

CONCRETE language is very important here.

Teachers should use ACT structured words in all lesson plans and use them consistently in order for them to become concrete.

for example: infer, apply, context, variable

Is this Credible?

Students do not always want to listen to what we have to say because we are the “Authority” on the subject. At times we must rely on those that are the “Non-Authority” on the subject or points you are trying to connect to.

For Example: Other students/peers can be your biggest ally when trying to prove your credibility. Bring in past students to talk to your class.

(mainly applies to high school/middle school here)

Make it Emotional Make it Emotional

Get your students to CARE about what you are teaching! Teach them to be emotional about their academics and their future. Teach them the importance of CARING and the repercussions for not caring. Their own personal care will motivate them and inspire them to do well.

Stories Always Connect!

If you use stories that make your lessons/points credible and emotional, students will want to go out and create their own personal stories of success!!!!! Stories create pictures for students to visualize on their own and then the connection is made. Students want to know that “this CAN be done!” from real life experiences! They will be inspired by stories.

Environment

The environment makes a big difference on how a student performs on a test. Unfortunately, we cannot change the setting of a testing situation; however, we can change how the students views the testing environment.

Three reasons why students don’t “connect” to what they

are taught?Reason #1: “I feel that the things I learn will not be

needed in the future”Reason #2:“My teacher does not care about me or

my future”Reason #3“As long as I pass, I don’t really care”

Time to Hear From You

ACT strategies

QICAL The Test! (acronyms make connections)

• Question Triage• Ignore Irrelevant Issues• Check Back• Answer the Right Questions• Look for the Hidden Answer

Model Daily Assignments or Tests

All goal and core /final content exams are all designed based on the ACT structure of the test.

Sophomores do ACT prep twice a week as a bell ringer, Juniors do ACT prep five times a week. Sophomores do PLAN prep in their advisories. Juniors do ACT prep every day in their advisory programs.

Where is the Gap from Elementary to High School?

• Students have to start thinking for themselves

• Learning styles are more obvious• Lessons are more detached and analytical• They are exploring their own self-image• They are questioning basic concepts again• Larger schools• More challenging subject matter• Larger staff: different teacher/student

ratios

Student Interviews/Survey

• “ I didn’t see the incentives in my school for students being academically motivated. I wish I could go back now, as a senior, and redo.”

• “I learned the information but it didn’t connect with me.”

• “I was prepared for the state tests but I didn’t see the importance of them until it was too late.”

• “Teachers should make ideas better to understand than long phrases or hard words.”

Statistics (ACT Prep)55 Sophomore Students (pilot)

College Readiness• Our district’s academies are using College

Readiness strategies in order to better reach, assist, and motivate students.

• Teachers are given pre-assessment results/scores to see where there students fit within the College Readiness Bands. Teachers then work together to create tiered lessons that connect with students in order to move them up 1 to 2 bands in preparation for the ACT/PSAE.

• Students then have deeper connections to their content areas (even in electives).

• Students are now seeing/understanding the connection between the College Readiness strategies and coursework.

What sticks?

SimpleUnexpectedConcreteCredibleEmotionalStory

Works Cited

Heath, Chip and Dan Heath. Made to Stick. New York: Random House, 2007. Print.

Questions, Comments?Kristen Koppers @

kkoppers@jths.org

Terra Meyer @ tmeyer@jths.org