No such thing as wasted time ….

 

I’d like to start this post by acknowledging that the idea for this entry was sparked by Claudia Brown (@cbrown_t on Twitter). With her permission, I am exploring the ways that we can take advantage of what might sometimes be seen as “wasted time”.

 

Claudia has shared two ideas which inspired me! First was what she did when her students had to miss health class because of height and weight data collection. Sadly, it often happens that when things come up in schools, it is health class that students get pulled from or that gets cancelled. However, instead of letting this stop her students from practicing skills, Claudia saw this as an opportunity to practice interpersonal communication. She encouraged students to practice the skills they had learned about effective communication to greet the nurse, and if desired, ask about their height and weight. She further connected this experience to their lives outside of school by discussing the fact that interacting with a medical provider can be intimidating but that it is important to ADVOCATE for yourself and to COMMUNICATE with the provider so that you can have an active role in your healthcare.

 

Lightbulb! Don’t miss the chance to connect to real world practice opportunities. There are probably so many times in school that can we have students practice skills. Not only that, but then think of all the opportunities we could find for students outside of school. You could talk to local store owners and get feedback on how students act in their stores. Visit a local restaurant and talk to wait staff, cashiers, even bus drivers …. so many people who could all be a chance for students to practice and apply effective communication!

 

Then Claudia went on to share another example of yet another day that students were going to miss out on health class. But did that stop her? Nope!

 

On this day, she had students practicing refusal skills out in the hallway as they were waiting their turn. Another lightbulb! There is no such thing as “no health class” because the skills we are helping them develop extend far beyond the health classroom. We can take these unexpected, and often unwanted, moments as opportunities …. opportunities to extend learning beyond the walls of the classroom. Whether it is to practice or apply, we can work on these skills wherever and whenever!

 

The important thing to keep in mind is that, for me, this isn’t exciting because it means we don’t have as much wasted time. It is exciting because it opens up a world of possibilities and has me explore a new perspective about how we can think about the skills we are teaching and to see interruptions and unexpected events as opportunities.

 

Do you already do this? Take advantage of the unexpected to provide practice or application of skills? If so, we would love to hear your stories! Even if you don’t, can you think of other ways to extend learning beyond the classroom? Please share ideas in the comments.

 

Have a happy, healthy week!

 

Sarah