Interacting With Students

I have been thinking about engagement a lot. I think that it is very important. I actually think it is one of the most important factors that aids in students learning. I have been shying away from engagement because I feel like this topic has been beaten to the ground. However, maybe this is such a common thread of interest because it is so important. In a lesson this week, I learned a lot about what I am interested in. I do think that hooks and relating the the students is very important. However, I used another form of engagement that I think was very effective. I taught my Word Analysis plan. In teaching the plan I really made sure to interact with my students. This made me wonder about the importance of interaction. Not only for engagement but for learning. One of the questions that was pointed out to me that I asked my student was, "Why do you think that?" I was teaching a lesson on the digraph "ck" and the short vowel sound in front of it. I taught a lesson on it and then we were practicing. I asked the students how to spell the word "back." One student answered, "I think it has "ck" at the end. This is when I asked, 'Why do you think that?" The student said, "Because usually when there is a /k/ sound at the end it is spelled "ck." I wrote the "ck."m I could have used this opportunity to elaborate more on the rule i.e. yes, and what is the sound that comes before it...what if I wrote rake? That has a /k/ sound at the end but it isn't "ck." I did not use that opportunity but I learned so much from just asking the question "Why do you think that?" I learned the students thinking process. I had the student engaged. The other students were learning from their peers in their own peers words and language. I now realize that I could have kept this going. Now, I will be looking to do that. But, in this, I wonder how much does student teacher interaction matter. WHat is the significance of understanding the students thinking as a teacher and for the other students as well. Even if the student is not correct you can use that as a teaching opportunity. For example, during this lesson, I had the students write the word "stick." I asked a student how to spell it. He said, "s-i-c-k." I wrote his spelling on the board even though it was incorrect. I asked, "What does this word say?" He thought about it and another student said, "It needs a t!" I had that student come up and point to where I needed the "t" written. I think that this interaction was also a learning moment. The student made a mistake and I let him. ANother student was able to give thier input. Instead of me correcting him, the other students were involved in thinking about how to spell the word correctly. My thought process has evolved to engagement through interaction. Asking about the students their thinking, interacting with them, letting them make mistakes and having the students correct the mistakes are things that I think really are a part of learning.