Children are like insects. They like to follow a set pattern and schedule. In absence of a routine it takes long time for them to get-out of what they are doing. Children of age 9-11 yrs aren't good time-managers. They can't stop on a dead-line and they can't effectively use free time either.
At the beginning of my teaching my classes used to end and begin in a chaos. I expected children would plan and switch tasks on their own. But we lost focus and time at each transition.It seems that the event-horizon for children at this age is as short as 15-minutes. They can't really estimate and plan their work beyond that. Unless they foresee what is coming in due course, they tend to continue what they are doing or get scattered.
They needed visibility into the their future every 15 minutes, so that they can anticipate and plan the work. It took me some time to realize this.
I do a very controlled transition between the tasks, now a days. I say that - at the count of five we will start taking notes. I say - now you put the pencil down and listen. I say that - next 10 minutes I will talk. I say - I will take only 5 questions now. This creates the visibility into future for them. They wait for their turn and do their job. Even play-breaks between two periods are tightly transitioned like this.
I have found that it is not only important to divide the class-work in small tasks, but its also important to tell students in advance. It is one of the tools to keep the class under control. Tight transitions save time, increase focus and children enjoy more.
At the beginning of my teaching my classes used to end and begin in a chaos. I expected children would plan and switch tasks on their own. But we lost focus and time at each transition.It seems that the event-horizon for children at this age is as short as 15-minutes. They can't really estimate and plan their work beyond that. Unless they foresee what is coming in due course, they tend to continue what they are doing or get scattered.
They needed visibility into the their future every 15 minutes, so that they can anticipate and plan the work. It took me some time to realize this.
I do a very controlled transition between the tasks, now a days. I say that - at the count of five we will start taking notes. I say - now you put the pencil down and listen. I say that - next 10 minutes I will talk. I say - I will take only 5 questions now. This creates the visibility into future for them. They wait for their turn and do their job. Even play-breaks between two periods are tightly transitioned like this.
I have found that it is not only important to divide the class-work in small tasks, but its also important to tell students in advance. It is one of the tools to keep the class under control. Tight transitions save time, increase focus and children enjoy more.
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