Latest / Teacher Approved: Elementary Teacher Tips & Strategies / 286. 6 Simple Steps for Smoother Classroom Transitions
Transcript
- 0:00Heidi: This is episode 286 of Teacher Approved.
- 0:06You're listening to Teacher Approved, the podcast helping
- 0:09educators elevate what matters and simplify the rest. I'm
- 0:12Heidi.
- 0:13Emily: And I'm Emily. We're the creators behind Second Story
- 0:16Window, where we give research-based and
- 0:19teacher-approved strategies that make teaching less stressful and
- 0:22more effective. You can check out the show notes and resources
- 0:25from each episode at secondstorywindow.net.
- 0:28Heidi: We're so glad you're tuning in today. Let's get to
- 0:31the show.
- 0:36Emily: Hey there! Thanks for joining us today. In today's
- 0:39episode, we are helping you troubleshoot your transitions,
- 0:43and we have a teacher-approved tip for adding a little spark to
- 0:46your transition structure.
- 0:48Heidi: But first, let's start with a try-it tomorrow, where we
- 0:51share a quick win that you can try in your classroom right
- 0:53away. Emily, what's our suggestion for this week?
- 0:56Emily: Okay, this week have your students give you a ready signal
- 1:00once they've finished a transition step, as a way to
- 1:03signal that they're ready to go on. So this can be super simple,
- 1:06like a thumbs up, put a finger on the page, or hold a pencil in
- 1:10the air.
- 1:12Heidi: Yeah, pencil in the air was always my go-to because it
- 1:14was really easy to see, and then it kept their hand busy.
- 1:16Emily: Yes.
- 1:18Heidi: And that helps so you can just glance around the room, and
- 1:20right away you can tell who's all ready to go, and maybe who
- 1:24needs a little nudge to pick up the pace.
- 1:26Emily: Right. If you like this idea or anything else we share
- 1:30here on the podcast, we would appreciate it so much if you
- 1:33take a second and give us a five-star rating and review on
- 1:36your podcast player.
- 1:38Heidi: Okay, transitions. Yes, you know how it goes. You tell
- 1:44the class to get out their math books and turn to page 56, and
- 1:47then eight kids start moving before you even finish saying
- 1:50books.
- 1:51Emily: Oh, I hate it when they do that. And then you know the
- 1:55distraction of that movement makes about half the class miss
- 2:00the page number that you said, and now, you know, four of your
- 2:04students are ready to go. But everyone else is asking their
- 2:06neighbor what page? What page did she say?
- 2:09Heidi: Which means restating the direction you just gave. Page
- 2:1286. No, don't start yet. Clara, put the pencil down. Okay, next.
- 2:17Emily: And the transition itself was only two steps. Not hard at
- 2:20all, but it still took three times as long as it should have
- 2:24because the teacher had to give the directions the first time,
- 2:27stop students from moving early, repeat directions, answer
- 2:31questions, correct behavior, and regain attention before anyone
- 2:34could even get started on page 86.
- 2:37Heidi: Now, obviously, this kind of interruption won't derail
- 2:39your whole day, but the sneaky problem is that moments like
- 2:43this multiply. If taking out a pencil, moving to the carpet,
- 2:47getting into groups, and lining up for recess all take way
- 2:51longer than necessary, you're just churning through precious
- 2:55minutes all day long that should be going toward learning.
- 2:58Emily: And to solve that problem, you don't necessarily
- 3:01need kids to move quicker, although there are always a few
- 3:04who need a little more hustle in their bustle. Instead, what we
- 3:08need them to do is move efficiently.
- 3:12Heidi: So, to save all of that time that is being lost to
- 3:15inefficient transitions, you first need to understand what is
- 3:19going on here. That means understanding the difference
- 3:22between a routine transition and a prompted transition.
- 3:25Emily: And if this is your first time hearing that there are two
- 3:28different kinds of transitions, buckle up because this is a game
- 3:30changer. So a routine transition is anything that happens the
- 3:34same way every time. This is how kids come in and out for recess.
- 3:38Your morning routine, how papers are turned in, all of that
- 3:42stuff.
- 3:43Heidi: Because routine transitions unfold the same way
- 3:45each time, it means that they're actually procedures. So this
- 3:51like kind of blew my mind when I first thought of it that
- 3:53transitions are procedures, or procedures are transitions.
- 3:55However you want to think about that, but all procedures are
- 3:58helping students move from one activity to another, which makes
- 4:01them transitions. Boom, mic drop.
- 4:03Emily: I know, it's crazy. You can always count on us to not
- 4:07shy away from the hard hitting truths about classroom
- 4:09management. Because the steps of a routine procedure are
- 4:14standardized, teaching them to your students is pretty
- 4:16straightforward. You can tell, try, tally, talk those bad boys,
- 4:21and have everyone moving around the room like they know what
- 4:23they're doing because they do know what they're doing.
- 4:27Heidi: Now, the problem most of us have with wasted time comes
- 4:31from the other kind of transition. These are prompted
- 4:34transitions. This is where the students' actions are less
- 4:37scripted. So, before social studies, they may need to get a
- 4:41notebook one day, get into groups the next day, or pick up
- 4:44supplies from the back table another day.
- 4:46Emily: There may be some procedural parts to
- 4:50impossible to create a routine for every possible transition,
- 4:54which is where the time gets lost. Students can run on
- 4:57autopilot with a transition, like lining up, but there's no
- 5:00habit to lean on with an expectation that looks a little
- 5:03different each day.
- 5:12Heidi: sequence to help you out.
- 5:14Emily: Yay! A list.
- 5:17Heidi: So that's attention, action, cue, directions, check,
- 5:20go, and monitor.
- 5:22Emily: Now the steps don't change no matter what the
- 5:23transition looks like. Think of it like a pilot running a
- 5:26pre-flight checklist. The destination may change with
- 5:29every trip, but the checklist doesn't.
- 5:32Heidi: Now we've gone through these transition steps in detail
- 5:34in episodes 48, 49, and 50. And yes, we needed three episodes to
- 5:38cover all there is to say about transitions. So go check those
- 5:41out if you want a deeper dive.
- 5:43Emily: But apparently, that wasn't all we had to say about
- 5:45transitions, because here we are talking about them again, and we
- 5:48also talk about them in our brand new book, Structure and
- 5:50Spark. We discuss how to set up transitions in the back to
- 5:54school chapter, and then we talk about how to troubleshoot them
- 5:57in the mid year reset. So go grab that book if you haven't,
- 6:01and if you already bought a copy, thank you so much. We're
- 6:04so grateful for your support.
- 6:06Heidi: Yes, we really are so grateful. But let's take these
- 6:09steps one at a time. So step one is getting students' attention,
- 6:12and this is one that's really easy to skip over when you're
- 6:15busy. You give your quiet signal, and then you start
- 6:18talking without making sure that everyone is paying attention.
- 6:22Emily: Oh, guilty! It might feel like you're saving time, but
- 6:25you'll be repeating yourself in about 10 seconds anyway. So
- 6:29spend the time to wait for everyone's attention before you
- 6:32say a single word of direction.
- 6:35Heidi: Now, if you happen to be giving directions at a time when
- 6:37your students are already paying attention, like at the end of a
- 6:40lesson, you don't have to stop and give your signal again. You
- 6:44can just do a quick check to make sure everyone's with you
- 6:45before moving on to the next step.
- 6:48Emily: Step two is to give your action cue. An action cue is
- 6:52simply a word or a phrase that tells students you may move now.
- 6:57Heidi: Maybe that sounds almost too simple to matter, but think
- 7:00back to our math book example. So if I say, "Get out your math
- 7:05book and turn to page 86, some students start moving as soon as
- 7:09they think they understand what I'm asking.
- 7:12Emily: And from their perspective, they've heard
- 7:14enough information to get started, which is annoying. But
- 7:17you know, maybe it's sweet. They're not trying to ignore
- 7:21you. They ultimately want to do what you're asking, and since
- 7:24they think they already know what you're going to say, they
- 7:26just jump in to get started.
- 7:30Heidi: It is well intentioned, but completely inefficient.
- 7:33Bless their little hearts. And that's why an action cue
- 7:37matters. It curbs that impulse to move early and creates a
- 7:42really important separation. First we listen, then we move.
- 7:47Emily: So instead of saying "Get out your math book and turn to
- 7:49page 86," you might say, "When I say go, I want you to get your
- 7:53math book, turn to page 86, and circle problem nine."
- 7:58Heidi: Now we like using "go" as an action cue because it is
- 8:00simple and clear, but I have seen some conversation online
- 8:05that another word like move may be better because go could be
- 8:09interpreted as permission to run.
- 8:12Emily: I hear the sarcasm in your voice.
- 8:14Heidi: Yeah, you know maybe that's true for some kids, but
- 8:16honestly, in 25 years of education, I've never had kids
- 8:19use go as an excuse to stampede, no matter the setting that I
- 8:23have been using it in.
- 8:24Emily: No, I mean it's not like kids here go and they're like,
- 8:27"Oh, I must be in the middle of a marathon. I must take off from
- 8:30the starting line." But that does bring up the point that the
- 8:35word itself really doesn't matter. You could use go or
- 8:38move, or you can make it funny, something like shenanigan.
- 8:43Heidi: Shenanigan will never not be funny. I often had
- 8:47transitions that were basically a scavenger hunt because they
- 8:50were so complex. So it might be like, you and your partner need
- 8:54to clean up your game, bring the game boards and pieces to the
- 8:56table, put the dice back in the bin on the counter, pick up the
- 8:59paper from the front of the room, and then take it back to
- 9:01your desk and get started on your assignment.
- 9:03Emily: And without an action cue, the students would have
- 9:07started moving as soon as you said clean up, and then they
- 9:09would have missed 75% of your directions. So the action cue
- 9:13really does a lot of heavy lifting.
- 9:16Heidi: We recommend picking one reliable action cue to use most
- 9:20of the time, so that you are training students to respond
- 9:23consistently.
- 9:25Emily: But if you really want students' attention, either
- 9:27because they're extra squirrely or because you have a long list
- 9:30of steps for them to follow, go with something unexpected like
- 9:34flamingo or stinky socks.
- 9:37Heidi: To students, it feels like you are adding a bit of
- 9:40fun, but this is actually the novelty effect boosting
- 9:44structure. If students are used to the word "go" as an action
- 9:48cue, having a new word to listen for automatically gets them to
- 9:52pay closer attention to what you're saying.
- 9:55Emily: However, like most forms of novelty, the effect is
- 9:58short-lived. Using stinky socks three times a day stops feeling
- 10:03interesting real quick. So pick one word as your go-to 90% of
- 10:07the time, and then use a fun action cue when you really need
- 10:10kids to focus.
- 10:12Heidi: Yeah, but don't overthink this. Ultimately, whatever works
- 10:15for you in your class is the right call. What matters is that
- 10:18you establish a shared meaning, so that when students hear that
- 10:21word, they know the listening part is over, and now I act.
- 10:25Emily: But before we turn anyone loose, we have to actually give
- 10:28the directions. Say your action cue, and then tell students step
- 10:32by step what you want them to do.
- 10:34Heidi: When we are trying to keep the day moving, it's really
- 10:36tempting to make our directions as short as possible. But
- 10:40remember that in the long run, clear is better than fast.
- 10:44Emily: If students need three pieces of information to
- 10:46complete the transition successfully, give them the
- 10:49three pieces of information. Tell them what to do, how you
- 10:52want them to do it, and where things go.
- 10:55Heidi: So instead of something like "clean up and come to the
- 10:57carpet," you might say, "When I say go, quickly and quietly put
- 11:02your cards in the blue bin. Return your pencils to your
- 11:04table. Tuck in your chair and come to the carpet."
- 11:07Emily: Oh yeah, and using quickly and quietly is a go-to.
- 11:11But you could swap that for carefully when they're carrying
- 11:13something heavy, or calmly on a day when everyone's hyper.
- 11:18Heidi: Or you could even add a bit of spark here too. You can
- 11:21ask your students to move to the carpet robotically or put their
- 11:25books away boldly.
- 11:28Emily: Making sure your directions are clear might mean
- 11:38that you're giving longer directions, but it might
- 11:41actually give you a much faster transition because you've
- 11:44answered the questions before students start moving.
- 11:47Heidi: So if your directions are tipping to the lengthy side,
- 11:50like mine, or if students will need information like a page
- 11:54number, just do everyone a favor and write the list of steps
- 11:58somewhere, post them on the board or project them on a
- 12:01slide. Do what you can to make things easy for students to
- 12:04reference.
- 12:05Emily: And then make sure students actually check the
- 12:08list. If they're confused, they would much rather use your brain
- 12:11than their own. So, if a student comes to you for an explanation,
- 12:14point them to the board or wherever your instructions are.
- 12:17Heidi: Yeah, we don't want to be training anyone into
- 12:19helplessness. If your kids are capable figuring it out, expect
- 12:23them to do so.
- 12:25Emily: Okay, so far in our prompted transitions, we've got
- 12:27everyone's attention, we've used an action cue, and we've given
- 12:30our directions. Step four is checking for understanding.
- 12:34Heidi: Now, if your directions are only a couple of steps, a
- 12:36quick thumbs up if you know what to do, or raise your hand if you
- 12:40have any questions, can be enough to get everyone on the
- 12:42same page.
- 12:44Emily: But if you have multi-step directions, like
- 12:46Heidi's scavenger hunt example, you need to go deeper. It could
- 12:50be raise your hand if you can tell us the four things that
- 12:53you're going to do, or on the count of three, everyone tell me
- 12:56what you're going to do first. Now tell me what comes next.
- 13:00Heidi: It is much easier to clear up confusion before the
- 13:03movement instead of discovering confusion while 25 kids are
- 13:07wandering around the room like lost sheep.
- 13:09Emily: Now students know exactly what to do with the information
- 13:12that you've given them, and then you give them the cue: go.
- 13:16Heidi: And that's the whole of step five. You're just giving
- 13:19the action cue that you set up in step two.
- 13:21Emily: But unfortunately, your job is not done because step six
- 13:24is monitoring. That means keeping one eye on what's
- 13:27happening in the room, even when you're busy setting up
- 13:30whatever's next.
- 13:31Heidi: If you spot just a couple kids who aren't following
- 13:34directions, you can get them individually back on task. But
- 13:38if you notice widespread confusion or distraction, use
- 13:41your attention signal and pause everyone.
- 13:44Emily: Then walk the whole group through the sequence again,
- 13:47addressing whatever's going sideways. Once you've cleared up
- 13:50the issue, use your action cue and let students start on round
- 13:53two.
- 13:54Heidi: What's nice about this framework for prompted
- 13:57transitions is that it flexes for anything. Maybe I need
- 14:01students to do something simple, like move to the carpet. I give
- 14:04my attention signal and wait until I have their attention.
- 14:07Then I'd give my action cue and directions. When I say go, I
- 14:10want you to put your pencil on your desk, push in your chair,
- 14:12and come quietly to the carpet.
- 14:14Emily: And because it's a simple transition, the check for
- 14:16understanding doesn't have to be elaborate. You might just look
- 14:19around and make sure everyone knows what they're supposed to
- 14:21do, or or that you have everyone's attention.
- 14:23Heidi: And then I would just say go and check to make sure
- 14:25everyone is you know moving the right way.
- 14:28Emily: And then that's it. Even though we've spent 20 minutes
- 14:30dissecting it, these steps in practice take less than a
- 14:34minute. Attention, cue, directions, check, go, monitor.
- 14:40You can just follow the same pattern every time.
- 14:43Heidi: And that's the whole point we're trying to make
- 14:45today. The framework stays the same, but the amount of
- 14:49information you put into it can change depending on what you
- 14:52need your students to do.
- 14:54Emily: Now let's make the transition a little more
- 14:55complicated. Maybe students have just finished silent reading,
- 14:58and you need them to clean up, put materials away, grab
- 15:01something new, and come to the carpet.
- 15:03Heidi: So, if that were me, I might start with my attention
- 15:05signal and then wait, of course. And then I would say something
- 15:09like, "When I say guacamole, I want you to do four things:
- 15:12quickly and quietly put your books in your cubby, take out
- 15:15your red folder, tuck in your chair, and come sit on your
- 15:18assigned spot on the carpet. The list is on the board if you need
- 15:21a reminder."
- 15:22Emily: Because there are four steps, this is a good place for
- 15:24a more intentional check for understanding. Like, turn and
- 15:28whisper to your neighbor what you're going to do first.
- 15:30Heidi: Because this transition is asking more of students, we
- 15:35gave more detailed directions and spent a little more time
- 15:37checking for understanding, but the overall framework didn't
- 15:40change at all.
- 15:42Emily: You can't predict every transition the day might call
- 15:45for, but you can stop treating each one like a brand new
- 15:47problem. Remember that for each transition, you need to get
- 15:51students' attention, give your action cue, give clear
- 15:55directions, check for understanding, prompt students
- 15:58to move, and monitor how everything unfolds.
- 16:01Heidi: If this is a new system for you when it comes to
- 16:03transitions, just start by picking your action cue, and you
- 16:07can build from there. This will probably feel cumbersome at
- 16:11first, but once you have practiced the pattern enough, it
- 16:14really becomes second nature for you and the kids too.
- 16:18Emily: Oh, definitely. And don't forget, if you want some more
- 16:21support for transitions, go check out episodes 48, 49, and
- 16:2550. And now you can see why we needed three episodes to cover
- 16:28everything.
- 16:30Heidi: And of course, you can always learn more in our book,
- 16:32Structure and Spark, which is available now.
- 16:35Emily: Now for our teacher-approved tip of the
- 16:37week, where we share an actionable tip to help you
- 16:40elevate what matters and simplify the rest. This week's
- 16:43teacher-approved tip is make your action cue playful. So tell
- 16:47us more about this, Heidi.
- 16:49Heidi: Well, this is something that we have talked about
- 16:50before, but it fits so well with today's conversation that it's
- 16:54worth revisiting. Now we've already talked about how you can
- 16:57increase students' attention by changing your action cue
- 17:00occasionally to something silly, but there's another way to add a
- 17:04bit of spark here. So instead of changing your action cue, you're
- 17:08going to purposely say the wrong one.
- 17:10So since my action cue was go, I would give my students all my
- 17:14directions, and then I would say, "go...pher," and you know
- 17:19really drag out the o's. Then a chunk of the class would start
- 17:22moving, and you would hear the whisper start. She said gopher,
- 17:25she said gopher, and now everyone is hanging on every
- 17:28word I said. So you know, I could say go after that, but
- 17:32where's the fun in that? So I like to keep it going with ghost
- 17:36and gold and going. I thought of a whole routine of these g-o
- 17:41words until finally I would just whisper go.
- 17:46Emily: And this is a 20 second mood boost for the entire room,
- 17:48and the whole time they're locked into exactly what you
- 17:51need them to do.
- 17:53Heidi: And I also think like an action cue like Nacho could be
- 17:56fun here because you could really play this up. When I say
- 18:00nacho, I need everyone to grab a pencil. Ready? Not...gonna say
- 18:04it. Not...even close.
- 18:08Emily: And like you said earlier, you don't need this for
- 18:10every single transition. In fact, it would be a lot less fun
- 18:13if you use it a lot. So save it for when the room could use a
- 18:17little energy boost, or you really need everyone dialed in.
- 18:21Heidi: All right. To wrap up the show, we are sharing what we're
- 18:23giving extra credit to this week. Emily, what gets your
- 18:25extra credit?
- 18:26Emily: I've had to stop myself from telling you about this book
- 18:30for like weeks now because I've been so excited about it. But
- 18:33I'm like, I'm going to save it for the podcast. So I'm giving
- 18:37extra credit to the book Ungodly Rich. The author's Catherine
- 18:41McGee. She's the one that wrote American Royals.
- 18:44Heidi: Oh, oh, we love American Royals.
- 18:46Emily: Yes, exactly. Which I'm sad to say this is the beginning
- 18:49of a new series, and there's only one book out. But Ungodly
- 18:52Rich is a modern take on Greek mythology mixed with Crazy Rich
- 19:00Asians and Gossip Girl is how I saw it described, and that is
- 19:05the perfect description. Because it's the like insane wealth, and
- 19:09then all of the like drama in this family and the outsiders,
- 19:14and oh my gosh, I ate it up. It was so good.
- 19:19Heidi: I can't believe I haven't heard about this anywhere.
- 19:20Emily: I know, and I think it came out. I know it came out
- 19:24recently. Maybe it was only in July. Let me look. It was in
- 19:27July, so you know it's been like two months since it came out,
- 19:30but definitely worth a read. I loved it.
- 19:33Heidi: Okay, something to look forward to.
- 19:34Emily: What are you giving extra credit to?
- 19:36Heidi: Well, I'm giving extra credit to something that you
- 19:38recommended to me, Emily, but not on the podcast.
- 19:41Emily: I didn't save that one for the podcast.
- 19:42Heidi: No, we do have to talk sometimes, so I'm giving extra
- 19:45credit to The Dink on Apple TV. So this is a movie with Jake
- 19:51Johnson, who you might know as Nick, on New Girl. Couldn't
- 19:55remember his name for a second. So Jake's character was a tennis
- 19:59prodigy as a kid, he has an injury that derails all of his
- 20:03pro plans going forward. So now he is kind of wasting away his
- 20:07life teaching tennis at his dad's tennis club. And then
- 20:11enters the antagonist pickleball. It's this whole
- 20:17story about this tennis pickleball showdown. And what I
- 20:21loved is that this movie had so much heart, but it never took
- 20:25itself too seriously. Like it understood exactly what it was
- 20:29doing in a movie called The Dink. So it was really fun to
- 20:32watch. The side characters are hilarious. If you need a good
- 20:38pick me up, I watched it on a Sunday afternoon. I was like,
- 20:40well, that just made my whole day.
- 20:42Emily: Yes, and the other lead is Mary Steenburgen, who I just
- 20:45get such a kick out of.
- 20:46Heidi: Love her. She's always good.
- 20:48Emily: and we probably would enjoy it more if we played
- 20:51pickleball or knew anything about it, which we don't. We
- 20:55also don't know anything about tennis, to be clear, but it was
- 20:58still enjoyable. I still got a kick out of it.
- 21:01Heidi: I learned a lot about pickleball from watching it.
- 21:02Like, oh, I had no idea. I had no idea. I just, the whole time
- 21:06I've been like, how are they different? They look exactly the
- 21:08same, but the rackets are different. Apparently, they're
- 21:11really different. Nobody come for me.
- 21:17Okay, that is it for today's episode. Pick your go-to action
- 21:21cue, and remember to standardize your format for your prompted
- 21:24transitions.
- 21:27We hope you enjoyed this episode of Teacher Approved. I'm Heidi.
- 21:31Emily: And I'm Emily. Thank you for listening. Be sure to follow
- 21:34or subscribe in your podcast app so that you never miss an
- 21:37episode.
- 21:38Heidi: You can connect with us and other teachers in the
- 21:40Teacher Approved Facebook group. We'll see you here next week.
- 21:43Bye for now.
- 21:44Emily: Bye.