Today we’re going to talk about three great attention getters for teachers in elementary school.
It doesn’t matter what grade you teach or how experienced you are as a teacher, you’ll have children who struggle to focus, have a need to chat or talk about something completely off topic.
Can you relate to this?
Attention-getters are an easy and really quick way of getting your students back on track so that you can focus on your lesson.
The following are three types of strategies with examples for you to use whether you’re teaching online or in person.
Be mindful of the fact that we’re all different, so some of these may work for you, while others won’t. Find the strategy that you’re most comfortable with and practice them. You’ll need to pre-teach them to your students so they know how to respond to you. You’ll want to vary them up so that your students don’t get bored, which is why there’s four examples under each section.
Actionable Steps:
#1. Repetition
These are also known as call and response types of attention getters. They are catchy phrases that a teacher will say with witty responses from the students. The kids really get into it.
- Marco…Polo!
- Teacher says: Marco
- Students say: Polo
- Peanut Butter…Jelly time!
- Teacher says: Peanut Butter
- Students say: Jelly Time
- Ready to Rock?…Ready to Roll!
- Teacher says: Ready to Rock?
- Students say: Ready to Roll!
- Scooby Dooby Doo…Where are you?
- Teacher says: Scooby Dooby Doo
- Students say: Where are you?
#2. Movement
The following forms of attention getters will engage your students in whole-body learning and make for fun transitions. These can also be used as quick brain breaks for those who need to move.
- Clap– Teacher claps and students repeat. Vary the clapping beat to keep your students’ interest.
- Touch– Teacher touches the top of their head, the students repeat. Then touch a different body part and your students should repeat you. Some teachers will say the following before the do the action: “If you can hear me, touch your…”
- Dance– Do 2 wiggles and have your children repeat you. Then do another move and keep changing the moves until you have your kids’ attention
- Tap– Tap different objects that children who have on their desk and have them tap it too. Go faster and faster as it makes it more exciting and more of them will want to start participating.
#3. Props
Using props is an excellent way to save your voice and it prevents you from constantly “nagging.” I like switching things up because that way, when I need to use my voice, like when I’m teaching, my kids will actually pay attention.
When your students hear the following sounds, their job is to FREEZE! The following items are great to use in the classroom and fairly affordable.
- Musical Instruments – drums, maracas, tambourines
- Mindfulness Instruments– Wind chimes or a bell
- Squeaky toys– squish or move them and they make sounds
- Singing bowl– either gently hit the outside of the bowl or roll along the inside of it to hear the singing sound.
Recap:
Let’s recap really quickly. Today, we looked at the following:
- The importance of using different attention getters to transition your children from one topic or environment to another.
- Three ways to do it: Repetition, Movement, and Props.
Additional Thoughts:
I’d love to hear from you. In the comments below, answer the question in the following image and then take action right away.
If in the mean time, if you’re feeling stressed out, overwhelmed and burnout, then I encourage you to check out the following:
Next Steps:
If you’d like additional resources for your classroom here are the three ways you can access them: 1) Free Resource Library; 2) At my store; 3) The Colourful Teaching Club.
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I’ll see you next Friday at 5:30pm PST.
Until I see you next time, remember to create, experience & teach from the heart.
Take care,
Charlotte
