In my student teaching seminar, students arrive to the live session after a wicked week of teaching. They are mired in lesson plans, addressing student needs, attending meetings, not to mention, managing their daily lives, which is still happening all around them. On the night they meet with me, it can either be a welcome relief or an additional source of stress.
Before starting with the content, it’s essential to allow students to lay their thoughts on the ground. I started using the grounding strategy to enable students to share what’s top of mind briefly, and then end with the statement, “I’m in.” The key is to provide as little context as possible. While we would love to hear the entire story, the purpose here is to stabilize their thoughts and set their intention for the class.
So why do I ask them to verbally state, “I’m in!” The purpose is to provide an intention for the next few hours – that regardless of everything that is happening around them, they are committed to leaving it at the door to focus on this course and our conversations. Saying ‘I’m in’ also allows students a space to share. We are not strangers coming together to learn. We are a community of learners with real lives and issues.
If a grounding strategy interests you, here are the directions. Make this your first slide before getting started, and see what happens when students declare, “I’m in!
Grounding Strategy
In a couple of sentences, explain how you’re feeling right now. Try and give as little context as possible.
Don’t hesitate to mention frustrations as well as excitements.
At the end, close with, “I’m in!”
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