G is a good reader. However, because her progress at school from one level of books to another is determined by her performance in this online multiple choice test, she is on a low level of books given her reading competence. Importantly to her, all her friends are on a higher level and this is affecting her confidence.
Plan of action
Goal setting
Use Meta Model to uncover problem
Use submodalities to change the picture
Anchor this picture with breathing
Action
1. Goal setting
At the first session we determined that her goals were to get all the questions right and move up to a higher level of reading book.
2. meta model questions to uncover the problem
I had a list of Meta Model questions as a prompt so that I could slot them in as needed, eg., ‘how do you know?’ ‘who says?’ G explained to me that after she had read her graded school reading book the test asked her a number of specific questions about what she had read. I had also spoken to her mum and done some of my own research into the Accelerated Reading Programme (the basis of the test) before the session. G said that she needed to get 100% to move up a level, although other sources told me this was 80%. G was only getting 40% - 60% so she not moving up a level. In the last year she had made very little progress up the levels.
practical activities to assess her reading competence and comprehension
We spent about 15 minutes reading a range of texts that she had brought with her and it was obvious to both of us that she read well. We also spent some time doing a comprehension exercise where she had to read a page and then answer questions. She had a good understanding of the text.
further meta model questions
Firstly - having asked her questions about the mechanics of the test and established that she thought of them as important, something she wasn’t good at and scary - I did a lot of questioning around how she perceived the tests and also got her laughing at them. Then we began to address her feelings when she sat down to do a test. She described it as a ‘funny feeling’ in her stomach. We explored this ‘funny feeling’ and she decided it was like ‘fluttering butterflies’.
3. using submodalities to change the picture
She described the colour of her butterflies and what they were doing. We discussed why we get butterflies (good stress) and how sometimes when we are very bothered by something the butterflies are too lively (bad stress).
4. anchor this picture with the breath
We then practised calming the butterflies down with a deep-breathing technique. We did all the above in one session and 3 weeks later G returned. In her mind she was coming to concentrate on some traditional comprehension exercises to help with her homework. In my mind, we were going to see how she had got on with her AR Test.
Impact
Mum reported that G had gone up “a couple of stages” in her reading books. She was no longer worried about the AR Test and had been getting 90% - 100%. I could see how much more confident G looked and how when she talked about the tests now she was looking forward to doing more so that she could go up yet another level. G reported that she had ‘done pretty well’ and that she ‘felt amazing’ . When I asked her casually ‘and how were the butterflies?’ She said that she had felt them starting to “flutter” as she sat down to do her test and then ‘as soon as I did what you said’ (breathe slowly and deeply) ‘they settled down’ . The Meta Model allowed me to uncover the problem and the associated pictures quite quickly. The use of submodalities meant we could change that picture. We were then able to anchor this new picture with the breathing and G could get it back quickly whenever she wanted.
plan for future action
I shall now use Meta Model more with intent to uncover the problem and use the ideas of submodalities. I had been told that children love submodalities and this experience has proved that to me. The breathing technique is a good anchor and I now feel more confident to explore other anchors.
simple language changes for big impact:
Yes, Yes, Yes!
Emma demonstrates that just one simple language change can make a big impact.
Emma Loader teaches at Corbridge First School, Northumberland
Research plan
My focus is both leadership development and enhancement of my teaching by using NLP techniques within the classroom. In particular I was interested in the use of different language patterns to enhance pupils’ behaviour, motivation, attitude and results.
After learning about the concept of using certain language patterns to influence pupil attitude and learning within the classroom, I decided to try to adopt one particular language pattern, the ‘yes’ set, within my everyday teaching, to see if it had any effect. I began by focusing on a particular child (A), who had problems concentrating on a task for very long without adult help and would get emotional and grumpy if she found the task hard.
Action
For one week I used my usual teaching methods so that I had a ‘control’. A’s concentration varied from day to day – sometimes only on task for 5 minutes at a time, but on two days managed to complete the task and stay focused for 15 minutes without adult intervention. On 3 out of the 5 days, A cried during the task, saying that she couldn’t do it even though, when I checked her understanding, she did have a clear idea of what was expected.
During the second week, I implemented the new language pattern and gave A three facts (for example: ‘you have a pen, you have your book, you have space to work’ ) and then I would utter a final command such as ‘and now you are going to get on without my help until you have finished the work’ .
Impact
I noticed that although the time that A sat and concentrated did not really improve, the standard of her work did. A had had problems with handwriting prior to me using the language pattern, but afterwards it was much neater. Also, the quantity of work that she produced was greater than under my existing teaching methods.
I decided to try this influential language with the whole class. Therefore, before I sent the children off to do their work, I would use a ‘yes set’ first. I noticed that the children were far more focused, the volume in the class was quieter and the work they produced of a better quality. The class also seemed calmer and more certain of what was expected of them. As a result, I have started using this language pattern in my everyday teaching and am still reaping the benefits today.
I wonder…
Stephanie demonstrates how another language pattern can impact on a child in this extract of her project.
Stephanie Kidd teaches at Coulson Park First School, Ashington, Northumberland
Research plan
There is one boy in my class who has a high ability across all fields however, despite his intelligence, he responds badly and becomes very upset when he gets a question wrong or finds something difficult.
Action
Usually I encourage him to have another try, but it can take a substantial amount of time until he is willing to do so. The child recently volunteered an answer that was incorrect and he quickly became upset. Instead of asking him to try again I rephrased my speech and engaged his curiosity by saying ‘I wonder what would happen if you just read that question again’ . The child’s head came up; he read the question again and volunteered another answer, still incorrect. I used a similar phrase, ‘I wonder if you would get a different answer if you read it just one more time’ . He read it again, volunteered a different answer and got it right. The whole process took a matter of minutes and the child’s self-esteem was left intact. I also began to make use of presuppositions that imply the children would achieve and that seemed to instill a greater level of confidence in a number of the children.
Impact
Although there have been no major differences to the way my classroom runs there have been small yet significant changes. Children seem to be more willing to try as I invoke their curiosity and embed in them the belief tha
t they can and already have achieved. As I continue on the learning curve that is NLP and as implementation becomes more natural, I feel there will be more of these changes.
Spatial and classroom anchors for quiet attention
Nicola Hurst teaches at Northburn Primary School, Cramlington Northumberland
Research plan
I decided to put the space available in my classroom to better use. My school has a signal that when an adult raises their arm above their head they want all pupils to follow suit and stop talking. I have used this throughout my time at the school with varying degrees of success. Some pupils follow it to the letter, whereas some raise their arm and continue chatting to their friends. My new anchor was to be that when I stood in a particular spot in my classroom it meant that I wanted everyone to stop what they were doing and focus on me. I began to do this without explaining to the class what I was doing.
Action
The spot I chose was near the classroom door and at the opposite end of the room to where the whiteboard is, so that the pupils were not used to me standing there at all. The first time was rather successful! I stood in the spot and didn’t say anything as I observed the class. Some pupils sitting close to me realised I was nearby and, slowly but surely, they began to stop what they were doing and waited for me to speak. The rest of the class picked up on the atmosphere and halted their activities. Once every single child was paying full attention to me I gave further instructions but did not explain why I had moved to elsewhere in the classroom. Once the class began work again there was a very calm atmosphere. I had succeeded in getting their attention without having to say a word and this undoubtedly had a positive impact on the response I received from the class. I was also in a positive state, as I had not been met with resistance about the arm signal and neither had I had to raise my voice.
I continued to use this anchor and after a few more times I overheard a pupil whisper ‘shhhh, Miss Hurst is standing in the corner’ . The pupils had successfully linked my action to what I wanted from them. As time progressed, we got to the stage where I wouldn’t even have to reach my spot on the opposite side of the classroom for everyone to put their full attention on me. The atmosphere was altogether calmer and made for a much more positive learning environment.
A few pupils in my class swing on their chairs and I would normally say ‘stop swinging on your chair’ or ‘don’t swing on your chair’ . I adapted how I asked pupils to sit appropriately on their chairs into commands such as, ‘please place all four chair legs on the floor’ , without addressing a particular child or halting my teaching flow. As time progressed, I changed the spoken command into a signal where I raised four fingers on the same hand to my shoulder height. The few pupils who habitually swung on their chairs then checked that they were sitting appropriately and, if not, adjusted their seating accordingly. This then meant the teaching and learning within the lesson could continue without undue interruptions.
Impact
The spatial anchoring has exceeded my expectations. My classroom is calmer and more settled, without the need to raise my voice to get pupils’ attention. I no longer get a half-hearted response when I want them to halt their activities.
The impact of the spatial anchoring on myself was that I found my classroom management was smoother and I was in a more positive state when communicating with pupils. The classroom was more productive because over time there was less time spent waiting to get all pupils’ attention. Pupils’ behaviour and motivation appeared to have greatly improved over the length of the project.
Ready to Learn
Metaphors and anchoring create a classroom of engaged learners ready for story time.
Julie Newton teaches at Corbridge First School, Northumberland
Research plan
To be successful learners, children need to be in an appropriate emotional state to access the learning opportunities provided. After the first part of my NLP training I focused on my pupils’ readiness for learning, particularly at the beginning of whole class teaching sessions. I felt that as the year had progressed the children seemed to take longer to settle when coming to the carpet so, as a starting point for my research project, I decided to collect observational evidence to confirm my initial thoughts.
Action
I asked my teaching assistant to help me do this over one week and then together we evaluated what we had seen. Before beginning the research, I had expected that any planned interventions would probably be focused upon 2 or 3 children. However, in reality our observations showed that the unsettled state of the class could not always be put down to these pupils. Children illustrated their un-readiness for learning in several ways, for example, by distracting others by inappropriate behaviour, being distracted by others, talking, and fidgeting. It was also interesting to analyse my reactions to specific incidents and consider the type of impact (i.e. positive or negative) this may have on a child’s emotional state.
After considering different anchoring techniques that we had discussed during our training, I decided to use ‘carpet places’ but with an additional feature - ‘magic’! I told the children a story about a class, just like themselves, which became the most fantastic class ever, embellishing the story with lots of colourful details and helping the children to visualise what it would be like to be in that class. Part of the story explained that the reason this class was so amazing was that their teacher had been given some magic powder that, once sprinkled on the carpet, helped the children sit smartly, gave them extra thinking power and helped them to listen and learn. However, the powder only worked if each child sat on his or her special ‘magic spot’. The children were enthralled by the story and when I asked them if they would like to pretend that they were the class from the story the reply was resoundingly positive! The next day I brought in some ‘magic powder’ and the children were mesmerised as I sprinkled it onto the carpet and then gave them each a ‘magic spot’ to sit on. Once on their spots I praised the children and told them how smartly they were sitting, how much extra thinking power they had and how ready they were to listen and learn.
Impact
The ‘magic spots’ have been a great aid to teaching and learning within the classroom. Children are much calmer, focused and receptive to learning at the start of whole class sessions and a quick wave of the magic wand is a great visual aid to remind the children of what is expected of them. Also, if a child has had an incident at playtime that has been upsetting, going to sit on his/her magic spot seems to have a comforting effect. The system of seating is easily adapted - if children need moving around this can easily be done by just getting hold of a bit more of that magic powder and giving the carpet a quick sprinkle!
This eBook is licensed to Dominic Luzi, [email protected] on 10/18/2018
chapter 21
Secondary and High School
11-to-15 year olds
Secondary and High School teaching is the area that can most benefit from NLP in the classroom. The good practice in learning approaches of the Primary sector is sadly not always transferred to the next stage of a child’s learning journey and we hope that the good practice we share here is implemented by many teachers in the secondary sector.
Creating enthusiasm for French grammar
Emma Volpe was an MFL teacher at the former Allendale Middle School, Northumberland
Research plan
After discussion with colleagues and the course leader I decided to focus my project on using positive language and reframing with my Year 8 (ages 12-13) French class. This is a mixed ability class with students ranging from Level 2 to Level 5. There are 13 girls and 15 boys, including two pupils with an Autistic Spectrum Disorder diagnosis. There is a good relationship among the students. I chose this class because I was about to teach a difficult topic (le passé compose) including complex grammar, which can de-motivate the less able.
I wanted to see if, by using NLP techniques, I might be able to create a more positive learning
environment which would help students approach challenges with vigour and result in a higher level of achievement and increased motivation. I decided that my focus was going to be using the Milton Model language patterns. I wanted to see if by changing my language I was able to create a more dynamic and positive learning environment.
Action
Being aware that the starter activity of a lesson is a key area to the success of the lesson as a whole, I focused on using language to frame the lesson positively. For example:
‘I know that you have been eager to talk about things that have happened in the past…’
‘You may already have noticed…’
‘I know that you are curious about/ have been wanting to use...’
This particular topic is all about recognising patterns, making links, etc. and this depends very much on helping the students “notice what they notice”.
‘What would it be like if…’/ ‘You know it’s like…’
Although I had initially thought that I would concentrate on one particular class, once I began to question my own language techniques it was almost impossible not to employ the patterns with other classes. I also focused on a particular boy who had begun to lose confidence in the subject. I spent some time with him setting short-term goals employing NLP language patterns. I kept a track of this particular student’s positive state and participation over three weeks by using a scale of 1-4, with 1 as positive and 4 as negative.
Impact
There is no doubt that over the course of a few weeks a more positive learning environment was created as a result of the project. The class was less fragmented in its focus and responded well to the language patterns I used. The students responded to the challenges with enthusiasm and I received positive verbal feedback from them. They were proud of their achievements and more engaged with the subject. It was particularly pleasing to hear this from male pupils, as raising standards and improving motivation amongst boys was one of the key areas of focus for French within the school.
Teaching Excellence Page 30