Knowing what to do in the classroom is a matter of experience and design thinking. Lesson plans usually say very little about what a teacher might do in the classroom to motivate and focus the efforts of their students. The I DeSiGN model can help to key teaching to recognizable behaviors that are desired or that occur and need to be addressed. For example, if a student shows a lack of motivation then some coaching in intentional thinking may be appropriate. The following tactics are useful in the classroom when teaching each mode of thinking: Intending/Intentional Thinking When a student lacks motivation try to understand what is of interest to them and use their personal interests to engage them in the subject you are teaching as you foster initiative and optimism. - Ask the student how they personally feel about the subject being addressed. - Encourage them to itemize and describe things that interest them. - Ask them to find things about the subject that are related to their interests and to develop ideas based on their interests. - Encourage them to consider the subject in a context or situation that interests them. - Get them to express or act out what they would like to do or have happen under the circumstances that interet them. - Encourage them to say what outcome they expect or want to see. - Explain how similar things were achieved in other contexts familiar to them. In other words, reframe the problem from the students viewpoint to get them interested and commited to the goals you are promoting for them. Defining/Referential Thinking When students have difficulty understanding what is involved in a subject, situation, task or project encourage them to describe whatever they see there. - Ask each student to describe what might be interesting about the subject. - Encourage them to identify and list the elements and issues involved. - Help them to see other relationships in which the elements or issues occur. - Encourage them to describe their own experiences with the subject or situation. - Ask them to generate their own names and descriptions and actions for things. - Ask them to verify the meaning of words they use incorrectly. - Encourage them to categorize and organize information as it arises. If you run into problems, brainstorm: have the student or class list everything that springs to mind about a subject or situation without censoring them, then sort them by kind. Exploring/Relational Thinking When students lack ideas or seem to lack alternatives they should be encouraged to relate and compare things in creative, and imaginative ways. - Encourage them to imagine the possible future of the situation. - Show them how to find associations and relationships between things. - Get them to make analogies to compare things and metaphors to explore possibilities. - Encourage them to determine what is relevant to the situation being considered. - Get them to chart the flow of influence, function or affect between things. - Help them to determine causes for each result or vice versa. - Encourage them to compare their experience with that of others. If there are problems, encourage them to look for relationships between things they think are important. Suggesting/Formative Thinking Students often have difficulty dealing purposefully with the circumstances they confront and presenting their thoughts in ways that are understandable to others. - Explain how different people might approach or explain the situation of concern. - Encourage students to recognize what stands out or is important in the situation. - Be sure students can use comparative relationships to organize and analyse their ideas. - Ask students to explain their ideas to someone else. - Encourage them to practice making their presentations or do what they propose. - Encourage them to consider or discuss the consequences of what they propose. - Involve them in reflecting on the future of what they propose. If you run into problems change the circumstances or the medium being used. Innovating/Procedural Thinking Students are often hesitant or confused about what they should do. - Make doing something on purpose seem as exciting as you can. - Be sure that the student has access to the appropriate resources. - Ask students to create a time line describing what they will do and when. - Provide instruction in the processes, tools and media that will be used. - Encourage them to follow their plan of action with skill and determination. - Talk about what constitutes a good result and how to determine when it is good. - Ask them to record and compare the process of what they have done. If you run into problems ask or show how something similar was done. Goalgetting/Evaluative Thinking Students can have difficulty being objective and accurate when evaluating what was done. - Encourage students to express how they feel about what was done. - Ask students to itemize what they are pleased with and why. - Encourage them to consider how the circumstances helped to determine the outcome. - Get them to write instructions to tell someone else how to do something that is needed. - Get students to follow a set of instructions and discuss the process. - Ask students what they would do to improve a process and its results. - Encourage students to compare what they did to come up with a consensus about what to do next time. If you run into problems ask or show how something similar was done. KNowing/Reflective Thinking Students often don't know how to deliberately develop their own knowledge. - Ask each student how they felt about the learning experience. - Ask what the student would like to have had or have known. - Ask what ideas were important and worth remembering. - Ask what proposals were the easiest to understand and act on in the situation. - Ask which steps in the process were the most difficult or effective. - Ask if the students were satisfied by their own efforts and what they accomplished. - Ask each student what they learned and will always remember. If you run into problems or confusion discuss the experience as though it happened in the past, the future, or in another context perhaps by telling a story or giving a history related to the experience.