Sharon

Student-centered learning means putting the student at the heart of the work you do. Some of that means figuring out what your kids are interested in and referencing that in the problems that you are using in class. Sometimes what I’ll do is ask my kids what they want to learn about. What do you see in the world every single day that makes you ask the question “Why?” Then we talk about it.

I had a student who had spontaneous combustion at their home because of some paint cans. He came into school the next day and said, “I know we’re not really learning about this, but could you explain it?” We took a little bit of time at the beginning of class to discuss it. The kids said, “Oh, I’ve heard of this. I just never knew what it was.” I try to find ways to get them invested in their own learning.