Damage Control

Happy, contented brains learn well. That sentence is double-edged. We teachers can extract maximum learning from happy students. Conversely, in a class of 25 learners, what are the odds that 100% of them are in that state of mind?

They might have begun the day happy, but many issues can upset even the best-planned sessions. Kids are kids; they like to niggle each other. Inherently, they seem to know which buttons will set off another.

Suddenly, your class of 25 is a mishmash of brewing emotions. Any one of them can affect learning.

Let’s take the most damaging first:

Anger

In its raw form, anger is destructive. I'm with you if you’ve been on the wrong side of road rage. The sharp end of a toddler tantrum? Yep, I got you there, too.

In the classroom, anger can tear apart the most engaging lesson. You’re just not going to reach a student whose amygdala has taken control.

Of course, if that student’s anger is directed at other students in your class, kiss that nicely-paced lesson goodbye. We have strategies to deal with it, right? You bet we do. How effective are they? If our goal is to maximise learning, they need to work. However, once the top has blown, any half-decent strategy is best described as damage control.

It's better to head off the blown top before it happens. But we can’t be with every student all day. Lunchtime, recess, and change of rooms are all potential places for blown tops.

The best thing to take the steam out of an over-heated amygdala is time. The brain chemicals have to do their work.

And everyone is different.