After participating in what was an insightful chat, I thought to myself that I would like to extend the conversation about quiet kids with a focus on the world language classroom. I reached out to Romano Arrabito to ask if she would be willing to be interviewed about her quiet kids research, and she so graciously accepted my offer. Read her bio below.
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Chrissy Romano Arrabito is a career teacher and proud of it! She is currently an elementary teacher at Nellie K. Parker Elementary School in Hackensack, New Jersey and has over 26 years of experience as an elementary and middle school teacher.
Chrissy is dedicated to teaching the whole child, stimulating and supporting innovation in classrooms, and strives to provide authentic learning experiences for her students. Her true passion lies in nurturing the quiet kids, those that tend to fall through the cracks, those that truly need a champion to support and advocate for them. Her new book, Quiet Kids Count: Unleashing the True Potential, presents stories and strategies to better meet the needs of the quiet kids in your classroom.
Connect with her online @TheConnectedEdu or follow the hashtag #QuietKidsCount.
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Interview:
1. How would you describe a quiet kid?
People think that introversion means shy, but it's not. It's how you manage your energy; how you recharge. Think of a quiet kid's energy level as a cell phone battery -- on lots of apps, and the battery drains quickly. Also, introverts like people. If comfortable, they like being around people.
2. What inspired you to take notice of the quiet kids and their classroom needs?
My son. He is a shy introvert who struggles in world language classes. He is taking Spanish class right now. I asked him why Spanish is your least favorite class. He explained that it's high energy with lots of speaking. The teacher is high energy, and it's draining to be around.
3. In the world language classroom, learners acquire language skills through interpretive, interpersonal, and presentational modes of communication. What would you recommend world language educators do to best meet the needs of the quiet kids who might not want to engage in conversation with their peers or present their work to the entire class?
The teacher could partner the kids up, followed by groups of around four, for interpersonal work.
Do choral/echo work (lots of repetition all together.)
Regarding presentations, give the quiet kids a choice: video or in front of the class. To be noted that videos will be shown to the class.
For partner work, keep the same partner for a length of time -- maybe a month for classes that meet every day or for the duration of a unit of study. (Side note: Romano Arrabito is not a fan of inside-outside circle tasks.)
My son's ninth grade Spanish teacher last year offered to administer the speaking exam at lunch or before or after school, and those times were open to all learners; otherwise, the exam would take place during class.
4. Participation is sometimes factored in as a grade in world language classrooms. If this was a mandated practice at your school, how would you accommodate the quiet kids?
We need to rethink the definition of participation. The old school way is to think that it means raising one's hand. There are ways to focus less on participation and more on engagement. Tools like Google Docs for conversations and Padlet can make it possible to accomplish this goal. Voice options like Voxer allow us to hear kids' voices, and exit tickets are a good way to see evidence of engagement, as well.
Ask yourself: What does participation look like in your classroom?
-Are students :
-active listeners in partner work?
-responding to prompts in a thoughtful way?
-looking at their partner when they are speaking?
-listening to their partner?
-doing discussion prompts?
-keeping the conversation going and growing?
5. Should we be concerned about student preparedness for the expectations of college professors or the demands of an employer after high school if the quiet kids are not required to step out of their comfort zone from time to time?
Quiet kids do function after high school, and are some of the most successful people in society. We must teach the introverted kids how to be successful with strategies that work. I have taken elementary school students aside who struggled with shyness, for example, and I equipped them with strategies to use to get to middle school. "Striking Early" is one such strategy: if I have something to share, and want to get my thoughts out there, I make sure I'm one one of the first to say what I need to. It alleviates anxiety. People are not shy when they are comfortable. (Romano Arrabito also shared that introverts spend 70% of their time listening; 20% of their time thinking; and the rest is spent speaking.)
Teach strategies that help quiet kids LOOK engaged in class:
-provide actual conversation starters, (Romano Arrabito shares some examples in her book.)
-provide tips on keeping conversations going,
-know 3 things about the topic to keep the conversation going,
-do homework literally: Do homework. Be prepared. Form study groups.
Keep in mind that exhaustion is a side effect of introversion. Where is the quiet time built in? Our school day does not include breaks and there is constant interaction, etc. I recommend that teachers do flexible seating. I taught middle school for 15 years, and did not do assigned seating. Build relationships and a sense of rapport. The quiet kids eventually open up more.
If nobody is teaching the quiet kids these strategies, it's our job as their teachers. I use strategies to help my own son succeed as an introvert. In 7th grade, I made him advocate for himself. We would craft an email together, and he's functioning really well now. He'll ask people if they've read his 504, and then he'll tell them that he makes As and Bs.
[To conclude,] remember that there is the "mask of an introvert" which means that quiet kids have to pretend to be something they're not to be successful. Strategies like the ones I just mentioned can enable them to accomplish that goal.
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If you'd like to learn more about Romano Arrabito's work regarding our quiet kids, you can purchase her book on Amazon at this link.
Additionally, click on this link to read the archived transcript of the November 9, 2019 #satchat on quiet kids.
What are your takeaways from this interview on quiet kids? What strategies do you already use to help your quiet kids find success? Feel free to leave a comment below.
Ask yourself: What does participation look like in your classroom?
-Are students :
-active listeners in partner work?
-responding to prompts in a thoughtful way?
-looking at their partner when they are speaking?
-listening to their partner?
-doing discussion prompts?
-keeping the conversation going and growing?
5. Should we be concerned about student preparedness for the expectations of college professors or the demands of an employer after high school if the quiet kids are not required to step out of their comfort zone from time to time?
Quiet kids do function after high school, and are some of the most successful people in society. We must teach the introverted kids how to be successful with strategies that work. I have taken elementary school students aside who struggled with shyness, for example, and I equipped them with strategies to use to get to middle school. "Striking Early" is one such strategy: if I have something to share, and want to get my thoughts out there, I make sure I'm one one of the first to say what I need to. It alleviates anxiety. People are not shy when they are comfortable. (Romano Arrabito also shared that introverts spend 70% of their time listening; 20% of their time thinking; and the rest is spent speaking.)
Teach strategies that help quiet kids LOOK engaged in class:
-provide actual conversation starters, (Romano Arrabito shares some examples in her book.)
-provide tips on keeping conversations going,
-know 3 things about the topic to keep the conversation going,
-do homework literally: Do homework. Be prepared. Form study groups.
Keep in mind that exhaustion is a side effect of introversion. Where is the quiet time built in? Our school day does not include breaks and there is constant interaction, etc. I recommend that teachers do flexible seating. I taught middle school for 15 years, and did not do assigned seating. Build relationships and a sense of rapport. The quiet kids eventually open up more.
If nobody is teaching the quiet kids these strategies, it's our job as their teachers. I use strategies to help my own son succeed as an introvert. In 7th grade, I made him advocate for himself. We would craft an email together, and he's functioning really well now. He'll ask people if they've read his 504, and then he'll tell them that he makes As and Bs.
[To conclude,] remember that there is the "mask of an introvert" which means that quiet kids have to pretend to be something they're not to be successful. Strategies like the ones I just mentioned can enable them to accomplish that goal.
-----------------------------
If you'd like to learn more about Romano Arrabito's work regarding our quiet kids, you can purchase her book on Amazon at this link.
Additionally, click on this link to read the archived transcript of the November 9, 2019 #satchat on quiet kids.
What are your takeaways from this interview on quiet kids? What strategies do you already use to help your quiet kids find success? Feel free to leave a comment below.
