Listening and Following Directions
Introduction
Watch this clip from Spiderman 3: www.goo.gl/u2gUJD Links to an external site. (YT 4:56). Peter Parker answers a phone call while doing other things. What information does Dr. Connors tell Peter about the specimen? Does Peter listen to what the professor is saying? Why (not)? No spoilers here, but even if you haven’t seen the movie, you can probably figure out that the information is important. Listening shapes how we act and what we do.
Listening is a crucial skill for school success. At school, we often need to listen to directions in order to know how to complete assignments. However, we face distractions — other people talking or just the fact that we want to get things done quickly — that can impede our listening. Sometimes we may think that all we need is the main idea to complete an assignment. So why bother taking the time to listen or follow directions? Are the details really important? As you can tell from Peter’s experience, effective listening has a dramatic impact on our experience and results.
Watch
- https://bit.ly/2YthgmZ Links to an external site. – Study.com “Listening and Understanding Instructions” (S 1:00)
- https://bit.ly/2YthkDf Links to an external site. – TeacherTube “Active Listening Student Production” (TT 4:37)
Visit
- https://bit.ly/2NoKAEs Links to an external site. – “Top Ten Listening Skills” PDF
Key Ideas
- Blocks include daydreaming, rehearsing, filtering, judging, and distractions.
- Key Strategies include maintaining eye-contact, listening with the whole body, paraphrasing, checking understanding, reflection, connection, & asking questions.
Apply
- In your notebook, write out the blocks and the tips for effective listening mentioned in the video. For each block reflect on a time this block has impeded your listening. For each tip, reflect on a time you used this tip or how you can use this tip in the future.
- Working with a classmate, take turns describing a scene or an item while the other draws it. Don’t show your partner your drawing until the end. Don’t worry about being artistic; the focus is on listening and understanding what the other person says. Check with your partner to see how you did. Did you follow directions? Then, switch roles. Did you use any of the techniques you learned in order to listen better?
- In your next class, try to practice at least one of these ways to improve your listening and follow directions better.