1. Pretend, pretend, pretend. In writing, any successful story about something related to sci-fi or fantasy, the writer must create a” suspension of disbelief.” Readers know it isn’t real, but if they can suspend their disbelief by engaging with, or relating to the characters, they will ebuy into it completely, no matter what the imaginary narrative is about. In a sense, you are the writer of your character. It is you who can and must create this suspension of disbelief. I always say to my students "Scruffy is as real as you want them him to be." Students know the mascot isn't real. They know it instantly. It’s up to us, the teacher to suspend their disbelief and show them how much fun it can be to play along. If you believe the mascot is real, so will the students. Tip: I use my ipad, phone and interactive whiteboard to take photos of Scruffy doing things in the room after school hours. Especially things he shouldn’t be doing. Students love it. 2. Your Mascot doesn’t need to “talk” This was a problem for me to begin with. I was like, “How can I make it seem real if the Scruffy can’t talk?” And even worse, “How will I be able to pretend to use a puppet voice in front of other teachers teachers aides? I am not even close to being a ventriloquist and it will be flat out embarrassing!” So don’t have your puppet talk. The way I overcame this was to have Scruffy be a shy character who “didn’t like talking out loud.” So, he whispered to me in my ear. I would always pretend to listen and then relay what Scruffy “said” to the children. I feel like this actually had more success than trying to invent a voice. By me listening, other students were drawn into listening too. They would sit in silence, eagerly awaiting what Scruffy was going to answer. 3. Set some behavioural Rules and stick to them. Once your class has bought in, their enthusiasm will explode! Sometimes, they’ll get so excited they’ll call out or try to grab him. Make sure you set some ground rules and stick to them. As soon as they're broken, put your mascot away. (But be careful not to do so because of an isolated incident that focuses on one student. This will have a negative effect on their willingness to play along.) Strict rules will quickly get students attuned to expected behaviours. One good way to stop calling out is to have the puppet whisper to you that someone is breaking a rule. That way it’s not you saying it, but the puppet making them aware to self regulate their behaviour. Sometimes, I’d also have Scruffy hide his eyes behind his hands and droop down low like he was anxious. That would also signal students to listen or stop talking. 4. Sending your puppet home . If you are going to send your puppet home you need to consider whether you can risk them being damaged. Some are super expensive. Set some rules. Send a note home to parents or communicate to them what the expectations are. They are essentially another "classmate" so ensure they are treated as such. Your parents might even become competitive and want to take your Mascot on the best adventure of all time. (Actually, you can almost guarantee this will happen!) 5. Be Prepared to feel foolish! The first time I used Scruffy in front of my ES staff was the most embarrassing thing I've ever done. I had planned it so they wouldn’t be there, only for them to come back unannounced. My face went bright red! Once they stopped laughing (maybe from shock), they were probably my greatest asset on suspending the disbelief. They added to the "magic" of the Mascot. I strongly suggest that you get out of your comfort zone. Don't be afraid to try some of this. As teachers we do silly and fun stuff every day to motivate our students and this is no different. It’s important we don’t take yourself seriously. We have the best job in the world. We might as well make it fun too.
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AboutThis blog has been created to share my thoughts on Teaching. It uses my experiences, thoughts and ideas about a whole range of things related to education. Archives
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