Teaching in the Margins!

Looking back into your junior high and high school class rooms, did you have any teachers that encouraged you to leave the “center” of learning or to think out side the “box” or to go to the “margins” of learning? Unfortunately for most students, this is hardly ever the case. But what are the margins of learning and how does learning take place in the margins?

Margins in the classroom:

• Teaching in the margins allows students to have better connection and understanding to the content.
• The margins encourage students to have a higher level of curiosity.
• The margins focus more on actually learning rather than just memorizing.
• Margins allow students to be more hands on and more experimental in the classroom.
• Teaching in the margins allows students to be as creative as they want to be.
• Allows students to focus on what they are interested in as well as still being focused on core content.
• The margins also gives students opportunity to ask questions.
• The margins allow for very diverse learning styles.
• Allows for teachers and students to take risk in the classroom.

Science experiments and exploration are great examples of teaching in the margins!

Fun pix from @LynnwoodLib Super Science series kicked off! Thanks to Grinnin Fish for a fun afternoon! Next up is Fantastic Physics on Oct. 11 at 4:30 p.m. Details: https://t.co/O2fWJFLab3 @LynnwoodToday @ParentMap @MK_NorthSound2 pic.twitter.com/7FRFh8MIE4

— Sno Isle Libraries (@snoislelibrary) September 18, 2018

Comparison of Teaching in the Margins Vs. Teachable Moments:

Teaching in the Margins

• Planned or spontaneous
• Able to be explored
• Content driven
• Based on questions or observations

Teachable Moments

• Spontaneous
• Doesn’t occur that often
• Based on students questions

Example video of teaching in the margins!

Ways to incorporate Margins in the classroom: 

• Observing a recent natural disaster
• Allowing students to create their own experiment
• Making or creating an animal and plant cell
• Make your own firework experiment
• Invention convention
• Any thing that allows a student to be creative and is content based. 

https://twitter.com/MissChasteen/status/1042404114913808384

The key to being a great teacher is knowing the balance of teaching in the margins and teaching in the center. This allows you to ensure that all of your students are learning in a way that benefits them. The center can be a good place for learning but you need to make sure you venture to the margins once in a while! This will allow you to be the best teacher you can be.