BOREDOM BUSTERS

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BOREDOM BUSTERS

• Breaking the Bonds
• of Boredom

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Everyone is boredSometimeBoredom is..boring
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Boredom is

• The place where we begin to hate the sameness of
  our lives.
• Everything becomes tasteless. Nothing
  satisfies.
• Avram Davis

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Boredom is.

• When we must do what we dont want to do
• OR
• dont want to do what we must.
• Linda Deal

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RESEARCH says.

• Some people are more prone
• to boredom
• than others
• (Farmer Sundberg, 1986, Eysenck Zuckerman,
  1978, Sundberg Bisno, 1983)
• Adolescents Males
• Seniors Extroverts

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TAKE THE BOREDOM PRONESS EVALUATION
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RESEARCH Says

• Boredom leads to other problems
• (The National Center on Addiction and Substance
  Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University)
• Drug Abuse School attendance
• School dropouts Overeating
• Underachievement Alcoholism

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RESEARCH SAYS

• Boredom occurs in and out of school (Larson
  Richards, 1991)
• Boredom can be situational or dispositional
  (Farmer Sundberg, 1986)

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Boredom and Gifted Research

• A student does not have to be gifted to be bored
  in school (Feldhusen Kroll, 1991 Gallagher,
  Harradine Coleman, 1997 Larson Richards,
  1991)
• A lack of challenge is the most commonly
  identified cause for classroom boredom. (Gentry,
  Gable Springer, 2000).
• Gifted children spend at least one-fourth to
  one-half of the regular classroom time waiting
  for others to catch up. Boredom is rampant
  because of the age tracking in our public
  schools. Webb, Meckstroth and Tolan, 1982
  Winner, 2000
• 871 gifted students cited lack of challenge with
  boredom when they stated their opinions of their
  schooling. (Gallagher, Harradine, and
  Coleman,1997)
• Boredom occurs when teachers expect too little"
• Csikszentmihalyi, Rathunde, and Whalen
  (1993)

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CAUSES

• Not enough physical activity
• Does not feel in control
• Basic needs are not fulfilled
• Does not have coping options

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Physical Activity

• Gifted children have psychomotor intensities.
• Talk fast and often
• Always fidgeting
• Nervous habits
• Compulsively doing something
• Marked enthusiasm

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Feelings of Control

• Gifted children have sensual/intellectual
  intensities
• Pressure for action
• Compulsive organizing
• Detailed planning
• Internal locus of control

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Basic Needs Fulfilled

• Gifted children have many needs
• Need for competition
• Need to be in the
• Need for positive feelings of self worth
• Need to have fears and anxieties
• Need for others to understand them in
  relationships
• Need for emotional ties and attachments
• Need to have feelings of inadequacy and
  inferiority allayed

limelight
calmed
strong
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Coping Options

• Because many gifted children
• are creative and intelligent,
• they may have a
• range of possible coping skills.

wider
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Ask your studentsAre you really bored?
OR
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Do you fully understand the assignment and
what is expected?
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Are you afraid you will not perform well?
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Are you simply disinterested in completing the
work?
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Do you know why it is important to complete
this work?
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Does this work remind you of something you had
to complete in the past that you did not like?
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Do you think if you wait long enough, you will
not have to complete the work?
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Do you believe you have any choices?
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Have you worked on this activity too long?
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HOW CAN YOU TELL THAT A STUDENT IS BORED?
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When we are bored we .
feel

• Tired, apathetic, listless
• Impatient, trapped
• Helpless, confused, conflicted

• Sad, displeased,
• Annoyed, angry, frustrated
• Dull, disinterested
• Repetitive

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Responses to Boredom

• Believes work is too easy, too difficult or just
  acts disinterested
• Procrastinates because
• it requires too much effort to begin

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Responses to Boredom

• Act inappropriately
• Talk back
• Challenges authority
• Disregard the rules
• Shows hostility
• Damages property
• Truancy

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TRACK IT! Boredom Log
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Track It!...The Boredom Log

• WHEN?
• Time of day?
• Check for physical reasons

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Track It!...The Boredom Log

• WHAT?
• Type of Activity?
• Plan ways to remain engaged to hold interest

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Track It!... The Boredom Log

• WHAT?
• Content Area?
• Keep a RELEVANCY LOG
• Content? teaching style?
• learning style?

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Track It!...The Boredom Log

• WHERE?
• Environmental
• (light, heat, noise, distractions)
• Address learning style

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Track It!...The Boredom Log

• WHY?
• FEELINGS
• Confusion, lack of direction

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Whats a Teacher to do?

• Take a break during class
• Change physical
• position in the room
• Stand up instead of raising hand
• Move desks mid class
• Do some quick easy movements

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Whats a teacher to do?

• Offer multiple-intelligence type
• choices for students
• Create tiered assignments
• Offer choice of products
• and assessment
• Brainstorm a class list of things to
  combat boredom

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Whats a teacher to do?

• Help students recognize their
• feelings of boredom so they
• know how to initiate coping
• strategies
• Give class directions in a way emphasizing
  fun/enjoyment to reduce stress

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Whats a teacher to do?

• Help students know the relevance of the
  studies.
• Pretest and skip
• Use a variety of presentations and
  activities to learn material

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Assess Your Class

• Ask your students
• What was boring and what was interesting
• Sound an alarm and have students write down what
  was on their mind at that minute. Keep track of
  the time and topic
• Give a rating scale of things covered in class

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Be Enthusiastic

• Even when giving directions
• Change the assignment to
• become more exciting

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Change the
Pace

• Use graphic organizers and
• PowerPoint's instead of wordy
• handouts

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your Lesson
Disorganize

• Talk less. Let students provide the
  information while you fill in the outline.
• Role play. Let students become
• the teacher, designing worksheets,
• activities, presentation

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your Lesson
Disorganize

• Fishbowl. Divide into groups and let each group
  present a different chapter or topic
• Use games. Let students
• create games, designing
• questions, rules etc.
• Use fat questions. Use Blooms higher
  level
• questioning.

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Develop Boredom Awareness

• Help students become self aware
  Brainstorm boredom
  behaviors
• Brainstorm a list of
• coping strategies

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Develop Boredom Awareness

• Help students have an
• internal file of alternatives.

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Tips for Battling Boredom

• Use different color notebook paper
• Use sticky notes to collect good ideas
• you have when youre supposed to be
• thinking of something else.
• Use another part of your brain.
• Turn the class into a movie set.
• Imagine how it would look from different
• camera angles. Imagine the scenery,
• costumes, maybe a different placethe moon?

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Tips for Battling Boredom

• Ask fun questions to yourself about the topic.
  
• How would a clown, a movie star, or how would
  I use this information in ten years?
• How would I explain it to my dog?

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Tips for Battling Boredom

• Make lists of everything.
• gifts to buy, ideas for projects,
• places you want to go,
• slogans for campaigns,
• favorite meals or songs.
• Sit in a different chair

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Tips for Battling Boredom

• Play games with opposites
• similar to, different from,
• its opposite. Comedy
• like/unlike drama. Girls like/unlike boys
• Think about how inanimate objects feel
  Would three rather be a five? How a noun
  feels about being a noun?

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Tips for Battling Boredom

• Remember
• Students need to keep their imagination
• going while staying connected to the
• material that is being taught!

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• So..
• What are you willing to do to become a

BOREDOM BUSTER?
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References

• Deal, Linda. (2003). THE BOREDOM SOLUTION
  Understanding and Dealing with Boredom.
  California Dandy Lion.
• Delisle, J Galbraith, J. 2002. WHEN GIFTED
  KIDS DONT HAVE ALL THE ANSWERS How to Meet
  Their Social and Emotional Needs. Minnesota
  Free Spirit Publishing.