I am trying something new that I learned from the Happiness Lab and creating a mini-season based on what I know about learning, the brain and (meta)cognition. In this first episode, I define learning, using the book Distracted: Why Students Can't Focus and What You Can Do About It, by James Lang. The 3 steps of learning are 1) attention, 2) processing/encoding (starting with holding information in short-term memory) and 3) "learning," which is defined as either incorporating the information into our existing frameworks of knowledge or rewriting our existing frameworks to account for the new information. I give examples of each and help explain why I use mind maps, recall practice and minute papers (and games) in my classes so much. Action item: go back and listen to this episode a second time with a pen and piece of paper and see what you can learn about learning!
