Teachable moments are times when a person is most receptive to learning about something and can be found in everyday situations. They can be used to teach traditional subjects or values, and can arise from the child or adult’s interest. Recognizing and taking advantage of these moments can enhance understanding and resonate with children.
Parents and teachers are told to be on the lookout for teachable moments, a pretty difficult task if you don’t know what to look for. The term teachable moment, used more often in education and parenting, refers to a time when a child (or adult) seems most receptive to learning about something. It also includes the idea that the thing learned at that moment, when a person is available to take advantage of a child’s receptivity or interest, is likely to be deeply imprinted on the child. It’s not always possible to create teachable moments; they can arise in very mundane situations or in unusual and unlikely circumstances to be repeated.
What a child will learn in a teachable moment often depends on the child’s interest. For example, a child might be having trouble learning fractions in school and you decide to enlist the child to help you bake a double or triple batch of cookies. Suddenly, the child’s interest is engaged in the process of helping you figure out how to increase your recipe and get accurate measurements.
You can’t force these “moments” by expecting a child to be interested when he’s not. However, when your child is naturally interested, you have the opportunity to teach fractions in a completely different environment than what is offered at school, because the way you teach is very interesting (and delightful). By letting your child help you understand measurements and learning things about how fractions are doubled and tripled, and by tapping into their keen interest in the subject, you’ve taken advantage of a teachable moment.
These moments are not always about teaching traditional subjects offered in a school setting. These can often be occasions to emphasize values that you would like the children to learn. While you can tell your children what your values are, they may be more receptive and impressed when they see you living those values through your example. Taking children to a homeless shelter where you volunteer or help a neighbor can have a much greater impact on a child than being told you should help neighbors or be nice to others.
At other times the teaching moment may arise at the instigation of the child. Your child may come to you with a burning question that he needs your answer or have questions about how people think, feel, or work that can open conversations that are philosophical, moral, or religious in nature. These are perhaps the most recognizable teachable moments, as the child is signaling a desire to learn something and is already receptive to being taught.
Some educators feel that the term ‘teachable moment’ is being overused because they view children as capable of learning all the time and believe that formal education should not be broken up into ‘moments’. While it may be true that children have an amazing ability to learn, there may be times when they are more likely to be open to or involved in this process. Recognizing the teachable moment as it occurs and capitalizing on it can help bring home some facts or values that will resonate with children and can enhance understanding of the world, school, values, academic material, or more.
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