Calling All Teachers! a Guide to Engaging Learners

It wasn’t until nearly three decades after she taught me that I was mature enough to recognize the impact she had on my life, but when I did, I wrote her a letter.  I wanted her to know that she had made a difference.  When she died, my letter was read as the eulogy at her funeral.  Her husband said it was the best description of his wife he had ever read. I will never forget Mrs. McCormack.  But she is not alone!  There are countless teachers all over the world who make a difference in the lives of kids.  They are often the unsung heroes, but they have a unique power to shape the future of young people.  Flip Flippen understood this when he created the teaching seminar Capturing Kids’ Hearts.  He believes that “if you build meaningful relationships with your students, you not only create an effective classroom environment with few discipline problems, but you also get the amazing opportunity to prepare young people for a successful future.  With that goal in mind, Flippen teaches the EXCEL Teaching model, which outlines 5 basic steps to capturing kids’ hearts:·        Engage – Draw them into a relationship from the moment they enter class.·        X-plore – Identify students’ needs, because not all students learn the same.·        Communicate – A good communicator is both a facilitator and a resource, understanding that communication is a two-way process.·        Empower – Empowerment happens when students gain the ability to use and do the things they have been taught.·        Launch – How do you end the classroom experience each day?Flippen’s seminar has been helping to radically change individual teachers as well as entire educational communities.  He firmly believes that through this simple three-day seminar, teachers can develop the skills to truly capture kids’ hearts.  I believe that those teachers who are able to capture kids’ hearts can change the future!  Teachers are in a privileged position, and I commend them for striving to make a difference that will last a lifetime!