Phase 7

Years 11 - 12

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7.3 Flow Hacks

Domain: Positive Engagement

Module: Flow

BOOST IT!

Use the ideas from Activity 3 to create a written study plan designed to increase flow.

DEVELOPMENTAL OUTCOME

Uses the concept of flow to increase engagement and reduce real-life stressors

LEARNING INTENTION

Use strategies to unlock flow

ASSESSMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Contributions to class discussions and activities

‘So What? Now What?’ reflections

RESOURCES

Audiovisual equipment

Ping-Pong balls and cups

Pens and paper

Whiteboard and markers

MINDFUL MOMENT

BRAIN BREAK

REMOTE OPPORTUNITIES

If you would like to teach these activities remotely, please find below the links to this content on SeeSaw. See their Getting Started Guide for further information about this free online platform.

STRATEGIES AND QUESTIONS

Optional: Play ‘Someday’ by The Strokes as students enter the room, or use it as a lesson transition.


INTRODUCTION – WHERE THE LESSON IS GOING AND WHAT IS EXPECTED

Big questions: What are we learning about? Why?

Introduce the learning intention and contextualise the lesson for your class.

Show ‘Parkour and Freerunning 2017 – Jump the World’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOxlBLefU6Q (3:11).


ACTIVITY 1 – UNLOCKING YOUR FLOW STATE

Explain that doing a Sudoku or playing Candy Crush are good examples of how we can experience flow – in many ways, they are a meaningless waste of time, yet we are engaged. Steven Kotler has identified four essential brain hacks to help you unlock your flow state: focus, challenge, clear goals and immediate feedback.

TIP: Students could complete the following activities in small groups or you could select a student volunteers.

  1. Focus: Ask students to write a sentence with their non-preferred hand. Although this does not increase their flow, it shows that you can change an everyday activity that you do not usually need to think about to increase the challenge and focus.
  2. Challenge: In groups of three, students need to move from Point A to Point B in the classroom with only three points of contact on the ground. Give students a time limit to increase the level of challenge.
  3. Clear goals: Bounce a Ping-Pong ball into a cup. The goal in this activity is very clear – the student either achieves the goal or they do not.
  4. Immediate feedback: Play ‘Code Breaker’. Think of an undisclosed 4-digit ‘code’ and write it down. A student tries to guess the number (this is best done by writing it on a whiteboard for everyone to see) and the teacher provides them with immediate feedback in the following way:
    → For a correct number in the correct position, give a tick
    → For a correct number in the wrong position, give a circle
    → For a number that does not appear in the teacher’s code, give a cross (e.g. Teacher’s number: 3057, Student’s guess: 3178, Teacher’s response: tick, cross, circle, ). Continue this process until the correct code is guessed.

Success criteria: Participation in demonstrations, offer thoughtful contributions


ACTIVITY 2 – BRAINSTORM

Explain to students that another way you can experience flow is to push yourself out of your comfort zone. In small groups, students choose one topic per group to ‘brainstorm’ ways they can challenge themselves in the following areas and increase: social risks, novelty and complexity, and use of all of their senses.

After a period of brainstorming, students could then share their ideas with the class.

Success criteria: Work in a small group, communicate ideas to the class


ACTIVITY 3 – FIND YOUR FLOW

‘Think, Pair, Share’: Explain to students that they can improve their school results by working towards a flow state. Ask them to individually reflect on principles of flow they can apply to their study habits to increase their personal performance. Students should then exchange and discuss their ideas with the person next to them. Finally, choose some volunteers to share with the class.

Success criteria: Take turns, listen carefully


REFLECTION – RETHINKING AND REVISING

Big Ideas: What have I learnt about flow?

Students complete a ‘So What? Now What?’ reflection.

Success criteria: Reflect on your learning, create an action for the future