Today marks the 50th anniversary of the assassination
of President John F. Kennedy. I
obviously wasn’t around when this happened, but I distinctly remember one year
there was a huge special on one of the TV stations about the details of the
incident. They had uncovered a new piece
of film or something, so I have this childhood memory of watching like a 2 hour
special that gave way more details than I wanted at the time. I get this weird, surreal, sad feeling when I
remember this day. There are times in
history that are so surreal and shocking that we distinctly remember through
emotions rather than thoughts. Today is
one of those days for many. Hopefully,
it’s a reminder for us to make the most of every day, love our families, and
appreciate the blessings of this life!
Okay, so I have this
terrible weakness, and it’s for infomercials.
I don’t tell a lot of people this, but I love infomercials! Maybe
it’s because they feed my 10-second attention span, but there’s just something
about seeing all the incredible features of a product and then, to find out
that I can own all that for just three easy payments of $49.99! I’m hooked! My wife thinks it’s the craziest thing. I’ve watched this “Classic Country Music CD
collection” infomercial at least 10 times.
I just love all those 10 second snippets of those classic country songs! And don’t get me started on awesome products
like Sham-Wow, Mighty Putty, and Magic Bullet!
There was a time when my colleagues at work would get me these products
for Christmas! I loved it! Thankfully, although I love the infomercials,
I usually don’t get out my credit card and place an order…usually….
So what is it about those infomercials that make them so good? Well, in my opinion, there are a lot of
reasons, but probably the number one reason is the first 30 seconds of the
commercial. I mean, when you see a chain
made out of links of Mighty Putty pulling a semi, how do you not keep
watching?! Or what about that gigantic
spill of grape juice that disappears instantly when a Sham-Wow is placed over
it? It’s amazing! Toss in an excited host talking about the
features, and I’m hooked!
What does this have
to do with us? Well, I would propose
that we have a lot of similarities with the companies that pay to have these
infomercials made. Like them, we have a
product to sell. The key to our future
success depends on whether or not people buy what we have to sell, and we have
an audience that may or may not what to listen.
Think about it, it’s not like I block out time in my schedule to watch
infomercials. Usually, I’m just flipping
through stations and I get hooked.
In fact, that hook is absolutely critical to the success of selling
these products. We know it must work
because they keep coming up with more (wonderfully interesting) products. Like I said earlier, those first 30 seconds
are critical. They make or break the
infomercial.
Just like those
infomercials, our lessons have a product to sell (the content), our future
success is dependent on how well our students buy it, and we have an audience
that may or may not want to listen. Just
like those infomercials, the key to success in selling our product, or one of
the keys anyway, is a good “hook.” I
like to call it a hook because it conveys the idea of “hooking” our students,
fishing, etc….If you remember the work of Madelyn Hunter, she called it the
Anticipatory Set. In either case, we’re
talking about those first few minutes of a lesson that we use to get our
students to buy in to what we’re teaching.
So, what makes for a
good hook? Well first, I would say just having a good hook makes for a good hook. I remember when I was in the classroom; there
would be times I would just jump right into a lesson without providing any sort
of introduction, anticipatory set, or hook.
It’s no wonder I had many students who struggled to master the content
or were just plain bored. How did this
happen? Well, a good hook starts in the planning stages of the lesson. Good
hooks don’t just happen. Now, we
can get so good at planning them that they don’t take much time or effort to
create, but the bottom line is life in a school is so busy that if we don’t
take the time to intentionally think about how we’ll hook our students, it
won’t happen.
Another piece of a good hook is purpose. We’ve talked before about understanding the
“why” before the “how” is taught. A key
element for students to be hooked on what you want to sell is they have to understand why they need it! Just like that Mighty Putty infomercial where
they showed the guy fixing his plumbing (and electric, and car, and roof) with
Mighty Putty, a good hook demonstrates
why what students are going to learn is so important. Consequently, explaining or showing why
an objective is important scores very well on the RISE rubric too!
Sometimes a good hook leaves the students curious or wanting more. Think about the “Classic Country Music
Collection.” When I hear just that 10
second cut of one of my favorite Johnny Cash songs, I want to hang around to
hear more. Sometimes we use the hook to
wet our students’ appetites making them want to hang on for the “full meal”
later in the lesson.
Finally, most good hooks involve a level of excitement and energy that
is more than what you see at other points in the lesson. Think about the people they pick to do these
infomercials. They’re usually high
energy people. During the hook is one of
those times our level of interest and excitement has to be high. We
can’t expect students to get excited about something we’re not excited
about. Even if we have to fake it,
it’s critical that students see there’s reason to be excited about what they’re
learning.
So, if you’re
watching TV this weekend and happen to run across a good infomercial, maybe
watch it for a minute or two and see if you can pick up any pointers for your
lessons! Just don’t get that credit card
out…
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