Educators Recommend Using Our HEAR Strategy During the Holiday Season

In the weeks leading up to the holidays, teachers tell us that it is sometimes difficult to help students stay focused on learning. Teachers around the world use our HEAR strategy to assist students to learn how to internalize the skill of active listening in order to understand what others are saying.

Susan Marie Poulette, CCC-SLP, a speech and language pathologist and educator, references our article in her piece titled “Classroom Listening Before the Holidays—Herding Cats?”

As a reminder, the HEAR strategy consists of four parts.

HALT: Stop whatever else you are doing, end your internal dialogue or other thoughts, and free your mind to pay attention to the person speaking.
ENGAGE: Focus on the speaker. We suggest a physical component, such as turning your head slightly so that your right ear is toward the speaker as a reminder to be engaged solely in listening.
ANTICIPATE: By looking forward to what the speaker has to say, you are acknowledging that you will likely learn something new and interesting, which will enhance your attention.
REPLAY: Think about what the speaker is saying. Analyze and paraphrase it in your mind or in discussion with the speaker and other classmates. Replaying the information will aid in understanding and remembering what you have learned.

Click the link to see Ms. Poulette’s blog post.