Staying Sharp for the Summer

For my last day at my practicum in Japan, I wanted to leave my students thinking about the importance of keeping their minds sharp when they are on break from school. The objectives of my lesson were for students to demonstrate understanding of what a sharp mind means by orally providing examples about how they use their working memory, particularly in the context of what they will do this summer.

I began my lesson with asking students, “What will you do this summer? What are your plans?” As expected, the students mentioned their vacation and camp plans. However, I wanted my students to ponder how they could continue learning sharpening their minds. I then asked, “What does the word ‘sharp’ mean?” The students said things like “a pointy edge” or “when people look nice.” I told the students that you are sharp when your minds are mentally alert and can understand things quickly. It is crucial that students stay sharp over the summer break so that they continue improving their skills and bring new knowledge for the new school year.

People’s brains need to practice and review what they have previously learned in order to remember things over a long period of time. The brain has a short-term memory, a working-memory, and a long-term memory. I told students that a lot of information we learn gets stored temporarily in our working memory, which means that we have to work hard to remember it and make it into a long-term memory.

Students turned and talked with each other about ways to stay sharp over the summer. They discussed how they can keep their reading and writing sharp this summer by reading and going to the library, as well as writing stories about their adventures. Students also talked about doing fun science experiments or art projects. Teachers and students have to remember that learning never stops, and can be found in many contexts.