From Telling to Teaching Danielle Quigley, MS, RD, CDN NYS Department of Health, Division of Nutrition

Objectives Discuss strategies for enhancing nutrition education sessions using a dialogue approach Tips for creating an environment that makes your participants feel safe and secure Practice listening to and asking open questions Tips for engaging your audience and increasing participant interaction

Teaching Styles Telling Approach (traditional, old, boring) Blah

Characteristics of the “telling” approach Follow the leader Take it or leave it! Tend to teach the way they like to be taught Able to cover more information if they talk faster….we’ve all done it!

Dialogue approach The dialogue approach combines the delivery of new information with opportunities for learners to DO something with it.

Characteristics of the dialogue approach Clients engage in dialogue Opportunity for practicing new skills Reflect on learning

Getting started…. Think about this…..if company was coming to your home, what would you do to get ready? Clean and organize the house Set the table nicely Put fresh flowers out Put a clean comforter in the guestroom Put something on the stove that smells delightful

Setting the learning environment When a participant enters your training room, they should be given the same message as your guests… “Welcome. I’ve been waiting for you.”

Characteristics of a positive learning environment Learners are greeted warmly as they arrive. The work space is colorful and interesting. The materials are ready when clients arrive. The educator uses the power of positive suggestion.

Setting the tone… “We’re going to accomplish some really important things today. You will learn how to make mealtime fun and put smiles back on your children’s faces.” (positive suggestion) VS. “We’ve got a lot to cover today so let’s get started. I don’t want to waste any more time.”

Welcoming your clients Introduction Description of training Define expectations Voice by choice

Five for Thriving Five learning principles that will help you and your learners thrive! RESPECT SAFETY INCLUSION ENGAGEMENT RELEVANCY

Activity #1 Grab a partner! In pairs, describe to each other a situation where you were the learner and any one of these principles was honored and made a BIG difference in how much you learned. Time: 3 minutes

The Power of Open Questions From Telling to Teaching relies equally on DOING and DIALOGUE (or doing and talking about it). The fundamental building block that leads to “talking about it” is the OPEN QUESTION or PHRASE.

Open Questions Has no set, correct answer (SAFETY). Invites the learner to “dig a little deeper” into their own experiences. Gives learners a chance to show YOU what they know and who THEY are.

Sample Open Questions Why was it so important to you? What kind of support did you get? Why were you so successful? What obstacles did you have to overcome? What have you done since then? Tell me about…. Describe for me… Who inspired you and how?

Activity #2 Grab a new partner! Think about an accomplishment in your life—great or small—something you feel really good about and don’t mind sharing with another person. Time: 5 minutes

Elements of waiting in dialogue Waiting for a response can be extremely uncomfortable, yet so worthwhile. Participants are robbed from the learning experience when the answer is provided for them.

4 Elements of Waiting Ask an open question Wait at least 5 seconds Use eye contact Count (1 Mississippi, 2 Mississippi…)

Getting clients involved… The word dialogue means “words between us.” People remember new information when they DO something with it AND talk about.

What we remember… 10% of what we hear 30% of what we see 50% when a demo is added 70% with a workshop exercise 90% by doing the real thing and talking about it

Simple ways of increasing participation Partner interaction Trio talks Table chats

Benefits of using partnering interactions Allows participants to speak safely in a comfortable environment Allows participants to make personal meaning of new information Creates energy in the room

More benefits….. Results in active engagement with new information (rather than just listening to it or seeing it) Raises ALL voices, not just yours! Is a valuable tool in groups of 2, 3 or 4!

Activity #3 Think of our JSY lesson plans. With a partner, share a success story where you used any of these techniques discussed today. (3 minutes)

How to format lesson plans to increase participation Four strategies : ANCHOR ADD APPLY AWAY

What is ANCHOR? The lead into your lesson plan topic. It sets the tone of your session and gets the client ready for learning. Begin a workshop by going to your learners first—enter their world.

Using Anchor Use warm-up exercises that begin with the learners’ lives and is linked to the topic Set initial safety within the group Use partnering activities Remember, there are NO wrong answers.

What is ADD? The second part of the lesson where nutrition information is provided. Actual teaching occurs here. Select your 3 most important messages.

ADD Put some SPICE into it for best results! S=short (15 minutes MAX for speaking) P=pictures or charts, video I=interesting (some fascinating facts) C=compelling (what’s in it for me?) E=easy, simple terms, down to earth (at your clients level)

What is APPLY? “Let me do it!” This is where your learners will apply or do something with the content or skill. Can be as simple as a partner interaction or more complex such as producing something (preparing a recipe). Example: Plan 3 healthy snacks for your children.

Apply Let them get their minds around it, their hearts in it, and their hands on it!!!

What is AWAY? It is the bridge to the future. This helps learners plan on how they will take the new info and use it in the future. Great place to use partner interactions. Example: Thinking about the future, what is one idea you will definitely use for planning snacks for your children?

Using the 4 A’s Incorporating the 4 A’s into your workshops will ensure your learners have: Anchored the topic in their own lives Received some great new information Applied the information through an interesting task Planned to use the new information in the future.

What are your questions? Thank you! Danielle Quigley, MS, RD, CDN