How to Engage Participants

Principles of Adult Learning:

When we’re kids, learning comes naturally—we soak up information like a sponge. As adults, learning is a bit more complex. The way we process new information changes. Instead of just absorbing, we connect new ideas to what we already know. This makes learning more meaningful and practical, As the instructor it’s important to have the right approach to engage each learner. Let’s dive into the 7 steps that make learning easier and more effective!

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Structuring the Learning Experience:

 Think about the last time you learned something new. Did it stick better when it was relevant, hands-on, and connected to your goals? Adults learn best when lessons are structured with engagement in mind. 

Plan you lesson or activity to make it easy to follow and keep it moving so that participants stay engaged.

  • Start with a hook
  • Stay focused
  • Include an activity
  • Practice
  • Wrap it up

Let’s see how structure affects learning!

Read the slides and answer questions as you go along. Click on the bar at the bottom or use the arrow to proceed through the slides.

You can structure the best lesson or activity but if the environment is not conducive for learning or if it seems unapproachable, you won’t get to practice any of the principles of learning. 

Setting The Tone

From the moment participants enter your space, you are welcoming them in to learn. For our purposes, “space” and “environment” can mean a lot of things. You might be teaching in a classroom, a library, a grocery store, the waiting room of a food pantry, outside a pantry, or anywhere our neighbors are gathered. Because of this variety, we’re not always able to change the physical space. We can, however, focus on something more universal. Setting a tone that feels approachable, inviting, and safe—no matter where you’re teaching.

Check out this video. It’s talking about a Cooking Matters classroom but the info can be related to any educational space.

Welcoming the learner in by listening, asking good questions, and creating a safe space for others to ask questions takes practice. Our learning environments are not meant to be lectures. They are more conversational. Practice the principles from this video in your everyday life to be prepared to use them with our participants.

Review:

  1. Share, compare, and value experiences from participants.
  2. Set shared ground rules. This doesn’t need to be formal. Simple stating, these principles to your learners can be a good set of ground rules.
  3. Practice active listening and silences.
  4. Be flexible and ready to improvise.

With your learning structured and the tone set, let’s discuss facilitation.

When you’re done, remember to click “Next Lesson”!