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Dear Kid Whisperer,

I’m reading your book and having a hard time with how this works for seventh-graders. If I use Strategic Noticing as many times as you suggest, 34 times in one of my 50-minute periods, I think it will actually annoy the kids and they’ll turn it into a joke. Do you have any thoughts on seventh-graders?

Answer: No.

Not really.

Let me explain.

As teachers, we want kids to do lots of stuff. We may want them to sit down, be quiet, work, carry the “1,” cross the “t,” show their work, solve for “x,” line up, keep their eyes on their own paper, on and on, ad infinitum.

So, traditionally, we educators will do what makes sense: We just tell kids what to do.

“Sit down.”

“Be quiet.”

“Carry the 1.”

Kids in Non-Behavioral Leader

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