The description of the development of this workshop will be found in Chapter 9 of the book. In designing the workshop, I have aimed for something that lasts no longer than one hour. The actual time will, of course depend on the amount of time allowed for questions and discussion.
The objective is to provide a straightforward introduction to the main changes that take place in the teenage brain, and the implications for these in behaviour. I have addressed the question of the relevance of knowledge about the teenage brain for the teaching profession. I have underlined my belief that the value of knowledge about the teenage brain is not so much to do with curriculum design or lesson planning, but rather to do with enabling teachers to have a good understanding of the development and behaviour of their students.
In designing the workshop, I spent some time talking to teachers about what they already know about the brain, and what more they would like to know. I have included here two questionnaires that I have used as part of my work developing the workshop.
The two questionnaires address slightly different questions. One concerns what teachers know, and what more they would like to learn. The other is more to do with the current curriculum, what is covered relating to the teenage brain, and what benefits there might be for students in introducing this material into the curriculum.
I have not provided a detailed description of the slides contained in this workshop, but I have added notes for each slide. These notes will make the content clear and provide a tutor who wishes to present this workshop with a useful guide to the content. I should emphasise the need for comprehensive preparation by anyone wishing to deliver this workshop. Background reading is essential, and the tutor should ensure that they are confident in presenting this material.
As I have outlined in Chapter 10 of the book, there was a considerable amount of work required to develop a suitable lesson plan for students. As far as I was aware nothing like this existed at the time, and it took some time and a lot of piloting to get to a point where an acceptable lesson plan had been developed. The details of this process can be found in Chapter 10 of the book and provide a background to the materials described here.
I should note that this lesson was planned for a 45-minute class. However, in discussions with teachers many felt that there is too much material here to be covered in one lesson. There were many different approaches suggested by various teachers – some split the materials into two lessons, others ran the content over a whole week, using assemblies or other teaching times to address the issues covered by the lesson plan outlined here. It is up to any individual teacher to organise this teaching to fit best into their own curriculum.
I have also included here a set of questions that can be used to gain information about what students think about this topic. This can be used by teachers to ascertain whether students have had any previous teaching, and whether they would like more of this.
There are 49 slides provided for use by the tutor. These follow the different sections of the lesson, and include things like the True or False Quiz, a number of illustrations to support the key points in the section on memory and learning, as well as questions that can be put to the students as the lesson progresses. It is strongly recommended that tutors work through the slides before undertaking the delivery of My Teen Brain for Schools in a classroom or community setting. They provide the structure for the lesson and indicate at all points the direction that should be travelled as the material is presented to students.
The Student Pack consists of six pages, providing information as well as exercise sheets and a short evaluation form at the end. The six pages are as follows:
In trials I have found it helpful to have these pages put together as one pack and handed to each student at the start of the lesson. In particular, the image of the brain can be referred to at various points in the lesson. This provides a good talking point if required. Suggestions of how to use the questionnaires are set out in the Tutor Guide. The Student Pack is provided below.
To be able to deliver information about teenage brain development to parents has been extremely rewarding. To be with parents who literally have their eyes opened by this material is an exciting experience. There are, of course, numerous challenges in being able to deliver the workshop. The slides provided here represent an attempt to offer an engaging session for adults who, very often, are puzzled and perplexed by the changes they see in their sons and daughters as they go through the teenage years.
The slides detailed here were planned to be delivered in the school setting. However, there is no reason why other venues should not be considered. Community settings may well prove suitable for the delivery of this workshop. In addition, due to the pandemic of 2020, the majority of the delivery during this year has been on-line. We have learnt a lot about the possibilities offered by the internet, and I have explored some of the issues involved in on-line delivery in the Introduction to this website.
In terms of timing, I came to the conclusion that a two-hour session is roughly the most suitable for a workshop of this sort. I believe it is of great importance to give the participants an opportunity to get to know other parents in the group. Two hours provides an opportunity for some discussion as well as engagement with some simple activities, which themselves encourage interaction between the parents who attend.
There are three exercises, or activities, set out in the slides, as well as one opportunity for discussion in small groups. Clearly presenters can use these exercises as they think fit. The first and second exercises involve parents writing down four examples of typical teenage behaviour, and then secondly writing down four examples of typical parent behaviour, as seen by their sons and daughters. Both exercises provide various opportunities for the presenter to explore attitudes, generational differences, and of course ideas about teenagers that relate to the material on brain development.
The third exercise involves the Change Questionnaire (provided on this site), something I have already discussed both in the book and in writing about other workshops. Here I suggest it is used as a way of getting parents to think about the changes they have noticed, and to link those changes to brain development. Lastly, I have suggested a topic for discussion in small groups. Presenters may want to use an alternative example if, for whatever reason, they believe the topic of sleep is not appropriate.
The workshop as set out here does not include any video or film material. This is because new material becomes available all the time, and if material is suggested now, it will rapidly become out of date. However, if those who consider delivering this workshop wish to include video clips or other visual material they should certainly do so. The most important guidance I can give is to think carefully about the timing. For me, the key element is to allow enough time for participants to share experiences and gain support by hearing from other parents.
I have not written an extensive guide to the slides provided here. However, I have added notes which can be found below each slide. These notes should provide sufficient direction to anyone wishing to present the workshop. In addition, I must reiterate the points I made in the Introduction. Those who wish to deliver this workshop should have had substantial experience in working with parents of teenagers. They should also have found time to read around the subject of brain development, and should have got to a position where they feel completely confident in the material.