Blog Post #4
Choose a quote from the TED Talk by Emmy Grace Cribbs. Why do these words resonate with you? What application of this quote can you make in your own work and/or life?
Blog Post #2
What is your greatest takeaway from this video? Explain.
"Listening is truly the lost half of communication." This resonated deeply with me as I consider all areas of my life. I don't always listen well to my students because I'm focused on what I'm doing or saying next. I don't always listen to my children because I'm tired, distracted, or overstimulated. I don't always listen to friends because I'm rehearsing what to say next. I need to remember that I have one mouth and two ears and should listen well, and to model that for my students and children.
ReplyDeleteBe present-Be Open minded-Be international! Three great ways to improve communication. This is spot on. How many times have you been asked to answer questions about what you discussed or listened to? Usually we are focused on something else. We are physically present in a conversation but we aren’t mentally present and attentive. Be Open Minded-the best example I can give is at a workshop I recently attended. The presenter was giving a new way/method of trying something and the person next to me uttered, I’m not doing that-it won’t work. Wow I’ve always believed in finding a better way. I will give it a try or two before I discard any learning method. Be intentional. How many times do you see people on their phones, not listening. I like to look people in the eye and watch the expression on their face.
ReplyDeleteThe other phrase I’ve heard my entire life in many different situations. God gave you two ears to listen twice as much as we talk. Sometimes people get caught up in just talking-not listening.
Lived listening to this young lady-she had a powerful message.
A quote from Emmy Grace Cribbs’ TED Talk that resonated deeply with me was, “We can all be better listeners by doing three things: being present, open-minded, and intentional.” These words stand out because they simplify something that is often incredibly difficult—truly listening. In both teaching and everyday life, it’s easy to get caught up in multitasking, forming responses too quickly, or sticking to our own perspectives. This quote reminds me that meaningful listening requires slowing down and choosing to be fully engaged with the person in front of us. In my own work, I can apply this by being more intentional during student conversations—making eye contact, pausing before responding, and genuinely considering their thoughts or feelings. By practicing presence and open-mindedness, I can build stronger relationships and create a classroom where students feel valued, heard, and understood.
ReplyDeleteChoose a quote from the TED Talk by Emmy Grace Cribbs. Why do these words resonate with you? What application of this quote can you make in your own work and/or life?
ReplyDeleteI know its an often used quote but the one that resonates the most with me is that we have one mouth and two ears so that we might listen twice as much as we speak. It resonates with me because I have this drive to be heard and make sure people know where I stand. This is not always a great, admirable quality. I have been much better over the past 7 years at listening, but this has taken a great deal of work. I had to be intentional about not speaking and listening. It is paying off. I sometimes still fight the urge to speak, but I have alarm bells in my brain now that remind me to just chill and listen to what others have to say. My mindset has changed from someone who has to educate others to someone that wants to learn from others. I am okay noy not being the loudest voice in the room.
After watching the TED talk, the quote that stood out to me was "Be Open Minded". With a lot of people, that is something they refuse to be. Being open to others opinions, or even listening to them without interjecting your own opinion is a skill very few people have anymore. This TED talk had many good quotes and points, but that one is one I felt really needs to be pointed out. The other quote that stood out that goes with this is "Listening is truly the lost half of communication." You have to be open to hearing what the other person is saying in order to actually listen. otherwise it's just noise.
ReplyDelete"In this day and age, it rarely seems like anyone is actually listening to what we have to say. But we are also not listening to anyone else." You can see everywhere we go, people sitting together at lunch, conversing but also on their phones. They are not truly listening to what the other person is saying. They are not engaged in the conversation. I have found myself doing this as well, being bored with a conversation and quickly turning to my phone to check something, in the meantime not listening to what the other person is saying. We used to use the line--you are hearing me, but you are not listening. I have found lately, how refreshing it can be, not to have a phone on me when with friends and family.
ReplyDelete“We can all be better listeners by doing three things: being present, open-minded, and intentional.”
ReplyDeleteThis a something everyone can work on to become a better person and make our world better. As teachers, we don't always see eye to eye and I think it is important to be able to a good listener to what they have to say. The biggest one to me is being open-minded about what they are saying. I feel like we are so quick to disagree or say no because we think we are going to know what they say or know we will not agree. This may not go with this post but I like to use the saying, "Let's try it, and if it doesn't work, we can go back to how it was." This is true in school and life. People don't like change but if we never try we may never know if it is better or not.
“We can all be better listeners by just being 3 things: present, open minded, and intentional.”
ReplyDeleteI think many times that people struggle with listening and avoid. I can admit that I am no different as anyone else. As educators, I know my coworkers talk about this as well when we go to PD. We say that teachers make the worst students because we struggle as a whole to pay attention when a speaker is presenting. We zone out, work on other work, or even go on our phones. Many people also shut down and stop listening when someone says something that they disagree with.
"Loneliness mainly comes from the lack of the deeper emotional connections that good listening can create."
ReplyDeleteI think this is a very profound statement. I'm not sure humans overall have ever been that good at listening, but I really think we have to be intentional about changing that. If people do not feel that they are heard, if they do not think they and their thoughts matter, I think we are going to see our social problems continue to get worse. I had a friend in college who knew how to listen. She just did. She gave you her full attention. She didn't talk much. She just listened to what you had to say. You felt heard, and everyone considered her a friend.
A quote from Emmy Grace Cribbs’ TED Talk that really stuck with me was, “We can all be better listeners by doing three things: being present, open-minded, and intentional.” In a busy PE and wellness environment, this hit close to home. It’s easy to be physically in the room but mentally thinking about the next class, the next drill, or the clock. This quote reminded me that real listening doesn’t just happen — it takes effort and focus.
ReplyDeleteAs a teacher and coach, this matters a lot. When students talk about their fitness goals, frustrations, or confidence, they need to know they’re being heard. Being open-minded is huge, because their experiences with physical activity are often very different from mine. Applying this means slowing down, making eye contact, and listening without rushing to respond. If I can model that, I believe it helps build trust and creates a PE environment where students feel supported and willing to engage.
"And because of the emotional separation that it causes, loneliness and mental and physical health concerns often go hand in hand, making our epidemic levels of loneliness in America a cause of serious concern."
ReplyDeleteThis quote really resonated with me because I believe that many of our students experience loneliness on a daily basis and it does greatly affect their mental and physical well being. Social media has connected more people than ever on a very surface level but a lot of students are missing the face-to-face connections. Face-to-face connections is what allows for the deeper emotional connections. As a teachers, we understand that a student needs to be in the right mindset in order the learn and apply material in school. If students are experiencing mental and physical health concerns because of the lack of emotional connections, learning is not going to be a top priority for that student.
“We need to stop and take in what the speaker is saying”. This quote resonated with me because I feel like there are times when I’m having a conversation with someone, I’m trying to come up with a response as they are talking and then I miss what they are saying. This reminds me that I need stop and listen to what the speaker is saying. This quote was a great reminder for me.
ReplyDeleteThe part that I liked was being present, open minded and intentional. I know I need to be better at listening. My own children tell me I don't listen. I think it's because I have a million things going on in my head and I need to just pay attention more. I need to actually focus and not always try to multitask. This is something that I'm working on but can sometimes be difficult.
ReplyDelete"Our inability to listen to others will destroy us and our relationships." This is something that resonates with me. My partner and my children all tell me I don't listen. I think devices have gotten in the way of my ability to listen and have gotten in the way of others' ability to listen to me. We are always on our phones. My rule used to be no phones at the dinner table when my boys were young. Now that we're all adults, I've let that slide and it definitely has changed the meaningful conversations we used to have at the table. I've noticed even when I'm watching TV or a movie, I grab for my phone to scroll. When someone tries to talk to me, I acknowledge them, but don't truly hear them. Therefore, I can't remember anything they said to me. I think I'm so busy at school and multitasking all day, that when I get home, I just want to sit and scroll. I do believe my relationships have changed because of it and I need to become more intentional about being device free when I'm sharing a room with others.
ReplyDelete"Try not to think about the questions you have when others are talking." I took the "Talk to Me" book study and it said the same thing. This has been very difficult for me my whole life and I am really consciously trying to stop this. I have learned how important it is to be fully engaged in coversation to make others feel valued. When she talks about how fast the world is, it is really important to give people their own time with the full attention of the listener.
ReplyDelete“Listening is truly the lost half of communication.” This quote resonates with me because communication is not just about speaking, but also about truly hearing and understanding others. As a teacher, especially in ECSE, listening is very important because many students communicate in different ways, such as through gestures, behaviors, or assistive technology. By slowing down and really listening, I can better understand my students’ needs and help support their learning. I can apply this in my work by being more intentional about giving students time to express themselves and by paying close attention to all forms of communication they use.
ReplyDeleteChoose a quote from the TED Talk by Emmy Grace Cribbs. Why do these words resonate with you? What application of this quote can you make in your own work and/or life?
ReplyDelete"Loneliness mainly comes from a lack of deeper emotional connections that good listening can create". It is very eye-opening to hear that so many people feel lonely (even when they are with other people). I think technology has hurt our social skills in this way. Our personal, face-to-face interactions are on the decline. I even think to when I coach basketball. When I would look into the stands, it is shocking to see how many people (not just students) are on their phones not really even paying attention to the game. Listening and being present for our families and our students is so important. Taking the time to truly listen to them can help make a student feel seen and heard. I can apply this to my life by showing students that I have listened to them and asking them follow up questions about what they had told me previously.
Choose a quote from the TED Talk by Emmy Grace Cribbs. Why do these words resonate with you? What application of this quote can you make in your own work and/or life?
ReplyDeleteWhen she said that 'all we do is speak and rarely take the time to listen - that's no longer a conversation; it's a monologue, it reminded me of the Peanuts comic. In it, Charlie Brown is talking with Lucy - who is not listening. He says that a conversation requires the other person to listen, Lucy responds with "It does?". Teaching middle school students, I have seen this more and more becoming an issue. Some students get to school early just so they can text their friends who are also getting to school early. For an older person like myself, it is the weirdest thing. They're right next to each other, but the conversation is done by phone. I try to emphasize that electronic communication does not show tone of voice (exaggeration or reality). I am from a family of talkers - some louder than others, and progressively may get louder - but we always know that even if we aren't on the same page, we still respect each others' opinions. That is what I want my students to know; it's okay to agree to disagree and still be friends.
"Our inability to listen to others will destroy us and our relationships."
ReplyDeleteOof. This one was a little bit of a kick to the stomach because I know that it's true, and listening is perhaps my biggest struggle with my husband and with all three of my children for different reasons. I often get accused of not listening, whether I have earbuds in to listen to a podcast while cleaning - or whether I jump to a conclusion - become defensive - answer a different question than the one that was asked...you name something a bad listener does, and I do it with my family. This is something I've worked hard on recently, but even though I watch videos and read books, take notes, and reflect, I haven't been able to make a significant change in the way listening impacts my relationships. To be honest, I haven't tried that hard before recently because I stubbornly felt like it wasn't a big deal. I think that speaking and listening to students all day sort of exhausts me mentally and that maybe I feel like I don't have to try as hard with my family, which isn't fair to them.
The quote that stood out to me was "Our society emphasizes the need for us to always be quick, witty, and to know just what to say." As a teacher, it’s easy to feel a constant pressure to have a perfect response ready the second a student finishes speaking. I often prioritize the momentum of a lesson over actually processing what's being said, which turns a dialogue into a performance rather than a functional exchange.
ReplyDeleteIn my own work, I will try getting more comfortable with "wait time." Taking a moment to process a student's input shows more respect for their contribution than blurting out the first thing that comes to mind.
"In this day and age, it rarely seems like anyone is actually listening to what we have to say. But we are also not listening to anyone else." This can be very difficult. As someone that's love language is quality time and goes with quality conversation, I agree i get more out of quality conversation than anything but doing this every day with every conversation can be very challenge. but not more than every this needs to happen. With technology and rarely commutating face to face can be very challenging.
ReplyDelete"I've tuned someone out because I was tired, busy, or they were really boring."
ReplyDelete"Half the people we knew in 2018 were lonely."
"60% of conflicts in the workforce are caused by poor communication."
"Be present - open minded - intentional.... look like you are listening"
This talk was a good reminder to be present in conversations. Especially with my team at work and my kids at home. Often my girls will say, "mom - put down your phone". I'm getting better at making sure I don't even have my phone with me, so I can be truly present. At work, I try to have open conversations and to be more curious than certain. I thought the 2018 quote was interesting - especially knowing that was pre-COVID. Crazy to think how the pandemic impacted those numbers all the more. It's humbling to think - how can I help others around me feel seen and heard.
“When was the last time that you had a good conversation with another person?” She then went on to point out that “Even though we now have more ways to communicate with one another than we ever have before, it seems that, we aren’t communicating with each other as well as we could be.” I would agree with the speaker on this point. Too often we rely on our screens for entertainment that we seem to have lost the ability, or even the desire, to have conversations with others around us. I know that I need to be more intentional about spending time with others around me rather than focusing on my never ending to-do list or worse, my screens. I think that having conversations with others is a skill that many students (and adults) are lacking. I need to do a better job of fostering communication skills amongst my students and teach them how to keep someone engaged in conversation.
ReplyDelete"Try not to think about the questions you have when others are talking."
ReplyDeleteThis has always been a struggle for me. I have always had a brain that questioned, jumped ahead, and tried to predict what other people were saying as they were finishing talking. Now as an educator -- I have more knowledge about what is happening. My own brain function is working with listening time versus speaking speed causing a lag. We can listen much faster than we can speak. So it's hard to have that patience. I talk to students a lot about this idea now, and it's nice to know that we can actively work toward better communication if we are listening better. I think we often don't slow down and think about how truly listening is part of the effective communication cycle. I try hard to put down my technology -- especially when my children come home form school -- I listen to what they choose to tell me about school because out of ALL the details of what happens during a day -- the choose specific details to share. Why? I want to know. Why those details. What are they sharing or telling me they need? I won't know if I'm not listening and processing. This is also true in the classroom with students.