Small Rudders Turn Big Ships

My master teacher was out again today and will probably be out tomorrow, too.  As I muddle through, I am having a great time and learning a lot.  Today, I learned a valuable lesson about being strategic with everything I say.

Continuing from our discussion on the historical context of Charles Darwin, we jumped into more detail about the famous 5 year voyage on the HMS Beagle and the observations he made on that trip.  After the lecture, we watched the first part of an old VHS video titled The Evidence for Evolution.  The plan was to watch half of the film today today and the other half tomorrow.  To help students pay attention and get value from the video, my master teacher developed a 30 question fill-in-the-blank worksheet to be filled out during the video.

First period was the test run.  We got through question 15 of the worksheet, which ended up being a good place to stop.  So, 15 questions became the benchmark.  Second period confirmed that we could do the lecture and get through question 15 of the worksheet.  All was well.

Third period is where I made my mistake.  In preparing the students for the video, I added that we'd probably get through question 15 on the worksheet and then watch the remainder during tomorrow's class. Well, after the students get the answer for question 15, they began to pack up and talk to one another.  There was still about 2-3 minutes of film before the stopping point!  These three minutes had good explanations and helpful graphics that helped explain the content!  Despite not having a blank to fill in, the content was still valuable.

When I noticed the students packing up, these thoughts ran through my head in about 2 seconds:

1. I shouldn't have told them that we'd only get through question 15.
2. I most definitely will -not- do that next period.
3. It's not on the worksheet and the information in the video won't be on a quiz or test; it's more for enrichment.
4. I can force them to sit down and watch it, but that would only build resentment of being forced to do something with little value.  

I don't know if I made the right choice, but I let it go.  The students continued to pack up and the bell rang soon afterwards.  We got through the lesson and I think they're understanding and comprehending the content.  In my questions I have been able to ask some higher level questions.  I don't think the situation will hurt the students' comprehension.

So, today's lesson: Be strategic in -all- communications.  Even little statements you think are helpful at the time can come back to bite you in the tail later if you're not careful.

PS:  

On the topic of questioning, I was rather proud of myself.  I asked a simple question.  "What is an example of an adaptation?"  Then I waited.  The wait seemed like it would go on forever.  This class, in particular, is a quiet class so I didn't know what to expect.  When I thought the students would stare back at me forever, one girl piped up with an example.  Then, another student piped up with another example of an adaptation.  Increasing wait time works!