What Is Mindful Listening Instruction?

Abstract

Classrooms across the world are filled with students who are consistently told to listen, asked to listen, and forced to listen without any preparation for knowing how to listen. Teaching students how to become mindful listeners can enhance their ability to learn to listen. Mindful listening is a form of active listening that goes beyond merely hearing words or sounds; it involves being fully present and engaged. This chapter provides background information for teachers to understand the difference between hearing and listening. The chapter also contains an overview of the types of listening and stages of listening for beginning listening instruction practices in the elementary classroom and concludes with giving teachers strategies for creating their own listening journey to understand how and why there is a need to transition from telling students to listen to teaching them how to listen in elementary classrooms.