How to Teach to Your Students’ Strengths The following are recommendations on what instructors can do to help students perform and contribute in the areas of their strengths. While students in the strengths-based classroom are already working to develop their own talents into strengths, their instructors can help the process along by providing the settings for this development to take place. Ultimately, by building into our methods and materials the features that these aspects of excellence demand, we are creating a class that caters to the many learning styles, and is more organized and student-centered. Some of the benefits of strengths-based instruction include the following: student engagement, student success, retention, completion, degrees, with a greater chance of finding successful employment and life satisfaction. (The information below comes from excerpts that have been directly taken from Now, Discover Your Strengths by Marcus Buckingham and Donald O. Clifton, Ph.D. and Gallup Press’ StrengthsFinder 2.0 by Tom Rath.)

Achiever Establish a relationship with this person, work alongside them, and bond with them. They have a hard time with “slackers.” Recognize that sitting (in meetings) may be very hard for this person. Find something for this person to do; make sure they are needed in the classroom meetings. Appreciate the extra effort this person has put in and acknowledge it. Look to her when deadlines are looming. ___________________________________________________________________

Activator Verbally recognize to them that they are someone that can make things happen. Tell them you may be calling on them in the future at key times. Your expectations will energize them. Ask this person for input on what new goals or improvements your team needs to achieve. Assist with the required steps towards making progress on the new goals. ___________________________________________________________________

Adaptability Look to this person to find reason in the midst of change. Enlist their help with those people who have difficulty with change. Provide short-term assignments wherever possible. The immediate action appeals to the need for quickness and keeps the interest high. ___________________________________________________________________

Analytical Involve this person in important decisions, whenever possible. They will consider avenues and possibilities that are not necessarily apparent to most. Watch deadlines. This person may feel the need to get it right more than to complete the project. Communicate the deadline and check with them as it draws near to make sure they have the necessary time to do it right. ___________________________________________________________________

Diana Ostrander, Anoka Technical College

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Arranger Find situations where this individual can be placed where there are many things going on at the same time. Ask this person for assistance when positioning individuals in a work group. They are good at figuring out how each person’s strengths might be the greatest value to the team. ___________________________________________________________________

Belief Discover the passion, the belief, and help them to connect it to work that they do. The work becomes a part of the passion. Honor the commitments this person has made to family and community; you will be respected for that understanding. ___________________________________________________________________

Command Ask this person for her or his evaluation of what is happening in your classroom. They will be honest and up front with you. Be careful to threaten unless you are ready to follow through. They will be ready for the challenge of the confrontation. ___________________________________________________________________

Communication Ask this person to assist in classroom activities or college functions where you need an ice breaker or an entertainer. Take the time to listen to this individual’s experiences. Their peers will bond with them and enjoy the time spent. ___________________________________________________________________

Competition Use competitive language with this person. Engage the competitive spirit to achieve the goal. Allow for a mourning period, when a loss occurs. They will be back. Find another opportunity for this person to move on to the next challenge. ___________________________________________________________________

Connectedness Encourage this person to build bridges between different groups within your classroom and the college. Listen to what inspires this person. Your acceptance will influence the depth of the relationship you can build. ___________________________________________________________________

Consistency Be supportive of this person during periods of change. They are not comfortable without the predictable patterns that work for them. Ask this person to point out the contributions of everyone in the classroom or work group. He/she will make sure that each person gets the accolades deserved. ___________________________________________________________________

Context During class meetings, ask this person to review what has been done and what’s been learned. When you introduce this person to new peers, ask them to talk about their backgrounds before you get down to business. ___________________________________________________________________ Diana Ostrander, Anoka Technical College

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Deliberative Ask this person to join teams or groups that tend to be impulsive. She will have a temporizing effect, adding thoughtfulness and anticipation to the mix. Respect the fact that this person may be private. Take time to build the relationship and to earn trust. ___________________________________________________________________

Developer Ask this person to help his peers to learn the material or skills. He is likely to pick up small increments of progress that others may miss. Reinforce this person’s self-concept as someone who encourages people to stretch and to excel. ___________________________________________________________________

Discipline When working on a project with this person, make sure to give advance notice of deadlines. Disorganization will annoy this person. Don’t expect this person to last long in a cluttered and unorganized environment. ___________________________________________________________________

Empathy Ask this person to help you understand how certain people in the classroom or small group are feeling, if there seems to be conflict. When peers have difficulty understanding why an action is necessary, ask this person for help. ___________________________________________________________________

Focus Don’t expect this person to always be sensitive to the feelings of others. Getting his work done often takes priority over people’s sensitivities. Be aware that unstructured meetings will bother this person. Agendas should be used and followed. ___________________________________________________________________

Futuristic Stimulate this person by talking about what could be. Ask lots of questions. Push them to make the picture of the future as vivid as possible. Send this person any data or articles you spot that would be of interest. ___________________________________________________________________

Harmony Steer this person away from conflict. This person does not like confrontations and will not be at his best. When others are locked in disagreement, a person strong in Harmony can help to unlock them. The subject under debate may not be resolved but they should be able to see areas where they agree. ___________________________________________________________________

Ideation In the workplace, this person will be particularly effective as a designer of sales strategies, marketing campaigns or customer service solutions. In the classroom, this person’s enthusiasm for new ideas can be contagious, creating a more lively learning community. Try to feed this person new ideas; they will use these concepts to generate new insights and discoveries of their own. ___________________________________________________________________ Diana Ostrander, Anoka Technical College

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Includer If you have students who are not “naturals” in social settings, create small groups in which these people can stay close to someone who is an Includer. Less-engaged students will be included in the conversation and made to feel part of the group, which also allows the “includer” to sharpen his or her talent in this area. Ask this person to help you think, in a general way, about new ways to include a diverse body of students in the classroom. ___________________________________________________________________

Individualization When you are having difficulty understanding someone else’s perspective, ask this person for insight. Involve this person if there are problems among peers. The intuitions shared about the appropriate actions for each individual will be sound. ___________________________________________________________________

Input In class meetings, ask this person for information. Look for opportunities to tap into the abundant knowledge base. Pair this person with a peer to discuss common interests and then share stories about them. A great relationship could develop. ___________________________________________________________________

Intellection Don’t hesitate to challenge this person’s thoughts. She will be prepared to discuss them and will enjoy the opportunity. Assign books to be read and project evaluations; this person will enjoy completing such assignments. ___________________________________________________________________

Learner Regardless of this person’s role, he will want to learn new facts, skills or knowledge. Help him find ways to learn and get motivated. Encourage this person to become the “resident expert” in a specific area. This will feed his need for extreme competency. ___________________________________________________________________

Maximizer This person is interested in taking something that works and figuring out ways to make the most of it. Ask for help when you need to uncover best practices. This person will expect you to understand her strengths and to value her for them. She will become frustrated if you spend too much time focusing on her weaknesses. ___________________________________________________________________

Positivity This person brings energy to the college or workplace. He will make your classroom and college more positive and dynamic. Cynics will quickly sap this person’s energy. Do not expect him to enjoy cheering up negative people. His talents will be best utilized by energizing positive people who need a spark. Diana Ostrander, Anoka Technical College

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Relator This person enjoys developing genuine bonds with peers and colleagues. These relationships take time so you must invest in them on a regular basis. Trust this person with confidential information. She is loyal, places a high value on trust, and will not betray yours. ___________________________________________________________________

Responsibility This person defines himself by his ability to live up to his commitments. It will be intensely frustrating for him to work with others who don’t. This person dislikes sacrificing quality for speed, so be careful not to rush the work. Talk about the quality first, then ensure the project is moving on track for the completion date required. ___________________________________________________________________

Restorative Ask this person for her observations when you want to identify a problem within your class or college. Her insights will be particularly acute and she will respond in a focused and professional manner. Offer your support when this person meets a particularly difficult problem. Because she defines herself by her ability to cope and restore normalcy, she may feel defeated if a problem remains an issue. ___________________________________________________________________

Self Assurance If you are working on as team with this person, give him leeway in making decisions. He will neither want nor need hand holding. Help this person to understand that his decisions and actions do produce outcomes. If there is misjudgment, be sure to point them out immediately. He needs clear feedback to inform his instincts. ___________________________________________________________________

Significance Be aware of this person’s need for independence, and acknowledge the contribution made by her. Give her room to maneuver, but never ignore her. Give this person the opportunity to stand out, to be known. She enjoys the pressure of being the focal point of attention. ___________________________________________________________________

Strategic Involve this person in planning sessions. Ask him “What if?” Always give this person ample time to think through a situation before asking for input. He’ll need time to play a couple of scenarios out in his mind. ___________________________________________________________________

Woo If students in the class need to expand their networks, encourage them to reach out to someone in class with strong Woo talents. She will help them to broaden their connections and get what they want.

Diana Ostrander, Anoka Technical College

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Understand that this person values having a wide network of friends. Allow her to enjoy the opportunity for connections when they are at hand. * Excerpts have been directly taken from Now, Discover Your Strengths by Marcus Buckingham and Donald O. Clifton, Ph.D. and Gallup Press’ StrengthsFinder 2.0 by Tom Rath.* Adapted from:

http://www.isa.org/Content/NavigationMenu/General_Information/Leadership_Resources/Section/Section_Library1 /34_Strengths.htm

Diana Ostrander, Anoka Technical College

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