Levels of Listening ( from Top 20 Teens pp. 101-107 )

5	The Zone
4	Processing
3	Distracted
2	Judgmental
1	My Life is on My Mind

What are you thinking about right now?

· Your plans for the weekend

· How boring this class is

· How hot or cold you are

· How long until the class ends

Bottom 20s believe they are good listeners, but not all listening is the same.

Level 1: My Life is on My Mind

At this level the only thing you are really listening to is yourself. This is fine, unless something else is going on that requires your attention – like classroom material. You may find yourself in Fantasyland if you are bored; replaying a soccer game or pretending you are Superman.

One way of dealing with this is to temporarily put you thought in the Parking Lot. That means that you make a conscious decision to put your thoughts aside until later. You want to consider these thoughts, but Not Now.

Level 2: Judgmental

Judgmental-ville is a small-minded town where the inhabitants:

· Jump to conclusions

· Over-react

· Interrupt or finish other people’s sentences

· Agree or disagree

· Evaluate themselves or others

Unless you want to live there permanently, put these thoughts in the Parking Lot!

Level 3: Distracted

This occurs when you are distracted by something in the environment. The average person is distracted 22 minutes out of every 60 minutes. A Top 20s student will look at the distraction and then say "Not Now." A Below 80s student will continue to watch the distraction to the end.

Level 4: Processing

Processing is highly concentrated listening that is trying to analyze, memorize, and synthesis all at the same time. This is Above the Line listening, but the problem is that you wear yourself out. You will be exhausted by the end of class.

Level 5: The Zone

Being in the Zone occurs when your mind is quiet and calm. You are totally present to the moment and your mind is like a sponge. Information is soaked up, but not processed, so you simply add it to your collection to think about at a later moment. Once the listening is over, you can take the information out and process it in your own way.

The secret to better learning is better listening!

Anytime you are in the other 4 levels make a conscious choice to put your thought in the Parking Lot. Say to yourself, "Not Now."