Prompting Reflection

There can be a lot of life events that cause one to stop and reflect. I tend to see this happening in the "real" world during a time of transition or difficulty: death of a loved one, job loss, traumatic event. But I believe that a habit of reflection can make living life, and living through life's challenges, a little easier. Why? Maybe because reflection helps you see your purpose, create meaning from your actions, and empower you to make decisions.

In my world of education, we ask students to reflect on their learning and development. Why? Because reflection provides opportunities to think about the connection between oneself and the learning, leading to self-awareness and new action. Here is a great post on Reflection as an Aid to Understanding.
Ten Ways to Encourage Student Reflection provides some great ideas, and here are some of my favorite prompts:

• One thing I learned...
• I was surprised by...
• I am confused by...
• This reminds me of...
• I want to learn more about...