Meeting Kids in Their Interest

We as teachers are selfish individuals. You can't really blame us. We spend all day with 28 students hanging off our every word, doing what we ask of them, talking to them about things we want to talk about, etc. When we plan our lessons we do things that we want to do.  Yes, we think about our students and what is going to interest them, but we always pick things that we like. I think this is a big flaw in our pedagogy. We shouldn't use things that interest us, or that we love because we have a sentimental attachment to it. We should use things that interest the students, that will get them talking and asking questions, that will have them connect to what we are teaching. I recently witnessed a language arts lesson that talked about effectiveness of digital media. The teacher had some great questions and ideas for her lesson but she used a commercial that came out when she was a little girl. It was an amazing sight to see as an outside observer. As soon as the song started playing, half of the students rolled their eyes and tuned out of the lesson. I wonder if the reaction would have been different if she had used a modern commercial or radio ad.
 Furthermore, I don't think I would have noticed this reaction if I was teaching the commercial. Often when I am teaching my mind is going a-mile-a-minute and I am not paying attention to my student's reactions but more if they all look like they are paying attention. Seeing this teacher in action really helped me reflect on my own practice. Here is this veteran teacher that has great rapport with her students and has some really great lessons, but it showed me that our choice of material really is critical.