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https://sharemylesson.com/teaching-resource/mock-talk-show-whole-class-activity-170489

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Students take on different roles (talk show host; resident experts; members of a family; audience etc) and roleplay a mock talk show on a given situation.

Creative way to promote learning about social issues

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Students take on different roles (talk show host; resident experts; members of a family; audience etc) and roleplay a mock talk show on a given situation. Creative way to promote learning about social issues

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https://symondsresearch.com/types-classroom-activities/

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Symonds Research Training Course Materials

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Page Updated on July 17, 2023

Activities you can run during your training sessions should NOT be restricted just to the classic team-building games and icebreakers! There are 12 other types of classroom activities for adults that you can also use and these activities each have a different purpose and benefit.

So let's take a look below at the types of classroom activities you can use and let's look at some examples.

What Kind of Activities Can You Run to Engage your Learners?

The best way to engage learners and help them remember and understand information is to make sure that they actively participate.

So, you do not want to talk at them all the time but you want them to actively contribute in some way.

To do so, there are many types of classroom activities you can use in your classes or training workshops that are perfect for adult learning.

The trick is using the activities that are most suited to the learning objective you are trying to achieve and using a variety of activities, in order to engage as many learning styles as possible. So what are these 12 activity types?

1. Quizzes

Quizzes are a fun way to engage learners and there are many types of quizzes you can devise, such as multiple-choice, true/false, or fill-in-the-blank quizzes.

You can ask participants to do quizzes on their own, or you can ask them to work in groups and even set a quiz up as a competition, whereby the group that gets the most questions right wins.

When designing a quiz, it is important to keep it simple. A quiz should lighten the mood, rather than feel like a test.

When to use quizzes: Quizzes are useful when you want your learners to revise a topic and also when you want to check their understanding.

2. Buzz Groups

Buzz groups are short discussions that are done in pairs or groups of three people at the most. They are called buzz groups because, as participants start talking, they will generate a buzzing noise in the class with their chat.

Ask your participants a question; ask them to solve a problem or to agree on a definition.

Other good types of questions for buzz groups include asking participants to find similarities and differences between concepts; discussing pros and cons or discussing the participants' opinions on something.

The question needs to be simple and to the point. Write the question somewhere where the participants can easily see it, such as on a board, a PowerPoint ppt slid e, or a handout.

Buzz groups are best when they are kept short, so give your participants up to 5 minutes and try to limit it to that timeframe.

At the end, ask each pair to report their answers to the rest of the class and then you summarize them.

When to use Buzz groups: Buzz groups are useful to engage participants who are shy and are not comfortable working with big groups. They are also good for participants to start reflecting on a topic.

3. Snowballing

This is a follow-up from buzz groups and it consists in combining small groups into bigger groups.

So, for example, after a buzz group, ask pairs to combine into groups of four and do a follow-up activity from the discussion they had in the buzz group. You can then ask the groups of four to combine into a group of eight for another subsequent activity.

When to Use Snowballing: Snowballing works best when the activities are connected and expand on each other. You can use snowballing when you want to guide your participants into developing a project, for example.

4. Brainstorming

Brainstorming consists in encouraging participants to come up with ideas to solve a problem or answer a question.

Brainstorming is done quickly as participants are encouraged to say whatever first comes to their minds. The aim here is not quality but quantity. The ideas will be analyzed and discussed later.

During brainstorming, ideas are not judged and the flow of new ideas is instead preferred. All ideas are welcome.

You can run a brainstorming session with the whole class at once, as you write down the answers, or in groups, so each group writes down their answers and then they present them to the rest of the class so the ideas can be combined or improved.

At the end, the most useful ideas are chosen.

When to use brainstorming: Brainstorming is very useful for problem-solving. Also, you can use a quick brainstorming session to introduce a new topic, so that participants come up with their own solution first before you explain the topic to them.

5. Discussions and Group Learning

When introducing a discussion, make sure that the topic meets one of the learning objectives of the course.

In order to be useful, a discussion needs to be structured and very focused.

You start a discussion with one question, and then you can have a series of follow-up questions if it is useful to delve deeper into a topic, whilst maintaining focus. For instance, as you facilitate the discussion, you can ask probing questions, such as 'Can you say a little bit more about that?'

The question needs to be clear and concise and always use open questions. A closed question only requires a yes or no answer and does not lead to any interesting discussions.

For example, if you ask 'Is team-work important?' participants may just answer yes or no and that is the end of the discussion. If, instead, you ask, 'Why is teamwork important?' they will elaborate.
Dr Valeria Lo iacono

Also, good questions are personal and/or controversial. A personal question requires the participants to express their personal opinion or to tell something that they experienced.

If you are looking for an in-depth discussion, ask participants to work in small groups as smaller groups encourage everyone to participate.

At the end of the activity, ask each group to summarize their discussion to the rest of the class (they can nominate one person to present) and then reflect with the whole class to summarize everything that all the groups have discussed.

When to use discussions: Discussions are useful when you want participants to reflect on something in-depth and for topics that involve attitudes and awareness, rather than factual information.

6. Debates

Whereas a discussion encourages participants to cooperate and to explore a topic, debates are competitive. Groups or individuals are pitched against one another to put their argument forward.

There are many ways for you to organize a debate but, just like a discussion, a debate needs to be well structured. Unless participants are already well informed about the arguments on a specific topic, give them a scenario or a case study to debate.

You can ask participants to debate in pairs or in groups. After a pair or two groups of participants debate, the other participants listen and make a decision at the end as to which argument was stronger.

Another way to run a debate is to ask each person or group at the opposite sides of the debate to switch sides at the end of the debate.

When to use debates: A debate is useful when you want learners to understand alternative viewpoints.

7. Presentations

Presentations consist in dividing participants into small groups and asking them to design a short presentation together and deliver it in front of the class.

The presentation can be produced as a result of research, or simply as a result of a short group discussion.

The difference between asking participants to just share their discussion with the rest of the class and doing a presentation is that the latter is more formal.

For a presentation, participants come to the front of the room and each person in the group takes turns delivering a part of the presentation.

Depending on the resources and time available, they can use visuals such as PowerPoint slides or a sheet of A1 paper or simply speak in front of the rest of the class.

When to use presentations: They are very useful, of course, if you are teaching presentation skills, as a way for participants to practice. They are also good for teaching other topics though, as another way to involve students actively.

To do a presentation, participants really need to focus on the topic; they need to work well together and it is a good way for them to take ownership of their learning.

8. Role-play

With role-play, you give your participants a scenario and they act it out with each participant playing a different role.

Commonly, you run role-plays in groups of three, where two participants play a role each and one participant acts as an observer (if the class is not divisible by three, there can be two observers). You can run the role-play more than once for the same group so that participants can rotate roles.

When to use role-play: Role-play is very useful for any type of training that involves interpersonal skills. For example, it is good for teaching how to give feedback, how to handle conflict, and communication skills.

Alternatively, you can have just one performance, with one group of participants acting out the roles, while the rest of the class observes.

9. Training Games for Learners

There are many games that you can do for your training sessions, too many to list here. We have listed some games in our '25 Corporate Training Activities' eBook, which you can refer to.

Games are usually fun activities that can involve the use of props; they can be competitive or at least present a challenge, and are usually done in groups. Some games can be done sitting down and others standing up or moving around.

When to use games for Classroom Training: You can use games at the start of a training session to allow participants to become familiar with each other (the so-called ice-breakers), or during the session when you want to re-energize your participants.

There are a couple of things you need to be aware of though when it comes to using games for training.

Firstly, every game must be connected to a learning objective. Asking participants to do random games that have no connection with the topic can be counterproductive (as participants will wonder what the point is) and a waste of time.

Secondly, make sure you use games that all your participants are comfortable with, based on variables such as their age, gender, culture of belonging, and job role.

10. Problem-solving Activities for Learners

Problem-solving consists in giving participants a problem to solve such as a scenario that poses a problem, a practical task to solve, a puzzle or an enigma.

When to use problem-solving: Problem-solving is useful when you want to encourage creativity; for practical topics that require hands-on involvement or for scientific subjects.

11. Case Studies in Lesson Plans

Case studies consist in practical scenarios, which reflect a real-life situation involving people (they do not have to be situations that really happened but they need to be believable and realistic).

Rather than being an activity in itself, a case study is something that can be used as material for another activity.

When to use case studies: Case studies are useful for presenting participants with scenarios that can be used for discussions, debates, problem-solving, or role-play.

The beauty of case studies is that they give participants real-life examples, which are relatable and bring a topic to life, making it relevant.

12. Asking Questions

Asking questions is not an activity as such, but it is a very important tool for a trainer to engage participants.

Instead of explaining an idea straight away to your participants, lead them to that idea by asking questions. It does not matter if they give wrong answers as you will guide them and explain the concept later.

The important thing is that the emphasis is on understanding rather than simply knowing something.

So, for example, if you are teaching presentation skills, instead of just explaining straight away what the main qualities of a good presentation are, ask your participants 'What do you think the three best qualities of a good presenter are?'.

You can also ask a series of questions to delve deeper into a topic.

You can also ask your participants questions after you have covered a topic, as a way of checking if they understood.

When to use questions: Every time you are introducing a new topic and whenever you want to reinforce the participants' learning or test their understanding.

Bonus Idea: Using Visuals

You can use visuals as a starting point for another activity. For example, you can use pictures or videos to start a conversation. Likewise, you can ask participants to produce visuals as an activity.

For instance, you can ask them to draw a picture to express a concept, to draw a diagram, or to take a photo (depending on the situation).

Another type of visual you can ask participants to draw is a mind map. Mind maps are a useful way to separate a topic into sub-topics or to look at the same topic from different points of view.

>> Buy course training materials

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12 Types of Classroom Activities for Adult leaners and Examples

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Free classroom activities you can use as a teacher or freelance trainer for teaching and training adults. Examples to engage learners.

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https://citl.indiana.edu/teaching-resources/teaching-strategies/discussions/index.html

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Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning

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Discussions
Overview
Discussion is important to learning in all disciplines because it helps students process information rather than simply receive it. Leading a discussion requires skills different from lecturing. The goal of a discussion is to get students to practice thinking about the course material. Your role becomes that of facilitator. You design and facilitate the discussion rather than convey information. If you want to hold a discussion, don't do all the talking yourself; don't lecture to the group or talk to one student at a time.
Preparing for Discussions
To start planning a discussion (or any instruction, for that matter) decide what you want your students to get out of the discussion. For example, do you want them to share responses, make new connections, and articulate the implications of a text? Should they be able to work certain problems by the end of the hour? Should they be able to interpret and critique a journalistic photograph or a piece of art? Deciding on and articulating the objective for the discussion will help you decide what kinds of discussion activities will best help your students reach that objective. Remember that you can organize a discussion in many different ways: you can have students work in small groups, role-play, choose sides for a debate, or write and share a paragraph in response to the theme in question 1. You will also want to leave time to wrap up and summarize the discussion for your students (or have students summarize it), or to debrief after activities such as debates or role-plays.
Develop a Clear Goal for the Discussion
Knowing the content to be covered is not enough. Naming the chapter your students will read is not enough. If you've only thought as far as, "I want students to know ..." you haven't thought through enough what needs to be accomplished. You should be able to articulate what the students will be able to do with the information or ideas. For example, in a philosophy class for which students have read a chapter on epistemologies or theories of knowledge, you might want students to be able to construct legitimate arguments for and against any epistemology about which they have read.
Problematize the Topic
Having a clear goal in mind makes it much easier to plan a discussion. You know what you want students to get out of it. But it is not enough: An instructor at IU several years ago told the story of how she wanted her students to deal with the issue of prejudice. She tried to start discussion merely by saying "Discuss prejudice." No one spoke. She then asked if anyone had seen prejudice. One student raised a hand. When she asked what it was like, the student merely said "awful." She had a goal, but not a problem or an activity to get the students to engage the ideas to achieve the goal.

The opposite end of the spectrum is also a problem. While "Discuss prejudice" is too open-ended, merely asking for the basic facts won't work either. You've probably heard a professor rattle off a list of questions that require only brief factual replies and little student involvement:

Q. When was the Battle of Hastings?
A. 1066.

The result could hardly be called a discussion. So, give your students an open-ended problem to solve, a task to complete, a judgment to reach, a decision to make, or a list to create-something that begs for closure.
Select a Discussion Format
Many discussion activities can be used in the classroom. Choose one that will help your students meet your goals for the discussion. The more specific you can be in assigning the task, the more likely your students will be to succeed at it. Consider the protocols for tasks such as Think-Pair-Share, Affinity Mapping, Chalk Talk and other conversation structures.
Choose a Method to Assign Students to Groups
When assigning students to groups, consider the following questions.

How big should the groups be: Two to six is ideal. Smaller groups (two-three) are better for simple tasks and reaching consensus. Also, students are more likely to speak in smaller groups. Larger groups of four-five are better for more complex tasks and generating lots of ideas.

How should students be assigned to groups: Randomly assigning students to groups avoids the problem of friends wanting to get off track. For long-term groups, you may want to select for certain attributes or skills (e.g. a statistician, a geology major, and a writer) or by interest in the topic, if different groups have different tasks.

How long should the groups meet: Just for this activity or for all semester. Stop the discussion groups while they are still hard at work; next time, they will work doubly hard. Long-term groups allow students to practice collaborative skills and make stronger bonds, but sometimes they get tired of each other.

Choose a Debriefing Method
Always debrief students; it is the most important part of a discussion, the time to summarize and synthesize. Most of learning in discussions happens during debriefing, so don't squeeze it in-a rule of thumb is to use one-third of the total discussion time for debriefing.

You can use debriefing to correct incorrect notions. You can slip in any points that students neglected but that are important. You can pick which student reports from each group, though you should tell them in advance that you plan to do this. This makes everyone in the group responsible. You don't have to hear back from every group, but can instead choose a few at random. When groups start repeating ideas, it's time to stop.

Many techniques can get students to share what their smaller groups have done with the entire class: verbally, on newsprint/flipchart, blackboard or overhead, ditto/photocopy, etc. And you don't have to hear from everyone; calling on a few groups at random to report works quite well. To encourage student cross-team competition in Team-Based Learning, reporting out from groups is simultaneous. Answers can be posted to a Powerpoint slide or pieces of newsprint hung on walls of class.
Problems with Discussion

Getting Started: Students are often reluctant to get down to work in a discussion. Students are more likely to join in discussion if you divide them into pairs or small groups and assign a specific discussion question. After a few minutes of small group discussion, ask several groups to report out their ideas to the entire class. This often helps to get discussion going because students have had a chance to "try out" their ideas on their peers. Alternatively, give students time to write individually before opening up a discussion; they are much more likely to speak up if they have some notes to speak from. Further, by allowing for this kind of pre-discussion activity, you will be able to ask more complex and interesting questions. At the same time you will be promoting equity in the conversation, allowing everyone in the class to gather his or her thoughts before speaking rather than privileging the bold or the entitled, who can otherwise dominate the discussion.

Attendance: Despite the fact that discussion section participation is a requirement for many introductory courses, students may believe that their attendance is not mandatory since the AI rather than the professor is in charge. Therefore you may want to devise a way to structure required assignments, projects or presentations into your sections so that section participation will be a part of the final course grade. If students know that the AI has some responsibility for determining their grades, that AI will have considerably more authority in the classroom or in any interactions with students.

Losing Control: One fear about discussion is the possibility that the discussion will be TOO enthusiastic or not remain civil. Develop ground rules as a class. Gently, students can be reminded that behavior X (e.g., interrupting, blatantly ignoring the conversation, showing disrespect) is not appropriate in the context of the rules the class agreed on. If no rules have been established, or if the inappropriate behavior doesn't seem to fit under the rules, you should address it immediately. Otherwise, you send a message to the students that such behavior is acceptable. Often, simply walking toward the student(s) will resolve the problem, as they will see that you are paying attention. Sometimes, however, you will need to address the problem directly. Try not to get rattled-take a deep breath, allow some silence, and then respond. This gives you some time to plan a response that models for the students how to handle a difficult situation. Remember: never shame or humiliate a student, and don't take student remarks personally-although an attack may seem personal, it may be directed at authority figures in general rather than at you in particular.

Discussion Monopolizers: If the same students answer all the time, you might say, "Let's hear from someone else." Then don't call on students who have already spoken. Do not allow one student to speak for an inordinate amount of class time. Take that person aside and ask him or her to limit comments in class. If the student does not respond to this hint, tell him or her an exact number of times he or she will be allowed to respond in class, and do not call on him or her after that number has been reached in any class period.

Controversial Topics: If you teach charged topics, prepare students for discussing them. For an article about how to build up the skills necessary to discuss sensitive topics, see "Controlled Fission: Teaching Supercharged Subjects" (Pace, 2003).

Strategies for Building Discussion throughout a Class Session

Delay the problem-solving part until the rest of the discussion has had time to develop. Start with expository questions to clarify the facts, then move to analysis, and finally to evaluation, judgment, and recommendations.

Shift points of view: "Now that we've seen it from [W's] standpoint, what's happening here from [Y's] standpoint?" "What evidence would support Y's position?" "What are the dynamics between the two positions?"

Shift levels of abstraction: if the answer to the question above is "It's just a bad situation for her," quotations help: "When [Y] says "_____," what are her assumptions?" Or seek more concrete explanations: "Why does she hold this point of view?"

Ask for benefits/disadvantages of a position for all sides.

Shift time frame-not just to "What's next?" but also to "How could this situation have been different?" "What could have been done earlier to head off this conflict and turn it into a productive conversation?" "Is it too late to fix this?" "What are possible leverage points for a more productive discussion?" "What good can come of the existing situation?"

Shift to another context: "We see how a person who thinks X would see the situation. How would a person who thinks Y see it?" "We see what happened in the Johannesburg news, how could this be handled in [your town/province]?" "How might [insert person, organization] address this problem?"

Follow-up questions: "What do you mean by ___?" Or, "Could you clarify what you said about ___?" (even if it was a pretty clear statement-this gives students time for thinking, developing different views, and exploration in more depth). Or "How would you square that observation with what [name of person] pointed out?"

Point out and acknowledge differences in discussion-"that's an interesting difference from what Sam just said, Sarah. Let's look at where the differences lie." (Let sides clarify their points before moving on).

Compare topics from a previous week-"Use the four systems of though/intellectual movements we have studied to create a slide that answers the following questions..."

References
Cashin, W. E. (2011). Effective classroom discussions. IDEA Paper number 49.

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Overview Discussion is important to learning in all disciplines because it helps students process information rather than simply receive it. Leading a discussion requires skills different from lecturing. The goal of a discussion is to get students to practice thinking about the course material. Your role becomes that of facilitator.

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Think-pair-share is a collaborative learning strategy where students work together to solve a problem or answer a question about an assigned reading. This strategy requires students to (1) think individually about a topic or answer to a question; and (2) share ideas with classmates. Discussing with…

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https://greenhearttravel.org/blog/teach-abroad-programs/teaching-tips-tuesday-creative-ways-to-get-students-talking-in-the-english-classroom

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So much goes into putting together an appealing learning environment. Packing a lesson full of entertaining activities and incorporating a motivational reward system are just a few of the necessary pieces.

One of the biggest challenges Greenheart Travel English teachers seem to face abroad is getting students to speak the language they're learning. Mainly out of fear of making a mistake, or nervousness over being the first to volunteer.

Coming up with fun activities, such as ways to randomly select students to speak, keeps everyone on their toes. Such a strategy is essential for assessing knowledge, maintaining fairness, and getting students of all ages and levels to actually converse.

Here are five creative ways to get students talking:

"Dice Roll"

Materials: You will need two or more dice.
How to use dice to choose students:

Roll two or more dice (depending on how many students are in your class).

Keep the number rolled a secret.

Give students the option of saying one, two, or three numbers in a row.

This continues down a row, or around the room, until one student says the number you rolled.

He or she then needs to say whatever it is you're practicing in English.

Start over with the next student in line.

Continue doing this until all students have had a chance to guess numbers, and when at least several have been selected to speak.

Recommendation: Let the student who said the correct number roll the dice each time.
Notes:

Make sure students begin counting at two or three, depending on how many dice are rolled. For two dice they should begin at two. For three dice they should start at three and so on.

This activity works best in medium-sized classes of 15-20 students. It could potentially take too long with larger groups.

"Popsicle Stick Selectors"

Materials: You will need enough Popsicle sticks to match the number of students in your class, a permanent marker, and a container such as a jar, bag or basket big enough to hold the sticks.
How to use Popsicle sticks to select students:

Write numbers on one end of the Popsicle sticks.

Number your students.

Pick a Popsicle stick.

The student with the same number as the Popsicle stick that was drawn must practice something in English.

Repeat this as many times as needed.

Recommendations:

Allow a different student to choose the Popsicle sticks each time.

You could also do this activity with numbered pieces of paper, dice, or Ping-Pong balls instead of using Popsicle sticks.

Note: Selecting students this way goes quickly and works well when two or more are needed to talk at the same time.

"Chopstick Pick"

Materials: You will need enough wooden chopsticks for the amount of students you have and a marker.
How to use chopsticks to pick students:

Color the ends of some of the chopsticks, but not all.

Hold the chopsticks and walk around the classroom to have each student take one.

Cover the ends of the chopsticks as students are picking so they can't see which ends are colored.

Once everyone in the class has a chopstick, inform the students that those with the colored ends need to practice saying something in English.

Recommendation: In order to maintain excitement and suspense, switch this up each time you decide to use this activity to randomly select students. For example: Instead of having the students who picked the colored chopsticks go, have those without the colored ends talk.

Note: Here are many other uses for wooden chopsticks in the English classroom!

"Catch the Bunny"

Materials needed: One small and one large ball.
How to play 'Catch the Bunny':

Have students stand or sit in a circle.

Explain that the small ball is the "bunny" and the large ball the "farmer".

The point of the activity is for the big ball to meet with the small ball (as seen in the video below).

The farmer has caught the 'bunny' once this happens, and the two students next to each other should say something in English.

Do this as long as time allows.

Video music source: bensound

Recommendation: Make sure to start the balls at different points around the circle each time, or they may end up back with the same two students over and over again.

Note: This game can be played with students of all ages; however, older or adult students may not care for the balls being referred to as a 'bunny' and a 'farmer'.

"Pass the Ball"

Materials needed: You will need at least one ball and music.
How to play 'Pass the Ball':

Once the music starts, hand the ball to one student at random.

Students pass the ball around the classroom - either standing in a circle or sitting at their desks.

Students should keep passing the ball until the music stops.

The student holding the ball when the music stops needs to say something in English.

Start the music again and repeat this activity as many times as possible.

Recommendations:

Use more than one ball at a time to get more students involved in a conversation.

Younger students really seem to enjoy passing objects like stuffed animals, soft toys, or balls with smiley faces (as pictured above).

If you don't have a way to start and stop music in the classroom, try having students sing or say a short chant.

Notes:

Make sure students pass quickly and quietly, or this could get very out of control.

Ensure students don't throw the ball during this activity unless you want a mess.

'Pass the Ball' has been particularly popular to use for teaching in South Korea!

If you're having some difficulty getting students to speak up, we're convinced these activities will make your learning environment come alive with the sound of more students practicing English! These five creative ways to get students speaking English in the classroom work especially well at the beginning and/or ending of a lesson. Do you need other lesson plan ideas and teaching inspiration? Check out our various teaching tips posts!
What other ways have you been able to get students up and talking in the English classroom? Share by commenting below!

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Teaching Tips Tuesday: Creative Ways to Get Students Talking in the English Classroom

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So much goes into putting together an appealing learning environment. Packing a lesson full of entertaining activities and incorporating a motivational reward system are just a few of the necessary pieces. One of the biggest challenges Greenheart Travel English teachers seem to face abroad is getting students to speak the language they're learning.

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KWL, exit slip, use sticky notes to have students place their note in the correct column based on their learning from the lesson. Prior Knowledge, Questions, New Knowledge.

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22.06.2014 - KWL, exit slip, use sticky notes to have students place their note in the correct column based on their learning from the lesson. Prior Knowledge, Questions, New Knowledge.

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https://www.education.vic.gov.au/school/teachers/teachingresources/discipline/english/literacy/speakinglistening/Pages/exampleclasstalk.aspx

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https://www.weareteachers.com/think-pair-share-alternatives/

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All learners need time to process new ideas and information. They especially need time to verbally make sense of and articulate their learning with a community of learners who are also engaged in the same experience and journey.

In other words, kids need to talk!!

Problem is, sometimes it's hard to stay on subject without a little guidance. That's why structured discussions really work best with children, regardless of their maturity level.

These ten discussion techniques (and a little purposeful planning) go beyond the traditional turn and talk/think-pair-share to give students an opportunity to deepen their understanding while practicing their verbal skills.

1. Double Think-Pair-Share

This technique is great for collaborating and generating many ideas on a topic. Note: Make sure students have paper and pencil handy.

Arrange students into pairs (teacher or student choice).

Pose a question that has many possible answers. For example, what are some ways our school can become more "green"?

Pause for "think time."

Partners do traditional think-pair-share, brainstorming as many ideas as they can in a set amount of time and writing their answers down on a piece of paper.

After the allotted time, each pair then finds another pair to share answers with. As the first team reads their answers aloud, the second team adds new ideas to their list or puts a check mark next to items they also thought of. The second team then shares answers that were missing from first team's list.

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2. Mingle, Pair, Share

A great activity to get kids up and moving and encourage them to interact with all of their classmates.

3. Sticky-Note Storm

This activity is great for brainstorming, reviewing, and thinking outside the box. It's also a great way for students to teach and learn from one another. It works best when kids are seated in small table groups. Note: Have a supply of sticky notes available for each table.

The teacher poses a question, sets a time limit, and gives students a moment to think before writing. For example, "In two minutes, how many math problems can you write down that have the solution 23?" or "In 45 seconds, write down as many adjectives as you can."

Each student writes down as many answers as they can think of-one idea per sticky note-and sticks it to the center of the table.

The goal is to generate as many ideas as possible and cover the table with sticky notes! At the end of each round, students review one another's ideas.

4. Sage and Scribe

In this activity, one student plays the role of teacher, and the other plays the attentive student. Explaining concepts clearly is a difficult skill that requires a lot of practice, and recording information helps students build note-taking skills.

Students work in pairs. One student is the sage (speaker) and one is the scribe (silent writer).

Pose a question and allow a few moments for sages to think. For example: "Explain how the water cycle works."

When the teacher says "go," the sage explains the process clearly to the scribe.

The scribe records the sage's thinking on paper.

When time is up, the sage and scribe switch roles with a new question.

5. Inside-Outside Circle or Parallel Lines

Also called Tea Party, Face to Face, Serpentine, Ladder

6. Detective

This activity is great for reviewing learned material or trying new versions of familiar problems. It can be used for math concepts, science lab follow-up questions, grammar exercises, reading summaries, etc. It is also good as a team-building or getting-to-know-you activity. Students will need a worksheet, a pencil, and a clipboard (if you have them, students can also write on desk surfaces).

7. Quiz, Quiz, Trade

This activity is great for test review. It gets your students up and moving. They get to ask and answer not just one, but many questions. They may even come across the same one more than once, reinforcing the concept. Kids love it because unlike drill-and-kill review sessions, this feels more like a game.

Prepare review cards with questions and answers. (This sounds time consuming, but it can be as simple as cutting up one review sheet into individual cards or having students be involved in preparing the cards.)

Pass out one review card per student.

Students stand and circulate with one hand in the air, searching for a partner.

Once they pair up, partner 1 asks partner 2 the question on their card. Partner 2 answers. If they get the answer correct, partner 1 offers praise. If not, partner 1 coaches partner 2 until the correct answer is revealed.

Partners switch roles and repeat the question-answer process.

After both partners have asked and answered, they trade cards and set off to find a new partner. The process continues for whatever amount of time the teacher determines is appropriate.

Note: The last three activities work best if students are seated in table groups of four.
8. Flash

Another great review activity. Again, you (or you and your students) will need to prepare question and answer cards. Each student will also need a dry-erase board and a marker or scrap paper and a pencil. Explain the concept of "think time" to your students before you begin so that slower processors don't feel anxious. Assign one student in each desk group to be the captain.

9. Write Around

This is a fun activity for creative writing or story summarizing. Each student needs their own piece of paper and pencil.

Ask each student to copy the sentence starter and finish the sentence on their own piece of paper.

After they have written their answer, each student passes their paper to the team member on their right.

Next, the student reads the paper they have received from their neighbor and adds a new sentence to that page.

Again, they pass the paper to their right.

After a few go-rounds, four great stories or summaries emerge.

Give students time to read their final versions add a conclusion and/or edit their favorite one to share with the class.

10. Team Huddle

This a great whole-class activity for team building and relationship strengthening. Each member of the group must cooperate and participate for the team to be successful. This activity is best used with questions that have definite right answers, not opinions. Each team needs a whiteboard and marker.

Have students in each table group to number off in their teams from one to four.

Announce a question and a time limit. For example, "How do you spell the word conservation? You have twenty seconds." or "What are three properties of a rectangle? You have forty seconds."

Students at each table group put their heads together to come up with one answer. Tell the students to speak softly so that other groups won't overhear their answer.

One student will record the group's answer on the whiteboard.

When time is up, call a number (1-4) and ask the student from each team with that number to stand at their table group holding their group's answer sheet.

When you say "reveal," each designated student will turn over their answer sheet, and the students can look around and survey the groups' different answers.

Recognize correct responses and elaborate through rich discussion. If you want to make the activity a competition, you can keep track of team points for correct answers.

We'd love to hear your think-pair-share alternatives! Come and share in our WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook. Plus, creative ways to pick partners.

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10 Fun Alternatives to Think-Pair-Share - We Are Teachers

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Kids need to talk to learn. These structured discussion techniques are fun and mix things up from the usual think-pair-share tactic.

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Whether you're a fan or not, technology is everywhere, and it will only continue to grow and be an integral part of education. The article, Here's How Technology is Shaping the Future of Education, by Zoe Bernard suggests, "...technology is already sweeping through classrooms as educators and developers create more and more products designed to enhance education." When it comes to the art room, the key is finding a balance between technology integration and traditional art processes.

As an art teacher, it's vital for us to stay informed of best practices and integrate technology into our classrooms. Not only because it helps foster our students' 21st-century learning skills but because it can be a fun and exciting addition to the art room.

Check out the top 10 ways technology can enhance the art room.

1. Technology gives students a new way to create art.

Technology in the art studio is a great way to get your students using a different type of medium. There are several apps with which students can create their own art as well as manipulate the traditional art they have made.

Apps like these also show students there are other forms of art out there like animation, green screen, and iMotion videos.

2. Technology offers many apps that allow for the transformation of traditional art.

Students have the opportunity to transform art they have created with a variety of apps. There is also a term called "app smashing" in which students can use two or more apps to transform their artwork. For example, students can take a photo of a drawing and edit it with Aviary. From there, the student could take it into another app, such as PicsArt, to add different edits. This works well with photography projects, too.

3. Technology allows for flipped learning.

Flipped learning can be a great way to share information with your students without continuously repeating yourself. If a student is late or absent, they can watch video demonstrations created using technology such as Chromebooks or iPads. Many art teachers have begun to use the flipped model to cut down on time spent reteaching concepts, when they are absent, or for student-directed learning. Flipped learning works in all types of art rooms and can be very helpful.

4. Technology can transform your teaching strategies.

Resources like projectors, document cameras, iPads, Chromebooks, and SMART boards can take teaching to the next level. We are past the times of "sit and get" where students are following a book word for word or listening to lectures. Technology allows educators to transform education and present information in new, effective ways. There are even websites available to take students on virtual tours of museums like the Louvre.

5. Technology increases opportunities for research.

Students love technology! They often spend countless hours on their smartphones, tablets, and laptops. Using these tools to benefit students educationally can be a fantastic way to get them engaged in research for class projects. For example, the article, How to Plan an Art Career Research Unit, shares ways to use technology in the classroom to get students researching art careers.

6. Technology provides ways to easily track student progress.

Digital portfolios have become popular in many art rooms. They are effective ways to see what your students are working on as well as a place for them to organize their work-and they don't take up any space. A few popular apps for digital portfolios include Creatubbles, SeeSaw, and Artsonia. Some art teachers even use Google Classroom as a way for older students to document their work.

7. Technology makes learning fun.

Finding ways to make learning more fun is essential. Learning new ways to share information, promote student collaboration, and promote 21st-century skills can not only be beneficial for developing critical thinking, communication, creativity, and collaboration but it can also be fun.

8. Technology offers a variety of opportunities to integrate formative assessments.

Assessment in the art room can be overwhelming depending on the number of students you have in your class. Technology can help ease this burden by creating fun, easy, effective ways to conduct organized formative assessments in your class. Depending on the app or platform you choose, you can cut down on paper and consolidate data in one easily accessible place.
Take a look at the following apps to get ideas of how you can use them in your classroom.
9. Technology promotes collaboration.

Collaboration allows students the opportunity to practice working well with others. There are a variety of ways to promote this skill through technology.
Here are a few resources that allow students to collaborate as they share ideas and create presentations.
10. Technology promotes engagement.

A key concern in classrooms is student engagement. In order to reach your students, the learning activities should be engaging. Technology is a great way to get your students engaged and interested in discussion topics. Whether it is viewing a Google Slide presentation of famous art or being assessed using Plickers, both can grab students' attention easily. They are interactive ways of learning that promote student engagement.

Whether you use loads of technology or are just getting started, the fact that you are implementing forms of technology in your class is a step in the right direction. As you can see, there are a variety of benefits helpful to both you and your students.
What are the benefits you see of using technology in the art room? How do you use technology in your classroom?

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10 Ways Technology Can Enhance the Art Room - The Art of Education University

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Whether you're a fan or not, technology is everywhere, and it will only continue to grow and be an integral part of education. The article, Here's How Technology is Shaping the Future of Education, by Zoe Bernard suggests, "...technology is already sweeping through classrooms as educators and developers create more and more products designed to [...]

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https://www.futureeducators.org/prior-knowledge-activities-classroom/

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https://www.classroomcheckup.org/increasing-opportunities-to-respond/

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Increasing Opportunities to Respond | Classroom Check-Up

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Opportunities to respond (OTRs) are essential for increasing overall learning, eliciting important academic feedback from students, and increasing on-task behavior.

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https://www.theteachertoolkit.com/index.php/tool/turn-and-talk

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Anticipation Guide | Classroom Strategy | Reading Rockets

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An anticipation guide is a comprehension strategy that is used before reading to activate students’ prior knowledge and build curiosity about a new topic. Before reading, students listen to or read several statements about key concepts presented in the text; they’re often structured as a series of s…

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Dipsticks - These are quick checks for understanding. 

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Dipsticks - These are quick checks for understanding. 

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Quick, formative assessments

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Edutopia is a free source of information, inspiration, and practical strategies for learning and teaching in preK-12 education. We are published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization.

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https://www.bookwidgets.com/blog/2018/06/20-interactive-teaching-activities-for-in-the-interactive-classroom

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Interactive teaching is all about instructing the students in a way they are actively involved with their learning process. There are different ways to create an involvement like this. Most of the time it's through

teacher-student interaction

student-student interaction

the use of audio, visuals, video

hands-on demonstrations and exercises

You encourage your students to be active members of your class, thinking on their own, using their brains, resulting in long-term memory retention. Not only the students' knowledge will improve, but their interest, strength, knowledge, team spirit and freedom of expression will increase as well.

In this blog post, I will talk about the use of interactive methods for teaching, encouraging more dedication towards the lesson material. We will see some interactive teaching tools, interactive teaching ideas, and interactive teaching games.
Not only will I talk about the use of interactive methods of teaching, but I'll also give you some examples of methods used in the present classroom as well.

Ready? Let's find out some interactive classroom activities to engage your pupils!

3 Effective interactive teaching strategies to encourage speech in your classroom

First, I want to put some activities in the spotlight. The following interactive student activities are three of the most effective ways to encourage more speech in your classroom.

1. Think, pair and share

Set a problem or a question around a certain topic, and pair up your students. Give each pair of students enough time so they can reach a proper conclusion, and permit the kids to share their conclusion in their voice. This way your students will be engaged, communicating, and remember more of the class than ever before.

2. Brainstorming

Interactive brainstorming is mostly performed in group sessions. The process is useful for generating creative thoughts and ideas. Brainstorming helps students learn to work together, and above all, learn from each other. You'll be surprised by all the great ideas they come up with! Check out these 8 fun brainstorming apps you can use in your classroom, or use BookWidgets' Mindmap widget to structure thinking.

3. Buzz session

Participants come together in session groups that focus on a single topic. Within each group, every student contributes thoughts and ideas. Encourage discussion and collaboration among the students within each group. Everyone should learn from each other's input and experiences. As a teacher, you could give your students some keywords to spark the conversation.

Of course, there are many other interactive teaching ideas as well. I split up the activities in different categories:

Individual student activities

Student pair activities

Student group activities

Interactive game activities

Individual student activities

4. Exit slips

These are best used at the end of the class session. You'll ask the students to write for one minute on a specific question. It might be generalized to "what was the most important thing you learned today". Then, you can decide if you are going to open up a conversation about it in your next class. You can ask them if they still remember what they wrote down. Need a digital exit slip template? Try this one from BookWidgets and learn more about the possibilities of an exit slip. Looking for inspiration? Check this out! You will find 60 examples of digital exit tickets.

5. Misconception check

Discover students' misconceptions. See if students can identify what is the correct answer when given a false fact. It's useful when going over a previous lesson. It encourages students to think deeply and wager all the possibilities.

6. Circle the questions

Make a worksheet or a survey that has a list of questions (make them specific) about your topic, and ask students to circle (or check) the ones they don't know the answers to. Then, let them turn in the paper.

Create corners concerning different questions that were circled. Let your students work on the extra exercises and explanation in the corners, individually. As your students will all have circled different questions, you have to give each student a different and personalized order to visit the corners.

7. Ask the winner

Ask students to silently solve a problem on the board. After revealing the answer, instruct those who got it right to raise their hands (and keep them raised). Then, all other students have to talk to someone with a raised hand to better understand the question and how to solve it next time.

Student pair activities

8. Pair-share-repeat

After a Think-pair-share experience, which I've written about in the first interactive learning lesson idea, you can also ask students to find a new partner and share the wisdom of the old partnership to this new partner.

9. Teacher and student

Let students brainstorm the main points of the last lesson. Then, pair up your students and assign them 2 roles. One of them is the teacher, and the other the student. The teacher's job is to sketch the main points, while the student's job is to cross off points on his list as they are mentioned and come up with 2 to 3 points that the teacher missed.

10. Wisdom from another

After an individual brainstorm or creative activity, pair students to share their results. Then, call for volunteers who found their partner's work to be interesting or exemplary. Students are often more willing to share the work of fellow students publicly than their work. Of course, you can always encourage sharing their objectives as well.

11. Forced debate

Let students debate in pairs. Students must defend the opposite side of their personal opinion. It encourages them to step away from their own beliefs and teaches them to look through a different colored glass once in a while.

Variation: one half of the class takes one position, the other half takes the other position. Students line up and face each other. Each student may only speak once so that all students on both sides can engage the issue.

12. Optimist/Pessimist

In pairs, students take opposite emotional sides of a case study, statement, or topic. Encourage them to be empathic and truly "live" the case study. You'll discover some good solution proposals and your students will learn some exceptional social skills.

13. Peer review writing task

To assist students with a writing assignment, encourage them to exchange drafts with a partner. The partner reads the essay and writes a three-paragraph response: the first paragraph outlines the strengths of the essay, the second paragraph discusses the essay's problems, and the third paragraph is a description of what the partner would focus on in revision if it were her essay. Students can learn a lot from each other and themselves as well! Here are 10 more creative self-assessment ideas.

Student group activities

14. Board rotation

This interactive learning strategy is even more interactive than others! Divide your class into different groups of students and assign them to each of the boards you've set up in the room. Assign one topic/question per board. After each group writes an answer, they rotate to the next board. Here, they write their answer below the first answer of the previous group. Let them go around the room until all the groups have covered all the boards. Not that many boards in your classroom? Try using tablets and BookWidgets' interactive whiteboard.

15. Pick the Winner

Divide the class into groups and let them work on the same topic/problem. Let them record an answer/strategy on paper or digitally. Then, ask the groups to switch with a nearby group and let them evaluate their answer. After a few minutes, allow each set of groups to merge and ask them to select the best answer from the two choices, which will be presented to the complete class.

16. Movie Application

In groups, students discuss examples of movies that made use of a concept or event discussed in class, trying to identify at least one way the movie makers got it right, and one way they got it wrong. Think about movies showing historical facts, geographical facts, biographies of famous people, ...

Interactive game activities

Create an interactive classroom full of interactive learning games. Games are so much fun for students since it doesn't feel like learning. With BookWidgets, you can make interactive learning games like crossword puzzles, pair matching games, bingo games, jigsaw puzzles, memory games, and many more in minutes (and there's a Google Classroom integration as well).

17. Crossword puzzle

The crossword game is perfect to use as repetition activity. Choose a list of words and their description, and BookWidgets creates an interactive crossword for you. The crossword game transforms these boring lessons into a fun experience. Here you can read more about how to create them and for which topics you can use them (not only for teaching languages)!

18. Scrabble

Use the chapter (or course) title as the pool of letters from which to make words (e.g., mitochondrial DNA), and allow teams to brainstorm as many words relevant to the topic as possible. You can also actually play scrabble and ask students to form words from the newly learned vocabulary.

19. Who/what am I?

Tape a term or name on the back of each student. You can also tape it on their forehead. Each student walks around the room, asking "yes or no" questions to the other students in an effort to guess the term. Of course, the term has something to do with your lesson topic.

20. Bingo

Bingo is a fun game that can be used for all sorts of exercises: language exercises, introductory games, math exercises, etc. Take a look at this blog post with all the different bingo possibilities here. You'll be surprised about how many interactive lesson activities you can do with just one game.

Want to create a bingo game yourself? You can start for free right here:

Wrap up

That's it! Like in any list, you could add many other interactive lesson ideas. I could go on for quite a while myself. But what about you? Share your creative, interactive classroom ideas in our Facebook Group. This way, we can build out this article with many more great ideas!

One more thing... Don't forget to follow us on Twitter! 😉

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20 interactive teaching activities for in the interactive classroom

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Interactive teaching is all about instructing the students in a way they are actively involved with their learning process. There are different ways to create an involvement like this.

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Kahoots
Written/verbal exits
Move around room writing graffiti
Journal entry
Using the padlet

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https://activate.press/activating-prior-knowledge-strategies-examples/

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Have you ever noticed that learning something new can seem quite simple at times but more difficult on other occasions? Often, access to prior knowledge, to what students already know, is the difference. By activating prior knowledge, teachers can make learning easier for students.

In this article, we'll describe prior knowledge and why it might make learning new things quicker and more efficient. We'll also look at some strategies and examples for activating prior knowledge by having students write down what they know or talk in a whole class discussion.

What is Prior Knowledge?

Prior knowledge refers to the information and educational environment that a student possesses before learning new material. An individual's schema refers to their organization, storage and recall of prior information.

When students lack sufficient prior information, learning relies on building a schema from the ground up instead of using existing foundations. As a result, new learning can be challenging and exhausting. A learner's ability to generate new information is ultimately hampered if they lack past knowledge.

As long as our prior knowledge is accurate and consist with new information, prior knowledge benefits the learning process. The more prior knowledge, the better.
Learning Lab

Taking advantage of existing knowledge before working on a topic can increase a learner's comprehension and academic literacy. In a specific domain, activating prior knowledge relies on facts, rules and relationships between concepts.

Students' prior knowledge has long been thought to be the most influential factor for academic learning and performance. Both information acquisition and the ability to use high-order cognitive problem-solving skills are positively influenced by the amount and quality of past knowledge.

Strategies to Activate Prior Knowledge

You can use strategies to activate prior knowledge or background knowledge deliberately. Indeed, any teacher should instinctively try to do this when introducing challenging new material. These are some well-established strategies for activating prior knowledge that can easily be modified and applied less formally if you want.

1. Anticipation guide

An anticipation guide is a set of ideas about a topic created by the teacher that students answer before learning or reading about the subject. They're frequently set out as a list of assertions with which students must agree or disagree. This can be done verbally or in writing.

Teachers can use an anticipation guide to determine the main content on which students will focus during the class. It's a good idea to have students examine their anticipation guides towards the end of each module to evaluate how their thoughts have changed.

2. Mind map classroom brainstorm

Here is a mind map brainstorm activity that you can do with the whole class or just individually. When you introduce a new topic that students have some familiarity with already, activate students' prior knowledge with a mind map.

You'll get the student(s) to create a mind map of concepts related to the topic. Follow these steps.

Write down the concept, e.g. the "Solar System", inside a circle on a whiteboard or large piece of paper.

Around the circle, have students write down as many related terms and phrases as they can think of. For example, they might write Earth, sun, orbit, planets, one year, Mars and Venus.

Limit the amount of time students have. This speeds up the pace and excitement of the activity.

Keep the mind map visible in the classroom as you explore the main topic, adding new terms and facts as you go.

3. Concept maps

The next step up from a simple mind map is a concept map. Whereas a mind map is about presenting information visually, a concept map also tries to show relationships between elements.

A concept map is a visual representation of a structured overview. It is a representation of a topic's essential terms and concepts. The subtopics are connected by lines, indicating their link to the main idea and to one another. The general main points are often in the center, with lines connecting the specifics or examples to these main points.

Such a diagrammatic presentation of a topic facilitates the integration of new information with students' background knowledge. Teachers can use concept maps to present a topic, determine what learner's know about the topic, and provide a foundation for further study.

4. Brainstorming related terms

A strategy to incorporate students' prior knowledge in learning is to brainstorm related terms. This is an informal blend of the mind map and concept map approaches. Before formally studying a topic, the teacher (a) asks students to suggest terms that may come up and (b) as the terms are suggested, asks students to explain what those terms mean and how they relate to the parent topic.

You can see an example of this approach in the video above. The teacher is introducing a non-fiction text on endangered species as part of a guided reading class. Students are asked what terms may come up based just on the front cover of the book, suggesting words such as extinct, habitat and hunter. As a follow up, they're also asked to clarify what the terminology means and how it connects to the endangered species theme.

5. Preparatory texts

Providing easy preparatory texts can be highly beneficial to establish reading confidence and build background knowledge. As a strategy to establish knowledge on the subject, teachers can present simplified texts that address subjects or ideas similar to those in more complicated works.

Examples of Activating Prior Knowledge

To explain how you might activate prior knowledge, let's start with a couple of examples.

Example 1. Learning the meaning of "prior knowledge"

This article offers a good example in itself of using pre-existing knowledge. You might not have known the concept of prior knowledge beforehand.

But you would understand what the word "prior" means (before). And you know that "knowledge" is about information.

By attempting to decode and relate both words, you may quickly figure out what prior knowledge loosely means. Your initial concept is hopefully being refined as your brain processes the information you are reading.

If you didn't know what either of those words meant before you found the article, you probably wouldn't have made much progress yet. Looking up and understanding the words would have slowed you down from the start.

To help someone understand the meaning of prior knowledge, we can also use similar expressions, such as background knowledge, existing knowledge or even known information. The more we're able to relate a new concept to what we already know, the faster and more accurately we assimilate that concept.

Example 2. Transferring Concepts Between Sports

Here is another example. Maureen is learning how to play soccer. She is already aware that basketball players have offensive and defensive responsibilities.

In soccer, the concept of offense and defense is a little different because teams have people who exclusively play offense and others who just play defense. Nonetheless, because she had some previous experience with this concept in the sport of basketball, her brain is able to relate it to the new concept in soccer.

Maureen's learning and understanding of the sport of soccer is made easier because of her previous knowledge of basketball. She quickly adapts to running back and marking up players when asked to play defence. When moved into offence, she instinctively knows to try to create space between herself and opposition players.

Research on Prior Knowledge

With English language learners (ELLs) for example, Jana Echevarria and Deborah Short discovered that utilizing and building past knowledge is critical to enhancing educational proficiency.

According to Carnegie Mellon psychologists, learning anything new is easier when we can connect it to something that we already know; to our background knowledge.

Other research, such as the article "Prior knowledge activation: Inducing engagement with informational texts", backs up the premise that prior knowledge activation is an important phase in the learning experience. Access to prior knowledge was found to be crucial to reading comprehension and the learning process.

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Activating Prior Knowledge: Strategies, Examples

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Have you ever noticed that learning something new can seem quite simple at times but more difficult on other occasions? Often, access to prior knowledge, to what students already know, is the difference. By activating prior knowledge, teachers can make learning easier for students.

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https://www.teachervision.com/classroom-management/talk-it-out-together

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For Remote or In-Person Classrooms

Factile is a free learning platform that lets teachers create engaging jeopardy-style quiz games for the remote or in-person classroom

Assess students' understanding of new topics or review the latest concepts using our simple, user-friendly gameboard template. Create and share your games with students, or search our database of already-created games. Use Factile with Google Classroom to easily assign games and flashcards to your class.
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Classroom Jeopardy Review Game | Buzzer Mode | Factile

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Create your own Jeopardy template online without PowerPoint, or browse the pre-made templates to play Jeopardy-style classroom games or quizzes in minutes.

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MakeMusic’s music solutions include our Practice, Compose, and Sight Reading Builder tools to help performers become their best.

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A state Teacher of the Year shares her techniques for increasing the number of students who talk and share their ideas in class.

While it is possible to learn by listening, I've found that oral participation leads to greater gains in student literacy and engagement. English language learners in particular benefit from ample talk time, but they are not the only ones.

Yet I've also found that without careful planning, a few students do most of the talking while the majority of the class remains silent. My students all have ideas, but only some of them share those ideas on a regular basis. Adding wait time after I ask a question helps more students get into the conversation, but still the more confident students are more likely to raise their hands.

Because of this, I pay close attention to who is participating in my high school English classroom and to the structures I'm using to promote participation. I mix and match from the following strategies depending on the students in the room and my goals for the lesson.

9 Ways to Encourage More Students to Talk

1. Who talks first? When students turn and talk, I decide who talks first. The person on the right? The person whose birthday is coming soonest? The person with the longest hair? Without this direction, some students dominate partner talk time.

2. Write, pair, share: Many of us use the think, pair, share model, but substituting writing for silent thinking can improve both the quality of the conversation and the number of students who contribute. As students write, I walk around, reading over their shoulders and writing things like, "That's good. Say that!" on the papers of quieter or less confident students. I can also see which and how many students are stuck, so I know if I need to add more scaffolding.

3. Pairs and squares: I assign students a partner (pair) to work with for three weeks, as well as a square (two pairs combined). I promote camaraderie in pairs and squares by having students learn each other's names (with spelling and pronunciation), gender pronouns, and something people can't tell by looking at them. They also make up a handshake they use each day to greet each other.

They talk in their pairs from bell to bell between direct instruction about the topics of the day. Currently, my sophomores are engaging in a nonfiction unit on happiness, so today we discussed the correlation between money and happiness, and students worked in their pairs to annotate an article, but when we analyzed some rather complex graphs and charts, they moved into their squares so they could have more brain power.

After three weeks, each student thanks their partner for something they did for them and shares what they think was the pair's best moment together. By the end of the year, every student has worked with every other classmate-either in pairs or squares-which promotes a strong classroom community and helps students feel more comfortable participating.

4. Nonverbal agreement or disagreement: I have my students use the American Sign Language signs for "yes" and "no" in whole class discussion to show their agreement or disagreement with the speaker. This keeps students engaged, gives the speaker immediate feedback on their ideas, and gives all students a nonverbal voice.

5. Metacognitive goal-setting: Every few weeks, I have students reflect on their participation habits and set goals for a particular discussion. Students get an index card at the beginning of class and write a quantitative and a qualitative goal for their participation for the day. As they set their quantitative goals, I encourage them to think of "stepping up and stepping back"-what would be a healthy number of times for them to speak that day? Should they talk more frequently, or refrain from talking in order to make space for others to talk?

For their qualitative goal, they consider whether they need to ask more questions and whether they should do things like build on others' ideas or use text to support their points.

Throughout class, students take notes on their own contributions to the discussion, write down what they said (and didn't say), and tally the overall number of times they talked. They end class by reflecting on their participation. Did they meet their goals? Why or why not? Can they set some new goals for themselves? This card is their exit ticket for the day.

6. Talking piece: For some small group discussions, we use a ball as a talking piece that students pass around-only the person holding the ball can speak. Every student gets the ball once before anyone gets it a second time. This is particularly effective when discussing very emotionally charged topics, like issues of race or gender, when we want to be certain that everyone has the opportunity to share their experiences.

7. Musical give one, get one: When I want students to hear a lot of ideas, I have them write down their thoughts and then stand up, walk around to as many people as they can, and write down one idea of each person they talk to. I usually do this to music-students need to get to as many people as they can before the song ends.

8. Musical shares: This is similar to the last idea but is better for sharing longer, more in-depth answers. I put on a song, and students walk or dance around the room. When the music stops, they talk to the person closest to them about their ideas. I use a timer to ensure equity of sharing here-each person speaks for one minute.

9. Keeping track: I keep a blank grade book roster on a clipboard, and while students are working in pairs, I put a tally mark next to each student's name every time I hear them speak during class. I'm sure I don't catch everything, but the act of keeping track forces me to notice the participation patterns in the room and to seek out those who have learned to fly under the radar.

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9 Strategies for Getting More Students to Talk

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A state Teacher of the Year shares her techniques for increasing the number of students who talk and share their ideas in class. While it is possible to learn by listening, I've found that oral participation leads to greater gains in student literacy and engagement.

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https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1074295619835207

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How to Use a KWL Graphic Organizer

You can start on a project with your class by asking them to research a particular topic. This could be an event in history, a science principle, or a book you are teaching in class.

You can encourage them to think of each column in the KWL chart as,:

What I know: "At first I was thinking....because..."

What I want to know: "When I was reading, I was thinking...because..."

What I have learned: "By the end, I was thinking...because..."

Once they have a starting point, use the process below to help them think about the subject.

Image credit: HMH Into Reading
Preview the Chart

Guide students to explore the KWL chart, emphasizing these key points:

When you synthesize information, you combine what you already know with what you learn to develop a new understanding.

Readers apply their own knowledge, or their background knowledge, to what they read. Background knowledge is also called prior knowledge.

Reading is a way to learn new things. When readers learn something new, they think about how it fits with what they already know.

When readers synthesize their background knowledge and their new learning, they form new ideas.

Apply to Topic

Supply a new or familiar text. As applicable, use questions and prompts such as those below to support application of the concept.

What are you learning as you read? Did you learn anything new that you did not know before?

What new knowledge do you have on the topic after reading?

What information did you synthesize to form your new knowledge?

As appropriate, tailor instruction, as needed, by prompting students to . . .

Respond to guided questions asking them to identify background knowledge and new information on a topic.

Draw diagrams that illustrate how their background knowledge plus added information resulted in new knowledge.

List what they already know about a topic before reading and rewrite the list after reading to illustrate how their thinking changed.

Write a paragraph explaining how their thinking changed after they synthesized information.

Synthesize information across multiple texts about the same topic to arrive at a new understanding.

Build Independence

Have individuals or partners finish the current topic and begin a new one, using the graphic organizer as a scaffold for synthesizing text information.

Download the Graphic Organizer

Download the free printable KWL chart template. Ask students to brainstorm their research topic and pose questions about it. You can do this as an entire class or each student can work on this individually. As students start their research, have them ask what they know (K), what they want to know (W), and what they have learned (L) about a topic.

**

For more free graphic organizer resources, check out these blogs:

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Guiding Student Research with a KWL Chart Template

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You can start on a project with your class by asking them to research a particular topic. This could be an event in history, a science principle, or a book you are teaching in class. You can encourage them to think of each column in the KWL chart as,: What I know: "At first I was thinking....because..."

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Youtube

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https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.learningbyinquiry.com/simple-strategies-to-activate-students-prior-knowledge/&ved=2ahUKEwjF3d--xsD9AhWOEUQIHd86DucQFnoECCYQAQ&usg=AOvVaw1LPLknJKIn0V-Bb9vcZaPP

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https://m.busyteacher.org/16508-speaking-6-fabulous-games-teach-students.html

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It's only natural. After all, they are trying to talk in a language they are still working on learning. Still, silence can be deadly in the ESL classroom for your students and you. When you want to get your students to speak up, try one of these fun and simple games to get them talking in class.

Try These 6 Involving Activities for Students to Speak Up

This is How We Roll

You can use this simple game as a get to know you at the start of school or later as a get to know you better activity. All you need is one standard die and six questions - either ice breakers or ones that elicit opinions, experience or other personal thoughts. Be creative and choose the ones you'd like to hear your students answer. Give students a list of the questions, and make sure they are numbered on the paper. Then, have students take turns rolling the die. Whatever number they roll, that is the question they must answer. You could do this activity as a class, in smaller groups or as a public speaking activity. For the latter, have students prepare answers to each question as homework and then have them share in front of the class after they roll.

Human Experience Bingo

Your students are probably already familiar with the rules of Bingo. Simply get five numbers in a line on a chart. You can use this as a basis for another get to know you game. Work with your class to compile a list experiences that a person might have had. For example:

These would be good experiences and work together on the list until you have about 30-40 different experiences. (You can also compile the list on your own if you prefer.) Then, give students a blank bingo board (a 5x5 chart) and have them write one experience in each of the boxes. On your word, students mingle and talk to each other to find someone with each experience they have chosen. If a student finds someone who, for example, has gone scuba diving, that student signs the square where your student wrote it on his Bingo board. The first person to get five in a row yells, "Bingo!" Another variation is to arrange students speed dating style: two rows of chairs facing each other. Each pair then gets two minutes to talk with each other. When time is up, the students in one row shift one chair to the right. The game is over once someone has gotten five spaces in a row on their bingo board.

Character Trait Roulette

This game works best for students who already know each other fairly well. Work as a group to come up with a list of several character traits a person might have. (Try to stick to positive traits.) You might include adventurous, sympathetic and generous. Then write these traits on small slips of paper and put them in a bag. Each person takes a turn drawing one character trait from the bag in front of the class. The student must then announce who in class (and you are fair game, too) possesses that character trait. Of course, a name isn't enough. The person must tell a story or give an example of why he made his particular choice.

Story Starter Hot Potato

Put the list of story starters in your writing drawer to double duty with this silly and fast paced game. Students play in small groups of around five members. Students should arrange their seats in a circle. Give your class a story starter at the beginning of the round. Starting with the person whose birthday is closest to today and them moving around the circle, each person gives his group one sentence of the story. After one person is done, the person sitting to his left adds a line where the first person left off. Students continue around the circle, adding one sentence at a time, until the music stops or until you give another signal. Whoever is in the middle of his sentence or is struggling to think of a sentence when the music stops is out. He must leave the circle. Then students play a second round either continuing the story or with a new story starter. When you stop the music, whoever's turn it is is eliminated. Play continues until the final round when the person not speaking when the music stops is the winner.

Find Your Partner

Prepare a small slip of paper for each student in your class. Each paper should have one word on it that goes with a word on another slip of paper. For example matching pairs might be:

Fork and spoon

Day and night

Bat and ball

Table and chairs

Hide and Speak

To prepare for this energetic and fast paced game, write several questions each on one index card or post-it note. These questions can be get to know you questions, comprehension questions or questions using current vocabulary words. Before your students arrive, hide these cards throughout your classroom. At the start of class, break your students into two teams. Explain that you have hidden cards throughout the room. On your word, students will search the room for the cards you have hidden. They can only pick up one card at a time. When a student finds a card, he must bring it to you and answer the question on the card. If he answers it correctly, he earns the card for his team. If he does not answer it correctly, he must get someone else from his team to help him find the answer. Once students have correctly answered the question on their card, they can search for another card. At the end of the game (after a certain amount of time or when all the cards have been found) the team with the most cards in their possession wins.

Speaking doesn't have to be forced or boring when it comes to ESL class. These games are just a few of the fun ways to get your students speaking up and having a good time while they practice their English.

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It's only natural. After all, they are trying to talk in a language they are still working on learning. Still, silence can be deadly in the ESL classroom for your students and you. When you want to get your students to speak up, try one of these fun and simple games to get them talking in class.

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HyperDocs are digital lesson plans that are designed by teachers and given to students. They provide access for students to all content and learning in one organized digital space. HyperDocs shift instruction by giving students the content to explore before direct instruction, and by asking students to apply their learning using the 4 C's: critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity. We can't always do things the way we've always done them and we encourage you to consider, "What is it that I can do now that I couldn't do before?"

HyperDocs, a transformative, interactive Google Doc replacing the worksheet method of delivering instruction, is the ultimate change agent in the blended learning classroom. With strong educational philosophies built into each one, HyperDocs have the potential to shift the way you instruct with technology. They are created by teachers and given to students to engage, educate, and inspire learning. It's not about teaching technology, it's about using technology to TEACH.

Things you can do with a HyperDoc
A true HyperDoc is much more than some links on a document.

Creators deliberately choose web tools to give students opportunities to Engage * Explore * Explain * Apply * Share * Reflect * Extend the learning.

Digital collaboration is choreographed to give every student a voice and a chance to be heard by their classmates.

Critical thinking and problem-solving skills can be developed through linked tasks.

Students have an opportunity to create authentic digital artifacts to show what they know and connect with a wider audience.

What do HyperDocs Look Like?

HyperDocs are digital lessons designed by teachers and given to students. What platform you choose to design them on is up to you (we can teach you how)! How you choose to get them to students is also up to you (we have a course for that)! The most popular platform to use is by far Google Docs and Google Slides but those should never be the limiting factors in your amazing designs.

These icons lead to folders with sample lessons made by teachers just like you! Take a moment to explore them and get a sense of what they look and feel like. If you're looking for more, head .

Want to see a lesson being taught with a HyperDoc? Check out this Workshop Model lesson about commas using HyperDocs.

How to start using HyperDocs

Find a HyperDoc just right for your classroom and try it out yourself! The best way to learn about how HyperDocs work is to use one. Use one of our many samples or take a look at our templates.

After you find one you'd like to use, File > Make a Copy and edit the HyperDoc to meet the needs of your students and your learning environment.

Here is a video about how to modify HyperDocs. Here is the HyperDoc that is being modified.

If you'd like to learn more about getting Started with HyperDocs. We suggest our, "Getting Started Course Pathway" which is 100% and a great way to learn more about what a HyperDoc is and how to get started mastering the design and delivery of them. We also have a Remote Teaching Course Pathway that is also totally free. Click the images below to check them out!

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HyperDocs are digital lesson plans that are designed by teachers and given to students. They provide access for students to all content and learning in one organized digital space. HyperDocs shift instruction by giving students the content to explore before direct instruction, and by asking students to apply their learning using the 4 C's: critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity.

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Kahoot! | Learning games | Make learning awesome!

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Kahoot! is a game-based learning platform that brings engagement and fun to 1+ billion players every year at school, at work, and at home.

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https://www.gimkit.com/

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Gimkit is a game show for the classroom that requires knowledge, collaboration, and strategy to win. Get started for free!

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https://esolonline.tki.org.nz/ESOL-Online/Planning-for-my-students-needs/Resources-for-planning/ESOL-teaching-strategies/Thinking-and-metacognition/Activating-prior-knowledge#:~:text=Some%20commonly%20used%20strategies%20to,knowledge%20of%20their%20first%20language.

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Activating prior knowledge is like preparing the soil before sowing the seeds of knowledge says Jim Cummins. By tapping into what students already know, teachers help with the learning process. This is because learning is relating the new information, or concepts, to what we already know.

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This post contains affiliate links. I earn a small commission from these links, at no cost to you.
Hands down, my favorite review game is "Trash"ketball. I have fun every time my students play it and my students LOVE it. I've even had former students come by and ask me to teach their current teachers how to play it.

I didn't come up with this idea myself; I think it's been around awhile. I have played this game many times and have added my own spin and extra rules.

First, you need a bunch of worksheets that practice the desired skill. I normally have 1-2 worksheets for each skill of the unit. The game works best if you have about 10 worksheets. The students will not get to all of the worksheets, that's expected.

When I play Trashketball, I typically make my own worksheets. They're not pretty at all (sometimes it's just photocopies of problems I have written on paper with a marker), but it doesn't really matter. If you don't want to make your own worksheets, there are multiple places online where you can get free worksheets (I like Kuta).

Notice that all of the worksheets have a large letter at the top. This is so that you can quickly differentiate between worksheets. This game can get fast-paced, so details like this are important.

Make a key for all of the worksheets. I usually draw blanks for the students to write their answers on; it makes checking much faster for me. Sometimes, I won't check their individual answers, I just make them put the sum at the top of the page.

I like to write my answers in marker and staple all of the keys together. I can check faster that way. Do whatever will be quickest for you.

Make a zillion copies. Yes, this game is a MAJOR tree killer. That's why I only play it a couple of times per year. I'm sure there are ways to go around this. Part of the allure of this game is that you get to throw wadded up paper. When you make your copies, make them collated. Then, when you pass out papers each student will get a different paper without any extra effort from you.

I also like to print a roster of my students so that I can keep track of which students have completed which worksheets. I've found that this dramatically reduces cheating attempts, helps me keep an eye on students that may be struggling, and helps me identify superstars. This is totally optional.

Set up trashcans and a "foul line". I have two trash cans, so I make one close for a "one-pointer" and one farther away for a "two-pointer". Sometimes I allow pre-approved trick shots for a "three-pointer". Trick shots I've allowed in the past include throwing it over your shoulder, throwing it with your non-dominate hand, and the whole class drumming on their desk to distract you. Three-point shots can get rowdy, so know your class and your re-directing abilities. :)

Pass out a worksheet to each student. Students will work on the worksheet. When they are finished, they will come to you to check it.

Check the worksheet. I typically do not tell my students which problems that they missed, only how many problems they missed. If the student missed any questions, they go back to their seat to figure out where they went wrong. If the student is correct, they get to "shoot".

I make the students keep score themselves. I also tell them that if there is even an inkling of cheating, gameplay will stop immediately and the rest of the worksheets will be homework. I have smaller classes, so I usually do two teams and have them keep score on the whiteboard.

One of the cool things about this game is that you can tweak the rules to fit whatever your students need. You can have your students work in partners or work alone. Students can be allowed to use their notes or have to do everything from memory. There is no one certain way to play this game. If you want to play, but don't want to kill a forest, this Nerf basketball set

is pretty cool. Students could work on whiteboards and shoot into the basket.

I played this when my students were practicing special right triangles. You can download the worksheets that I used here and here. The answer key is not included.

You should try this game; it's a blast!

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This post contains affiliate links. I earn a small commission from these links, at no cost to you. Hands down, my favorite review game is "Trash"ketball. I have fun every time my students play it and my students LOVE it. I've even had former students come by and ask me to teach their current teachers how to play it.

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What are Ways Your Kiddos Can Respond/Engage with the Lesson?

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What are Ways Your Kiddos Can Respond/Engage with the Lesson?

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Other ways to deliver information besides preaching!

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Science shows that for new knowledge to stick, there must be an element of prior knowledge

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What Strategies Can We Use to Hook Them?

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What Strategies Can We Use to Hook Them?