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Franceck, M. (2023, May 24). Gallery walk. Gallery Walks. https://serc.carleton.edu/introgeo/gallerywalk/index.html#:~:text=In%20addition%20to%20addressing%20a,listening%20skills%2C%20and%20team%20building.

Jenn. (2022, April 12). The need for movement in the classroom: Student-centered world. Student Centered World. https://www.studentcenteredworld.com/movement-in-the-classroom/

Miller, A. (2015, September 2). Using assessment to create student-centered learning. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/assessment-create-student-centered-learning-andrew-miller

Peer assessment: Center for teaching innovation. Peer assessment | Center for Teaching Innovation. (n.d.). https://teaching.cornell.edu/teaching-resources/assessment-evaluation/peer-assessment

Penullar, A. (2016). How to include physical movement as a central element of a student-centered classroom.
teachnowaug15c2 [licensed for non-commercial use only] / How to include physical movement as a central element of a student-centered classroom. http://teachnowaug15c2.pbworks.com/w/page/100864666/How%20to%20include%20physical%20movement%20as%20a%20central%20element%20of%20a%20student-centered%20classroom

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Encourage students to engage in self-assessment and reflection on their own learning progress. Provide opportunities for students to evaluate their own work against the learning objectives and criteria, identifying strengths and areas for improvement. This promotes metacognition, self-awareness, and active participation in the learning process.

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4 ideas for building self-evaluation into the learning process

Project-based learning is a student-centered approach to learning, so it is natural to make student self-evaluation an integral part of the process.

Providing time for students to reflect on their work, helps them make connections to previous learning and experience. As Rachel Showalter observes, "students cannot truly improve their product without understanding the content." Combining this opportunity to deepen learning through reflection with time to self-correct and improve, is an essential step towards meeting standards.

Many educators implementing a PBL or STEM approach use a design process that includes a specific Improve phase that asks students to stop, reflect, and evaluate their work with the intent of returning to the ideation phase to improve upon it.

Asking students to evaluate their strengths, weaknesses, progress, and growth, helps them more deeply understand the causes of their successes and failures and become aware of their learning. This also helps them see more clearly where to focus their energy to have the greatest impact. As they grow their metacognitive skills, students are better able to meet the challenges and thrive in directing their own learning.

Make sure students are clear on standards, learning, and project goals

Before you begin integrating reflection and self-assessment, make sure students have a clear definition or picture of what success looks like. A rubric or checklist can help provide students with criteria they can use to evaluate the success of their work and progress toward academic, personal, and social goals. Successful rubrics and checklists include criteria that provide specific actions students can take to improve their work.

Build in reflection time and procedures for self-assessment

Reflection and student self-assessment require time and are most successful when you add specific procedures for them during the learning process. Work in time for reflection, as well as time to improve their work based on the evaluation.

Here are a few ideas to help you integrate reflection and student self-assessment throughout the process of learning.

Daily Reflection Journals

One of the easiest ways to begin implementing reflection into your classroom is to have students keep a project journal or work log. Provide reflection prompts, or questions, like:

What new content knowledge did you learn today?

How did your effort contribute to your success?

What should you focus on next?

Reflection journals provide artifacts both you and your students can use to see and evaluate growth and progress.

Download a sample Project Reflection page

If journaling seems like it will take too much classroom time, use the last 2 minutes of class for a 3-2-1 exit ticket.

Summative Self-Assessments

In addition to daily journaling, have students complete a summative self-assessment that asks them to reflect on the strengths and weaknesses of their product or performance and evaluate their efforts during the development process. You might ask them to reflect on:

content knowledge gained.

project management, leadership, and other skills acquired.

obstacles and how they overcame them.

conflicts within a team and their resolution.

personal insights gained from product and process.

Written self-assessments are a natural part of the reflection process after students complete a project or performance. However, providing time to evaluate their work before it is complete, allows students to improve their work and honors that learning is an iterative process.

Peer Review and Feedback

While peer review may not seem like a form of self-evaluation, reviewing the work of others often helps students more clearly see errors and areas for improvement in their own work. Peer reviews that focus on effective writing, design, and communication provide a useful place to start.

Simply have students "turn-and-talk" with a classmate and complete a "warm and cool" form to direct their feedback.

Download a Warm and Cool Feedback sheet page

If students are presenting their work to a small group, provide reviewers with sentence starters to promote critical review and feedback:

You do a great job of ...

I would love to see more ...

Can you explain ...

What if ...

Employing peer reviews during the process with time after for editing, creates a learning culture of growth where students reflect on their work and the work of others and then do the work necessary to improve.

Digital Portfolios

If you want to get serious about integrating student reflection and self-assessment, asking students to craft portfolios of their learning throughout a school year is a must. A learning portfolio is a purposeful collection of student work, combined with reflections about the learning artifacts, that demonstrates student learning and growth over time.

For a portfolio to be a success, students need to be in charge of choosing the work they will include and tasked with explaining via text, audio, or video why it demonstrates growth.

Once again, providing a rubric or similar evaluation criteria will help students choose artifacts of learning and performances that correlate to learning goals, as well as provide a structure for their reflections.

In Conclusion

Reflecting helps students process and organize their learning. As they reflect, students observe how successful they have been during an activity. Then, they work to identify what they learned from their experience.

Combining your formative and summative assessments along with student's self-reflections and peer reviews can help you paint a clearer picture of student growth and progress.

Creative Educator can help you bring project-based learning to your school.

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Four ideas for building reflection and student self-evaluation into the learning process.

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Clearly communicate learning objectives to students, outlining what they are expected to know and be able to do. Provide them with rubrics or scoring guides that define the criteria for success. This empowers students to take ownership of their learning and understand the expectations for assessment.

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When students clearly understand classroom expectations, they're better able to assess and improve their performance.

Photo by Allison Shelley for American Education: Images of Teachers and Students in Action

The third-grade classroom is busy. Students are in the middle of making slime, and you can sense the level of engagement across the class. The teacher is working very hard to make sure that students are clear on the goals of learning: to understand the relationships between solids, liquids, and gases. The students can see success criteria posted on the wall and examples of successful work spread across the room. Visiting teachers are engaging in random checks of understanding to ensure that students are clear on expectations.

As part of the school's improvement process, teachers and principals are visiting classrooms and interviewing students on their understanding of the expectations of learning, the students' self assessment on their progress, and what next steps they need to take to meet established goals. The team was in the third-grade classroom and filmed student interviews; they discussed the key findings with the teacher after class.

Here are samples of two interviews of students in the same classroom.

Teacher: What are you learning?

Student: We're learning about slime.

Teacher: How do you know if you are successful?

Student: We don't want the slime to stick to us.

Teacher: What are you learning?

Student: We're learning about solids, liquids, and gases.

Teacher: How do you know if you are successful?

Student: We can define and relate each phase. Right now we're learning about solids, liquids, and gases by creating slime.

The teacher is doing great things. The question is whether all students are following the teacher's lead. Building student clarity is a constant pursuit: We never arrive, but it's worth our focus.

Clarity Research Snapshot

When students are clear on expectations of learning, they tend to double their rate of learning. Moreover, when students are clear on expectations, they have a better chance of assessing their current performance and using feedback accurately. As John Hattie explains in Visible Learning, self assessment, feedback, and student clarity yield substantial growth in student learning. Yet the implementation of this idea is extremely difficult.

Let's take a look at some challenges and solutions to implementation.

Challenge 1. Novices don't really understand rubrics: Experts love rubrics because the bullet points clearly delineate the core expectations that they want students to learn. Novices don't fully appreciate the bullet points because they simply don't have a concrete example of what's written. As such, they scan the tool for items that are familiar to them: activities (such as getting into groups), tasks (such as completing six problems correctly), and contexts (such as exploring bridges). Because of this scanning for the familiar, students begin thinking about group work, assignment completion, and bridges and are therefore less likely to be any clearer on the standards they're learning about.

To focus students on the actual learning, teachers are encouraged to start with examples of great work that meets the expectations of the teacher. The more students see examples of great work in multiple contexts, the better able students are to use rubrics to evaluate their own work as well as to give, receive, and use feedback. This also makes it easier for them to focus on the core content that the teacher is after.

Challenge 2. Telling people the expectations clearly doesn't mean the expectations are clear to them: As a school leader, I have found that simply sending a clear message to people doesn't ensure that they are clear on my message. Almost every message I send must be followed up with clarifying emails, meetings with parents and/or faculty, and a series of communication check-ins. As such, developing clarity isn't one way. Clarity is interactive and built through multiple engagements.

Providing students with work samples that illustrate success

Asking students to identify the parts of the work sample that make it successful (i.e., criteria for success)

Writing out the criteria for success with students

Co-construction is an interactive process that enables students to build clarity of expectations. Co-construction is the active involvement of building success criteria with students rather than presenting success criteria to students. Here is one example of co-construction:

Use the fishbowl protocol to share their feedback, and process the accuracy of the feedback to the expectations of the lesson or unit

Begin units with discussions on what mastery looks like, and have students evaluate the differences between various levels of mastery

Challenge 3. The classroom is mostly hidden from teachers, and students give each other inaccurate feedback: As Graham Nuthall tells us in The Hidden Lives of Learners, the majority of the classroom experience is hidden from the teacher's observation. In the hidden classroom, kids typically give and receive most of the feedback to and from their peers, and most of that feedback is incorrect. To address this, we should consider having students do the following:

Students' achievement and attitude improve when they have the tools to own their own learning. As educators, it's up to us to provide those tools.

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Making Learning Targets Clear to Students

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When students clearly understand classroom expectations, they're better able to assess and improve their performance.

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Incorporate multimedia resources to enhance learning experiences. Offer access to educational videos, interactive simulations, podcasts, and digital libraries. Platforms like Khan Academy, TED-Ed, and YouTube EDU provide a wealth of educational content across various subjects.

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Multimedia learning tools play an important role in classrooms in a number of ways-including, but not limited to, boosting creativity, encouraging student engagement, and helping students learn to collaborate.

Shy students may come out of their shells when allowed to give a presentation via blog post or podcast. Natural leaders may emerge during group work as part of a team presentation assignment. Other students may find their true artistic calling using graphics or creating videos in the classroom.

Multimedia learning tools engage students, and as we all know, students who are engaged in their learning often demonstrate higher academic achievement and take more ownership of their learning.

Related content: 20 top edtech tools
Because there are so many tools and teachers have limited time, we've compiled this list of multimedia resources to get you started on your search.

1. Adobe Spark: Students can use existing templates for an assignment or as personal inspiration. Students choose design themes, drop in photos, add text, and more. Projects can be safely shared with peers and teachers. Step-by-step lessons help educators meet curricular objectives and add creativity to the classroom.

2. Casio: Casio's education solutions aim to deliver flexibility as they support active learning and collaboration. To help alleviate the challenge of technology set-ups, Casio's LampFree Network Model projectors offer a variety of features designed to reduce set-up time in the classroom and keep students focused on the curriculum. Casio's blog also offers tips and tutorials.

Related Content: The eSchool News Multimedia Presentation Systems Guide is here! It features strategies to help you integrate engaging and media-rich tools into the classroom, and it offers a look at how these tools engage students and strengthen student voice. A new eSchool News Guide will launch each month-don't miss a single one!

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16 multimedia learning tools for the classroom

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Multimedia learning tools play an important role in classrooms in a number of ways-including, but not limited to, boosting creativity, encouraging student engagement, and helping students learn to collaborate. Shy students may come out of their shells when allowed to give a presentation via blog post or podcast.

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Provide students with tools to create and share their work. This can include word processing software (e.g., Microsoft Word, Google Docs), presentation tools (e.g., PowerPoint, Google Slides), and collaborative document editing platforms (e.g., Google Drive). These tools foster creativity, enable project collaboration, and allow teachers to provide feedback directly on student work.

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As education is slowly changing, I begin to notice a new trend. Teachers don't take the lead anymore. Students do. We listen more and more to students and what they have to say. Students take the role of the teacher and the teacher guides them toward the finish line.

As teachers fall into the role of curators, students become the new content creators. Students creating content comes with some new must-haves: educational content creation tools.

There are thousand ways for students to create content, but in this post I'm focussing on creating digital content. This can be authoring tools or even content creation software.

Ready? Let's get started!

15 educational content creation apps for students

I'm sure some of these content creation apps will look familiar. Make sure to scroll down a bit for some less known apps that are worth your attention! Besides the apps, you can read some fun content creation lesson ideas between the lines as well.

"Create. Read. Publish." That's what Book Creator is all about. Let your students create and write their own stories. Students can combine text, images, audio and video to create interactive stories, digital portfolios, journals, poetry books, science reports, manuals, comic adventures and much more. You name it, they create it.

Afterwards, students can publish their books and show you (or their parents) their masterpieces. Book Creator is an example of an easy-to-use authoring tool for students (and teachers).

Explain Everything is an interactive screen casting whiteboard. This means that students can make a presentation, and record everything they are drawing and saying. Draw, add pictures, highlight and write text. They even have a nice red pointer.

Want to know what students can do with Explain everything? Here are 10 fun ways students can use Explain Everything as content generators.

Adobe Spark is intuitive app that lets you or your students create animated videos in minutes. Choose a video lay out, import videos and images, add text and choose some music. That's it!

In this video creator/editor, students can easily add and trim video clips to make their videos stand out in the classroom.

Students can choose an image from the Spark library that has over 25,000 beautiful iconic images or add their own photos to highlight what they have to say. Spark automatically adds cinematic motion to their story so they don't have to be a pro in video editing.

And there's more. Students can create their own webpage with Adobe Spark Page or create a good looking image with Adobe Spark Post.

Looking for a fun way to let your students do a lecture? Then, you should introduce your students to MySimpleShow. MySimpleShow is a simple online tool that empowers anyone to make professional videos.

MySimpleShow is very easy to use. Students can write their own video script, or they can even upload a PowerPoint file.

The first option lets them write a story and it will suggest some suitable images students can choose from and use in their video. At the end, students record their own voice, or they choose between voiceovers that are given.

MySimpleShow has some educational templates available as well.

With Canva, students can create presentations, social media graphics, compelling images, and much more. Canva provides thousands of beautiful layouts like magazine templates, presentations, letters, business cards, etc.

Tired of using PowerPoint or Keynote? Canva is the solution. Students can search instantly for good images and icons. There are also other creative elements like grids, frames, shapes, lines and charts.

Some of Canva's images, icons and other designs are for free, and they offer a large range of premium ones as well. Don't worry, students can just find a free image on another website (like these websites) and add it to their presentation.

Storybird is a powerful app that combines creative tools for writing, reading, and storytelling in educational settings. Students can make their own story. It makes students of all ages feel like "real authors" and bring their fantasy to life.

It's also an adaptable, creative tool to enhance lesson plans and assignments for any grade level or subject matter. History? Let your students write a history-related story. Math? What about letting them create a story of a boy that encounters a problem in his life, and how he solved it with math?

Another really good option of storybird is the ability to purchase digital or print books and poems made by your students. Or even better: activate the optional fundraiser mode to involve families and raise money for your school.

Padlet can be used by students (and teachers). With padlet you can create an online post-it board that you can share with any student or teacher you want. Just give them the unique Padlet link. Padlet allows students to insert ideas anonymously or with their name. It's easy to use and very handy.

Whoever has the Padlet board opened on his smartphone or computer, can see what's on it and what everyone is writing. Students just have to take a device and start adding little sticky notes online. They can see all the ideas gathered on the teacher board immediately.

With Padlet you can go any directing you want. Click here to read about more content creation activities with Padlet for students and teachers!

You've probably never heard of zoom in your entire life. That's because this software is mostly used in the business world. So what is it? Well, this content creation software lets you host webinars.

As a bigger project, let your students host their own webinar, by giving a presentation about a certain subject. The webinar can be about anything. Two birds, one stone. Students are creating content about your lesson topic and you're preparing them for the business world already! Bonus: Zoom is free.

Tellagami helps you bring your messages to life. By combining photos, voice, 3D characters and personality on a mobile platform, they help you communicate in a way that's never been possible.

Choose a character and personalize it. Then choose a mood (sad, happy, neutral, silly, angry,...). Change the background and record your voice. It's as easy as it sounds.

The app is only available for Apple, though. But that doesn't make it less cool. You can still share the video with your students via mail or social media.

Student created content can also be something out of the ordinary. Take a meme for example. Let students summarize a lesson by creating memes about the subject. Expect some hilarious outcomes that actually represent your lessons. It's also a fun way that correlates with your student's environment outside the school, which makes it easier for students to remember.

Let students create their own explainer videos, animations or YouTube introductions with Moovly. Moovly has over 600000 free templates, videos, animations and sounds. Students can also use their material and upload their own media. Moovly is very easy to use because of its drag and drop interface. Pick a video template or start from scratch; drag & drop, export & share the video. That's it!

Kidblog is a blog environment that provides tools to safely publish student writing. Teachers can monitor the student activities within the community of "student authors".

Kidblog gives students a voice and lets them write blog posts that can be published for real. Students write with a purpose for a real audience. Students are digital citizens within a secure environment.

It's sometimes said that students don't read many books. But what they do read are Comic books. With Comic life, you bring comics to the classroom.

Let students create stunning comics from their own images. The app has a lot of fonts, templates, panels, balloons, cations and lettering art available to transform your student's story into a creative comic book.

Students could create book reports in comic style, summarize a lesson, develop creative flyers, and so on.

Are your students very talkative? Why not let them create their own podcast instead of writing a review? Switch things up and use Spreaker to record a new podcast episode or to stream live. Talk about an amazing digital project!

How cool would it be for students to create their own podcast about certain important persons (music stars, actors, authors, scientists, ...) or historical events?

BookWidgets is actually a content creation tool for teachers, but students can make use of it as well.

BookWdigets has over 40 exercise templates that teachers can adapt with their own content. I'm going to talk about the timeline widget, which is more focussed on content creation by students than the other way around.

You create an editable timeline and share it with your students. This means that the students can add events to the timeline, write text and add images to it. Use this timeline in history class to let students simulate certain historical timelines. You can also let students add events to the timeline when working on projects or experiments in science courses. They could add pictures of each step of the experiment and write down an explanation.

So much fun!

Wrap up

So, that was it. And of course, there are much more content creation tools for students out there. I choose these particular apps because they give different possibilities and they approach content creation in various ways. Let your students create books, comics, videos, webinars, podcasts, timelines, blog posts, memes, presentations, infographics, and much more! Besides having the right apps, you have some creative new lesson ideas as well. Have fun!

I hope I inspired you to give the stage to your students once in a while. Don't forget to share this post with fellow teachers. Thanks! 🙌

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The student as content creator - 15 Content creation apps for in the classroom

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As education is slowly changing, I begin to notice a new trend. Teachers don't take the lead anymore. Students do. We listen more and more to students and what they have to say. Students take the role of the teacher and the teacher guides them toward the finish line.

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Implement a robust LMS that serves as a central hub for organizing and delivering course materials. The LMS should have features such as course calendars, assignment submission, grade tracking, and content management. Popular LMS platforms include Moodle, Canvas, and Google Classroom.

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Find, choose and compare the Top Learning Management Systems. Narrow down your choices with eLearning Industry’s software directory

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Provide students with tools for real-time communication and collaboration. This can include video conferencing platforms (e.g., Zoom, Microsoft Teams), chat applications (e.g., Slack, Discord), and discussion forums. These tools enable students to engage with teachers and peers, ask questions, participate in group projects, and receive timely feedback.

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Technology has changed education in the sense that it has broadened access to it. Now, information (e-books, audiobooks, videos, podcasts, etc.) is available to anyone with a stable internet connection. Furthermore, we have the technology to thank for the enhancement of communication and collaboration in our schools. No longer are we limited to physical space for learning, for we are no longer trapped in the four walls of the classroom.

With the advancements in technology, the ways of communicating also changed, so now teachers have a great number of communication tools to choose from.

In his article, Communication and effective teaching, Detlef R. Prozesky highlights the connection between communication and teaching. If communication is a process of transferring information to other people, the link between teaching and communication is clear - since teachers are constantly imparting new knowledge, i.e. transferring information.

In that light, in this blog post, we'll comb through some of the best communication tools for teachers. To make it easier for you, we'll divide them into three categories:

communication tools for teachers working together

communication tools for teachers and students

communication tools for teachers and parents

So, let's see what edtech apps are at our disposal.

Communication tools for teachers working together

Teachers working together should be able to communicate and collaborate without a hitch. To overcome the silo mentality, the most effective thing to do would be to use different communication tools that are available. In that light, email is maybe not the best option for communication among teachers. Still, they should find a convenient way to share information in a remote setting.

Dear teachers, that is why we're giving you suggestions for some of the most efficient communication tools for communication and collaboration with your colleagues.

This time, we've chosen the following apps: Pumble, Airtable, Evernote, Staffbase, and Blink.
- for streamlined communication and collaboration among teachers

🔸 What is Pumble?
Pumble is a business messaging platform that allows teachers to collaborate and communicate with one another, using direct messages, private, and public channels.
🔸 Why use Pumble in education?
Pumble enables teachers to efficiently communicate with other teachers in a highly organized manner. They can have one-on-one conversations, group chats, private and public channels, open to all employees. Sharing important information and updates is easy, with separate channels for different notifications. Furthermore, in channels and DM conversations, chat can be structured into threads, which keeps the communication clear and tidy. Aside from that, Pumble supports drag-and-drop file sharing, as well as file and link previews. Pumble provides a self-hosting option so that educational organizations can host the software on their servers to ensure data protection.
🔸 Pumble's best feature for educators:
Pumble allows workspace owners to invite guests to the workspace - these guests only have access to those channels that they are invited to. This is especially useful if teachers want to invite parents to a channel, to discuss their children's schoolwork or address a specific problem.

🔸 Pumble is available for: Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, Apple iOS
- for creating content for curriculums

🔸 What is Airtable?
Airtable is an online collaboration platform for creating and sharing databases.
🔸 Why use Airtable in education?
Airtable is a useful tool for communication among teachers themselves and the rest of the school staff. This platform allows them to send direct messages, as well as to integrate the tool with other tools they're using (such as mail, social media, etc.). Several templates are at their disposal and can help them create a spreadsheet where they can see what other teachers are teaching. This helps them keep track of students' progress.
🔸 Airtable's best feature for educators:
Airtable allows its users to switch between multiple views (spreadsheets, cards, Kanban), so they don't have to switch platforms. It facilitates collaboration between teachers.

🔸 Airtable is available for: Mac, Windows, Linux, Android, Apple iOS
- for taking notes and planning school schedules

🔸 What is Evernote?
Evernote is a collaboration tool for taking notes and project planning.
🔸 Why use Evernote in education?
Evernote enables teachers to take notes and add more than text to them - photos, files, and to-do lists. Creating a personal space for the most important ideas and information is easy with Evernote. This platform allows syncing notes to all devices so they stay with users even when they're offline. Teachers can create documents, collaborate on projects, and store information on this platform. All the team members can access the notes and files, edit them and upload their own.
🔸 Evernote's best feature for educators:
Evernote enables users to scan documents (even their handwritten notes) and make them searchable, which facilitates collaboration among teaching staff.

🔸 Evernote is available for: Apple iOS, Android, Web Clipper browser extension
- for collaboration among teachers through various communication channels

🔸 What is Staffbase?
Staffbase is an employee communication platform with various channels, like news, mobile magazine, chat rooms, and surveys.
🔸 Why use Staffbase in education?
This platform streamlines communication between teaching staff, by allowing team members to reach their colleagues, no matter where they are, with mobile news and alerts. No email addresses or telephone numbers are needed. Updates are accessible and interactive, with comments, likes, and auto-translations. Staffbase allows users to create one place for all the crucial information, where important contacts, documents, and FAQs can be found.
🔸 Staffbase's best feature for educators:
With the help of widgets, educators can easily create a page where all essential information can be found.

🔸 Staffbase is available for: Mac, Windows, Linux, Android, Apple iOS
- for easy access to school's policies

🔸 What is Blink?
Blink is a mobile intranet software and app through which employees can easily access policies, procedures, and guides.
🔸 Why use Blink in education?
By uploading documents to the hub, teachers can allow their colleagues to access and view their content, making the workflow efficient. Another useful feature is creating and distributing forms and surveys. Users can also add links to useful websites and highlight the most important parts.
🔸 Blink's best feature for educators:
Blink's best feature is the global feed that allows sharing relevant information. Teachers can share updates and news directly to the feed, making it easy for everyone to stay up-to-date.

🔸 Blink is available for: Windows, Mac, Android, Apple iOS

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💡If you'd like to discover more about team communication tools for any business, you can find the information here.

Communication tools for teachers and students

Although too much screen time can negatively affect children's mental health, communication between teachers and students in today's world must involve digital communication tools - at least to some extent. Students today mostly belong to Generation Z and Alpha. They are the so-called digital natives, so using technology doesn't imply any level of discomfort for them. Teachers should take advantage of these generations' digital mastery and use some of the tools at their disposal to improve communication with them. These communication tools might even help them overcome some barriers to communication. We offer you some solutions.

Our picks are Remind, Zoom, Google Classroom, Socrative, Edmodo, EdPuzzle, and Genially.
- for communicating with students and tracking their progress

🔸 What is Remind?

Remind is a tool that enables and simplifies two-way communication between teachers and students. It allows teachers to schedule class announcements and set their availability.

🔸 Why use Remind in education?

Remind is great for communicating between teachers and students, as well as for tracking assignments, tests, and other projects throughout the school year. Another advantage is that it's integrated with Google Classroom, which makes it easier for teachers to organize their school activities.

🔸 Remind's best feature for educators:

Remind has an in-app translation feature for 70 languages. This feature helps teachers communicate with students with whom they don't share a mother tongue.

🔸 Remind is available for: Android, Apple iOS
- for classroom audio and video conferencing

🔸 What is Zoom?

Zoom is a video communication app that allows you to set up video and audio conferencing, webinars, and meetings.

🔸 Why use Zoom in education?

Zoom allows teachers to deliver online and hybrid classes. It enables them to engage students through stunning virtual experiences and expand access to education.

🔸 Zoom's best feature for educators:

You don't need an account to use Zoom. All you need is a Zoom meeting link provided by the host.

🔸 Zoom is available for: Windows, Linux, Mac, Apple iOS, Android, Blackberry, Mobile Web
- for engaging students, creating assignments, and assessing students' progress

🔸 What is Google Classroom?

​​ Google Classroom is a communication tool that enables teachers to create assignments, receive feedback, assess students' progress, and share information. It is an easy, user-friendly platform that enables paperless assignment workflow.

🔸 Why use Google Classroom in education?

Google Classroom is integrated with Google Drive. It has four prominent tabs:

Stream - a feed where anyone in the classroom can see announcements and upcoming events

Classwork - where students can see all the assignments

People - here, teacher's and students' names are displayed

Grades - where students' grades are displayed

With Google Classroom, teachers can easily assign tasks to students, assess them, and repeat some of the tasks, if needed. Aside from that, they can make quizzes, or upload documents with the assignment and edit them when needed.

🔸 Google Classroom's best feature for educators:

The best feature is that the work students submit is time-stamped. This way teachers can check whether the students have submitted their work before the deadline.

🔸 Google Classroom is available for: Windows, Mac, Android, Apple iOS
- for engaging and assessing students in a remote-first world

🔸 What is Socrative?

Socrative is a fun tool for effective engagement and impromptu assessments. It is a time-saving way to monitor and evaluate learning in an interesting way.

🔸 Why use Socrative in education:

Socrative's features provide teachers with different options for assessing their students. They can launch a quiz, receive feedback in the form of the exit ticket, or ask a quick question for instant feedback. Quizzes and assignments are saved in the library, so they can be reused at a moment's notice. Apart from that, students' reports are saved to the teacher's account, so they can be downloaded or emailed. Socrative allows teachers to launch activities in virtual rooms that are easy to create. Teachers are able to see student responses and whether they are correct or incorrect in real-time. Thanks to that, teachers can modify the lesson based on student understanding. On the other hand, students can see how well they understand the material.
🔸 Socrative's best feature for educators:
A special treat is certainly Space race - a fun intergalactic quiz bowl, where students, individually or in groups, race across the screen with correct answers.

🔸 Socrative is available for: Windows, Mac, Android, Apple iOS
- for sharing assignments and quizzes to students

🔸 What is Edmodo?
Edmodo is a student engagement platform that helps teachers collaborate with students using posts and messages.
🔸 Why use Edmodo in education?
This platform allows teachers to create and share assignments, quizzes, and all the necessary materials for improving student learning. Moreover, students can organize classwork by using a planner. They can pose questions on a centralized dashboard. With a user-friendly interface, similar to some social media platforms, teachers and students can easily communicate with one another. Aside from that, students earn badges for their hard work, which is a great way to motivate them.
🔸 Edmodo's best feature for educators:
The best feature of the platform is the quiz generator, which enables teachers to quickly create a set of questions concerning the teaching unit they want to assess their students.

🔸 Edmodo is available for: Windows, Mac, Android, Apple iOS
- for engaging students in a remote-first world using video content

🔸 What is EdPuzzle?
EdPuzzle is an easy-to-use platform for engaging students using video content.
🔸 Why use EdPuzzle in education:
This platform allows teachers to share videos from YouTube, Khan Academy, Crash Course, and many others with their students. Of course, they are also encouraged to create their own content and share it with the students. By sharing the interactive video lessons with their students, teachers enable the students to learn at their own pace. Moreover, teachers can also add their own voices and questions to the videos. Another useful feature is that teachers can check how many times students have watched each section of the video, which can tell them if the students have understood the content.
🔸 EdPuzzle's best feature for educators:
The best feature of this platform is that it allows teachers to embed questions in the video, so they can monitor students' thinking and comprehension regarding a specific topic or a lesson. In that way, they can oversee their progress. Another great subfeature is that teachers can set the playback and disable skipping ahead - thereby ensuring that students have watched the whole video.

🔸 EdPuzzle is available for: Windows, Mac, Android, Apple iOS
- for engaging students through visual content

🔸 What is Genially?
Genially is an online tool for creating presentations, interactive images, infographics, quizzes, etc.
🔸 Why use Genially in education:
Genially is a great tool for motivating students via interactive learning material and gamification. Interaction and animation help students become more engaged, involved, and aware of their achievements. By using this tool, teachers become real influencers and masters in catching students' attention. Genially can be used in a classroom setting, online, or in a hybrid class, since all the teaching materials are in the cloud, available at any time.
🔸 Genially's best feature for educators:
Intuitive Editor that enables teachers to easily navigate through and enrich their creation.

🔸 Genially is available for: Web-based

Communication tools for teachers and parents

After a long day in school, the last thing teachers want is to deal with parents. Let's face it, it's no easy feat. But fear not, dear teachers, there's an easier solution than having to meet face-to-face with parents of your students, or needing to answer the phone when an unknown caller pops up on your screen. So, if you want your students to have good learning support, you should take into account some of the ways in which this communication can take place, in an effective and least intrusive way possible.

Of course, we're not forgetting the fact that the parents are also overwhelmed with information and that this is one of the factors leading to parental burnout. This goes to show that the parents could also use one communication tool that encompasses all the relevant information for their children's education.

Without further ado, let's consider some of the useful tools for communication between teachers and parents: Class Dojo, Bloomz, ClassTag, ParentSquare, Seesaw, Flipgrid, and Google Voice.
- for engaging parents through images and messages

🔸 What is Class Dojo?
​​ Class Dojo is a classroom management software that helps teachers engage with parents via images, messages, and video content.
🔸 Why use Class Dojo in education:
Class Dojo enables teachers to create students' portfolios and share them with the parents. This platform allows the teachers to create stories through which they share photos, videos, links, and files with their students' parents. In this way, teachers can effortlessly keep all parents in the loop regarding all the moments they want to share - projects, field trips, and celebrations.
🔸 Class Dojo's best feature:
​​ Communication between parents and teachers is enhanced and simplified. A useful feature is that parents can choose from 30+ languages for communication with teachers.

🔸 Class Dojo is available for: Windows, Mac, Android, Apple iOS
- for updating parents about their children's progress

🔸 What is Bloomz?
Bloomz is a mobile and web app that enables teachers to communicate with parents in a secure, private, and easily accessible way.
🔸 Why use Bloomz in education?
This platform facilitates communication between parents and teachers by enabling teachers to easily send class updates, announcements, alerts, and notifications to parents. Bloomz also helps teachers keep parents informed about the school calendar, making it easier for parents to participate in events or volunteering opportunities. Available in 100+ languages, Bloomz makes sure no one is left behind in communication, no matter what their native language is.
🔸 Bloomz's best feature:
The best thing about Bloomz is the feature Text signups and Notifications that work great for scheduling parent-teacher conferences. Parents receive messages when the teacher posts something, so they stay on top of what's going on in the classroom.

🔸 Bloomz is available for: Mac, Windows, Android, Apple iOS
- for engaging parents through direct messages and newsletters

🔸 What is ClassTag?
ClassTag is an easy-to-use parent-teacher communication app, with automatic translation to 50+ languages.
🔸 Why use ClassTag in education:
ClassTag is an app that provides teachers with a transparent record of their communication with parents. It streamlines communication, allowing teachers to send direct messages to parents, as well as photos, videos, school announcements, class calendars, events, and newsletters. Via this app, teachers can also set up automatic weekly or monthly newsletters, which are sent whenever they like it. In one click, parents can sign up for volunteering or giving donations.
🔸 ClassTag's best feature:
The best feature of ClassTag is its automatic conversion to email or SMS, depending on parents' preferences.

🔸 ClassTag is available for: Windows, Mac, Android, Apple iOS
- for regular updates about students

🔸 What is ParentSquare?
ParentSquare is a cloud-based communication tool designed to facilitate and automate communication between educators and parents.
🔸 Why use ParentSquare in education?
ParentSquare is a useful tool that enables teachers to send regular updates about students to the parents. Apart from that, there is a parents portal, where users can update their contact details, access students' report cards, set alert preferences, and sign-up for volunteering. In addition to all of this, teachers can send important alerts to the parents.
🔸 ParentSquare's best feature:
ParentSquare's best feature is a message library, which enables teachers to quickly send urgent alerts during emergencies - such as lockdowns or extreme weather conditions.

🔸 ParentSquare is available for: Android, Apple iOS
- for engaging parents, no matter what their native language is

🔸 What is Seesaw?
Seesaw is a platform that fosters meaningful communication between teachers and parents in all corners of the world, thanks to the translation feature.
🔸 Why use Seesaw in education?
Seesaw enables teachers to share photos, videos, links, and files in private messages to parents. They can also send them as announcements to the whole class. Aside from that, parents see only their own child's work. Teachers choose whether they will enable family commenting. Thanks to the automated translations into over 55 languages, they can reach all the parents in their mother tongues.
🔸 Seesaw's best feature:
The best feature of this platform is that any text written in it can easily be translated by the tapping of a button.

🔸 Seesaw is available for: Windows, Mac, Android
- for engaging parents through QR codes for their children's work

🔸 What is Flipgrid?
Flipgrid is a video discussion platform that helps teachers form strong bonds with parents from the very beginning of their cooperation.
🔸 Why use Flipgrid in education:
Flipgrid allows teachers to keep in touch with parents in a remote-first world. Whether teachers are planning parent-teacher conferences or just looking for ways to engage students' families in their schoolwork, Flipgrid is the solution they need. In Flipgrid, you can add QR codes for each student's work, so their parents can scan it and watch the content at their convenience. There is also an option for teachers to send newsletters to parents, keeping them up-to-date with the progress of their child.
🔸 Flipgrid's best feature:
Flipgrid offers teachers a possibility to make Class MixTapes in which they can showcase what the children have learned. Parents can follow MixTapes and get notified when teachers add new videos.

🔸 Flipgrid is available for: Android, Apple iOS
- for engaging parents while maintaining your privacy

🔸 What is Google Voice?
Google Voice is a voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) that allows teachers to merge all their cellular services on one number and communicate with parents while maintaining their privacy.
🔸 Why use Google Voice in education?
As an educator, especially when leading remote learning, sometimes you need to call parents. You might not be comfortable sharing your private phone number with them. That's where Google Voice comes in. All you need to set up your Google Voice is a Google account. You'll get a new phone number, free of charge. After that, you can make calls from wherever you like - even from your desktop computer.
🔸 Google Voice's best feature:
Google Voice has a voicemail feature that saves voice messages. Thanks to speech recognition technology, your voicemail is transcribed into text and sent to your Gmail.

🔸 Google Voice is available for: Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, Apple iOS

Wrapping Up: (Communication) tools of the trade all teachers need

Technological changes have brought about new opportunities for teaching and learning, introducing us to a world of remote learning. To successfully swim in these waters, teachers should get acquainted with a growing number of communication technologies that can help them communicate better with their students, the students' parents, as well as with their colleagues. We have given you 21 communication tools you can use in your virtual classroom to enhance the communication and, consequently, the learning process. It should be enough to engage even the most aloof students, as well as the busiest parents. As far as collaboration among teachers is concerned, all we have to say is: "Teachers of the world (or at least of a school), unite!" Feel free to use the tools we suggested above. Teach away!

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19 Best communication tools for teachers

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Technology has changed education in the sense that it has broadened access to it. Now, information (e-books, audiobooks, videos, podcasts, etc.) is available to anyone with a stable internet connection. Furthermore, we have the technology to thank for the enhancement of communication and collaboration in our schools.

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Design for Online Learning Toolkit - Teach Online

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Design for online learning toolkit Arizona State University is committed to supporting faculty and students in the transition to online teaching and learning in response to the coronavirus crisis.The ASU instructional design community has created this set of vetted resources as an essential toolkit for quality online course development and delivery.The goal is to provide curated resources, actionable steps and an overall strategy to the rapid development of online course materials, activities and assessments.

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If educators can assess student passions at the beginning of the year, then they can cater the learning to things that interest the learner. This assessment can be done with one-on-one conversation, journal entries, surveys, or graphic organizers. It is important to build a relationship with students to ensure maximum engagement.

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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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Peer assessments are beneficial in several ways. They can help students learn to give constructive feedback as well as learn some things from another students' work. It is important to give students a clear rubric and guidelines, but overall, this will give students more independence and allow them to take responsibility of their learning.

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Peer assessment or peer review provides a structured learning process for students to critique and provide feedback to each other on their work. It helps students develop lifelong skills in assessing and providing feedback to others, and also equips them with skills to self-assess and improve their own work.

If you are interested in facilitating a team member evaluation process for group projects, see the page on Teaching students to evaluate each other.

Why use peer assessment?

Peer assessment can:

Empower students to take responsibility for and manage their own learning.

Enable students to learn to assess and give others constructive feedback to develop lifelong assessment skills.

Enhance students' learning through knowledge diffusion and exchange of ideas.

Motivate students to engage with course material more deeply.

Considerations for using peer assessment

Let students know the rationale for doing peer review. Explain the expectations and benefits of engaging in a peer review process.

Consider having students evaluate anonymous assignments for more objective feedback.

Be prepared to give feedback on students' feedback to each other. Display some examples of feedback of varying quality and discuss which kind of feedback is useful and why.

Give clear directions and time limits for in-class peer review sessions and set defined deadlines for out-of-class peer review assignments.

Listen to group feedback discussions and provide guidance and input when necessary.

Student familiarity and ownership of criteria tend to enhance peer assessment validity, so involve students in a discussion of the criteria used. Consider involving students in developing an assessment rubric.

Getting started with peer assessment

Identify assignments or activities for which students might benefit from peer feedback.

Consider breaking a larger assignment into smaller pieces and incorporating peer assessment opportunities at each stage. For example, assignment outline, first draft, second draft, etc.

Design guidelines or  rubrics  with clearly defined tasks for the reviewer.

Introduce rubrics through learning exercises to ensure students have the ability to apply the rubric effectively.

Determine whether peer review activities will be conducted as in-class or out-of-class assignments. For out-of-class assignments, peer assessments can be facilitated through Canvas using tools such as FeedbackFruits peer review and group member evaluation, Canvas peer review assignment, or Turnitin. See the Comparison of peer evaluation tools to learn more and/or set up a consultation by contacting CTI."

Help students learn to carry out peer assessment by modeling appropriate, constructive criticism and descriptive feedback through your own comments on student work and well-constructed rubrics.

Incorporate small feedback groups where written comments on assignments can be explained and discussed with the receiver.

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Peer assessment | Center for Teaching Innovation

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Peer assessment or peer review provides a structured learning process for students to critique and provide feedback to each other on their work. It helps students develop lifelong skills in assessing and providing feedback to others, and also equips them with skills to self-assess and improve their…

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This article provides many solutions for multiple age levels, and one of the games that was applicable for most ages was 4 corners. Before an assessment, have each corner represent a different answer (A,B,C,D) and ask the question and have students walk to their corner to answer the question. This allows students to use their bodies and their brains!

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Student-Centered World: A Student-Centered Learning Resource

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Here at Student-Centered World, we are HUGE promoters in flexible seating. The whole idea behind flexible seating is that a student will put forth their best work if they are in a position that they are the most productive. For some students, this is still at a traditional desk. For others, this could be standing, sitting on the floor, or laying down.

Allowing this movement in the classroom will help a student (no matter what age) determine how they work best.

We are always so concerned about finding learning styles so they know how they LEARN best, but what about how they WORK best? Giving them this autonomy (with guidelines, for sure....certainly not a free-for-all!) allows them to learn more about themselves and how they will perform at their peak.

Even as adults, we do this. My husband, for instance, needs to sit at a table with all his belonging placed accordingly around him. Me? I work best propped up against 105 pillows....neither of us can concentrate well in the other scenario, but why do we require this of our students when it's so easy to, well, NOT?

Movement in the Classroom

Today I came across two amazing articles that explain the science behind why traditional seating isn't the best for our Generation Z students who sit in front of us (or around us in an actual student-centered classroom).

The first article is from Valerie Strauss, with a focus piece from Aleta Margolis, in the Washington Post titled Letting kids move in class isn't a break from learning. It IS learning. I think that title in and of itself is so telling. We have been trained to believe that a student sits quietly until they are given a break.

This is the INDUSTRIAL MODEL, we are no longer an industrial society! We are turning into a hands-on society of entrepreneurs.

Will that be everyone? Of course not....but it will be a bigger majority of our students than before. As a matter of fact, we are preparing today's students for jobs that don't even exist yet.

Seem far-fetched? How many people that you went to high school with wanted to be a social media manager as a job? What about work for Uber? We take jobs for granted now that didn't exist all too long ago.
Chew on that one for a minute.
Ms. Margolis brings up an excellent point in her article. When it comes to student movement in the classroom, she says by having the students physically doing something, it creates more of an understanding of that particular process than if they were just passively learning about it, which makes complete and total sense.

My son just took his training wheels off his bike and even though he mentally knew how to ride, he physically couldn't until he went through the motions enough times that it clicked. ALL learning is like this! My favorite line from the piece is this:

Incorporating movement-based activities can help learners of all ages articulate and internalize new ideas, and this process invites adult participants to leave their comfort zone and reexamine their roles as both teachers and learners. They explore the relief that students feel at being invited to move, as well as the uncertainty and shyness that can arise when something new and unexpected is introduced.

Truer words have never been spoken. Still many people balk at the idea of the normalcy of movement in the classroom because it's not traditional. Why can't kids today sit still long enough to learn...WE did it, why can't they? A few reasons.

Number one, the average attention span has dropped DRASTICALLY since we have become a society of instant gratification. Know how long it was when public education was created? About 20 minutes. Know how long it is now? Approximately 7 SECONDS. SECONDS. #notatypo.

We literally cannot expect the students in front of us to learn the way other generations have. You will be fighting a losing battle if you think you're going to overcome the odds here. Movement in the classroom is now essential to learning.

It's legitimately a vicious cycle.

As a matter of fact, another article from the Washington Post by Mrs. Strauss and Angela Hanscom titled, A therapist goes to middle school and tries to sit still and focus. She can't. Neither can the kids, may just be the most eye-opening article you will ever read about movement in the classroom (seriously...click on that link and read it...I won't be offended if you're taken off track for a few minutes).

The teachers know students should move, but they feel locked into cramming a ton of information into their brains (more than again, you guessed it, previous generations were required) and don't see a choice. With this, students are losing focus, developing sedentary lifestyle habits, and not actually acquiring the learning that the teacher is trying their hardest to accomplish.

Recess is being cut shorter and shorter and the society of fear we have grown into is preventing these kids from running around and playing outside after school (not to mention, there is often homework to "reinforce" what was "learned" that day in a state of unfocused cramming).

To quote her, after 90 minutes of being in the classroom,

I'm mentally exhausted and the day has just begun. I was planning on observing the whole day. I just can't do it. I decide to leave right after lunch.

This is why "traditional" learning without movement in the classroom just isn't the best method of instruction for our students anymore. It's not.

With the requirements to learn more and more and the time to simply "be a kid" becoming less and less, something needs to change. We need to incorporate student movement in the classroom without it being a special treat. The students need to move for not only their physical and mental wellbeing but also so they actually learn.

Plain and simple...where will they learn more: actively trying to solve a problem or actively trying to stay awake?

Friends, incorporating student-centered learning isn't difficult. It's different.

Encouraging student movement in the classroom is not difficult. It's different.

Switching teaching styles just go against the grain of how so many people view what education is supposed to be. But tell me....what is education SUPPOSED to be?

It is supposed to be students going to school and learning. It doesn't HAVE to look like anything in particular, so why can't it be a model that today's students will actually get more out of?

The most intimidating part of student-centered learning is that there really isn't much out there that truly explains HOW to do it. There's a ton of information about how relevant it is and there is data that shows how much it works, but there isn't much that says, "here, try this".

Being afraid of change is no excuse to not give it a try. We teach so we can help our future leaders learn.

Coming up with ideas for movement in the classroom can seem overwhelming, but take a deep breath because it doesn't have to when you're focusing on the right pieces to this puzzle.

Here are some ideas for physical movement in the classroom and ways to encourage students to be more active.

To begin, let's consider age level. The activities will vary depending on what grade or level you teach. Some activities can be used with all ages, so it's always good to have a few in your repertoire that you can pull out when the moment is right.

Preschool and Kindergarten

You can incorporate basic coordination activities such as relay races, obstacle courses, and "Simon Says". The basic rules of those games can be adapted to fit your setting. If children are too young for those games, try something simple like Simon says shadow. Have the children stand in front of a mirror and play Simon Says with their reflection, trying to mimic every movement they see.

One idea for an obstacle course is having balloons taped or tied to different parts of the room that the students have to run to first before coming back through other obstacles, such as by crawling under a table, hopping like a rabbit, or jumping like a frog.

Here's another idea: blow bubbles to the children and have them try to pop as many as they can using different parts of their body, but telling them that they may not use any part of their body more than once.

For this activity, you can blow bubbles on one side of the room for the children to run to one side of the room, pop them with their hands or feet, and run back. You can either do this on both sides of the room, or you can blow the bubbles at random throughout the course so that they don't know where they will be coming from next. Or if they are too young to do the popping, have them punch the bubbles without popping them.

Elementary School

Incorporating movement in the classroom for elementary students can include activities such as :

Bounce a ball with them as they hop on one foot or jump rope. You can also use this for those students who need to maintain movement in the classroom during seatwork such as textbook reading. Have them bounce the ball while they read so that they keep their eyes moving and don't lose interest in sitting still at a desk for long periods of time.

For reading activities, keeping track of how many times the student touches the ball while they are reading can be a way to encourage them to read more often and with purpose. After a certain amount of time has passed, you can have them stop and tally their total for that session. If they reach or exceed their target number, reward them with a prize.

If they don't reach their target, you can either end the session or let them keep going until they meet their goal or exceed it. If this is your objective (to get students reading more) then you will go with one of the latter options. For instance, if reaching five touches while reading motivates them to read more, then they will just need to continue reading until they reach five touches for this session.

This can also encourage students who aren't as motivated about reading because you are offering them an incentive. It may not be a tangible reward such as stickers or candy (you know what age we're talking about), but it could be something like drawing a picture, free time at the end of the day, or maybe even get to go out for recess before anyone else. These are just ideas to get you thinking about how movement in the classroom can be incorporated.

If it is an extra incentive that they need, then this activity will work well too. Have students stand up and move around for a certain amount of time (maybe during language arts or science class), then tell them that they can sit down, but anyone sitting down will be out of the game. If sitting is their choice, let it be; however, you might want to make this an activity worth playing if it's not something everyone does all the time. Competition between teams or with the class as a whole is sometimes what you need to get students motivated.

The game can be played with about four or five players per team, and there are no wrong answers, so you will want to make sure that everyone gets a turn. You could even have extra players on each team who don't participate in the actual activity but just run back and forth to switch teams.

When it's time for the game to begin, you say the number of seconds that they need to stay standing in place once they are tagged or hit by someone else. You can either play this game in a straight line so that there is only one way out, or you can have them move around in a circle so that they can go out any way they want and the game is more challenging.

Middle School

For middle school-aged students, it is a bit trickier since they are in that "too cool for school" phase, but you can still get some movement in the classroom in unique ways. They might be a little more interested in having a dance party with their friends rather than doing activities at the board, but if you offer this as an alternative or make it a requirement - they will participate.

There are many fun and engaging songs that you can play for students to do something different from what they normally would be doing in class. You can even make it a contest to see who can stay in rhythm the longest, and for every correct answer they get, they can move one step forward. But if they break out of the rhythm or stop moving altogether, then you need to start over from where everyone is standing.

This is a great way for students to release some energy when they don't have the time to take a break and play a physical game. You decide the length of the song and how many times it needs to be played before everyone can sit down and get back to business.

You can also incorporate movement in the classroom as a way to transition from one activity to another, such as sitting down or getting ready for a test. If you normally do this with students lined up and walking in quietly, try having them crawl around the room like they're animals instead.

If your students are working on writing an essay, there is no need to sit there the entire time. Give them ten minutes to work on it, then have them stand up and walk around for three minutes while they brainstorm their ideas. Then you can give them another five or ten minutes to write an outline or first draft before they go back to walking again.

You can even use physical responses to help students learn new material or concepts. If you tell them they are going to do a certain activity, such as jumping jacks, they need to stand up and do it with you before everyone sits down. For a math teacher, have the class clap three times when he or she says something that relates to addition, then stop when they say another number word. Make it a race among teams if you have multiple classes in one day, so if they get it wrong, the other class gets to move forward.

This is a great way for students to use their minds and bodies simultaneously, so they get more out of learning than just the facts you are trying to convey. They can even practice test-taking by having them stand up and walk around when you mention certain topics on the exam that will appear later on.

There are many different ways to get your students to embrace movement in the classroom, and you can make it an everyday part of your lesson plan for any grade level. It will help them focus, give them more energy which can boost their academic success, and even get their creative juices flowing since they are thinking outside of the box.

High School and Beyond

High school is also its own unique beast when it comes to appropriate movement in the classroom. For older students, you can use activities that are used for fitness tests in schools, such as sit-ups, squats, jump rope skipping for distance or time, push-ups, etc. The goal is to perform these activities within a certain amount of time. For example, have students do as many sit-ups as they can within a minute. For every ten correct reps, you give them a chance to take a break before starting again at zero.

If PhysEd is not your cup of tea, there are other movement in the classroom activities that could work ranging from permanent flexible seating to actual games that high schoolers would absolutely buy into.

The flexible seating idea is great because students can move any time they feel like it, be it to get more focused, release some energy or even take care of a wiggly body. It also helps them with movement breaks throughout the day for their minds to rest while still getting out some physical activity.

Physical movement in the classroom during teaching time is a great way to get the students more engaged in what they are learning. They can make connections, react to stimuli and practice anything from memorization to problem-solving by playing games. The best part is that no matter what age you teach or how long you've been teaching, there are ways for everyone to get involved and benefit from movement in the classroom.

The idea of using games for academic purposes is not only fun but also something that students are likely to buy into immediately because they enjoy playing games. You can create the game yourself (which usually works best) or there are plenty of online resources to check out for ideas, too (Pinterest is your friend!).

The list of games that can be played to teach academic subjects is practically endless. They are great for review before an assessment, especially if they are timed so students have to move quickly between topics. You can also do a group activity where there are several small games with movement questions per round. It's easy enough to infuse movement in the classroom activities into a normal class period to get students up and moving around. Whether you're a grade-school teacher, a junior high/middle school instructor, or even an adult instructor in higher education, there are ways that everyone can have fun while getting the most out of their classes.

Movement in the Classroom and the 4 Keys

Finding effective ways to allow movement in the classroom isn't difficult, it just needs to ebb and flow with the students and where they are (physically, mentally, and emotionally). Being flexible is the key to making all of this work. The key is engagement. There are four keys to student engagement that I discuss in my video training challenge called "Finding Your Student Engagement Formula" and it walks you through those four keys and how to implement them in the classroom.

If you are interested in registering (it's totally free), visit the Finding Your Student Engagement Formula Challenge registration page and you will be notified the next time the series is available.

After moving from a teacher-dominated classroom to a truly student-centered one, Jenn found herself helping colleagues who wanted to follow her lead. In 2018 she decided to expand outside of her school walls and help those out there who were also trying to figure out this fantastic method of instruction to ignite intrinsic motivation in their students. Read more about her journey with Student-Centered World at studentcenteredworld.com/about

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The Need for Movement in the Classroom | Student-Centered World

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Here at Student-Centered World, we are HUGE promoters in flexible seating . The whole idea behind flexible seating is that a student will put forth their best work if they are in a position that they are the most productive. For some students, this is still at a traditional desk.

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Gallery walks allow students to physically get our of their seats and observe other student perspectives. This not only allows them to be active and get out some excess energy, but it means that they can learn from each other by looking into different strategies.

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Compiled by Mark Francek at Central Michigan University

What is Gallery Walk? --a discussion technique for active engagement

Gallery Walk gets students out of their chairs and actively involves them in synthesizing important concepts, in consensus building, in writing, and in public speaking. In Gallery Walk teams rotate around the classroom, composing answers to questions as well as reflecting upon the answers given by other groups. Questions are posted on charts or just pieces of paper located in different parts of the classroom. Each chart or "station" has its own question that relates to an important class concept. The technique closes with an oral presentation or "report out" in which each group synthesizes comments to a particular question.
Learn more about Gallery Walk

Why use Gallery Walk? --promotes higher order thinking, oral/written presentation skills, and team building

Gallery Walk is flexible and has many benefits. Gallery Walk can be organized for a simple fifteen minute ice breaker or for a week long project involving graded oral and written reports. The technique encourages students to speak and write the language of earth science rather than just hearing it from the instructor. In addition to addressing a variety of cognitive skills involving analysis, evaluation, and synthesis, Gallery Walk has the additional advantage of promoting cooperation, listening skills, and team building.
Learn more about the strengths of Gallery Walk

How to use Gallery Walk? --student teams rotate between posted charts

In Gallery Walk student teams rotate to provide bulleted answers to questions posted on charts arranged around the classroom. After three to five minutes at a chart or "station" the team rotates to the next question. Gallery Walk works best with open ended questions, that is, when a problem, concept, issue, or debate can be analyzed from several different perspectives. In this section find a variety of instructional resources such as preparing students for this technique, a step by step guide for using Gallery Walk, evaluation rubrics, and challenges in implementing the technique.
Learn more about how to use Gallery Walk

Gallery Walk examples --a variety of sample questions for a variety of earth science topics

Find examples of Gallery Walk questions for the following categories: Atmosphere, Biosphere, Climate System, Earth History and Time, Earth Surface, Energy and Cycles, Human Dimensions, Hydrosphere and Cryosphere, Oceans, Solar System, and Solid Earth. Complete sample exercises are also included for a Gallery Walk involving weather map analysis and soil morphology.
View Gallery Walk Examples

References on Gallery Walk

Find journal and web references relating to Gallery Walk.
View Gallery Walk References

Images not credited originated from the SERC Center or from Microsoft Clip Art.

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higher education :undergraduate (lower division)

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Compiled by Mark Francek at Central Michigan University Gallery Walk gets students out of their chairs and actively involves them in synthesizing important concepts, in consensus building, in writing, and in public speaking. In Gallery Walk teams rotate around the classroom, composing answers to questions as well as reflecting upon the answers given by other groups.

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Using different stations throughout the room allows students to move at their own pace and feel accomplished when they finish each station. This movement will help allow for a brain break in between activities, and students will have the chance to work with new people. This is a great way to involve movement and it works for any subject.

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There are many ways to get children to include physical movement in a student-centered classroom. To start with, teachers must realize that students should not be expected to sit all day at their desks. This is a difficult tasks for many adults, so how can students be expected to do the same and still perform optimally. Rather than finding ways to get the students to sit still, teachers need to focus on ways to get them moving. But how can students move around and still be learning? There are many options for teachers which will get the students moving within the class and thus, improve their learning.

Having students stand, rather than sit, at desks can help to solve many of the behavior problems in the class and allow the students to move their bodies, while still working. Teachers have been utilizing this technique for years, however, technology is catching up and standing desks have been created and used in classrooms to allow children to stand while working more productively. Desks known as Fidget Desks, are standing height for students and come equipped with a foot bar under the desk that allows students to pump and swing the bar and fidget without bothering their classmates. 1 Unfortunately, these desks remain expensive for schools to purchase, so the affordable option is to allow students to stand at their regular desk. Another option to allow children to move while they are working is to provide them with stability balls to sit on. These balls provide and fun and healthy way for children to sit and work, but still engage their bodies and move about productively. In 2003, the American Journal of Occupational Therapy published a study on the effects that sitting on stability balls had on students with ADHD and found that sitting on the stability balls resulted in improvements in their productivity in the class room, specifically, "students using ball chairs were able to sit still, focus and write more words clearly." ²

Not only can physical movement be incorporated into how the students work at desks, but it can be incorporated to get students moving away from their desks. Teachers can facilitate this by allowing organized chaos to enter their classroom. It may seem overwhelming to have students jumping and moving about, but when done with rules and guidelines, students are able to focus better and fully immerse themselves into the content. For example, student may be allow to do jumping jacks to math problems or skate to syllables of words.
3 Getting students up from their desks and physically involved in the material being taught helps them to be active participants in the classroom and their education.

Theory

Incorporating physical movement into the classroom is a way of teaching children that are bodily-kinesthetic learners based on Gardener's theory of multiple intelligences. Bodily-kinesthetic learners are people who "learn using the body effectively. They possess a keen sense of body awareness and they like movement, making things, touching. They communicate well through body language and be taught through physical activity, hands-on learning, acting out, role playing." ⁴

1. Replacing traditional chairs with an alternative (standing, stability balls, pillows, etc)

2. Spell words and make letters with your body

3. Incorporate yoga into the day

4. Allow students to work in their own space on the floor

5. Allow students to circulate to different centers or workshops throughout the class

5. Take brain breaks, dance and have fun!

Flannery, Mary Ellen. Standing Desks are Helping Students Think on Their Feet. Novembe r 5, 2014. neaToday. Retrieved September 25, 2015, from http://neatoday.org/2014/11/05/standing-desks-are-helping-students-think-on-their-feet/#

Lynch, K. (2014). How Sitting on a Ball Helps Kids Focus and Do Better In School. Retrieved September 25, 2015, from http://life.gaiam.com/article/how-sitting-ball-helps-kids-focus-and-do-better-school

Strauss, Valerie. (January 2015). Letting kids move in class isn't a break from Learning. It IS learning. Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2015/01/19/letting-kids-move-in-class-isnt-a-break-from-learning-it-is-learning/

Lane, C. (n.d.). Gardner's Multiple Intelligences. Retrieved September 25, 2015, from http://www.tecweb.org/styles/gardner.html

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How to include physical movement as a central element of a student-centered classroom

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If you are citizen of an European Union member nation, you may not use this service unless you are at least 16 years old. Whenever you search in PBworks or on the Web, Dokkio Sidebar (from the makers of PBworks) will run the same search in your Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, Gmail, Slack, and browsed web pages.

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Movement is known to help students feel engaged and it promotes 100% participation. This can include project based activities.

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“5 Fantastic Ideas for Collaboration Projects.” Cult of Pedagogy, 13 Aug. 2022, www.cultofpedagogy.com/collaboration-projects/.

“Flexible Grouping: A Responsive Strategy to Meet Student Needs in Real Time.” NCLD, 26 Aug. 2021, www.ncld.org/reports-studies/forward-together-2021/flexible-grouping/.

“How to: Increase Motivation.” Learning Contracts, www.interventioncentral.org/behavioral-interventions/motivation/how-increase-motivation-learning-contracts.

Lockridge, Monica. “The Pros and Cons of Reading Response Journals.” Rockin Resources, 25 Feb. 2023, rockinresources.com/2022/02/the-pros-and-cons-of-reading-response-journals.html.

Pappas, Christopher. “7 Tips to Create Personal Learning Paths in Elearning.” eLearning Industry, 12 May 2021, elearningindustry.com/7-tips-create-personal-learning-paths-elearning.

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Implement flexible grouping strategies to provide targeted support and enrichment based on individual student needs. Group students based on readiness, interest, or learning preferences. Within these groups, students can collaborate on projects, engage in discussions, or receive differentiated instruction from the teacher or peer mentors. Flexible grouping ensures that students receive the appropriate level of challenge and support in their learning.

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Create learning contracts that outline specific learning goals and tasks to be completed within a given timeframe. Students can collaborate with the teacher to set achievable goals, select activities, and define criteria for success. The contract provides a flexible structure that allows students to work at their own pace, delve deeper into areas of interest, or seek additional challenges.

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Description. A learning contract is a voluntary, student-completed document that outlines actions the learner promises to take in a course to achieve academic success. This contract is signed by the student, the instructor, and (optionally) the parent. Benefits of all such contracts, however, are that they provide academic structure and support, motivate struggling learners by having them pledge publicly to engage in specific, positive study and learning behaviors, and serve as a vehicle to bring teachers and students to agreement on what course goals are important and how to achieve them (Frank & Scharff, 2013). (View an example of a completed learning contract )

Procedure. The learning contract is typically completed in a meeting between the student and instructor. (In middle and high schools, the parent may also be a participant.) While there are many possible variations on the learning contract, they often contain these components (Frank & Scharff, 2013; Greenwood & McCabe, 2008):

Statement of Purpose. The contract opens with a statement presenting a rationale for why the contract is being implemented. A sample statement might be: I am taking part in this learning contract because I want to improve my grades and pass this course.

Student Actions. The contract lists any actions that the student is pledging to complete to ensure success in the course. Suitable targets for learning contract items might include attendance, class participation, completion of classwork or homework, seeking of instructor help, etc. See Figure 1 for a listing of sample actions that might be written into a learning contract.

Teacher Actions. The learning contract can be strengthened by adding a section detailing those actions that the instructor agrees to undertake to support the student. For example, the contract might state that the instructor will respond within 24 hours to course questions emailed by the student or will check weekly and alert the student to any missing course work. Listing teacher responsibilities on the contract emphasizes that success in the course is a shared endeavor and can prod the student to take advantage of instructor supports that might otherwise be overlooked.

Sign-Off. Both student and teacher sign the learning contract. If the parent is participating in the development of the contract, he or she also signs the contract. Because this document is a kind of 'promissory contract' (Rousseau & Parks, 1993), the student signature in particular indicates a voluntary acceptance of the learning contract and a public pledge to follow through on its terms.

Tips for Use. Here are additional ideas for using learning contracts:

Contracts and Whole-Group Instruction. If a number of students in a class would benefit from learning contracts as a motivational tool, teachers can incorporate them into whole-group instruction. For example, an instructor may write a series of learning-contract goals on the board (similar to the list appearing in Figure 1) and direct each student to select 3 or 4 to include in his or her own contract. The teacher would collect copies of all learning contracts and hold every student accountable for their use.

Contracts & Enrichment. Learning contracts can also be a convenient way to document individualized plans for enriched instructional activities. Advanced students can fill out contracts detailing their ambitious, self-directed learning goals; these contracts can also describe extra credit or other forms of recognition that students will earn for these enrichment activities.

References

Frank, T., & Scharff, L. F. V. (2013). Learning contracts in undergraduate courses: Impacts on student behaviors and academic performance. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 13(4), 36-53.

Greenwood, S. C., & McCabe, P. P. (2008). How learning contracts motivate students. Middle School Journal, 39(5), 13-22.

Rousseau, D. M., & Parks, J. M. (1993). The contracts of individuals and organizations. Research in Organizational Behavior, 15, 1-43.

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Description. A learning contract is a voluntary, student-completed document that outlines actions the learner promises to take in a course to achieve academic success. This contract is signed by the student, the instructor, and (optionally) the parent.

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Collaborate with students to develop personalized learning paths based on their individual goals and learning profiles. Conduct conversations with each student to identify their strengths, areas for growth, and interests. Together, determine appropriate resources, activities, and assessments that align with their needs. Students can have a say in selecting the content, format, or pacing of their learning, empowering them to take ownership of their education.

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7 Tips To Create Personal Learning Paths In eLearning

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How To Create Personal Learning Paths In eLearning. Check 7 Tips For eLearning Professionals To Create Personal Learning Paths In eLearning

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Develop tiered assignments where students have multiple pathways to demonstrate their understanding of a topic or concept. Assign different versions of the assignment that vary in complexity, depth, or requirements. Students can choose the tier that best matches their readiness and skill level. For instance, a tiered assignment on a novel may include options like writing a traditional essay, creating a visual representation, or composing a song.

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Create a menu of learning options or tasks related to a specific topic or skill. Each option can be designed to meet different levels of complexity or provide different modes of learning. For example, students may choose from activities such as reading a text, watching a video, conducting research, creating a presentation, or engaging in a hands-on project. The menu should include a variety of tasks that cater to diverse learning preferences and challenge levels.

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Differentiate with Learning Menus and Choice Boards

"...at its core, differentiated instruction means addressing ways in which students vary as learners." - Carol Ann Tomlinson

[Tweet "Interactive Learning Menus with @GoogleforEdu #edtech#gsuiteedu"]

What Are Learning Menus?

IT'S ALL ABOUT CHOICE! Learning menus (aka choice boards) are a form of differentiated learning that gives students a menu or choice of learning activities. Learning menus and choice boards can be created in a variety of styles and mediums. They've been around for a long time and originated in a static, paper format. But with digital tools, we can bring the menus to life with interactivity and creation. Menus can be a simple list, a tic-tac-toe or bingo-style game, or get as creative and intricate as you like. Check out my Pinterest board for ideas.

Learning Menus Can Be Used with Any Age Group

I have found that menus and choice boards tend to be more popular among elementary teachers, but I used them in my middle school classroom, and now I use them in professional learning workshops with adults. Any grade level can use learning menus!

Learning Menus Can Be Used in Any Subject Area

Since learning menus are so flexible, they can easily be created and adapted for just about any subject area. So no excuses! Any teacher who is willing to try can make use of this student-centered strategy.

[Tweet "Any teacher who is willing to try can make use of this student-centered strategy. #edtech"]

Are Learning Menus Hyperdocs the Same Thing?

No, but they could be part of a Hyperdoc assignment. I love Hyperdocs! But these two are not one in the same. Keep in mind the definition of learning menus stated above. It is simply a menu of choices from which students can choose. Student choice is the big idea behind learning menus and choice boards.

A Hyperdoc is a complete packaged assignment that also meets some additional criteria. A Hyperdoc doesn't have to include choice, but it could. To learn more about Hyperdocs, visit their site or read the AMAZING book by Lisa Highfill, Sarah Landis, and Kelly Hilton.

Creating a Tic-Tac-Toe Learning Menu in Google Docs

One easy way to dip your toes into the learning menu water is a Tic-Tac-Toe menu. A Tic-Tac-Toe can be used for anything from short activities to more long-term projects, both assessment FOR learning (formative) and assessment OF learning (summative).

Below is an example of a Novel Unit Tic-Tac-Toe menu that I created as a summative project. It was created in Google Docs, nothing fancy, just a table and some color. Depending on how you want to use, you can add links, rubrics, images, video and more. (Click here to use my blank tic-tac-toe template.)
CLICK HERE to use the Novel Study Tic-Tac-Toe template. On mobile? CLICK HERE to make a copy.
Learning Menu Design

Remember when you are creating a learning menu to align it with your learning goals! First, I use the middle square as my non-negotiable, the one activity that I want every student to complete. This could be reading an article, watching a video, or in this case; every student will write a summary and add it to a collaborative Google Slide deck where they will also add links to their other projects. Everything in one place!

Some teachers also make the middle square a free space where students can propose their own ideas to demonstrate their learning. LOVE THIS IDEA!

I had some students who would try to find the easiest or fastest way to complete the tasks. But if you pay attention to the learning design, you can design it so that it gives choice and flexible learning paths, not just an easy completion grade.

I use the color to guide the learning design. Because I use the middle square as a non-negotiable, I control how they make the tic-tac-toe just a little bit more. Every student will do the middle square and one from the blue and one from the yellow. In this summative example, students are mostly creating, but in the example below, you will see how it can also work for activities that guide the learning.

Below is a professional learning example that I designed for teaching Google Chrome. As a trainer, I typically have very mixed groups in my training sessions (multiple grade levels, subject areas, and tech savviness). I usually address general skills, and apps and extensions that are applicable across all grade levels and subject areas as a whole group.

Then I move into an activity like the Chrome PD Tic-Tac-Toe learning menu to allow teachers to dig deeper into their own subject areas and grade levels AND move at a pace that is comfortable for their level and learning style.
CLICK HERE to use my Chrome PD Tic-Tac-Toe template. On mobile? CLICK HERE to make a copy of the template.
Other Types of Learning Menus

As I said, a tic-tac-toe is just one type of menu. It happens to be a favorite of mine because they are easy to design and are not too overwhelming. But I have used many other types of menus, and I have been curating ideas on this Learning Menu Pinterest Board.

Digital Menu for Student Creation with Google Slides by Tommy Spall

Below is a Google Slide example of a learning menu that takes on the look of a restaurant menu from my friend, Tommy Spall. Follow him @TommySpall. (You can thank me later!) Click here to make a copy of Tommy's template that includes linked slides to lots of Googley projects and room for you to make it your own. (If you are on mobile and having trouble with the template link, try this make a copy link.)

Professional Development BINGO Board by Amber Teamann and Melinda Miller

Another option is to make it a full out BINGO board, like in this example from my friend Amber Teamann and her collaborator Melinda Miller. (Follow them at @8Amber8 and @MMiller7571, and yes, you will thank me for this one, too!)

Amber and Melinda are both elementary school principals. They issued this BINGO PD Challenge to her teachers over the summer, and I thought it might inspire you with some other options for choice and challenges in your classroom or professional learning. You can learn more details about PD Bingo in Amber's blog post.

Using G Suite to Create Learning Menus

The possibilities are truly endless! Consider all the ways you could use G Suite to create learning menus and the extended activities and links. Try thinking of the ways you could create menus using these G Suite tools:

Google Docs

Google Slides

Google Drawings

Google Sheets

Google My Maps

Google Sites

How to Use Google Templates and Assign in Google Classroom

If you enjoyed this post, you will love the more in-depth look at the power of choice boards and more examples in this post and podcast episode.

© Shake Up Learning 2023. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog's author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Kasey Bell and Shake Up Learning with appropriate and specific direction to the original content on ShakeUpLearning.com. See: Copyright Policy.

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Interactive Learning Menus (Choice Boards) Using Google Docs

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I love learning menus, and it is one of my favorite ways to incorporate student choice and to differentiate learning. And with digital tools like G Suite for Education, it's super easy to make menus interactive, digital, and more dynamic! Digital Differentiation offers teachers and students many ways to reach all learners.

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Students maintain personal journals where they reflect on their reading experiences, record their thoughts, make predictions, ask questions, and connect the text to their own lives. Reader response journals provide an opportunity for students to express their ideas, engage in self-reflection, and develop critical thinking skills.

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Reading response organizers from Rockin Resources offer a variety of styles and options for meaningful written responses in the form of guided prompts and graphic organizers for each reading standard. Some may help students understand or connect to text, while others challenge readers to be detectives, searching for specific types of information.

promote reading comprehension with Say GOODBYE TO BLANK PAGES and HELLO TO A REFERENCE TOOL! Instead of a notebook of blank pages because students don't know what to write, these differentiated organizers GUIDED questions, notes, and specific prompts. Having the skills all in one place will provide students with a reference tool that will also serve as a place for you to review skills with them!
There are many reasons to use Standard-Based Differentiated Reading Response Organizers.

GUIDE: Students are guided in their response, so they know what to write.

STANDARD-BASED: They are standard based so you can be sure to cover all literature and informational text standards.

DIFFERENTIATION: They meet the needs of diverse learners in your classroom. The organizers offer 3 levels of differentiation so that your reluctant learners, on-level students, and students who need an extra challenge are all successful with the same standard.

COMPREHENSIVE: They provide teachers a chance to help with the pitfalls of reader response, such as students overlooking the author's intended meaning or their perspectives being limited by lack of empathy or experiences.

REFERENCE: They provide the students with a reference tool to know how to respond to that skill in the future.

CONFIDENCE: Students build confidence working on their level.

That's why it makes sense to support your students with a guided graphic organizer, just as if they were doing any other sort of writing.

Reading Response organizers can be utilized in class during literature circles, independent reading time, or at home as part of nightly reading homework. You can print out the organizers as needed, put all sheet in a binder to keep them in one place, or share them digitally for students who are remote or who need to type for an accomodation. Ideally, the journal can be used for both in-class and at-home work, traveling back and forth like a lunchbox.
Here are a few examples of how you can utilize them in different settings.
WHOLE CLASS: Are you trying to complete a dense chapter in social studies or science? Are some of your students struggling to comprehend the material and put it into their own words? Reader response organizers for nonfiction offer a variety of ways to guide students to interact meaningfully with the text to get the most out of it. Use graphic organizers such as text feature analysis and vocabulary study during reading to help students make sense of the text and bolster comprehension. After reading a chapter as a whole class, pass out the reader response organizers you think will be the most beneficial to help students process what they read and put it in their own words. This will lead to a more robust understanding of the text and help you see what your students truly understood.

and mini-lessons for all readers. For example, each reading skill offers 3 levels of differentiation and designed to help you. All students will be applying the same skill at their own level and you can SMALL GROUP: If you're like many teachers, you have students splitting into small groups to read novels in class. They're often grouped by interest or difficulty level. Use the differentiated organizers for the specific skill you are teaching during direct instruction monitor student comprehension.

Or use different skills for the leveled groups. You might have a higher reading group who has moved on from simply summarizing. You could assign them reading response organizers to analyze quotes and create text-to-text connections. Meanwhile, a lower reading group could be scaffolded with reader response organizers that focus on reading basics, such as sequencing and identifying story elements.

Do you require INDIVIDUAL: nightly reading logs for each student? Do you have independent reading time a few times a week in your classroom? If you've ever worried that kids are skimming the pages while their minds are elsewhere, reader-response organizers are your new best friend. It will keep them accountable for their reading. You can:

1. Student Choice: Leave a stack of fiction and nonfiction organizers by your classroom library and tell students to select their favorite one to pair with that day's reading or tell students to pick an organizer they haven't tried yet!

2. Teacher Choice. This is your chance to give students the organizer you think they need the most to help them with a specific skill. A packet of reading response organizers sent home at the beginning of the month or week to accompany reading homework will also give you a tangible way to check on your students' progress as independent readers.

Absolutely! They can be reused when applied to a different text. For example, you can use it in class with one text, at home with another text, and later in the year with yet another text! Track students' progress and use those results toward the end of the year for small group review!

Teachers are always looking for ways to differentiate and offer resources and tools to meet the needs of all learners. Reading response organizers are a wonderful way to upgrade your reading assignments to meet the diverse learning needs of your students and individualize instruction with minimal prep work. This one easy tool can transform the way your students write about reading! It will also add variety and challenge for them while adding versatility and another formative assessment for you! Reading response organizers are a win-win!

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THE PROS AND CONS OF READING RESPONSE JOURNALS

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A READING RESPONSE JOURNAL is a journal where students are asked to record their interactions with reading. This can be simple fact-finding or a personal reflection and connection to the text. Reading response journals can be a wonderful and meaningful way to track authentic growth as a reader-so why aren't more teachers using them?

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In small groups, the teacher provides support and guidance to students as they read texts at their instructional level. The teacher focuses on specific reading strategies, facilitates discussions, and provides feedback to help students build their reading skills and comprehension. Guided reading allows for differentiated instruction and targeted support based on individual student needs.

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Similar to literature circles, book clubs involve small groups of students reading and discussing books of their choice. The key difference is that each student in the book club selects their own book based on their interests. This approach allows for a more individualized reading experience and encourages students to share their book recommendations and insights with their peers.

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Does anyone else struggle with setting up book clubs in the classroom?

On the surface, a book club always sounds like a great idea! But, (if you're like me), you may have fallen into the trap of pushing back the date that you actually start book clubs in the classroom with your students, because you can't seem to find the time to prep all of the things that you feel like you need to have ready to ensure that your students' book clubs are successful.

The truth is, book clubs are for the students, and they do not need to have months of prep work behind them. If you have found yourself spinning your wheels trying to get everything organized enough to simply start book clubs, then I have 5 tips for you today that will help you get your classroom book clubs up and running this week!

What is a student-led book club?

Book clubs, formally known as a literature circles in many places, are a shared reading experience among a small group of students. The goal is that the students are facilitating the discussion, rather than the teacher leading the group, as you would see in a traditional small group.

Students meet according to a set schedule, and practice the reading skills you have been teaching them through their own text-based discussion. It's another way to incorporate independent skill practice into your reading block!

How will book clubs in the classroom help my students?

Book clubs in the classroom are one of the most authentic reading experiences you can give your students. Reading a book, and engaging in discussion with peers over that book is exactly how we approach reading as adults. Additionally, positive book club experiences in elementary school can encourage students to continue reading as they get older.

The more positive reading moments we can curate in our classrooms, the better job we are doing of creating lifelong readers, which is our ultimate goal!

Have a Clear Agenda/Routine for Each Book Club

There is no wrong way to do a book club. You may have internalized the idea that you need to have dozens of jobs set up and taught before you can officially place students in a book club. There is nothing inherently wrong with incorporating different roles into your students' book clubs, but if this has been holding you back from getting started,

I want you to know that jobs are not necessary for book club success! The real key to hosting well-run book clubs is to have a clear agenda. Students thrive when things are consistent and predictable. Explicitly stating what should be done during book club, and for how long, gives your students the parameters they need to be successful, while also keeping things loose enough for their discussion to be their own.
Some items that a book club agenda may include:

Summarize yesterday's reading: 5 minutes.

Share connections: 3 minutes.

Discuss predictions: 5 minutes.

Ask questions: 2 minutes

...or whatever you want to include!

Introduce Your Book Club Structure in Whole Group

This was a lifesaver for me. If you have created a routine that will be the same for book clubs, no matter which students are in it, and regardless of the text that is being read, then you can teach the routine one time to everyone. Put students in their groups during your typical book club time, but read one text to everyone aloud. Then, have students practice the discussion routine you created in their small groups over the text you read them.

This allows you to circulate and give feedback to the discussion of different groups, without having to hold 4-6 different texts in your head. Establishing the routine well on the front end will be a lifesaver for you as you release the responsibility to your students in the future.

Use Picture Books as Your Book Club Text

This is not as common, especially in upper elementary, but I am a big believer in using picture books as a teaching tool across all grades...even in book clubs! There are no rules that state that book clubs have to last for weeks at a time, or that they have to use chapter books.

If the purpose of a book club is for students to have a shared reading experiences, then any text will do! Using picture books can be a great way to further establish the routine of small group discussion with shorter texts.

You can use picture books in a few different ways:

Introduce a handful of picture books to your students, and let them choose which book club they would like to be a part of.

Pull several picture books by the same author, and create author study book clubs.

Pull several picture books that are the same genre, and host genre study book clubs!

Let Students Choose their Texts

This raises plenty of concern for teachers everywhere, and I understand it. We want to make sure that our students are reading texts at an appropriate level, that they are on task, and (most importantly), that they are learning through book clubs in the classroom. But, offering choice is such a powerful tool in our teaching. If you are hesitant to allow students to choose their book club texts, I'd like to offer a couple of points for consideration.

Choice is an automatic engagement-booster. When students choose, they are inherently more invested in the task at hand. Assigning a text that a student has no interest in, simply because it's the right lexile level for them, will not promote engagement in the reading, which won't help your students grow.

Engagement in a task promotes grit. If the text is a tiny bit harder than you may have chosen for the student yourself, the fact that they chose it can be enough to encourage them to work harder to comprehend than they may have if the book were handed to them.

Positive reading experiences produce more reading experiences. Forcing a student into a group they didn't want can have the opposite effect of what we're looking for in our book clubs. If a text is a little too easy, or a little too hard, but the student desperately wanted to see what would happen, and they were enjoying learning from the other students in the group, then they will be more apt to pick up a book in their free time.

Create 5-6 different book clubs, and allow students to sign up for the one they prefer. Yes, some of your students' may end up in groups with their very best friends. But again, this mirrors real life, and we are trying to create authentic reading experiences! If you are worried about off-task behavior between friends, I'd encourage you to make sure that your routine is clear and tight to eliminate space for off-task discussions.

Another option you can consider is letting your students select their book club right before or after an extended break. We all know how antsy students can get right before a holiday break. And as teachers we are looking for all the help we can get during those crazy weeks. Giving students the chance to select their own book club can be just one simple way you boost engagement right before the holidays.

Minimize and Simplify Book Club Homework

The traditional book club routine is for students to both read and complete several discussion questions independently. I don't recommend that you pile on the homework, because (again) we want to create a shared, positive reading experience for our students!

Instead, I recommend allowing your students to decide as a group how many chapter they would like to have read each week, and then creating a one-size-fits-all assignment for each group to complete before each book club meeting.
For example, you could ask students to come to each book club prepared to discuss:
An assignment like this can be written on any kind of paper, so no copies are necessary, and puts the responsibility on your students' shoulders, rather than creating an extra task your weekly to-do list!

Your time is better spent teaching than facilitating, after all.

These 5 tips will help your students run their own book clubs in the classroom, and allow you to truly sit back and observe. Instead of running the book clubs yourself, you can spend time providing feedback to your students that will deepen their discussion, and help them grow as readers!!

There is no magic number here...you get to decide! You can have them run for one month, each quarter. Or, maybe you have students rotating through book clubs for the entire second semester.

One thing I would consider is if your students are also in guided reading groups, are you providing enough space for them to balance all of their assignments and hold all of those texts in their heads?

Best practice tells us, yes; we should know exactly what a text is about before we assign it to our students. But, reading every book in its entirety may not be feasible. So, if you don't have time to read a book to completion, at least make sure that you have done some research to ensure that inappropriate themes are not present in the book and that you've read a few chapters to familiarize yourself with the complexity of the vocabulary!

There are pros and cons to roles! There is a lot of structure added when you incorporate student jobs into book clubs. So, if structure and keeping students busy the entire time is the most important thing to you, then you may want to use specific jobs. However, some of the cons may be that you are not creating as authentic of a reading experience as you may have wanted. When adults discuss books with their peers, they aren't looking only for their questions, or only for their connections. They are looking at the text as a whole.

Another con is that roles create extra prep work for the teacher. The teaching on the front end needs to be more in-depth to cement all of the different routines for the different jobs, and often different roles require different types of writing assignments, which may mean more copies.

At the end of the day, it's just about your preference and teaching style! I hope you enjoy book clubs in the classroom.

Happy Teaching!

Want to learn more about how to get started with book clubs in the classroom?

Check out this episode of Stellar Teacher TV where I share some of my best tips for getting started with book clubs.

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5 Tips for Successful Book Clubs in the Classroom

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Does anyone else struggle with setting up book clubs in the classroom? On the surface, a book club always sounds like a great idea!

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Allocate dedicated time for independent reading where students choose books or texts of their interest. During SSR, students have the freedom to select and explore texts at their own pace. This approach promotes student choice, fosters a love for reading, and allows students to practice reading skills independently.

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Students perform a script based on a book or a play, taking on different character roles. This approach allows students to actively engage with the text, develop fluency in reading, and deepen their comprehension as they bring the characters and their emotions to life. Reader's theater encourages teamwork, oral expression, and interpretation of the text.

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Divide students into small groups and assign each group a book or a selection of texts. Within their groups, students take on different roles, such as discussion director, summarizer, connector, or vocabulary enricher. They meet regularly to discuss the assigned reading, share their insights, and ask questions. Literature circles encourage collaboration, critical thinking, and deeper understanding of the text.

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How educators encourage can natural discussion and enthusiasm for books in the classroom while ensuring students continue to grow as readers.

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Creating different learning stations or centers around the classroom can offer students various options for independent or small-group learning. Each station can be equipped with specific materials, resources, or technology related to different learning activities. Students can move between stations, based on their interests or needs, fostering autonomy and self-directed learning.

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What if you could blend differentiation, brain-based learning, collaboration, and student engagement all into one power-packed lesson? It's possible! In this post, you'll find ideas for how to create learning stations that maximize movement, differentiation, and student engagement.

If learning stations are new to you, just picture students spread out around the room working in small groups (usually selected by you based upon skill needs or readiness levels). Each group is working on a different task that targets an area students need to practice. Identify your standard, deconstruct it (what must students be able to do and understand to be proficient with that standard?), and create tasks to help students develop those skills. Each station may last for 10-15 minutes (or however long you think is necessary). Students rotate between stations (yay - movement!) and participate in a variety of practice opportunities.

Before we get into some of the details about using learning stations effectively with older students, it's important to note that learning stations require strategy. We can't just gather some random activities and put them in corners of the room, hoping students will stay on task and take something away from the experience. I've made that mistake, and it feels very much like busy work for students.

Learning stations have to be purposefully designed. Is off-task behavior a concern? We have to work at building a culture in which students stay focused and respectful. Most importantly, while students are doing the thinking in learning stations, it's the teacher's job to make sure they are getting targeted practice and to identify common misconceptions, areas of strength, and points for growth.

So, let's look at some possibilities for designing and executing the practice in middle and high school.

DESIGNING LEARNING STATIONS

When we create learning stations, we need to first identify the learning goal. Are you trying to pique students' curiosity about a culture or time period? Are you trying to build background knowledge? Or, are you emphasizing the inherent behaviors and understandings of a specific standard? Often, learning stations are a way to differentiate skills students have already been introduced to during direct instruction.

Not all stations in the lineup need to be about the same topic. If you want students to engage in critical thinking about grammar, vocabulary, analysis, and writing about something they are reading, you could create each station to address one of those topics.

Let's say you are reading a short story. Stations might include:

small group reading strategy instruction with the teacher

mentor sentence analysis from the story

connotation and denotation exploration in word choice

responding to an essential question or a standards-aligned prompt (ex - how does the setting impact the storyline) in writing

In this way, you've essentially created a differentiated close reading experience for students. They are required to look back at the text four times, but each time through a different lens and with a fresh purpose for reading.

DIFFERENTIATING STATION TASKS

When you sit down to create learning stations, make sure to build in some differentiation. How might that look in middle or high school?

Use low-floor, high-ceiling tasks.

Select tasks that are open ended. In other words, make sure students of all readiness levels can access the activity. For instance, if you ask students to identify character development, give them a graphic organizer. Some of them are going to be identifying obvious details from the story, while others will naturally lean toward making higher-level inferences. All students can be involved at their readiness level.

Give students ownership.

One of the most effective ways to ensure students are engaged in learning stations is to give them voice and choice.

Voice: Tell them about the learning target, and ask them, based upon what they already know, how they would like to practice and develop those skills more. They might not have a specific answer on the spot, but they might be able to suggest something like, "a game" or using a tech tool.

Choice: Provide a few different learning options at at least one of the stations. Vocabulary? Have them create sketch associations, create (or complete) analogies, or use pictures as inspiration to write sentences using the words. This resource contains many more ideas for creative vocabulary learning station activities.

Build in tiered activities.

When you create learning stations, you should have an idea of your students' current aptitude with the content and skills. Build in some tiered activities so that no one is bored or under-challenged. Let's use writing as an example. Perhaps you give students three options at a station.

1. Revise your essay for fragments and run-ons.

2. Incorporate a few dependent clauses as transitions.

3. Find at least one hole or flaw in your arguments, and brainstorm how to fill or revise it.

To prevent students from flying down the list without digging in to each task, you could tell students which one you want them to focus on that day. If they finish early and their group members don't have any revision suggestions, they can move on to the next item.

Vary learning preferences.

Brain research supports many of the approaches already mentioned in this post. While the validity of learning styles is still highly debatable, I have noticed a difference in learning when students are offered opportunities to explore new information through multiple avenues. To increase engagement, try building in different learning preferences.

For example, when studying how to embed cited research...

Students might use manipulatives on their desks or tables. Where does the signal phrase go? the quote? the punctuation? Where should the punctuation go?

Add a video or two short ones students can watch and then give them choice in how they want to take notes - a t-chart, sketch notes, etcetera.

Use highlighters to have students color code the various aspects of the embedded quote. Color code them!

On big chart paper, ask students to work together (standing, if you prefer, for movement) to write the quote's introduction, the quote, and the elaboration. Have them annotate their work.

INCORPORATING MOVEMENT

Students will naturally move when they rotate between stations, but when you create learning stations, you can also build in movement intentionally. For instance, before rotating, maybe walk students through some simple neck or forearm stretches to reduce stress. Play a song and dance to the next station. When you stop the music, students know that is their cue to get started.

Build movement into your actual station activities by having them do a mini scavenger hunt. Hang task cards in the hallway. Incorporate games or skits that add small movement. Use Post-It notes to have them arrange or classify ideas. Or, ask them to write ideas on the board.

CREATING AN EFFECTIVE GROUP WORK CULTURE

Even if you have designed the best learning stations on the planet, you might end up walking away frustrated if the classroom culture doesn't suit them. So, when you create learning stations, consider the "what ifs." Here are some instructional strategies I've found beneficial in creating an ideal culture that supports learning stations.

Involve students in creating the norms.

Explain to students what learning stations are. Maybe even show them a video clip from the web so they can see them in action. Then, brainstorm together what effective learning stations should look like, sound like, and feel like. Compile their ideas on chart paper, and each time you use learning stations, review the chart first. Reminders never hurt!

Build group work stamina.

Keep track of how long students are able to work together and stay focused. Then, create a visual (a common one is a bar chart on big paper) showing how many minutes students increase each time. If there is a disruption, stop the class, review the norms, and then get back to work.

Focus on evidence of learning.

Accountability is somewhat of a taboo term any more, but we do need evidence of learning. Combine the information you hear and see when observing your students with an exit slip or learning station notes page. Use this evidence to reflect on the effectiveness of the instruction and to plan future teaching.

Consider including a teacher station.

Learning stations are an opportunity for you to sit with small groups of students to give them targeted instruction! Maybe the whole class is working on being able to analyze theme, but different groups of students are at different readiness levels. Form your groups so that when you meet with each of them, you can tweak the theme lesson to fit their needs.

Some students might be identifying themes that don't extend beyond the text. Others might need to work on supporting the theme with text evidence. Or, maybe they are ready to dig into a mini lesson about how to explain theme using plot, character development, and conflict.

I would suggest not incorporating the teacher station until students have demonstrated the ability to stay focused during the learning stations.

Use a visible timer.

Whether you display the station rotation times on the white board or use one from online, make sure students can see how much time they have to finish their work. The sense of urgency will be there, which will keep them on task. I find timers help me to keep order as well! If I'm working with a group, time can get away from me, and then the subsequent stations are shortened.

Plan for fast finishers.

Don't compile a bunch of worksheets. But. Do have an idea of what you want students to do if they finish early at a station. Should they watch a related video to add to their understanding on the topic? Reading a book of their choice or responding to reading with writing are also meaningful options. Students could improve their listening comprehension by tuning into a podcast. Or, have students work on reviewing their vocabulary words.

Have a back-up plan.

Some students don't do well with lots of transitions and unpredictability. Have a back-up plan ready for them. Maybe that includes working through a Hyperdoc of very similar learning experiences but in a quiet location or next to a teacher. This shouldn't be a punishment. Have a private, one-on-one conversation with any students necessary during or after your first round of learning stations. Ask them if they'd prefer to learn in a different format, and tell them you have an option they might like better!

Learning stations often take some prep time, but once you have stations established that you love, you can use them again. If you can't incorporate all of these tips for success, that's okay, too! This is what works for me, but they are also insights I've gained over fifteen years of teaching. I knew very little of this as a first-year middle and high school teacher. If you do your best to incorporate stations and part of the experience flops, celebrate it as a learning experience and try again.

If you'd like to dig into a different perspective for how to create learning stations, Language Arts Classroom provides her approach, specific to making grammar engaging, in this post.

RELATED RESOURCES:
Get started with learning stations! Here are some resources that will save you time:

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How to Create Learning Stations Students will Love - Reading and Writing Haven

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What if you could blend differentiation, brain-based learning, collaboration, and student engagement all into one power-packed lesson? It's possible! In this post, you'll find ideas for how to create learning stations that maximize movement, differentiation, and student engagement.

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Creating a comfortable and visually appealing learning environment can positively impact student engagement and motivation. Consider elements such as appropriate lighting, temperature control, and classroom décor that reflects the subject matter or student interests. A welcoming and visually stimulating environment can contribute to a positive mindset and a sense of belonging.

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My career teaching young children has taken me many wonderful places in this world, but my classroom has remained in a rather institutional setting. As classrooms go the setting that I teach in is typical: white cinder block walls, cold tile floors, and uniformly straight lines (inside at least). The challenge is making this environment softer and more inviting to children, and adults as well, at an affordable cost. My co-teachers and I have tried many different ways to make our classrooms more of a home for the children. We are still enhancing our environment, which I believe should be a continuing process for any team. The key is flexibility; change is good for continued stimulation in any environment, and it's a fresh outlook on a new school year. I believe change also prepares children for a world that is constantly in transition.

COLOR

Color is a very powerful medium. It can invoke warmth, happiness, tranquility, excitement, and any number of other moods. Most people have a favorite color or a color that brings back memories from the past. Color can change the entire look and feel of a space. When someone mentions the color of a space the first thing that comes to mind is paint. Painting is a great way to change an environment, but for most institutional settings there are a myriad of obstacles to this option. Cost could be the number one hurdle as well as approval from the institution or a board of directors. There is also the time factor. When do you paint if the children are usually there? Luckily there are many other ways to change the look of a space with color that are more accessible:

Quilts on the wall provide color and design as well as softness

A display of children's paintings around the room showcases children's art and is a tremendous self-esteem booster

Bottles filled with colored water, sand, crayons, glitter adds color to shelves and other flat surfaces

Reflectors with Velcro on the back are a colorful and creative felt board activity

Plants add color to any environment and flowers are a great enhancement to the color scheme (they also smell good)

Toys on shelves in clear bins also create a colorful background and helps the children see what they are choosing.

FLOORING

We walk on the floor, we sit on the floor (something most builders don't think of), but do we really see the floor? Children do, after all they are much closer to it than adults are. In an institutional setting many times the floor is going to be tile with some sections carpeted. The carpet and the tile are usually a neutral color, somewhere between beige and gray.

Using area rugs in some parts of the room can create more intimate gathering spaces and add color. In the dramatic play area this can create a home environment. In a large group gathering space, an area rug can provide a softer sitting space and form a boundary for meeting times.

Colored masking tape is a wonderful device for creating art on the floor. With a little imagination and some practice many ideas can be realized. Create an airplane for the children to fly, or a giant insect to inspect. Make a road for trucks and scooters or stepping- stones over a stream.

CEILING

The ceiling is a vast expanse of nothingness in most rooms. To children it is also an unobtainable height that is a cause for wonderment. Many times children have questioned me, "Can you touch the ceiling?" If you can they are truly amazed. There are ways to lower the ceiling and make it more exciting:

Many exciting mobiles can be bought, but you can also make mobiles. Old CDs make very glittery mobiles. Natural objects such as pinecones can be hung over a science table. The children can also make mobiles for the room. Use your imagination.

Umbrellas hung from the ceiling are a very colorful enhancement (with the cloth removed umbrellas become a great frame for a mobile).

Hanging plants also lower the ceiling.

NATURE INSIDE

Another way to complement an indoor environment is to bring the outdoors in. Plants are an easy first step.

Create large leaf collages for the walls.

Or post photos of the natural environment.

Use mosquito netting (the kind sewn to a hoop for over the bed) hung from the ceiling and secured around a small table, to create a butterfly habitat. It is a great up-close way for children to observe butterflies. After a couple of days release the butterflies and catch new ones. Mosquito netting can also create an intimate spot for quiet play. Place water and food (cut up fresh fruit works well) on the table inside, and then add butterflies that you and the children catch.

Ant or worm farms are another wonderful idea.

Classroom pets (that you are comfortable with) enhance an environment and help the children become more responsible.

SOFT SPOTS

In our classroom we have tried to make many soft spots where the children (and teachers) can sit comfortably and relax with a book or a game.

We have even created a whole area in our classroom called the "Soft Spot." The children brainstormed and voted on the name of the area. The "Soft Spot" contains a couch (adultsized love seat), a full sized rocking chair, a small table with child-sized chairs, books, games, puppets, and many pillows.

We also have a "Rest Stop" in our room for two children. There is also a love seat and books in this area.

Throughout the room we have pillows for the children to relax with, we even have a pillow bed which is a large wooden framed box with pillows on the floor.

Soft spots are wonderful places to read with children or simply to have a conversation. Children who are in group care for many hours of the day need some down time. This is not always easy to come by in a group setting, so any way the environment can be manipulated to include quieter places is a tremendous benefit to young children.

BATHROOM

What can I say about the bathroom? Hopefully it is functional and child sized; it is a large part of a child's day. We have tried to make the bathroom a visually pleasant environment. There is not a whole lot you can do with toilets and sinks. * Adding posters or framed artwork is a simple way to create a pleasant look. We try to change the posters several times a year to ensure continued interest. If you have a child who is just learning to use the toilet, interesting art on the walls may help that child stay a little longer and promote success.

OUTSIDE

The play yard can also be a place of beauty.

Flowering plants and shrubs are always a wonderful addition to any outside environment.

Sculptures, flags, windsocks, and fountains in a playground entice and amaze children.

Wind chimes are an incredible way to enhance the auditory beauty of any space (indoors or out).

Natural wood climbers, playhouses, or tree houses create fantastic new levels to a child's play, as well as promoting natural beauty.

ODDS AND ENDS

At our homes we have many decorative touches; in our classrooms these can also be implemented:

Colored bottles along the top of a shelf

Decorative baskets (for show as well as to hold toys)

Lamps (where possible) to replace harsh fluorescent lighting

Decorative strings of lights

Decorative mirrors for the children to observe themselves

Books displayed with the covers showing.

Anything else you can think of to beautify the classroom setting. Think of the classroom as an extension of the children's home (and yours as well).

FLEXIBILITY

When enhancing the aesthetics of your classroom don't be afraid to experiment. Try new things; if they do not work, try something else. Ask for the children's ideas; let them know you value their opinions. Get the parents involved; you would be surprised what your families have laying around at home that will look wonderful in the classroom. Try different room arrangements; let the room work for you when it comes to traffic flow and transitions. A well-arranged room can significantly cut down noise and indoor running. Many discipline problems can be eliminated with room arrangement.

Remember, you and the children spend a large part of the day in the classroom so make it as comfortable and inviting as possible. Only make changes and enhancements that you are comfortable with, and learn from mistakes. Most of all have fun with your environment. An exciting and comfortable classroom is essential for any child's education. The classroom that holds a child's interest is the first step to a lifetime of learning.

Copyright © Exchange Press, Inc. Reprinted with permission from

Exchange magazine. All rights reserved. Visit us at www.ChildCareExchange.com or call (800) 221-2864.

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Aesthetics in the Classroom Setting by Scott Brouette

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My career teaching young children has taken me many wonderful places in this world, but my classroom has remained in a rather institutional setting. As classrooms go the setting that I teach in is typical: white cinder block walls, cold tile floors, and uniformly straight lines (inside at least).

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Ensuring easy access to learning materials, manipulatives, books, calculators, or technology, helps students become more self-reliant and independent learners. Organize resources in accessible storage areas, clearly labeled and within reach of students. This empowers students to take ownership of their learning by retrieving materials as needed, fostering a sense of responsibility and self-direction.

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Twenty-one percent of young people worldwide are not in school, training programs, or employed, according to the U.S. Government Strategy for International Basic Education. Today's children are tomorrow's leaders, and they must have access to education. Educational institutions need to meet students' varied needs by providing a lot of ways to access information.

Teachers need to have information available in alternative formats, include diverse classroom exercises, and let students show their knowledge in different ways. All literacy should be age-appropriate, interesting, of high quality, and meet students' individual needs.

People with disabilities are routinely marginalized in society due to negative perceptions and attitudes. This begins at an early age. The way education systems are designed and operated creates learning barriers for an estimated 93 to 150 million children with disabilities around the world. When denied an education at a young age, they are not given the same opportunities to acquire basic reading, writing, and math skills, which are critical for future success. This delays the development of marketable skills or an opportunity to pursue further education.

When people with disabilities are given a robust education from an early age and included in workforce systems, countries have the potential to earn billions of dollars more each year. One of the four key principles for inclusive education is offering equitable access to learning opportunities. To help meet this challenge, the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a useful educational framework that helps develop flexible learning environments. The UDL approach can create a learning environment meeting all students' needs. This includes students with and without disabilities in a variety of contexts, such as those living in fragile and crisis-affected areas.

USAID and its partners used this framework to inform the Universal Design for Learning to Help All Children Read toolkit, which specifically addresses developing literacy skills. Aligned with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, this toolkit offers guidance on accessibility of learning materials.

Part of a Holistic Education
While access to appropriate materials is extremely important for all students, it is particularly important for students with disabilities. However, this is only one part of a larger, holistic model essential for an inclusive education system. Other essential components include trained teachers and staff, targeted instructional support, strategic plans for inclusion, safe learning spaces, and other support systems.

Types of Materials
All children require different types of materials. Children with disabilities may have more specific needs. The types of materials needed to create an inclusive atmosphere include:

Textbooks
Textbooks need to be available in many formats, like braille, large print, sign language, and audiobooks. UDL principles encourage teachers to convey information in a variety of ways for different types of students, like with a mix of text, supporting graphics, and pictures. The material should support learning and not close certain students off from necessary information. For example, book illustrations can reinforce content explained in text but shouldn't introduce new concepts because they aren't accessible in all formats, such as audiobooks or in braille.

Technology
Technology is an integral part of supporting classroom learning. It incorporates interactive learning and motivates people to participate in lessons. For students with disabilities, it provides information in a variety of different formats, like through audio and video. They need access to a variety of assistive technology to build their literacy skills. Additionally, students should have routine and consistent access to assistive technology at home. This reinforces learning and helps them complete homework. Assistive technology must be coupled with trained teachers to be effective.

Specific Material Needs
The UDL framework helps ensure all students have the opportunity to learn. Yet, the UDL framework requires time to build up in the countries where we work. In the meantime, here are some accessible materials that a certain group of disability benefits from the most. Note that accessible materials can be used creatively with all other students as well:

Blind / low vision: For reading, these students need text in braille, large print, or both to understand spelling, grammar, and how text is formatted. Most students will learn to write in braille too. They need an assistive device like a slate and stylus, brailler, or other technology to do this. Audiobooks, tactile pictures, and manipulatives help reinforce literacy skills.

Communication challenges: Materials should be available for students to use depending on their preferences and capabilities. This includes high-tech augmentative and alternative communication tools like tablet-based apps or low-tech formats like image printouts.

Deaf / hard of hearing: Students should learn the local sign language and have access to read and write written text.

Intellectual disabilities: Provide access to a wide range of writing tools and adapted books. Adapted reading materials with a decreased reading level and simplified grammar let students learn with their peers. Digital texts let students add extra spaces, enlarge text, or have it read aloud as needed. Graphics, pictures, and video enhance comprehension. Students might also need physical manipulation to understand vocabulary and content.

Learning, emotional, and attention disabilities: Students need many ways to communicate what they learn. This includes manipulatives, like letter blocks or cards and interactive games. They should have access to a wide range of texts chosen by both the teacher and student.

Multiple disabilities or deafblind: These students can achieve braille and/or print literacy. However, they need help with the building blocks of learning the skills. Teaching strategies and materials that use touch for exploration and learning are important.

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The Importance of Accessible Learning Materials

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Twenty-one percent of young people worldwide are not in school, training programs, or employed, according to the U.S. Government Strategy for International Basic Education. Today's children are tomorrow's leaders, and they must have access to education. Educational institutions need to meet students' varied needs by providing a lot of ways to access information.

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Allocating space to showcase student work, such as bulletin boards, wall displays, or digital portfolios, helps validate student effort and achievements. It also promotes a sense of pride and ownership in their learning. Rotating and updating the displays regularly allows students to see and learn from each other's work, fostering collaboration and a sense of community.

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Every Teacher Tips: Displaying Student Work - Mike Anderson Consulting

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Original Article: https://www.responsiveclassroom.org/blog/every-teacher-tips-displaying-student-work In any classroom, displays should consist primarily of the children’s work, rather than teacher-made or store-bought pieces, no matter how beautiful those pieces might be. Displaying student work se…

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Providing flexible seating options, such as adjustable desks, bean bags, standing desks, or floor cushions, allows students to choose a seating arrangement that best suits their comfort and learning preferences. This flexibility promotes student agency and helps create a more personalized and comfortable learning environment.

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32 of the Best Flexible Seating Options for Today’s Classroom

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Designating specific areas in the classroom for group work or collaborative activities encourages students to work together and engage in discussions. This can be achieved by arranging desks in clusters or having dedicated tables or corners for group work. Providing whiteboards, flip charts, or writable surfaces in these areas can facilitate brainstorming and visual representation of ideas.

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When people work together, great ideas are born and connections are made. People learn from one another. And project progress happens faster. As technology has expanded our ability to work from anywhere-including home-we increasingly seek out opportunities to collaborate and connect face-to-face with our teams.

Designing for collaboration helps create an environment where people feel valued for their unique experience and input. Haworth's global research team has distilled the reasons we meet into 4 primary collaborative activities-inform, do, think, connect-and here's how you can design workspaces to support each:

1. Inform

To accommodate information sharing, presentation spaces are usually equipped with monitors and conference chairs oriented toward a presenter. We tend to use these spaces to visually share information and data, learn from a trainer, or hear from a guest speaker. People are encouraged to listen to the presenter and ask questions at specified times, such as at the end of the presentation in the case of a speaking engagement, or they can collaborate with one another during a training session. At Haworth, spaces designed for information sharing enable collaboration for large department-wide meetings, guest speakers, and client engagements.

The local chapter of Toastmasters finds these types of spaces at our headquarters ideal for their presentations. Haworth Surface Materials Engineer Kris Pierce explains, "The space our club uses is flexible enough to accommodate a wide range of members and enables speakers to illustrate their topics using technology or whiteboard space that can be easily viewed by all."

2. Do

To accomplish tactical objectives, people need spaces that include a table, comfortable desk chairs, storage, video and interactive data sharing-technology, and whiteboards. This type of workspace is dedicated for use by groups or teams, and their notes often remain on whiteboards or tacked to walls even when they are working elsewhere. Also called "war rooms," these tactical spaces are used by our teams at Haworth to track and share projects, metrics, and data.

3. Think

People need spaces for idea generation, brainstorming, and strategic thinking. Usually designed with an informal atmosphere, these spaces typically have comfortable seating-such as sofas or guest chairs-some privacy to avoid distracting others, a monitor, and a whiteboard area to take notes and work through ideas. Groups that benefit from this type of workspace strive to do things first, have a high degree of experimentation and individuality, take risks, and are quick to adapt. At Haworth's headquarters, areas designed for gathering are enabled with technology that allows employees to share, collaborate, and generate ideas from anywhere.

4. Connect

Primarily created to foster spontaneous interaction and personal connection, Social Spaces serve as the new " watercooler." These people-centered spaces are relaxed, informal, and cozy, and may include lounge chairs, sofas, and rugs to bring warmth and comfort-indoors or out. They offer immense flexibility with moveable furniture: Create a coffee shop and tech bar by day, then accommodate recognition, networking, and other special events at night.

Most organizations use all 4 collaboration spaces to meet the needs of their groups. Based on an organization's culture type, one method of collaboration will likely be preferred over another-best supporting a team's primary responsibilities and choices.

For example, a Collaborate culture emphasizes the value of teamwork and operates as a close-knit group. That work environment will be dominated by Social Spaces that allow for connection and a mix of activities. Inform, think, and do spaces are still needed, but will not be as prevalent. In a Control culture, on the other hand, you'll see more spaces for information sharing, where process-driven, formal meetings are the norm. Still, teams might need to determine project plans and are likely to have some Social Spaces for informal, social connections.

Considering the needs of your organization's teams is key to Haworth's Organic Workspace approach-creating a work environment that aligns the effectiveness of people and the efficiency of real estate. We know from our research that taking a break to socialize with colleagues increases our happiness, and people prefer comfortable spaces. The fastest growing collaborative spaces are Social Spaces-which benefit all culture types-are flexible, communal, and inspiring, so people can pause, gather, connect, and restore.

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When people work together, great ideas are born and connections are made. People learn from one another. And project progress happens faster. As technology has expanded our ability to work from anywhere-including home-we increasingly seek out opportunities to collaborate and connect face-to-face with our teams. Designing for collaboration helps create an environment where people feel valued for their unique experience and input.

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Present students with challenging math problems that require critical thinking and collaboration. Allow them to work in small groups, encouraging them to communicate, share strategies, and discuss different approaches to solving the problem. This approach fosters teamwork, encourages active engagement, and provides an opportunity for students to learn from one another's perspectives.

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Group problem-solving involves a gathering of professionals who are dedicated to addressing a specific issue. Learning how to host a group problem-solving session is beneficial to organizations that work in teams. If you are an employee who gets involved in brainstorming solutions, it may be useful to know what goes into a problem-solving meeting. In this article, we explain what group problem-solving is and provide a guide for how to solve problems in a group setting.

What is group problem-solving?

Group problem-solving occurs in organizations that use teams to create solutions for issues the organization or team faces. Group problem-solving sessions can improve communication and productivity on a team. Involving employees in the decision-making process of making changes that affect them can also improve workplace satisfaction.

How to solve problems as a group

To solve problems in a group, consider following these 5 steps:

1. Identify the problem

First, try to identify the problem your group is facing. It can help to explore the problem in all of its complexities in order to find a solution. In group problem solving, it is sometimes effective for each member to write down what they feel is a problem and explain why the problem is causing issues. Having multiple inputs can help address both small and large conflicts and involving everyone is an important part of group problem-solving.

When identifying a problem, try to figure out when you began experiencing the issue, who the problem affects and how often it has been occurring. Group members can talk about how they would like the work process or environment to change in comparison to how their environment or work processes currently operate.

2. Determine the cause of the problem

To find the cause of a problem, it is helpful to look at when it started, where and when the problem occurs and why it is an issue. Here are three main types of causes for problems:

Systematic: A systematic cause refers to a dysfunctional work process.

Concrete: Concrete causes are tangible and may be equipment that malfunctions.

Individual: This is a human error. Individual causes happen when a person makes a mistake or performs a task incorrectly.

Read more: What Is Root Cause Analysis? Definition and Benefits

3. Brainstorm

Allow the group to brainstorm ideas for solutions. At this stage, the group can consider all ideas. You may find it useful to write what each group member suggests, so that you have ample options for possible solutions. Try these exercises for fruitful brainstorming sessions:

Rapid ideation: In a set amount of time, all members write as many ideas as they can think of for solving the problem. The timeframe is important to discourage members from having time to think through ideas to dismiss them and promotes pure and genuine expression.

Step ladder technique: Start by introducing the topic for brainstorming and allow two people to brainstorm alone together, then add a third person to share their ideas and a fourth and so on. This technique helps for all voices to be heard.

Mind mapping: This technique uses ideas to branch off one another and creates a web of possible solutions. Having a visual representation helps in problem-solving.

New location: Try brainstorming in different locations. This can help promote creativity.

Figure storming: This activity involves choosing a figure and discussing how that person would solve the problem. This figure can be a company owner, manager, celebrity or fictional character. This can be a fun way to find unique solutions.

A mood board: Mood boards are a collection of words and images that relate to one central idea. This brainstorming tool can organize thoughts and keep people focused on the topic.

Group sketching: Every member of the group takes turns drawing something on a paper, then pass the sketch to the next person for them to add to your drawing. Each idea builds on the previous until you have a collection of visual representations for solutions.

Read more: How To Run an Effective Brainstorming Session

4. Assess your solutions

Choose the most viable ideas from your brainstorm to assess. Assessing solutions means you define the strengths and weaknesses of the idea. A pros and cons list for each solution can help your group choose the best solution for the problem.

In this step of assessing the solutions the group has brainstormed, it is important to gauge the credibility of each solution and ensure you have resources to pursue that option.

5. Develop a plan of action

Develop a plan of action by setting a goal of what success of the solution looks like. Clearly define how to implement the solution and then begin testing it against the problem. Problem-solving is often most effective when the group carefully monitors their proposed solution and makes adjustments as needed.

Consider giving each group member a specific role in implementing or monitoring the solution to keep everyone involved. Delegating tasks can also help productivity and efficiency.

Read more: How To Write an Action Plan to Achieve Your Goals

Tips for group problem-solving

Consider using these tips and strategies to have a successful group problem-solving session:

Identity a leader

Choose a leader to guide the group problem-solving session. This leader can be an employee or manager, but having a leader is important to help keep the group on track and focused. Identifying a leader amongst a group can improve communication as well. The leader has the responsibility of bringing the group together, encouraging participation and creating an agenda.

Involve the right people

Involving the right people when creating a group for problem-solving is very important. Be sure to include all relevant personnel. To do this, consider who the problem affects, who is part of the decision-making process and which employees are responsible for implementing changes.

Encourage participation

Group problem-solving is most effective when the entire team takes part. You can encourage participation by mandating attendance to your brainstorming meeting and ensuring everyone feels comfortable sharing their ideas.

Read more: How To Encourage Participation in Team Meetings

Give time for preparation

Giving the group members time to prepare for the problem-solving meeting is important. This allows employees to brainstorm alone and helps provide time for them to research the problem and offer effective solutions. Giving preparation time allows employees to come to the meeting well-informed.

Use time restraints

Use time restraints in group meetings to keep them at an efficient duration. Shorter meetings can be more effective in keeping members involved, interested and on task. The urgency of a short meeting may also help brainstorm and share solutions quickly.

Create an agenda

Creating an agenda informs group members of the meeting's objective and the tentative schedule for the meeting. Agendas also help keep members focused and help the leader guide the team through a problem-solving session. Here is an example of what an agenda may look like:
Meeting Agenda Meeting Objective:
Listen to all members

Listening to all members of the group problem-solving session is key. Ensure that the meeting leaves no one out and it gives everyone a chance to share their thoughts.

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Group problem-solving involves a gathering of professionals who are dedicated to addressing a specific issue. Learning how to host a group problem-solving session is beneficial to organizations that work in teams. If you are an employee who gets involved in brainstorming solutions, it may be useful to know what goes into a problem-solving meeting.

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Assign group projects that require students to apply mathematical concepts to real-world scenarios or create models. For example, students can design a budget, plan a geometrically accurate city layout, or analyze data to make predictions. By working together, students can leverage their collective knowledge and skills, enhancing their understanding and fostering creativity.

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5 Fantastic Ideas for Collaboration Projects | Cult of Pedagogy

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These ideas can be adapted for any subject area, along with suggestions for adding criticality and opportunities for student agency to each one.

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Divide a complex topic into smaller subtopics and assign each group or pair of students a specific subtopic to research and become experts in. Afterward, mix the groups so that each new group has a member from each original group, representing different subtopics. In their new groups, students share their knowledge, teaching and learning from one another to gain a comprehensive understanding of the overall topic.

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Pose a question or problem to the class and give students time to think individually. Then, have them pair up with a partner to discuss their ideas and share their thought process. Finally, ask a few pairs to share their findings with the whole class. This technique promotes peer-to-peer learning, active participation, and deeper understanding through discussion.

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Assign students to small groups to work together on problem-solving activities or projects. Each member has a specific role or task, and they collaborate to achieve a common goal. For example, students can work together to solve math puzzles, create presentations, or analyze data sets.

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An Overview Of Cooperative Learning

David W Johnson and Roger T Johnson

Without the cooperation of its members society cannot survive, and the society of man has survived because the cooperativeness of its members made survival possible.... It was not an advantageous individual here and there who did so, but the group. In human societies the individuals who are most likely to survive are those who are best enabled to do so by their group.

(Ashley Montagu, 1965)

How students interact with each another is a neglected aspect of instruction. Much training time is devoted to helping teachers arrange appropriate interactions between students and materials (i.e., textbooks, curriculum programs) and some time is spent on how teachers should interact with students, but how students should interact with one another is relatively ignored. It should not be. How teachers structure student-student interaction patterns has a lot to say about how well students learn, how they feel about school and the teacher, how they feel about each other, and how much self-esteem they have.

In the mid-1960s, cooperative learning was relatively unknown and largely ignored by educators. Elementary, secondary, and university teaching was dominated by competitive and individualistic learning. Cultural resistance to cooperative learning was based on social Darwinism, with its premise that students must be taught to survive in a "dog-eat-dog" world, and the myth of "rugged individualism" underlying the use of individualistic learning. While competition dominated educational thought, it was being challenged by individualistic learning largely based on B. F. Skinner's work on programmed learning and behavioral modification. Educational practices and thought, however, have changed. Cooperative learning is now an accepted and often the preferred instructional procedure at all levels of education. Cooperative learning is presently used in schools and universities in every part of the world, in every subject area, and with every age student. It is difficult to find a text on instructional methods, a teacher's journal, or instructional materials that do not discuss cooperative learning. Materials on cooperative learning have been translated into dozens of languages. Cooperative learning is now an accepted and highly recommended instructional procedure.

Definition of Cooperative Learning

Students' learning goals may be structured to promote cooperative, competitive, or individualistic efforts. In every classroom, instructional activities are aimed at accomplishing goals and are conducted under a goal structure. A learning goal is a desired future state of demonstrating competence or mastery in the subject area being studied. The goal structure specifies the ways in which students will interact with each other and the teacher during the instructional session. Each goal structure has its place (Johnson & Johnson, 1989, 1999). In the ideal classroom, all students would learn how to work cooperatively with others, compete for fun and enjoyment, and work autonomously on their own. The teacher decides which goal structure to implement within each lesson. The most important goal structure, and the one that should be used the majority of the time in learning situations, is cooperation.

Cooperation is working together to accomplish shared goals. Within cooperative situations, individuals seek outcomes that are beneficial to themselves and beneficial to all other group members. Cooperative learning is the instructional use of small groups so that students work together to maximize their own and each other's learning. It may be contrasted with competitive (students work against each other to achieve an academic goal such as a grade of "A" that only one or a few students can attain) andindividualistic (students work by themselves to accomplish learning goals unrelated to those of the other students) learning. In cooperative and individualistic learning, you evaluate student efforts on a criteria-referenced basis while in competitive learning you grade students on a norm-referenced basis. While there are limitations on when and where you may use competitive and individualistic learning appropriately, you may structure any learning task in any subject area with any curriculum cooperatively.

Theorizing on social interdependence began in the early 1900s, when one of the founders of the Gestalt School of Psychology, Kurt Koffka, proposed that groups were dynamic wholes in which the interdependence among members could vary. One of his colleagues, Kurt Lewin refined Koffka's notions in the 1920s and 1930s while stating that (a) the essence of a group is the interdependence among members (created by common goals) which results in the group being a "dynamic whole" so that a change in the state of any member or subgroup changes the state of any other member or subgroup, and (b) an intrinsic state of tension within group members motivates movement toward the accomplishment of the desired common goals. For interdependence to exist, there must be more than one person or entity involved, and the persons or entities must have impact on each other in that a change in the state of one causes a change in the state of the others. From the work of Lewin's students and colleagues, such as Ovisankian, Lissner, Mahler, and Lewis, it may be concluded that it is the drive for goal accomplishment that motivates cooperative and competitive behavior.

In the late 1940s, one of Lewin's graduate students, Morton Deutsch, extended Lewin's reasoning about social interdependence and formulated a theory of cooperation and competition (Deutsch, 1949, 1962). Deutsch conceptualized three types of social interdependence-positive, negative, and none. Deutsch's basic premise was that the type of interdependence structured in a situation determines how individuals interact with each other which, in turn, largely determines outcomes. Positive interdependence tends to result in promotive interaction, negative interdependence tends to result in oppositional or contrient interaction, and no interdependence results in an absence of interaction. Depending on whether individuals promote or obstruct each other's goal accomplishments, there is substitutability, cathexis, and inducibility. The relationships between the type of social interdependence and the interaction pattern it elicits is assumed to be bidirectional. Each may cause the other. Deutsch's theory has served as a major conceptual structure for this area of inquiry since 1949.

Types Of Cooperative Learning

Formal Cooperative Learning

Formal cooperative learning consists of students working together, for one class period to several weeks, to achieve shared learning goals and complete jointly specific tasks and assignments (Johnson, Johnson, & Holubec, 2008). In formal cooperative learning groups the teachers' role includes (see Figure 4):

1. Making preinstructional decisions. Teachers (a) formulate both academic and social skills objectives, (b) decide on the size of groups, (c) choose a method for assigning students to groups, (d) decide which roles to assign group members, (e) arrange the room, and (f) arrange the materials students need to complete the assignment. In these preinstructional decisions, the social skills objectives specify the interpersonal and small group skills students are to learn. By assigning students roles, role interdependence is established. The way in which materials are distributed can create resource interdependence. The arrangement of the room can create environmental interdependence and provide the teacher with easy access to observe each group, which increases individual accountability and provides data for group processing.

2. Explaining the instructional task and cooperative structure.Teachers (a) explain the academic assignment to students, (b) explain the criteria for success, (c) structure positive interdependence, (d) structure individual accountability, (e) explain the behaviors (i.e., social skills) students are expected to use, and (f) emphasize intergroup cooperation (this eliminates the possibility of competition among students and extends positive goal interdependence to the class as a whole). Teachers may also teach the concepts and strategies required to complete the assignment. By explaining the social skills emphasized in the lesson, teachers operationalize (a) the social skill objectives of the lesson and (b) the interaction patterns (such as oral rehearsal and jointly building conceptual frameworks) teachers wish to create.

3. Monitoring students' learning and intervening to provide assistance in (a) completing the task successfully or (b) using the targeted interpersonal and group skills effectively.While conducting the lesson, teachers monitor each learning group and intervene when needed to improve taskwork and teamwork. Monitoring the learning groups creates individual accountability; whenever a teacher observes a group, members tend to feel accountable to be constructive members. In addition, teachers collect specific data on promotive interaction, the use of targeted social skills, and the engagement in the desired interaction patterns. This data is used to intervene in groups and to guide group processing.

4. Assessing students' learning and helping students process how well their groups functioned. Teachers (a) bring closure to the lesson, (b) assess and evaluate the quality and quantity of student achievement, (c) ensure students carefully discuss how effectively they worked together (i.e., process the effectiveness of their learning groups), (d) have students make a plan for improvement, and (e) have students celebrate the hard work of group members. The assessment of student achievement highlights individual and group accountability (i.e., how well each student performed) and indicates whether the group achieved its goals (i.e., focusing on positive goal interdependence). The group celebration is a form of reward interdependence. The feedback received during group processing is aimed at improving the use of social skills and is a form of individual accountability. Discussing the processes the group used to function, furthermore, emphasizes the continuous improvement of promotive interaction and the patterns of interaction need to maximize student learning and retention.

Informal Cooperative Learning

Informal cooperative learning consists of having students work together to achieve a joint learning goal in temporary, ad-hoc groups that last from a few minutes to one class period (Johnson, Johnson, & Holubec, 2008). During a lecture, demonstration, or film, informal cooperative learning can be used to focus student attention on the material to be learned, set a mood conducive to learning, help set expectations as to what will be covered in a class session, ensure that students cognitively process and rehearse the material being taught, summarize what was learned and precue the next session, and provide closure to an instructional session. The teacher's role for using informal cooperative learning to keep students more actively engaged intellectually entails having focused discussions before and after the lesson (i.e., bookends) and interspersing pair discussions throughout the lesson. Two important aspects of using informal cooperative learning groups are to (a) make the task and the instructions explicit and precise and (b) require the groups to produce a specific product (such as a written answer). The procedure is as follows.

1. Introductory Focused Discussion: Teachers assign students to pairs or triads and explain (a) the task of answering the questions in a four to five minute time period and (b) the positive goal interdependence of reaching consensus. The discussion task is aimed at promoting advance organizing of what the students know about the topic to be presented and establishing expectations about what the lecture will cover. Individual accountability is ensured by the small size of the group. A basic interaction pattern of eliciting oral rehearsal, higher-level reasoning, and consensus building is required.

2. Intermittent Focused Discussions: Teachers divide the lecture into 10 to 15 minute segments. This is about the length of time a motivated adult can concentrate on information being presented. After each segment, students are asked to turn to the person next to them and work cooperatively in answering a question (specific enough so that students can answer it in about three minutes) that requires students to cognitively process the material just presented. The procedure is:

a. Each student formulates his or her answer.

b. Students share their answer with their partner.

c. Students listen carefully to their partner's answer.

d. The pairs create a new answer that is superior to each member's initial formulation by integrating the two answers, building on each other's thoughts, and synthesizing.

The question may require students to:

a. Summarize the material just presented.

b. Give a reaction to the theory, concepts, or information presented.

c. Predict what is going to be presented next; hypothesize.

d. Solve a problem.

e. Relate material to past learning and integrate it into conceptual frameworks.

f. Resolve conceptual conflict created by presentation.

Teachers should ensure that students are seeking to reach an agreement on the answers to the questions (i.e., ensure positive goal interdependence is established), not just share their ideas with each other. Randomly choose two or three students to give 30 second summaries of their discussions. Such individual accountabilityensures that the pairs take the tasks seriously and check each other to ensure that both are prepared to answer. Periodically, the teacher should structure a discussion of how effectively the pairs are working together (i.e., group processing). Group celebrations add reward interdependence to the pairs.

3. Closure Focused Discussion: Teachers give students an ending discussion task lasting four to five minutes. The task requires students to summarize what they have learned from the lecture and integrate it into existing conceptual frameworks. The task may also point students toward what the homework will cover or what will be presented in the next class session. This provides closure to the lecture.

Informal cooperative learning ensures students are actively involved in understanding what is being presented. It also provides time for teachers to move around the class listening to what students are saying. Listening to student discussions can give instructors direction and insight into how well students understand the concepts and material being as well as increase the individual accountability of participating in the discussions.

Cooperative Base Groups

Cooperative base groups are long-term, heterogeneous cooperative learning groups with stable membership (Johnson, Johnson, & Holubec, 2008). Members' primary responsibilities are to (a) ensure all members are making good academic progress (i.e., positive goal interdependence) (b) hold each other accountable for striving to learn (i.e., individual accountability), and (c) provide each other with support, encouragement, and assistance in completing assignments (i.e., promotive interaction). In order to ensure the base groups function effectively, periodically teachers should teach needed social skills and have the groups process how effectively they are functioning. Typically, cooperative base groups are heterogeneous in membership (especially in terms of achievement motivation and task orientation), meet regularly (for example, daily or biweekly), and last for the duration of the class (a semester or year) or preferably for several years. The agenda of the base group can include academic support tasks (such as ensuring all members have completed their homework and understand it or editing each other's essays), personal support tasks (such as getting to know each other and helping each other solve nonacademic problems), routine tasks (such as taking attendance), and assessment tasks (such as checking each other's understanding of the answers to test questions when the test is first taken individually and then retaken in the base group).

The teacher's role in using cooperative base groups is to (a) form heterogeneous groups of four (or three), (b) schedule a time when they will regularly meet (such as beginning and end of each class session or the beginning and end of each week), (c) create specific agendas with concrete tasks that provide a routine for base groups to follow when they meet, (d) ensure the five basic elements of effective cooperative groups are implemented, and (e) have students periodically process the effectiveness of their base groups.

The longer a cooperative group exists, the more caring their relationships will tend to be, the greater the social support they will provide for each other, the more committed they will be to each other's success, and the more influence members will have over each other. Permanent cooperative base groups provide the arena in which caring and committed relationships can be created that provide the social support needed to improve attendance, personalize the educational experience, increase achievement, and improve the quality of school life.

Integrated Use Of All Three Types Of Cooperative Learning

These three types of cooperative learning may be used together (Johnson, Johnson, & Holubec, 2008). A typical class session may begin with a base group meeting, which is followed by a short lecture in which informal cooperative learning is used. The lecture is followed by a formal cooperative learning lesson. Near the end of the class session another short lecture may be delivered with the use of informal cooperative learning. The class ends with a base group meeting.

Basic Elements of Cooperation

Not all groups are cooperative (Johnson & F. Johnson, 2009). Placing people in the same room, seating them together, telling them they are a group, does not mean they will cooperate effectively. To be cooperative, to reach the full potential of the group, five essential elements need to be carefully structured into the situation: positive interdependence, individual and group accountability, promotive interaction, appropriate use of social skills, and group processing (Johnson & Johnson, 1989, 2005). Mastering the basic elements of cooperation allows teachers to:

1. Take existing lessons, curricula, and courses and structure them cooperatively.

2. Tailor cooperative learning lessons to unique instructional needs, circumstances, curricula, subject areas, and students.

3. Diagnose the problems some students may have in working together and intervene to increase the effectiveness of the student learning groups.

The first and most important element is positive interdependence. Teachers must give a clear task and a group goal so students believe they "sink or swim together." Positive interdependenceexists when group members perceive that they are linked with each other in a way that one cannot succeed unless everyone succeeds. If one fails, all fail. Group members realize, therefore, that each person's efforts benefit not only him- or herself, but all other group members as well. Positive interdependence creates a commitment to other people's success as well as one's own and is the heart of cooperative learning. If there is no positive interdependence, there is no cooperation.

The second essential element of cooperative learning is individual and group accountability. The group must be accountable for achieving its goals. Each member must be accountable for contributing his or her share of the work (which ensures that no one "hitch-hikes" on the work of others). The group has to be clear about its goals and be able to measure (a) its progress in achieving them and (b) the individual efforts of each of its members. Individual accountability exists when the performance of each individual student is assessed and the results are given back to the group and the individual in order to ascertain who needs more assistance, support, and encouragement in completing the assignment. The purpose of cooperative learning groups is to make each member a stronger individual in his or her right. Students learn together so that they can subsequently perform higher as individuals.

The third essential component of cooperative learning is promotive interaction, preferably face-to-face. Promotive interactionoccurs when members share resources and help, support, encourage, and praise each other's efforts to learn. Cooperative learning groups are both an academic support system (every student has someone who is committed to helping him or her learn) and a personal support system (every student has someone who is committed to him or her as a person). There are important cognitive activities and interpersonal dynamics that can only occur when students promote each other's learning. This includes orally explaining how to solve problems, discussing the nature of the concepts being learned, teaching one's knowledge to classmates, and connecting present with past learning. It is through promoting each other's learning face-to-face that members become personally committed to each other as well as to their mutual goals.

The fourth essential element of cooperative learning is teaching students the required interpersonal and small group skills. In cooperative learning groups students are required to learn academic subject matter (taskwork) and also to learn the interpersonal and small group skills required to function as part of a group (teamwork). Cooperative learning is inherently more complex than competitive or individualistic learning because students have to engage simultaneously in taskwork and teamwork. Group members must know how to provide effective leadership, decision-making, trust-building, communication, and conflict-management, and be motivated to use the prerequisite skills. Teachers have to teach teamwork skills just as purposefully and precisely as teachers do academic skills. Since cooperation and conflict are inherently related, the procedures and skills for managing conflicts constructively are especially important for the long-term success of learning groups. Procedures and strategies for teaching students social skills may be found in Johnson (2009) and Johnson and F. Johnson (2009).

The fifth essential component of cooperative learning is group processing. Group processing exists when group members discuss how well they are achieving their goals and maintaining effective working relationships. Groups need to describe what member actions are helpful and unhelpful and make decisions about what behaviors to continue or change. Continuous improvement of the process of learning results from the careful analysis of how members are working together.

These five elements are essential to all cooperative systems, no matter what their size. When international agreements are made and when international efforts to achieve mutual goals (such as environmental protection) occur, these five elements must be carefully implemented and maintained.

The Validating Research

Amount And Characteristics Of Research

The study of cooperative, competitive, and individualistic efforts is commonly recognized as one of the oldest fields of research in social psychology. In the late 1800's Triplett in the United States, Turner in England, and Mayer in Germany conducted a series of studies on the factors associated with competitive performance. Since then over 750 studies have been conducted on the relative merits of cooperative, competitive, and individualistic efforts and the conditions under which each is appropriate. This is one of the largest bodies of research within psychology and education.

An extensive literature search was conducted aimed at identifying all the available studies from published and nonpublished sources. Seven-hundred-fifty-four studies contained enough data to compute an effect size (there are many studies from which an effect size could not be computed) (Johnson & Johnson, 1989). The research on social interdependence, furthermore, has an external validity and a generalizability rarely found in the social sciences. The more variations in places, people, and procedures the research can withstand and still yield the same findings, the more externally valid the conclusions. The research has been conducted over twelve decades by many different researchers with markedly different theoretical and practical orientations working in different settings and countries. A wide variety of research tasks, ways of structuring social interdependence, and measures of the dependent variables have been used. Participants in the studies varied from ages three to post-college adults and have come from different economic classes and cultural backgrounds. The studies were conducted with different durations, lasting from one session to 100 sessions or more. Research on social interdependence has been conducted in numerous cultures in North America (with Caucasian, Black-American, Native-American, and Hispanic populations) and countries from North, Central, and South America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, the Pacific Rim, and Africa. The research on social interdependence includes both theoretical and demonstration studies conducted in educational, business, and social service organizations. The diversity of these studies gives social interdependence theory wide generalizability and considerable external validity.

Promotive, oppositional, and no interaction have differential effects on the outcomes of the situation (see Johnson & Johnson, 1989, 2005). The research has focused on numerous outcomes, which may be subsumed within the broad and interrelated categories of effort to achieve, quality of relationships, and psychological health (Johnson, 2003; Johnson & Johnson, 1989, 2005) (see Table 1 and Figure 2). Figure 1 shows the relationships among the outcomes.

Table 1

Mean Effect Sizes For Impact Of Social Interdependence On Dependent Variables

ConditionsAchievementInterpersonal AttractionSocial SupportSelf-Esteem

Total Studies

Coop vs. Comp0.670.670.620.58

Coop vs. Ind0.640.600.700.44

Comp vs. Ind0.300.08-0.13-0.23

High Quality Studies

Coop vs. Comp0.880.820.830.67

Coop vs. Ind0.610.620.720.45

Comp vs. Ind0.070.27-0.13-0.25

Note: Coop = Cooperation, Comp = Competition, Ind = Individualistic

Reprinted By Permission From: Johnson, D. W. & Johnson, R. (1989). Cooperation and Competition: Theory and Research.Edina, MN: Interaction Book Company

Effort To Achieve

From Table 1 it may be seen that cooperation promotes considerable greater effort to achieve than do competitive or individualistic efforts. Effort exerted to achieve includes such variables as achievement and productivity, long-term retention, on-task behavior, use of higher-level reasoning strategies, generation of new ideas and solutions, transfer of what is learned within one situation to another, intrinsic motivation, achievement motivation, continuing motivation to learn, and positive attitudes toward learning and school. Overall, cooperation tends to promote higher achievement than competitive or individualistic efforts (effect-sizes = 0.67 and 0.64 respectively). The impact of cooperative learning on achievement means that if schools wish to prepare students to take proficiency tests to meet local and state standards, the use of cooperative learning should dominate instructional practice.

An important aspect of school life is engagement in learning. One indication of engagement in learning is time on task. Cooperators spent considerably more time on task than did competitors (effect size = 0.76) or students working individualistically (effect size = 1.17). In addition, students working cooperatively tended to be more involved in activities and tasks, attach greater importance to success, and engage in more on-task behavior and less apathetic, off-task, disruptive behaviors. Finally, cooperative experiences, compared with competitive and individualistic ones, have been found to promote more positive attitudes toward the task and the experience of working on the task (effect-sizes = 0.57 and 0.42 respectively).

Quality Of Relationships

Quality of relationships includes such variables as interpersonal attraction, liking, cohesion, esprit-de-corps, and social support. The degree of emotional bonding that exists among students has a profound effect on students' behavior. The more positive the relationships among students and between students and faculty, the lower the absenteeism and dropout rates and the greater the commitment to group goals, feelings of personal responsibility to the group, willingness to take on difficult tasks, motivation and persistence in working toward goal achievement, satisfaction and morale, willingness to endure pain and frustration on behalf of the group, willingness to defend the group against external criticism or attack, willingness to listen to and be influenced by colleagues, commitment to each other's professional growth and success, and productivity (Johnson & F. Johnson, 2009).

There are over 175 studies that have investigated the relative impact of cooperative, competitive, and individualistic efforts on quality of relationships and another 106 studies on social support (Johnson, 2003; Johnson & Johnson, 1989, 2005). As Table 2 shows, cooperation generally promotes greater interpersonal attraction among individuals than does competitive or individualistic efforts (effect sizes = 0.67 and 0.60 respectively). Cooperative experiences tend to promote greater social support than does competitive (effect-size = 0.62) or individualistic (effect-size = 0.70) efforts. Stronger effects are found for peer support than for superior (teacher) support. The high-quality studies tend to have even more powerful effects.

It is difficult to overemphasize the importance of these research results. Friends are a developmental advantage (see Johnson, 2003; Johnson & Johnson, 1989, 2005). There is a close association between antisocial behavior and rejection by the normal peer group. Rejected children tend to be deficient in a number of social-cognitive skills, including peer group entry, perception of peer group norms, response to provocation, and interpretation of prosocial interactions. Among children referred to child guidance clinics, 30 to 75 percent (depending on age) are reported by their parents to experience peer difficulties. Moreover, children referred for psychological treatment have fewer friends and less contact with them than nonreferred children, their friendships are significantly less stable over time, and their understanding of the reciprocities and intimacies involved in friendships is less mature. Peer group acceptance and friendships may be built through the extensive use of cooperative learning.

Psychological Health

Asley Montagu (1966) was fond of saying that with few exceptions the solitary animal in any species is an abnormal creature. Similarly, Karen Horney (1937) stated that the neurotic individual is someone who is inappropriately competitive and, therefore, unable to cooperate with others. Montagu and Horney recognized that the essence of psychological health is the ability to develop and maintain cooperative relationships. More specifically, psychological health is the ability (cognitive capacities, motivational orientations, and social skills) to build, maintain, and appropriately modify interdependent relationships with others to succeed in achieving goals (Johnson, 2003; Johnson & Johnson, 1989, 2005). People who are unable to do so often (a) become depressed, anxious, frustrated, and lonely, (b) tend to feel afraid, inadequate, helpless, hopeless, and isolated, and (c) rigidly cling to unproductive and ineffective ways of coping with adversity.

With our students and colleagues, we have conducted a series of studies relating cooperative, competitive, and individualistic efforts and attitudes to various indices of psychological health (see Johnson, 2003; Johnson & Johnson, 1989, 2005). The samples studied included middle-class junior-high students, middle-class high school seniors, high-school age juvenile prisoners, adult prisoners, Olympic ice-hockey players, adult step-couples, and business executives in China. The diversity of the samples studied and the variety of measures of psychological health provide considerable generalizability of the results of the studies. A strong relationship was found between cooperativeness and psychological health, a mixed picture was found with competitiveness and psychological health, and a strong relationship was found between an individualistic orientation and psychological pathology.

Finally, there is evidence that cooperation promotes more frequent use of higher level reasoning strategies than do competitive (effect size = 0.93) or individualistic (effect size = 0.97) efforts. Similarly, cooperation tends to promote more accurate perspective taking than do competitive (effect size = 0.61) or individualistic (effect size = 0.44) efforts. Thus, the more cooperative learning experiences students are involved in, the more mature their cognitive and moral decision making and the more they will tend to take other people's perspectives in account when making decisions.

Conclusions and Summary

Teachers who wish to use cooperative learning should ideally base their classroom practices on theory validated by research. The closer classroom practices are to validated theory, the more likely they will be effective. When more directly practice is connected to theory, furthermore, the more likely practice will be refined, upgraded, and improved over the years. There are, however, few classroom practices that are directly based on validated theory. The close relationship between theory, research, and practice makes cooperative learning somewhat unique. It also creates a set of issues for teachers using cooperative learning.

The first issue is understanding the nature of social interdependence. Social interdependence is created when goals are structured so that the accomplishment of a person's goal is affected by others' actions. The interdependence may be positive (which results in individuals working cooperatively to achieve their mutual goals) or negative (which results in individuals competing to see who will achieve the goal). The absence of interdependence indicates no connection between people's attempts to achieve their goals. In cooperative situations, students' actions substitute for each other, students are inducible, and a positive cathexis is created toward other's actions. In competitive situations, the opposite psychological processes may be found. The fundamental premise of social interdependence theory is that the way in which goals are structured determines how individuals interact, and those interaction patterns create outcomes. Positive goal interdependence tends to result in promotive interaction, negative goal interdependence tends to result in oppositional interaction, and no interdependence tends to result in no interaction.

The second issue is understanding the research validating social interdependence theory. There are hundreds of studies indicating that cooperation, compared to competitive and individualistic efforts, tends to result in greater effort to achieve, more positive relationships, and greater psychological health. The diversity of this research provides considerable generalizabiity to the findings.

The third issue is to understand the five basic elements that make cooperation work. There is nothing magical about putting students in groups. Students can compete with groupmates, students can work individualistically while ignoring groupmates, or students can work cooperatively with groupmates. In order to structure cooperative learning effectively, teachers need to understand how tostructure positive interdependence, individual accountability, promotive interaction, appropriate use of social skills, and group processing into learning situations.

The fourth issue is to understand the flexibility and many faces of cooperative learning. When the five basic elements may be effectively implemented in formal cooperative learning situations (formal cooperative learning may be used to structure most learning situations), informal cooperative learning situations (informal cooperative learning may be used to make didactic lessons cooperative), and cooperative base groups (which are used to personalize a class and the school). Together they provide an integrated system for instructional organization and design (as well as classroom management). When utilizing these three types of cooperative learning, any learning situations in any subject area with any age students and with any curriculum can be structured cooperatively.

References

Deutsch, M. (1949). A theory of cooperation and competition. Human Relations, 2, 129-152.

Deutsch, M. (1962). Cooperation and trust: Some theoretical notes. In M. Jones (Ed.), Nebraska symposium on motivation, (pp. 275-319). Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press.

Horney, K. (1937). The neurotic personality of our time. New York: Norton.

Johnson, D. W. (2003). Social interdependence: The interrelationships among theory, research, and practice. American Psychologist, 58(11), 931-945.

Johnson, D.W. (2009). Reaching out: Interpersonal effectivenessand self- actualization (10th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Johnson, D.W., & Johnson, F. (2009). Joining together: Group theory and group skills (10th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Johnson D. W., & Johnson, R. (1989). Cooperation and competition: Theory and research. Edina, MN: interaction Book Company.

Johnson, D. W., & Johnson, R. (1999). Learning together and alone: Cooperative, competitive, and individualistic learning (5th Ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Montagu, A. (1966). On being human. New York: Hawthorn.

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What is Cooperative Learning? - Cooperative Learning Institute

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David W Johnson and Roger T Johnson Without the cooperation of its members society cannot survive, and the society of man has survived because the cooperativeness of its members made survival possible.... It was not an advantageous individual here and there who did so, but the group.