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Station 1, Activity 2                                                                                                                    

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Station 1, Activity 2                                                                                                                    

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Ed Tech

When we think of stations or centers we often think of young children moving around the room to various activities. While stations can, and do, work well in lower elementary classrooms they also have a very important role in upper elementary, middle and high school.

Stations can provide time for practice, preview, review, collaboration, choice work time, and small group or individual teacher time.

What does station rotation look like in the classroom?

The number and type of stations might look different in every classroom but the basic idea usually stays the same. Students are in small groups and rotate around from station to station to complete a series of tasks while the teacher works with groups or individual students. Students may rotate to a teacher station as a group or the teacher may pull small groups or individual students out of the rotation to meet with them as needed.

Station rotation in high school

High school might be the last place you would think of when you picture stations in the classroom but they can provide valuable opportunities to meet with small groups of students. In the video below, How and Why to Integrate Station Rotation into Your Classroom, Catlin Tucker shows us what station rotation looks like in her high school classroom.

Station rotation in middle school

Kristin Daley Conti uses stations in her 7th grade science classroom all the time. She contributed the ideas below to give us an example of what stations might look like in a middle school science classroom. Click on the colored buttons to see the specific task cards for each station.

Station rotation in the elementary classroom

The elementary classroom is a fun and exciting place to bring in stations. You can keep all of the stations planned around one subject or use your station rotation time to incorporate practice in every subject area. Below is an example of what an ELA station rotation might look like in an elementary school classroom. Click on the colored buttons to see the specific task cards for each station.

Getting started with station rotation in your classroom

Effective station rotation doesn't just happen overnight. It does take some planning and teaching of procedures and expectations. Luckily there are lots of resources out there to help you . Here are a few of our favorites.

FREE station rotation task cards!

If you have never done stations before then planning them out might seem like a daunting and time consuming task. But helping you teach better and save time is what EfficienTEACH is all about! That's why we, along with the amazing Ditchbook community, have created these station rotation task cards that you can copy and adapt to your classroom. Just go to "file" then "make a copy" to add it to your Google drive. Or go to "file" then "download " and choose "Microsoft PowerPoint" if you are a Microsoft user.

You can make a copy of these cards anytime and edit them to fit your class. Be sure to check the original file as more cards will be added as other community members share their ideas. Just go to "file" then "make a copy" to add it to your Google drive. Or go to "file" then "download " and choose "Microsoft PowerPoint" if you are a Microsoft user.

Want to contribute a station rotation task card idea? It's easy! Just make a copy of this template and follow the directions on the slide.

10 tips for efficient station rotation in any class

We reached out the the incredible Ditchbook community to share their tips and resources for implementing station rotation in the classroom and we got some fantastic responses! Below you will find 10 tips, including more resources, from other teachers who are using stations in their classroom.

1. Utilize pre-created resources to save time.

I found this instructional strategies playlist very helpful especially to new teachers. When you scroll to page 2, all the strategies are listed under the different topics. When you click on a strategy, for example 'Brainiac' (rehearsal and practice playlist) it takes you to the page where the activity is explained in detail. Some of the activities, like this one, also have links provided on the left side for templates. This resource is like a one-stop-shop.
Source: lead4ward instructional strategies playlists

2. Use Teacherstack.com to set up your groups and rotations.

I wanted to share a few tips I've learned in the past few years of using stations in my seventh grade language arts classes. I use the free website called teacherstack.com. It is a game changer for me. It allows me to create classes and set up rotation series. If I'm using timed rotations, I can project which group everyone is in, what the stations are, and the time remaining in an easy to follow grid.

Teacherstack.com has taken away the problem of kids not remembering which station/task they rotate to. It also allows me to focus on working with my small groups instead of watching the time or starting a timer. There are even choices for transition music you can play in between stations. This helps my students with cleaning up and preparing for the next station in a more orderly and quicker manner. I know not all station rotation models are this structured and time dependent, but for when you want stations to be just that, this website is so helpful! (There are other great features on this site as well.)

3. Have a variety of stations to increase engagement.

Have a variety of centers - some that will be easy for students to manage on their own and some that require more supervision from the teacher.
Music room rotation ideas shared by Amber Houk

Reading Center - Students are listening and reading along with the book "The Jazz Fly" by Matthew Gollub

Instrument Center - Students are using the boomwhacker instruments to figure out the mystery songs.

Listening Center - Students are listening to Celtic music and free drawing if they would like.

Activity Center - Students discover clues about an instrument inside a paper bag. They organize their clues on a worksheet that's inside a dry erase pocket.

Movement Center - Students play two movement games that we've played in class - statue cards and movement word wall.

Music Game Center - Students create music using one of the games on the Chrome Music Lab.

Student rotation ideas shared by Rebecca Crim

A QR code (to a website, video, interactive learning game, etc.)

Manipulatives (board game, flashcards, pictures...really anything they can hold, touch, and move)

With the teacher (it's great to have a moment to check in with the students)

Create something as a group (an ad, a meme, a new invention related to the topic...the ideas are endless)

Create something as an individual (similar to above, only done on their own, usually back in their seats)

Favorite station or center activities shared by Jaime Rowland
Poetry Museum - allow your students to appreciate poetry before you begin to analyze poetry by putting up lots of different poems around your room. Students view the poems like they might view paintings in a museum. You can tie an assignment or just allow them to select a favorite.

Meet the teacher stations (I learned about this on Tik Tok ).

Station 1: Investigate the teacher - students look around the room and make inferences about their findings.
Station 2: Close Read the syllabus
Station 3: Student survey
Station 4: Collaborate with others to develop 5 teacher expectations
Station 5: Email Etiquette - email the teacher
Choice station rotation ideas shared by Stacy Benton
I am a second grade teacher who has tried every way to set up station rotations and centers since I started teaching 11 years ago. I have found a fluid approach most effective and engaging for my students. This approach gives my students choice as to the order in which they want to visit each rotation. It is their responsibility to visit and complete each rotation activity by the end of rotation time on the fourth day. The rotations remain the same each week. I just change the content being addressed. I also differentiate activities for certain students.

We use rotations four days a week for thirty minutes each day. The rotations are:

Vocabulary

Write and Video (using Flipgrid)

Seesaw Scavenger Hunt (using the week's decodable reader to search for a phonics skill)

Teacher Talk (I pull small groups or individual students to conference or practice with me)

Exemplar station rotation idea shared by Jane Schuster
As a science teacher station rotation is easily incorporated into many of our labs. For example, in my anatomy classes if we are doing dissections I will have each group of students locate a different structure and 'pin' it. Then the groups will rotate through to see each example before finding it on their own specimen.

4. Start small and go slow.

Teach the station / center expectations and process with a low/no-stakes task. Once students understand expectations and procedures, then add in content.

Start small--Begin with station/center activities that are short (5 minutes) to teach and reinforce expectations and build from there.

Try a few station / center activities prior to working in a teacher-led station so that students are used to the process.

5. Have some sort of product, outcome or exit ticket for each station.

When doing station rotation activities with older students (middle and high school), it's essential to have a "deliverable" for each station -- something they complete and turn in, or have you check off, before moving to the next station.

Sometimes this might look like:

After reading an article at Station 1, create an Adobe Spark Post (now CC Express) with a PDA about the topic.

After analyzing primary source documents at Station 2, submit a thesis statement that answers the question at the station.

Or, it might mean that they're adding information to a table or chart (hard copy or digital) as they visit each station, in which case I check their work after they're done with each station before they move on, to make sure they have all the info/content/skills they need.

6. Be flexible and add in some fun!

An argument FOR stations ... Planning for stations ... Incorporating fun ...
The reason that more teachers don't use stations is that teachers all feel there is too much curriculum to cover and we know that letting students out of their seats increases transition time. Therefore one might reason less teaching time is available with stations.

That said, I teach grade 9 and 10 science along with grade 11 University level chemistry. I use station labs all the time. Yes, we do lose transition time. BUT working with their friends and allowing students to move at their own pace reignites the joy in learning. So students are more willing to concentrate during longer lessons - so we actually cover more! Ironic, isn't it?

And I am also finding the pandemic has caused a hard reset in student behaviour. Students are grateful for everything again. They say thank you for lessons; they help clean up after labs; they are so happy and grateful for labs. And they are listening better and thinking about little ways to honour their friends. Hey - we're turning back into Canadians again!! As a person who is Canadian first, and any genetic heritage as a strong second, I love this.

Station labs require much more thinking and advanced planning on the teacher's part as well. I have to backmap my planning so that students receive enough formative assessment in the type and quantity of observations to make, the type of vocabulary I need to assess, the type of calculations I need them to understand and work through and a balance of fun reactions (generally involving Bunsen burners or something they can eat 🙂 along with slower reactions that are more like "a dry toast"- necessary but a bit boring because they take longer - like waiting for silver to precipitate.

I also love and use escape rooms, gallery walks, sidewalk chalk outside in warmer weather. Right before a holiday kids are wired, so right before March break we did a tie dye lab as a stations lab that was completely optional. There was no quiz, and nothing to hand in. Some students tie dyed their socks because they forgot to bring anything. Some students had a nap because they had written a Chem test for me, a physics quiz, a French immersion essay and they were 'burnt out. And some students had a math test on the the last day before the break, so they studied. And some meditated or chatted with their friends. It was perfect.

So, really, I guess what I am saying is that a teacher has to start building a positive and trusting relationship with students starting on the very first day of class.

Students have to understand why we need a safety agreement, how to build positive relationships with their peers and the teacher, how to pay it forward for their families. And mental health for students has to be number 1. I have to trust the students; they have to trust me. And if you've got that rapport with your students, there is absolutely no reason that any discipline should not be using station work!

7. Incorporate stations virtually.

I have found that creating Zoom Rooms (named by starting center name) and creating a google sheet with a tab for each "rotation" has been super helpful. This way students can see the task, pertinent links/resources, and outcomes they need for each rotation. If they are staying together as a group, they can "rotate" to the next center by clicking on the next tab (no need to actually change rooms-more efficient!) and I can send an announcement "time to go to next tab" as the next rotation at the designated time interval.

It takes a bit of time to set up, but once they get the hang of it, it is really fun. And (added bonus) you can quickly modify groups by exchanging students in different rooms as you feel is needed. Just remember to allow screen share from multiple participants and you are ready to go! Fun collaborative learning!

8. Use stations for timely feedback

One of my favorite teacher-led stations is feedback on writing. While students are working at the station on a portion of the writing, I meet with students one-on-one about a previously completed part of the task. If they are working on body paragraphs, I will meet with them about their introductions for instance.

9. If you're short on time pass the station

I teach U.S. History. I've found the quickest way to complete stations is to have all materials in a big envelope or folder. I arrange desks in groups and pass the folders from one group to the next. My classes are only 50 minutes, so time moving from one station to another often takes away from work time.

I don't always use this method. Sometimes I still have students travel around the room, but if we have a lot to work through, having them stay in their seats works much better.

10. Don't give up!

Don't give up if it's not perfect the first hundred times you try it. These are kids, not robots. They need training on stations.

Example: Using Padlet to Organize Station Rotations
Contributed by Donna Schies
You may have heard that station rotations are one of the best ways to meet all of your students' learning needs, and as true as that may be, it can be a nightmare to organize.

To streamline this process, I decided to use the EfficienTEACH station rotation task cards. They have a great layout with a consistent format that students can easily understand.

1. Provide task cards to students. I decided to embed these station rotation task cards into a Padlet ( padlet.com) so everything could be easily accessible from one simple link. Padlet allows you to organize resources under specific categories in their shelf format, which is what I used for my station rotations. See the image below.

2. Create a station rotation classroom map. I also used the task cards to create a station rotation classroom map so students would know exactly where they are going when they rotate, and exactly what they are supposed to be doing when they get there. Below is a picture of my classroom station rotation map which I also easily embedded on the Station Rotation Padlet.

3. Quickly student groups. Creating groups that work well together can be a tricky formula for teachers, but I have found a pretty easy way to generate some quick groups by using the toolkit in ClassDojo ( classdojo.com). I prefer groups of 3, because sometimes 4 can be too many. Plus, if you have partner groups, it never fails, someone is always absent. Below is an image of the groups created on ClassDojo. I hid their names, but you get the idea. Student groups were also easily included on the Padlet.

4. Use timers to manage time. I added two YouTube timer video links to my Padlet, one for 20 minutes and the other one for 15. This is mostly because some of my classes need more time to complete their work at each station. The timers that I used were both Among Us themed and my students really enjoyed that, but you could use any type of timer that you like. On the picture below you can see the teacher support that I have embedded in my padlet.

5. Wrap it up with reflection. For reflection and accountability to the station rotation model, I included a Google Form survey on my Padlet that students complete at the end of the period. The survey that I use has reflection sentence stems to make the reflecting process more thoughtful. You can check it out below.

My students LOVED the station rotation activities and the organization of it all was made incredibly easy by using Padlet. Check out the big picture of it all below. I strongly suggest you try it out. It will make your life as a teacher so much easier and the quality and efficiency of your stations will create better learning outcomes for your students.

Here is a picture of my students working on their station rotation activities. They really did a great job collaborating and working together because they knew exactly what to do. After trying my stations this way, I honestly would not want to run stations any other way.

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Station rotation: Save time, engage students in any K-12 classroom

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Station rotation keeps students engaged in multiple activities. Plus, it isn't hard to set up! Here are some ideas.When we think of stations or centers we

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With your group, discuss your thoughts, what questions you still have around station rotation, and what ah-hahs or epiphanies you may still have around implementing this strategy with learners. How could station rotations increase your ability to personalize learning for all of your students?

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https://www.readinghorizons.com/literacy-articles/blended-reading-approach/models/rotation-model

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https://www.readinghorizons.com/literacy-articles/blended-reading-approach/models/rotation-model

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*Don't forget to mute your microphone while you are watching!

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*Don't forget to mute your microphone while you are watching!

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*Don't forget to mute while you are watching!

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With your group, discuss your thoughts, what questions you still have about individual rotations, and what epiphanies you gleaned after learning more about this strategy. Where in your day could you implement a playlist?

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With your group, chat about the whole group rotation. What questions do you still have about this strategy? What epiphanies do you have about this strategy? How might you implement this in your building or classroom?

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With your group, what stood out to you after learning more about the Flipped Classroom Rotation or even the In-Class Flip Strategy? What questions do you still have before trying this with students? What epiphanies do you have? How might you use this strategy with learners in your building or classroom?

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This post is written by James Hunt, a 6th grade science and geography teacher in Southeast Missouri. James was selected as Teacher of the Year at his building in 2019. You can connect with him on Twitter at @Mr_JamesHunt.

Have you ever tried stations in your classroom before? Stations are centers (or areas) set up in the classroom where each task has a specific goal that's targeted. These centers can be hands-on activities, intervention practices, enrichment tasks, or tech-related applications revolving around a certain skill.

Just because students hit middle-school age doesn't necessarily mean we need to take away procedures and activities they're familiar with. Stations in middle school hold the same purpose as they do in elementary: reinforce a standard or skill, provide differentiated opportunities for learning, and keep students engaged. When we offer differentiated learning methods in our classrooms, we are providing multiple opportunities for our students to be successful.

When we think about trying stations in middle school we tend to think of all the fires we will have to put out, but did you know that you can successfully implement stations in the middle school classroom? Here's how...

5 tips for successfully integrating stations in the Middle School classroom

Tip #1: Set procedures and expectations

This may seem like a no-brainer, but clear expectations should be set, modeled, and practiced before implementing stations in the classroom. When students reach middle school, they crave the same autonomy that teachers do. Have them help you set up the expectations that must be followed during stations! This will help develop a more meaningful approach to implementing stations in the classroom.

What should we do if we are stuck on a problem or question?

How should we rotate through our stations? Should we wait for a timer or move on to the next station as each individual is ready?

How should we treat each other and the materials used in the classroom?

What should we do if we finish a station early?

All of these are examples of how to set meaningful boundaries the class must follow during stations to make sure you are getting the most impact out of your time.

Tip #2: Give clear activity instructions

We can spend time (and we should) explaining activity instructions for each station, but let's be real. Your students aren't going to remember what to do by the 3rd, 4th, or 5th station if all of the directions are explained at the beginning, and that's okay! Providing multiple avenues for students to see and hear activity directions will alleviate off-task behaviors at each station.

Although I briefly explain what we'll be doing at the beginning, I also know that I have learners in my classroom who need visual reminders. Using Google Slides to display groups and instructions helps set students up for success. I also like to use group names that garner their interests! You can use my template here to get started.

I also like to have the instructions printed out at each station. You can use my template here to get started. These instructions are printed on Astrobrights and magnetized to my paper holders for easy display options. This keeps the, "Now what do I do?" question at bay.

Tip #3: Be over-prepared

When preparing stations for your middle school classroom, it's important to have a backup plan. We've all planned these incredible lessons and activities only to find out they take a fraction of the time we thought they would. With stations, students are "on their own" with you as their guide on the side. I usually end my station instructions with, "If you finish early, get on __________ until it's time to switch." This way their minds are constantly busy.

You must also think about accessibility when it comes to supplies and activity papers. Here's how to cut down on wasting time when moving from one station to the next...

1. Store worksheets on your whiteboard using magnetic paper holders. These hold multiple copies for all of my classes without falling off the board!

2. Have additional papers needed stored in a folder at that station so they can grab what they need and get started!

3. Keep all supplies needed for each station in a tub or bin that's easy to move and store. This assures your students won't have to look around for what they need to complete the activity!

Tip #4: Assure smooth transitions

Transitions are a major part of stations, and if it's anything like my experiences it's also the most frustrating. Let's tie in some of those open-ended questions from the top to provide smooth transitions through stations.

I like to make sure all activities can be completed on one page. They will carry the same paper with them throughout the entire rotation; no papers left behind, easy accountability. Even if nothing can be written down in that section, make sure it's on there! Here's an example of how I made 6 stations fit on one page (front/back).

How will your kids move from one activity to another when time to switch? I like using my SadoTech Wireless Doorbell. Once I press the wireless remote I keep at my small-group table and the sound goes off, my students know it's time to clean up and switch. This doorbell comes in a variety of colors, has 52 different chimes to choose from, and 4 different volumes!

Tip #5: Actively seek less chaos

This goes hand-in-hand with all four of the tips above. Don't make stations more frustrating for you, otherwise you will never want to use them again! You know your middle schoolers. What do they need in order to be successful? If you try something and it doesn't work, gather some feedback and don't give up!

For notifications of new Ditch That Textbook content and helpful links:

Are you looking for quality, meaningful professional learning that both equips and inspires teachers?

Matt provides in-person and virtual keynotes, workshops and breakout sessions that equip, inspire and encourage teachers to create change in their classrooms. Teachers leave with loads of resources. They participate. They laugh. They see tech use and teaching in a new light. Click the link below to contact us and learn how you can bring Matt to your school or district!

FREE teaching ideas and templates in your inbox every week!

Subscribe to Ditch That Textbook

©2023 Ditch That Textbook by Matt Miller.

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Getting started with learning stations in middle school

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This post is written by James Hunt, a 6th grade science and geography teacher in Southeast Missouri. James was selected as Teacher of the Year at his

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This resource can be used as a heading for directions in a Padlet, as morning work, Flashcards, in Stations...the sky is the limit. They can be edited to fit your needs and your content. Check it out!

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Teacherstack helps manage and organize classroom tasks such as station rotations (centers), seating charts, and displaying to-do tasks for students.

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How to Plan and Use Virtual Stations Online

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How to Plan and Use Virtual Stations Online

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How Teachers Can Plan & Use Virtual “Stations” Online

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Template Bank for Visually Organizing Stations

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Template Bank for Visually Organizing Stations

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Making Station Rotation Work During Hybrid Learning

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Making Station Rotation Work During Hybrid Learning

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Implementing this method makes dividing a teacher's time between students in class and those working at home much easier.

UfaBizPhoto / Shutterstock

As a result of the pandemic, many schools throughout the country are moving forward with the hybrid learning model, combining face-to-face instruction with both synchronous and asynchronous learning. The tricky part is during synchronous class time when some students are in class and the rest are at home. How can a teacher best manage in-person and at-home learning at once? According to Dr. Kristen Turner, "Teachers who are being asked to do concurrent teaching (it is technically not a hybrid/blended model unless lessons are designed virtually/asynchronously for those who are not present face-to-face) are facing an enormous challenge. No one has been trained for this scenario."

Let's begin to address this challenge with backward-design basics. Only after we know the lesson goals and assessments can we make decisions about the class schedule and range of activities, including who is doing what at what time, whether in person or at home.

One of the seven models of blended learning that stands out due to its ease of use is station rotation. The Blended Learning Universe site reports that the station rotation model "allows students to rotate through stations on a fixed schedule, where at least one of the stations is an online learning station." The inner workings of the model allow teachers to align a variety of activities to the learning goal and then break up the class into small groups to closely monitor their progress while students actively engage in the content.

To accurately reflect the station rotation model in our era of social distancing, students who are in person are grouped in squares so that all peers are only six feet apart and can easily turn to each other to talk. Students at home should be grouped together to easily shift into asynchronous instruction as the teacher decides how the learners will divide their time among stations.

A station rotation setup uses small groups for the purpose of teacher-led instruction, online learning, collaborative activities, and offline learning. Here is a sample lesson plan template for a station rotation; this is a good way to begin to map out your stations. When you are ready to go live, here is a great template to use for planning your rotation and sharing it with students.

4 Stations to Provide Teachers Greater Flexibility

1. An online learning station for independent practice.Use of the online learning station helps to drive immediate data-informed instruction. The online station is maximized by investing in a web-based learning platform that provides standards-aligned immediate feedback to the learner and teacher. With a focus on priority instructional content, teachers can leverage learning.

Several low-cost or free programs provide teachers with an effective way of getting students to practice grade-level material with immediate feedback upon completion signifying progress on the standards. At the end of the online learning station time, in-person students move on to the next station, with students at home potentially joining a virtual, small-group station.

2. A teacher-led station for real-time feedback. The teacher-led station begins with the learning goal. The STEPS Small Group Lesson Plan Form can work across content areas to teach into the learning goal and effectively work within the established time frame. Students try out the learning, and the teacher makes observations while providing real-time feedback in the instructional moment.

The teacher-led station is highly coveted instructional time. It's when connections are made, and teachers get to know how kids learn to better plan for and support their progress.

3. A no-tech station for independent practice. An offline station is critical to avoid screen fatigue in a virtually demanding environment. Materials such as books, notebooks, manipulatives, and other resources should be distributed at once to the students to keep for the duration of the marking period or semester. Students may be journaling in a marble composition notebook, reading a book, or creating a graphic organizer to self-check their knowledge of the content.

The first table in this article offers questions to promote students' understanding in planning, monitoring, and evaluating their work, which can be used in a journal entry. Ideally, the independent practice may serve as a time to engage in routine, written reflection.

4. A collaborative-learning station using peers as partners. This station can be hosted in a mixed (at-home and in-person) small group. It may also be an in-person group of four students in their square and an only-at-home group holding a virtual meeting. When only one group is in this station at once, ideally one in person or one virtual, the teacher can check for understanding by taking a brief pause from their teacher-led station.

Equally important, students build relationships, confidence, and trust by learning to rely on each other in group work. Here is a reference for establishing formal, cooperative-learning groups along with research that supports the need for socialization during student learning to grow understanding.

Before Stations Rotate: Invite a Brain Break

Students benefit from a brain break and physical movement every 15 to 20 minutes, or the typical duration of one station activity. Before transitioning into the next station, end the station by inviting all students, whether in school or at home, to stand up tall, stretch their arms out, and circle them forward and then backward while walking in place. After 30 to 60 seconds, students sit back down to begin their next station.

Simply put, the use of the station rotation is a time-management planning strategy that allows the teacher to break up learning activities and consider how to maximize his or her time. As a tip, teachers might want to see station rotation as a plan over a few days or class meetings as opposed to trying to fit all rotations into one block of time. Once you get started with a station rotation model, it can easily transfer to any instructional environment, whether virtual, in person, hybrid, or concurrent.

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How to Make Station Rotation Work During Hybrid Learning

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Implementing this method makes dividing a teacher's time between students in class and those working at home much easier.

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*Hint Hint...you'll see this template again :)

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Lesson Plan Template for Virtual Rotations

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Lesson Plan Template for Virtual Rotations

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Example of Station Rotations in Elementary School (Differentiating Instruction to Reach All Students)

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Example of Station Rotations in Elementary School (Differentiating Instruction to Reach All Students)

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Station Rotation: Differentiating Instruction to Reach All Students

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Middle School Station Rotation Model Example

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Middle School Station Rotation Model Example

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Blended Learning - Station Rotation Model

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Blended Learning Energizes High School Math Students (Tech2Learn Series)

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Educator Peter McIntosh helps his students to take ownership of their learning by using interactive subject-mastery tools like Khan Academy.

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Example of NC First Grade Personalized Playlist 

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Example of NC First Grade Personalized Playlist 

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Teacher: Malory Elks

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[All About Owls] Target Standards and Skills: RI.1.5 Know and use various text features to locate key facts or information in a text. W.1.2 Write informative/explanatory texts in which they name a topic, supply some facts about the topic, and provide closure. With guidance and support from a…

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Curious about TQE? Check it out...

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Listen to my interview with Marisa Thompson (transcript):
Sponsored by Peergrade and 3Doodler

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So much of the learning we do comes from texts: articles, textbooks, novels, and all kinds of online publications. Sometimes, those texts come in less traditional forms; in fact, our use of the word "text" has broadened over time to include things like films, images, and even diagrams. Regardless of what form they come in, texts make up the bulk of how our students experience learning.

But too often, when we assign texts to students, we find that they don't experience them with much depth. One reason for that may be that we don't set them up to do that. In many text-based classes (English, history, science), the learning cycle often consists of (1) consuming a section of the text, (2) answering teacher-created questions about the text, (3) taking a test after several sections have been completed.

For years, high school English teacher Marisa Thompson followed this same programming, and got typical results: Some students did the required work, but never seemed particularly invested in the books themselves. Others completed the questions unevenly, sometimes not answering them all, other times copying work from their peers. And when students didn't do the work, they got calls home and office referrals.

As this pattern repeated itself year after year, Thompson became more frustrated: The texts themselves were wonderful, but students weren't experiencing them the way they were meant to be experienced. Instead, they had shallow interactions with them, doing whatever surface work had to be done to get a grade.

Finally, she started experimenting with a different approach, and the way she teaches texts now is completely different from the way she used to. Her current approach, which she calls TQE, is similar to Socratic Seminar, where students lead a discussion on a given text, but with a few twists. Since implementing this new approach, Thompson has seen her students reading much more than they used to, and with much more depth than ever before. They are having college-level conversations about books in class, and for the first time, they seem excited about the books they're reading.

On top of that, Thompson's prepping and grading work for these class sessions is down to almost nothing.

What I love about this method, and why I'm sharing it here, is that I think it could be applied in a lot of different areas, not just with the study of novels. In any class where students need to read a text in order to learn, something along these lines could be implemented, and I think you'll find that the learning in your classroom gets much richer as a result. So as you read about TQE, think about how you might be able to apply it in your content area.

The Problem

As an English teacher, Thompson found that her students were experiencing books in a very shallow, grade-focused way.

"(I would) send students home, maybe get them started on Chapter 1, and then, Hey guys, go home and read Chapter 2. Come on back and we'll talk about it, and here's your list of questions; you're going to have a reading quiz. I realized I wasn't really assessing their reading with homework and quizzes. I was assessing whether or not they did their homework questions."

This method not only diminished the value of the books students were reading, it also led to other problems. "It made reading seem like a hassle," Thomspon says. "I started getting a bunch of cheating. One year I had 10 kids copy off each other. It turned this amazing story-this beautiful novel that everybody should read and enjoy and love-into a discipline problem."

Early Changes

Knowing something had to change, Thompson decided to try grading students only on whether their participation in class indicated that they had read the book.

"I said, 'Look. We're going to read this book, and we're just going to read it and talk about it. You're not going to have study questions. You're not going to have any reading quizzes. But I'm going to know if you read or not. I'm going to know.'"

These early discussions were similar to Socratic Seminar, where students came with questions and Thompson mostly observed. When a student participated in a way that demonstrated that he or she had read the book, their names would be crossed off of a chart. "And that was it," Thompson says. "The standard says, Be able to read and analyze at grade level. And if they're doing that, I mean, yeah, cross their name off. Move on."

For students who scored low on the discussion or who weren't initially comfortable with active participation, Thompson offered alternative means of assessment. "I said, hey, if I'm wrong with your score, then we need to come up with some sort of alternative: They were used to taking annotations, taking notes on their thoughts while they read-you can show me those. You can sit down and have a conversation just one-on-one, or you can take a test. So if you got an eight out of 10, and you're like, 'No, I want the 10 out of 10,' I have a multiple-choice test on the book."

Most of the time, Thompson's initial score on the discussion turned out to be accurate. "I did have a lot of students who had a B for their assessment, and they're like, No, I want the A. Great. And they took the test and then it was cute, because they were like Yeah, I didn't really read all of it. So my assessment was, on average, about 3 or 4 percent higher than what they were normally getting on their tests."

Right away, Thompson started to see changes in how her students were reading. "I had students who started reading more than they were assigned, and they were finishing the book early," she says. Some were even reading ahead.

Over time, Thompson refined her approach, adding small-group time before the large-group discussions, offering scaffolding to help students develop better questions, and structuring student contributions so that the richest questions got the most discussion time.

These changes have so elevated the level of discourse that Thompson sometimes feels like she's teaching college class. "And that's exactly what I tell them: 'What we just did, that was a collegiate literature course. That was amazing. You could walk into a college course and have this discussion.' And you can see that they're enjoying it."

The TQE Method

Here is the approach Thompson uses now, step by step:

1. Students Complete Assigned Reading at Home

Usually, this will be a segment of a longer text, like a few chapters in a novel. Students who show up having not completed the reading are invited to finish up in the hall during small group discussion (step 2) to catch up. They are welcome to return to class for the discussion when they finish.

2. Small Group Discussions (15 minutes)

When they arrive in class, students get into small groups, where they have 15 minutes to share thoughts, lingering questions, and epiphanies (TQEs) they have about the reading. Early in the year, Thompson provides stems to help students generate these (see below), encouraging them to move from the more simplistic ideas on the left to the more complex ones on the right.

3. TQEs on the Board

By the time the 15 minutes is up, each group needs to choose their top 2 TQEs from the group and write them on the board. Although these are meant to serve as the basis for the group discussion, they are not necessarily used as is.

"If they put something on there that is not at the quality or as thought-provoking as we need it to be for the class to discuss, we'll edit it together, the 40 of us," Thompson explains. "So it becomes a writing lesson."

Thompson also insists that when discussing a text, students use the author's name. When discussing Of Mice and Men, for example, she started by having students repeat the name "Steinbeck" five times. "I love Lenny and George. I love Lenny," she told them. "but he's totally fictional. So when you start asking questions like, 'Why did George do that?' George doesn't exist."

Instead, she has students practice asking questions like, "Why did hat theme is Steinbeck have George do that?" "W Steinbeck trying to convey to the rest of us by having his character do that?"

"It's not about the character," she explains. "It's not about the character's motivation, it's the author's purpose in providing that motivation for the character."

4. Class Discussion of TQEs

Thompson then moderates a whole-class discussion of the reading, using the TQEs that have been written on the board. This takes about 40 minutes of class time-she teaches on a block schedule, so there's plenty of time to dig in. When the class is actively studying a novel, they will have these conversations in every class meeting.

As for grading, Thompson simply records when students participate, and that's it. "I have a chart with their little pictures," she explains, "and I cross them off as I go. So I'm not necessarily grading them every single day. My student Sally might have participated a ton one day, and skipped the next day. But my standard-based grading says she is reading and analyzing at at least grade level. I don't need to score each of my 40 kids every single day."

"And the amount of planning is nil," Thompson adds. " I'm not creating, I'm not copying, I'm not collecting, I don't need to waste my time. My prep is reading before bed every night."

What Student-Centered Learning Looks Like

"We have all these really great aphorisms, these quotes about, 'Students should own their learning,' and 'Empower students,'" Thompson observes. "And it's like, well that's great, but how in the heck do we do that?"

Since starting the TQE process, Thompson has seen true student-centered learning in action: Students are in charge of the content of the discussions, and the ability to participate fully has become its own motivator for completing the homework.

"The peer pressure of Everyone's discussing this book- that becomes cool. To have an idea, to have an opinion. So the student comes in, and all of a sudden it's, "Wait, I read that part, and I think this," you know? And you want to talk about empowering a student? You just turned that student into a part of the classroom community." ♦

If you are a fan of the TQE method and you want to take it further, check out Marisa's Ultimate TQE Course. This course will revolutionize your reading and writing instruction and assessment through student-led inquiry, intentional teacher guidance, feedback that is immediately useful to students while eliminating the need for at-home grading, even for essays, and a personable approach to teaching and learning that leaves everyone in the room energized and engaged.

Cult of Pedagogy receives a portion of the Ultimate TQE Course sales that come through the link on this page.

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Deeper Class Discussions with the TQE Method

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Want your students to have rich, complex conversations about the texts they read? This method leads to the kinds of classroom discussions you thought only happened in college.

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station rotations is something im excited to learn more about and see examples of!

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station rotations can increase my ability to personalize learning for my students by giving them more independence and accountability

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station rotations can increase my ability to personalize learning for my students by giving them more independence and accountability

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A playlist can be implemented at any point in the day to day by way of lesson planning. It can be used to give student a creative way to their daily learning objectives

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A playlist can be implemented at any point in the day to day by way of lesson planning. It can be used to give student a creative way to their daily learning objectives

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From a Kindergarten teacher's perspective on Station Rotation... With the use of digital learning pathways offered by iReady, Reading Horizons, etc. Students are able to learn at their own pace, and I am able to use that data to enhance the teacher led small group portion of station rotations. I can also use the data from assessments to assign SeeSaw activities for specific student groups.

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Station Rotation can be a beautiful thing with planning and preparation. I like the ideas that ditchthattextbook gave for rotation

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My only reservation would be how would this look if the classroom is already a computer lab?

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My only reservation would be how would this look if the classroom is already a computer lab?

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It seems like I use flipped classroom everyday!

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It seems like I use flipped classroom everyday!

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How do I do this in a health-inspected environment? I will have a teaching classroom- but I cannot be in two different places at once.

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station rotation is something I am learning as this is the first year that I am doing it. 

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station rotation is something I am learning as this is the first year that I am doing it. 

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Two benefits of the station rotation model are:

1. Individualized Learning: Station rotation allows for a more personalized learning experience. Students can progress through the stations at their own pace, engaging with content and activities that cater to their specific learning needs. This individualized approach helps to address diverse learning styles and abilities within a single classroom.

2. Flexibility and Differentiation: The model provides flexibility in terms of content delivery and allows teachers to incorporate a variety of instructional methods and resources. Different stations can focus on different aspects of the lesson, catering to various learning preferences. This differentiation enables students to explore topics in-depth and at a level that suits their abilities.

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This sounds very interesting

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Station rotation is most effective when every station is equal in length and grade value. When I did it with my high school students, they tended to want to do the one that was worth more in the gradebook first. In the future, I will make sure they are all equally weighted and equally balanced in length of time to complete.

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This is something I may try in my classroom

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Does a playlist have to only last one day? Or can it extend to a couple or three days?

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Station Rotation is what I mostly do and what I’m familiar with using. As a middle school math teacher I find the planning piece to be the most cumbersome. Making sure the activities that aren’t with me are something they can do individually without being too easy is mg biggest predicament.

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Station Rotation is something that I am sorta familiar with. As a culinary high school teacher planning for the labs and going grocery shopping for each one is a lot to plan

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Playlists look like a good option for math. I will like playing around with this idea.

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I have used Flipgrid before... (not in a rotation setting), but I have had them use this application for honors portions of the classroom. What about OCS students?

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This sounds like an interesting strategy. All the students in my class have their own devices, so going to a lab would be unnecessary. Keeping them on task would be more manageable too since we’d all be in our classroom.

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I use this model daily but as a whole group. Transitions make and break this model. Early on when we were 1 to 1 I would have difficulty getting student off of their online task to discuss with a small group or my tech-adverse students would drag their feet getting out and booting up their tech. Now I start with a pen/paper warm up and offline icebreaker, move online for a bit, and then rotate back and forth for different tasks. Having clear transitions, visual cues, and brain breaks to separate tasks helps A LOT!

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This would be very exciting for me in the library media space especially trying to expand my makerspace content.

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I pretty much do this every day because I hate lecturing. We do whole group instruction and announcements, a part in their novels, then an online document. I just would really like to shake up the technology I use in my high school class for ELA; Google docs is tired of me

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My students do not have school-provided devices for students. So I’m not permitted to require work online at home.

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I have been adding more station rotations to my classroom assignments. I have learned it can be very flexible. I was too hard on myself!

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Theses models somewhat remind me of the co teaching models used for inclusion.

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I am most familiar with this model.

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My school district does this every day. We have teacher led, centers for manipulatives reading interventions and a technology center. I love being able to differentiate for all leveled students.

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The class I'm teaching this semester is very project-based. I'm interested in learning more about stations in that context. I also noticed that almost all of our examples in the course so far focus on Elementary and Middle School, but I teach HS seniors.

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I do like the whole group model with teacher led groups so students who need assistance can receive partner or collaborative critical thinking discussions.

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I love this model because I can see who needs help who likes collaborative learning teams and who likes technology centers. This creates a very interactive classroom setting.

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It promotes student-centered and dynamic learning experience that caters to individual needs.

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It promotes student-centered and dynamic learning experience that caters to individual needs.

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We are soon going to modify our schedules from 90 min class periods to 60 min with 30 for remediation,etc and this would work really well for that. I very much liked the idea that someone said to start small. I think many teachers envision this happening on a grand scale, but the reality is you might get 1 or 2 things to work for a while.

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They definitely are difficult to utilize if students do not have access at home. So this one in be difficult to integrate.

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This concept seems beneficial as it pertains to individual learning and exploration.

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The ELA teacher who posted about this "Google docs is tired of me"--I would love some more specifics about this. I try to do what you're discussing on a small scale. We use Google Classroom, so I have a bell ringer that's a question, short quiz, or recap of previous reading, then we read (text usually a PDF online), then discussion, then they have online workbooks/analyses to work on. How do yours play out?

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I am apprehensive about the flipped rotation model.

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Don't think this would work in lower elementary. 

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Don't think this would work in lower elementary. 

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I use station rotations numerous times througout the year. I love the idea that students are all learning the same concepts or skills but building them differently depending on choices students make. I find that planning is extrememly important as well as looking out for possible misunderstanding and pitfalls!

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I use station rotations numerous times througout the year. I love the idea that students are all learning the same concepts or skills but building them differently depending on choices students make. I find that planning is extrememly important as well as looking out for possible misunderstanding and pitfalls!

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I like to use this mostly. It can be a lot to plan for but it's benefits are huge. The ability to differentiate is huge.

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One of the things I like most about a playlist is the ability of students to choose how and when to accomplish an assigned task. I used a padlet playlist for a unit we did with "To Kill a Mockingbird." Each chapter had a column, but all work within the column was available to complete at any time during the chapter. I love the idea of adding the early finisher column!

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One of the things I like most about a playlist is the ability of students to choose how and when to accomplish an assigned task. I used a padlet playlist for a unit we did with "To Kill a Mockingbird." Each chapter had a column, but all work within the column was available to complete at any time during the chapter. I love the idea of adding the early finisher column!

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I'm not sure many of my students would be able to maintain this much independence even in the middle school.

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Being 1:1 with laptops, we no longer have computer labs. This would work well with collaboration with the media coordinator who can allow for space to "set up" a lab of laptops and kids. Since there is only me in the classroom, I have to have someone volunteer to host the lab. 

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Being 1:1 with laptops, we no longer have computer labs. This would work well with collaboration with the media coordinator who can allow for space to "set up" a lab of laptops and kids. Since there is only me in the classroom, I have to have someone volunteer to host the lab. 

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I have seen this done in others' classrooms, but feedback from the students was that many didn't prefer this style of rotations.