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In my opinion, student-centered learning means that teacher should be more of a “guide on the side” instead of “sage on the stage”. Therefore, my thoughts on the physical environment of the student-centered learning are as follows(Pre-K, 1-5):

1.     Classroom arrangement: several rounded desks put in the center to facilitate group work; projector that can display students’ work; a wide area where students can move and participate in games while learning; reading corner where students can read quietly.

2.     Integrating technology: we could provide students with tablets, Wi-fi or a computer zone to make sure that students know how to use digital tools to maximum their learning gains and are prepared for this technological world.

Reference:

Shalaway, L. (2021). Classroom Organization: The Physical Environment | Scholastic. Scholastic. https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/articles/teaching-content/classroom-organization-physical-environment/

Hill, M. (2018, November 14). 3 Ways to Create a Student-Centered Learning Environment Using Technology. Medium. https://medium.com/inspired-ideas-prek-12/3-ways-to-create-a-student-centered-learning-environment-using-technology-2ba9dce92682

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This is a great list of what to look for in a student-centered environment.

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When you walk into a school, what do you look for? When envisioning what type of learning environment is ideal for your child or the students you work with, what are the most important characteristics? What are the most positive, memorable experiences from your own schooling?

I value many different learning models and environments and honestly do not feel it is my role to judge or evaluate what is "good." That said, from years of teaching in the classroom and countless visits and interactions with excellent educators worldwide, I've created a list of things I commonly observe in great student-centered learning environments. As the Nellie Mae Education Foundation describes, student-centered learning "engages students in their own success-and incorporates their interests and skills into the learning process." Student learning is personalized, competency-based, happens anytime and/or anywhere, and students have ownership in their learning.

I paired my personal list with thoughts from my teammates at Getting Smart to create a collection of "School Look Fors" based on our discussions and experiences in schools.

Download a copy of this graphic

Keep in mind, these Look Fors are not meant to evaluate a learning environment. Rather, they can serve as a springboard for creating talking and discussion points. Also, some of our favorite learning environments are places where educators are still working on addressing some of these Look Fors. It is obvious but still important to state this: every day is different in every school, and we don't know the on-going experiences and interactions of those teaching and learning in those spaces.

Amongst the fourteen School Look Fors above, there are eight in particular that really stand out when it comes to student-centered learning environments.

1) High degree of student engagement; challenge, enthusiasm, joy. One of the goals of creating a student-centered environment should be to make learning joyful, challenging and engaging. Thrive Public Schools is one of the most joyful places we have visited. Joyful learning coupled with purposeful challenge makes Thrive truly an incredible place. The laughter and engagement flows through every hall and classroom.

2) Students know what they are learning and why. Katherine Smith students, including the fourth-grade student (pictured in Quality Work + Project-Based Learning at Katherine Smith Elementary) who shared her writing project goals with us, know what they need to do to accomplish a project or a task. The project was personalized to her goals and she was working at her own pace to accomplish them. Educators from Katherine Smith share that this doesn't happen overnight, but with great PBL facilitation even kindergartners can have this level of focus and clarity.

3) Blend of individual, collaborative team and large group work. Intrinsic Schools in Chicago is literally designed, both in structure and in instruction, to be a blend of individual and team work. Students all work in big learning pods and rotate between groups or one-on-one instruction with their teachers.

4) Students use personalized technology to produce as well as consume. Student-centered learning demands students spend at least some portion of their day working on personalized learning tasks or projects. CICS Irving Park students in Chicago use the Summit platform during part of their school day, and staff now find that discipline issues are lower and engagement is skyrocketing. CICS Irving Park partners with LEAP Innovations in their personalized learning pursuit, working together to ensure the learning is not just individualized but that it is also meaningful and connected to the real-world.

5) Students have some opportunity to work at their own pace and explore their own interests. Exploring student interests (and interests that they may not even realize they have) is core to a great student-centered environment. Students also work on addressing competencies, or skills, and do so at their own pace. Da Vinci students ebb and flow in and out of group work and individual projects, which are usually designed based off of student interests. Many students at Da Vinci are working towards mastering competencies and earning SNHU credits for doing so. They get to choose focus areas for their learning, which may include learning about communities and causes that they are most passionate about. Students are often working on a similar set of goals, but not all on the same activity or task.

6) Students are doing the bulk of the work and the talking. Students ideas and voices are front and center in student-centered learning environments. Design39 students are confident communicators and collaborators. Learning Experience Designers (also known as teachers) get students started and guide their learning, but allow for lots of student discussion and work time. On our visit last spring, students were working on their own or in groups throughout the school. One group of third graders we chatted with were addressing this question: "How might we define ourselves within this world we live in?"

7) There are multiple forms of assessment, feedback and demonstrations of learning. Students in student-centered learning environments get lots of feedback. They get individual feedback, hopefully on both academic and social and emotional goals. They also get group or team feedback, maybe based on projects or a team activity. At Cougar New Tech in the El Paso Independent School District, students keep their projects up in an in-school museum. Whenever visitors come, they get to practice their presentations and receive feedback to improve their work.

8) Instruction, culture and environment reflect and include student and staff diversity. From the Secretary to the Vice Principal, C havez Multicultural Academic Center staff truly reflect the community and students served. The halls and walls are covered with student artwork, cultural displays and messages of empowerment around diversity as being a strength. Students see themselves in their learning space and their cultural strengths are highlighted throughout their learning day and in the physical school environment.

What else would you add? Above all else, there is no better sign than being in a school environment where educators, parents and students express they are joyful about their school and confident in the quality of teaching and learning.

For more, see:
Stay in-the-know with all things EdTech and innovations in learning by signing up to receive the weekly Smart Update . This post includes mentions of a Getting Smart partner. For a full list of partners, affiliate organizations and all other disclosures, please see our Partner page

Emily is the CEO of Boundless. Follow Emily on Twitter at @EmilyLiebtag.

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8 Things to Look For in a Student-Centered Learning Environment

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When you walk into a school, what do you look for? When envisioning what type of learning environment is ideal for your child or the students you work with, what are the most important characteristics? What are the most positive, memorable experiences from your own schooling?

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Technology tools and teaching strategies for student-centered learning

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Technology tools and teaching strategies for student-centered learning

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I would like to share this startalk program(Chinese immersion), which provides some examples for student-centered learning. I would like to teach Chinese in the future, and this video has given some good ideas that I could use in my future teaching!

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An old but great video of student-centered classroom arrangement example.

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Fairfax Network - Fairfax County Public Schools

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Best Practices: Arranging a Classroom for Student Centered Learning

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Based on my experience and research, below are some methods I found that facilitate student-centered learning that requires collaboration:

1.     Project-Based learning: is a learner-centered pedagogy that involves learners identifying a real-world problem and engaging in hands-on learning to identify a solution.

2.     Role-Play: this is one method I learned from one of my teachers. When learning languages, students are put into different groups and come up with their own scripts based on a certain theme, then each student take a role and act their script out. They will be graded by their teacher and peers.

3.     Problem-Based Learning: is a student-centered approach in which students learn about a subject by working in groups to solve an open-ended problem. This problem is what drives the motivation and the learning.

4.     Roundtable: Three-step interviews can be used as an ice-breaker for team members to get to know one another or can be used to get to know concepts in depth, by assigning roles to students.

5.      Group processing: Team members set group goals, periodically assess what they are doing well as a team, and identify changes they will make to function more effectively in the future.

Reference:

Contributors, U. L. T. O. (2017). Ch. 6 Project Based Learning – Instructional Methods, Strategies and Technologies to Meet the Needs of All Learners. Pressbooks. https://granite.pressbooks.pub/teachingdiverselearners/chapter/project-based-learning-2/

UTAH VALLEY UNIVERSITY. (2016). Project-Based Learning and Problem-Based Learning (x-BL) | Office of Teaching and Learning. Office of Teaching and Learning. https://www.uvu.edu/otl/resources/group_work/pbl.html

Michelle, H. (2018). tnaugust17cohort4 [licensed for non-commercial use only] / Student-centered approaches or techniques that are based on or require collaboration. Wiki. http://tnaugust17cohort4.pbworks.com/w/page/120465129/Student-centered%20approaches%C2%A0or%20techniques%20that%20are%20based%20on%20or%20require%20collaboration#:%7E:text=Student%2Dcentered%20approaches%20or%20techniques%20that%20are%20based%20on%20or%20require%20collaboration,-Page%20history%20last&text=What%20is%20Collaborative%20Learning%3F,task%2C%20or%20create%20a%20product.

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Great resources for project-based learning ideas, videos, rubrics and more.

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of videos, planning forms, rubrics, blogs, and more. Whether you want to learn about PBL, or find classroom resources, our materials will support your journey.

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It involves many approaches for collaborative work.

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Student-centered approaches or techniques that are based on or require collaboration

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Collaborative learning is a student-centered educational approach to teaching and learning that involves groups of learners working together to solve a problem, complete a task, or create a product. The instructor acts as a facilitator, encouraging discussion, assigning projects, answering questions and moving around the room as needed.

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An example of Problem-Based Learning explaining how it works and how it benefits student-centered leaning.

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Fairfax Network - Fairfax County Public Schools

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It introduced four principles of student-centered learning.

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404 - Page Not Found - Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents (CAPSS)

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404 - Page Not Found - Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents (CAPSS)

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Reading circles are a great student-centered approach to reading. They were developed for English as a Second/Foreign Language students, but could also be adapted to students practicing reading in their own native language. In a reading circle, small groups of students read a text together several times, and each student is given a specific role. The link below suggests and expands upon the following roles: Discussion Leader, Summarizer, Connector, Word Master, Passage Person, and Cultural Collector. Other potential roles could include: Reader, Illustrator, Translator, Paraphraser, etc.

Reference:

Bookworms Club Reading Circles Teacher Handbook. Oxford University Press. http://newdoc.nccu.edu.tw/teasyllabus/113646032019/reading_circle_role_sheet.pdf

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As much as possible, give students choice over what they want to read. This may be as narrow as allowing them to choose between two stories/passages, or as broad as letting them choose any novel at their level that they want. By giving students choices, we can encourage them to take initiative and read for pleasure.

Reference:

Barber, S. (2017). Building Choice Into Your Students' Reading. https://www.edutopia.org/article/building-choice-student-reading-susan-barber

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In station teaching, different activities are happening at the same time within the same class. Students could rotate through the stations at an assigned time, move between stations when they feel ready, or stay at one station throughout the class, depending on the lesson design. These activities could be chosen based on student interest or student proficiency. With all the students engaged in their tasks, the teacher can circulate to answer questions and help those who most need it, or they could stay at one of the stations to provide additional support (usually to the students who are most struggling).

Reference:
TeachThought Staff. How to Scaffold Learning Through Station Teaching. https://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy/how-to-scaffold-learning-through-station-teaching/

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PBL can naturally lead to differentiation. Students can be put into heterogeneous or homogeneous groups, allowing them to help each other or to receive targeted instruction. Students can also set their own goals, make their own choices, and reflect on their progress.

Reference:

Miller, A. (2012) 6 Strategies for Differentiated Instruction in Project-Based Learning. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/differentiated-instruction-strategies-pbl-andrew-miller

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Technology can help make reading practice highly student-centered. Some programs can play words aloud for students, give definitions or examples of words, keep track of unknown vocabulary, give interactive comprehension checks, etc.

Reference:

Early Childhood Education Zone. (2021) 10 Best Online Reading Programs. https://www.earlychildhoodeducationzone.com/best-online-reading-programs/

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As more and more teachers are building choice reading time into their daily classroom schedules, making a variety of books available to a diverse group of students can be challenging. Inspired and challenged by several teachers (including Brian Sztabnik-see " Igniting a Passion for Reading ") to incorporate daily independent reading into class, I have set aside 15 minutes in each 90 minutes block for independent choice reading.

After making the jump, I quickly realized that I needed a way to keep a variety of books for selection in front of my students. The goal is to get the right book in the hands of students while protecting reading time as much as possible. Here are a few suggestions for introducing students to books and creating a literacy-rich environment.

Speed Dating

Book "speed dating" is a great activity to do at the beginning of the year or semester because students can be exposed to several books and begin to build a reading list. When we arrive in the library, several books are arranged on tables by our media center specialists based on information I have given them about the class. Students find a table, and the dating begins as students fill out a guided note page. A timer buzzes after three or four minutes, and students move to another table and start the process with another book. After students have completed several cycles, they rank the books, deciding which book to begin reading immediately and which ones to add to their reading list. Speed dating can be varied by genre or theme, or kept wide open. This past Valentine's Day, students speed dated books complete with candles and chocolate.

Mini Book Talks

Every couple of weeks I have a staff member or media center specialist share a book that has been important to them or one they're currently reading. Students love to hear about the reading habits of teachers, administrators, and custodians, plus they get to know different people on campus on a more personal level.

Display Teacher Reading

My summer-reading door display greets students at the beginning of the year. You could also feature the faculty's summer reading in a great school-wide display.

Social Media

Have students create a hashtag that features reading and their classroom, school, or county. They can post pictures of books they're currently reading. I love the excitement that Amy Rasmussen generates in her district with #FarmersRead on Twitter.

Student Book Recommendations

Inspired by staff recommendations at bookstores, I dedicate a portion of the class bulletin board to student book recommendations. I ask students to include a brief summary, why they recommend the book, and a significant quote. I also encourage them to include a picture of their book and themselves. The display is always changing, and I find students referring to it when they're needing a new book.

Classroom Library

I love our school library, and we have committed media center specialists who are determined to get the right books to the students. However, a classroom library is a bonus for a couple of reasons. First, students lose less reading time choosing a book from the classroom library than if they go to the school library. Second, I have multiple copies of some books, so friends can read the same book. Finally, a classroom library allows the community to feel connected and a part of what is happening with my students. I make appeals for books on social media, and friends and neighbors make donatations. I have students write thank you notes to people who donate books and love the relationship I am fostering between Room 128 and the community. My students love writing notes on the inside cover of books from the classroom library to encourage other students to read them.

Literally Place Books in Front of Students

Simply displaying books on the whiteboard's marker tray with a very brief description is highly effective. I have at least one student take a book from the board each day, so the display is continually changing.

Student Book Talks

This does take some time away from reading, but I love to give students an opportunity at least once during the semester to share a favorite book with the class. The book talk format works well because it only takes three minutes per student and provides a structure for the presentation.

Lists, Lists, Lists

Keep a running list of books read through the year visible in the classroom. I also have an ongoing list where students record books they want me to read, and I mark them off as I read them-if a student goes out of the way to recommend a book to me, I will definitely make time to read it. I frequently share books lists with students, such as Edutopia's " Summer Reading Recommendations" or " President Obama's Reading List" from The New York Times.

The goal of a literacy-rich classroom is expose students to as many different types of books as possible in order for them to continue to grow in their love of reading or to find an entry point for reading.

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Building Choice Into Your Students' Reading

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As more and more teachers are building choice reading time into their daily classroom schedules, making a variety of books available to a diverse group of students can be challenging. Inspired and challenged by several teachers (including Brian Sztabnik-see " Igniting a Passion for Reading ") to incorporate daily independent reading into class, I have set aside 15 minutes in each 90 minutes block for independent choice reading.

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The availability of online study materials has transformed not only how students learn in the classroom, but also the ways in which their parents can help them learn at home. Whether it's teaching or reviewing the basics in the evening, or seeking out the best resources for homeschooling, online resources are a game changer in child literacy and instruction. Indeed, recent studies have shown that students who work on basic literacy skills at home, during the earliest years of their pre-school and elementary school education, are up to 56 percent more successful on standardized literacy tests during their late elementary school years and during middle school.

In fact, students whose parents played an active role in their literacy education were more likely to read at least 10 books per year and more likely to show high levels of comprehension and literacy in other subject areas, including mathematics. These results help to clarify the importance of working with young students on reading and comprehension from an early age, and there are many online tools available that make this process even easier and more exciting. The best tools have been ranked below.

Though there are hundreds of helpful resources online that encourage greater literacy in pre-school and elementary students, only ten were chosen for this ranking. These tools were selected based on a combination of factors. First and foremost, the tools chosen had to be developed either by a coalition of parents and teachers or by a group of teachers who work with real students on reading and literacy in their professional careers. Online reading programs were also chosen, and ranked, based on their affordability, their appeal to parents of homeschooled children, and their use of fully immersive web technologies that appeal directly to young learners. More immersive and interactive programs, like those with slide shows, videos, and interactive games, rank as some of the best and most productive resources today. This reality is reflected in their placement within the ranking.

ABCMouse Early Learning Academy is widely regarded as one of the best online tools for early learners grasping the most basic concepts of reading and other subjects. Founded in 2010, the company was a leader in the immersive, web-based and app-based education boom at the beginning of the decade. In the nearly seven years since its founding, the company has focused on fully immersive experiences on an array of mobile devices, as well as an adaptive and immersive website that allows students to progress at their own pace through basic lessons in sight words, phonetics, and the letters of the alphabet.

As a bonus, a license for the company's website portal, and all of its mobile apps is made available for free to virtually every public school, public library, and noted community organization. This wide accessibility makes the ABCMouse system widely accessible to both public schools and home schooling environments.

CNK Digital is a leader in making learning fun. Since first offering its gaming platform early in the present decade, CNK Digital has become a leader in game-based learning, with a variety of leveled games that work with students from pre-school through the beginning of middle school. The company's games are fun, but also instructive, with lessons in phonics, sight words, the alphabet, sentence structure, and much more.

While fun to early learners, the CNK Digital service is also a robust analytical tool for teachers and parents. Every action taken in one of the company's many literacy games records data about the student's comprehension, including the lessons and games that they either struggled or excelled in the most. This allows teachers and parents to focus their efforts on critical weak points in their student's literacy education, addressing major issues early on.​

Designed based on core principles of the National Reading Panel and peer-reviewed research on childhood literacy, StudyDog is primarily an independent learning tool that encourages students to work on their own, with minimal parent or teacher supervision. The service incorporates several immersive games, videos, slideshows, and lessons from the "StudyDog" himself, to teach students the fundamentals of the alphabet, phonics, vocabulary, and even sentence structure, based on the student's age and level of proficiency in core literacy concepts. The StudyDog approach is backed by scholarly research, as well as documented outcomes via standardized testing under the former No Child Left Behind Act, making it one of the most documented and reviewed approaches to reading education online.

Suitable for students in grades K-8, Book Adventure has a dual mission in the world of online reading education. First, the service is designed to help early learners master the basic concepts of reading comprehension and the principles of literacy. This is accomplished through a series of games and "adventures" that require input from students, corresponding with literacy lessons, to progress through the "adventure" and reach its conclusion.

Each adventure also promotes the company's second mission: To encourage a lifelong passion for learning. The company's mission statement notes that many people will only read if they are motivated to do so by an enjoyment of books and a commitment to literacy. Each "adventure" excites children about reading and books and gives them a new goal that will push them toward more independent reading outside the bounds of each lesson.

Kiz Phonics draws a great deal of its instructional inspiration from programs like Hooked on Phonics, which was one of the first programs to emphasize phonics and phonetics in literacy education. With that being said, the program is also differentiated in several key ways. First and foremost, Kiz Phonics is developed by a 27-member panel of teachers who work daily in reading and language arts education. The program also has the support of several tenured professors of language from around the country.

The Kiz Phonics program, unlike Hooked on Phonics, is available entirely online or through mobile applications. Because the program was developed by people who teach English or ESL to young and adult learners, heavy emphasis is placed on the proper progression through fundamentals, like the alphabet, phonics, pronunciation, sentence structure, and reading techniques. Digital letter, word, and pronunciation charts are also available online and can be printed, making this a great instructional tool for a homeschooling environment as well.

Mr. Nussbaum is a real person with years of experience in childhood literacy education, and the MrNussbaum.com website is a testament to this. The approach taken by this unique online tool, appropriate for children in grades K-8 that combines lessons in reading and literacy with a zeal for research. The Nussbaum approach to literacy education strongly believes that students need to not only learn the basic principles of reading but also employ those principles in everyday tasks.

To that end, students will put their skills to use as they scour real scholarly materials, researching concepts and actively reading in pursuit of a final goal. It's a practical approach that helps students connect theory with practice in a meaningful way for the rest of their lives.

Dating back to 1987, Hooked on Phonics is both one of the oldest and one of the most successful programs for people of all ages who are learning to read. The program has historically focused on early learners, from preschool through the early middle school years, when developing most of its books, DVDs, and other materials. To that end, Hooked on Phonics today is the single most comprehensive tool for parents and teachers who are assisting early learners with phonetics and the most basic concepts of literacy.

Though Hooked on Phonics was started by a father who wanted to teach his son to read, the company has evolved over 30 years into one that involves both parents and teachers. Lessons are designed and revised by a panel of literacy experts, early childhood educators, and actual classroom teachers, in an effort to make them immersive, interactive, and fun. The company most recently turned its series of successful books and DVDs into an interactive web portal and a mobile app, giving students and parents a vast number of digital lessons on virtually every portable device. It remains one of the most highly effective teaching tools in early literacy.

Part of the Learning A-Z family of learning tools, which has been providing at-home and in-school instruction to students since 2002, Headsprout is known for its adaptive approach to early childhood literacy. Unlike many of the company's competitors, which apply a one-size-fits-all approach to learning basic phonetics and reading comprehension methods, Headsprout's software uses an adaptive approach that responds to student answers. If the student needs more time on a concept, Headsprout detects this fact and acts accordingly. Likewise, the software can speed students through concepts that they already know or are grasping with ease.

Headsprout's unique, adaptive approach to teaching reading has produced real results for students both in the home and at school. Furthermore, the company's approach has been validated by peer-reviewed studies, published in many major journals of education, since the software first hit the market over a decade ago. The company's consistent approach to student learning, and its use of algorithms and lesson adaptation, make it a great fit for independent study times and all levels of early learners.

There is one problem that has almost always stopped homeschoolers and budget-weary parents in their tracks: licensing fees for literacy programs. Many of the most popular literacy programs, even those offered primarily for home use, require steep subscription and licensing fees that can eat into family budgets. This makes it hard to review, or to teach, the most basic literacy and reading comprehension concepts with early learners. Reading Bear was founded to put a stop to this problem. All of its literacy and reading comprehension lessons are completely free for home use, making this tool the best option for parents on a tight budget.

Reading Bear, like many other tools, understands the importance of "leveling" its learning programs and providing numerous instructional options to parents. The free service offers its early childhood reading lessons in both video and slideshow formats. In addition, the service offers seven different levels of instruction for each lesson, ranging from a short "review" of the lesson's concepts to a longer, fully immersive lesson for young learners who are either new to the concept or need more time to review before moving on. The ability to choose different instructional methods and levels, in addition to its free price tag, makes Reading Bear a top choice for parents who prefer flexibility and have a tight budget for instructional tools.

One of the things that originally made K5 Learning unique was its founding members: parents. When the company was founded, virtually all literacy tools were marketed exclusively to schools and sold on a "volume license basis," making it nearly impossible for parents and homeschoolers to take advantage. The company's original mission was to democratize this process, bringing high-end, highly effective phonics and literacy tools to early learners across the country, whether they were at home or at school.

In the two decades that have elapsed since the founding of K5 Learning, the company's reading and basic literacy program has become one of the best options on the market for both schools and homes around the world. In fact, the K5 Learning program in reading was recently named the best such program in the country by a leading educational publication. The program is designed by a coalition of parents, ESL teachers, and literacy experts, along with early childhood educators who design interactive lessons compatible with Internet browsers and mobile devices. As a result, it easily tops the rankings for the best at-home literacy and reading program available to parents in the United States and around the world.

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The 10 Best Online Reading Programs - Early Childhood Education Zone

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The availability of online study materials has transformed not only how students learn in the classroom, but also the ways in which their parents can help them learn at home. Whether it's teaching or reviewing the basics in the evening, or seeking out the best resources for homeschooling, online resources are a game changer in ...

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by TeachThought Staff

Teaching through stations-or 'station teaching'-is a flexible and underrated teaching and learning strategy that can add versatility to your craft.

This approach requires unique classroom management strategies, precise time management, and a clear relationship between the design of each station and the learning objective itself. If you can meet these demands, station teaching can allow you to differentiate and personalize learning for students, meeting their needs while reducing your workload.

See also 12 Types Of Blended Learning

One key to station teaching is planning-having a clear sense not just of what 'students should do at each station,' but rather 'what each station should do for students.' This allows differentiation to be possible through scaffolding, awhen it comes to scaffolding, the gradual release of responsibility model is a fantastic way to get started.
Differentiation Starts With Adjustability
In 4 Strategies For Implementing Learning Stations In Your Classroom, we recommended differentiation as a key strategy in teaching and learning through stations.

'2. Differentiate the work in your centers and stations: Take each station and think of it as a common core or state standard. Make levels of difficulty A-D of each standard for your groups and neatly organize your packets A-D. "A" being the foundational skill and "D" being mastery. You can come up with your own system, but there needs to be levels of increasing comprehension they can access independently. Sometimes it's best to have different levels or learners in a center around the same activity. The more advanced children can help the students that are struggling on their A or B level packets. The key is the center is differentiated for all learners at the table for each learner at their level.'

This is a notion shared by teacher Stephanie Van Horn on her blog, 3rdgradethoughts.com, where a 2013 post of hers (that's been shared over 200,000 times) discusses her own experience with teaching math through stations.

'As with everything, the devil is in the details, so prepping is the key. I spent a looooooong time making sure the kids had activities and trying to account for "dead time"- thus, the Fact Practice option. I also wanted to make materials accessible and easy to get to, so there wouldn't be any excuse for not getting started right away.'

The 'dead time' is, of course, different for every student. Because of varying levels of readiness, background knowledge, and even student motivation, students 'move' at different speeds.

Station teaching doesn't automatically correct for this. You can setup learning stations, set a timer, have activities for each station, and still slow some students while rushing others.

One solution could be stations separated by function which closely follow the common approach of learning through stations, which is the application of the gradual release of responsibility model: Show me, help me, let me.

Below, we've created four possible models for station teaching based on the GRR model that can be used at any grade level, and with a little tweaking, for any content area.
Using Station Teaching To Scaffold Learning For Any Grade Level Or Content Area Station 1: Show me
Purpose: Introduce new topic

Useful Teaching & Learning Strategies: Think-Alouds, Direct Instruction, Modeling, Concept Mapping

In the first station, the teacher introduces new content. This can be a new principle in math, concept in science, reading strategy in Language Arts, or even an extension of previous learning. It can be done in small groups (i.e., a station), or the entire class as well through whole class instruction.
Station 2: Watch me
Purpose: To provide close support as students begin to experiment with the 'new content'

Useful Teaching & Learning Strategies: Jigsaw, Scaffolding, 5 Questions, Inquiry, Emotional/Cognitive 'Coaching'

In the second station, students begin to apply the previously introduced concept or skill. This can be done in pairs within the small group, individually, or in a mixed setting where some students are paired and some work alone, based on student ability, background knowledge, or other need.

See also The Definition Of Personalized Learning
Station 3: Help me
Purpose: To increase student fluency/autonomy with the new content based on personalized learning need

Useful Teaching & Learning Strategies: Conferencing, Workshopping, Differentiation, Scaffolding, Chunking

In the third station, the teacher will observe the students continue to apply the concept or skill, and do so in small enough groups where individual feedback can be given in a 'just the right time' approach.

This is also the station where the personalization and scaffolding of learning really start to take shape. Some students may need emotional support while others may benefit from simply having the task broken up into smaller steps, or 'chunks.'

The right pairing could be the tool some students need, while others may need a re-worded definition or pop culture analogy to make sense of a new idea. This group can also be differentiated by readyness-'ready' students can pass this station on the way to the 'Let me' station.

In some cases, some students may even need to return to a previous station. In this case, consider encouraging students to 'pass go' and go back around rather than 'move backwards.'
Station 4: Let me
Purpose: Further 'splinter' topic/skills; become more specific with personalization; adjusting pacing based on available time based on data from the previous station; provide opportunities for creative transfer

Useful Teaching & Learning Strategies: Pair-share, Inquiry, Correct Misconceptions, Learning through Play

In the final station, students rotating more slowly may never reach this center, while students may spend the majority of their time here clarifying, reinforcing, and otherwise extend their learning through structured and open-ended learning activities.
How To Scaffold Learning Through Station Teaching

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How To Scaffold Learning Through Station Teaching -

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How To Scaffold Learning Through Station Teaching by TeachThought Staff Teaching through stations-or 'station teaching'-is a flexible and underrated teaching and learning strategy that can add versatility to your craft. This approach requires unique classroom management strategies, precise time management, and a clear relationship between the design of each station and the learning objective itself.

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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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Musical Mingle:
Musical Mingle incorporates some aspects of musical chairs in its execution.  It is designed to assess a students prior knowledge (Before the Lesson) or what a student has learned (At the conclusion of lesson).  In Musical Mingle, the teacher creates a series of questions.  When the music plays, the students will walk around the classroom.  When the music stops, the students will be asked a question and required to discuss the answer with someone nearby.

Gallery Walks/Chalk Talks:
In many instances students may be required to analyze multiple texts, or in math they may need to assess various concepts. In this concept, those texts or concepts would be posted around the classroom, and requires students to rotate small groups to analyze.

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contributed by Kenny McKee

Each day more research confirms the link between movement and learning.

Brain researcher David Sousa claims that physical activity increases the amount of oxygen in our blood, and this oxygen is related to enhanced learning and memory. A Washington Post article suggests that many student behaviors we associate with ADHD may stem from an overall lack of physical movement - both in and out of school. In addition, a phenomenally popular blog post by Alexis Wiggins touched upon how much sitting students actually do every day, and how all that sitting affects energy levels and learning.

However, many secondary teachers struggle to integrate movement into the classroom. I know that as a former English teacher, movement found its way into many of my "special" lessons, but it was often a missing ingredient of daily instruction. For example, when students created commercials, searched for books in the library, or carried out debates, movement was inevitable. However, when the main focus of a lesson was reading and writing (as many are in the English classroom), movement was minimal.

I've included some strategies that teachers of any content area can use to integrate movement into lessons. When you have a lesson that looks "sedentary," integrating one of these strategies will surely increase students' learning and engagement.
1. Gallery Walks/Chalk Talks
In some lessons, students may need to analyze multiple texts. Why not post those texts on the walls, and have students rotate through them in small groups? I have used this strategy with students analyzing primary and secondary documents for DBQ's (document-based questions) in history classes. One colleague has students analyze magazine ads for rhetorical techniques in her English class.

Gallery walks can also feature student-created texts, even digital ones. A colleague who teaches earth science once had student groups create informational Animoto videos on different geographic formations. She then had students participate in a digital gallery walk where they watched the student-created videos on laptops, and took notes on each geographic formation.

Chalk Talks are gallery walks where students are asked to respond to texts. For example, quotes could be posted, and student could post their reactions to them. In a math class, students could solve a problem on chart paper, and explain their process. Other students could then use Post-Its to write comments or critiques of their solution and process.
2. White Board Meetings
White Board Meetings are a strategy I have seen two science teachers use often. Essentially, students will investigate a situation (often using a data set). Students will then make sense of the problem in a group. They will display their findings on a mini-whiteboard. Usually, students are required to show information in graphs, pictures, mathematics, and writing. Once students post their information on whiteboards, they present their findings. Students can then receive feedback and answer questions about their information.
3. North Pole-South Pole/Continuum
This strategy is great for formative assessment or assessing background knowledge. Essentially, one side of the room represents one idea, and the other side of the room represents an opposing idea.

For example, I used the strategy while teaching in a statistics class recently. My "North Pole" was "I feel extremely confident in how well I can comprehend and remember information in the statistics textbook." My "South Pole" was "I feel NO confidence in how well I can comprehend and remember information in the statistics textbook." Students were asked to align themselves with how they felt. If they had a more moderate response, they positioned themselves more closely to the center of the room, showing a continuum of student confidence. Their responses affected how I presented an array of note-taking strategies and which students I worked with more closely during the lesson.
4. Musical Mingle
This strategy works along the same lines as Musical Chairs, but you simply ask students to stand. I often develop a series of questions that I want to ask students before the lesson begins (to assess background knowledge) or after the lesson (to assess learning). I ask all of the students to stand. When I play the music, they will meander around. When the music stops, I announce a question and they will discuss responses with a person close to them. Once students have had the opportunity to talk, we then repeat the process.

One caveat to this strategy is limiting your questions. Generally, any more than three or four questions results in diminished focus. Once the activity is completed, students to share some of their discussion points with the whole class. Most students feel confident sharing in the whole class because they have had an opportunity to clarify their thinking with a partner earlier.
5. Stations
Most educators view stations as a staple of the elementary school classroom, but they are also extremely effective in middle and high schools. Stations can be utilized for differentiation. For example, based upon students' current writing trends, a teacher could place students at stations based upon areas they need to practice. Activities can be on paper, or they can be embedded digitally using QR Codes. Other stations may be rotational, such as short writing prompts, differing math problems, selected poems to analyze, or different activities for new vocabulary or concepts.
Kenneth McKee is a high school literacy coach for Buncombe County Schools in Asheville, NC. His interests include teacher leadership, disciplinary literacies, and partnership approaches to instructional coaching. He is a 2014 ASCD Emerging Leader. Connect with him on his blog (kennycmckee.com) or on Twitter (@kennycmckee); image attribution flickr user flickeringbrad; Too Much Sitting? 5 Movement Strategies That Get Students Thinking

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5 Movement Strategies That Get Students Thinking

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contributed by Kenny McKee Each day more research confirms the link between movement and learning. Brain researcher David Sousa claims that physical activity increases the amount of oxygen in our blood, and this oxygen is related to enhanced learning and memory.

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In my research, I learned that assessments can be a vital learning tool in Student Centered Learning.  There are a few ways that assessments can be implemented.

Self Assessment:
Self Assessment requires students to identify the strengths and weaknesses in their own work and make whatever revisions are necessary accordingly.  In Student Centered Learning, students take ownership of their own learning, and this is a good way do so.

Peer Assessment:
Peer assessments require students to critique each other's work and give quality feedback based on standards provided.  This is another way in which students cant lead in their own learning experience.

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Try out some of these four student-centered assessment practices: self-assessment, peer assessment, exhibitions, and process portfolios.

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Field Trips are another way to incorporate physical movement into student centered learning. It allows students to engage in real world learning experiences. When I worked in a Special Education Cluster program, we took trips on the bus just so students could be familiar with how to use public transportation.