Classroom Strategies by Deanna Knowles

Knowledge Rating Chart

dea504 — 2025-04-15 18:18:28 UTC

Give students a list of words or have them find their own. It is important to have a variety of words that they may know and may not know yet.

Probable Passage

dea504 — 2025-04-15 18:25:53 UTC

Works best with fiction. Give students about 8-10 key words from the text. Have students separate the words into categories then write their own short gist statement that guesses what the text might be about.

Think Aloud

dea504 — 2025-04-15 18:29:58 UTC

We assume students know what we think about when we read, but many struggling readers don't see the work fluent readers put in. Think Aloud is a strategy where teachers take the time to verbalize what is happening in their heads when they read so students can hear.

Possible Sentences

dea504 — 2025-04-15 18:30:43 UTC

Pre-reading strategy- Give students a few sentences from the text and have them guess what the text may be about.

Anticipation Guide

dea504 — 2025-04-15 18:39:59 UTC

Give students several statements that they can agree or disagree with before reading. Revisit the same statements after reading to see if their view/understanding has changed.

KWL 2.0

dea504 — 2025-04-15 18:43:21 UTC

Tea Party/ Golden Lines

dea504 — 2025-04-15 18:47:32 UTC

Pre-reading strategy: Give students one sentence or phrase from the text you are about to read. Have students share and discuss with 3-4 other students. Each student writes a prediction about the text.

Frayer Models

dea504 — 2025-04-15 18:50:09 UTC

A frayer model is a graphic organizer that can be used as guided notes, for vocabulary, or almost any other purpose where you would like students to group information into categories.

Sketch to Stretch

dea504 — 2025-04-15 18:51:05 UTC

Have students create a drawing based on the reading. Then have students write to explain their drawing.

Read, Rate, Reread

dea504 — 2025-04-15 18:56:58 UTC

An exercise you can use to show students how rereading can change their understanding of a text. Each time students read the same passage, they write how their understanding has improved or what questions they still have.

Somebody Wanted But So (SWBS)

dea504 — 2025-04-15 18:58:59 UTC

Use with any fiction or non-fiction text to understand character motivations.

Genre Reformulation

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:09:14 UTC

Have students take a reading from one genre and rewrite it into a different genre. You can use If-Then Structures, Repetitive Book Structures, ABC Structures, Cumulative Text Structures, or Fortunately-Unfortunately Structures.

The Three Big Questions

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:11:47 UTC

It Says, I Say, And So

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:14:10 UTC

Game of Quotes

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:34:16 UTC

Turn and Talk

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:40:10 UTC

Silent Conversations

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:40:18 UTC

Provide a prompt, passage, or problem. Students will respond. Next, move the students (or the writing), and have the next student add to the conversation on the same paper. Continue for as many rotations as needed.

You can provide different prompts for each rotation or have students continue the other person's thought/writing.

Gallery Walk

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:40:25 UTC

Carousel

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:40:31 UTC

Have students rotate around the room to different stations.

Four Corners

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:40:37 UTC

Think-Pair-Share/ Write-Pair-Share

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:40:55 UTC

Each student should write their own ideas before getting a partner to discuss. After that discussion, have partners share out to the whole class.

Stop and Jot

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:41:35 UTC

Throughout any reading, have students pause and take note of their thoughts, answers they may now have, or questions they want to know.

Quick Write

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:41:42 UTC

Give students a topic to write about. Set a timer and have them write for the full time limit. Low stakes prompts are best.

MyShortAnswer.com

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:41:57 UTC

Online platform to gamify writing. Have students vote on the best answers from their classmates.

Jigsaw or Modified Jigsaw

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:42:10 UTC

In a modified jigsaw, materials move instead of students.

Learning Stations

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:42:17 UTC

Create learning stations where students learn different facets of the same concept in multiple ways. Students can move to learning stations in a rotation, or "mobile stations" can come to the groups.

Problem/Solution Charts

dea504 — 2025-04-15 19:42:30 UTC

Have students list the problems found in the passage and identify solutions from the text or create their own solutions if none are provided.

See-Think-Wonder

dea504 — 2025-09-16 16:43:09 UTC

Observe closely, explain what you think, and ask questions that arise.

Connect-Extend-Challenge

dea504 — 2025-09-16 16:43:24 UTC

Reflect on how new learning connects, extends, and challenges prior thinking.

Sticky Chats

dea504 — 2025-09-16 16:43:59 UTC

Students use post-it notes to add comments/information on chart paper.

Think Aloud

dea504 — 2025-09-16 16:44:42 UTC

Verbalize your thought process step by step to make reasoning visible.

Claim-Support-Question

dea504 — 2025-09-16 16:49:24 UTC

Make a claim, support it with evidence, and pose questions for further inquiry.

Sentence, Phrase, Word

dea504 — 2025-09-16 16:49:49 UTC

Capture key ideas using one sentence, one phrase, and one word.

Headlines

dea504 — 2025-09-16 16:50:58 UTC

Summarize the essence of a topic in a short, punchy statement.

#Summaries

dea504 — 2025-09-16 16:51:09 UTC

Use one to two words to summarize a paragraph or text.

dea504 — 2025-09-16 16:53:39 UTC

Red Light, Yellow Light

dea504 — 2025-09-16 16:54:11 UTC

Identify where ideas may need to stop for caution (red) or move forward with care (yellow).

Notice, Wonder, What if

dea504 — 2025-10-12 04:21:41 UTC

Using a graphic organizer, students will list what they notice, what they wonder, and create questions based on reading/scenarios.

Save the Last Word

dea504 — 2025-10-12 04:21:49 UTC

Each student writes one sentence to share with the group. (Underline the most important quote from the text.) Others in the group take turns discussing what they think that sentence means, why it is important, or why the first student would have shared that detail. The original student gets the last word to explain.

Think-Pair-Square

dea504 — 2025-12-03 19:26:45 UTC

Individual to partner, then to groups of four.

Snowball Discussions

dea504 — 2025-12-03 19:28:42 UTC

Each student writes their own answer and then finds one partner to discuss and come to a consensus. When partners agree, they find another pair to discuss with. They must agree and build onto the answer then find another pair/group. Eventually, the conversation becomes whole class.

Web Chat

dea504 — 2025-12-03 19:31:37 UTC

Track each student who participates in the discussion. Show students the "web" you have created to help encourage more participation. You can also give students a web to track on their own.

Sentence Starters

dea504 — 2025-12-03 19:45:25 UTC

Provide sentence starters to help students begin what they want to say for discussions.

Chunk & Chat

dea504 — 2026-01-20 18:05:46 UTC

Divide a reading passage into chunks and then chat with a partner or group about what the chunk means, how it connects to other sections, or how it develops the main idea. This strategy works well with a gradual release (teacher-led, small group, individual).