active learning - Gtec Kids

A List of Index Cards Games for Memorizating & Reinforcing Content

One of the most effective teaching strategy groups that is simple to implement involves inexpensive index cards. Whether students keep guided notes while they read text or keep a dictionary of new words in an index box, the following strategies offer ways to reinforce the content in an active manner.The basic principle of the index card strategy group is for students to write something down on an index card from their guided notes. Or, they can create a dictionary...

Four Corners Discussion

The Four Corners Discussion was adapted from the Academic Controversy strategy (Herreid, 1996) and is built around four answer choices, each one represented in a different corner of the room. Once students make a decision to select one of the answers, they move to the corner of the room that represents that answer. In their corners, students hold a discussion about why they selected the particular answer. Students are given more information about the topic and repeat the process.Four...

Carousel Brainstorming

The Carousel Brainstorming strategy is easy to implement. Each cooperative group walks up to an open-ended question posted on chart paper, discusses it, brainstorms answers or solutions, and writes down responses within a given amount of time. When the teacher “carousels” students, or rotates the groups to new locations, they repeat the exercise with a new question. This time students must read the responses from the previous group(s) before they begin to write down new ideas.MaterialsDifferent colored markersChart paperMasking tape (Tape chart...

Open-Ended Questions

Research has shown time and time again that if we pose a close-ended question, our students will elicit a minimal amount of answers. However, we can draft the same question using the following question starters that provoke higher level thinking coupled with brainstorming.In the beginning, you will find that it is hard to draft an open-ended question. However, with time, it will become easier and easier until it becomes a habit. So, how do you break the habit? Use this simple...

Essential and Guiding Questions

Using essential and guiding questions certainly binds a unit of study together, bringing a clearer focus to the lesson. Originally introduced by Heidi Hayes Jacobs, we modified the practice and infused it into our Exploring History series back in 2000. We are finding that more and more people ask for a clear explanation of how to draft these questions for each unit of study.The Essential QuestionWhat is an essential question? Simply put, the essential question:is a definition question, serving as...

Pic-Jour Math: Pictorial Journal Writing in Mathematics to Understand Pi

Come every fall, teachers of mathematics are confronted with oversized classes filled with students who vary in both their learning style and their way of communicating what they have learned. Teachers are challenged to recognize and exploit those differences or risk bored or confused students who lack any true mathematical understanding and may end up manipulating numerical symbols and equations by rote.Both experience and research in the past twenty years have demonstrated the clear effectiveness of using a multimodal, interactive approach...

The Link Between Art and Mathematics

There would seem to be an implausible relationship between art and mathematics. After all, the two domains seem to depend on vastly different thinking patterns. We do not question the interrelationship between science and mathematics, and the scientific process is clearly contingent on mathematics. How then did Ferguson (1977) manage to put together a historical review linking art and technology? Ferguson’s research indicates that inventors and art are more closely affiliated than either group would have us believe.Ferguson cites many examples...

Bridging the Standards Across the Curriculum with Portfolios

From the Middle School JournalThose of us who are involved in education, in whatever capacity, can sense the stirrings. Parents are voicing concerns about the adequacy of their children’s education. The business community and American industries question whether the quality of education will prepare youngsters for the realities of the workplace. Corporations question whether schools are preparing America’s youth to cope with the demands of an increasingly technological environment. It is now imperative that the next several generations of...

Lobbyist Hearing: Viewing Events from Multiple Perspectives

As we begin a new century, one in which globalism is no longer a concept but a growing reality, it is important for our nation’s students to understand and analyze current issues of public debate with an eye toward the varied interpretations and approaches various players bring to the discussion of each problem. Indeed, current social studies standards require that students be able to view events from multiple perspectives. This article outlines a new strategy, from Social Studies for...

The GOPER Model of Problem Solving in the Coaching Classroom or School

Raising a child is never as easy as it sounds. Hillary Rodham Clinton once wrote a small book on how It Takes a Village to set a youngster on the difficult path of growing up and acquiring an education and assuming the responsibilities of adulthood. Such a task is a demanding chore that needs the cooperation and efforts of many individuals, all working together in a cooperative atmosphere. No one works in isolation.The school too, like It Takes a Village, should always...

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A List of Index Cards Games for Memorizating & Reinforcing Content

Four Corners Discussion

Carousel Brainstorming

Open-Ended Questions

Essential and Guiding Questions

Pic-Jour Math: Pictorial Journal Writing in Mathematics to Understand Pi

The Link Between Art and Mathematics

Bridging the Standards Across the Curriculum with Portfolios

Lobbyist Hearing: Viewing Events from Multiple Perspectives

The GOPER Model of Problem Solving in the Coaching Classroom or School

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A List of Index Cards Games for Memorizating & Reinforcing Content

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Flashcard Games to Make Memorization Fun #1: Carousel Brainstorming, Grab Bag, & Emotional Flashes

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