Student-Centered Strategy #5: Padlet for Online Brainstorming

Padlet for Online Brainstorming

Here is something to address the digital learning environment of the AdvancED ELEOT observation tool…

Padlet is not a new site, but it is effective and versatile. To use Padlet for brainstorming, open up a wall and then invite students to join and share their ideas in sticky note format. Create a custom background for your Padlet wall and you can then sort the notes into categories.

Here is a quick tutorial: https://youtu.be/UuzciL8qCYM?list=PLtx-qUNKJwDwS5aCTT2t8d1xxZpwGaDjW

Student-Centered Strategy #4: Facilitating Whole Class Discussion

Facilitating Whole Class Discussion

Click on the link to watch a 7 minute video of a teacher mastering the art of engaging students in whole class discussion.

https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/strategies-for-student-centered-discussion

• The teacher starts with the learning target.
• Students are having to read, think, model, create, and talk.
• The room environment helps to foster a great discussion. 

Student-Centered Strategy #3: Involve Students in Creating Rubrics

Involve Students in Creating Rubrics

Students who are involved in the process of creating a rubric have a better understanding of the standards, gradations, and expectations of the assignment. Students also feel like they have a “voice” in the classroom.

Here are some ways to get your class involved in the rubric creation:

• In the beginning, introduce your students to a rubric by sharing a rubric and reviewing it step-by-step to ensure they understand the expectations.
• After sharing a rubric, ask your students for their comments.
• Be sure to keep all relevant rubrics visible at all times (either on a bulletin board or a handout for each student).
• As students come more familiar with the purpose and layout of a rubric, ask them to assist you in designing a rubric for the next class assignment.

Let it show in your classroom environment. Here’s a sample: 

Student-Centered Strategy #2: Move From the Front

Teachers, Move from the Front of the Classroom.

Don't get stuck in an instructional rut by standing up at the front of the class all day long. Try sitting on the side of the room or in an absent student's desk and say, "I need someone to go up and demonstrate ____ for us." Students are more likely to talk much longer if they are up front than if they are in their seats. You can also ask follow up questions from other students instead of commenting on the demo yourself ("What do you all think? Is this an effective method--how do you know? Does anyone use a different strategy or approach?)

This is a way for teachers to talk less and for students to talk more.

Student-Centered Strategy #1: Round Robin

Over the next two weeks, I want to share some strategies that you can implement to increase student engagement and cooperation.

Strategy #1: Round Robin Kagan Structure (not to be confused with round robin reading)
Round Robin Kagan Structure is just a way to provide talk time within a small group/team.

• Teacher announces topic and provides "think time".
• Teammate answers and others participate with a clockwise rotation.
• Each teammate gives his/her short answer to the topic, but it must be different form what was previously stated.
• Sharing is over after each teammate has spoken. 

Here is a 1-minute video explanation: https://youtu.be/RmkDllP1JDw

Round Robin with a twist!:

• Continuous Round Robin: Sharing continues in clockwise rotation and is over when teacher calls time.
• Timed Round Robin: Each teammate talks for a specific amount of time.
• All Write Round Robin: As each teammate says his/her short answer to the topic, each teammate writes the answers on their own paper.

Hooked on Kahoot!

It was really neat to see AHS teachers using Kahoot! during the NCED Cloud/Canvas PD yesterday. Hopefully everyone saw just how easy (and engaging) formative assessments can be. Kahoot!'s quick pace, suspenseful music, and instant scoreboards keep competition lively and learners engaged. Students will definitely ask to play again and again.

Kahoot! is one those tools that you can learn about today and use tomorrow...but if you need more help, click here a step-by-step guide. (I talked to a math teacher after school who already created one to use in class.) Teachers can use it for pre-assessments, during instruction, or at the end of a lesson to gauge understanding. 

Here's an idea: Your students can also benefit from creating their own Kahoot!s as a means of review. Students who truly understand topics should be able to craft meaningful wrong answers, too. Further, Kahoot! creation can work well as a component to a research project. Students or groups could present information and then Kahoot! the class. 

https://getkahoot.com/

Hey English Teachers! Check out Commonlit.org!

I recently stumbled upon what looks to be a jewel of site called Commonlit. It boasts that it is made by teachers for teachers. "COMMONLIT is a collection of poems, short stories, news articles, historical documents, and literature for classrooms."

In three simple steps, you can find thematic texts connected to an essential discussion question. Texts are sorted by grade level bands for 5th-12th grade, and also include the Lexile measure.

STEP 1: Choose a theme
There are several to select from, such as resilience, power & greed, and love.

STEP 2: Choose what they call a discussion question from within that theme. Most of themes I clicked on had two discussion questions.

STEP 3: Download the PDF versions of texts you are interested in using. The text selections I clicked on included text-based questions, discussion questions, and most had a text pairing guide for teachers. We all know that we have a range of readers in class, so I suggest looking through all the grade level options to see what will work best for your students.

It's online and free. Awesome. You don't even have to register for an account. Even more awesome. However, you can subscribe to get email updates. I hope you find some good stuff on there. Let me know how you use it! (Below is a screenshot of the homepage. The link is below the pic.)

http://www.commonlit.org/

Happy Reading,

Chandra