The 10–2–2 method divides instruction into manageable chunks and provides students with the time necessary to process information and concepts that are presented by way of whole group or direct instruction. This structure allows for greater retention of information, resulting in improved notes, questions, and summaries.

1. Learn about Jason Reynold’s Special Item

   1. Start by asking students if they have read any books or poetry by Jason Reynolds. Then tell them that they will be watching a short video in which Reynolds discusses some special items that he has framed and has hanging in his home. 

   2. Play the video Frame a Special Item (02:18). Discuss the following questions about the video: 

      1. What did you learn about Jason Reynolds that you didn’t know before? 

      2. What kinds of objects does he have framed in his home? 

      3. How is framing an object different from saving it in a scrapbook, album, box, or drawer? 

      4. What connection does Jason Reynolds make between framing a special item and storytelling?

   3. Reflect on a Special Item to Frame

   4. Now it’s time for students to write. Let them respond to the questions Reynolds poses to them at the end of the video. Provide each student with a copy of the handout My Very Special Item and explain that they will answer the three questions in Part 1: Gather Ideas. Model the activity by sharing your own responses to the three questions, or write with your students and share first in the class debrief. 

      1. What would you frame? 

      2. Where would you hang it? 

      3. Why would you frame this particular thing? 

   5. Debrief by asking everyone to share the item they would frame and where they would hang it. See if any students want to tell the story of their item to the group. Alternatively, students could share in small groups. If you would like your students to do this activity’s extension, provide instructions for getting started, which are explained below.

Extension

Students tell a story about the item they chose to frame. Their story should help convey the significance of the item. While you should create an assignment handout for your students, consider having them describe the item in detail and then list the stories they associate with it. Jason Reynolds names a pair of sneakers as an example. A story could be a memory of the first time lacing them up, or a significant win or loss while wearing them. Finally, students choose one of the stories to tell in a short piece of writing that they draft in Part 2 of the My Very Special Item handout. Consider creative ways that students can share their stories: 

1. Include a photograph of the special item with their submission.

2. Draw the special item inside of a frame and then handwrite or type the story. 

3. Use a video tool, such as Flipgrid or Screencastify, to create a short video, similar to Reynolds’s “Frame a Special Item.” Outline the story in writing and then record it on video, perhaps showing the special item if it is available. 

4. Imagine the item is framed and hanging in a museum. Title the special item and then write the description that would appear alongside it.

 This integration of head, heart, and ethics is always important to learning, and it is particularly crucial when students are considering contentious or emotional topics. This strategy can be particularly useful for an initial discussion of complex and emotional current events and to help students clarify their relationship to and their perspective on the event.

Procedure

1. Ask Students to Respond to Head, Heart, Conscience Prompts
   Introduce the event or topic that students should respond to. Depending on the context, you might choose to share some background information with students. Then, ask them to respond to a selection of the following prompts in their journals or on a piece of paper:
   Head: 

   1. What information do you know about this event? 

   2. What information is confirmed? What remains uncertain? Are there any facts that are contested? 

   3. What additional information would you like to have to help you understand the event better? 

Heart: 

1. What emotions does this event raise for you? 

2. Are there particular moments, images, or stories that stand out to you? If so, why?

Conscience: 

1. What questions about fairness, equity, or justice does this event raise for you? 

2. What choices did key figures make, and what values may have guided those choices? 

3. How were people impacted by this event? Are there people who should be held accountable? If so, how?

Share and Reflect

Students can share aspects of their reflections with the class or directly with you. If you plan to discuss the event or topic further, use students' responses to guide your subsequent lessons.

Dialogue Journal

(Thoughtful Learning)

In a dialogue journal, partners engage in a written conversation. This type of writing can help students think deeply about a topic, consider someone else's ideas, and get to know a partner better. They might work through a problem, reflect on something they know or learned, or discuss a serious or complex topic. Here's a sample dialogue journal between two students. 

Anthony: The presidential election is happening soon, and I'm not sure how to feel about it. I'm not 18 so I can't vote. I want to get involved, but I don't feel like I have much of a say in the matter. How do you feel about the election? Do you have any ideas about how kids our age might get involved?

Chahna: My mom and dad talk about it a lot. They say it can be tricky to decide which candidate to trust, because so much of what they say is only a little bit true or a straight up lie. That's crazy, right? I want my president to be honest. If I can't trust a person to tell the truth, I don't want them to lead the country. That makes me think about your second question. Is there something we could do to let people know how truthful a candidate is being? 

Anthony: Maybe we could start a class blog that tracks important things each candidate says. Then we could research to see how truthful the statement is. That way we could inform people about it. 

Chahna: Great idea! We could use a star system to rate truthfulness. Five stars means the statement is true. Zero stars means it's a lie. Two or three stars means only half true. We should present this idea to Ms. Langdon.

To help students get started, consider one of these prompts:

• Something I've always wondered about is . . .

• I have a real problem with . . .

• Something I wish I could change is . . .

• Something that really interests me right now is . . .

• Have you noticed that . . .

• I wish I knew more about . . .

Green Card Voices

Green Card Voices is a Minneapolis based, nationally growing non profit that connects immigrants and their communities through multimedia storytelling. They record the first person narratives of immigrants, and publish them in books, online and in traveling exhibits. So far they have recorded the stories of over 500 adult and youth immigrants and refugees who are originally from over 140 countries and who now reside in Minnesota, New York, New Jersey, California, North Dakota, Georgia, and Wisconsin.

Below are a few examples of the digital stories told by immigrants that you can find on the website. Click on each image to view the video.

Bring social justice topics to life with our classroom-friendly films and user guides. Teaching Tolerance film kits are FREE for use in K–12 schools, schools of education, public libraries, houses of worship and youth-serving nonprofit organizations. 

During distance learning, it may be more difficult for students to access books to read for enjoyment. Here are some resources that might help:

• Epic!: Epic! offers free eBooks. Choose the “read to me” option on select books.

• Bookshare: This service is supported by the U.S. Department of Education and offers free eBooks to students with qualifying special needs. Books are available in audio, braille, large font, and other formats.

• Librivox: This website offers free audio versions of books in the public domain.

• Lit2Go: This website offers free audiobooks in .mp3 format.

I See What You Did There

One way for students to begin feeling connected with their classmates is through participating in a common experience.  As students begin to progress through the stages of developing relational capacity, AVID Claps can become one of the key elements in establishing a group identity and group unity.

Bloomington AVID Students do!  Watch this video to see VVE, VVMS, and KHS AVID students modeling SLANT.

S = Sit up

L = Lean forward/Listen

A = Ask questions

N = Note importance/Nod sincerely

T = Track the speaker

A tableau is a representation of a scene or picture by people posing silently without moving. In a vocabulary tableau, a group of students use their bodies to create a frozen picture of a vocabulary word. This strategy draws on cooperative learning and kinesthetic intelligence to enhance explicit vocabulary instruction.  The novelty of the process increases student engagement and memory of vocabulary words. 

1. Choose vocabulary words from the central text and share the list with the class.

2. Divide the class into heterogeneous groups (up to four students per group) and assign each a word or set of words. Make sure each group gets different words. Groups should not see the words other groups were assigned. 

3. Instruct groups to use common affixes and roots in order to determine the word’s meaning. Then, provide groups with dictionaries in order for them to clarify its meaning and part of speech. 

4. Either provide groups with student-friendly definitions or have them look up definitions.

5. Explain to students they must plan a tableau for each assigned word according to these guidelines:

6. All group members must be a part of every tableau;

   1. Group members should pose at various heights (some standing, others sitting/crouching/kneeling, others lying on the floor);

   2. Group members cannot use sound or movement; and

   3. Group members should use their entire bodies (hands, legs, and facial expressions).

7. One by one, each group should perform for the class, holding each tableau for at least 30 seconds. Ask students in the audience to review their vocabulary lists and deduce which word the group is performing. Have students record their answers and turn in their answer sheets.

8. If possible, photograph each vocabulary tableau and post it in the classroom or create a digital slideshow.

Answer Garden

Answer Garden, a simple but powerful tool that can help generate discussion in a classroom.  It's also great for formative assessment, brainstorming, and more! Answer Garden is a free tool that does not require a login for teachers or students (no registration required). It allows you to instantaneously create word clouds by gathering student feedback. Answers that are entered more often become larger and bolder. An AnswerGarden can be displayed to students so that they are able to quickly self-evaluate or get a feel for what their classmates are thinking. Once an AnswerGarden is created, it can only be accessed and shared with others using a link.

Students stand up, put their hand in the air, and pair up with another person who has a hand up. When they finish discussing a point, they raise their hand again and look for another partner who has a hand up with whom to discuss. The process can be repeated until students have had a chance to share with several different partners.