Session Three:

Active Student-Centered Learning in JHS

Watch this short clip on the Teenage Brain

The Teenage Brain.mp4

The Teenage Brain

Junior High School is the PERFECT time to activate your students' brains. These are the years where connections are made to last for the rest of their lives. We should be overstimulating their brains, challenging them, helping them make connections and guiding them to becoming independent and curious learners. Standing up in the front of the class and speaking is not the way to activate your students!

Watch this Ted Talk about the 4C's + Choice in your classroom


Quotes to listen for:

  • "Be a guide on the side and not a sage on a stage"
  • "Sometimes they don't even know that I'm in the room"
  • "It's all about them"
  • "Non-traditional"

Did you catch them all?

While watching, ask yourself the following questions: (that is active watching :) )

  • Are you classes teacher centered or student centered?
  • Do you include all of these in EACH lesson:
    • choice
    • collaboration
    • communication
    • critical thinking
    • creativity
  • How could you include these things in your lessons?

Task One: Read at least TWO of the following articles

Active Learning EFL.pdf

Task Two: Search in Google : "active learning in the classroom"

  • Go into at least 3-4 different sites.
  • Do you use any of the ideas that you found? What do you like/dislike?
  • How could you use them in your classroom to motivate your students better?
  • Post a URL for where you found a really exciting idea to use in the classroom in this GoogleForm.
  • Explain what you found there that looks useful


Check out one of the URLs that someone else posted here (Click on the tab on the bottom marked Session 3)


Enjoying JHS Session URLs (Responses)

Task Three: Choose ONE of the following Summative Session Tasks

OPTION A

Part I. Take one of your already prepared lesson plans. Adapt it to now include:

    • choice, collaboration, communication, critical thinking and creativity.

Use the 4Cs Lesson Plan Template

Part II. Fill out this Googleform

  • Copy and paste the link to your template (be sure you mark "Anyone can Comment").
  • Read through other templates.
  • Comment on one of the templates - preferably someone's whose has not yet been commented upon.

OPTION B

Part I. Create a lesson plan that includes at least two active learning ideas.

Use the Active learning Lesson Plan Template.

You can use some of the ideas from the GoogleDoc (yours or others - give credit :)

  • Part II. Fill out this Googleform
  • Copy and paste the link to your template (be sure you mark "Anyone can Comment").
  • Read through other templates.
  • Comment on one of the templates - preferably someone's whose has not yet been commented upon.
Share your lesson plan for Session Three (Responses)

Please watch this short tutorial if you do not know how to make a copy and share your work.

Or, in short:

Tip for Session Three:

Vocabulary enrichment and review: Synonym/Antonym Scramble


  1. Create a list of synonyms or antonyms. (it can also be phrasal verbs or adjectives and nouns)
  2. On index cards, write one of the words in BLUE and its pair on another card in RED.
  3. Hand out one card to each student. Have them "scramble" around and find their pair.
  4. Have them "pantomime" the pair of words to the class and have them try and guess what they are.
  5. Repeat.