Below is a list of strategies that have been presented in either by the Director of Instruction Weekly, Newsletter, Staff Development days or part of the New Staff Online Course. Courses with an @ sign maybe have been presented in different ways but for sure were part of the New Staff Online Course in D2L. Feel free to explore.
Affinity Map: Method allows students to organize material that is presented to them.
Ask the Expert: When a student is struggling they can ask the expert. This is similar to "phone a friend" but the expert is the instructor. Hmmmm... want to learn more. Click the link.
Exit Slip: Used to check for student understanding as they leave your room.
Bell Ringers: Ways to start the class
Call Backs: Method of getting the attention of the class or re-focusing the class quickly.
Change of State: this simply involves stopping a lecture and changing what students have to do for just a few seconds before returning to lecture.
Cold Calls: Calling on students randomly to answer a question.
Controlling Shout Outs: When students shout out answers
Cooperative Learning: Bring power back to group work by holding all students accountable for doing a task when working in groups.
Dip Sticking: This is a term that describes checking for understanding. Learn more by clicking on the link.
Entry slips: involve asking students a question when they enter class to check for understanding. Great for review or seeing if students did homework.
Exit Slips: involves students answering a question as they leave class. Great way to check for understanding.
Fishbowl conversation is a form of dialog that can be used when discussing topics within large groups. Fishbowl conversations are sometimes also used in participatory events such conferences. The advantage of the fishbowl is that it allows the entire group to participate in a conversation
Fish of 5: Students show how well they understood a concept by showing the number of fingers. 1 not at all to 5 totally understand.
Follow Up Questioning: Looking for a few additional guiding questions once you get a student answer. Check out this link for a few examples.
Four Corners - This technique stimulates student learning through movement and discussion, and it can also be used as a formative assessment. Students are presented with a controversial statement or are asked a question. In each of the four corners of the classroom, an opinion or response is posted. Students express their opinion or response by standing in front of one of four statements and then talking to others about why they have chosen their corner. Four Corners promotes listening, verbal communication, critical thinking, and decision-making.
Four Heads together or Tails Up or Numbered Heads: This strategy has a number of names. Students stand and discuss answer. When they have the answer they sit down. Good strategy to get students up from sitting a while and gives the instructor feedback on students who might be struggling. Another source
Gallery Walks: This discussion technique allows students to be actively engaged as they walk throughout the classroom. They work together in small groups to share ideas and respond to meaningful questions, documents, images, problem-solving situations or texts.
Graphic Organizers: Graphic organizers guide learners’ thinking as they fill in and build upon a visual map or diagram. Graphic organizers are some of the most effective visual learning strategies for students and are applied across the curriculum to enhance learning and understanding of subject matter content. In a variety of formats dependent upon the task, graphic organizers facilitate students’ learning by helping them identify areas of focus within a broad topic, such as a novel or article. Because they help the learner make connections and structure thinking, students often turn to graphic organizers for writing projects.
Hands - Up - Pair Up: Gets students up an moving as a change of pace but also can serve as a method for checking understanding.
Have You Ever
Have You Ever is one of the most popular “getting to know you” games for a reason—it’s simple, effective and fun.
Have students stand in a circle, each on a marker, with one person in the center. The person in the center of the circle is “it” and will ask a question starting with “have you ever?” followed by something they have done (Example: “Have you ever gone to Disneyland?”).
The person who is “it,” and everyone in the circle who has done the thing that was asked, must move to an empty spot, but not the spot right next to where they were originally standing. Whoever is last to get to a safe spot becomes "it."
Infinity Mapping: Strategy that gets all students involved at one time. Used during August 2019 staff development with sticky notes.
Inside /Outside Circles: (Cooperative Learning) This discussion technique gives students the opportunity to respond to questions and/or discuss information with a variety of peers in a structured manner. Students form two concentric circles and exchange information with a partner until the teacher signals the outer circle to move in one direction, giving each student a new peer to talk with.
Instant Star: Gets students an opportunity to stand and share answers.
Jigsaw - (used Sept. 2019) The Jigsaw Strategy is an efficient way to learn the course material in a cooperative learning style. The jigsaw process encourages listening, engagement, and empathy by giving each member of the group an essential part to play in the academic activity. Group members must work together as a team to accomplish a common goal; each person depends on all the others. No student can succeed entirely unless everyone works well together as a team. This "cooperation by design" facilitates interaction among.
KWL - K-W-L (Ogle, 1986) is an instructional reading strategy that is used to guide students through a text. Students begin by brainstorming everything they Know about a topic. This information is recorded in the K column of a K-W-L chart. Students then generate a list of questions about what they Want to Know about the topic. These questions are listed in the W column of the chart. During or after reading, students answer the questions that are in the W column. This new information that they have Learned is recorded in the L column of the K-W-L chart.
Mix-N-Match: (Cooperative Learning Activity)
Mix - Pair Share: Just another way to pair share.
No - Opt - Out: Requires a student to answer the question.
Numbered Heads @ Four Heads together or : This strategy has a number of names. Students stand and discuss the answer. When they have the answer they sit down. A good strategy to get students up from sitting a while and gives the instructor feedback on students who might be struggling. Another source
Onion Ball - instructor greats a list of questions and places each one on a strip of paper. Then takes all the questions and creates a ball. Students throw the ball around and when they have it. They peel off a question and answer it.
Pair-Share (Shoulder Partners): How to do a quick check for understanding.
Phone a Friend - great strategy when a student is unsure of the answer. But to make this strategy a powerful tool it is important to follow the No Opt Out strategy as well.
Pie Slice -
Have them sit in groups of 3 or 4. Divide the sheet of paper by the number of slices.
Give them a question like “Your favorite movie”, What you did over the summer, etc.
The person with the sheet answers the question and ask the others is that something they did – if all agree, write the item in the largest pie number, if not write the item in the pie slice that represents the answer
Rotate the sheet of paper fast as they can
When done have them create a team name or team chant. Let them introduce to the class. We didn’t do the chant but it can be found.
Playposit.com: This site allows instructors to add various types of questions to Youtube clips or their videos. In addition, they can set up their class to monitor students answers.
Quiz-Quiz-Trade: Help your students review the material and get them moving at the same time.
Protocols: Are various strategies for classroom management, working in professional learning communities. The link takes you to a list of Protocols click on the names to learn how you can use each protocol
Rally Robin (Cooperative Learning Activity)
Random Selection / Cold Calls: Is the method of calling on students randomly. This is also referred to as "Cold Calling"
Repeat Back to Me "Call Backs": When you ask the student to repeat what you just said. Good for directions.
Right is Right: Making sure the student gives you the full correct answer.
Round Robin (Cooperative Learning Activity)
Round Table (Cooperative Learning Activity)
Rubrics: used to help evaluate students work.
Shotgun questioning: involves throwing out a question to the class and anyone answers. Poor strategy for checking for understanding.
Shoulder Partner: involves two students sitting by each other to discuss a answer or question. Not the best because one student may dominate.
Shout Back: Have students repeat the answer out-loud several times. Helps with memory.
Shotgun Questioning: Term used for when an instructor asks a question of a class without any guidelines.
Silent Rally Table: Method of getting the whole table engaged in the task without students talking.
Video Silent Round Table
Snow ball: have students write down their own question on a sheet of paper. Then have the class form two lines facing each other. Form a snow ball with the sheet and on command starting throwing back and forth. When told to stop. Pick up a sheet and answer the question. Repeat.
Socratic Seminar: The oldest, and still the most powerful, teaching tactic for fostering critical thinking is Socratic teaching. In Socratic teaching, we focus on giving students questions, not answers. We model an inquiring, probing mind by continually probing into the subject with questions. Fortunately, the abilities we gain by focusing on the elements of reasoning in a disciplined and self-assessing way, and the logical relationships that result from such disciplined thought, prepare us for Socratic questioning.
Stations: Created various task and have students rotate around completing them.
Stop & Check: this method of asking a question helps keep students focus on the lecture. Simply questions that are easy to answer. Best used with whole class shouting out answers.
Tails Up - Numbered Heads: Students stand and discuss the answer. When they have the answer they sit down. Good strategy to get students up from sitting a while and gives the instructor feedback on students who might be struggling. Another source
Talking Chips: Cooperative Learning is a method to control the amount of conversation from your students. Helps control that one or two students who take all the airtime.
Video Talking Chips
Think-Pair-Share: Is a collaborative strategy which allows students to think before they discuss.
Think - Write: Give time for students to think and then have them write out their thoughts or answers.
Three-Step-Interview: (Cooperative Learning)
Thumbs up or down: students show how well they understood a concept but showing a thumbs up for totally, sideways for kinda and down for being lost.
Timed-Pair Share: Working in partners to solve a problem or question (Cooperative Learning Activity)
Wait Time: The time between asking a question and getting students to answer.
Whiteboards: great way to get 100% feedback. Use a small whiteboard or have students use a sheet of paper. Ask a question and then on command have students show their answers.
If your looking for detail step-by-step directions on implementing a strategy here are a few examples:
4 Heads Together - How to get the whole class involved in solving a problem, case study, question, situation, etc.