A couple of week's ago, I got to spend a day learning from Bertie Kingore author of Rigor and Engagment for the Growing Mind: Strategies that Enable High-Ability Learners to Flourish in all Classrooms. She shared so many great ideas! This is just one of them.
Question that is like a mini-game of Jeopardy. The teacher poses the problem, and the students pose the questions. In my 4th grade class this week, that meant kids were creating addition and subtraction with decimal problems to review the concept. (I know we used the SmartBoard in an old-fashioned way but I have limited wall-space in my classroom!) Nonetheless, students had the option of creating an addition or subtraction problem and posting it. Then we swapped sticky notes and students had to check each other's work. The errors that the "checkers" found (there were four of them,) we put on whiteboard and analyzed the problem. Students were then challenged to share ways to fix the error to make it fit our answer.
What I love most about this strategy is it was highly engaging, especially because the students had the choice. It didn't take a lot of prep time or class time either (and will take even less next time now that my students see how it works.) I also love that this method is SO adaptable to any subject and almost any topic. It can be done as a hook to get a unit started or as a method for review or as a form of assessment. It can be used for vocabulary words, grammar work, science topics, literature analysis - you name it! Bertie suggested it is a great use of a bulletin board that you want to be purposeful but don't have to change all year - simply put question that at the top with a box for your answer and student numbers in the columns and rows. Use it then daily, weekly, monthly... whatever works for you.
Below are just a couple of student work examples from our first day using it. I also included the Word file if you find that useful. I would love to hear your ideas if you try it or adapt it too.
Question that is like a mini-game of Jeopardy. The teacher poses the problem, and the students pose the questions. In my 4th grade class this week, that meant kids were creating addition and subtraction with decimal problems to review the concept. (I know we used the SmartBoard in an old-fashioned way but I have limited wall-space in my classroom!) Nonetheless, students had the option of creating an addition or subtraction problem and posting it. Then we swapped sticky notes and students had to check each other's work. The errors that the "checkers" found (there were four of them,) we put on whiteboard and analyzed the problem. Students were then challenged to share ways to fix the error to make it fit our answer.
What I love most about this strategy is it was highly engaging, especially because the students had the choice. It didn't take a lot of prep time or class time either (and will take even less next time now that my students see how it works.) I also love that this method is SO adaptable to any subject and almost any topic. It can be done as a hook to get a unit started or as a method for review or as a form of assessment. It can be used for vocabulary words, grammar work, science topics, literature analysis - you name it! Bertie suggested it is a great use of a bulletin board that you want to be purposeful but don't have to change all year - simply put question that at the top with a box for your answer and student numbers in the columns and rows. Use it then daily, weekly, monthly... whatever works for you.
Below are just a couple of student work examples from our first day using it. I also included the Word file if you find that useful. I would love to hear your ideas if you try it or adapt it too.
question_that.docx |