The following are a collection of activities that I have used to enhance engagement, increase variety and demonstrate student progression within lessons. I've used each of these activities during the term with success and recommend that all teachers build up a toolbox of strategies they have found to be particularly useful to their teaching and are well liked by their students.
1. QR Treasure Hunt.
Place QR cards around the room which students can scan with their smart phones or tablets to find out information to assist them with their tasks.
http://www.qr-code-generator.com
http://www.qrstuff.com
2. QR Code Differentiation.
Place QR cards on the students desks for them to scan which links to a video or document explaining their mission (objectives) for the lesson which they collaboratively have to complete. Each desk will complete a different structured activity based upon the academic ability of each group. The groups are assigned by the teacher on entry by giving each student a coloured sticker corresponding to a group.
3. Mind-Mapping.
At the start of each students draws a mind map to show their level of knowledge and understand of the lessons topic. Throughout the lesson the students independently add to this in a different coloured pen.
4. Question Jenga.
Label each of the 48 Jenga blocks with a number, which corresponds to a question. Students take a Jenga block from the tower and then answer the question. If the student incorrectly answers the question take another block. A forfeit is given for knowing the tower over.
5. Drama.
Groups of students have to write a short play (~5 minutes long) in which the characters have to discuss a topic or argue a case for or against a contentious issue such as stem cell research.
http://www.beep.ac.uk/content/77.0.html The BioEthics Education Project (BEEP) gives a balanced information for debating issues and forming opinions on a multitude of scientific topics.
http://www.debate.org/big-issues/ Information of some of the most controversial debate topics covering a wide variety of issues ranging from politics and religion to education and society
6. Charades.
Students in small groups have to act out a phrase or key words for the other to guess.
7. Splat.
Key words are written on the board students have to smack the correct work matching to the given meaning. Hand swatters are available at a barge price rom internet auction sites or discount stores. Different coloured Post-It notes for each student works equally as well.
8. Scrabble.
Students are given or, projected onto the board a number of scrabble letters, which they have to come ups with as many key words relating to the topic as possible in a set time. The students can only use each square once and a price is given to the student with the highest score.
9. Board Game.
In small groups the students have to produce a board game or build on an existing one which includes questions and answers summering a topic.
10. Chinese Whispers.
In groups of no less than four a definition,statement or chemical equation has to be passed along the line. The last person has to tell the teacher the message. This activity I've used as a competitive game which each group is competing against each other for a prize. The first person is shown the phrase on a piece of paper by the teacher then has to remember this and pass it along. A variation is to pass a question along which the last person has to answer.
11. Activity Timer.
A count down timer or stop clock for timing activities. This website has a variety of timers from bombs to egg timers.
http://www.online-stopwatch.com/countdown-clock/
12. Picture Round.
Place a student infront of the board with a picture or word projected behind them. The other class mates have to describe the the image/word to the students for them to guess. I've used this with groups where each group of five students (one guesser and four to describe) take turns. The winning team is the group who correct guess the most answers in two minutes.
13. What I.....
This activity effectively demonstrates progression. Give each student a piece of paper with three column labelled What I Know At The Start, What I Know Now and What I Want to Know More About. The students fill in this sheet at the beginning after being presented with the lessons objectives, add to this during the lesson and then at the end of the lesson before the final plenary.
14. Online Quizzes.
A collection of quizzes and games for various subjects.
http://www.sheppardsoftware.com
15. Prezi.
Students make an animated Prezi presentation to summaries a subject topic and present it to the class.
16. Padlet.
Padlet is an online wall where all students can add comments in real time on one screen. This is very effective and has numerous uses such as a plenary activity where students post comments demonstrating their knowledge and understanding or used to ask a questions where each student can respond and all the answers are displayed. It's also effective as a peer support system where students post questions or queries relating to the task they are carrying out and other students during the course of the lesson add the answers. It's free to sign up and when the students do they name is displayed below their comments. Padlet is not just limited to exit images and even movies can be added and it is compatible on all mobile devices. A BRILLIANT RESOURCE!!
http://padlet.com
17. Socrative.
Sccrative is a student response system that engages students and feedbacks responses graphically to teachers enabling them to effective differentiate through the lesson and a sequence of lessons. Socrative can be used via smartphones, tablets, computers and laptops. Once an account is set up a teacher can create in seconds multiple choice or open ended questions. The students log in and answer the set questions. the questions can include text or images. Feedback is given immediately to the student and the teacher who on the click of a button can display a spreadsheet of the individual students ability. A very powerful piece tool particularly with BYOD's or 1:1 tablets in schools.
http://www.socrative.com
18. Extended Writing Activity.
Use the following for students to begin an essay demonstrating their level of knowledge and understanding of a particular subject or topic. This great idea is from Pete Sanderson.
A Letter to...
Imagine you are a...
Write a play about...
Write a description of...
Describe a journey from...
Describe a day in the life of...
Predict what would happen if....
Write a diary entry by a person who...
Write a set of instructions in order to...
You are a news journalist writing about...
Write out a conversation between people discussing...
19. Twitter.
Set up a Twitter account. Students use their smartphones or tablets to tweet a message of less than 140 characters to answer a question or state something they have learnt during the lesson.
20. Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.
Plenary activity where students can win house points for correctly getting to each monetary level.
21. Beat the Teacher.
Students have to ask the teacher a question who in return asks the student a question on the same topic. I allow my students to use their revision guides or exercise books.
22. Liquid Chalk Pens.
I purchased these some time ago and have proved to be excellent at getting students to explain key words, draw accurate diagrams or charts and summarise their learning from a topic. I have six different colour pens which the students use to write on the windows producing a display of their learning.
23. No Punctuation.
Give the students a few paragraphs of text on a subject or topic and they have to add the punctuation to make sense of the text. I was very surprised that after the students had completed this activity they were highly knowledgeable of the content of the written work they had just corrected. Having no punctuation meant that the students had to read each line more than once resulting in them understanding what they were reading.
24. Giant Chalk.
Create giant mind maps or diagrams outside. Students are placed in small groups and given a selection of different coloured giant chalk and an area of the tennis courts and tasked to produce a giant mind map or diagram to summarise their learning.
25. Game-show Buzzers Plenary.
Students write questions and the answer on a Post-It Note then one of the group competes with others in a quick fire question round. After five questions the contestants are swapped so all members of the class as quizzed. http://goo.gl/k6EaJM
26. Balloon Starter.
Balloons are hidden under tables and chairs before the students enter the lesson.
nside each balloon is a piece of paper with a question written on it, the students have to pop the balloon to obtain the question and then answer it.
http://goo.gl/3r5bf7
27. Plenary Selector.
The plenary grid can be laminated and placed on each desk or printed out given to the students to glue into their exercise books to reference every lesson. The students role two dice and then complete the task selected.
http://goo.gl/fknw6y
28. Homework Takeaway.
Students pick from the menu the format in which they are going to complete their homework. I've used this for extended homework to revise or summarise a unit or topic, and it works equally as well with both Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4 students.
http://goo.gl/NqIzfC
29. Balloon Popping
This is a fun activity (using balloons always is) used during exam practice for long answer questions such as the QWC questions (quality of written communication) or indeed past papers. Students work collaboratively in groups to answer the extended questions. If the students require support they may pop a balloon off the board. Inside each ballon is a hint or part of the markscheme to assist the students answer the question.
http://goo.gl/ZfyXl8
1. QR Treasure Hunt.
Place QR cards around the room which students can scan with their smart phones or tablets to find out information to assist them with their tasks.
http://www.qr-code-generator.com
http://www.qrstuff.com
2. QR Code Differentiation.
Place QR cards on the students desks for them to scan which links to a video or document explaining their mission (objectives) for the lesson which they collaboratively have to complete. Each desk will complete a different structured activity based upon the academic ability of each group. The groups are assigned by the teacher on entry by giving each student a coloured sticker corresponding to a group.
3. Mind-Mapping.
At the start of each students draws a mind map to show their level of knowledge and understand of the lessons topic. Throughout the lesson the students independently add to this in a different coloured pen.
4. Question Jenga.
Label each of the 48 Jenga blocks with a number, which corresponds to a question. Students take a Jenga block from the tower and then answer the question. If the student incorrectly answers the question take another block. A forfeit is given for knowing the tower over.
5. Drama.
Groups of students have to write a short play (~5 minutes long) in which the characters have to discuss a topic or argue a case for or against a contentious issue such as stem cell research.
http://www.beep.ac.uk/content/77.0.html The BioEthics Education Project (BEEP) gives a balanced information for debating issues and forming opinions on a multitude of scientific topics.
http://www.debate.org/big-issues/ Information of some of the most controversial debate topics covering a wide variety of issues ranging from politics and religion to education and society
6. Charades.
Students in small groups have to act out a phrase or key words for the other to guess.
7. Splat.
Key words are written on the board students have to smack the correct work matching to the given meaning. Hand swatters are available at a barge price rom internet auction sites or discount stores. Different coloured Post-It notes for each student works equally as well.
8. Scrabble.
Students are given or, projected onto the board a number of scrabble letters, which they have to come ups with as many key words relating to the topic as possible in a set time. The students can only use each square once and a price is given to the student with the highest score.
9. Board Game.
In small groups the students have to produce a board game or build on an existing one which includes questions and answers summering a topic.
10. Chinese Whispers.
In groups of no less than four a definition,statement or chemical equation has to be passed along the line. The last person has to tell the teacher the message. This activity I've used as a competitive game which each group is competing against each other for a prize. The first person is shown the phrase on a piece of paper by the teacher then has to remember this and pass it along. A variation is to pass a question along which the last person has to answer.
11. Activity Timer.
A count down timer or stop clock for timing activities. This website has a variety of timers from bombs to egg timers.
http://www.online-stopwatch.com/countdown-clock/
12. Picture Round.
Place a student infront of the board with a picture or word projected behind them. The other class mates have to describe the the image/word to the students for them to guess. I've used this with groups where each group of five students (one guesser and four to describe) take turns. The winning team is the group who correct guess the most answers in two minutes.
13. What I.....
This activity effectively demonstrates progression. Give each student a piece of paper with three column labelled What I Know At The Start, What I Know Now and What I Want to Know More About. The students fill in this sheet at the beginning after being presented with the lessons objectives, add to this during the lesson and then at the end of the lesson before the final plenary.
14. Online Quizzes.
A collection of quizzes and games for various subjects.
http://www.sheppardsoftware.com
15. Prezi.
Students make an animated Prezi presentation to summaries a subject topic and present it to the class.
16. Padlet.
Padlet is an online wall where all students can add comments in real time on one screen. This is very effective and has numerous uses such as a plenary activity where students post comments demonstrating their knowledge and understanding or used to ask a questions where each student can respond and all the answers are displayed. It's also effective as a peer support system where students post questions or queries relating to the task they are carrying out and other students during the course of the lesson add the answers. It's free to sign up and when the students do they name is displayed below their comments. Padlet is not just limited to exit images and even movies can be added and it is compatible on all mobile devices. A BRILLIANT RESOURCE!!
http://padlet.com
17. Socrative.
Sccrative is a student response system that engages students and feedbacks responses graphically to teachers enabling them to effective differentiate through the lesson and a sequence of lessons. Socrative can be used via smartphones, tablets, computers and laptops. Once an account is set up a teacher can create in seconds multiple choice or open ended questions. The students log in and answer the set questions. the questions can include text or images. Feedback is given immediately to the student and the teacher who on the click of a button can display a spreadsheet of the individual students ability. A very powerful piece tool particularly with BYOD's or 1:1 tablets in schools.
http://www.socrative.com
18. Extended Writing Activity.
Use the following for students to begin an essay demonstrating their level of knowledge and understanding of a particular subject or topic. This great idea is from Pete Sanderson.
A Letter to...
Imagine you are a...
Write a play about...
Write a description of...
Describe a journey from...
Describe a day in the life of...
Predict what would happen if....
Write a diary entry by a person who...
Write a set of instructions in order to...
You are a news journalist writing about...
Write out a conversation between people discussing...
19. Twitter.
Set up a Twitter account. Students use their smartphones or tablets to tweet a message of less than 140 characters to answer a question or state something they have learnt during the lesson.
20. Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.
Plenary activity where students can win house points for correctly getting to each monetary level.
21. Beat the Teacher.
Students have to ask the teacher a question who in return asks the student a question on the same topic. I allow my students to use their revision guides or exercise books.
22. Liquid Chalk Pens.
I purchased these some time ago and have proved to be excellent at getting students to explain key words, draw accurate diagrams or charts and summarise their learning from a topic. I have six different colour pens which the students use to write on the windows producing a display of their learning.
23. No Punctuation.
Give the students a few paragraphs of text on a subject or topic and they have to add the punctuation to make sense of the text. I was very surprised that after the students had completed this activity they were highly knowledgeable of the content of the written work they had just corrected. Having no punctuation meant that the students had to read each line more than once resulting in them understanding what they were reading.
24. Giant Chalk.
Create giant mind maps or diagrams outside. Students are placed in small groups and given a selection of different coloured giant chalk and an area of the tennis courts and tasked to produce a giant mind map or diagram to summarise their learning.
25. Game-show Buzzers Plenary.
Students write questions and the answer on a Post-It Note then one of the group competes with others in a quick fire question round. After five questions the contestants are swapped so all members of the class as quizzed. http://goo.gl/k6EaJM
26. Balloon Starter.
Balloons are hidden under tables and chairs before the students enter the lesson.
nside each balloon is a piece of paper with a question written on it, the students have to pop the balloon to obtain the question and then answer it.
http://goo.gl/3r5bf7
27. Plenary Selector.
The plenary grid can be laminated and placed on each desk or printed out given to the students to glue into their exercise books to reference every lesson. The students role two dice and then complete the task selected.
http://goo.gl/fknw6y
28. Homework Takeaway.
Students pick from the menu the format in which they are going to complete their homework. I've used this for extended homework to revise or summarise a unit or topic, and it works equally as well with both Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4 students.
http://goo.gl/NqIzfC
29. Balloon Popping
This is a fun activity (using balloons always is) used during exam practice for long answer questions such as the QWC questions (quality of written communication) or indeed past papers. Students work collaboratively in groups to answer the extended questions. If the students require support they may pop a balloon off the board. Inside each ballon is a hint or part of the markscheme to assist the students answer the question.
http://goo.gl/ZfyXl8
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