BeEvenMORE Engagin g ! MBS Learning Conference 2014 Suzanne Culbreth

BeEvenMORE Engaging!

MBS Learning Conference 2014Suzanne Culbreth

Culbreth Reunion

“There is no better example of the throttling of creativity than the difference between what we observe in a kindergarten classroom and what we observe in a high school classroom.

Take a room full of 5 year olds and you will see creativity in all its forms positively flowing around the room. A decade later you will see the same children passively sitting at their desks, half asleep or trying to decipher what will be on the next test.”

Madeline Lavine

IF teachers only provide:

THEN…We are obsolete

facts

dates

formulas

theories

research

content

THINKvalidate

synthesize collaborate

problemsolve

leverage

We must teach our students to:

“65% of class should be student-to-student interaction….research has proven that communication is vital to student learning. Knowing that this is true, classrooms should be arranged in groups of four and not in rows.”

Tim Kanold

• Content Acquisition • Collaborative Practice• Performance Tasks

SIMULTANEOUS ROUNDTABLEUse four different worksheets. Students

answer a problem, then pass it to a teammate to check and then answer

the next problem

LINE IT UP!Students place cards in the correct

sequence. Trade cards and sequence again.

TEAM DISCUSS EXAMPLE / NON-EXAMPLE

Each team discusses how to define the term. Team must reach consensus and 1 student records the definition. Randomly chosen groups share their definition which is then

refined.

FIND THE FICTION

Teammates write three statements: two true / one false. One student reads statements.

Teammates guess which statement is false. Teammates defend guess. Student announces the false

statement.

ONE STRAYA number is randomly called and that that

student stands up. The remaining teammates stay seated but raise their hands.

The teacher calls “stray”. Student strays to another team. Teams lower

their hands when a new member joins.

NUMBERED HEADS TOGETHERStudents number off within the team. Teacher

poses a problem and students privately write their answer. Students put heads together to

showing answers to discuss and share. Teacher calls a

number to share with the class.

MIX N MATCHEach student is given a card which is a match for another student’s card. Students find their match. Students mix and trade

cards while the music plays. Then repeat the matching

process.

LION / TIGEROne student provides one sheet of paper which

is folded in half lengthwise with each partner’s name at the top of one column.

One student tells the other how to work the problem as the other student records and

checks. For the next problem roles reverse.

LION• Listener• Recorder• Checker

Tiger• Talker• Give instruction

“First, you must…..”

FAN-N-PICKStudent #1 holds question cards in a fan.

“Pick a card, any card”

Student #2 reads the card aloud.

Student #3 answers the question.

Student #4 responds to the answer.

INSIDE / OUTSIDE CIRCLEEach student numbers off as a 1 or a 2. One group

forms a circle and turns around to face outward. The other group of students creates an outside circle by

facing a peer from the inner circle. The teacher provides prompts or discussion topics. After allowing time for discussion, the teacher has the students in

the outside circle move one or more peers to their right or

left.

JOT THOUGHTSTeacher names a topic, sets a time limit and

provides think time. Students write and announce as many ideas as they can in the

allotted time, one idea per slip of paper.

Each slip of paper is placed in the center of the table in an attempt to “cover

the table”.

• Teaching Channel• Kagan Cooperative Learning Strategies• Mind / Shift

BeEvenMORE Engaging!

MBS Learning Conference 2014Suzanne Culbreth