interactive learning Archives - Faulkner's Fast Five

Solar Eclipse 2017 Lesson Ideas for Secondary English

The 2017 Solar Eclipse is coming and my county is in one of the paths were a great amount of totality will be experienced. It’s such a big deal that we’ve called off school that day for several reasons, but we are required to teach a lesson on the event before August 21, 2017. I’ve researched and glanced briefly online, but most lesson ideas that come up are either for math or science, or they are not for middle or high school level. We secondary English teachers don’t want to let the elementary teachers or science and math teachers have all the fun with the 2017 solar event of a lifetime; we “totally” want to join in with the fun, too! Therefore, I’ve brainstormed five ideas that I think are perfect to shed some “light” on the topic in your secondary English class.

1) Reading Informational Text: Find some articles that explain what happens during an eclipse. I used this article @ http://www.math.nus.edu.sg/aslaksen/gem-projects/hm/0304-1-08-eclipse/Types%20of%20Solar%20Eclipse.htm for the lesson I did with my dual enrollment seniors. I had them read the article and annotate. Then, in groups, they had to make a poster displaying that information. There were many skills that I was able to cover in this lesson including reading complex informational (scientific texts which scores points for ACT science); summarizing; classifying information; speaking & listening; art. Before conducting the lesson, review close reading strategies with my Close Reading and Annotating Teaching Pack.

2) Traditional Writing: Students don’t usually get “starry-eyed” about writing, but when the topics are as cool as a once-in-a-lifetime solar eclipse event, even the most reluctant writers will “shine.”

Narrative Prompt – Tell a story of what happens if the moon didn’t move out from in front of the sun, and it stayed dark forever. Teach younger students to use descriptive language when writing narratives using my interactive “Show. Don’t Tell.” sorting game.

Explanatory Prompt – Compare and contrast the different types of solar eclipses. (This would be a perfect follow up to the informational text reading activity above.)

Explanatory Prompt – Write to explain what causes a total solar eclipse to occur.

Argumentative Prompt – Your school is considering closing for Solar Eclipse Day, but some of the school board members disagree. Write to persuade them to let you have the day off. If your students need extra practice or an introduction to counterclaims, my Claims and Counterclaims Teaching Pack is sure to brighten their arguments.

3) Songs/Poetry: Students love the opportunity to listen to songs in class, and I don’t mind when we can study them as poetry. Take a look at Pink Floyd’s “Eclipse” or Bonnie Tyler’s “Total Eclipse of My Heart.” These two songs in particular are rich with figurative language and a particularly appropriate dark tone. Grab my poetry analysis bundle with a variety of tools including poetry worksheets, poetry analysis task cards that are perfect for stations, and vocabulary review games. You’ll be all set to guide your students through a celestial poetry analysis.

4) Reading Science Fiction: Ray Bradbury is the first author who comes to mind when science fiction is mentioned. He expertly explored and explicated his imagination of the future and even life outside of earth in relation to and as a reflection of our own humanity. I’ll be reading his “All Summer in a Day” with my juniors for our eclipse lesson. While the characters in the story actually are waiting to see the sun, and we will be waiting to do the opposite on August 21, 2017, Margot, the main character, is literally in the dark and misses the experience entirely because of her antagonistic classmates. See my easy prep, ready-to-go lesson with other paired texts and a complete sun-themed unit. I think this lesson would also work well with younger students, too. If you are looking for a science fiction text for more advanced students, check out Isaac Asimov’s “Nightfall.” Pair it with my literary analysis task cards, and your students won’t be in the dark for long.

5) Creative Writing: Many cities across the country are planning events and celebrations to host viewing parties for the Great American Solar Eclipse. Have your students use propaganda techniques and figurative language to create posters advertising a real – or imagined – viewing party in your neck of the woods. Sneak in a little review of the types of propaganda with my complete teaching pack.

Check out NASA’s website and my own county’s website for more information! #headingtothedarkside

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Keeping Kids Tuned in at the End of the Year

It’s getting to be that time of year when things get a little crazy – a little sideways. Students – and teachers – are starting to tune out! In a middle or high school English classroom, this is an excellent time of year to start that novel you’ve been wanting to teach or to try a new project. So hopefully, these ideas will make those even more creative for you! Plus, they are all student-centered and standards-based, so the kiddos stay engaged, and your job is easy! Join me for a fun recap of some ways to keep students tuned in this time of year.

1) Make It Real – When the CCSS started to roll out and there was so much emphasis placed on nonfiction, I’ll be honest – like many other “old English teachers” – I was nervous about giving up so much class time to those texts over my beloved classic fiction texts. Now, I love finding nonfiction texts that stand alone and/or that pair with my fiction. And, honestly, the kids LOVE it when they know it’s real. Sometimes I have them go searching on their own for real information – like in my mini research project on banned books in my Fahrenheit unit. Or other times, I’ll pair the info for them and have them dig into the material in class like in my lesson on the LeRoy HS outbreak after we read Act 1 of The Crucible. Also, take a look at several bundles of hot topics informational text lessons I have ready-to-go.

2) Make It Personal – We all know that secondary students can be ah hem… self-centered. So anytime they get to talk about themselves, there’s pretty good buy-in. My seniors just completed my Generational Interview project as part of their reading tasks for the last section of my Fahrenheit unit. They – and their grandparents – really enjoyed the projects and the kids learned so much about their families and themselves. This was an out-of-class assignment, but they did share in class. Now that’s an easy prep! Another way to make it personal and keep kids tuned in is with poetry that speaks to them. In my treating senioritis poetry pack, I’ve selected several poems that draw on students’ personal experiences and the follow up activities ask students to reflect on their past, present, and future.

3) Make It Interactive – I have to admit that I’d never used puppets in the classroom before with high school students, but now that I have, I can’t stop. I also have to admit that it was partly my students’ idea to conduct the first puppet show. When my seniors read The Canterbury Tales, I had made little cards with the characters on them. I wanted each student to read and research about that character to share with the class. One student was holding up her card and thought she was being funny when she said, “We should do this as a puppet show.” I said, “Actually, that’s a great idea. Yes, we should.” That night I glued Popsicle sticks on the cards and borrowed a puppet curtain my mom had made for my nieces. Voila! The next day we had a puppet show! After that, I let my emoji addiction get a little more out of control, and I made emoji puppets for accountable talk, review, point of view, and more! See my Facebook post about them!

Escape games are super hot right now, too, and you can find them in just about any subject and grade level. The end of the year is the perfect time to give one a try for review or just for fun. I’ve made full-length games for some favorite stories I teach, and I recently started to make mini escape games that last 30 minutes!

All of my games are designed so that you can use a physical lock box that you buy premade or make yourself or digitally with Google. I love using the physical lock box for students, and I’ve created a quick video tutorial just in case you’ve wanted to try it, but have been a little apprehensive about it.

How To: Using One Lock Box for Classroom Escape Games

Tuesday's How To: Using One Lock Box for Classroom Escape Games

Posted by Julie's Classroom Stories on Tuesday, October 23, 2018

4) Make It Project-Based – Projects don’t have to be a lot of work for you. Nor should they be a lot of work to prep. One year I wanted something new and fun for Earth Day, so I rummaged through my junk drawers at the house and had student create uses for the various items. The skills we covered? Propaganda, Info-Text Analysis; Speaking and Listening, Presenting. That project is for sale here! This time of year, my yearbook students also work on projects to keep them busy until the books come back. They would be excellent for a yearbook class, business, art, or technology class. I’ve also successfully done short research projects, and I have a ton of those available as well on a variety of topics.

5) Make It a Movie Day – Let’s be real for a minute. We can’t always show a movie, but if we are talking about getting tuned in, well, we can’t ignore the obvious. If you missed my post about how to incorporate media effectively, click here to go check that out. I will say that my seniors are going to be watching The Hunger Games next week. Why in the world, right? It was their idea – and it wasn’t because they just wanted to watch it randomly. In fact, they’ve been asking me all along our 451 unit if there’s a sequel to Bradbury’s magnum opus. (Can we pause to just say how awesome it is that they want to read MORE 451?!?!?) Then one day, it dawned on a student that there was quite a bit of intertextuality between 451 and THG. I had noticed the parallels before because I love THG! He made a pretty good case for it, so I thought this would be a fun way to end the unit. They’ll have to write something showing those parallels, of course. Plus, I’ve got you covered for tons of movies with ready-made, standards-based movies guides. All you need to do is get the DVD and press play!

Here’s to a great rest of the year! Share your ideas for ending the year strong below!

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Updated 2019

School photo created by freepic.diller – www.freepik.com

Formula for Classroom Success Series Post #3: Interactive and Real-World Strategies

I’m continuing the series today on Classroom Success Strategies. Today’s post is a two-in-one tip for interactive and real-world teaching strategies. At the bottom of the post, feel free to link up with your own favorite strategies in the comments section. Link products, ideas, etc.!

In the fast-paced world of today’s teen, I am always looking for new and different ways to appeal to my students. I don’t always expect everything to be fun all the time, but I know that I’ll accomplish more if my students are engaged. If you are on the cusp of branching out into the interactive world of teaching strategies, or even if you are well-versed, perhaps my take below will spark you to get interactive this week!

1) An interactive lesson doesn’t have to be silly. I think a lot of times, especially
high school teachers, think that interactive lessons are akin to playing games
and are silly. Granted, I’ve seen some
that are. To me, an interactive lesson can be anything from using task
cards with individual students or in a group setting to making human
MLA citations! If you wanted to bring in a little silly with the serious, play a funny song or have students race the clock! It really depends on
your style and, of course, what your goals are for the class.

2) An interactive lesson doesn’t have to take a long time in class. I
like to chunk my classes into segments – usually about 15-20 minutes each. This is usually an excellent structure for my daily grammar bell ringer routine, lesson intro, interactive/group work, and individual
task. Sometimes my “real-world” connection
is simply a relatable video as a set activity or a funny grammar mistake from my growing collection of pictures.
Other times, my real-world connections are more project-oriented, take a
while longer, and give students time to work in groups, process through
problem-solving strategies, and employ critical thinking skills. If you wanted to experiment with longer projects, start small. One really
successful project I’ve done is my Earth Day Info Text and Real-World Project,
which is perfect for April. In this Earth Day
themed lesson, students compare and contrast the presentation of a similar theme
or topic across genres (different types of writing) to explain how each genre
shapes the author’s presentation of the theme. Next, they use their
problem-solving skills to raise awareness of the need to be good stewards of
the earth. Students love getting “their hands dirty” with this
real-world project and presentation, and you will love that they are critically
thinking about the world around them while demonstrating their understanding of
key CCSS. Perhaps, you will give
it a try!

Earth Day Paired Text Reading Lesson, Speech and Poem with

3) An interactive lesson doesn’t have
to be hands-on or project-oriented. In
order for a lesson to be interactive, it doesn’t have to be a full-blown
project or even something where students move around. An effective and purposeful whole-group discussion
or guided small-group discussion can take the attention off the teacher and
make it more student-centered and interactive. I also think when a student is 100% engaged in
his/her learning, that’s pretty interactive, too. I like to give case studies and short research
projects where students are responsible for extracting the information about
the assigned topic on their own, and then they give a presentation. If you wanted to be more adventurous and try something interactive while keeping students focused, my students enjoy readers’ theater or role playing. I love keeping a box of costume props
handy when we are reading some favorites like The Crucible, Macbeth, Beowulf, or Trifles. It doesn’t take but a few minutes, and it’s
great for those out-going students.

4) An interactive lesson doesn’t have
to be labor-intensive for the teacher. The idea behind an interactive or real-world
lesson is that students are going to be doing most of the work and hopefully, they will be more engaged – which takes the pressure off of the teacher. One quick way I review
before a test involves a small ball that we toss around the room. In fact, I
call it Ball Toss Review – creative, right? Each student
must answer a question about the topic, and then he/she gets to toss the ball to
whomever he/she chooses. I don’t have to
prepare anything, but the students are on their toes thinking and
responding the entire time. Technology is another
excellent way to get students more involved, and it may or may not involve a little prep work.
Especially when technology
is involved, most times students will dive right in. I love my newest Google-Drive eWorksheets for
poetry, which are a super-cool tool for bridging the gap between today’s teens and poetry!

Digital Poetry eWorksheets Analysis & Comprehension for An

5) An interactive lesson doesn’t have
to cost you anything. Sometimes it may seem daunting to buy game pieces, cut and laminate game cards, or prepare online worksheets or discussion boards for students. If your time and resources are limited (of course they are), there are plenty interactive ideas that are completely free. If you are in the middle of a writing unit, have students complete a 4-square peer review. Students fold a piece of notebook paper into four squares and review each other’s paper for the thesis statement, grammar/spelling, organization, and language. With April being poetry month, another fun and free hands-on idea is to have students write Characterization Poems for the piece of literature you are currently studying. Just beg and borrow to get a few magazines, and you’ll be set. If you have a bit more time, a smart device, and time to print and cut a glass set of Plickers, you will love the results. Even Plickers are mostly free, and would be excellent way to jazz up your traditional exit tickets.

I don’t think every single lesson, every single day needs to be interactive. Sometimes, teachers come down with
the “activity-itis” syndrome. I’ve been guilty of it myself. See more of my thoughts about that here.
The most important thing to keep in mind for a successful lesson is that it
just needs to be on purpose. More on that topic in another post in this series.
Stay tuned!

If you are looking for more interactive ideas right now, I wrote an entire blog post here a while back that describes several ways to engage secondary students in the classroom.

Benefits of Using Task Cards in Middle and High School

Using task cards in middle and high school can be hugely successful. Interestingly, I was using “task cards” in my high school English class before I knew they were called that – and way before they looked so cute! If I needed to guide a particular group on a topic or break up the assignment, I would often just grab some colored index cards and a sharpie and begin assigning the tasks, differentiating, or reviewing! Now with the wonderful world of technology 🙂 and access to tons of programs, task cards can come in any form or fashion. Here are 5 ways and reasons to use the task cards strategy at the middle and high school level.

#1) Differentiation and Scaffolding: Task cards offer teachers and students many benefits. Teachers need easy, but effective ways to meet the needs of all students who come to the table with all different ability levels. Task cards can easily be used to tailor instruction and reinforcement to those needs.

–You choose who gets which card, and that can be done without the students’ knowledge of that choice. All of my response to text task cards are written in two levels and are clearly labeled in the file. Pictured below are two examples from my poetry and speech task cards. If you head over to my TeachersPayTeachers store, you’ll be able to get a couple of these free in the preview file.

– One directive per card helps students focus.

–If students or groups of students are working through a set of cards, they set their own pacing. Here different groups of students are analyzing poetry, but one group only has one card, while the other group has two cards.

–Some cards can have suggested answers or clues, while others are more open-ended.

–Some students or groups can be assigned one or more depending on their needs.

– Task cards just by their nature provide individualized instruction and scaffolding because they allow for effective chunking of material. For example, when I teach writing, we use task cards to guide analysis of model papers during the pre-writing process and task cards to provide directives for revision and editing during the phases of the writing process.

#2) Discussion & Collaboration: Classroom discussion is very important for classroom culture but also for understanding. I believe students need to read about it, talk about it, and then write about it. Task cards provide a direct focus for talk topics where needed.

–Students can see cards first to prepare individually before small or whole group discussion.

–Guides whole group discussion. Take a look at these fun Emoji Accountable Talk Stem Puppets They offer a accountable talk stems for students to respond to or use during discussions.

– Can require students to produce a larger product together. For example, if you want students to write a paragraph, give each group a task to complete a certain section of the paragraph. When they put their work together, they have a complete product.

– Can even be used with large class sizes. See how I make it work:

Using Task Cards in Stations

How-To: Using my task cards in stations with large groups. (I apologize in advance for the wacky focusing on this video. IDK. LOL!) #iteachenglish #highschoolenglish #iteachhighschool #literature #teachingstrategies #taskcards

Posted by Julie's Classroom Stories on Sunday, April 8, 2018

#3) Games and Review: Play traditional games (board games, card games, beach ball toss, etc.) with task cards for your subject. Below students are reviewing ELA vocabulary using vocabulary cards from my 100 words every high school English student should know pack in order to move their pieces around a game board I whipped up for fun. Give each group a set of task cards, and in order to take a turn, each student had to answer a question on one of the cards. The rest of the group had to agree with the answer before they could move on. Groups or students could also have a recording sheet that they turn in or use as a study guide.

#4) Gallery Walks, Scavenger Hunts, Quests. and Stations: Lessons that involve movement can sometimes be overwhelming to create and produce, but for Kinesthetic students, especially, movement enhances learning. Pretty much any student, though, enjoys the opportunity to move around during class. Task cards make these types of activities much more attainable because they are easier to create and/or manage.

–Cards are posted around the room/hall for a gallery walk. Never tried a gallery walk? Want some fresh tips? Click over to take a look at this FREE video tutorial where I explain how to set up and manage gallery walks.

–Assign students certain numbers to complete or do them all.

–Set time limits.

–Students record answers on sheets.

– Use them in stations or centers. Here’s a quick video where I explain how I developed impromptu centers using my poetry task cards in station rotations. Get the FREE poetry recording sheet here.

Poetry Stations Using Task Cards

Enhance poetry analysis with poetry stations using task cards! It's super low prep, and it gets students involved in rich, deep poetry discussions. Get my poetry task cards @ https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Poetry-Analysis-Task-Cards-Comprehension-Prompts-Any-Poem-1115584

Posted by Julie's Classroom Stories on Saturday, April 8, 2017

– Add QR codes for a self-checking function or to add a quick video tutorial.

$Using Task Cards in Middle and High School$

— If you want some ready-made station labels to get going with task cards in your classroom, check out my station rotation kit with five fun designs.

#5) Going green with task cards The trend is certainly moving toward more technology in the classroom that is student-centered. Task cards offer so many opportunities for teachers to convey both lesson content, practice, and assessment because they are so flexible.

– 1:1 schools

– via Google Slides or Google Classroom in the lab, group device, or on their own devices. All of my response to text task cards are now available in Google Slides format. You can get them here.

-Nearpod student led or in homework mode.

-Classflow with student response systems or on their own devices

-Kahoot for whole class review and gaming. I love putting my Real-World Grammar Fails Task Cards in Kahoot to use at bell ringers or fun test-prep review! They come in large pdf and large jpeg mode for easy uploading in this format, so there’s no extra work for you. See more about my experience with Kahoot at this post!

– Single iPad used via Apple TV, Smart TV, or Boxlight to share task card work. Below students were correcting sentences with some grammar task cards. In order to share with the class, I used the mirror feature on my iPad with my Apple TV, so the entire class could see the original sentence from the task card as each group explained the corrections that needed to be made.

I would love to hear how you use task cards in your middle and high school classrooms, too! Leave me a comment below.

Love this content? Join a group! There are already tons of ideas, freebies, and fabulous teachers in my new groups, and joining is simple. Just click over to the following links, answer a few questions, and voila! Thanks again for following along my classroom stories and small-business journey, and I really do hope you to see you over in my new “backyards” where we can chat and share all things English and Yearbook.

Updated 2020

What a Couple of Country Music Concerts Taught Me About Teaching

Recently, I donned my cowgirl boots, curled my hair, and headed off to a couple of music concerts that have been on my bucket list for a while – Dolly Parton and Jason Aldean. It just so happened that both singers were going to be playing a short drive from my Tennessee mountain home. I really love music of most any kind, but I suppose my farm-bred roots make my go-to choice country. I grew up visiting Dollywood theme park and listening to southern gospel music and pretty much anything with a country twang. So, to say I was pumped for these concerts would be a huge understatement — a little time away to just enjoy the show. I guess you know you are a teacher, though, when… you can’t even go to a concert without having your classroom on the brain. Well, that’s me; so, here are five teaching tips, ideas & strategies from my concert-going adventures.

1) Come Out On Fire and Rock It From Opening to Closing Both Dolly Parton and Jason Aldean literally came out to the stage on fire. Dolly graced the stage singing her version of “Girl on Fire,” while Jason Aldean emerged from behind of a flaming letter A. The excitement and anticipation of the moment was thrilling, and I was amazed by the attention to detail that the display demonstrated. And, for over two hours both country crooners belted out their melodies and danced non-stop. What does this have anything to do with teaching tips, ideas & strategies? At the concerts, I was captivated by the creativity and excitement of the opening sets, and I believe students like a little flair, too. Even if it’s just a quick video clip, song, or a related image to set the tone, it will amp up the mood of the lesson and create enthusiasm. It wasn’t just the openings, either, that were so fantastic. Both concerts closed on a positive, personal note. Students need to leave our class feeling the same way; whether it has gone well or as planned or not, finding a way to close on a positive note could make or break the feeling students have when it’s time to return to class tomorrow. Maybe it won’t be fire and lights, but students do appreciate and notice the teachers who show they care.

2) Connect with the Audience Despite the flashy, bright lights, smoke, and the distance from the stage to the seats — all things that would have been really easy for the stars to hide behind — Dolly and Jason both made every attempt to recognize the audience. Dolly even went as far as to tell us several times that she could see us and how much she loved to see that her fans were standing and singing along with her. Jason Aldean often paused to wave at the cheap seats, and once when he spotted a less-than-enthusiastic attendee who apparently had his arms crossed, JA encouraged him to clap along! Of course, everyone knew the words to the songs, me included, and several times throughout the concert, the performers would turn the microphone outward and let the crowd take the lead. They didn’t let that fourth wall stop them, and teachers should either. Proximity isn’t just for discipline.

Further, it’s so easy to get so involved in preparing my lessons to meet certain standards or be so driven to prep for tests that I forget who my audience actually is – real kids. And not only that, but they need to be engaged and involved. I needed to be reminded there must a healthy balance between creation and consumption in the classroom. We won’t be there forever to do it for them, nor will students really get the most out of the material if they aren’t engaging with it. They need to be doing as much — or more — as we are. The “real world” is, after all, a hands-on project, and we teachers need to make sure they are getting a taste of that.

3) Tell Stories; Make It Personal Dolly Parton’s music is known for being of a story-telling nature, and so is country music, of course, by definition. The power of a perfectly crafted song that tells a story packs a punch and lasts in the hearts of the audience for a long time, if not forever. We are drawn in by the pathos, and we get attached to the emotional, dramatic, and sensory experience. Not only do the songs themselves often tell a story, but both artists paused to relate the stories behind several of the songs. I once attended a Marcia Tate workshop where she shared specific brain-based teaching tips, ideas, & strategies. Telling stories to make a personal connection made the list because it reaches verbal and auditory learners. I loved hearing the background of the songs and the personal experiences each performer told. My students are no different. I believe any type of learner would enjoy hearing a personal experience (related to the topic) every now and then — plus it makes the information stick.

4) Smoke and Lights and Graphics I don’t know about you, but my classroom is not equipped with any smoke machines, and I only have three rows of harsh fluorescent lighting. Regretfully, I guess I won’t be installing cool smoke and lights anytime soon, but that doesn’t mean that my presentations, worksheets, and other materials have to be dull and boring. Using pictures or age-appropriate art can really make a simple sheet sing. Many classrooms now have at least a projector, and a lot of classrooms have an interactive whiteboard. It takes a little time to plan and create lessons with a little more visual and interactive jazz, but I always find it is so worthwhile. I enjoy it, and so do the students.

5) Have Tons of Screaming Fans Maybe you are smirking a little as you read this one; I did, too, when I thought of it. Oh, how nice it would be to have 20,000 screaming fans wearing shirts with my name and picture and holding “I ❤ Mrs. Faulkner” signs in the air. I’ll keep dreaming. I went to those concerts because I love the music, and I am drawn in each time I hear a familiar song on the radio. I choose those playlists over and over. In teaching, we often don’t get a ton of compliments or accolades – and no one is making any #1 fan signs for us.

Teachers have a hard job and have to be tough, and sometimes students/parents don’t appreciate why we do what we do. Every now and then, though, a student will take me again for a second course or different class. That is such an amazing feeling to know they came back by choice! And every once in a while, a former student will come back for a visit or send an email or text to let me know how much he/she learned in my class or that mine was actually his/her favorite. I am reminded of a quote by Maya Angelou: “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

Even though my boots are back in my closet now, I’ll be waltzing into my classroom each day with my focus on kids and how I can go the extra mile to make learning productive and enjoyable. Thanks, Dolly and Jason for reminding me that a teacher should always have open mind for learning, and I’m putting these teaching tips, ideas, and strategies into practice. Dolly closed the concert with her most popular song: “I Will Always Love You.” Teachers teach because we love what we do; it certainly is a profession that comes from the heart.

If you want to bring a little music into your classroom, check out these interactive resources:

Love this content? Join a group! There are already tons of ideas, freebies, and fabulous teachers in my new groups, and joining is simple. Just click over to the following links, answer a few questions, and voila! Thanks again for following along my classroom stories and small-business journey. I really do hope you to see you over in my new “backyards” where we can chat and share all things English and Yearbook.

Making Learning Interactive: 5 Strategies for the Secondary Classroom

Keeping kids engaged and involved is one thing. Keeping
teenagers engaged and involved is a whole other issue. However, interaction of
some sort is a staple for just about every day in my classroom to reinforce,
review, or revitalize a lesson. Whether
it is just a quick conversation with a shoulder partner, a game that requires
movement to demonstrate understanding, or a hands-on task, students do
appreciate the opportunity to get out of those straight rows for a few
minutes. Here are 5 interactive strategies
to engage secondary students!

1) Face-to-Face
Discussions
Teenagers love to
talk. So, I make use of every
opportunity to capitalize on their chatter.
From the very first week of school, I model and we practice accountable,
academically productive talk. Discussions
can come in several forms and fashions.
Sometimes we just turn to our “shoulder partner” and share our journal
response; other times we move into our “row teams” and discuss a chapter from
the novel we are reading. One really fun way to spark discussions is with
Rotating Stations. This type of activity
would work for many concepts. I like to
use it for discussing key or significant moments from a text we are reading. Each
station has a quote taped to butcher paper, and then small groups rotate
through the stations adding their thoughts and comments to the paper. When time is up, I play
a piece of a song, and that’s the signal for the groups to move to new stations
in the classroom where they continue their discussion, based on the ideas they
encounter from the previous group. Rotations
continue every few minutes until each group has been at all of the positions
and has had a chance to consider all of the other groups’ comments. Academically productive talk allows students
to share ideas, and it ultimately prepares them for an individual assignment,
such as a writing task.

Accountable Talk Productive Discussions & Collaborations P

2) Virtual
Discussions

Teenagers also love texting and social
media. We aren’t a full BYOD school or a
1:1, but we do have a policy where teachers can request for students to use
their devices in class for an assignment, and we do have a floating class set
of iPads. When I can, I like to plan some extra time to host virtual
discussions. Two free cool tools I use
to host a digital dialogue are Padlet.com and Today’s Meet.com. Padlet has tons of uses, but one fun way is
to just pose a question or topic, and then students plug in the unique URL and
begin posting their responses. Today’s
Meet allows teachers to set up a temporary “room” for discussion. Students join
the room and begin texting their ideas. My
students give rave reviews about the days we gab with gadgets!

3) Review
Skills with Games that Incorporate Movement

Let’s admit that
review work isn’t all that glamorous. That is unless it’s interactive! A simple
way to bring in a quick review of vocabulary or the previous day’s lesson is
with Ball Toss Review. I have a small ball that I toss out to get the game
going. If we are reviewing vocabulary, I may say a word and have the student
define it. He/she answers it and then
tosses to another student. This is also fun for reviewing the previous day’s
lesson. One student states something
he/she remembers, passes the ball for another student to add an idea, and so
on. Another strategy I use for reviewing
key skills is the “humanization” of more traditional classroom activities. Do you have a sorting activity? Why not make it into
human-sorting? Have terms for students to match? Why not have students play it
human-matching style? Directions and materials are included in all of my “human sorting and matching” games! Additionally, most all of my literature guides come with a human plot chart activity for review (pictured below)! They are easy to make, and kids love them! Check out my full catalog of Creative Worksheet Alternatives for ELA!

ELA Review Games Activities -Vocabulary, Poetry, Grammar,

Grammar Games, Easy Prep Activities, Interactive, Review T

4) Bring
Out Their Inner Child

No matter how old
they are, teenagers still love a little cut and paste time! Once upon a time I inherited
a whole slew of magazines. I just couldn’t bear to trash all that beautiful authentic
text, so it hit me – Collage Bingo! This interactive activity marries a couple
of old favorites: cut and paste collage
and the scavenger hunt. I love this
interactive activity because my students get exposed to a ton of text, we are
reviewing key terms, and it is so easy to implement. Collage Bingo is even
great for short days or substitutes!

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Figurative-Language-Collage-Bingo-FREE-Full-Length-Lesson-215213

Peer
Editing

I can’t say enough about the power of a productive
peer edit – productive being the key word here!
I think where the peer edit breaks down is when students aren’t really
sure what they are looking for and aren’t comfortable communicating their
suggestions to a friend. What I’ve found
to make peer editing actually work is to practice peer editing sample papers
from the “File of Papers from the Unknown Students” first. Once we do guided practice, students gain
more confidence on how to offer constructive criticism. There are several ways to orchestrate a peer
edit from providing students with a checklist, list of questions, or a
foldable. To make a simple peer editing foldable,
just have students make one “hot-dog” fold.
On one side of the fold have students list the strengths. On the other
side, have the list the struggles. Voila – an easy-peasy, no-prep peer edit
interactive activity! Also, consider having
students focus their energies and comments by limiting or suggesting what they
look for – grammar, thesis statement, or colorful vocabulary. They don’t have
to tackle everything all at once. Hearing
and seeing students interact to improve writing just gives me “cold dots,”
which is what my six-year old niece calls cold chills!

See more interactive ideas at my newest blog post: