CARA BREMER’S CULTURE CLASS

DIFFERENT STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES TO MOTIVATE

LEARNING

CLASS NUMBER 2

3-2-13-2-1

A 3 – 2 – 1 is a simple way for students to show what they have learned or ask questions about a topic. It can be used after reading, at the end of class, or toward the end of a unit as review. Teachers can adapt the 3 – 2 - 1 organizer to best meet their needs. They might have three facts the students learned from a reading, two questions they had as they read, and one thing in an article that they found interesting. Teachers might also be more specific and ask for students to write three facts they learned about weapons during WWII, two battles that were fought during the war, and one way the war impacted the home front.

PROBABLE PASSAGEPROBABLE PASSAGEIn this activity, the instructor pulls five or six quotes

out of the text before reading. The teacher then groups students and without telling them, gives each group a different quote. The students discuss the quote, predict what the reading will be about, and then share out to the entire class. They begin to realize that each group has a different quote, yet somehow they all fit together in the same reading. This helps students read with anticipation, wondering how all of the pieces will fit together in the text.

This strategy may also be adapted into a Jigsaw activity, where one member from each original group joins together in a new group to share his or her quote and explain what his or her group predicted about the reading.

TEA PARTYTEA PARTYBefore hosting a Tea Party, the teacher chooses

eight to ten important quotes or words from the reading. Each student then receives one quote (some students may have the same quote) and is invited to “socialize” at the party. The teacher explains that the one rule, though, for the party is that the only words they are allowed to speak are the ones written down on their paper. The teacher also explains that they need to be good detectives and not only read from their paper, but listen to what others have to say and gather as much information as possible. Students then “mingle” for three or four minutes, reading their quotes aloud to their classmates. Finally, the students sit back down and the teacher compiles a list of the “gossip” from the party. The one rule is that the students may not reveal the quote that was on their own slip.

Somebody-Wanted-But-So Somebody-Wanted-But-So (examples)(examples)

Somebody Wanted But So

Anne Frank To hide from the Nazis

Someone turned her in

She died in a concentration

camp.

Adolf Hitler To control all of Europe

The Allies fought against him

He killed himself when Germany was defeated.

Christopher Columbus

To sail to India to buy spices

He ran into the Caribbean Islands

He claimed the area for Spain.

FOUR CORNERSFOUR CORNERS

The Four Corners strategy is an approach that asks students to make a decision in relation toa problem posed or a question asked. Possible responses (strongly agree, agree, disagree,strongly disagree) are placed in each of the four corners of the classroom. Students move tothe corner that best aligns with their thinking. They share their ideas within their corner andthen come to consensus. One member of each group shares the result of the discussionswith the whole class.

List-Group-LabelList-Group-Label

List/Group/Label challenges students to . . .

List key words (especially unclear and/or technical terms) from a reading selection.

Group these words into logical categories based on shared features.

Label the categories with clear descriptive titles.

List-Group-Label contd.List-Group-Label contd.Steps to List/Group/Label:

Select a main topic or concept in a reading selection. Have students list all words they think relate to this concept. Note:

Since the concept is presented without a specific context, many of the student suggestions will not reflect the meaning of the concept in the reading selection.

Divide the class into groups of 3 or 4 students. Have these teams join together related terms from the larger list. Have the teams provide "evidence" for this grouping—that is, require the students to articulate the common features or properties of the words collected in a group.

Ask the student groups to suggest a descriptive title or label for the collections of related terms. These labels should reflect the rationale behind collecting the terms in a group.

Finally, have students read the text selection carefully and then review both the general list of terms and their collections of related terms. Students should eliminate terms or groups that do not match the concept's meaning in the context of the selection. New terms from the reading should be added, when appropriate. Terms should be "sharpened" and the groupings and their labels revised, when necessary.

Jigsaw

1. Divide class into 3-4 member groups; each member becomes an expert on a different topic/concept (article) assigned by teacher.

2. Members of the teams with the same topic meet together in an expert group to explore their topic.

3. The students prepare how they will teach the information to others (S…W…B…S).

4. Everyone returns to their jigsaw teams to teach what they learned to the other members.

5. Team members listen and take notes as their classmate teaches them.

6. All students are given a quiz or exam on the overall topic which as been taught in sections within each jigsaw group.

Exit Ticket: Political CartoonExit Ticket: Political Cartoon

http://www.politicalcartoons.com/cartoon/10aa1a93-5a74-4b75-a5fb-c17d1f03d40d.html

http://www.politicalcartoons.com/cartoon/8215b459-bb38-4aa1-85ee-1fe2fd148240.html

http://www.politicalcartoons.com/cartoon/88596f2b-34db-4424-9f83-1942f78e58cc.html

CLASS NUMBER 3

Ice Breaker

Two truths and a lieExplain that in this activity each person

writes two truths and a lie about themselves and then we will try to guess each other's lie.  The goal is to: a) convince others that your lie is truth (and that one of your truths is the lie) and b) to correctly guess other people's lies.

Quote and Comment (before-reading strategy)

The teacher chooses 5-8 pictures, sentences from the reading, diagrams, equations, famous quotes, or graphs to post around the room. The students then walk around, responding with a comment, reaction, or question about each of the figures or words on the walls. The teacher can next facilitate a discussion about the items, or allow students to discuss their reactions and questions in small groups. For management reasons, the teacher will want to number each sheet and may want to post more than one of each item so students do not crowd around one paper on the wall.

Marking in Text (during-reading strategy)

As students read, they can mark in the text using a variety of different strategies. They might write questions they have as they read, highlight four main ideas, circle key vocabulary words, mark areas in which they are confused, write one key word that sums up every paragraph, or write connections they have to the text. This strategy can be adapted to best fit any text the students are reading for class.

Marking in Text symbols

While reading the article…

Where you have a question — put a ?Where you identify an important point —

put a !Where you have a connection—put a Where you identify key vocabulary terms

— put a

SAVE THE LAST WORD FOR ME(post-reading strategy)

 This activity facilitates post-reading

contemplation and reflection. It provides a framework for class

discussion of a text, either narrative or expository.

   

Save the Last Word for Me

PROCEDURE:

While reading a piece of text, students are asked to find a quote that they feel is particularly interesting or worthy of comment.

Each student writes the quotation down on an index card, making sure to include the page number and paragraph.

On the reverse side of the index card, the student writes a commentary on the quotation. He/she may also simply elaborate on it.

In class, the teacher calls on a student to read his/her quotation (only) aloud. It is helpful if the student cites the page and paragraph so that everyone can follow along.

After the quotation has been read, the teacher calls for comments and reactions from several other class members.

To conclude the discussion of this particular quotation, the teacher asks the student who chose it to read his/her commentary aloud. There can be no further discussion. The student who chose the quote gets to have the last word. Not even the teacher can interject a final comment.

Save the Last Word for Me

Variation:

This can occur in small groups once students have engaged in the activity and understand it. Students take turns sharing their quotations and monitor the discussion themselves. They may allow a certain amount of time for each student’s quotation to be discussed, for example. The leadership of the group can be assigned by the teacher, or it can pass from one student to the next as each shares his/her quotation.

Frayer Model

DEFINITION CHARACTERISTICS

EXAMPLES NON-EXAMPLES

AMERICANCULTURALNORMS

Exit Ticket

Write 1-3 sentences about what you have learned about American culture in class today.