During a lesson students should have LOTS of opportunities to respond by saying, writing and doing! And by lots, I mean 3-5 OTRs per minute for simple responses (verbal or gestural) and 1 OTR per minute when the OTR is more complex (think solving a multi-step math problem) (MacSuga-Gage & Simonsen, 2015).
In my previous post, I shared FIVE ways students could engage with content in a verbal way. And, today I am here to give you FIVE additional ways students can "say something" while they are learning.
1. Partner Response
- Assign partners to students (Tip--pair a low performing student with an on grade level student).
- Give partners a number (1, or 2) and have them sit next to one another
- Teach students how to dialogue with a partner by looking, leaning and whispering. Determine if partner 1 or partner 2 will respond first.
- Use this strategy when answers are long, different or require higher order thinking.
- Example:
- Think: Teacher asks students a question (i.e. what might be an an alternative solution to this problem? )
- Students think about what they know.
- Partner: Each student gets with pre-assigned partner
- Share: Students share their thinking with their partner. Teacher expands the share into a whole class discussion.
2. Think-write-pair-share
- This is VERY similar to think, pair share, but with the addition of a written step. The teacher asks all students the same question, gives wait time to think, gives time for students to write a written response, and then students pair up and share their responses with a partner.
- Example:
- Think: Teacher asks students a question (i.e. would you want to be friends with the main character in the book? )
- Students think about what they know.
- Write: Students write their thoughts on paper.
- Pair: Each student gets with a partner
- Share: Students share their thinking with their partner. Teacher expands the share into a whole class discussion.
If you find yourself saying, "pick a partner," and kids inevitably choose the same person (aka their best friend)....then it is time to find a better way to pair students up! Check out the Student Pairing pack which has thirty ways to pair students in a quick and organized fashion!
Some of the ways include: speed dialers, clock pals, app friends, color buddies, states, regions, famous couples, etc.!
3. Quartet Quiz
- This technique was developed by Carol Ann Tomlinson in order to check the understanding of the whole class while creating small and large group processing
- Example:
- The teacher poses a question about the content being learned.
- Students think about their answer to the question.
- Students meet in quads to share their answer and create
- "We know" statements
- "We wonder" questions
- The teacher records the we know responses on the board and corrects any misconceptions
- The teacher keeps recording until all answers are recorded
- The teacher records the "we wonder" statements next to the "we know" statements that might relate. There may be no relationship, and that is okay.
- The class discusses the "we wonder" statements
- The class develops a closure/clarification/summary statement.
4. Think, Turn & Talk
- This is VERY similar to think, pair share, but instead of randomly finding a partner you turn and talk with peers in close proximity. The teacher asks all students the same question, gives wait time to think, and then students turn and talk about their thoughts with a partner.
- Example:
- Think: Teacher asks students a question (i.e. would you want to be friends with the main character in the book? )
- Students think about what they know
- Turn to a peer close by
- Talk: Students share their thoughts with their partner. Teacher expands the talk into a whole class discussion.
5. Inside, Outside Circle
- Inside-Outside Circle is a great technique to help students develop communication skills as they process or review taught information. It is also a wonderful opportunity for students to interact with a variety of peers. Checkout the video below from Teacher Toolkit!
- Example:
- Students will form two equal circles.
- Half of the group stands in a circle facing out, and the other half faces in.
- The teacher provides a question with differing answers to the students.
- With a signal from the teacher, the inside circle tells the person directly across from them (in the outside circle) their response.
- The outside circle responds to the inside circle and then shares their response.
- The teacher has one group (inside OR outside) circle rotate a space or two, and a new question is given.
If you are looking for more structures to add to your classroom, check out the Teacher Toolkit! Their website has tons of structures complete videos and adaptations!
