Student Engagement Activities Toolbox
Blow are some links to student engagement activities that students will be participating in as a class.
Presentation Strategies:
Storyboard - Students draw pictures of important events from lectures and stories talk about in class. It is a great activity to see what parts of the main idea students grasp as well as seeing how students interpret events. Students will be given a template where they will draw images that describe an event. They will then add notes and describe the event using their own words Political Cartoons - Students analyze the political cartoons from the eras in history. Political cartoons offer an interesting perspective on events that happened in the past. Political cartoons illustrate many events and topics that are part of an era. Sometimes they're propaganda, most of the time they're providing a commentary on social and political aspects of society. Political cartoons encourage students to use a critical eye when analyzing the message behind political cartoons. They're great for English Language Learners, too. Political cartoons are also a great primary source. Communication Strategies: Blog - Blogging allows for student-to-teacher interaction that also teaches students how to properly compose emails that will help them learn skills they can take into the real-world. Students will respond to questions given to the class that relate to the topic of the days class or to a lesson unit. Students will answer teacher questions, give their opinion on a subject, and also ask questions. This is also a great way to have a one-on-one dialogue with the student. A great strategy to engage students in 21st technology. Jigsaw Reading - - Students will be placed into groups and be asked to research a certain event or topic. The teacher will ask students to read out of their textbooks, and from primary sources. The reading will be dissected into parts for all the students in the group (3-4 students = 3-4 reading parts). Students will be experts in the area that they're reading. Once students are done reading they will share their findings with the group and together the students will discuss the meaning of text, as well as answer questions that pertain to the assignmentThink-Write-Pair-Share - Students will be given a question or prompt regarding an assignment or topic in class. They will take about two minutes to write their response. They will then find a partner and compare responses. Students will then share their comparisons with class. This strategy provides students the opportunity to write down their thoughts, share them with a classmate, here another perspective, and compare that to her or his. This a great way for students to understand different points of view of a subject or topic Organization Strategy: Foldables - Students will take a topic or subject and create a foldable that explains, or describes, a person or event. Foldable work similar to a graphic organizer and Storyboard. Students will research the writings of Abraham Lincoln, put his speeches in chronological order, and draw pictures that describes the event. The foldable will be a group project where groups will do a "jigsaw" reading, and then come together to discuss the information they've read, and teach it to their group. Groups will then put a foldable that will have illustrations describing the events. The foldable is a great study aid as well. Graphic Organizer- Organization tool that provides a visual way to represent a topic or idea. One topic is introduced and students will make connections to the topic depending on how it relates to the assignment. Students may be ask to create graphic organizer on Abraham Lincoln and how his presidency influenced southern secession. A great tool for ELL's, and indeed, all students. See example of graphic organizer to the right. Collection: Webquest- Students will be given an assignment using the web. Students will asked questions about a subject or topic. Questions will be provided as well as the web address where the answers can be found. Students will have to go online and retrieve the information to answer questions. The purpose of the assignment is for students to engage the learning material as well as evaluate the information by examining secondary sources on the internet. Document Analysis - Students will engage in analyzing and evaluating historical documents. Students will discuss how historians might interpret history by asking the questions, "Who, what when where, and why?". This exercise allows students to determine whether or not there are any biases in the material presented. Students will investigate the meaning of text, develop critical-thinking skills when read, and evaluate the source of the text. |
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