Successful Strategies
Tips and Tricks for Daily Classroom Instruction
A Shared Database of Successful Classroom Practices
as Submitted by Practicing Teachers
Browse, search, and add your own recommended strategies. The most recent additions can be found at the top of each category's list. If you find something useful, please be sure to add a rating or comment to let others know how you used the strategy and how well it worked for you.
| Title | Grade Level | Activity or Strategy Description |
|---|---|---|
| Three Statements |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
1) Give students a subject they will be studying, for example, the moon. 2) Students write down on... |
| Calendar Time | Early Childhood/Primary | Our daily calendar time included counting, writing, adding/subtracting, determining place value,... |
| SWAT |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
(1) Write vocabulary words or short-answers on the board. (2) Students can be put into teams or... |
| Sharing Problem Solutions |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Divide students into small groups (3-4). Have them work on a problem. One of them must explain the... |
| Minibooks | Middle/Junior High | Things I used it for: planets rocks and materials test over a chapter (show questions on... |
| Pre- and Post-assessment to Measure Student Learning | Intermediate | Day 1: After introducing, modeling, and offering guided practice of a new concept, I often times... |
| Vocabulary context clues using highlighters | High School | When students take vocabulary test for the week, they need to fill in the correct vocabulary word... |
| Scrambled Eggs Pippins Activity |
Middle/Junior High Intermediate |
Students work in partners and choose one egg at a time. They open the egg, solve the question on... |
| Exit Slips | Middle/Junior High | After a lesson, I give an exit slip to determine if my students 100% got it, 50% kind of got it, or... |
| Free-type | High School | I would give the students a topic (i.e. favorite vacation, dream job, etc.) at the beginning of the... |
| Gesture Drawing | High School | Look up gesture drawing and look up Kim Nicolaides. The latter is a quick drawing process that... |
| Man vs Wild: A Study of Biomes | High School | In this unit, the students are learning about a specific biome in a fun and relevant context. Most... |
| Check For Understanding |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Ask questions of class. Give 30 seconds to write answer. Count to 3, and on 3, hold up white... |
| Fishbowl | High School | This is a student-led discussion maintained by a small group. The rest of the class is not allowed... |
| Check Point |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Create 1-3 questions to assess what students should be learning (should be no longer than 1/2 sheet... |
| SMART response clickers |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
The remotes allow individual assessments in a whole group settings. It is a fun, engaging activity... |
| Notecard Activity | Intermediate | Read material aloud as a whole class group. On the notecards, write 2-3 questions for each group... |
| Ticket Out |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
To assess understanding of a lesson, gauge what the students understand without homework. During... |
| Retake Checklist |
Middle/Junior High High School |
Create a small form to attach to tests or projects to motivate the kids to take cake of the retake... |
| Karate Math |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High Early Childhood/Primary High School |
This activity is used to get students out of their desk as well as kinesthetic learning to... |
| How I Motivated My Class Performer | Intermediate | Time varies as you take moments here and there. This is about gaining the attention and focus of a... |
| End of Year Suvey | Middle/Junior High | At end of year, hand out a survey that is 3 pages long: 1 page evaluating teacher, 1 page... |
| Assignment Requirements/Guidelines |
Middle/Junior High High School |
Rubrics are not only a great way to assess student work, but a wonderful way to guide students as... |
| Exit Cards |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
At the end of class, pass out an exit card to each student. Make sure that there are 2 questions... |
| Review Challenge | High School | (1) Hand students one numbered card upon entry (cards can be numbered 1-6); numbers denote group... |
| A Conversation With... | High School | I ask the students to have a conversation with an author about a particular topic. They must write... |
| Dry Erase Board Assessment |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Ask question of all students. Wait. Students should answer individually on their own board. Wait... |
| Picture Books to Introduce a Topic |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Preview a novel or introduce a new content area topic with a picture book to build on students... |
| Title | Grade Level | Activity or Strategy Description |
|---|---|---|
| Question of the day / fad of the day | Middle/Junior High | Post a question or fun fact about the day as the students enter. They go to their seats and begin... |
| SWAT |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
(1) Write vocabulary words or short-answers on the board. (2) Students can be put into teams or... |
| Wacky Wordies |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Warm-up activity for the beginning of class. I use "wacky wordy" puzzles to get my class... |
| Expectations chart: a way to monitor behavior |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Have a discussion with the class about expectations for a specific activity, and from these will... |
| BINGO Board Behavior Activity |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
When the students did something positive, I rewarded them by spinning the BINGO numbers. If a... |
| Classroom Management | Early Childhood/Primary | Students are given 5 coins at the beginning of class. If the student is disruptive or has a... |
| Marble Reinforcement |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Put all marbles in one container. Explain to students the positive behaviors you expect in your... |
| GOTCHA |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
Students can earn "GOTCHA" dollars for different things like being ready on time, turning... |
| Shining Star Program |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
For each activity/task the student has completed, the student can receive a star if he/she behaved... |
| Weekly Self Monitor Card | Early Childhood/Primary | Cards on desks have names, Monday's date, behavior focus (i.e. Stay in your own space). The... |
| Medicine Jar | Middle/Junior High | The medicine jar is used when students have "talk-itis." The medicine jar is passed to... |
| Managing Absent Work |
Middle/Junior High Intermediate High School |
This strategy is meant to help students take responsibility for missing school work. To implement... |
| Allen strategy | Middle/Junior High | To keep students engaged and reduce classroom management issues, the following strategy is useful... |
| "Extra Chances" log book |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
At the beginning of each quarter, each student is given 3 "extra chances" for forgetting... |
| Items Around My Room |
Middle/Junior High High School |
I had my students create posterboards that had 5 classroom rules written on the posterboard. We... |
| RTI Management | Middle/Junior High | During RTI, something that worked wonderful to manage the classroom, I had several of my students... |
| Ripping Each Other Apart | Intermediate | Tape paper person to a wall. Talk about how we tear each other apart with what we say. Tear a... |
| Self-Responsibility | Intermediate | Students gave a hard time to a substitute teacher. I needed to know what happened but I didn'... |
| Daily Journaling/Peer Edit & Typing Final Draft |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
Students are required to do a daily journal entry. While certain groups are writing, it allows... |
| Power Teaching [Classroom Management] | Middle/Junior High | Teacher: "Class, class, classity!" Students: "Yes, yes, yesity!" Use this... |
| Title | Grade Level | Activity or Strategy Description |
|---|---|---|
| Seating, Materials Storage using Color-coding |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
After preparing all in advance, explain system to students--color-coded tables, individual storage... |
| "While you were gone..." binders |
High School Middle/Junior High Intermediate |
I have a designated section in the back of my room where I place the "While you were gone...... |
| Creating Productive (Band Instrumental Music) Lesson Groups | Intermediate | 5th and 6th grade band. Once you have a roster of students signed up to participate in instrumental... |
| Color Wheel Reward System |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
As an art teacher, you see each class of students one period per week. At the end of the period we... |
| Bell Work for Organizational and Discussion Purposes | High School | Write or display a question, questions, or discussion topic on the board. This usually relates to... |
| How-To's For Paraprofessionals |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Create step-by-step descriptions of computer activity used for data collection for students'... |
| Everyday Math Centers | Intermediate | Students rotate among three centers daily in math. After completing the math message and mental... |
| GOTCHA |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
Students can earn "GOTCHA" dollars for different things like being ready on time, turning... |
| Reading Goals Bulletin Board | Intermediate | Using the Accelerated Reader program, each student will set his/her own goal. The teacher will... |
| Garbage Words | Early Childhood/Primary | Start by talking about what words/type of language is hurtful and unproductive in the classroom.... |
| Caught Being Good | Early Childhood/Primary | When a students is displaying good behavior, the students get to "catch a fish." The... |
| Managing Absent Work |
Middle/Junior High Intermediate High School |
This strategy is meant to help students take responsibility for missing school work. To implement... |
| Class Envelopes | Middle/Junior High | Post class envelopes in class. These are used to keep both the teacher organized and to give to... |
| KWL |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
This strategy works well for social studies. As a group, students can discuss what they know about... |
| MLK's Dream |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
1. Choose marginalized group and/or who you will "favor." 2. Don't introduce... |
| Pencil Garden |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School Early Childhood/Primary |
Pencil Garden is a bulletin board with pencils in pockets or pouches decorated like a garden (or... |
| Wall of Winners |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
When a student wins a game or activity, rather than receiving a piece of candy or other tangible... |
| Posters | High School | Hanging posters, setting up bulletin boards, and organizing displays often happens in isolation.... |
| Emergency Sub Tub | Early Childhood/Primary | This covers 5 full days. Sometimes you are too sick to come in and set up for a sub! This tub is... |
| Organized Library |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
Each student will have their own number. When they visit the "library" (in your... |
| Morning Message/Turn to Your Partner |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
This is a morning check-in/connect with peers activity. It started out as an activity to encourage... |
| Stations | High School | The unit topic is divided into 4-5 subgroups. Each subgroup is made into an activity at a station... |
| Traveling Cart | High School | There is no set length for the activity. Depends on how much effort you want to put into it. My... |
| Absentee Folders |
Middle/Junior High High School |
When a student is absent they know to look for homework/notes/etc. in the folder. This saves a... |
| Title | Grade Level | Activity or Strategy Description |
|---|---|---|
| Vocabulary in Popular Songs |
Middle/Junior High High School |
(1) Allow students to listen to / watch song with vocabulary word(s) in it. (2) Discuss with... |
| Three Statements |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
1) Give students a subject they will be studying, for example, the moon. 2) Students write down on... |
| Calendar Time | Early Childhood/Primary | Our daily calendar time included counting, writing, adding/subtracting, determining place value,... |
| Nothing Ever Happens on 90th Street |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
Read the story "Nothing Ever Happens on 90th Street." The students observe a staff... |
| Junk Box | Middle/Junior High | Students divide into groups of 3-5. Each group is given an activity, problem to solve, object to... |
| Sharing Problem Solutions |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Divide students into small groups (3-4). Have them work on a problem. One of them must explain the... |
| Listening/Lining up: Simon Soup |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
To accomplish an orderly line-up "Don't let me trick you." Play Simon Soup boys vs... |
| Move Around Vocabulary | Intermediate | Each student receives an index card. Students get up, walk around the room, and quiz each other on... |
| Social Emotional Learning Class Meetings |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
Read "Mr. Peabody's Apples". Discuss rumors, jumping to conclusions. Put a little... |
| Snowball Fight |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Getting to know you. Have students write 3-4 things about themselves on paper. Each student... |
| Foldables - Rock Cycle |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
Introduce the rock cycle in a visual/kinesthetic way. Create a foldable (I did a five-fold for each... |
| White Boarding | High School | Assign questions from an assignment or discussion questions to small groups. Each group answers... |
| Forming opinions on genetic engineering | High School | Having them skim differing opinions on a controversial topic and have a debate. |
| Articles of Confederation Shield Activity | High School | Each student is given 5 categories with point values to vote to go on the shield. They suggest a... |
| Warm up/Bell ringer | High School | At the beginning of each class, I have a warm up displayed on the smart board. Students receive... |
| Team Work | High School | Ask for student volunteers (up to 5 works best). However many volunteers you have, you will need... |
| Independent Study |
Middle/Junior High High School |
Let students borrow old textbooks for a period. Pick a section and study it. Make a visual aid.... |
| Element Superhero | High School | Students choose an element from the periodic table. Students then created a superhero based on the... |
| Sit 'n' Stray | High School | Divide class into groups of 4. Assign each group a topic (chapter, section, etc.) to become the... |
| Louder than a Bomb! An Intro to Poetry Analysis | High School | I preface the first clip with background information about Louder Than a Bomb and I inform the... |
| Casino game | High School | Create a simple worksheet where students can keep track of a running tally. Students start with... |
| Bridging the gap between home language/first language and second language | Early Childhood/Primary | The strategy is to make a distinction between the two languages and when to use them. You usually... |
| Contraction Surgery | Early Childhood/Primary | Have the students cut apart the sentence strips and words to properly create contractions. Use the... |
| You can't battle my brain, Mr. Haynes! | Early Childhood/Primary | I would break my class into four groups. I would then draw three lines down the board vertically... |
| Weekly Reflections |
Middle/Junior High High School Intermediate |
Each week, the students filled out a weekly reflection form. The weekly reflection form prompts... |
| Group Activity |
Middle/Junior High High School |
This strategy is to have kids work in a group assigning roles to the group and I had copies in each... |
| Fantasy Football |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
Students work in four teams of 506 students each; students select fantasy football teams during the... |
| Literature Circles | Intermediate | While students are working with me either individually or in small reading group setting, my other... |
| Two Minute Talk |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Students love talking, but there are times they need to focus on working quietly. A colleague and I... |
| Perimeter | Middle/Junior High | Students use string to measure around irregular shapes, stars, tables/desks. Give handout with... |
| Scrambled Eggs Pippins Activity |
Middle/Junior High Intermediate |
Students work in partners and choose one egg at a time. They open the egg, solve the question on... |
| Five Minute Beginning Class Journal Writing |
Middle/Junior High High School |
When students enter the room, they grab their journals off the counter. Once in their seats, they... |
| Around the Room |
Middle/Junior High High School |
Set up problems around the room. I usually have about 10 problems because I have small numbers. I... |
| Snowball Fight |
Middle/Junior High High School |
Students write quiz questions for subject matter that is being studied (questions on front and... |
| Word Scrambler | High School | In groups, give students a set of words for your topic (I did matching Spanish adjectives and nouns... |
| Free-type | High School | I would give the students a topic (i.e. favorite vacation, dream job, etc.) at the beginning of the... |
| Around the Room |
Middle/Junior High High School |
Generate math problem. Cut them up, laminate them, and put them on magnets. Place them around the... |
| Picture Vocabulary |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Assign a word to each student. Go around the class and discuss each word and give the meanings.... |
| Gesture Drawing | High School | Look up gesture drawing and look up Kim Nicolaides. The latter is a quick drawing process that... |
| Man vs Wild: A Study of Biomes | High School | In this unit, the students are learning about a specific biome in a fun and relevant context. Most... |
| Marshmallow/Toothpick Activity |
Middle/Junior High High School |
This is a good activity to do when introducing group work. Students can pick their groups, but I... |
| How-To's For Paraprofessionals |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Create step-by-step descriptions of computer activity used for data collection for students'... |
| Check For Understanding |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Ask questions of class. Give 30 seconds to write answer. Count to 3, and on 3, hold up white... |
| Fishbowl | High School | This is a student-led discussion maintained by a small group. The rest of the class is not allowed... |
| Mummy Maker |
Middle/Junior High High School |
Students need to be placed into groups of 4-5. Each group will have to mummify one of their group... |
| Cartoon Vocabulary |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Utilize a book that contains cartoons to introduce vocabulary. Then, use a graphic organizer which... |
| Virtual Stock Exchange | High School | Have students research different stocks and choose a minimum of ten to invest in to diversify their... |
| Marble Reinforcement |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Put all marbles in one container. Explain to students the positive behaviors you expect in your... |
| Science Powerpoint Project | High School | Students will design a Powerpoint project on Diseases and Disorders. Students will be given time... |
| Intervention Block |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
For a half an hour a day, all new learning stops. During this intervention block, students are... |
| Everyday Math Centers | Intermediate | Students rotate among three centers daily in math. After completing the math message and mental... |
| Mystery Motivator |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
The mystery motivator is a behavior support that encourages students to earn reward cards.... |
| Writing a Persuasive Essay Conclusion | Intermediate | Begin with a quick review of the purpose and elements of a persuasive essay, restate position on... |
| GOTCHA |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
Students can earn "GOTCHA" dollars for different things like being ready on time, turning... |
| Shining Star Program |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
For each activity/task the student has completed, the student can receive a star if he/she behaved... |
| Note Passing |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
As a behavior teacher, it can be difficult to get students to trust you, and do what you ask.... |
| Interest Inventory |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
This activity should be done at the beginning of the year. This helps build relationships with... |
| Power Towers |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
This game is based off of the the popular cup stacking game. Use this game to review vocabulary... |
| Daily Five by the Two Sisters | Early Childhood/Primary | Daily five is not a curriculum, it is a management strategy for the literacy block. It provides... |
| Classroom Website |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
The use of a class website provided successes in several areas: - parent communication: classroom... |
| Caught Being Good | Early Childhood/Primary | When a students is displaying good behavior, the students get to "catch a fish." The... |
| SMART response clickers |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
The remotes allow individual assessments in a whole group settings. It is a fun, engaging activity... |
| Poetry Folders | Early Childhood/Primary | Every Monday morning, students receive a poem. In a shared reading format, the class reads the... |
| Sharing Time | Early Childhood/Primary | Have different students share each day. When they have the timer, they are the only one who can... |
| Classroom Books | Early Childhood/Primary | Create books based on children's literature, holidays, interests, etc. This strategy can be... |
| Weekly Self Monitor Card | Early Childhood/Primary | Cards on desks have names, Monday's date, behavior focus (i.e. Stay in your own space). The... |
| Think-Pair-Share | Intermediate | * Can do on any subject/topic. Example - Life cycle of a butterfly or frog. Think - Students... |
| Notecard Activity | Intermediate | Read material aloud as a whole class group. On the notecards, write 2-3 questions for each group... |
| What's Your Story? |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
Show the students an illustration and have them write a story about it. Later, students can share... |
| Town Meetings | Intermediate | 1. Have a new leader each week. 2. Check the mailbox for anonymous topics. 3. If no topics,... |
| Ticket Out |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
To assess understanding of a lesson, gauge what the students understand without homework. During... |
| Circle Graph Survey Activity | Middle/Junior High | Students will conduct a survey about a topic of their choice. They will display data by making a... |
| KWL |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
This strategy works well for social studies. As a group, students can discuss what they know about... |
| Note-taking with Competition |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Explain to students that they will be taking their own notes by making an educated guess if the... |
| Allen strategy | Middle/Junior High | To keep students engaged and reduce classroom management issues, the following strategy is useful... |
| Increasing Student Participation |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
To increase student participation, give tickets (or mints) to student who are willing to raise... |
| MLK's Dream |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
1. Choose marginalized group and/or who you will "favor." 2. Don't introduce... |
| A Trip to the Doctor's Office |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Tell students you will be dong an important game at a doctor's office. The teacher will act... |
| Egg drop |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
Each student receives an egg. The students need to create an order form of the supplies after... |
| Wall of Winners |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
When a student wins a game or activity, rather than receiving a piece of candy or other tangible... |
| Mortgage Activity | High School | Students will be split into groups of 3-4. Each group is given a notecard with their monthly... |
| Karate Math |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High Early Childhood/Primary High School |
This activity is used to get students out of their desk as well as kinesthetic learning to... |
| Math with Students | Early Childhood/Primary | When teaching math (fractions/addition/subtraction), I would always use students as representations... |
| "Caught Being Good" | Early Childhood/Primary | This strategy is meant to help you target specific behaviors that you want to extinguish or... |
| How I Motivated My Class Performer | Intermediate | Time varies as you take moments here and there. This is about gaining the attention and focus of a... |
| Daily 5 | Early Childhood/Primary | Takes 20 or so days. Takes place of centers. Students will do the Daily 5 during Guided Reading... |
| Notes Foldables |
Middle/Junior High High School |
Daily notes. Day 1: Help students put together their books and explain the organization of the... |
| Guided Math | Middle/Junior High | Takes a week of class. Guided math is a student centered learning activity where students are... |
| Hendren Helper | Middle/Junior High | Pass around during bell time. Students volunteer to sign up for a day. They are my "helper... |
| Positive Reinforcement/Incentive Program | Middle/Junior High | Tickets are given to students for good behavior, participation, good test and quiz grades, etc.... |
| Math Journal (daily) | Middle/Junior High | At the beginning of every class, students get their math journals. The teacher should have the... |
| Journal | Middle/Junior High | Give students different topics that range in subject matter. It reveals a lot of information about... |
| Beanie Baby Emotions/Circle Up |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
I have a number of beanie babies throughout my classroom. If my students are having a rough day,... |
| Making Ice Cream | Intermediate | This activity is designed as a fun way to incorporate measurement and cooking in the classroom.... |
| The Presidents | Intermediate | Students will work in groups of fours to research and present the information to the class via... |
| Daily Journaling/Peer Edit & Typing Final Draft |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
Students are required to do a daily journal entry. While certain groups are writing, it allows... |
| Motivational Strategy/Differentiation | Middle/Junior High | The students enjoyed being teacher or lead student. During social studies, math, and science, I... |
| Conscious Discipline by Dr. Becky Bailey | Intermediate | I taught my students skills presented in this book such as breathing techniques for stress relief,... |
| Conflict Resolution Kit |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
The kit is hung somewhere in the room. When two students have a conflict the teacher directs the... |
| Question/Answer Relationship |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
Right there, think and search, author and me, on my own (red A, yellow B, white C, green D). This... |
| Blah, Blah, Blah (Journaling) |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
What started as a once-a-week activity to practice the use of spelling words for my students has... |
| Daily Oral Language | Early Childhood/Primary | ...and throughout the day. There is an incorrect sentence or praragraph on the board. I ask the... |
| Morning Message/Turn to Your Partner |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
This is a morning check-in/connect with peers activity. It started out as an activity to encourage... |
| Squeeze 'n' Reads |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
Choose a read skill to focus on and pull the foam shape that coordinates with skill. Students hold... |
| Scholastic Bowl Review Game |
Middle/Junior High High School |
Set class up in two teams. Keep score until all questions have been answered/reviewed/discussed.... |
| Stations | High School | The unit topic is divided into 4-5 subgroups. Each subgroup is made into an activity at a station... |
| Categorize by a Statement |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
In helping a student create a research paper, assist the student in topics that he would like to... |
| Post It | High School | Present a question to the students at the very end of class. The question should be able to be... |
| Baseball Stats | High School | LESSON IDEA: Baseball/football stats online -- for bellringer they look up win/losses for the... |
| Music in the Classroom | High School | Teach content material and apply it to music. U.S. Government -- political songs used to describe... |
| Dry Erase Board Assessment |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Ask question of all students. Wait. Students should answer individually on their own board. Wait... |
| Reviewing Material | High School | Break students into groups or individually: (1) Ask a question; if answered correctly, give a... |
| Life Skills Notebook |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Create a pre-skill prediction list (what do you think you will have to do; list predicted steps);... |
| Quote of the Day |
Middle/Junior High High School |
Write quote and have students copy it. Discuss the quote and relate it to your lesson. |
| Think Dots |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
On a piece of paper, create review questions that correspond with each # on a die. In small groups... |
| "Newton" Stations |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
I set up laptops around my room with the videos pre-loaded on them. The students watch the videos... |
| Password |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Assign students into pairs. Desks facing each other. Words listed down left side of 8 1/2 x11... |
| Picture Books to Introduce a Topic |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Preview a novel or introduce a new content area topic with a picture book to build on students... |
| Title | Grade Level | Activity or Strategy Description |
|---|---|---|
| Nothing Ever Happens on 90th Street |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
Read the story "Nothing Ever Happens on 90th Street." The students observe a staff... |
| SWAT |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
(1) Write vocabulary words or short-answers on the board. (2) Students can be put into teams or... |
| Foldables - Rock Cycle |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
Introduce the rock cycle in a visual/kinesthetic way. Create a foldable (I did a five-fold for each... |
| Vocabulary context clues using highlighters | High School | When students take vocabulary test for the week, they need to fill in the correct vocabulary word... |
| Social Skills | High School | I would keep the school social worker up to date with what was going on with my students. From... |
| Bridging the gap between home language/first language and second language | Early Childhood/Primary | The strategy is to make a distinction between the two languages and when to use them. You usually... |
| Weekly Reflections |
Middle/Junior High High School Intermediate |
Each week, the students filled out a weekly reflection form. The weekly reflection form prompts... |
| Use Shared Docs to Your Advantage |
Middle/Junior High High School |
Use Google doc's to share information about kids with special or differentiation needs.... |
| Around the Room |
Middle/Junior High High School |
Set up problems around the room. I usually have about 10 problems because I have small numbers. I... |
| Picture Vocabulary |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Assign a word to each student. Go around the class and discuss each word and give the meanings.... |
| Gesture Drawing | High School | Look up gesture drawing and look up Kim Nicolaides. The latter is a quick drawing process that... |
| How-To's For Paraprofessionals |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Create step-by-step descriptions of computer activity used for data collection for students'... |
| Fishbowl | High School | This is a student-led discussion maintained by a small group. The rest of the class is not allowed... |
| Everyday Math Centers | Intermediate | Students rotate among three centers daily in math. After completing the math message and mental... |
| Note Passing |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
As a behavior teacher, it can be difficult to get students to trust you, and do what you ask.... |
| SMART response clickers |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
The remotes allow individual assessments in a whole group settings. It is a fun, engaging activity... |
| Notecard Activity | Intermediate | Read material aloud as a whole class group. On the notecards, write 2-3 questions for each group... |
| KWL |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
This strategy works well for social studies. As a group, students can discuss what they know about... |
| Increasing Student Participation |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
To increase student participation, give tickets (or mints) to student who are willing to raise... |
| MLK's Dream |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
1. Choose marginalized group and/or who you will "favor." 2. Don't introduce... |
| A Trip to the Doctor's Office |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Tell students you will be dong an important game at a doctor's office. The teacher will act... |
| Karate Math |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High Early Childhood/Primary High School |
This activity is used to get students out of their desk as well as kinesthetic learning to... |
| Daily Journaling/Peer Edit & Typing Final Draft |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
Students are required to do a daily journal entry. While certain groups are writing, it allows... |
| Motivational Strategy/Differentiation | Middle/Junior High | The students enjoyed being teacher or lead student. During social studies, math, and science, I... |
| Conscious Discipline by Dr. Becky Bailey | Intermediate | I taught my students skills presented in this book such as breathing techniques for stress relief,... |
| Question/Answer Relationship |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
Right there, think and search, author and me, on my own (red A, yellow B, white C, green D). This... |
| Morning Message/Turn to Your Partner |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
This is a morning check-in/connect with peers activity. It started out as an activity to encourage... |
| Scholastic Bowl Review Game |
Middle/Junior High High School |
Set class up in two teams. Keep score until all questions have been answered/reviewed/discussed.... |
| Lit Circles to Graphic Novels | High School | Takes 3-4 weeks. Students choose novels and work in small groups based on the same novels.... |
| Title | Grade Level | Activity or Strategy Description |
|---|---|---|
| Family Interaction |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High |
This binder becomes the students' daily take home folder which possesses all of the important... |
| Title | Grade Level | Activity or Strategy Description |
|---|---|---|
| Note Passing |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
As a behavior teacher, it can be difficult to get students to trust you, and do what you ask.... |
| Title | Grade Level | Activity or Strategy Description |
|---|---|---|
| How-To's For Paraprofessionals |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
Create step-by-step descriptions of computer activity used for data collection for students'... |
| Science Powerpoint Project | High School | Students will design a Powerpoint project on Diseases and Disorders. Students will be given time... |
| Everyday Math Centers | Intermediate | Students rotate among three centers daily in math. After completing the math message and mental... |
| Note Passing |
Intermediate Middle/Junior High High School |
As a behavior teacher, it can be difficult to get students to trust you, and do what you ask.... |
| Classroom Website |
Early Childhood/Primary Intermediate |
The use of a class website provided successes in several areas: - parent communication: classroom... |
| Weekly Self Monitor Card | Early Childhood/Primary | Cards on desks have names, Monday's date, behavior focus (i.e. Stay in your own space). The... |