I'm Back With Cooperative Learning Activities

Wow, it has been a full month since I last blogged.  I was really hoping to at least keep going with my Positive Fridays, but I have been so very busy.  The hour trip to work and back takes extra time from me especially when I have an inservice.  I am not complaining though as it is so worth it to work in an incredible school with amazing students, administrators, fellow teachers, office staff, custodians, etc.  Next Thursday night I will be staying for a parent after school thing, where I am in charge of helping out at child care until 7pm.

Anyway here are some cooperative learning ideas that I learned at inservices lately that will help keep your children engaged.  You can use them as formative assessments.  I will try to do another blog post with some more of these ideas in the future!

Inside Outside Circle - Divide up your class evenly.  Have half of your class get into a circle and then turn around.  The other children find a partner and face them in a circle so they are on the outside.  Call out a question from any subject or a get to know you question and have either the inside or outside give the answer.  The other side can either praise/coach their partner or add on to the answer.  Then give the other side a question.  Next call out a number and have everyone on the outside move that many partners over. For example move 3 partners.  So they would move over to the 3rd new partner!  Then do it again.  I gave mine each a lowercase letter and they had to give the name of the letter and the sound.  Share in the comments how this could be used in your classroom.

4 Corners - Put a different concept or answer on 4 different posters and put them on each corner of the wall.  Give a question that can be answered going to one of the 4 places on the wall and students move there.  I have done this by putting 4 letters on the wall and giving a word and they have to move to the correct place.  You could do it with Seasons of the Year, 4 numbers and give a math problem, cardinal directions, etc. Share in the comments your grade and how you could use this your classroom or have used it?

Commit and Toss - In this activity students write the answer to an open ended question on a piece of paper or draw it and crumble it without their name on it.  Then they toss it around at each other for a few minutes. When you tell them time is up they each pick up a paper.  Everybody stands up.  Call on one student. Anyone with that answer or close to it sits down.  Keep going until you have gone through everyone.  This is great to get background knowledge or find out if part of a lesson your students didn't quite get.  I'm trying to figure out a way to use it in Kindergarten as I have heard this is a one popular activity.  If you have an idea send it to me in the comments!

Thanks for hoppin' by Hopkins' Hoppin' Happenings.  Keep on hoppin!