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Children in Classroom

In The Classroom

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Use small and paired groups

[ACTIVE/ENGAGED/SOCIAL]

  • Incorporate small and paired student groupings to allow students to work together.

  • Provide students with tasks in which they must work together to meet goals or solve problems.

  • Encourage students to explain their thinking and understanding to each other.

  • Support the development of prosocial behaviors in students to allow for positive interactions among classroom members.

  • Explore Three Sparks for some ideas to meaningfully use small groups in your classroom.

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Collaboration, Communication

Increase students’ contributions to interactions with peers and teachers

[ACTIVE/ENGAGED/MEANINGFUL/SOCIAL]

  • Have discussions where students contribute to the conversation.

  • Teachers ask and be responsive to open-ended questions, including questions that require students to explain their understanding.

  • Explore Three Sparks to increase student contributions to lead to deeper learning experiences.

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Communication, Confidence, Critical Thinking

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Support hands-on and mind-on exploration, discovery, and inquiry

[ACTIVE/ENGAGED]

  • Add hands-on tools to activities so students can create and show their understanding.

  • Encourage students to engage in experimentation and exploration to develop and transfer their understanding to novel problems.

  • Explore Three Sparks to ignite hands-on experiences for deeper, minds-on learning.

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Confidence, Creative Innovation, Content Expertise

Give students choice and voice in their own learning

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[ACTIVE/ENGAGED/MEANINGFUL]

  • Offer students choices in the approaches they use to explore ideas and show their understanding.

  • Provide tasks with more than one solution or allow for more than one method or approach. Encourage students to find more than the first solution they reach.

  • Give individualized support and instruction to help meet students where they are.

  • Have students set goals, including developing plans and reflecting on their progress.

  • Explore Three Sparks to empower students with a voice and a choice to engage in learning.

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Confidence, Content Expertise, Creative Innovation, Critical Thinking

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Help students connect their learning to other experiences both in and out of school

[MEANINGFUL/ITERATIVE]

  • Find ways to incorporate students’ interests and connect learning to their lives inside and outside of the classroom to make learning culturally responsive.

  • Explain to students the purpose of what they are learning and how it relates to their lives. Ask them to tell you how the topic will be useful to them.

  • Revisit prior learning to help students connect their knowledge with what they are currently learning.

  • Create experiences that integrate instruction across subject and content areas.

  • Explore Three Sparks for ideas that promote meaningful connections to enhance student learning.

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Confidence, Content Expertise, Creative Innovation, Critical Thinking

Infuse enthusiasm and positivity into learning experiences

[ENGAGED/JOYFUL]

  • Model excitement for learning and discovery, including the delight of personal connections with students.

  • Provide students with opportunities to express themselves.

  • Support a love for learning by celebrating everyone’s growth, effort, and curiosity in learning, including
    your own.

  • Explore Three Sparks to ignite a sense of joy and positivity that promotes more student engagement. 

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Communication, Collaboration, Confidence, Creative Innovation

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