We’re not talking about surprising them with a pop-quiz or calling them to the front of the room unprepared. We’re talking about some out-of-the-box, interesting, and captivating things you can bring to your class tomorrow. From props and games, to open discussions and actual surprises. Here are 5 interesting ways that can help your students de-stress, get motivated, and connect with you:
Go Somewhere Nothing excites students more than getting out of the classroom. You have to understand that they’re stuck between 4 walls for the majority of the day and taking them to a different place on campus for a class discussion might be very refreshing to them. While this might be limited by many factors, take the time to consider its viability and the potential effect on your learning objectives and students.
Create a Game Whatever your subject may be, typical exams and quizzes aren’t the only way to test your student’s knowledge! Try splitting the class and test their knowledge via a game similar to Ellen’s Heads Up or even Family Feud. While there might be some logistics involved to organize this, you’d be surprised at the level of enthusiasm and engagement it gets from your students.
Introduce a Little Mystery Riddles are a great way to foster intrigue. Whenever you can, and whenever it’s feasible, take the time to present the learning questions in a form of a real-life challenge, or a riddle. Derek Bruff said it best: “Students first need to encounter a problem, or a challenge, or something mysterious. And then that provides the motivation to hear the 15-minute explanation.”
Incorporate Props and Visual Aids There’s a reason why they’re called visual ‘aids’. Words have a better chance of stimulating the learning center of the brain if you integrate and make use of visual aids or props. They help the students ‘see’ what they’re learning and greatly increases their ability to understand the material.
Invite Guest Speakers The most frequent thought on students’ minds is: “How am I going to use this in real life?” Surprise your students with a couple of guest speakers every now and then. Not only does it help shake things up in the classroom, but it also exposes them to real-world applications and life experiences. Essentially, this gives them insight into how they might use the information they learn in class for their own future.
Not every student has the same attention capacity, but all of them need to pay attention in order to learn and progress. Surprises like these, and many more, keep your students on their toes, engaged, attentive, and even curious about every single aspect of your, as well as their, class time.
What do top students do differently?
In this TEDx Talk, Douglas Barton talks about the common learning habits among top students.
Have some time to spare? Here’s a quick video that shows you how you can play the trending game of Heads Up Seven Up with your class.
