Techniques Video Library

Students look for recent events or developments in the real world that are related to their coursework, then analyze these current affairs to identify the connections to course material in entries that they write in a journal.

In Jigsaw, students work in small groups to develop knowledge about a given topic before teaching what they have learned to another group.  

In Group Grid, group members are given pieces of information and asked to place them in the blank cells of a grid according to category rubrics, which helps them clarify conceptual categories and develop sorting skills.

Team Jeopardy is a game in which student teams take turns selecting a square from a grid that is organized vertically by category and horizontally by difficulty. Each square shows the number of points the team can earn if they answer a question correctly, and more challenging questions have the potential to earn more points. Download example slides here: Google

A Role Play is a created situation in which students deliberately act out or assume characters or identities they would not normally assume.

A Triple-Jump is a three-step technique that requires students to think through and attempt to solve a real-world problem.

In Variations, students create an altered version of the original, such as rewriting the ending of a story or imagining the consequences of a changed event in history.

A Frame is a template of sentence stems that provides the shape of a short essay, but not the content. Students complete the sentences, expressing their ideas in their own words, but doing so within a clear and organized framework.

In Letters, students assume the identity of an important person in your discipline and write a letter explaining their thoughts on an issue, theory, or controversy to another famous person who holds a different perspective.

In a Think-Pair-Share, the instructor poses a question, gives students a few minutes to think about a response, and then asks students to share their ideas with a partner. Hence Think-Pair-Share.

In Think-Aloud-Pair Problem Solving (or TAPPS for short), students take turns solving problems aloud while a peer listens and provides feedback.