“ ARE YOU WITH ME SO FAR?”: STRATEGIES FOR CHECKING FOR UNDERSTANDING

“ARE YOU WITH ME SO FAR?”:STRATEGIES FOR CHECKING FOR UNDERSTANDING Presented by Marianne Kenney Secondary Social Studies Instructional Specialist April 13, 2009

By the end of this session we will : • Be able to walk away with a variety of strategies to check for student understanding without always using paper and pencil. • Have participated in strategies for instant feedback to check for understanding or misunderstanding.

Think Individually, think silently for 15 seconds… “Why is formative assessment important?”

Think-Pair-Share With your shoulder partner, Share your ideas for 30 seconds each OR one minute total.

In Three Words Please define: Pearl Harbor Be precise and concise Think of words that capture a great deal of meaning Have fun!

Body Match Choose a green or pink card Find your partner Are you with me so far? How would you use….?

Body Match Review Students are given cards with a term, description, picture related to concept; an analogy with response; problem and solution; historical event…. Move around classroom to match their card with the correct response (body). Once all matched, rest of the class assesses each with thumbs up or thumbs down and teacher poses questions Are youwith me on this?

Clothesline A statement is announced and students take a stand on an imaginary line which stretches from one end of the room to the other Students line up without talking Students listen to similar points of view (those standing next to them in line) Value line is folded, and then they play “Talking Chips” or another communication skill structure. Examples: Agree/Disagree/which would you rather be/birthdays/heights/alphabetical order Ideas for my class?

Valuesline Social Studies examples: The killing of innocents is never justified The United States made the correct decision in dropping the bomb on Nagasaki. The bombing of Dresden was an act of terrorism.

Talking Chips Each student has one “talking chip.” Students place their chip in the center of the team table each time they talk. Students can speak in any order, but cannot speak a second time until all chips are in the center. When all the chips have been placed (everyone has spoken), the chips are all collected and anyone in any order can speak again. When groups complete task they high 5. Ideas for my class?

Send a Problem In your newly formed groups, brainstorm a good caption for the cartoon taped to the envelope. The cartoon deals with the environment or globalization. Once you reach consensus write your answer on the index card and place it inside the envelope. The envelope is then passed clockwise to the next group. Each group brainstorms for 3 minutes on the cartoon they receive without reading the previous group's work and then place their solutions inside the folders. This process continues until all four groups have made their guesses.

And the answer is…. Cartoon A: Toxic Waste “Don’t tell me where to put it. Just so long as you get rid of it.” Cartoon C: Smokestacks “One day all this will be outsourced.”

Send a Problem How could you use this strategy in your classroom?

White Board Numbered Heads Together Staying in your same group number off by 1, 2, 3, 4. . If one group is smaller than the others have no. 3 answer for no. 4 as well. Put your “heads together” and write the letter of the answer on the white board for the questions that follow. I will ask for an answer by calling a number. The students with the number called holds up the white board. Ready?....

White Board Explain what the following people, places or events have in common. Napoleon Bonaparte Adolf Hitler Mao Tse-Tung Saparurat Niyazov Kim Jong Il Saddam Hussein

And the answer is…. All of these are leaders who have used propaganda and the media to create cult of personalities, to gain or maintain power.

White Board Explain what the following people, places or events have in common. The requirement that South African blacks carry passes. The encomienda system in colonial Latin America. Ukrainian collectives under Josef Stalin. Mao’s Cultural Revolution in China.

And the answer is… All are ways that one group ( a minority) dominated and/or subjugated another group (the masses) in order to keep control and power.

White Board Explain what the following people, places or events have in common. The Hutu and Tutsi after the Rwandan genocide. The Union and Confederacy after the American Civil War. East and West Germany after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Serbs and Croats after Slobodan Milosevic. Red and Blue states after the 2000 election.

And the answer is… These time periods all demonstrate the difficulties involved in reuniting after a bitter conflict because of long-standing hatred, mistrust or abuse.

Showdown Teacher reads a question Students write answer on white boards making sure no one else sees their answer. Teacher announces “Show Down.” Students compare answers and make sure everyone in the group has the right answer.

Showdown Explain what the following people, places or events have in common. Kashmir Palestine Tibet Former Yugoslavia

Showdown In all these places, long-standing conflicts occurred over land with strong cultural, ethnic and/or religious meaning.

Showdown Explain what the following people, places or events have in common. The Byzantine Empire Mesopotamia Ancient Rome Ancient Greece Egypt Jamestown

Showdown These are all examples that demonstrate how geographic location and advantage can contribute to the success and longevity of a civilization.

Give One, Get One • Using the graphic organizer, choose one strategy and “paraphrase”/write down in your own words what it is. Then give one pro and one con for its use. • 1. Give One/Get One: Walk around the room to fill in a graphic organizer. Give one answer and get one in return. • Pro: reinforces/clarifies learning and provides socialization • Con: time, organization • With me?

Give One, Get One How could you use this strategy in your classroom?

Think Pad So far today…. Which strategy was new to you?

Ticket to Leave • What one strategy will I try tomorrow? • How will I use it? • Questions I still have?

“Are you with me so far?” Thank you!

“ ARE YOU WITH ME SO FAR?”: STRATEGIES FOR CHECKING FOR UNDERSTANDING