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Just Ask Us
- Grade Level: PreK-12
- ISBN: 9781506363288
- Published By: Corwin
- Series: Corwin Teaching Essentials
- Year: 2017
- Page Count: 256
- Publication date: October 26, 2017
Price: $39.95
For Instructors
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Description
Use these 10 strategies to teach and communicate content that sticks!
Students learn best when collaborating, talking, and working with their peers. That’s what Edutopia blogger and education expert Heather Wolpert-Gawron discovered when she surveyed students nationwide. Now you can hear from the students themselves and discover 10 comprehensive and fresh ideas on precisely what and how to capture your students’ imagination and minds for deep learning,
This research-based approach to cooperative learning provides plentiful lesson ideas, vignettes, videos, and insightful student interviews to help you:
- Understand the research base for collaborative learning
- Implement and manage competitively cooperative student
work group - Incorporate movement, visual tools, and technology
- Develop achievement-based PBL projects
- Conduct your own student survey for increased student choice
Move beyond just teaching content. Build a strong classroom community where students chew on, process, mull over, and retain information
Key features
- A copy of the survey so that teachers can give the survey to their own classes
- Voices from students about what engages them
- Vignettes from teachers who model these high-engagement strategies
- Lesson ideas from across discipline areas
- Video interviews with students
- Videos of the author & a couple other teachers modeling each engagement strategy
Author(s)
Heather Wolpert-Gawron
Table of Contents
Foreword
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Introduction
The Importance of Student Engagement
Pedagogy Versus Personality
An Argument: What Engages Teachers Also Engages Students
A Brief Note on Brain Research and Student Engagement
The Engagement Survey Process
How Is This Book Different From Others?
Student Engagement Survey
1. Let Us Work Together
Overview
Setting Up Group Work for Success
Competitive Learning Can Still Be Collaborative Learning
An Awesome Byproduct: Stronger Classroom Community
What Collaboration Looks Like in the Classroom
Engaging Teacher Spotlight
Discussion Questions
2. Make Learning More Visual and Utilize Technology
Overview
This Is Our Brain on Visuals
Learning Through Visuals
The One Visual Tool to Rule Them All: Technology
What Using More Visuals (and Technology) Looks Like in the Classroom
Engaging Teacher Spotlight
Discussion Questions
3. Connect What We Learn to the Real World
Overview
PBL Isn’t Just About Engagement; It’s Also About Achievement
Breaking Down the Parts of PBL
Finding an Authentic Goal for Your PBL Unit
What Meaningful Learning Looks Like in the Classroom
Engaging Teacher Spotlight
Discussion Questions
4. Let Us Move Around
Overview
What More Movement Looks Like in the Classroom
Engaging Teacher Spotlight
Discussion Questions
5. Give Us Choices
Overview
The Academic Benefits of Student Choice
Keeping Structure While Giving Freedom
What Giving Student Choice Looks Like in the Classroom
Engaging Teacher Spotlight
Discussion Questions
6. Show Us You’re Human Too
Overview
Unabashedly Show That You Care About the Content
Unabashedly Show That You Care About the Students
The Power of Humor in the Classroom
Using Personal Stories as a Tool for Engagement
Being Fallible to Help Students Understand Learning
What Being More Human Looks Like in the Classroom
Engaging Teacher Spotlight
Discussion Questions
7. Help Us Create Something With What We’ve Learned
Overview
Consumption Versus Creation
Creating and Making in Every Subject Area
Creation and the Role of Technology
What Creation Looks Like in the Classroom
Engaging Teacher Spotlight
Discussion Questions
8. Teach Us Something New in a New Way
Overview
The Detrimental Practice of Overreviewing
Stepping Out of Our Wheelhouse to Model Learning
What Opening Eyes to New Concepts Looks Like in the Classroom
Engaging Teacher Spotlight
Discussion Questions
9. Mix Things Up
Overview
Learning Styles Versus Multiple Intelligences
What Mixing Up Our Implementation Looks Like in the Classroom
Engaging Teacher Spotlight
Conclusion
It’s Hard to Be Engaging
What to Expect When You Adopt These Strategies
References
Index
Reviews
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Janelle McLaughlin, Educational Consultant"Heather Wolpert-Gawron meshes her teaching experience with extensive student feedback to offer sage advice and a clear argument as to the importance of increased student engagement in their learning environments. She provides practical application that will help teachers everywhere up their game in providing students the right foundation for deeper connections to their learning."
Innovative Education Solutions, Manchester, IN
Julie Frederick, Nationally Board Certified Kindergarten Teacher"Just Ask Us: Kids Speak Out on Student Engagement is not only a quality read, but also a fresh perspective beyond just providing interesting lessons. It clearly states that student engagement is directly connected to academic content and outcomes."
Broadview Thomson K-8, Seattle WA
Patrick Pergola, 7th Grade Science Teacher"Any teacher who ever wanted to poll students about what works best for them when learning, and really using the data received to help students, should read this book. The research behind WHY the ideas presented work, and the practical strategies suggested are also great bonuses."
Sparta Middle School, Sparta, NJ
Mary Ann Burke, Ed.D., Author, Trainer, and Co-Founder"Just Ask Us: Kids Speak Out on Student Engagement is an outstanding resource manual for teachers to increase student engagement. Each chapter includes extensive quotes from students that support researched-based best practices. Diagrams and photos of student work illustrate how students can effectively work together and use more visually stimulated methods to connect their learning to real world applications."
Generational Parenting Blog at GenParenting.com, San Jose, CA
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