Activities for classes
What is a good way to get the students involved with hands on activities for classes that are more lectured based?
Hi Kelli,
Visual is such an exciting way to learn. Great clarity is added from visuals. Some of our students are so creative/intelligent, they can put you in awe with their creativity. What a great way to learn!!
Patricia
I have recently discovered a group of students who love to draw. The first activity I assigned was for each student to illustrate as many answers to the challenge questions at the end of the chapter. Because this is a science/physics class, the answers could be presented this way. They LOVED this assignment and put alot of effort into their drawings. Certain students even improved in their test scores. So I purchased a couple of 11 x 14 inch white boards and a variety pack of markers to experiment with next. I split the class into groups and had the students take turns drawing concepts from the chapter to the other students in their group. The observers would "guess" the concept and add to the picture to clarify if needed. WOW, they visually explained concepts in ways I never thought of, which helped those students who were struggling with my instruction.
I teach a content course - sociology - which can be done as all lecture, if I don't mind being a talking head and boring my students to sleep. I have developed a few group activities that are a little different. One I like that gets students up and moving about is to match concept statements with the relevant theory. I have several concept statements on slips of paper that I distribute randomly to groups. Then the groups have to work together to put the concept with the correct theory. Students generally have a lot of fun with this one, and they are very supportive of each other.
I have done extensive research online and have gotten a lot of exercises that relate to at least one major topic covered in the chapter(s) covered for each class. The exercices are fun and apply directly to the course content and also make the subject matter more understandable. An example of this is an exercise I give students where they are asked to cirle numbers beginning with "1" in numerical order. The numbers are strategically placed on the paper but the students don't know that. They appear to be randomly placed on the paper. The subject matter for the discussion is "scientific management". Once they attempt the exercise each student announces the last number they have circled. I inform them that the numbers are strategically placed on the sheet of paper and give them the clue to how they are placed on the paper. Once they know that, they are able to cirle more numbers the second time they attempt the exercise. We then discuss the concept of scientific management and how we applied this concept to the exercise.
Hi Geneva-Marie,
Super exercise! This certainly add a lot of excitement to a class that was considered boring. Instructors must be very creative with their teaching methods to make course material exciting to learn.
Patricia
Hello,
I recently began teaching a human relations course. In the past I have overheard many students complaining about how boring this class is. So I decided to switch things up a bit. Each class students participate in a different activity while I am lecturing. For example one class we set up a non verbal communication circle. All of the desks in the room were set in a circle before students arrived to class. Each student was given a particular role to play. Some people were designated winkers others were just innocent bystanders. All students were given a flag. The object of the game was for the "winker" to randomly wink at different students. Once the student was winked at they were very discretely eliminated, this was shown by them removing their flag from display. If a student felt as if they could identify who the winker was they would raise their hand and say the name if the unsub. if they were correct they received a prize. The kicker here is that they must pay attention to the cues given in the non verbal communication circle to identify the culprit as well as take notes on my lecture. If the failed to be up to speed on their notes they were eliminated as well.
Hi Leslie,
Create hands-on activity based on the various concepts covered. You can be creative and create your own or google applicable hands-on activities.
Patricia
Hi Aundrea,
You are right, students do not want to be read to. They are many instructors that are frowned upon because of reading to students. I tell my instructors to take notes from the chapter and present their lectures from their note taking, but make the lecture real natural. Guided notes work really well also.
Patricia
I could really get creative with this approach, though I have a group of students that just don't want to read or be read to. This approach can sort of force them to be involved with a part of learning that's necessary regardless of whether they like it or not, and maybe add a little interest when it's not directly from the instructor.
I like to assign parts of the chapter that I was gonig to lecture on to students. make groups and give them an hour and have the students teach each other. I use this for boring or dull related lectures that I know the students would normally sleep through. Good luck!
