Adding 'Fun'
It took me several years to find ways to add interest to some of my classes that contain 'less than exciting' content. Business Writing has been more difficult than Interpersonal Relations when it comes to finding engaging interactive activities. It took time to find little side exercises and things that students enjoy.
Hi Reid,
I hear you. I have double your years (30) and each course phase I am adding new things to improve the courses as well as keep my excitement high for the course.
Gary
I am finding the same problem with the technical information in Radiology. I am looking for ways to make it more fun.
After 15 years I am still trying to add and alter fun and interesting activities that faciliate learning. It is a never ending project.
Hi Laura,
Good to hear. Isn't it fun? I enjoy playing it as much as the students. We really get into it. I let different student teams come up with the questions so we constantly have a new bank of questions for the game.
Gary
I like these ideas. Too, when I must write examples on the board for grammar discussions, I'll try to work in something funny a student said earlier in class.
Gary,
I also use Jeopardy in my classes as it is a great way to review the content of the unit as well as help the students assess their knowledge of the subject.
Laura
Hi Jim,
That is what pacing is all about in a class and you are doing a good job of it. Students do need that change of pace after 15/20 minutes of lecture. There are a number of ways of doing this and it sounds like you are offering your students such variety.
Gary
adding "fun" to the class is paramount. today's students do not like to be lectured to and they want to see a purpose and application for the lectuce. If I am lecturing a class I like to stop every 15/20 minutes and have the students paraphase what has been covered so far. I follow that up with questions on how it relates to todays learning objective.
Hi Marien,
I use team competitions to quiz and review content with my students. Also, I have had great success with the Jeopardy game format. It is one of my students' favorites. I have more information about the Jeopardy game format if you are interested. Just let me know and I will follow up with you.
Gary
I'm still working on adding the fun side to my classes. I teach basic math, pre-algebra, algebra and topics of mathematical reasoning. I have been trying making games with cards. The students will pick one and explain the excercies to the other students on the board and that help them a lot to retain the information. Also divide the class in groups and work on different excercies. However,if you guys have any idea, please let me know.
Thanks,
Marien
Hi Dennis,
Thank you for sharing these strategies with us. These are all good ideas for helping to make a course that doesn't have the glamour that some of the other courses have but is essential for student success as they progress in their careers.
Gary
I ,too, continue to explore the fun parts of a class in foundations of writing -- not a barrel of laughs! The curriculum reviews basic grammar,and an applies various writing skills and rhetorical patterns building from paragraph to essay. Group competion games and puzzles seem to lighten the atmosphere. We also speed through a difficult lesson, by dividing the material between groups of students -- chunking down the material-- so each group has a piece of the whole lesson. The activies are timed to speed things along. A "game show" format with good natured competition also succeeds when identifing simple concepts through practice and repetition is needed to build recall.
Hi Breanna,
I do teach Business Writing in a face-to-face program for adult learners. I have developed all kinds of fun and interactive activities that seem to grow each time I teach.
For example, in the memo writing activity I have a real memo that was sent that is truly awful. It has so many mistakes on it! I have learners break into little groups to discuss the memo and things that are good about it and things that are not good. The topic of the memo is comical, too.
One of the assignments for the next class will be to draft an effective memo for their own work environment.
The next week we will peer review the memos each wrote; and then they are turned in to me. The peer reviewer must also put their name on the assignment.
I am always willing to share some of my techniques with others, too!
