I use wordsearch and crossword puzzles often and have a couple online sites that will construct them instead of me having to do it. I noticed the younger students (freshly out of high school)prefer the word searches; whereas, the older students find the crossword puzzles more challenging.
You have realized the value of activities, and your learners will appreciate it.
Any activity during a course provides the instructor with a formative assessment. The instructor can then gauge the learning of each student on a individual basis. A good instructor then can use the formative assessments during the course to change the teaching style and content during the course. It is best not to wait until the course is over and a new class begins to change.
Wholesome competition is a motivator of adults, as you have seen.
The students get very competitive when doing class activites for extra credit. I use crossword puzzles and hangman in the class.
they certainly help to memorize and retain
Brandy, crossword puzzles make great quizzes. They are not usually as intimidating as a test.
I really enjoy using crossword puzzle in all of the classes I teach, especially medical terminology. The difficulty I have, however, is getting some students motivated to complete the activity. So, often times, I will make it a quiz. This is an excellent way to break up the multiple-choice monotony and still provide beneficial feedback.
I frequently use crosswords and word searches in many of my classes. The students have reported that it does help them to remember terms and the correlating definitions. I used this when teaching med term and I've also used it for other courses using their "vocab" words. I really enjoy them, and occasionally will offer extra credit points for students who will create a crossword or word search to share with their peers.
This is a way to gain ownership and buy in by the students.
ask the students at the end of course completion what benefited them most
The activity that I like to use in my class is crossword puzzles. I think anytime my student's have to look up an answer it helps them retaint it.
Crossword puzzles appeal to people who like to problem solve. That is a good skill to have in most professions, so you are encouraging more than just terminology.
Sometimes various course activites force students to look up answers and initiate questions that they might not thought of before the activity.
The activity i find interactive in my class is the crossword puzzle. i have been using that for awhile now. i also use medical terminology spelling bees. The CD in the textbook have wonderful games and students love a competition.
Students that are having difficulty remembering the concepts that you have lectured about in class can actually reflect and review the concepts using these activities.
These extra activities can be the great time equalizer while reinforcing content.
I have learned from this lesson new ways to work with my students in a fun and challenging activity. Many times I have students who I call over achivers, who do all of the extra credit you can give them and they are still looking for more to do. The crossword puzzle and the word search will be good ways to keep these students busy while I work with the slower students.
I agree that they definitely help students learn how to spell the words, which, seems to be one of their biggest concerns.
I agree. A smart teacher uses a variety of strategies to assess and teach all styles of learners.
