One of my favorite classroom management strategies is Group Roles. They streamline activities, distribute workload, boost participation, and keep students focused. I introduce them early in the school year and rotate roles to give students equal opportunities. I use clear communication and modeling to ensure success. Google Drive resources and practical examples are available.
Tag Archives: Pedagogy
Effective Classroom Management: Harnessing the Power of Group Roles
Group Roles are a valuable classroom management strategy for labs and group activities. They offer shared responsibilities, promote teamwork, and enhance communication and problem-solving skills. The roles of Captain, Recorder, Timekeeper, and Organizer ensure accountability and encourage student participation. Implemented early in the school year, Group Roles can effectively enhance classroom dynamics and student engagement.
Engaging DNA Introduction: Twin Study Film Clip & Discussion
This 30 minute lesson is my favorite way to start our unit on DNA. The film clip and the conversations we have around it introduce DNA as an intriguing phenomenon in science. It seems mysterious and almost magical to students, which inspires their curiosity and desire to learn more. That makes it fun and easyContinue reading “Engaging DNA Introduction: Twin Study Film Clip & Discussion”
How She Teaches DNA Model Keychains
The purpose of this project is to model DNA structure and the base pair rule. In this blog post I share my best lesson planning tips to facilitate this lesson. I hope it gives you some ideas and saves you some time! Also check out my blog post DNA Model Keychains: An Engaging Hands-on LessonContinue reading “How She Teaches DNA Model Keychains”
12 Study Tips to Teach Middle School Students
In this blog post I share some of my best study tips for middle school students. I learned them over the years from my amazing teacher mentors, while supporting my students, and becoming a better learner myself. Whether you are a teacher, student, or lifelong learner, these tips can help make studying easier and moreContinue reading “12 Study Tips to Teach Middle School Students”
9 Routine Assignments that are Easy to Prep and Make Great Sub Plans
The ideas in this blog post are great routine assignments to cycle through during the year. Plan ahead and have these assignments ready as emergency sub plans, or prep them quickly when you’re planning for a substitute. Students become familiar with doing these assignments. My students complete them independently and with minimal confusion. This makesContinue reading “9 Routine Assignments that are Easy to Prep and Make Great Sub Plans”
High School Biology Vocabulary: Units and Key Terms for Effective Teaching
I hope you enjoy reading about my favorite science terms to teach in high school Biology. I hope this list of vocabulary terms can give you some good ideas and save you valuable planning time. In this blog post I share the vocabulary terms I teach during each unit throughout the year: How I UseContinue reading “High School Biology Vocabulary: Units and Key Terms for Effective Teaching”
Learning Styles: A Valuable Beginning of the Year Lesson
Everybody learns in different ways. Have you ever sat looking at a page in the book, just staring at the words and nothing is going into your brain? Well, that might be because visuals are not conducive to your Learning Style. It’s beneficial to know what style we are so that we can hack ourContinue reading “Learning Styles: A Valuable Beginning of the Year Lesson”
How She Teaches Presentation Skills
I do this short Presentation Skills class discussion with students before we do presentations in class. It is crazy the difference this simple exercise makes. Their presentations are much, much better. Students already know what a good presentation looks and sounds like. They just need to be reminded. That’s what this 20 minute lesson does.Continue reading “How She Teaches Presentation Skills”
My Top 16 Classroom Management Strategies
I have way too much to do during the day teaching and grading to deal with all the extra stuff that happens in the classroom. I can’t waste any more time on unnecessary questions, losing stuff, waiting, cell phones, extra talking, distractions, bad behavior, and unpreparedness. They all take away from my instruction time andContinue reading “My Top 16 Classroom Management Strategies”
How She Teaches Being Alive: 6 Characteristics of Living Things
6 Characteristics of Living Things Biology is the study of living things. So it makes sense to start the year by learning what it means for something to be alive. This is a memorable lesson for students that I can refer to throughout the year. It’s great to bring up again when we study cells,Continue reading “How She Teaches Being Alive: 6 Characteristics of Living Things”
How I Use “Check-ins” to Check for Understanding and Inform My Teaching
Check-ins are one of my favorite classroom routines that I depend on year after year. A Check-in is a quick set of questions at the end of a lesson that tell me what students know and what they still need to know. It’s like an Exit Ticket, a popular formative assessment of many teachers, butContinue reading “How I Use “Check-ins” to Check for Understanding and Inform My Teaching”
How to Teach Vocabulary With a Vocabulary Log
Vocabulary is an important part of my lessons and my teaching. Science, especially Biology, is a vocabulary dense field. If vocabulary isn’t explicitly taught, students have a hard time understanding the complex concepts and processes. With Vocabulary Logs, students define, illustrate, and summarize, which are processes that help connect ideas and information in their brains.Continue reading “How to Teach Vocabulary With a Vocabulary Log”