Cues, Questions, and Advanced ORganizers
Display Lesson Outline
Time Needed:
5-10 minutes
Room Arrangement:
Room arrangement will depend on the lesson content. Since lesson outlines will primarily be displayed at the beginning of a unit or topic of study when a greater amount of teacher modeling is likely to take place, student desks will likely be situated facing the front of the class in partner pods.
Materials:
Condensed, topical, outline-form of lesson displayed on board; a copy of outline for each student.
Process Directions:
The purpose of displaying lesson outlines is to help them begin thinking about what they already know regarding a new topic as well as aid them in organizing the information appropriately, making it clear when one topic ends and another begins. At the beginning of a new topic, the teacher should display the lesson outline on the board and hand an outline out to each student. Students will then be asked to read through the outline with their elbow buddy, underlining things that they are already familiar with, and highlighting concepts that may be new. As the lesson progresses, the teacher will point to the outline displayed at the front of the class to visually demonstrate when the class is moving from one topic to the next.
When:
This strategy can be used in math and language classrooms as a means of giving students a framework by which they can organize the new information that they will be receiving. Especially valuable at the beginning of units or lessons.
Source:
Ausubel, D. (1960). The use of advance organizers in the learning and retention of meaningful verbal learning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 51, 267-272.
Time Needed:
5-10 minutes
Room Arrangement:
Room arrangement will depend on the lesson content. Since lesson outlines will primarily be displayed at the beginning of a unit or topic of study when a greater amount of teacher modeling is likely to take place, student desks will likely be situated facing the front of the class in partner pods.
Materials:
Condensed, topical, outline-form of lesson displayed on board; a copy of outline for each student.
Process Directions:
The purpose of displaying lesson outlines is to help them begin thinking about what they already know regarding a new topic as well as aid them in organizing the information appropriately, making it clear when one topic ends and another begins. At the beginning of a new topic, the teacher should display the lesson outline on the board and hand an outline out to each student. Students will then be asked to read through the outline with their elbow buddy, underlining things that they are already familiar with, and highlighting concepts that may be new. As the lesson progresses, the teacher will point to the outline displayed at the front of the class to visually demonstrate when the class is moving from one topic to the next.
When:
This strategy can be used in math and language classrooms as a means of giving students a framework by which they can organize the new information that they will be receiving. Especially valuable at the beginning of units or lessons.
Source:
Ausubel, D. (1960). The use of advance organizers in the learning and retention of meaningful verbal learning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 51, 267-272.
KWL Charts
Time Needed:
20 minutes
Room Arrangement:
Elbow partners or table groups
Materials:
One, large, three-column chart, with one column labeled “K”, the next columnb “W”, and the final column labeled “L”; writing utensils and paper
Process Directions:
When:
KWL charts should be used throughout the lesson, as described in the process directions above. It is valuable for helping students to build background if they do not already know much about the topic as well as valuable for scaffolding instruction by helping the students to see what they already know and linking that information to the new material.
Source:
Ogle, D.M. (1986). K-W-L: A teaching model that develops active reading of expository text. Reading Teacher, 39(6), 564-570.
Time Needed:
20 minutes
Room Arrangement:
Elbow partners or table groups
Materials:
One, large, three-column chart, with one column labeled “K”, the next columnb “W”, and the final column labeled “L”; writing utensils and paper
Process Directions:
- Identify a specific topic to be studied.
- With elbow partners or in table groups have students brainstorm all that they already know about the topic and write these things down on a piece of paper.
- Have groups share out what they know and as a whole class write down the things already known on the class KWL chart.
- Next, have students brainstorm what they want to know about the topic in groups.
- Repeat step 3.
- As the teacher teaches, she should make reference to things the students already know and the things they said they wanted to know.
- At the end of the unit or the end of the class period, fill out what the class has learned thus far about the topic in column three.
When:
KWL charts should be used throughout the lesson, as described in the process directions above. It is valuable for helping students to build background if they do not already know much about the topic as well as valuable for scaffolding instruction by helping the students to see what they already know and linking that information to the new material.
Source:
Ogle, D.M. (1986). K-W-L: A teaching model that develops active reading of expository text. Reading Teacher, 39(6), 564-570.
Carousel Brainstorming
Time Needed:
5-15 minutes.
Room Arrangement:
Table groups
Materials:
Large paper, writing utensils
Process Directions:
When:
See embedded lesson plan for an example of how this same technique is used in an adapted format.
Source:
Osborn, A. (1953). Applied imagination: Principles and procedures of creative problem solving. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons.
Time Needed:
5-15 minutes.
Room Arrangement:
Table groups
Materials:
Large paper, writing utensils
Process Directions:
- Post several large sheets of paper around the room, labeling each sheet with a word or phrase that is connected to the new topic to be studied.
- Give the students 5-10 minutes to circulate around the room with a writing utensil, writing the things that they think of when they hear the specific word/phrase. For more in depth answers, have the students stay at a station and continue writing new things for 1-2 minutes, when the teacher will signal for them to change stations.
- When everyone has visited all of the words, have groups share out what is written on each sheet.
When:
See embedded lesson plan for an example of how this same technique is used in an adapted format.
Source:
Osborn, A. (1953). Applied imagination: Principles and procedures of creative problem solving. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons.
Textbook walks/Chapter Previews
Time Needed:
15-20 minutes.
Room Arrangement:
Traditional rows.
Materials:
Textbook, document camera
Process Directions:
When:
At the beginning of a new unit or chapter of study. To help students build background information on new topics, establish an organizational framework for what they will learn, and allow them to familiarize themselves with the resources available to them.
Source:
Reiss, J. (2012). 120 content strategies for English language learners: Teaching for academic success in secondary school (2nd Ed.). Boston: Pearson.
Time Needed:
15-20 minutes.
Room Arrangement:
Traditional rows.
Materials:
Textbook, document camera
Process Directions:
- Create a “chapter walk-through” document for students to complete. This document should require the students to create an outline of the chapter in their own words, making reference to the section headings and subheadings that they observe; give explanations as to what they think the importance of the pictures they see on each page are; and answer the question, “What do you know now?”
- Have students complete the textbook walk individually and then compare answers with a partner at the end of the activity.
When:
At the beginning of a new unit or chapter of study. To help students build background information on new topics, establish an organizational framework for what they will learn, and allow them to familiarize themselves with the resources available to them.
Source:
Reiss, J. (2012). 120 content strategies for English language learners: Teaching for academic success in secondary school (2nd Ed.). Boston: Pearson.
Advance Graphic Organizers (AGO)
Time Needed:
10-20 minuntes
Room Arrangement:
Table groups or elbow partners
Materials:
One AGO for each student, writing utensils and paper
Process Directions:
When:
When introducing a new topic. This could be used to show relationships in new vocabulary in math classes as well as language classes.
Source:
Ausubel, D.P. (1968). Educational psychology: A cognitive view. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
Time Needed:
10-20 minuntes
Room Arrangement:
Table groups or elbow partners
Materials:
One AGO for each student, writing utensils and paper
Process Directions:
- Pass out an AGO to each student. These AGO’s should already be filled in with basic information related to the topic to be studied.
- Have students review the AGO with their elbow partner for 5-10 minutes, depending on the amount of detail included in the organizer.
- Each partner grouping should then write down at least 5 observations that they made and/or predictions they can make based on what they saw on the organizers.
- Share out observations and predictions as a class before diving into the lesson.
When:
When introducing a new topic. This could be used to show relationships in new vocabulary in math classes as well as language classes.
Source:
Ausubel, D.P. (1968). Educational psychology: A cognitive view. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
(Union Hill, 2012)
Teacher-Prepared Notes
Time Needed:
10 minutes
Room Arrangement:
Elbow Partners
Materials:
One teacher-prepared note set per student
Process Directions:
When:
Teacher-prepared notes such as these would be very helpful in language classes before beginning to read a complex work of fiction. They could also be used in math classes to provide an easy to reference summary of important aspects of the upcoming lesson.
Source:
Reis, J. (2012). 120 Content strategies for English language learners: Teaching for academic success in secondary schools. Boston: Pearson Education Inc.
Time Needed:
10 minutes
Room Arrangement:
Elbow Partners
Materials:
One teacher-prepared note set per student
Process Directions:
- Prepare a document ahead of time that outlines important information from a new chapter or unit of study that will be important for comprehension. Items that should be included are: key vocabulary, concepts, people, and events as well as supporting visuals (graphics, maps, tables, charts, photos, etc.).
- Distribute the pre-prepared notes to students before beginning the unit of study.
- Instruct students to read over the pre-prepared notes and generate several questions that they have regarding what we will be learning.
- Reference the note sheet throughout instruction and encourage students to add information as they go.
- Students should keep their teacher-prepared notes as a reference and a study tool, as well as road map for where they will be going next.
When:
Teacher-prepared notes such as these would be very helpful in language classes before beginning to read a complex work of fiction. They could also be used in math classes to provide an easy to reference summary of important aspects of the upcoming lesson.
Source:
Reis, J. (2012). 120 Content strategies for English language learners: Teaching for academic success in secondary schools. Boston: Pearson Education Inc.
What We Learned Yesterday (WWLY)/ “This I know!” Notebook
Time Needed:
10 minutes (5 each day)
Room Arrangement:
Elbow Partners
Materials:
Personal WWLY notebook, writing utensil
Process Directions:
When:
This strategy is a beautiful double edged sword. Not only does it allow for review at the end of one day to help students solidify what they learned, but it also creates a valuable connection from one day’s lesson to the next. This strategy can be easily used in either a math or language classroom both as a wrap up to a lesson and during the anticipatory set of another.
Source:
Reis, J. (2012). 120 Content strategies for English language learners: Teaching for academic success in secondary schools. Boston: Pearson Education Inc.
Time Needed:
10 minutes (5 each day)
Room Arrangement:
Elbow Partners
Materials:
Personal WWLY notebook, writing utensil
Process Directions:
- During the last 3-5 minutes of class have students discuss with their elbow partner what they learned that day. To help students be more specific, the teacher can give specific prompts that she wishes the students to answer.
- After having discussed with their partners, students should write down the things they learned in their WWLY journal.
- The next day, students should enter the room and begin immediately reviewing the things written in their WWLY journal.
When:
This strategy is a beautiful double edged sword. Not only does it allow for review at the end of one day to help students solidify what they learned, but it also creates a valuable connection from one day’s lesson to the next. This strategy can be easily used in either a math or language classroom both as a wrap up to a lesson and during the anticipatory set of another.
Source:
Reis, J. (2012). 120 Content strategies for English language learners: Teaching for academic success in secondary schools. Boston: Pearson Education Inc.