This paper is a practical how-to guide to help you start using active learning or to have greater success and more fun with it. We categorize active learning techniques as Think, Pair, Share, Composite, Group, Move, or Lead and discuss how to implement activities in each category, along with advice on creating engaging, effective, and equitable…

Courses: Public speaking, business and professional communication, group communication. Objectives: This activity will introduce Monroe's Motivated Sequence as a way to organize persuasive arguments; improve students' ability to deliver presentations with consistent content, voice, and style; and improve team-based delivery skills.

The foundation of geometric knowledge and understanding starts in primary school, and in contemporary mathematics education there is an emphasis on identifying learning progressions and trajectories as a way of moving students forward. The van Hiele (1986) theory is well-documented and provides insights into the progression and differences of…

This article describes a sequential approach to improvisation teaching that can be used with students at various age and ability levels by any educator, regardless of improvisation experience. The 2014 National Core Music Standards include improvisation as a central component in musical learning and promote instructional approaches that are…

Communication theory courses are among the most difficult courses in communication curricula. The breadth and complexity of the discipline requires instructors to confront material with which they may have limited familiarity. Such courses are crucial, however, because learning communication theories cultivates critical thinking, helps students to…

Supporting elementary student understandings of ideas related to Earth's Place in the Universe (ESS1) can be challenging, especially given the large time and distance scales involved with many of the concepts. However, with effective use of crosscutting concepts and science and engineering practices, important concepts within this content domain…

Space has fascinated and intrigued humans of all ages since time immemorial, and continues to do so today. The natural curiosity is engaged when looking up into the sky, notice patterns among celestial objects such as the Sun, Moon, and stars, and wonder. Scientific understanding of those patterns has progressed immensely over the span of human…

Using investigations in teaching mathematics has for many years become an established feature of most curricula around the world. Investigations can be a vehicle for enabling children to experience the genuine excitement that comes from mathematical discovery. The true spirit of inquiry and investigation lies in the mind-set that continually asks…

Increasing numbers of teachers seem to recognize that sequencing assignments is an effective way to teach writing. A sequence of 20 writing assignments was developed by four composition instructors at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado. The first eight exercises asked cadets to look at and think about their physical surroundings at…

Discusses how to design a thematic children's literature unit with trade books. Highlights include theme versus topic; benefits of thematic units, including analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating; opportunities for higher level thinking; sequencing the titles; determining key discussion questions; and culminating the unit. (LRW)

Micro-peer teaching is an important step in preservice teacher education at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. A three-lesson sequence used in a secondary methods course for physical education teachers is outlined. (PP)

After describing the development of a listening component in a university study skills curriculum, this paper presents ten assignments on effective listening skills for use as college study skills. The listening assignments are presented in a sequence beginning with focusing attention and following oral instructions precisely and ending with…

Discusses how to help students apply thinking skills to library research and provides examples of techniques for teaching comparing and contrasting, sequencing, classifying, cause and effect, problem solving, and decision making. Examples were effective with middle schoolers but could also be adapted for high school or older elementary school…

A sequential writing program is described that has adapted James Moffett's ideas in "Teaching the Universe of Discourse" to suit the needs of a seventh and eighth grade school system that emphasizes expository writing instruction. The introductory chapter explains Moffett's ideas and how they were adapted for this program. Subsequent…

This three-part guide presents a brief program description along with lists of performance objectives and lists of test items for the Des Moines (Iowa) Public Schools Title I Elementary Mathematics Program. The program description provides background information on the Des Moines Public School District and describes the student selection/screening…