Sorry that you are getting all of my Marzano posts at the same time but I'm not very good with all of these new possibilities on Google and it has taken me this long to figure out how to post my
comments.
I had my AP students make Top 10 lists as a review activity for the AP exam. I broke U.S. history down into chronological sections and then had students work in groups to select the top events for each era. This activity involved summarizing events, evaluating their importance, working in a group to make the selections, and then I had students make graphic webs so they could study the material. In a normal class period, this would take a couple of days but it was one of my Saturday review sessions so I had a 2 1/2 hour block.
The discussion within the groups of students was far above what I had expected. They really debated the events to achieve their Top 10s. In addition, when we debriefed and compiled a list from all of the groups, we discovered that nearly every group had the same events, people, or inventions. It worked so well that I will always use this activity for one of my review sessions to help students prepare for the AP Exam.
When my students filled out their yearly evaluation of my class: what worked? what didn't? etc., every student who attended that review session indicated that it was one of the best activities we did. Not only does this tell me it helped them study for the test but that I need to create more opportunities for them to work together in this type of activity.
I assume Tim will forward my lesson plan through e-mail so you can take a look at it.
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Outstanding Idea! I'm going to definitely look at your lesson to integrate that idea into my curriculum next year. I'm also interested in your Saturday reviews?? How many do you do? I have a knowledge bowl, we do a round robin during the year and then have a tournament in March & April from the seedings of the round robin. I might like your Saturday idea better? Can you give me more details? Thanks!
ReplyDeleteDon't worry about the posts, I think we're all in the same boat. Considering the number of lesson plans emailed to us in the last day I'd say plenty of us have waited until the last minute. :) I really enjoyed hearing about your students response to your lesson. I'd probably have to simplify it a bit, but it would be interesting to see what 5th graders would choose as their top ten. Their life-experiences are drastically different than the older kids, so I'm curious what they would deem important.
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