So, this year I have tried some old activities that were successful last year, and some new activities that I haven't tried before.
Some of the old activities include note-taking around the classroom, "Avalanche" for review, the Canada Map Place Mat project, and reflections using window writers/chalkboards/whiteboards/smelly felts.
One of the new activities I have tried is "Sandpile Island" (courtesy of Kevin Epp) in Social Studies. It is an activity that teaches the students to work out how to display height on topographic maps. Basically, you get a large box full of sand, they design their island, and you let them explore and try to come up with a useful method to represent height on a topographic map. They get really frustrated trying to figure it out but after a class of frustration they get really into it as the lightbulbs go on!
Another new activity I have tried is called "Who Am I?" that I got from a teacher during my summer studies at UBCO. It starts as a vocabulary activity, where the students have to practice using dictionaries and thesauruses. They have to come up with the five best possible words they can to describe themselves. Then, they turn it into a Powerpoint presentation which, eventually, is presented to the class. Because it was the first oral presentation, I had them choose their own groups of 3-5 and they presented only to their groups, and me, during lunch hour. Every single student completed a Powerpoint presentation and every student but one presented to a small group. If they wanted to improve their mark, they had the opportunity to present to the class. I actually had twelve students volunteer to present to the class and they did a great job!
Unfortunately, the student I have chosen to work with this year (let's call him John) completed a Powerpoint but refused to present to his small group and also rejected the opportunity to present to the class. So far, I haven't been able to get him motivated at all. He seems to be interested when we use smelly felts or do note-taking around the classroom, but he is not very productive. I have tried everything I can think of, but nothing has worked. He is often reading his book instead of listening in class, he is not engaged in the lessons and he is not motivated to work...
