Step 2: Teaching & Learning

Engaging Students with Assignments and Activities

In the Teaching and Learning step, an online course is interactive and engaging. It includes a variety of activities like flashcards, video, or activities. You will also identify assignments and activities to improve the experience for students. 

Consider the following questions regarding ENGAGEMENT:

  • What content will you include to ENGAGE students?
  • What videos, documents, links, formative assessments, discussion forums, interactives, tutorials, interactive flashcards, simulations, etc. will you include?

This step also includes assignments and activities. 

Consider the following questions regarding ASSIGNMENTS & ACTIVITIES: 

  • What are your plans for staying connected to your students and families connected academically? socially?
  • What types of assignments will you give?
  • How will students submit them? Will work be graded? 
  • What plugged in and unplugged assignments will you provide?
    • How will you grade them? 
    • What grading periods will be available?
    • How does this look at K-3? 4-6? 7-9? 10-12? 
  • How do you provide options to personalize, accommodate, or differentiate?

For ideas on how to complete these steps, visit:

After creating the “Face of Your Classroom”, consider how you will present information to students. Think first about the lesson objectives and Standards, then begin gathering resources. You should also consider how you will provide options for differentiation, personalizing the learning, and support for struggling students.

The following are some free tools that make learning more interactive through videos, documents, hyperlinks, formative assessments, discussions, tutorials, interactive flashcards, simulations, and more. Consider including these in the “Face of Your Classroom” to engage and empower students.

Video
  • Remix a YouTube video using PlayPosit (https://www.playposit.com/login) or EdPuzzle (https://edpuzzle.com/) to include pauses, links to additional resources, embedded quiz questions, or remove unwanted content.
  • Ask students to use cell phone video or webcams to participate in a Flipgrid (http://www.flipgrid.com). Pose a question for them to answer, describe, explain, or reflect on - or create a how-to video!
  • Use tools like Screencastify, Screencast-O-Matic, or Jing to record videos, explanations, or lessons that “flip the classroom”. Upload the videos to Youtube or Vimeo for free hosting, then share the link in the Face of Your Classroom for students.
Collaborative Spaces
  • Ask students to respond to a question you pose in a Padlet (http://padlet.com)
  • Brainstorm ideas using Popplet (http://popplet.com) or Bubbl.us (http://bubbl.us)
  • Practice peer feedback using positive talk stems in a collaborative document.
  • After assigning a topic, have students use TES Blendspace (https://www.tes.com/lessons) to create an interactive journey of their learning. Their “tiles” of content can include hyperlinks, videos, images, quiz/poll questions, and uploads. Students can collaborate on their “Spaces” as well as provide comments/feedback.
  • Push interactive assignments to students to complete at home and turn in via Seesaw. Students create a “Learning Journal” where they add photos, videos, drawings, voice recordings, notes, and pdf’s to demonstrate learning and gather feedback from peers.
Interactive Learning

Step 1: Planning
 Step 2: Teaching and Learning
 Step 3: Assessing Learning

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