Connection and Demonstration Activity Menu Name Art Gallery
Post it snow storm
Description Stick images and/or statements/words around the room, put on classical music and ask them to walk around the classroom (as if at an Art Gallery) and then when had a few mins stop the music and ask them to pick one that resonates. Ask why? Post it notes used to record words, keywords, one thing they remember etc. Give 2-3 minutes and ask them to stick on board at the front. Als0 works well with virtual boards.
Comments Good for developing vocabulary. Evoking character descriptions. Developing an opinion about something. Really having to look at graph information or shapes.
Keywords. Mathematical vocab – words for add etc. Description, Connectives, Synonyms. Endless! Good to then add for reference to working wall.
Alphabet Keyword Grid
Ball/Bean bag
Think Pair Share Statement Sort
Music
Ask the children to add any additional keywords they’ve learnt in demo or those they can remember from prior learning if connection. Can be individual or class. Throw ball/bean bag and ask for something can remember or something learnt – again depends if connection or demonstration. Think for a minute on your own. Share it in a pair. Share with table. Strips of paper with statements or examples that children have to sort into right/wrong, true/false. Build up excitement by using sealed envelope and music – Mission Impossible works a treat. Guess the lesson – using scrolling images and music as the children come in and settle.
Bean bags better if catching an issue. Could use a big beach ball with younger children or roll it in circle. Paired talk used a lot but we often forget to build in think time. Can be used to sort almost anything – right and wrong calculations, word problem types, grammar right wrong, text features.
Narrative texts – Never ending story, Letter – return to sender, Science Solar system – here comes the sun – there are loads!
Connection and Demonstration Activity Menu 6 Word/image Summary Film
Jumbled Keywords
3-2-1
Spot the deliberate mistake
Ask the children to summarise the lesson using six words. Or Six images. Playing film clips that evoke emaotion can be a great connection activity, hooking them in. Can also be used – can you see the Maths in this clip. Put jumbled keywords for the lesson or from the previous lesson on the IWB and ask the children to work out what they are. 3 things that you can remember, 2 questions you still have – 1 thing you want to really get today. Two sentences/paragraphs/example texts/sums either on the IWB or on tables can they spot the ‘deliberate’ mistake.
Jigsaw
Chop ‘something’ up and ask the children to put it back together and in the right order.
Labelling
Put missing labels in the right places.
Crack the code
Using highlighters colour punctuation, connectives, wow word, openers and ask the children to ‘crack the code’ which colour links to which thing. Summarise the lesson or summarise a piece of text and create a picture. Tweak to paired talk. Pose a question – then put in music ask children to wander around
Text to picture Cocktail party questioning
Again works well in all subject areas.
Using large text when doing this on tables always seems to make it a more active activity – use A3 as the smallest but preferably bigger! Could be a calculation or a text, such as a set of instructions – how did they know what when where? You could mix the pieces up across the class Label a graph, text, plant or something from science etc.
Connection and Demonstration Activity Menu
Show me – Mini Whiteboards Mini Review
Hot seating
Rhythm , Rhyme, Mnemonics
Review Races
Walk through
Press Conference
Audioboo Explain everything/Screen Chomp Lucky Dip
the classroom holding pretend class and discuss their answers. Endless! Chunk information being given at the end of the lesson or in mini reviews – mind map, keywords, picture, RAP Use a BIG microphone and a prop to help put the child in character and move around the classroom asking for a response. Use one already created as a connection activity. Ask children to make one for the demonstration phase. Each person in the team, table have to record something they’ve learnt or can remember.
Use props , diagrams, work created and lay it out around the classroom and literally ‘walk back through’ the learning. A group of children sit at the front of the classroom. The rest of the class ask questions about the learning that has taken place trying to get a scoop. Get the children to record their learning and blog it. Great tool for using in demo phase. Can mirror on to IWB and embed in the blog. Have a bag or box with items linked to the topic and ask children to try and connect
Great to the add to your working wall.
Props and a microphone ortoy mobile phone really help – some how even the children who don’t usual have a lot to say do when they have a plastic mic in front of them! Songs and rhymes are always highly memorable. Can be done at the table but works really well if they have to ‘run’ to the front of the class and record it on flip chart and then go back to the table to pass the pen on.
Again props add to this.
Connection and Demonstration Activity Menu them to their prior learning.