5 Student Engagement Strategies

Every so often, I will post my top five student engagement strategies that I use with my class.

1. Mix N' Match:  This strategy is designed to pair up students with similar answers so you can quickly see who gets it, who is making common errors, and who needs additional small group support.  I don't use this strategy when I feel as though the class has had enough practice where they can successfully solve the problem and find a match.  I tend to use this engagement strategy most often in math, but it can be used in any content area.  I post a problem for everyone to complete on their individual whiteboards.  When I say, "mix and find your match", they turn their whiteboards so everyone can see their answer and they pair up, back-to-back and remain silent, with the first person that matches their answer.  
2. Get the Gist:  This strategy asks students to take what you have taught them and condense it into a 10 words or less sentence.  I really like to use this strategy when I'm introducing reading strategies because it makes them take what they've just learned about it and write a statement that encompasses only the most important information in 10 words or less.  This is also a perfect exit ticket strategy.
3. Write It Up:  This strategy asks groups of four students to write down their response to a topic, question or prompt.  They are given a large piece of construction paper with the topic, question or prompt written in the middle.  Then each student gets a section of the paper to write their response in.  I usually have them fold the paper into fourths so they know exactly how much space they have to write in.  I love using this strategy when it comes to an end-of-unit review because students are asked to recall everything they know about a given topic.  When we were prepping for our state tests a few weeks ago, we did several of these in math and all I did was write Fractions or Geometry in the center and they had to tell me everything they knew about the topic.  Then I had them draw a line underneath their writing and after a few minutes of reviewing their notes, they had time to add to their notes.  Then the groups shared their information with one another, checking off anything from their section that was said by a group member.
4. Response Cards: This strategy asks students to hold up a card with their response to a question or statement.  I give them 1" strips of construction paper that have been laminated with red on one side and green on the other.  They will hold up green if they agree with a statement/answer to a problem and red if they disagree. I usually have them close their eyes before they show their card because certain students tend to look right at a classmate who they know is correct and just copy their color.  Plus, there is less fear of being wrong when I'm the only person that sees their answer.  After all cards are held up, I always ask several students to prove their thinking so no one gets away with not having a reason why they chose red/green.
5. Give One, Get One:  This strategy asks students to give information to a partner and to get information from their partner.  For example, we were doing a study on Arizona's state symbols.  Once every group had completed their research, they were able to Mix/Pair/Share.  When they shared, they would give one fact about a state symbol that their partner was missing so they could add it to their notes and vice versa.  I like this strategy, especially in social studies, because there are times where we just can't spend days on a topic and they're able to learn from their peers and have additional information to use on their assignment.