Reviewing Content

One week until finals beautiful people!  It’s time to celebrate success and review some content!  I recently had a wonderful conversation with a colleague over Element 14 Reviewing Content.  She expressed that she was wanting to do things a little differently when it came time to review for the final.  Below you will find a little piece of our conversation as we unpacked this element.  It’s amazing what ideas you can come up with when you collaborate and brainstorm with someone!  Click here for some additional instructional techniques to add to your toolbox specific to this element. Unpack your own element here!

Element 14 Reviewing Content

What is a Focus Statement?

The focus statement, located directly under the element heading, provides a description of the element and its key constructs.  It can be used as a guide when teachers are planning to use a specific element in a lesson.

What are Teacher Evidences?

The teacher evidences compose a list of strategies teachers commonly use when incorporating an element in the lesson.  It is not an exhaustive list or a checklist.

Focus Statement	Teacher Evidences
The teacher engages students in a brief review of content that highlights the cumulative nature of the content.	Teacher uses specific strategies to help students identify basic relationships between ideas and consciously analyze how one idea relates to another Summary Problem that must be solved using previous information Questions that require a review of content Demonstration Brief practice test or exercise Warm-up activity

Make a connection between the focus statement and the teacher evidences.  How do the teacher evidences help you plan to implement a strategy correctly?  

There are many ways I can engage students in a review of the content that highlights the cumulative nature of the content. Students can summarize the content in their own words using a structured interaction. I could also provide questions for students to answer on their whiteboards or ipads and monitor their responses. Detail questions Category questions Elaborating questions Evidence questions

What are Student Evidences?

The student evidences compose a list of student outcomes and observable behaviors that relate to the element.  It is not an exhaustive list or a checklist.

What is the Desired Effect?

The intended result for the student(s) due to the implementation of a specific strategy.  In other words, how we want the students to respond or behave in response to the strategy.

Student Evidences	Desired Effect	Ways I can plan to monitor
Student responses to class activities indicate that they recall previous content Artifacts Pretests Warm-up activities	Students produce an accurate representation of previously taught critical content.	Walk around, listen, and question students’ thinking providing feedback to ensure connections are being made with the content. Ask students “why” questions and to explain their reasoning. Scan the room when students are asked to “show me their answers”.  I will coach students on any wrong answers or misconceptions they may have about the content.

Make a connection between the student evidences and the desired effect.  How do the student evidences help you plan to monitor for the desired effect?

There are many ways students can produce an accurate representation of previously taught critical content.   Students can respond to my questions on a whiteboard or ipad using the structure heads together. I could use an academic game. Students could also reflect on several artifacts they have created in class.   These could be notes, organizers, or presentations.   I could create stations for the review.  Students would spend 8-10 minutes at each station and rotate through the stations.