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Activity #1 - Powerful Learning Activity
Activity #2 - Engaged Learning Activity
Activity #3 - Understanding by Design Jigsaw Activity
Activity #4 - Visual Tools Activity

Activity #1 Powerful Learning Activity

Preparation: The activity is based on pp.11-12 in Ron Brandt's book, Powerful Learning, available for purchase from Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) by phone at 1-800-933-2723.

Purpose:

This Pair/Share activity is an effective way to begin the first project meeting to stimulate thinking and dialogue about learning from the perspective of the learner.

Process:

• Ask each participant to think about his/her own experience as a learner and choose one learning experience that was powerful. Give them 3-5 minutes to write about this experience using word processing. Use the following questions to guide reflection.
  • What did you learn? How did you learn it?
    
  • How did you know that you learned it?
    
  • What made this experience so powerful?
• Give participants 10 minutes to share their reflections with a partner and look for similarities and differences in experiences.
• Have each participant read pp.11-12 from Ron Brandt's Powerful Learning. Ask participants to work with a partner to identify Brandt's essential elements of powerful learning in their own experiences. Allow time for partners to report to the larger group.

Reflection and dialogue:

Which "essential elements for powerful learning" would students list as evident in your classroom (or school if you are an administrator or facilitator)?
What do you know about powerful learning that you did not realize before?

Extension:

Identify one "essential element" to focus on in your classroom (or school) until our next meeting. What strategies will help you ensure that this element is present in your own practice and student learning in your classroom (school)? Reflect on your successes, concerns, and hunches in your teaching and learning journal.

Powerful Learning Activity handout

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Activity #2 Engaged Learning Activity

Preparation: This activity is based on reading pp. 1-13 in Plugging In: Choosing and Using Educational Technology, available from the North Central Regional Educational Laboratory (NCREL).

Purpose: This Pair/Share activity stimulates thinking and dialogue about engaged learning supported by technology.

Process:

• Ask each participant to think about his/her most engaging technology learning experience AND his/her least engaging technology learning experience. Using word processing, allow 5-10 minutes for participants to write a comparison of these experiences using the following reflective prompts:
  • What were your most and least engaged learning experiences?
    
  • What did you learn?
    
  • How did you learn it?
    
  •  What made your experience so engaging? What hindered your engagement?
• Read pp. 1-13 in Plugging In : Choosing and Using Educational Technology.
  Have them work with a partner to complete a spreadsheet table comparing their most engaging and least engaging experiences. The table on p. 9 of Plugging In will help them identify the indicators of engaged learning which are evident or absent from their own experiences.

Reflection and dialogue:(These reflective prompts can be used for individual reflection or discussion in small groups.)

• Which indicators of engaged learning would students recognize in your classroom (school)?
  
• How could you change your least engaged learning experience into an engaged learning experience? Would you change content and/or process? Which indicators would be key factors?
• What role did technology play in your most engaged experience? How could you design learning activities like this one for your students (other teachers)?

Extension:

Combine this activity with the Powerful Learning activity. Allow participants to select either Powerful Learning or Plugging In sharing insights and key ideas from both readings with the entire group. Debrief similarities and differences between "essential elements of powerful learning" and "engaged learning."

Identify one indicator of engaged learning that you will emphasize in your classroom (school) from now until the next meeting. What instructional strategies will help? What uses of technology will help? Try at least one of these strategies in the next two weeks and record your observations, successes, not-so-successes, concerns, questions, and hunches in your teaching and learning journal.

Powerful Learning or Engaged Learning Activity handout

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Activity #3 - Understanding by Design Jigsaw Activity

Preparation: This activity is based on excerpts from Wiggins & McTighe's book Understanding by Design , available for purchased from Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) by phone at 1-800-933-2723 or online at www.ascd.org.

Purpose: Wiggins and McTighe present a process for designing standards-based curriculum, instruction, and assessment. This activity can be used to stimulate thinking about teaching and learning for the Setting the Stage or as a model for Developing an Individual Plan.

Process:

• Use these excerpts for a jigsaw activity. Have participants count off by 4's and work with the appropriately numbered section:
     #1 Read and discussed pp. 8-13
     #2 Read and discussed pp. 12-19
     #3 Read and discussed pp. 13 and 23-24
     #4 Read and discuss pp.169 and 23-24.
  
• Have groups read and identify key ideas and implications for classroom practice. Use the reflective questions listed in the Reflection and dialogue section to guide this discussion. Have each group select a recorder to use word processing to record key points. Each recorder will enlarge the font to 24 point size before saving on disk to project while reporting out to the larger group.

Reflection and dialogue:

Here are some reflective prompts that can be used for individual reflection or group dialogue.

• What are the key ideas?
  
• What is the difference between knowing and understanding?
  
• When is it important for students to have deep understanding?
  
• How does current practice in your classroom (school) align with this process?
•  Which aspect of this design process would be a strength for you? An area needing improvement?
• What one thing can you do next week to begin this improvement?
  
• What can you do next week to foster students' deep understanding of the "heart of the discipline" in your classroom?

Activity #4 - Visual Tools Activity

Preparation: The reading for this activity comes from David Hyerle's book Visual Tools: for Constructing Knowledge, available for purchase from Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) by phone at 1-800-933-2723.

Purpose: This activity is based on an excerpt from Hyerle's book which explores the role of visual organizers in learning and assessment. Participants are also introduced to Inspiration, a computer program for creating visual organizers, that can be used to support learning. This activity is very effective for Setting the Stage but it could also be used throughout this project.

Procedure:
This is a Pair/Share activity. Have one partner read pp. 1-6 and the other pp. 15-20 in Visual Tools. Ask each participant to identify the key ideas in his/her assigned to share with his/her partner. Then, dialogue with the large group focuses around the question: "What significance does this article have for our classroom practice and our project design?"

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Engaged Learning Activity Handout

Think about your most engaging AND least engaging learning experience involving the use of technology. In the next 5 minutes, jot down your responses to these questions about your most engaging experience first and then your least engaging one.
     -What did you learn?
     -How did you learn it?
     -What helped (hindered) your engagement in learning?

Read pp. 1-13 in Plugging In : Choosing and Using Educational Technology.

Work with a partner for the next 15 minutes to complete a spreadsheet table like the one below comparing your most engaging and least engaging experiences. The table on p. 9 of Plugging In will help you identify the indicators of engaged learning which are evident or absent from your own experiences.

Reflection and dialogue: (If time permits, write your response or discuss with your partner.)

• Which indicators of engaged learning would students recognize in your classroom (school)?
  
• How could you change your least engaged learning experience into an engaged learning experience? Would you change content and/or process? Which indicators would be key factors?
  
•  What role did technology play in your most engaged experience? How could you design learning activities like this one for your students (other teachers)?

Extensions:

Powerful Learning and Engaged learning groups report key ideas and insights. Discuss similarities and differences between "essential elements of powerful learning" and "engaged learning?"

Identify one indicator of engaged learning that you will emphasize in your classroom (school) from now until the next meeting. What instructional strategies will help? What uses of technology will help? Try at least one strategy and record your observations, successes, not-so-successes, concerns, questions, and hunches in your teaching and learning journal.

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Powerful Learning Activity Handout

Think about your own experience as a learner. Choose one learning experience (school or non-school related) that was powerful. For the next 5-10 minutes, write about this experience using word processing. Use the following reflective questions to guide your thinking.

• What did you learn?
  
  
  
• How did you learned it?
  
  
  
• How did you know that you learned it?
  
  
  
• What made this experience so powerful?

For the next 5-10 minutes find a partner and share your reflections looking for similarities and differences in your experiences.

Read pp.11-12 from Ron Brandt's Powerful Learning to become familiar with Brandt's essential elements of powerful learning. List any of these elements present in your own powerful learning experiences. Allow time for partners to report to the larger group.

• Which "essential elements for powerful learning" would students list as evident in your classroom (or school if you are an administrator or facilitator)?
  
  
• What do you know about powerful learning that you did not realize before?

Extension (homework)
Identify one "essential element" to focus on in your classroom (or school) until our next meeting. What strategies will help you ensure that this element is present in your own practice and student learning in your classroom (school)? Reflect on your successes, concerns, and hunches in your teaching and learning journal.

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