Teaching in both virtual and hybrid settings have forced all teachers to become very strategic in the way partner or group work is assigned. Engagement can be low for these types of activities because classroom community is hard to establish in this format. One way you can increase student engagement is by using breakout groups with targeted accountability. One thing I have experienced with breakout groups is that students are unlikely to enter them ready to get to work. There needs to be clear guidance about what is expected before you begin any activity. Discuss norms with your students before assigning groups. Here are five strategies that I believe will help you use breakout groups effectively.
#1: Partner Interviews
If you have students working together in a breakout group, one way to ensure accountability is to provide a way for students to give each other feedback. Having students interview each other in an exit slip format as a simple Google Form can be very effective. Have them ask each other questions such as, “What do you think went well today?” They can record each other’s answers in the form.
#2: Notice and Note Strategies
In all of my close reading activities, especially digital ones, I have students frequently stop and annotate. Ask them to summarize, ask a question, or make a comment. In breakout rooms, students can do this together and stop at the same time to complete the strategy. Have students share out at each break.
#3: Jigsaw
The jigsaw is a tried and true strategy, and it lends itself well to breakout rooms. Give students a chunk of text or a piece of a full concept and split them into breakout rooms. Be very specific about what students need to report when you regroup. Again, allow students to evaluate the group via Google Form for extra accountability.
#4: Jamboard
Google Jamboard is a great tool for allowing collaboration in a virtual setting. Unfortunately, my district hasn’t enabled Jamboard, so I haven’t had a chance to try it out. Some of my favorite bloggers have put together some fantastic posts on how to use it, so I thought I’d share here. Ashley from Building Book Love has some specific ELA strategies that I found really helpful. (I love the four corners idea!) I also love this post from another Ashley over at Srta Spanish. She has a full list of activity ideas, too!
#5: Google Slides
Google Slides is a powerful tool that can be used to foster collaboration. Share an editable presentation with your students and have them complete a slide for each group. You can even monitor them easily by using “grid view” on Google Slides. This strategy can be used for any content or piece of text. Need a quick tutorial? Click here.
If you’d like the above template that I use for breakout groups, click here to grab the template for free. Make sure you make a copy before use!
How do you keep your students engaged during virtual learning? Let me know in the comments below or join me on Instagram or Facebook to join the discussion.
Happy teaching!
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