Just by suggesting to my class that we are going to be playing a form of baseball, energy and willingness begins to fill the air. I use my “Content Baseball Game” on Thursdays (once a week, the day before a test). With a class of thirty the game takes about fifteen minutes, while a class of twenty takes about ten minutes. This game is like a baseball game in its terminology and the “step up to the box” format.
The procedure begins with two students coming up to the board. The “umpire” (teacher) gives a clue about the desired curriculum. The students race to write the answer (in this case, vocabulary word) on the board. The first student to spell it correctly earns a “hit,” which is recorded by that student on the board. (He/she writes their name on the board and then a tally mark). The other student goes back to his/her “dug-out” (seat); their game is over. Hence, the one who writes the answer right gets to keep “batting” (playing the game), while the one who does not get the correct answer on the board first is “out.”
The order of “batters” is simply row-to-row. Every student gets to “bat” (play) at least once. If both “batters” misspell the answer, the teacher says, “Batters, here comes another pitch, try again.” If both students take more than a couple of seconds the “umpire” (teacher) can give another clue -synonym, antonym, contextual example without the word, etc. If the two “batters” (scholars) still do not get the answer, the “umpire” (teacher) should say “strike three” and both students go back to their “dug-outs” (desks). This may sound harsh, but the game must move rapidly as to be effective. “Fans” (students) listening and watching (reviewing silently in their heads) from their “bleachers” (seats) will get bored if the game moves too slowly. The game is over after every batter has had his/her “at bat” (opportunity). If a “batter” (scholar) is still at the board (and all the other students have gone) and his score is not the highest, he gets to continue until he gets out. Those who have had their turn go again. The game ends when every student has gotten out or when one student is left playing and has the highest tallies. In that case, the game does not need to continue.
After a couple games under the teacher’s “umpiring,” this strategy works marvelously. To expedite the game and not waste any time, the teacher (“umpire”) trains her students who are next in the row to be “on deck” (standing next to the white board). After two players “bat,” instead of the whole class waiting for the next “batter” to get to the board, one (or maybe two if both did not get the correct answer) is right there to “step up to the plate.” At first, I had to “coach” them to “be on deck” (standing next to the board), but after a couple of “signals,” they start to police each other. “Pssst, Johnny, you are on deck.”
Benefits of this strategy again are numerous. It is a valuable review session of any content material- hence the name “Content Baseball.” It enhances movement and energy in the classroom, which the students NEED. It puts accountability on the students; they learn early that they WANT to do well among their peers. As evidenced, it gives them further motivation to study each night. Furthermore, it lifts the casual and often too comfortable demeanor of being a passive person in class to a more active and striving “player.” The “Content Baseball Game” celebrates interactive learning by inculcating cooperative learning with friendly competition, all while, the students are having FUN.
(Another excerpt)
To keep scholars listening and respectful during whole class discussion...
Toss around a wiffle ball as a device to designate who has the floor to speak. Tell scholars that they must have the ball in order to express their thoughts. This keeps a much more attentive focus. It is like the use of the conch in Golding’s novel, Lord of the Flies. If a student talks without the ball a quick reminder usually does the trick. For fun and smiles, you can use other unbreakable items instead of a ball.
When the class slips out of the teacher’s hands for a moment...
State rapidly with energy and model, “If you can hear me clap three times!” Just like turning out the lights in grade school can quickly calm and compose a classroom, this little three clap works like a gem. Usually, the first time I say it only three or five scholars clap along with me. By the second time, I have 75% of the class doing the “three clap salute” and then the few who missed the clap are now paying attention again.
To lighten teacher grading load...
Transform an independent in-class written lesson into a group lesson and only collect one product from the group to grade. A truth that I have learned is not to assign the role of “recorder.” I tell my scholars that they all need to be with paper and pen, recording, and after the lesson, I select which paper to collect. The aspiring scholars push the less wanting ones. A little variation, a colleague of mine has the group staple all papers together in any order. Then when she has the packets, she only grades one, but peeks at what others did. Once a week, doing this, will decrease a class of thirty-four papers to about seven, which is a huge savings of time for the teacher!
To create an affable body of scholars...
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