Inclusive & Equitable Learning Strategy:
Do Quick and Fun Check-Ins Regularly
NOTE: This strategy is part of the self-paced Nurture a Meaning Learning Community Course
Getting to know learners and building relationships can take time but dedicating a little bit of time each day or throughout the day through a variety of small routines and activities can go a long way. Check-in questions can range from silly prompts such as “would you rather?” to asking students to tell stories and share something deeper about themselves.
Bright Spots
Gain inspiration from authentic examples of this strategy shared by teachers who have used them with their learners.
Creating your own Bright Spots? Let’s get them out into the world! Share yours here.
Human Scavenger Hunt Bingo
Source: bingobaker.com
Generate a scavenger hunt card with your own prompts and have students walk around the room trying to see if they can find a signature from different classmates for each square of the card. This activity requires that students (and teachers who participate too!) ask questions of their classmates and learn about them.
Stand Up If…
Use this check-in or energizer (and come up with your own statements) even in the middle of class to get students sharing about themselves in a low-risk way that also gets them physically moving. Another version of this is a cross the line activity.
Daily Themes
Use a different theme for each day to focus on for a daily activity to get to build community
Source: Megan Margerum on Twitter
Hullaballoo
Source: A Word on Third Blog
You can use this activity during a class meeting, as an energizer in the middle of a lesson or at the end of a long day to get out some energy. Call out one way students should move around the room (the first column), one way students should greet each other (the second column) and one topic they should share about. Then students move around the room according to the directions, find a partner, greet them according to the directions and then share about the topic with their partner.
Resources
Inspired? Use the resources below to bring this learner-centered strategy to your learning community.
Related Learner-Centered Content
If you found this helpful, try this related strategy:
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