Miss Art of Teaching

The suggested methods can be adapted into any classroom or year groups: This morning I took out several suits from an old deck of playing cards. I proceeded to cut them in half.  I passed out one-half to every  Year 11 student who walked through the door.  They were then instructed to find the other half.  This method allows them to break away from their friendship groups or from attempting the paper alone. You can carefully pair students up if you want by making sure you separate the same suit from 'close' friends. You could also pair a stronger student up with a student who may need the extra help. A good memory is important so you can distribute the cards carefully without it being obvious. For me, 'destiny' works out fine!  Once they were in their pairs, I gave them a copy of either Question 1, 2 or 3 of section 1 of a preliminary exam paper. I ended up having 3-4 groups per question.  They were then instructed to: 1. Find the ke...

I've been thinking of ways to make theory more fun AND to encourage class participation when it comes to discussion time. I don't want the same students to be giving me the answers. I want the whole class to contribute. What works: I downloaded the free PDF file from 'Expressive Monkey' on Teachers Pay Teachers. The resource is called 'Ping Pong Art Critique'. It provides a list of 32 questions to help facilitate class discussions on ANY piece of artwork. For example: -What title would you give this art? -What feeling or emotion did the artist create? -Where did the artist create contrast? -Does this art tell a story? -What would you change about this art? -Would you display this art in your house? Why? Why not? You can either purchase real ping pong balls and write the questions on top or simply print and laminate the resources. I decided to save money and go with the second option. I passed out one ping pong ball per st...