Do now activities involve generating healthy buzz in the classroom. They can be helpful in challenging routines and allowing the students to do something a little different from their every day. Check out the following ideas for energising your classroom!
1. Music
Music is a fantastic tool in getting your students engaged immediately! Here are some interesting ways that you can introduce music into your classroom.
Ever heard of Glitch Hop, Math Rock or Vaporwave. There are plenty of odd, unique and underrated genres that your students definitely have not listened to. Why not play them some music (Appropriate, of course) and allow it to inspire a piece of creative writing. For example, play some music and ask students to imagine that they have just walked into a coffee store. The music is playing. Ask them to describe the mood of the cafe. Or they could describe why this type of music is playing, or describe the person who chose it.
Getting students out of their chairs is exciting because it is different and gets the blood pumping. Depending on the year group, you could have students move around the room to the beat and rhythm of the music. They could complete a Stand up, Hand up, Pair up, and move around the room only when the music is playing.
Alternatively, you could have students work will music is playing in the background. To properly focus, music needs to be played at 60 beats per minute, which matched a relaxed heart rate (60). Music at a high BPM such as 120 might be more suitable for an energising task. You could play music every Friday and take requests!
Playing music is fun and is often outside of what the students will expect. See the following link for information about music in the classroom: http://www.brainresearch.us/Using_Music_Appropriately_in_the_Classroom.pdf
2. Team Rally
It becoming apparent that using post it notes in the classroom is generally a waste of paper. Unless there is a specific reason why they are used, such as for a display, they end up in the bin. Alternatively, give students a whiteboard marker! When reviewing their learning, split students into small teams (3-4 max). One student from each team will start with the marker. They will walk up to the front of the class, record something they know about your assigned topic and return to their desk and pass the marker. This will continue for 45 seconds. You can even assign colours and give prizes for the most ideas!
Team Rallies are great!
3. Images
With the increase in digital art and AI generated imagery, you will not find it difficult to find images that engage the sense and provoke interesting discussions with you classroom. Simply typing “thought provoking digital art”.
Have students present their interpretations about what the image might mean. How do they know this? Which visual conventions are used to reinforce these ideas? Make sure you then link to for the learning intentions and focus of the lesson.
4. Problem-Solving
There are a range of different types of problem-solving that you can have students engage in. Problem solving is wrapped around students identifying a problem to a task. This could be independent, or they could work in small teams to consider the options.
You could present students with a small laminated card that outlines a problem in society or their local community. Increases in littering or graffiti. Bullying. Fraudulent assessments written by AI. These are problems that are students can relate to as it is in their circle. How could they resolve this problem? What would the steps be? Who would need to be involved to support resolving the issue?
A classic problem-solving task is creating an object from limited resources. For example, creating a hat out of newspapers. A longer task might include building a bridge with pop sticks, glue and tape – though it would be a much longer task than a do now activity!
There are plenty of examples online of without lifting a pencil’ problems. Simply, students need to create the following image using a pencil and paper. One the pencil is on the page, they cannot raise it. Hand out a prize for completing it the quickest!
The English Classroom 