Plicker to Check Student Comprehension

I've read on quite a few message forums that many teachers would love to use programs like Kahoot or the Socratic App in their class, but they have problems. Some schools have a strict no cell phones on campus policy. Other students don't have the financial means to each have an electronic device (cell phone, tablet, laptop, etc.). Sometimes my students all have the technology, but the school WiFi is so slow that the apps and websites just don't work.

There are also completely online alternatives like using Google Forms or SurveyMonkey where you can have students answer directly on the site, but often allowing students to take these quizzes online gives them the chance to use notes, or discuss answers with friends. Sometimes great, but not every time.

There are also plenty of old school no tech ways to get students to answer questions. This blog post is about technology that only requires the teacher to have technology.

Plickers is a free app that can be downloaded on Android or Apple products. This version of low-tech meets hi-teach is made possible through the use of  Plicker's cards. There are enough cards for 40 students, so any class of 40 students or less is set! If you are a technophobe, this may be a great first step for you! You will be using a device, but your students won't.

I like to say it is a 10 step program:

1. Sign up. You can download the app and sign up there, or sign up at their website 
2. Create a class. This has to be done on the site, not an app. 
3. Add students. Simply put in your students' names and they will be assigned a card number.
4. Print the cards (or purchase them from Amazon). If you are printing them yourself I'd suggest you print them on card stock instead of paper. You can laminate normal paper to make it last longer, but sometimes laminating paper causes glare making the reader difficult to work.
5. Make a poll. This is a "quiz" that your students will answer. You can add questions from the app or the website.
6. Give the students the question and answer options. This could be on a PowerPoint, Prezi, verbally, or on a piece of paper.
7. Let your students answer by holding their card up so that the option they think is correct (A, B, C, D) is upright.
8. Use your tablet / phone to "scan" the class and record your students' answers (anonymously).
9. Use these answers to immediately decide if students have a grasp of the material, 
10. Later go back and examine different trends for individual students and try to find ways to help them personally understand the material. This is GREAT to help you differentiate later.

 I don't think this form of technology is useful for every teacher. If you have a 1:1 program in your school you have other options. If you would rather use lo-tech options, that's great too. This is just another tool for your tool belt!

What do you think? Would you ever use Plicker?

Paraphrasing with Einstein

Paraphrasing is a key skill for many English language and literature students. It helps them with tests like the IELTS and BULATS, and is an essential skill for writing essays and other reports.

This isn't a full lesson, but it is an idea of how to use Albert Einstein when practicing paraphrasing in class. After all, March 14th is Einstein's birthday!

To start my students and peruse Joseph Ducreux memes (such as the one of the left). This meme is usually a modern phrase translated into archaic English. For example, "YOLO" could "translate" to: One only exists upon a singular occasion.

I show them some examples and we see how the meaning stays the same even though the words change. We usually laugh at the humorous phrasing (if you plan on using these in your class be sure to select appropriately many are NOT appropriate).

Then I show them some I made using Einstein's quotes as a reference. You can go to MemeGenerator.net/Joseph-Ducreux to make your own. For instance, I made the one on the right. I ask them to try and translate them from archaic English to modern English.

Staying with the example on the right, they may come up with something like: Living is like riding a bike. You have to  keep balance by moving.

When they finish we look at how close they got to the original phrase. Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving.

Finally, I explain these are usually NOT good paraphrases. As a class we come up with rules for a good paraphrase.

• The words are different (Use synonyms, descriptions, etc.)
• The structure is different (Make long sentences into two shorter sentences, change active to passive, etc.)
• The meaning is the same.

As we can see by looking through the Joseph Ducreux memes,  normally these memes do not change structure. They simply change the words. This is NOT proper paraphrasing.

Then we look at their "translations" of the earlier memes and see if they ended up being good paraphrases (usually they are pretty good). If not, we make them better. If students has written, Living is like riding a bike. You have to  keep balance by moving, they could try and change the structure more to something like, If you keep moving on a bike you are less likely to fall. This is the same way to stay balanced in life!

Finally I give them some of Einstein's quotes and have them paraphrase them. The worksheet includes the source, so students can practice citations (parenthetical, works cited, etc.) as well as remember how to find good sources.

There we go! As stated earlier, this is NOT a complete lesson. However, since Einstein is often quoted, it is a lesson that is relevant to students and helps them practice paraphrasing.

As a homework assignment you can get them to find their favorite quote by Einstein and paraphrase it! My favorite quote is to the right when he says that, "It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge." You can read the rest of the quote (and more) at the Science Career Magazine blog.

A copy of the quotation worksheet, quizzes and answer key can be purchased on Teacher's Pay Teachers. You can get there by clicking this link.