Thrive in Action Blog Series: Rigorous Thinking, GPS 3 - Hook & Explore
The Thrive In Action blog series highlights practical applications for Great Pedagogy Strategies (GPS) within the EdConnective Thrive Framework, summarized here. The EdConnective Thrive Framework is unique in that it can be applied to teaching actions seamlessly whether learning is in-person or remote. This week we get more familiar with:
Rigorous Thinking, GPS 3 - Hook & Explore: Towards the beginning of the lesson, the teacher uses a hook to frame the learning, using culturally relevant examples and connections to students’ real lives. The hook is engaging, fun and makes time for students to make connections to their previous learning, understandings and lived experiences. The hook allows for students to explore, discuss, see patterns, and/or make meaning of the objective before direct instruction.
---
Want to get your students engaged from the very first seconds of the lesson? Use a HOOK & EXPLORE to begin the lesson. The hook is engaging and fun and makes time for students to connect to their previous learning and real life experiences. The teacher can frame the lesson with a hook to allow the students to explore, discuss, or make meaning of the objective before the direct instruction.
There are so many easy ways to implement a hook during an in- building lesson. One of my favorite ways to use a hook is to share an object or artifact, a picture, or a short video clip. Students will see the object/picture/ video and immediately be engaged. A great strategy for leading the hook activity is to use the SEE-THINK-Wonder thinking routine. A fun hook for a geography lesson, would be to show a brief travel clip video of the location. A math lesson on finding the area of a rectangular prism , could start with the teacher wrapping a present in front of the class. A class about to begin reading To Kill a Mockingbird, might be shown some objects similar to what Boo Radley left for the children in the tree knot. Each of these, would instantly hook the students into wanting to learn more.
In the virtual classroom, teachers can use similar hook ideas to get the students’ attention from the very beginning. When a social studies class is logging on to the virtual platform, the teacher could be playing music that is from the time period being studied- (Brother Can You Spare A Dime - Great Depression.) A fun, virtual way to hook younger students would be to dress in character of the book being read. A teacher could show up for class dressed as Viola Swamp - for the book Miss Nelson is Missing. An algebra class beginning to study functions of a line, could view a roller coaster video or see some slides of different roller coasters. No matter where you are teaching, in-building or virtual, you will be able to reel in your students when you start with an engaging hook and explore!
Back to The EdConnector blog home
Download a summary of the EdConnective Thrive Framework here. EdConnective provides 1:1, personalized non-evaluative coaching to teachers, instructional coaches, and administrators, as well as small group coaching and large group training.