Tag: course materials

SIP 7.14 Exemplars

Thirsty for a Strong Instructional Practice? At this time in the semester students are often in a panic about what exactly professors want for an assignment, even though there are directions. Students know from prior experience that every professor has a few idiosyncrasies and preferences, which means directions can be open to some interpretation. Rather …

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Permanent link to this article: https://sites.msudenver.edu/sips/sip-7-14-exemplars/

SIP 7.13 The Snowball

Thirsty for Strong Instructional Practice? The SIPsquad is excited to bring you this Throwback Thursday selection! Take a look at this gem from Year Two: the Snowball.  As the weather gets warmer, the Snowball is sure to make your classroom chill with a fun and inclusive activity that encourages whole-class participation — even from students who …

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Permanent link to this article: https://sites.msudenver.edu/sips/sip-7-13-the-snowball/

SIP 7.8 Creating Comfortable Relationships with Blackboard

Thirsty for a Strong Instructional Practice? Many of us earned our degrees B.G. (Before Google), when computers served the function of word processors rather than a gateway to infinite amounts of information.  Now technology and the internet have opened up new and different ways to teach, including online education.  Higher education and K -12 settings are both seeing a sharp increase in the adoption of online courses.  According to …

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Permanent link to this article: https://sites.msudenver.edu/sips/sip-7-8-creating-comfortable-relationships-with-blackboard/

SIP 6.8 Chunking

Thirsty for a Strong Instructional Practice? Our working memory can only hold about seven items of information at a time (Miller, 1956). Breaking skills into bite-sized chunks and mastering them one at a time until the learner reaches fluency is a more efficient way of learning. Understanding and retaining complex information or lists of dates, facts …

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Permanent link to this article: https://sites.msudenver.edu/sips/sip-6-8-chunking/

SIP 5.11 Minimizing Anxiety for Better Learning

Thirsty for a Strong Instructional Practice? At this time in the semester but really, at any time in the semester), students are faced with the challenges of attending school, engaging in classes, and completing work while also struggling with anxiety. In a 2013 survey by the National College Health Assessment, roughly half of college students …

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Permanent link to this article: https://sites.msudenver.edu/sips/sip-5-11-minimizing-anxiety-for-better-learning/

SIP 5.10 Easy NFL Grouping

Thirsty for a Strong Instructional Practice? Coming up with creative and pedagogically sound methods of grouping students for collaborative learning projects can become tiresome by the end of the semester. And when left up to students, we find groups that are comprised of the same classmates time and again. So, how can we create pedagogically-sound, …

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Permanent link to this article: https://sites.msudenver.edu/sips/sip-5-10-easy-nfl-grouping/

SIP 5.8 Project Based Learning

Thirsty for a Strong Instructional Practice? Opportunities for students to engage in the community and be more self-directed in their learning are important elements of well-rounded curriculum. Yet providing students with a structured opportunity for such can be challenging. Take a SIP of This: Project Based Learning What is Project-Based Learning? Project-Based Learning is a …

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Permanent link to this article: https://sites.msudenver.edu/sips/sip-5-8-project-based-learning/

SIP 5.7 Using Games to Reinforce Content

Thirsty for a Strong Instructional Practice? You have prepared the “perfect” presentation for your class; your PowerPoint includes stunning pictures, provocative video clips, music and challenging concepts. After ten minutes, your students start to move on their seats; to hide behind the student in front so they can slip unnoticed into the realm of texting; …

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Permanent link to this article: https://sites.msudenver.edu/sips/sip-5-7-using-games-to-reinforce-content/

SIP 5.6 Previewing and Summarizing a Lesson

Thirsty for a Strong Instructional Practice? It is all too easy to take a look at your syllabus, see what you “have to cover,” couch that in your vast knowledge from many years of graduate school, and have a little panic attack about how much you have to do in so little time. When this …

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Permanent link to this article: https://sites.msudenver.edu/sips/sip-5-6-previewing-and-summarizing-a-lesson/

SIP 5.5 Grading Contracts

Thirsty for a Strong Instructional Practice? As much as we try to make our instruction student-centered, or to use Maryellen Weimer’s term, learner-centered, we tend to create our assignments and grading schemes free of student input. While this is a common practice, it can leave students feeling disempowered. Grading itself is already fraught with power …

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Permanent link to this article: https://sites.msudenver.edu/sips/sip-5-5-grading-contracts/