20.

Elkonin Boxes
Basics
Time needed: 5-10 minutes
Grade appropriate level: K-1
Materials: Either individual Elkonin box worksheets, or a dry erase board that can
have boxes and letters drawn on it, and writing utensils.
Classroom Arrangement: No specific set-up necessary, but students can work at
small table groups or individual desks for individual work.

Process Directions

The teacher will pass out the individual worksheets for the students.
If the dry erase boards are being used, the teacher will make sure to
instruct the students on how many boxes to draw and will give the
students dry erase markers as well (This strategy can also be done on
paint samples for free).
The teacher will pronounce the word that is being used as the target
word slowly so that the students in the class can here each sound as
the teacher is speaking.
When the teacher has finished pronouncing the word, the students
will be instructed to repeat it back to the teacher in the same slow
tone so that the teacher can observe that the word is being correctly
pronounced.
The students will fill in the boxes with the different phonemes.
To check their word verbally, the students will be instructed by the
students to read the word again slowly, following along with their
finger as they proceed.

When/Example

I would use this either when the idea of phonemes was first being
addressed, or when a student was struggling with phonics or spelling.
Use when students need focus on individual sounds with spellings.

SourceGriffith, P.L. & Olson, M. W. (1992). Phonemic awareness helps beginning readers
break the code. The reading teacher, 45(7), 516-523.

21. Give One, Get One

Basics
Time needed: 10-20 minutes
Grade appropriate level: 1-3
Materials: Give one, Get one organizer or blank paper, writing utensil, and
whiteboard or projector
Classroom Arrangement: No specific set-up necessary.

Process Directions

The teacher will begin this strategy by posing a question to the

students that will begin to direct them to think about a topic or big
idea from the text.

 The teacher will then hand out a graphic organizer or a blank piece of

paper to each student. If blank paper is handed out, the students

should be instructed to fold the paper in half.
One side of the paper should say Give One, while the other side should
say Get One.
The teacher will have the students take roughly 5 minutes to fill in
answers to the Give One side based on their own thoughts. This part
of the activity needs to be done individually!
After the Give One side is completed, the students will be instructed
to go around giving one and getting one from classmates. This should
begin to spark conversations and allow students to see how they are
thinking differently.
The teacher will have the students come back together after roughly
10 minutes and have the students share the thoughts they came up
with, or will share an idea they gathered from someone else.
After sharing is done the teacher will introduce the book.

When/Example

This strategy is best used when wanting students to formulate

questions about an upcoming text.

Great in combination with student collaboration. Allows students to
take understanding farther.

Source-

Cole, P. (2006). Young adult literature in the 21st century. New York, NY: McGraw
Hill.

Freeology. (n.d.) Give one get one activity. [Image]. Retrieved from
http://freeology.com/back-to-school/give-one-get-one-activity/

22. Artifact Box

Basics

Time needed: 5-20 minutes

Grade appropriate level: K-3
Materials: Artifacts that pertain to the upcoming lesson, assignment, unit, or text
and a box or bag to hold the artifacts.
Classroom Arrangement: Class should be arranged so that each student can easily
see the artifacts. Cleared space or a circle rug may be the best location if
available.

Process Directions

The teacher will have found tangible items that can represent an
upcoming story or lesson concept and will have placed them in a box or
a bag.
The teacher will briefly share a little bit about the lesson or unit,
without giving too much away to give the students a small base and
also a little excitement for learning.
The teacher will model how to question the tangible items first, and
will then have the students question the additional items.
The teacher should model by asking questions out loud about why this
item may be important or what it may have to do with learning and
connections that may be made.
After the students have gone through all the tangible items, the class
should have many questions and ideas to help create excitement for
the lesson or unit.
If this was done before a reading, the artifact box could easily be
turned into a book box for the students to interact with the book
later on.

When/Example

This strategy is very effective with elementary students and should

be used when introducing a new topic with excitement for the
students.
Can be used with any subject or content material.
Continually use the artifacts during the lesson or unit to help refer
students learning.

Source- Fuhler, C. J., Ferris, P. J., & Nelson, P. A. (2006, April). Building
literacy skills across the curriculum: Forging connections with the past
through artifacts. The Reading Teacher, 59(7), 646-659.

23. Picture Walk

Basics

Time needed: 15-20 minutes

Grade appropriate level: K-3
Materials: Picture books for each student individually as well as one for the
teacher.
Classroom Arrangement: No specific set-up necessary but students should be able
to see the picture book that the class is experiencing. Carpet time may be most
appropriate for the younger grade levels.

Process Directions

The teacher will begin the story time by having students pair up and
select a picture book from the classroom library.
The teacher will then model what a picture walk looks like for the
students. Questions will be posed to further thinking. Questions such
as: Look at the front cover! What do you think this story is about?,
Lets turn the page, what is happening? What do you see?, What do
you think is going to happen next?, The book is almost done, how do
you think it might end?, and What if?.
The teacher will then instruct the students to complete their own
picture walk just as the teacher did, but within their pairs. The
students should be given roughly 5 minutes to do this.
This allows them to practice questioning and will prepare them for
future learning and future picture walks.

When/Example

This should be used for reading enjoyment, when the teacher wants
the students to practice deeper thinking with a book.
This is a language arts strategy.
See above for embedded example.

Source-

Clay, M.M. (1991). Introducing a new storybook to young readers. The Reading
Teacher, 45, 264-273

24. KWL Chart

Basics

Time needed: 10-20 minutes (Beginning and End of lesson)

Grade appropriate level: K-3
Materials: Large KWL Chart for teacher use for whole class visibility and
individual KWL Charts for student use. Writing utensils will also be needed as well
as markers to make the teachers writing bold.
Classroom Arrangement: No specific set-up necessary.

Process Directions

The teacher will begin the lesson explaining what each letter on the
chart means to the class. (K = What I Know, W = What I Want To
Know, L = What I Have Learned)
The teacher will have the students brainstorm what is already known
about the content and will model writing these facts in the large
classroom example while the students work individually, in pairs, or in
groups to fill in their student sheets.
The students will also brainstorm about what they want to know. They
should be directed to ask themselves the burning questions they have
about this topic or idea. This will allow the teacher to know how in
depth to go with certain information. This should also be modeled.
After the lesson is complete, the teacher will have the students fill in
the rest of the chart with what they have learned.
The teacher should have a conversation with students about what
they learned so the class can celebrate the learning.

When/Example
This strategy can be used with any content material and should be
used before, during, and after a lesson.
Should be used in moderation and not excessively.

See lesson section for example.

SourceOgle, D. S. (1986). K-W-L group instructional strategy. In A. S. Palincsar, D. S.
Ogle, B. F. Jones, & E. G. Carr (Eds.), Teaching reading as thinking (pp. 11-17).
Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum
Development.

Lanley, J. (2011, March 11). K-W-L graphic organizer printable. [Image]. Retrieved from
http://notebookingfairy.com/2011/03/k-w-l-graphic-organizer-printable/

25. Snowball Fight

Basics

Time needed: 10-20 minutes

Grade appropriate level: K-3
Materials: 2-3 pieces of paper (preferably white for snow) for each individual
student and a writing utensil.
Classroom Arrangement: Desks or tables should be cleared and there should be
plenty of room for the students to move within. A tight space will be problematic
for this strategy.

Process Directions
The teacher will hand students 2 scrap pieces of paper to each child

and will have extras for the students if extra questions are formed
by the students.
The teacher will have the students write one question on each piece
of paper about the class itself or the content being covered. The
students will be given roughly 5 minutes to complete this.
Once the questions are written, the teacher will instruct the
students to crumble up the paper into a ball. Then on the teachers
count the students will throw the paper.
The students will throw the balls continuously for 1-2 minutes, so
that the questions are thoroughly mixed up.
The teacher will call time and have the students pick up two questions
nearest to them. The student who has picked up the paper is
responsible for reading the question, but anyone may try to answer
the question.
If no one can answer the question, the teacher will re-explain.

The paper should be picked up at the end of the strategy and thrown
in the recycling bin.

When/Example

This could be used within any content and would best be used before
getting into a summative assessment. This will ensure student
understanding. Questions could be regarding anything the student
could formulate based on their own confusion.

Source-

Cotton, K. (1995). Effective schooling practices: A research synthesis 1995 update.

Retrieved from

http://capone.mtsu.edu/jhausler/Effective_Schooling_Practices.htm

26. Generating Words

Basics

Time needed: 15-20 minutes

Grade appropriate level: K-3
Materials: Teacher created word cards with prefixes, suffixes, and root words,
and space to display or lay out these cards.
Classroom Arrangement: No specific set-up necessary, but students can work at
small table groups or individual desks for group work, whole group work, or
individual work. This can also be used with modeling on a carpet area.

Process Directions
The teacher will provide students with prefix, suffix, and root word

cards. These should be laid out either on a flat surface, or in a

display pocket chart.
The teacher should first model how to generate a word by choosing
one card from each category so that the students understand exactly
what they should be doing.
The teacher will instruct the students to try to make their own
words, or will have the students try and recreate words that can be
found on their vocabulary list.
The teacher can write down words that students have already made
to ensure the students are exploring new words or combinations.

When/Example
This can be used with only prefixes and roots, or only suffixes and
roots. Students should be scaffolded up.
This strategy should be used when wanting to benefit students in
pronunciation, vocabulary, or learning the parts of speech.

Source-

Concept adapted from:

Taba, H. Teacher's Handbook for Elementary Social Studies. Reading, MA:
Addison-Wesley 1967.