Dimitri Syros
Social Studies Teacher
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES
In my class I use a variety of methods to engage my students with the classroom content. Each strategy is carefully selected to cater to different styles and levels of learners in my classroom. Technology and print resources are purposely utilized along with engaging teaching methods that promote and encourage organization, student discourse and retention of knowledge. Grounded in state standards and student data, intentional instructional strategies allow me to foster the most efficient styles for students to engage with, practice and eventually master content benchmarks. In addition, strategies are created flexibly to accommodate various learners and differentiate accordingly.
Student discourse and group collaboration are at the core of many of my preferred instructional strategies as students need to learn to communicate their ideas with one another through verbal and written styles. Students are encouraged to work beyond the content to draw out real-world connections. As students engage with the content in meaningful ways, they not only master content benchmarks, but understand their broader relationship to the world at large. Students are further prompted to develop higher order thinking and guide the class through an inquiry-based curriculum. Activity-based learning moves students beyond simple content memorization towards charting their own course and investing them in the course.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Technology Integration
Graphic Organizers/ Guided Notes
Role Play
Artistic Expression
HistoryLabs
Socratic Seminar
Kahoot: I use Kahoot as an informal assessment style targeted at fostering collaboration and healthy competition. Whether used as a unit review tool or a summative assessment, Kahoot keeps students invested with its fast-paced quiz style. I prefer to create my own quizzes inputting political cartoons, primary source documents and historical quotes as exam-preparation. Students respond to my questions using either tablets or cell phones and are scored in real-time. Due to Kahoot's instantaneous results, students can gage their own progress within the class and I can clear up misconceptions and misunderstandings in the content. Student data using Kahoot can be found on the Formative Assessment page. An example question from the Enlightenment unit is included on the right. Additional Kahoot quizzes are linked below.
iCivics: I use iCivics primarily during differentiated instruction time and as a positive behavioral incentive. iCivics features historical content that is aligned to state standards and exam benchmarks that are presented in an appealing style for students. Students are assigned interactive games such as "Race to the White House" or "Congressman for a Day" that allow them to demonstrate their content knowledge and apply it in real-world situations. A clip of a student screen playing "Race to the White House is included on the right. This particular game is useful to student learning as it gives them a chance to reflect on their understanding of the electoral college and campaign strategies in helping their own fictional candidate get elected. Through playing iCivics games, students are practicing important course content while having fun playing a video game. The document on the left correlates different iCivics games with content benchmarks in my course. For example, the benchmark on methods of attaining citizenship is connected with the Immigration Nation game. In addition to games, iCivics also features lesson plans and student worksheets that can be helpful in supplementing in my course, however for the most part I stick to including only the games in my course.
Edgenuity: I use Edgenuity as a re-teaching and remediation tool for students who need extra practice in a given content area. Through analyzing assessment data, I group students according to their weakest benchmarks and assign them to a virtual Edgenuity course. Using a combination of audio, video and literary clippings, Edgenuity reviews the aligned benchmark and provides students with an assessment that gives them an opportunity to take advantage of home learning practice. Students who scored a level one or two on their Summative Assessment data are assigned to an Edgenuity supplement (see Summative Assessment page). A student testimonial on using Edgenuity has been included below.
Technology Integration
Integrating technology into my classroom curriculum provides my students with an excellent resource and expands access to information. Online resources can be inserted as a content supplement to assist in differentiation. Online tools can also be used as engaging assessment tools that provide immediate, traceable data. Whether it be a simple check for understanding, or district-administered benchmark assessment, I am able to monitor student progress in real-time and reflect on their growth and mastery of benchmarks in a timely manner.
A few of my favorite technology applications are:
Graphic Organizers/ Guided Notes
I depend on graphic organizers as a method to help my students compartmentalize their thoughts and organize complex, multi-faceted information. Depending on the goal of the lesson, organizers such as Venn Diagrams and Cornell Notes help to break down content and promote effective note-taking skills conducive for college readiness and exam review. Graphic organizers allow me to highlight important key points in the lesson and help students to make connections across the subject matter. Guided Notes are another effective tool for standardizing note-taking for consistency and simplifying exam review. Guided Notes also allow for enhanced differentiated instruction and accommodation for students with IEPs that require scaffolded assignments or additional time. Guided Notes also lead students through critical vocabulary terms and key concepts in a given lesson.
This graphic organizer was used to help students categorize key findings from a lesson on Enlightenment Thinkers and important Colonial Documents. Student feedback was considered while creating the organizer as an actual student drew the template. Documents such as these can easily be adapted for exam review.
These guided notes were designed intentionally to assist students in reviewing for a benchmark exam. During the remediation class period, key vocabulary terms and concepts were highlighted to jot students memory and help them to master the content.
This graphic organizer was used to help students categorize key findings from a lesson on Enlightenment Thinkers and important Colonial Documents. Student feedback was considered while creating the organizer as an actual student drew the template. Documents such as these can easily be adapted for exam review.
Role Play
I utilize role play activities and student theater to illustrate content and allow students to direct their own learning. Since a few of my class periods are filled with acting students in my school's magnet drama program, many students are enthralled to have the opportunity to fuse their passion for acting with Civics content. Outside of social studies standards, role playing promotes student discourse and verbal expression and also provides the with an opportunity to hone their public speaking skills. Role playing can be used as a student teaching method to introduce new content to the class or an opportunity for students to apply knowledge from class into a creative composition.
In the video below, students in my first period decided to enhance their knowledge on the Constitutional Convention covered in our Civics class by performing a scene from Hamilton for the school talent show.
Artistic Expression
Another hands-on activity that I like to include an aspect of in every unit involves students integrating the arts into our content benchmarks. Since my school features a magnet arts program, many of my students gravitate towards activities in which they can express themselves artistically. Typically I will feature an assignment per unit such as creating comics, writing music, poetry and short stories using RAFT strategies. Through these assignments students take ownership of the content and internalize information better as a result. Through individual or group work, students are typically more engaged in concepts when they can implement their own creativity. Additionally different learning styles are accommodated through providing a variety of assignment types.
History Labs
History Labs are an interactive way to acquaint my students with primary source documents. Initially instituted by my school district, History Labs require students to inspect historical stimuli and draw upon evidence and content knowledge to develop thesis statements and answer higher-order questions. I use History Labs to challenge my students with DBQ-style source documents that imitate the functionality of an AP class. Though my students are only in middle school, through assignments like this they will be prepared when they get to high school. History Labs promote higher order thinking and push my students to make connections across stimuli. Furthermore students have a chance to practice their writing skills. A full history lab template is included below:
The completed example History Lab below challenged students to answer the Essential Question: "What are some characteristics of a society that operates under rule of law?" Students were provided with a series of images and a blank template to help them to develop a thesis statement to answer the essential question.
The sample on the left shows a highly proficient example of a completed History Lab. The student was able to successfully summarize each source and then draw conclusions about how they related to the essential question. Finally the student made connections across sources and developed a well thought out thesis.
Socratic Seminar
A Socratic Seminar is an activity where students lead a conversation revolving around a text in order to answer a question. For this type of activity I act as an observer, rather than a facilitator, so it is up to students to lead the discussion and answer essential questions. In my class students are prepared for Socratic Seminars by reviewing the following key points:
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All students must first carefully read the attached article (take notes that will help you answer the essential question).
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Upon completion, students are to discuss the essential question citing evidence from the text.
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Every student must participate in the dialogue.
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Only one student may talk at a time.
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Students must be respectful to each other’s comments at all times by making no negative remarks and by tracking the speaker.
(I expect to hear things like, “I understand your point of view, but…” or “To go off of what _____ said,…” or “I am going to politely disagree with you because…”).
The example Socratic Seminar posted below was based in the following reading:
Based on the aforementioned reading, students ensued a discussion regarding the essential question: "Is racism worse now than it was during the Civil Rights movement?" A few videos of the discussion are included below. In these videos students are discussing de jure segregation in the modern world. You will notice in video clip #3 that students are having an opportunity to utilize critical thinking skills and provide counter-arguments to each other's rationales--one of the benefits of using the Socratic Seminar strategy.
CONCLUSION
My instructional choices are created with the intention of increasing student mastery of content and investment in my course. Lessons and activities are carefully planned to maximize efficient delivery and execution. Instruction is planned with the intention of setting my students up to achieve mastery. A great deal of instructional strategies are used in my class ranging from technology integration to graphic organizers to Socratic seminars and more. Strategies are varied so that different student learning styles are accommodated and students are put in a position to engage with content from multiple angles. It is my goal that while students are engaging with our content and mastering benchmarks that they are drawing connections between the formation of our government and many of the events taking place in our country today. While experiencing different instructional methodology, students have an opportunity to reckon with different standards and practice skills in reading and writing. Through varying my instruction, students remain interested in my course and are eager to demonstrate their knowledge through a variety of methods.
STUDENT TESTIMONIAL
"I love Edgenuity because it gives me a chance to practice skills that I had trouble with during class. Unlike some of my other classes the assignment aren't boring and keep me into it with videos, games and stories."
-S.C.
Lesson Planning
STUDENT TESTIMONIAL:
"I love getting a chance to act out scenes in Mr. Syros's class. It's one thing to sit and take notes, but its another to be out of my seat making my classmates laugh and learning at the same time. I actually get excited to act things out!"
-W.A.
Student A: "To go off of what [Student B] said, I believe that racism is worse today than it was 50 years ago. The reading describes students mobilizing to make changes through protests and boycotts and stuff like that and now kids are just in their phones."
Student C: "Well what about Black Lives Matter marches?"
Student D: "I mean yeah but why should we still have to march in the first place. If there wasn't so much racism and segregation was actually better we wouldn't have to do that."
