Connection Corner

It happens each day, several times a day. It’s…the beginning of class. How can we engage students while taking attendance and the lunch count, passing out papers or finish setting up for the day’s lab? Make one corner of your whiteboard or chalkboard the “Connection Corner.” As you complete the typical beginning of class routines, your students can have a purposeful routine of their own. Here’s how it works:
1. Choose the corner and be consistent. Students will always know where to look.
2. Post a concept from the previous day’s lesson.
3. Instruct students to journal about real-life or career applications for that concept.

It’s that simple! Here are some ways you can switch it up too:
· Post a “free day” where students choose any concept to relate. (This works well on days when several concepts were covered.)
· Choose a career or real-life example and have students identify a concept that applies.
· Ask students to visit with a partner or as a group to discuss possible connections.

For example, in your Connection Corner, you might write:

y = mx + b

Now what careers will your students journal about in regards to this concept from math class?

Career Development Tip for June 12, 2008