An inclusive classroom should be a productive environment for students of different backgrounds with diverse abilities and personalities. Therefore, a teacher must learn the craft of implementing creative and innovative teaching strategies to meet students’ individual needs. Whether one has been teaching for three months or thirty years, knowing which teaching strategies work best for each student can be rather complicated. As a teacher, there is no one-size-fits-all solution, so here are many effective teaching strategies you can use to inspire your students.
Mindful Exercises: The excitement and disruption caused by in-between classes can be difficult for students and teachers. At the start of each lesson, the students may take 60 seconds to help them focus their attention on their breathing and calm their nerves. This exercise will most definitely help the students better prepare for their lessons. The goal is to increase the concentration power of each student so that they may pay focused attention to their upcoming study lessons.
Create Learning Stations: A teacher may provide different types of content by setting up learning stations divided into sections of the class through which groups of students rotate. The class teacher can make the process easier with a flexible seating plan. Each station should use a unique method to teach a skill or concept related to the lesson. For example, students can alternate between stations that involve:
- Watching a video
- Creating graphics
- Reading an article
- Completing puzzles
To help the students understand the content, the teacher can host a class discussion or assign questions to answer.
Organize Literature Circles: The organization of literary circles helps students learn from each other and helps auditory, and participatory factors of students retain more information. This type of differentiated instruction mode of learning allows the teacher to hear each circle’s discussion, ask questions, and fill in gaps in understanding. In addition, some students may develop leadership skills by leading the discussion. This activity makes written content easier to process for multiple students. The goal of differentiated instruction is to make the study material more accessible and personalized for every student so that they may perform to their highest capability.
Work As A Team: Dividing the class into different teams to complete a task is a teaching strategy that works wonders, especially in the age groups where students insist on always working with their small circle of friends. Homework groups encourage teamwork and help the class succeed. For example, in science class, a teacher can divide the class into small groups for lab work and assign each person specific work to do. The teacher may ask one person to experiment, another to write notes, and someone else to read the instructions. It is necessary to pair children who need extra support with those who have a better understanding of the material. This way, those who are strongest in the subject can share their knowledge to help their peers understand it better. Overall, group work is a fun and interactive way to teach a lesson.
