You are here

Just Ask Us
Share

Just Ask Us
Kids Speak Out on Student Engagement

Foreword by Carol Radford

Additional resources:


October 2017 | 256 pages | Corwin

Use these 10 strategies to teach and communicate content that sticks!

Students learn best when collaborating, talking, and working with their peers. That’s what Edutopia blogger and education expert Heather Wolpert-Gawron discovered when she surveyed students nationwide. Now you can hear from the students themselves and discover 10 comprehensive and fresh ideas on precisely what and how to capture your students’ imagination and minds for deep learning, everyday

This research-based approach to cooperative learning provides plentiful lesson ideas, vignettes, videos, and insightful student interviews to help you:

  • Understand the research base for collaborative learning
  • Implement and manage competitively cooperative student work group
  • Incorporate movement, visual tools, and technology
  • Develop achievement-based PBL projects 
  • Conduct your own student survey for increased student choice

Move beyond just teaching content. Build a strong classroom community where students chew on, process, mull over, and retain information everyday using these 10 deep engagement strategies!  

 
 
Foreword
 
Acknowledgments
 
About the Author
 
Introduction
The Importance of Student Engagement

 
Pedagogy Versus Personality

 
An Argument: What Engages Teachers Also Engages Students

 
A Brief Note on Brain Research and Student Engagement

 
The Engagement Survey Process

 
How Is This Book Different From Others?

 
Student Engagement Survey

 
 
1. Let Us Work Together
Overview

 
Setting Up Group Work for Success

 
Competitive Learning Can Still Be Collaborative Learning

 
An Awesome Byproduct: Stronger Classroom Community

 
What Collaboration Looks Like in the Classroom

 
Engaging Teacher Spotlight

 
Discussion Questions

 
 
2. Make Learning More Visual and Utilize Technology
Overview

 
This Is Our Brain on Visuals

 
Learning Through Visuals

 
The One Visual Tool to Rule Them All: Technology

 
What Using More Visuals (and Technology) Looks Like in the Classroom

 
Engaging Teacher Spotlight

 
Discussion Questions

 
 
3. Connect What We Learn to the Real World
Overview

 
PBL Isn’t Just About Engagement; It’s Also About Achievement

 
Breaking Down the Parts of PBL

 
Finding an Authentic Goal for Your PBL Unit

 
What Meaningful Learning Looks Like in the Classroom

 
Engaging Teacher Spotlight

 
Discussion Questions

 
 
4. Let Us Move Around
Overview

 
What More Movement Looks Like in the Classroom

 
Engaging Teacher Spotlight

 
Discussion Questions

 
 
5. Give Us Choices
Overview

 
The Academic Benefits of Student Choice

 
Keeping Structure While Giving Freedom

 
What Giving Student Choice Looks Like in the Classroom

 
Engaging Teacher Spotlight

 
Discussion Questions

 
 
6. Show Us You’re Human Too
Overview

 
Unabashedly Show That You Care About the Content

 
Unabashedly Show That You Care About the Students

 
The Power of Humor in the Classroom

 
Using Personal Stories as a Tool for Engagement

 
Being Fallible to Help Students Understand Learning

 
What Being More Human Looks Like in the Classroom

 
Engaging Teacher Spotlight

 
Discussion Questions

 
 
7. Help Us Create Something With What We’ve Learned
Overview

 
Consumption Versus Creation

 
Creating and Making in Every Subject Area

 
Creation and the Role of Technology

 
What Creation Looks Like in the Classroom

 
Engaging Teacher Spotlight

 
Discussion Questions

 
 
8. Teach Us Something New in a New Way
Overview

 
The Detrimental Practice of Overreviewing

 
Stepping Out of Our Wheelhouse to Model Learning

 
What Opening Eyes to New Concepts Looks Like in the Classroom

 
Engaging Teacher Spotlight

 
Discussion Questions

 
 
9. Mix Things Up
Overview

 
Learning Styles Versus Multiple Intelligences

 
What Mixing Up Our Implementation Looks Like in the Classroom

 
Engaging Teacher Spotlight

 
 
Conclusion
It’s Hard to Be Engaging

 
What to Expect When You Adopt These Strategies

 
 
References
 
Index

"Just Ask Us: Kids Speak Out on Student Engagement is an outstanding resource manual for teachers to increase student engagement. Each chapter includes extensive quotes from students that support researched-based best practices. Diagrams and photos of student work illustrate how students can effectively work together and use more visually stimulated methods to connect their learning to real world applications."

Mary Ann Burke, Ed.D., Author, Trainer, and Co-Founder
Generational Parenting Blog at GenParenting.com, San Jose, CA

"Heather Wolpert-Gawron meshes her teaching experience with extensive student feedback to offer sage advice and a clear argument as to the importance of increased student engagement in their learning environments. She provides practical application that will help teachers everywhere up their game in providing students the right foundation for deeper connections to their learning."

Janelle McLaughlin, Educational Consultant
Innovative Education Solutions, Manchester, IN

"Just Ask Us: Kids Speak Out on Student Engagement is not only a quality read, but also a fresh perspective beyond just providing interesting lessons. It clearly states that student engagement is directly connected to academic content and outcomes."

Julie Frederick, Nationally Board Certified Kindergarten Teacher
Broadview Thomson K-8, Seattle WA

"Any teacher who ever wanted to poll students about what works best for them when learning, and really using the data received to help students, should read this book.  The research behind WHY the ideas presented work, and the practical strategies suggested are also great bonuses."

Patrick Pergola, 7th Grade Science Teacher
Sparta Middle School, Sparta, NJ

Heather Wolpert-Gawron

Heather Wolpert-Gawron is an award-winning middle school teacher. She is a staff blogger for Edutopia.org and shares all things middle school at tweenteacher .com. She has been a proud member of the California Writing Project since 2008. She is the author of the following books: DIY for Project Based Learning for ELA and History, DIY for Project Based Learning for Math and Science, Writing Behind Every Door: Teaching Common Core Writing in the Content Areas and ‘Tween Crayons and Curfews: Tips for Middle School Teachers. Heather is passionate about project-based learning and believes the Maker Movement for teachers is in curriculum... More About Author

Purchasing options

Please select a format:

ISBN: 9781506363288
$39.95

SAGE Knowledge is the ultimate social sciences digital library for students, researchers, and faculty. Hosting more than 4,400 titles, it includes an expansive range of SAGE eBook and eReference content, including scholarly monographs, reference works, handbooks, series, professional development titles, and more.

The platform allows researchers to cross-search and seamlessly access a wide breadth of must-have SAGE book and reference content from one source.