Find the Fib

Students write three sentences about the history, one of which is incorrect. Students write their answers on the board, and other students need to figure out which one is incorrect.

Password

Students are divided into teams. One person from each team is chosen as the clue-giver. Each clue-giver is given a list of terms. They alternate giving one-word clues to the other members of their respective teams. If a team guesses correctly after one clue, they get 10 points; after two clues, nine points; and so on.

Summary ball

After presenting information, have students stand in a circle. Give the ball to a student. That student must state some fact or concept just presented, and pass the ball to another student, who must do likewise. Give students a short time (e.g., five seconds) to say something, in order to keep things moving.

When I tried this with students, there was a little lack of enthusiasm, which I think came from their uncertainty as to what to say. I think it might be easier if they could just throw out facts (e.g., Truman, Stalin, containment). Another possibility is to have students say a term and toss the ball, so the other student must identify the term, the say another term and toss the ball.

Human Bingo

Create a bingo sheet, with questions in squares--throw in a few fun things, about people, just for grins. Pass out sheets and have students find a person for each square, someone who can answer that question. When sheets are filled in, student return to their seats. Pull student names out of a hat, have students mark bingo sheets. When someone gets bingo, everyone whose name is on the bingo must be able to answer the question for the class. If everyone can do it, it counts as a bingo. You can have edible markers for students to eat them. Another possibility is, for a bingo, both the student with the bingo and the students on the sheet must be able to answer the question.

Good for review before tests, since the questions on the bingo sheet can be either specific terms (e.g., "Can identify Eugene Debs") or general ideas (e.g., "Can name three reasons unions were weak in the Gilded Age")

Source: Wormeli, Summarization in any subject

Crumpled paper review

Students write term on one paper, definition on another, crumple them up and throw in a pile. Students pick up two balls of paper, must find the matching ones.

Wordsplash

"Splash" terms all over a sheet, and have students make relationships between the terms. I usually have students write out a couple sentences on the board using as many terms as they can.

Usually, descriptions of this call for a "predictive" phase before you study, then students check on their predictions. However, I've used it simply as a summing up tool after studying material.

It works effectively both for reviewing specific terms, and for getting students to think about relationships, i.e., go beyond recall.

Taboo

Students create taboo cards--write the term, and five words that can't be used as clues. Then one person from the other team tries to get his/her team to guess the term without saying any of the taboo words.

Good for review of terms, students enjoy it.

Crossword puzzles

Students usually think these are fun

Tic-Tac-Toe

Students have nine terms on index cards, arrange them in a three-by-three grid, must make sentences of the three terms in each row and column. See Rutherford.

This is a good exercise. It works well, and gets the students really thinking.

Could be used effectively with flash cards, as a way to process and cement learning, once they've memorized

Inside-Outside Circle

See Kagan for details

Flashcard Game

Courtesy of Spencer Kagan

Numbered Heads Together

I've used this when playing review Jeapardy. It has been especially effective when I used whiteboards, so that all teams can answer at the same time.