Here’s How to Boost Virtual Student Engagement
In order for learning to happen, students must be engaged. Engaging students during instruction can be a challenge, even for the best teacher.
This is especially true during virtual learning.
But there are ways to engage students during distance learning. Megan, a 15-year veteran, is here to share four ways she’s found to keep her students motivated and excited about their learning even while learning virtually.
As a 15 year veteran, teaching is my passion. I constantly like to change up lessons, projects, and just about everything else and I feel confident in that.
However, when it comes to student engagement, I’m not so confident. It’s something I have not mastered and probably never will. The reason why I say that is because every year, every group of students is different. What worked for one group, might not work for the other group.
Student engagement is especially difficult during these current times of remote and hybrid learning. However, I have found a few ways that have worked for me and I hope they will work for you too. Or at the very least, help you out.
How To Engage Students At the beginning of a lesson
When introducing a new topic or lesson, I love to do See, Think, Wonder, which is a spin on the KWL strategy. This strategy allows students to get their thinking juices flowing and really get excited for what they are about to learn. It may seem to go slow at first because students think there are right and wrong answers. However, simply let them know there are no answers that are “right” or “wrong” and that will end their hesitancy.
If you are in the classroom, you can do this right on your whiteboard or hand out a worksheet to each student or groups of students. If you are working remotely, you can put this on Jamboard or present it and type what the students are saying.
To use this strategy, you may give the students a picture to look at. For example, if you are about to start learning about constellations, you may give them a picture of the Big Dipper. You will instruct your students to look at the pictures as they fill out a graphic organizer.
Start off with the “I See” section and ask students to write down what they see in the picture. They can just jot down words or phrases. Then move on to the “I Think” section and ask students to jot down what they are thinking about as they look at the picture. For the final section, “I Wonder”, have the students jot down anything that they are wondering when they look at the picture.
Sometimes I give students an example or two to get them going. I give them about three minutes per section and then we discuss it as a class for about ten minutes, depending how much the students are willing to share. This is just a simple lesson to get students engaged and excited for what they are about to learn.
How to engage students throughout the day
Kahoot!
Now, as for keeping student engagement throughout the day, that is a completely different story. What I am finding that my students love most is playing Kahoot!. What’s great about Kahoot! is it’s free. When you create an account, you have the option to upgrade, but I have the free version and it does everything that I want it to do.
I am able to create my own quizzes or use quizzes that have been created by other teachers, which is perfect in a time crunch situation. I tend to use Kahoot! to warm up students before Math every day. I use ten questions from the previous day, which is a great way to review.
Once you have either created or selected a quiz, you will be given a code for the students to enter on their computers. Each student enters their name as a player (sometimes I let the students put nicknames) and once all students are visible, you may start the game.
Each question is projected for a few seconds and then students see the possible answers. On their device, students select the correct color for the correct answer. There is a time limit on each question.
Now this goes on for as long as you would like. At the very end, there is a podium ceremony where the top three players are given credit for their achievements. The best part of this feature is that Kahoot! gives you the option of getting the scores sent to you, so you can use the quiz as a grade.
Take a Break
Another thing you can do to keep students engaged is take a mini-break. Breaking for just five minutes between each subject can make a huge difference. A great way to spend that time is to do a Brain Break, which can be done in class and remotely. Some examples of Brain Breaks are “Kids’ Yoga” and “Would You Rather?” Both of these can be found on YouTube.
Utilize Breakout Rooms
Finally, the best way that I have found to keep students engaged, specifically during Remote Learning, is doing Breakout Rooms. Breakout Rooms is a feature we use on Google Meets™ (other LMS have this feature as well). It allows me to group students any way I want and for as long as I want. I can have four different groups going on at the same time and I am able to bounce in and out of each Breakout Room.
This has been a lifesaver because it allows students to talk to each other, brainstorm, and complete activities that I would normally do in the classroom, but due to the times and social distancing, aren’t possible otherwise.
What students miss the most during this pandemic is the interaction with each other and just feeling like a kid. Whether it is doing a “See, Think, Wonder” to introduce a topic or lesson, creating Kahoot! Games, taking Brain Breaks, or just having Breakout Rooms, I have noticed student engagement has been improved.
While there are so many ways to keep students engaged, all of the activities I have shared are free. And let's be completely honest, free ideas and materials and gold for teachers!
Bio information
My name is Megan and I am currently teaching 5th grade in Elgin, IL. I have been teaching for 15 years, all in 5th grade, so I guess you can say 5th grade and I are meant to be. I have a passion for teaching elementary school. I love how I am able to teach all subjects and to me, everyday is a new day because I never know what my students are going to throw at me. When I am not teaching, I have two beautiful children who keep me extremely busy. Outside of the classroom, I am either camping, hiking, on a boat, playing outside with my kids, or reading.
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