Instructional Tactics Booklet

Sourced & designed by Anne Gisborne, Bronwen

Williams, Katie Menzies and Edd Black.

The Barrie Bennett Project

BRAINSTORMING VARIATIONS
- Students can brainstorm on their own, in small groups or in large
group.
- With younger students the teacher can record the ideas they provide.
- Use pictures for non-writers and write the word next to the picture for
early readers.
- Small group brainstorming – after the initial sharing of information one
student from each group can move to another group and share the
ideas from their group.
- Brainstorming can be followed by other instructional tactics such as
Mind Maps, Concept Maps, Ranking Ladders, Venn Diagrams and
Fishbone Diagrams, etc

PURPOSE
LINKS
Brainstorming will find out what students already know about a topic or
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLpZ6RZHyoM
will help students generate ideas about something they are trying to
~1.40m
understand. It helps the teacher determine the prior knowledge of the
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPnTPK0c53w
students and teaches students to respect the ideas of their peers. It is ~4.00m
important to ensure that whist students are generating their ideas they are https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLyxzzXNVj8
free from judgement, positive or negative. Evaluation of student’s ideas ~1.20m
can be done after the sharing phase.

METHOD
1. Students think independently about a given topic, idea, situation,
problem, etc.
2. Students share ideas, making sure everyone gets a chance to share.
Students can share ideas verbally or write them down. No
evaluation takes place during this step.
3. Students act on the data. Pull out key ideas and classify
information, looking for patterns and relationships in their data.
Brainstorming leads into many other instructional tactics – see
variations.
CONSIDER ALL FACTORS [CAF] Key questions:
Who? What? Where? How? Why? When?
Use frameworks e.g. Bloom’s Taxonomy, 6 Thinking Hats to support
thinking

CAF on buying a second hand car

PURPOSE

VARIATIONS
Once the factors are listed then they can be used with other structures to
analyse information, to rank ideas and/or to use in further activities e.g.
persuasive writing, report writing etc. See Cort Thinking list for following
on ideas
Consider All Factors (CAF) is an attention directing tool. During a defined
interval of time you list every consideration about a topic or situation you
can think of, as opposed to just the first few that come to mind.
Sometimes it is beneficial to ask for a minimum number of ideas rather
than set a time limit.

METHOD
Identify a topic for consideration e.g. building a nature playground, moving
LINKS
to the country, making the playground safe. All ideas are to be considered
https://prezi.com/6wufpew7isgv/consider-all-factors-caf/
and listed down. Skills needed: managing information; working with
~ 5m
others; reasoning; problem solving/ decision making; creativity.
VENN DIAGRAM - Scaffold students up to using progressively more complicated
diagrams. If you work your way up slowly, students will learn to use
graphic organizers not simply to keep track of knowledge they’ve
already learned, but to push themselves to think about that
knowledge in new ways and to learn more.

PURPOSE
A Venn diagram is a visual tool composed of two or more overlapping
circles used to show relationships between sets of items. Comparison and
contrast; relationships

METHOD
Students provided with data to sort into predetermined categories, or
required to find the data to be place into predetermined categories.
Figure 14. Classifying potentially healthful foods with a 4-set Edwards-
VARIATIONS Venn diagram.
- Use diagrams for classification, not just comparison. By using
circles to represent sets and placing the elements within them, you
can classify large numbers of things rather than simply comparing LINKS
two or three. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OatBvRe9S0o
- Draw diagrams to meet your needs. Circles don’t have to be the
same size, and they don’t have to overlap — you don’t even have ~1.20m
to use circles! By drawing custom diagrams for each topic, you can
correctly represent relationships among sets or characteristics.
- Draw the universal set. Draw and label the universal set — the set
of everything you might be discussing. That keeps the discussion
within reasonable bounds, and makes a place for everything in it.
FISHBONE

PURPOSE
Method to solve problems in terms of finding and defining the causes and
the overall effect relationships
METHOD
1. Identify the problem…..Title of the task
2. Work out the major factors involved…..Brainstorm it even
3. Identify possible causes…..List the causes on the bones
4. Analyze your diagram…..Thinking, discussing agreeing.
You'll find this method is particularly useful when you're trying to
solve more complicated problems, but handy for simple ones too.
VARIATIONS
Multiple - depending on the complexity…used from kids solving a problem
to major applications in industry and quality improvement planning.
LINKS
https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_03.htm
http://www.educationworld.com/tools_templates/template_Fish.doc
http://fishbonediagram.org/
THINK, PAIR, SHARE
VARIATIONS
- Repeating the pair step a few times will increase student’s safety.
Students will have several ideas ready when it comes to the sharing
step.
- The right to pass.
- Pairing up is not always possible. Allow students to make groups of
PURPOSE three and ensure that no student is left out
TPS is a cooperative learning technique that encourages individual
LINKS
participation. Students think through questions using the think, pair and
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wW87rihT38I
share steps. It enables students to increase their communication strategies
~1.30m
and teaches them respect for the ideas of their peers. In sharing their https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ci5H1AKCbfQ
ideas, students take ownership of their learning and negotiate meanings ~9.30m
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxMOl2Vnw54
rather than relying solely on the teacher's authority. While the strategy
~2.30m
may appear to be time-consuming, it makes classroom discussions more
productive, as students have already had an opportunity to think about
their ideas before plunging into whole-class conversations.

METHOD
1. Teacher poses a question.
2. Think – Students think independently about the question that has
been posed, forming ideas of their own. Applying an appropriate
wait time is essential.
3. Pair – Students pair up to discuss their thoughts. This step allows
students to discuss their ideas and to consider those of others.
4. Share – Students share their ideas with a larger group, such as the
whole class.
PLACE MAT VARIATIONS
- Can be easily adapted according to group size.
- Can cut up place mat to enable more individualised work for the
first part of the tactic. Then stick place mat back together after
consensus section is completed.
- Other tactics can be easily incorporated in the place mat such as
Venn Diagram, PMI, Ranking Ladder, Walk About (shown in link
below).

PURPOSE
This cooperative learning strategy allows students to think about, record,
and share their ideas in groups. It can be used to brainstorm ideas, record
researched information or analyse documents. Each group member writes
ideas in a space around the centre of a large piece of paper. Afterwards,
the group compares what each member has written, and common items
are placed in the centre of the paper.
LINKS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1xeM1bnNLc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=405i4g2SXfQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFV2CekiUy0
Sources
http://www.eworkshop.on.ca/edu/pdf/Mod36_coop_placemat.pdf
http://www.learnalberta.ca/content/sssm/html/placematactivity_sm.html

METHOD
1. Assign a topic.
2. Form groups of up to four members.
3. Give each group a piece of chart paper and each student a pen or
pencil. Divide the paper into parts based on the number of
members in the group, and leave a central square or circle. Or
provide a pre-prepared framework.
4. Have students write their ideas about the assigned topic in the
designated spaces. After sharing their ideas, they write common
ideas in the centre of the paper.
TAKE A POSITION [TAP] OR TAKE A STAND [TAS]
VARIATIONS
PURPOSE
Designed to assist students to share their opinions on an issue and to
provide evidence to back up the position. It is particularly useful where you
want to discuss an issue where there might be a range of views on the
topic. It is often a good precursor to pre-writing on a topic or can be used
as an informal pre-assessment. It can be used to review at the end of a
lesson or be a simple get-to-know-you activity.
Sample statements
 https://www.journalbuddies.com/prompts-by-grade/fun-writing-
prompts-for-middle-school/
 https://www.journalbuddies.com/writing-2/persuasive-writing-
prompts-for-elementary-students/
 https://squareheadteachers.com/2013/07/05/62-persuasive-
writing-prompts-for-kids/
- Students can add reflections to a journal or use to progress a
persuasive text or create an advert
- Forced Decisions: choice of YES, NO or UNDECIDED
- Post-It Notes Barometer: used to stick onto a continuum line. Then
discuss the visual representation of opinions in class.
- Presenting Different Perspectives: assign a perspective e.g.
historical character, literary character, school of thought… research
and then detail position / stand taken in context of a statement e.g.
- Apply a PMI

METHOD
LINKS
1. Identify the topic/ statement e.g. summer is the best season, war is Discovery Education
unnecessary, cats are the best pets or watch a video or read a text. http://www.discoveryeducation.com/students/
2. Clarify the means of sharing your position e.g. stand in a line, use a http://www.discoveryeducation.com/
ranking ladder, thumbs up – thumbs down, take a corner.
3. Review class rules re ‘respect for opinions of others’, disagreeing Facing History
agreeably. https://www.facinghistory.org/
4. Think time.
5. Move to ‘show’ your opinion.
6. Explanations of viewpoints [after several are heard could invite
students to consider if wish to change their position.
PMI
PURPOSE
PMI (plus, minus, interesting) is used to encourage the examination of
ideas, concepts and experiences from more than one perspective. PMI was
developed by Dr. Edward de Bono, a proponent of lateral and critical
thinking. This tactic encourages thinking in the analysis and evaluation
levels of Bloom’s taxonomy.
A PMI strategy can help students to:
- make decisions by analysing and weighing the pros and cons.
- reflect upon or evaluate a product or process.
- identify strengths and weaknesses for future improvement.
- see both sides of an argument.
- view things from a different point of view.
- think broadly about an issue.
- work as individuals, in pairs or as members of a group.
METHOD
1. Provide students with the PMI framework/organiser.
2. Consider the Plus Points - In this step, students write down all
the positive things they can think of.
3. Consider the Minus Points - In this step, students write down all
the negative things they can think of.
4. Consider the Interesting Points of the Situation - In this step,
write down all the interesting points that you can think of.
Rather than positive or negative, they are simply points of
interest that you should direct your attention to.
5. Make Your Conclusion - In this step, students make their
judgement because they’ve scanned and organised three
important aspects: the positives, the negatives, and the
interesting.
VARIATIONS
- Can be easily combined with other tactics such as a Place Mat.
- Layout can be easily adapted to increase interest for younger
students. Instead of a table, it could be set up in separate circles or
clouds, or set up like a Y-chart.
- The ‘I’ can be changed from ‘interesting’ to ‘important’ or
‘intelligent’ to suit the task/topic.
LINKS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktxujQ5aJos
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhdgrD6_Qjw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IBW2Mi-RGI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4YUk2io5-4
Sources
http://www.virtuallibrary.info/pmi-plus-minus-interesting-strategy.html
https://www.wettropics.gov.au/rainforest_explorer/Resources/Document
s/4to7/TeachingStrategies/PMIStrategy.pdf
Beyond Monet, Barrie Bennett & Carol Rolheiser
SNOWBALL VARIATIONS
Can be used across curriculum areas.
- Continue writing topics
- Explore feelings
- Build up points of view
- To summarise observations

PURPOSE
The purpose of the snowball fight strategy is to predict, summarize, justify,
and think critically. Teachers can adapt the strategy to their own purposes.

METHOD

1. Have students write the answer to a poignant content-related

question on a piece of paper. Picture stimulus to list 5
2. Students crumple their paper into a “snowball.” observations
3. Students throw their “snowballs” across the room and retrieve one
that is not their own.
4. Students open the “snowball” and respond in some way to the LINKS
content of the “snowball.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9yEN0rS1IDU
5. You can ask the next question, and allow the students to write the ~2m
next answer on the paper they have and repeat the process.

Modify the process to meet your classroom needs. The Snowball Fight
activity enforces writing, responding to text, critical thinking, justifying, and
collaboration. The anonymity of the activity encourages students to
respond even if they are unsure of the “right” answer.
RANKING LADDER VARIATIONS
- Ranking ladders can also be used to make judgements based on
preference and chronology.
- Can be easily combined with other tactics such as a Place Mat (as
shown in the link below).

LINKS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1Udep62s6Y
~4.30m
PURPOSE
A ranking ladder helps learners to make judgments about importance and
Sources:
to rank concepts in order of importance. This strategy is useful when
https://www.jct.ie/perch/resources/wholeschool/strategies-ranking.pdf
previewing or reviewing material. It provides students with an opportunity
http://phxhs.k12.az.us/site/handlers/filedownload.ashx?moduleinstanceid
to engage in thinking at the evaluation level of Bloom’s taxonomy.
=11955&dataid=13008&FileName=26%20Ranking%20Ladder.pdf
https://rankingladder.weebly.com/index.html
METHOD
1. Choose, or help students choose, a series of concepts, events, or
people to rank. Display these or provide the students with a copy.
2. Ask each group or individual to draw a ladder on a full page, the
number of rungs equal to the number of items to be ranked. Or
provide students with a pre-prepared template.
3. Students should discuss the items to be ranked and explain the
criteria and justification for the placing of each item.
4. Students then write or stick the items on the rungs of the ladder
in order, from least important on the bottom to most important
on the top.
5. The ranking ladders can then be displayed in the classroom and
form the basis of a whole class discussion.