Starters, Mini-Plenaries & Plenaries
Toolkit Resources
Please look at the following key for
the slides opposite:
Starters and Plenaries = S and P
Starters = S
Plenaries = P
Mini-plenaries = MP
Question Catch
The teacher throws a bean bag when
asking questions. This makes
questioning a kinaesthetic activity and
can engage pupils who don’t normally
volunteer to answer. You can give the
pupil the option of throwing the ball to
someone else if they don’t know the
answer. It can also be played in
teams. The teacher throws the bean
bag to each team in turn. If the person
who catches it can answer the
question, they score 3 points for their
team. If they can’t, they throw it to
another team to score 2 points, if they
can’t it is thrown again for 1 point.
Think, Pair, Share
Pupils write down as many
answers or ideas they can think
of on their own (Think). They
then pool their ideas with a
partner (Pair), and finally the
teacher opens up the
discussion for contributions
from the class as a whole
(Share).
Heads Together
This is an excellent way of promoting
discussion and dialogue (strategy 2) in your
classroom, and moving away from the
‘Hands Up / Relying on 1 Person’ approach.
1. Put pupils into groups of 4 with each
pupil numbered 1 to 4.
2. You then ask a question which the pupils
discuss in their groups. Once they have
been given sufficient thinking time, they
write their answer on a mini-whiteboard and
share with the class.
You can use points to increase the sense of
competition. You then repeat the process
with increasingly difficult questions.
1. Divide into groups. Each group numbers its members from 1-4 or 1-5, depending on group size.
2. Teacher poses a question, think time is given, teacher then says 'Heads together.'
3. Pupils stand up and lean into the centre of the table to decide upon the answer verbally.
4. When they all know the answer they sit down. When all teams are sat down you can tell that the
whole class is ready.
5. Spin your spinner to choose a number (or merely say any number from 1-4 or 1-5. The pupil
from each team must pick up the whiteboard and
pen on their table and write the answer and stand up. This must be done in silence.
6. Give a signal and each team shows you their answer at the same time. A team point can be
awarded for each right answer.
Classtools Fruitmachine random number picker
1. Divide into pairs.
2. Write three statements, one of
which is false.
3. Give your 2 true and 1 false
statement to another pair.
4. Second pair reads and discusses
the statements, guessing which
statement is false.
Students work together in groups of three:
The SPEAKER explains the topic (or expresses their opinion on an issue) as directed by the teacher.
The QUESTIONER listens carefully and asks for clarification or further detail.
The NOTE-TAKER observes this process and provides feedback to both "speaker" and "questioner".
(A "numbered heads" approach can be used to allocate roles - and these roles can be rotated (either now or subsequently).)
Information Gap
Student 1 has half the information
on a piece of paper.
Student 2 has the other half on a piece
of paper.
Pairs come together to teach each other their half (without showing
it on the paper)
Pairs feed back to the class.
Question Envelopes
Qu
Write 2-3 questions (related to the
learning objectives) on envelopes. Do
multiple copies of each so that each
student will have one to work on.
Distribute, so that each student has one.
Give 2 minutes per envelope: student
records name and answer on a post-it
note; students pass envelope on after 2
minutes until all 2-3 questions are
answered by all. Collect in and read some
responses (anonymously); class responds
to accuracy of answer.
Diamond 9
Participants are given a list of issues and
asked to discuss and agree which are the
most important items. Each item is placed
on a large, diamond-shaped grid. The most
important item is usually placed in the top
of the diamond and the least important at
the bottom of the diamond. Items in each
row are of equal importance. (Some
groups prefer to put the most important
card in the centre - either approach is fine,
as it's the discussion surrounding the
group's decisions that is important.) The
diamond shape enables the group to
encompass a range of priorities and
perspectives.
Question Box
The classroom could have a question box where students drop questions
at the end of a lesson. These are then addressed at the start of the next
lesson.
Students write Questions
For example –
·About what you would like to know on a
new topic
·To ask the teacher or other students in
order to assess their learning
·To demonstrate
learning/misconceptions/areas you would
like to further explore
Lower ability students can be encouraged to ask
"What" questions and higher ability to ask "What would
happen if..." questions)
Wait Time
Wait time allows students time to think
and therefore to produce answers. Also,
not everyone in the class thinks at the
same speed or in the same way – waiting
allows students to build their thoughts
and explore what has been asked.
2 types of wait time:
·Teacher speaks and then waits before taking
student responses.
·Student response ends and then teacher waits
before responding. This gives the student space to
elaborate or continue – or for another student to
respond.
Traffic Lights
Use traffic lights as a visual means of
showing understanding.
e.g.
·Students have red, amber and green cards which
they show on their desks or in the air. (red = don’t
understand, green = totally get it etc.)
·Students self-assess using traffic lights. The
teacher could then record these visually in their
mark book.
·Peer assess presentations etc. with traffic lights
Articulate then Answer
Give students the opportunity to
articulate their thinking before
answering –
·30 seconds silent thinking
before any answers
·Brainstorm in pairs first for 2-3
minutes
·Write some thoughts down
before answering
·Discuss with your neighbour
first
Tell your neighbour
Students ‘tell their neighbour’ as a
means of articulating their thoughts.
·Ask a question, give thinking time
and then ask students to tell their
neighbour their thoughts.
·Tell students what the new topic is and
then ask them to tell their neighbour
everything they know about it.
Thumbs
Check class understanding of what
you are teaching by asking them
to show their thumbs.
Thumbs up = I get it
Thumbs half way = sort of
Thumbs down = I don’t get it
Idea Thoughts
When you have received an answer
to a question, open up the thinking
behind it by asking what others think
about the idea.
e.g. “What do others think about
_________’s idea?”
Basketball Questioning
Bounce answers around the room to
build on understanding and have
students develop stronger reasoning
out of misconceptions.
E.g.
“Jimmy, what do you think of
Sandra’s answer?”
“Sandra, how could you develop
Carl’s answer to include more detail?”
“Carl, how might you combine all
we’ve heard into a single answer?”
Laminated Criteria
Make laminated, studentfriendly assessment criteria
cards.
ABCD
Laminate a set of cards so every
member of the class has four, with
A,B,C and D written on them. Ask
questions with four answers and
pupils can show you their answer.
Encourage them not to look at other
people’s response so as to copy.
Working with a partner, rank the following factors in terms
of _____________ e.g. value,importance
A
B
C
D
E
F
Alphabet Line
Alphabet
Line
We need 5 volunteers for our starter / plenary!
Using consecutive letters of the alphabet they
need to come out to the front & take it in turns to
shout out key words linked to our topic
__________________
It's very easy - if we were doing the Middle Ages, you could start
with
A - Arrow
B - Battle
C - Conqueror
Topic:_____________________________________
__
What do I know?
(starter activity)
What would I like to know?
(starter activity)
What have I learnt?
(plenary)
True
or
False:
Test your Knowledge:
Test your knowledge of the lesson so far by
arewhether
the following
statements
deciding
the following
statements
TRUE
are trueor
or FALSE?
false
You have 30 seconds for each...
Tell your partner one fact
from your research.
Turn to your new partner and tell
him/her your old partner's fact. Discuss
whether you think it's accurate.
Write down any accurate information you
think we need to know for this topic.
Ten Questions!
Your teacher will select one student
and put a post-it note with a keyword
on their forehead - they have ten
questions to ask the class to which
they can only reply YES or NO!
Write down everything you know under the
right heading:
BOTH
Constantinople
Constantinople
Starter: Your challenge today is to make as many
small words from our key word today which is
_________________________________________
How did you do?
Excellent:
10 words or
more
Good:
more
8 words or
Not Bad:
more
6 words or
Mystery Object - Write down 5 questions about this object:
DO NOT ASK: What is it?
INSERT IMAGE
HERE
Living Photographs
Create a freeze frame from one of these images:
A
B
C
Place images here
What is the "bigger picture"? What can't we see?
Imagine you are the _______ in Picture _______ . What
would you be thinking?
De Bono's Thinking Hats: 6 ways to look at this
text/picture/research/ (delete not applicable)
Red hat - Hunches
What is my gut reaction?
What do my instincts tell me?
Write down what you think.
White hat - Facts
What information do I have?
What information do I need to get?
Write down only what you know.
Yellow hat - Positives
What are the good points?
What are the benefits?
What do I like?
Write down the positives.
Green hat - Creativity
What ideas do I have?
What alternatives can I come up with?
Write down things that are new and
different.
Use the blue hat for feedback after all other
groups
Black hat - Negatives
What are the bad points?
What are the problems?
What don’t I like?
Write down the
negatives.
Blue hat - Overview
What have I discovered?
What is still left to discover?
How can I discover it?
Have I worn all of the hats?
Write down your overall view.
Arrange these words from
to
Fill in the missing words, using the example as a guide:
Metal is to Car asWood
..............is to
Furniture.
_____ is to ______ as ..............is to
_______.
_____ is to ______ as ..............is to
_______.
_____ is to ______ as ..............is to
_______.
_____ is to ______ as ..............is to
_______.
Teacher to input subject-related analogies
Speed Dating!
Sit with a partner - one of you must sit facing the
whiteboard and the other facing the opposite way
The first person has only 30 seconds to describe the key
word(s) featured below before moving onto their next
partner - your teacher will keep writing down the
keyword to be explained
Your keyword is:
Here's how it works:
1. Each group is given a worksheet. They read the
question/topic and add facts on Post-its to answer this
(in 2 minutes).
2. When the time's up, they pass the worksheet
clockwise to the next group and start adding Post-its
to their new sheet.
3. The task is completed when all groups have added
notes to all sheets.
A
B
D
C
You have one minute to explain each of the following key words from today's
lesson, without using the word itself:
USE THIS SLIDE WHEN
YOU ARE DOING THE
PLENARY AS A WHOLE
CLASS
USE SCREEN SHADE
OVER KEY WORDS NOT
DONE YET
Just a Minute!
Using the words in your envelopes, you have one minute to explain the key words from
today's
lesson, to the 2 other people in your group:
One key word out of the envelope at a time
Without using the word itself
The first person to guess, is next to choose a key word and
explain it to the others!
USE THIS SLIDE WHEN
YOU ARE DOING THE
PLENARY IN GROUPS
Topic Tennis
You have been grouped into 3s:
2 players and a scorer/scribe
When I say the topic, 2 of you
take it in turns to say words
related to that topic, until one of
you can't go.
The 3rd person notes down the
words and decides the score.
Score:
1 point every time the other person can't think of the next word
OR
use Tennis scoring (15 - love, deuce, etc)
Sentence Finish
Complete the following sentence:
Today I learnt.....
When you come to the
front you will be asked to
say your sentence and
your classmates will ask
you questions to test
your knowledge about
what you have learnt.
Some question stems for testing
someone's knowledge
Why....
How do you know that...
What evidence do you have for...
What do you think....
Do you agree that.....
Can you explain....
What would you have to do in order to....
The Room is a Map!
The class has been labelled with grid references from a map. Using the grid references provided,
see if you can find a specific location in the room.
door
windows
Indicate grid references
here
Noughts and Crosses
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Rules
Rules:
1. Team 1 (Noughts) chooses a number from the
grid.
2. Teacher reads question related to that number.
3. Team 1 answer correctly: get nought in that
square.
Team 1 answer incorrectly: Team 2 (Crosses)
gets chance to answer question and get a cross in
that square.
Roving Reporter
In your groups you will be recreating a TV news broadcast for ............
(eg water cycle, battle of Hastings, etc)
Pupil 1:
announces the day's
main headlines (ie stage
of cycle, event),
providing a "dong" of a
bell sound between each
one
Pupil 2:
newsreader in the
television studio;
summarises the main
news story
Pupil 3:
roving reporter; provides
the details of the story
while broadcasting from
where the event is taking
place
Pupil 4:
witness who is
interviewed by the
roving reporter
Ready...Steady...Teach!
You will each be given a bag
of "goodies" to help you
teach your given topic. You
have 5 minutes to plan the
activity.
Each one of you must write down 5
questions related to what you have
learnt today. Each question must
start with a different question word:
What
Who
When
Where
Why
How
What would happen if....
Coach
Player
Pupil 1: you will have the questions with
the answers on the back. Ask each one
without giving clues. Only give clues when
it is clear pupil 2 cannot give you a full
answer.
Pupil 2: you will answer the questions in full. If
you cannot answer a question, you can ask for a
clue.
Individuals:
Write down 5 questions (one on each card, with
the answer on the back) to ask your
classmates.
Swap your cards with another group
Groups of 4:
·Leader reads questions given to your group
·Group members write answers on mini-whiteboards
and hold thumb up to indicate they are ready
·Leader says "Showdown" and all reveal answers
·Discuss misconceptions in groups (if still no
consensus, feed back to whole class
Heads Together
·Discuss the answer to your question quietly so your neighbours don't hear
·Your teacher will then select a number 1 - 4
·Whoever matches that number will be called upon to answer
·A great way of ensuring discussion and differentiation takes place
Show
Me!
Here are some sentences with a selection of words to choose
from. When I count to 3, hold up your mini-whiteboard with the
right word for each sentence. We'll do each sentence one at a
time.
Practice:
The pupil what/who/which gets the most correct answers
will win a prize.
Let's go!
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Which is the odd one out?
C
A
B
Why?
Use this sentence in your answer:
Both... and ... are ...., whereas .... is .....
What is the difference between
these two?
A
B
Insert images or key
words here
Why?
Use this sentence in your answer:
... is ..., whereas .... is .....
Memory Game
Here are the key words we have learnt today/ over the last few
You have 2 minutes to memorise
lessons.
them.
Insert keywords here
You will then need to recall them from memory in a limited time in
your groups/pairs.
Prizes for the most right answers - correct word and correct
spelling!
Memory
Game
Here is the sequence of events we have learnt today/ over the last few lesson
You have 2 minutes to memorise the
sequence.
You will then need to recall them from memory in a limited time in
your groups/pairs.
Prizes for the group who gets the sequence right first!
Memory Game
You have been divided into
groups.
When I say "Go!", one
person from your group must come up to my table and try and
memorise as much as they can of the
map/diagram/chart/packaging/storyboard/painting/graph/sequence (delete not applicable)
before going back to the group to record the information.
Rules:
1. Only one person from each group out of
their seats at any time.
2. You may not write down anything when
you are at the table.
3. You may not shout information to your
group when you are at the table.
You will need to think about the
following:
·What strategies are you using for
remembering the diagram and the text?
·How are you organising yourselves to
work effectively?
·What are you finding easiest or most
difficult about the task?
Memory Sequence
A good way to remember a sequence is through repetition.
The cycle/sequence/series we will be memorising today is: _______________________
Here's how it works:
Pupil 1: Firstly.........................................
Pupil 2: Firstly...................................... Then............................
Pupil 3: Firstly...................................... Then............................ After that.........................
Pupil 4 onwards : Start at beginning and add another point.
Who can complete the
cycle/sequence/series?
Classroom Object Models
Each group is going to reproduce the cycle/system/map
objects in the box.
Things to consider:
·What shape should the cycle
have?
·What can we use to depict
this shape?
·How will we represent the
main points?
(delete not applicable)
allocated to them, using
Adding Detailed Ideas
In teams you are going to be extending sentences to
show off your newfound knowledge. The team with the best
sentence, ie accurate and detailed, wins the prize!
Example Original Sentence:
The Second World War started in 1939.
Example Extended Sentence:
The Second World War, which occurred between 1939 and 1945,
started when the Germans invade Poland and Britain declared war
on Germany
1
3
2
4
5
Guess the Question....
Here are some answers to questions.
What are the questions?
10
6
9
8
7
Topic Key Words
Which of these words are related
_____________________________
Word Bank
Place topic words here, with
unrelated words in between as "red
herrings"
Our Topic
Key words will be dragged
here
fruit_machine.htm
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