Jigsaw
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In groups five, each member is assigned some unique material to learn
and then to teach to his group members.
Students across the class working on the same sub-section get together to
decide what is important and how to teach it.
After practice in these "expert" groups the original groups reform and
students teach each other.
Think-Pair-Share
This involves a three step cooperative structure.
Think: Individuals think silently about a question posed by the instructor.
Pair: Individual’s pair up and exchange thoughts.
Share: Pairs share their responses with other pairs, other teams, or the
entire group.
Three-Step Interview
Each member of a team chooses another member to be a partner.
1. Individuals interview their partners by asking clarifying questions.
2. Partners reverse the roles.
3. Members share their partner's response with the team.
Round Robin Brainstorming
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Divide the class into small groups (4 to 6), with one person selected as the
recorder.
Pose a question with many possible answers and give students time to
think about their answers.
After the "think time," members of the team share responses with one
another round robin style.
The recorder writes down the answers of the group members. The person
next to the recorder starts, and each person in the group in order gives an
answer until time is called.
Three-Minute Review
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Stop any given time during your lesson or class discussion and give teams
three minutes to review what has been said.
Then, ask clarifying questions or answer questions.
Numbered Heads Together
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Establish a team of four, and give each member a number of 1, 2, 3, 4.
Ask questions to the members of each group. Then, the groups work
together to answer the question so that all can verbally answer the
question.
Finally, you call out a number (two) and ask each "two" to give the answer.
Team Pair Solo
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Assign your students to problems first as a team, then with a partner, and
finally on their own.
This cooperative learning approach is designed to motivate students to
tackle and succeed at problems, which initially are beyond their ability.
It's based on a simple notion of helping one another. Students can do
more things with help than they can do alone.
Circle the Sage
 First, ask the class whether they have special knowledge to share. For
example, you might ask who in your class was able to solve a difficult
math homework question, who had visited Queensland, or who knows the
chemical reactions involved in how salting the streets help dissipate snow.
 Those students (the sages) stand and spread out in the room. Then you
direct the rest of the classmates to each surround a sage, with no two
members of the same team going to the same sage.
 The sage explains what they know while the classmates listen, ask
questions, and take notes.
 All students then return to their teams, and each in turn, explains what
they learned. Because each student has gone to a different sage, they are
able to compare notes.
 If there is disagreement, students stand up as a team.
 Finally, the disagreements are aired and resolved.
Manis, C 2010, Cooperative learning: 8 Classroom Activities for collaboration, Daily
Teaching Tools, accessed 20th Oct 2012,
http://www.dailyteachingtools.com/cooperative-learning.html
Roundtable
Present a category (such as words that begin with "b"). Have students take
turns writing one word at a time.
Write-around
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For creative writing or when summarising, give a sentence starter (for
example: If you give an elephant a cookie, he's going to ask for...).
Ask all students in each team to finish that sentence. Then, they pass their
paper to the right, read the one they received, and add a sentence to that
one.
After a few rounds, four great stories or summaries emerge. Give children
time to add a conclusion and/or edit their favorite one to share with the
class.
Numbered Heads Together
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Ask students to number off in their teams from one to four.
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Announce a question and a time limit.
Students put their heads together to come up with an answer.
Call a number and ask all students with that number to stand and answer
the question.
Recognize correct responses and elaborate through rich discussions.
Tea Party
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Students form two concentric circles or two lines facing each other. Ask a
question (on any content) and students discuss the answer with the
student facing them.
After one minute, the outside circle or one line moves to the right so that
students have new partners. Then pose a second question for them to
discuss.
Continue with five or more questions.
o For a little variation, students can write questions on cards to review
for a test through this "Tea Party" method.
Colorado, C 2007, Cooperative learning Strategies, Colorin Colorado: helping
kids read and succeed, accessed 15th Oct 2012:
http://www.colorincolorado.org/educators/content/cooperative/