Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Plenaries
‘From the outset, plenaries were often the weakest part of the
lesson. Good planning was critical to the success of the plenary.
Often there was insufficient time for them because teachers What do students gain from a plenary?
underestimated the time required for activities in the main phase of
the lesson. Plenaries were often the least active part of the lessons. Effective plenaries enable your students to:
Teachers tended merely to sum up what happened during the main
phase and pupils did not have the opportunity to articulate what 1. Reflect on what they have learned either individually or as a
they had learned. When pupils had such opportunities they proved group
an important part of the learning process.
2. Place their learning in the context of the ‘big picture’
Why use plenaries? 3. Articulate and express their own learning
When used effectively, plenaries: 4. Develop a language for discussing learning and thinking
about learning
1. Summarise and round off a lesson or, at a strategic moment,
allow you to summarise a section of the lesson 5. See themselves as learners rather than pupils
2. Help your students focus on the most important points that How long should a plenary be?
they have learned
Plenaries will vary in length from a few minutes to a major part of
3. Highlight not only what has been leaned but how it has been the lesson depending on the stage of your students learning and
learned style and format that you have planned. It should be remembered
that effective plenaries are not necessarily confined to the end of
4. Are essential ‘assessment for learning’ tools in that they
lessons. They are useful tools to be used at different times in a
allow you to assess both individual and class learning
lesson to draw the class together.
5. Help inform your future lesson planning by developing a
How you could raise interest in plenaries within a
better understanding of what your students have learned in
the lesson curriculum area
6. Help your class review the lesson objective or their own 1. Use the OFSTED quote at the beginning of this booklet to
success criteria raise awareness of the issue.
7. Allows you to draw the class together, crystallise their 2. Start a discussion in a departmental meeting to identify any
understanding and direct the students to the next phase of common problems associated with running effective
their learning plenaries.
8. Value and celebrate the achievements of the individual and 3. Use the suggestions in the ‘examples’ part of this booklet to
the class, and trial different approaches to running plenaries.
4. Obtain feedback on the most effective method for your 8. Be fun!
subject.
5. Try to find time to watch each other run the plenary that you
found to be most effective.
1. Probing questions
1. Should be well planned. At the start of the lesson select two or three
students and give them the task of summing up
2. Be given sufficient time, the lesson. At the end of their summary ask
individuals in the class to comment on or add to
3. Be directly related to the learning objectives and
the summation. Always ensure that you give your
success criteria of the lesson.
summarises a round of applause at the end of the
4. Be differentiated in order that you can assess both lesson.
individual and collective progress.
3. The 60 second challenge
5. Assess the effectiveness of your teaching.
Workings individually, or in groups, allow 60
6. Should allow you to re-address any misunderstandings seconds for students to list the most important
or re-emphasise any important learning that seems to facts that they have learned during the lesson.
have been missed. They then share their learning allowing you to
bring together the important points.
7. Inform your future planning.
4. List 5 things you have learned today
Workings individually, or in groups, ask the Ask groups of students to produce questions
students to list the five most important facts that related to the lesson and organise a knock-out
they have learned during the lesson. They then quiz to determine the ‘top group’.
share their learning allowing you to bring together
the important points. 11.Jig –Saw feedback.
5. List 5 things your neighbour should have Ask groups to summarise different parts of the
learned today lesson and then allow them to feedback to the
whole class as a summary of the lesson.
This is a similar exercise but allows you to use a
‘Think – Pair –Share’ approach to bringing the 12.True or False
lesson together.
Use True or False cards to enable students to
respond to statements that you make regarding
the days learning.
20.Five questions
Tell your students that they may ask up to five 26.Shimmering hands
questions before they have to guess which key
word, idea or concept that you are thinking of. Students are encouraged to use shimmering hands
to indicate if they have understood the key word,
21.From start to end idea or concept that they are studying.
Shimmering hands held vertically indicates that
Display both the learning objectives and the final they do, held straight out in front indicates almost
learning either side of the board. Ask your whilst no hands held out at all indicates that they
students to fit the stages of how they achieved are still struggling to understand.
their learning objectives between the two displays.
27.Press Conference
22.Who, what, when where and why?
A group of students are called out to the front of
Display a picture that illustrates a key word, idea the class. They must then act as a group of
or concept from the lesson. Working in groups, experts on their learning whilst the class quizzes
students have to write whole sentences that them.
28.Smiley Faces 32.Toss the bean bag
Each student is given a set of three cards with Ask a question based on the day’s learning and
smiley faces drawn on them. If they understand toss a bean bag to the student that you want to
their learning they hold up a smiley face; those answer the question. If they succeed then they win
who almost understand it show a face with a the right to ask a question of their own and toss
straight mouth whilst those not understanding it the bean bag to someone else. If they fail, the
show a sad face. bean bag must be returned to you.
Tell the class that you will be summarising their Write the lessons topic on the centre of your
learning yourself but will make several deliberate board. Now encourage students to come
mistakes in their summary. Ask them to use ‘Think individually to the board and start to produce a
– Pair – Share’ in their groups to spot the mistakes. mind map that summarises the day’s learning.
At the end of the exercise go through the
summary again but this time with the right 34.Post box
answers.
This is designed to check understanding and
30.Mastermind inform the planning of your next lesson. Ask your
students to write down, in order, the five most
Hot seat a student and play ‘Mastermind’ as you important things that they learned in the lesson
question them about the lessons learning. Display and place them in a ‘post box’ as they leave. A
a Mastermind Champion Chart in the classroom to quick look will tell you what has been learned and
record success as the term progresses. what needs reinforcement.
35.Circle Graphs