Amanda Newcomb

Strategies in the Classroom

EDUG 511

Vanguard University

March 23, 2017

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 How do I define the purpose/value of strategies, activities, and materials?

When we teach, we are teaching much more than content; we are teaching students. Each

student is a vastly different person with unique experiences, points of view, and motivationsall

of which factor in to how they learn. Because each student is different, it is important to employ

the use of different strategies and activities in order to ensure that all students have their needs

met. Different strategies, activities, and materials are what gives a lesson a personality unique to

the teacher, students, and classroom. These are what take a cookie cutter lesson to one that has

relevance to and impact on students lives.

An instructional strategy, according to Burden and Byrd, is a method for delivering

instruction that is intended to help students achieve the learning objective, (Burden & Byrd,

2016, p 122). They can range from teacher-centered to student centered, but the strategies used

depend upon the students needs and the instructional goals. For this reason, it is important for

teachers to know their students in order to know what strategies will work best with their needs.

It is also important for the students to take an active role in their learning and to understand what

works best for them to succeed. Teachers can help students to become their own advocates for

their education, helping to them to engage more deeply with the content and skills being taught.

Strategies are valuable to teaching and it is important to recognize that the many different

approaches can help the students succeed. Teachers need to constantly reflect upon their own

practices and strive to be strategic and intentional in their choices so the students benefit and

they, the teachers, get better. (TPE 1.1, 1.4, 3.2, 4.5, 5.1, 5.3, 6.1)

The activities that accompany a lesson should reinforce the material and provide an

opportunity for students to practice their newly acquired skills. They should also engage the

students and help them to be interested and invested in what they are learning. The real value of

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activities within a classroom lies within the students opportunity for inquiry and problem-

solving. There is a wide range of activities to choose from, and a teacher should consider the

instructional goals and their knowledge of their students when designing those activities. To

engage students, a teacher might provide them with real-life learning opportunities which give

them context to the material that is relevant to their real lives (TPE 1.1, 1.3, 1.5, 2.2).

The materials that a class has available can greatly influence the types of strategies and

activities that a teacher employs. The more resources a teacher has, the more freedom that is

available when designing lessons and activities. The fewer resources, the more creative a teacher

must be to provide quality instruction and activities for their students. A lack of resources and

materials hurts the students, especially if those materials include books, paper, and pencils: items

that many students take for granted are those that schools all around the nation and the world

desperately need. The lack of those materials affects the activities that are used, as well as

student engagement.

Jean Piaget said, "Learning is possible only when there is active assimilation" (Piaget,

2003, p. S17) The strategies, activities, and materials that are available to teachers affect the

instruction, as well as the assimilation of the students to the content. These elements are all

important to the classroom because they give the teachers the tools they need to be effective, and

they give the students the tools they need to succeed.

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 References
Burden, P.R., & Byrd, D.M. (2016). Methods for Effective Teaching: Meeting the Needs of All

Students (7th ed.). New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.

California Commission on Teaching Credentialing (CTC). (2016). California Teaching

Performance Expectations.

Piaget, J. (2003). Part 1, Cognitive Development in Children: Piaget, Development and Learning.

Journal of Research and Science Teaching.