In the early stages of my teaching career, I encountered a narrative about an elementary school English teacher grappling with the challenge of motivating students to write. Regardless of the topic or paper length, the students exhibited reluctance, expressing disinterest with moans and groans.
Then, a transformative idea emerged: allowing the students to choose the color of ink for their writing. Suddenly, the students found themselves with a newfound sense of agency in their assignments. While the same academic goals were achieved, the act of choice empowered the students, igniting their enthusiasm for writing.
The concept of choice boards emerged as a potent tool for captivating diverse learners and sustaining student interest in lesson content. This observation prompts consideration of the potential benefits of implementing digital choice boards in educational strategies.
For those unfamiliar with the concept, a choice board manifests as a grid containing various activities from which students can select. Its effectiveness lies in promoting active learning and affording teachers the flexibility to address distinct learning styles and individual needs simultaneously.
I often cite this narrative as an illustration of how incorporating student choice can foster engagement. In the 21st century, with the integration of technology, the concept evolves into digital choice boards, bringing a contemporary dimension to the classroom experience.
What is a Digital Choice Board and What Benefits Does it Provide?
Dr. Catlin Tucker emphasizes that the primary objective of digital choice boards is to afford students the autonomy to select activities for skill practice or to demonstrate their understanding of a concept. This approach allows for differentiation by offering a variety of assignments with varying levels of rigor. Students can then choose the specific difficulty levels they wish to engage with, accommodating diverse learning levels and styles within the classroom.
Similar to the structured rubrics provided by teachers to delineate the required effort and depth for earning specific grades, digital choice boards enable educators to establish clear expectations.
Consider an assignment related to the American Revolution: students may be tasked with selecting a general from each side of the war or an important battle from a given list. Simultaneously, teachers can present diverse options for students to showcase their understanding, such as creating a brief vlog, composing an essay, or designing a poster.
In essence, students have the freedom to choose both the content they learn and the method through which they convey their understanding to the teacher.
The versatility of digital choice boards extends across various grade levels – from elementary students selecting books at the library or exploring topics like the solar system and math problems, to high school students engaging in projects centered around American History, different body systems, and beyond.
The flexibility of this approach allows for imaginative and customized learning experiences tailored to the unique needs and interests of students at different educational levels.
How Can I Use Digital Choice Boards Online For Remote Learning and In-Person Classes?
In the current landscape of online education, numerous educators seek methods to seamlessly integrate their preferred teaching tools into class websites, Learning Management Systems (LMSs), and virtual classrooms during video calls.
The following compilation outlines 16 strategies for implementing choice boards in a classroom setting, with a special emphasis on their effective utilization in the digital learning environment for those employing a distance learning model.
1. Start Small
Feel free to incorporate additional rows or columns for the upcoming school year or the next instructional unit. Having a 3×1 choice board is certainly preferable to not providing any options at all!
2. Consider Learning Style Variations
Ensure that you offer choices for visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners whenever feasible. Providing diverse ways for all learners to engage with lesson materials will be advantageous for their understanding and retention.
3. Add Audio Explanations
Incorporating audio into your choice boards, particularly when shared on online platforms, is a thoughtful way to create a sense of proximity and connection with your students.
4. Choose A Point System (Or Grading/Feedback Approach)
Should your activities differ in the level of effort and time needed, consider assigning distinct point values to each. Students can then complete sufficient activities to accumulate a predetermined point value.
Alternatively, if all activities entail a similar level of demand, you can straightforwardly instruct students to choose a specified number of activities to complete.
5. Try Tic-Tac-Toe
A playful approach to structuring your choice board is to arrange it as a 3×3 grid, challenging students to complete a series of activities to achieve a Tic-Tac-Toe. To enhance flexibility, include a ‘Free Choice Square’ in the center, allowing students to select from any of the squares for that particular activity.
6. Keep Everything In The Same Place
Minimize clutter and eliminate confusion by embedding videos, images, and additional resources directly into your board rather than directing students to external sites. The embedded windows showcased here serve as an illustration of this approach.
7. Utilize Breakout Rooms
Employ breakout rooms during live video call classes to guide students through a choice board activity. If using a standard 3×3 grid, categorize activities into three groups (by rows on the board) and instruct students to choose one activity from each group.
Initiate the process by presenting the first row’s activity in the chat, prompting students to comment if they wish to join that room. Repeat this procedure for the remaining rows, ensuring a smooth transition between activities. Regularly check in on each group, posting their task as a reminder at the beginning.
8. Empower Students to Create Their Own Choice Boards
Encourage students to take charge by having them create their own choice boards. Divide them into groups of 3-5 students, tasking each group with developing a review activity for the lesson. Combine their activities into a template, akin to the one provided, to formulate a collective choice board for the entire class.
9. Transform it into a Team-Building Activity
Foster collaboration by pairing students and challenging them to complete the entire board collectively. Ensure a balanced workload by having each student tackle both challenging and easy activities. In a 3×3 board, instruct each student to select four activities, leaving out the one they find least appealing.
10. Allocate Time for Class Share or Reflection
In your lesson plan, designate 10-15 minutes for students to share their favorite activities upon completion.
11. Gather Feedback from Students
During the sharing session, ask each student to express their preferences, highlighting the activities they enjoyed the most and those that seemed less interesting. Leverage this feedback to refine your choice board for future years or units.
12. Infuse Creativity and Engagement
Inject creativity into your choice board by incorporating social media formats. For instance, prompt students to “choose two characters from this book and write three tweets for each with responses in the comments from the other character” or “create a three-square Instagram feed for this historical event.” If social media concepts are unfamiliar, seek input from a friend or colleague with expertise in the area.
Dedicated educators continuously devise innovative ways to leverage choice boards for teaching new materials and reviewing lessons. The more adept you become at constructing and utilizing choice boards in the classroom, the greater the returns on your time investment.
Consider starting with a choice board template, particularly if crafting a digital version. An illustrative example is this choice board made from a Genially template.
13. Organize Your Content
Maintain a categorized list of tasks, organized by themes, topics, standards, or any preferred concept. Consider tagging your curriculum to streamline the process. This way, when the need arises to create a digital choice board, you have all the necessary ingredients readily available—a bit like preparing for a meal ahead of time. 🙂
14. Utilize Learning Taxonomies
Assign each quadrant a representation of complexity, whether aligned with Bloom’s Taxonomy or through the use of Bloom’s Taxonomy Questions.
15. Employ Google Docs
For a more elaborate approach, invest time in crafting visually appealing and personalized choice boards, incorporating elements like audio, video, unique scoring systems, and more. However, when pressed for time, a straightforward Google Doc with a basic 2×2 table qualifies as a digital choice board. With the right options, it can function effectively.
16. Explore Combination Learning
Infuse your choice boards with learning blends—curated combinations designed to enhance content mastery while affording students agency, choice, and opportunities for open-ended creativity.
Creating a Digital Choice Board
Digital choice boards can be created using platforms such as Google Slides, webpages, and various other digital technologies. Among these options, Google Slides stands out as one of the most prevalent on the internet, offering diverse choice board templates.
To illustrate, envision a Google Slide structured like a Jeopardy board. The top row may represent days of the week, and beneath each day, there could be five or six distinct assignments, each assigned different values. These assignments are crafted to guide students in exploring essential information about a country, covering aspects like people, culture, traditions, food, and geographic features.
Every square within this layout can be hyperlinked to an assignment, whether it’s a form to fill out, a video, a PDF, a webpage, etc. This not only facilitates student choice but also integrates technology seamlessly into the classroom. With a simple click, students can access their chosen activity and navigate to the designated content area as directed by the teacher.
Using a Digital Choice Board in Your Class
When establishing a digital choice board for your class, take the following factors into consideration:
Align Goals and Activities:
Ensure that the selected activities align seamlessly with the learning outcomes you intend to achieve. How can students best showcase their comprehension of geographic traits in Rwanda or their knowledge of popular foods in Spain through these activities?
Consider Student Abilities:
Account for the technological proficiency of your students. Determine the necessary accommodations for their success. Identify prevalent learning styles in your class and evaluate the available technology for students to exhibit their learning, be it through presentations, creating quick lessons, Google Slides, etc.
Delve into Depth:
Contemplate the depth of the activities. How can you craft tasks that elevate the rigor of the assignment? Explore if students can critically evaluate or engage in debates to reinforce their learning. Encourage the creation of projects that effectively demonstrate the targeted learning objectives.
Connect Resources to the Board:
Identify pertinent resources to complement the choice board. Determine which websites, videos, or information will proficiently impart the concepts tied to each option on the board.
Creating a digital choice board demands substantial upfront effort from the teacher. Ultimately, the teacher lays the groundwork for students to learn in a manner of their choosing, enabling them to showcase their understanding in an engaging and enjoyable way.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a digital choice board, and how does it differ from a traditional choice board?
A digital choice board is an interactive online tool that provides students with a range of activities to choose from. It differs from traditional choice boards as it leverages digital platforms and technology to enhance student engagement.
What are the benefits of using digital choice boards in the classroom?
Digital choice boards offer increased flexibility, cater to diverse learning styles, promote student agency, and integrate technology seamlessly into the learning process. They also allow for easy customization and adaptation to various subjects and grade levels.
How can I create a digital choice board for my class?
Creating a digital choice board involves selecting a platform (such as Google Slides or a dedicated choice board tool), designing a visually appealing layout, aligning activities with learning objectives, and incorporating multimedia elements. Templates and online resources can also streamline the creation process.
What types of activities work well on a digital choice board?
Activities that span various learning styles, such as research tasks, multimedia presentations, collaborative projects, and creative assignments, work well on digital choice boards. It’s essential to tailor activities to align with the subject matter and learning objectives.
How can I ensure that digital choice boards cater to different learning levels in my class?
Differentiate activities based on complexity or provide varied point values for tasks. Incorporate a range of difficulty levels to accommodate diverse learning needs. Additionally, consider offering choice in the types of activities students can select to address varied preferences and abilities.
What are some effective ways to integrate digital choice boards into online learning or virtual classrooms?
For online learning, embed choice boards into Learning Management Systems (LMS), share them through video conferencing tools, and ensure accessibility for remote students. Encourage virtual collaboration and provide clear instructions for navigating the digital choice board.
How do I assess student progress and understanding with digital choice boards?
Include clear expectations and rubrics for each activity on the choice board. Incorporate reflective elements where students articulate their learning. Utilize formative assessments, discussions, and feedback to gauge comprehension and guide future instruction.
Can digital choice boards be used across different grade levels and subjects?
Yes, digital choice boards are versatile and can be adapted for various grade levels and subjects. Customizing activities, adjusting difficulty levels, and aligning content with specific curriculum requirements make them applicable from elementary to high school and beyond.
Conclusion
Integrating digital choice boards into the classroom offers a dynamic and engaging approach to learning. The versatility of these boards allows educators to cater to diverse learning styles, provide options for student agency, and seamlessly incorporate technology into their teaching strategies. The creation of effective digital choice boards requires careful consideration of learning goals, student abilities, depth of activities, and the connection of relevant resources.
Despite the initial front-end work for teachers, the long-term benefits include increased student participation, a deeper understanding of content, and the development of critical skills such as decision-making and self-directed learning. Whether used in traditional classrooms or adapted for online and virtual environments, digital choice boards prove to be a valuable tool for fostering a student-centered and interactive learning experience.
