SIOP Feature 20 Provide hands-on materials manipulative for students

 

Giving students an opportunity to touch, move, and manipulate content and language can have a powerful impact on student engagement and on learning.  Students are naturally drawn towards the physicalization of learning.

SIOP Feature 20 Provide hands-on materials manipulative for students to practice using new content knowledge

The first feature in this SIOP component asks the teacher to use manipulatives and other kinds of hands-on materials as a means of getting students to practice the new content.  While it's much easier to blow off hands-on, tactile activities, students find them engaging and meaningful.  It doesn't have to take too much energy or time to create tactile activities.  Here are three easy ways:

Cuisenaire Rods:  Students use cuisenaire rods to create a scene from a story they just read.  Then, they describe the scene to their peers.

Scrambled Stories:  Students unscramble math problems, paragraphs, and stories that are written on strips of paper and mixed up.

Dice:  Students roll dice and perform a task (E.g. ask a question) that corresponds to the number they rolled.

Strategies to promote responsible usage of manipulatives

So, the question is not, "should I give my students something for them to handle/hold?"  The question is, "how should I structure this so that students use the manipulatives responsibly, as I planned?"  Research shows that teachers often balk at trying out a strategy if they feel classroom management might become an issue.  Here are three tips on making sure the discussion is worth it:

1. Teach students how to use:  It may sound funny, but most students probably aren't used to using manipulatives.  Of course, they want to roll the die (off the table).  Yes!  They want to build a tower with Cuisenaire Rods (and knock it down).  You're right.  They will probably be tempted to play with the manipulatives (as opposed to listen to you.  However, this shows us two things.  First, that they are really drawn to manipulatives (like we are).  Secondly, that they need to be shown how to use the manipulatives properly.

2. Let them play first:  Giving students 3 minutes to build something with the Cuisenaire Rods before you ask them to build something specific is a good strategy.  "Get the wigglies out now!" my third grade teacher used to say as she shook her body.  Why fight against a students' desire to play?  Let them play first.  After just 2-3 minutes, they will be ready to listen to you.

3. Be specific about expectations:  Students need to know the expectations.  If you do not want them to roll the dice off the table, you can boost the chances of this happening by telling students -  "In order to use the dice, you have to keep the dice on the table. I am giving you a small plastic bowl for you to roll the die in."

SIOP Feature 21 Provide activities for students to apply content and language

Giving students a maximum number of opportunities to apply their knowledge and understanding of content and language is vital to their learning.  Applying knowledge is, after all, what we expect our students to be able to do.

SIOP Feature 21 Provide activities for students to apply content and language

Most of us are pretty good at giving students practice with the content (E.g. do these 10 multiplication problems).  We also need to cultivate this same skill with ourt students' language usage (E.g. ask your partner, "what's the product of 2 and 6")?

Students need to be scaffolded into being able to apply content and langauge effectively. 

They need me to model how to use the language. 

They need a chance or two to do it with me. 

They need a few chances to use the language with their peers in a safe way. 

Finally, they need to chance to do it all by themselves. 

​This Gradual Release of Responsibility is how we empower students to practice langauge they need to own.

Strategies to Promote Application of Language

It can be challenging to make sure that students practice language in addition to content.  Practicing the language is not always the same as practicing the content.  While it is always best to have them practice both together, we need to make sure they are really practicing language. 

Here are three ways to stimulate language practice:

1. Turn and Talk:  Students talking with students is a great way to encourage language usage and content practice.  Telling students to share something related to the content using specific langauge is a great way to encourage language practice.  The point is that students have a chance to speak to other students using the language.

2. Share Specific Language:  Giving students specific language to use when interacting with the content and their peers is also an effective means of making sure they are giving their language a work out.  This could include word banks, language shells, and other useful lists of language the students should be encouraged to use.

3. Model and then Step out of the way:  If we aren't careful, we can take opportunities away from our students.  We have to make sure we step out of the way so that the students will step on.  We have to model how to use the language, but then we have to get out of the way to make sure that the students are the ones who get most of the practice.