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INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES

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GRADE
Instructional Strategy – Grade
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Summarize & Synthesize
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV
New

Assessment Item Analysis

Annotating and analyzing assessment items and answer choices enhances students’ critical thinking skills, comprehension, and problem-solving abilities.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV
New

Interactive Vocabulary Journal

Students create vocabulary journals that connect academic terms to visual elements, personal experiences, and cultural knowledge to build language.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Develop Language (MLL)
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV
New

Language and Conversation Tracker

Students bridge informal and formal language through structured documentation, building awareness of language differences and academic vocabulary.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Organize Thinking
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV
New

Visual Concept Mapping

Students create visual diagrams with drawings and labels to map relationships between concepts to help them understand and retain complex content.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Read Actively
GRADE: 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Active Reading Through Writing

Students actively engage with texts by writing reflections and insights before, during, and after reading to enhance their comprehension and critical thinking skills.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Read Actively
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Analyzing Images

Students analyze images to activate prior knowledge, elicit interest in a unit of study or topic, and deepen understanding and connections.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Read Actively
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Annotating Text

Annotation is a powerful active reading strategy in which students take notes, highlight, and pose questions to improve their understanding.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Summarize & Synthesize
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Build a Summary

Students unpack a text’s content by pausing after each section to think about, discuss, and write a one-sentence summary of the main ideas.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Read Actively
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Cause and Effect

Students use a cause and effect graphic organizer to demonstrate analytical understanding of the impacts of events, policies, or people.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Read Actively
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Close Reading

Students engage in repeated readings of the same text after the teacher models by think-aloud how to annotate for specific text features.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Collaborative Vocabulary Exploration

Students collaboratively complete a vocabulary exploration graphic organizer with definitions, sentences, and synonyms/antonyms for new lesson-specific words.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Read Actively
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Column Notes

Students use a column notes organizer for audio, video, or written content to organize their thoughts about what they have seen, heard, or read.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Discuss & Collaborate
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Conversation Circles

Conversation Circles facilitate discussion of text-inspired ideas in a structured format through movement and dialogue with peers.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Read Actively
GRADE: 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Critical Event Analysis

Students read an informational text and complete a graphic organizer to examine the impact of big moments, important figures, and significant innovations.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Discuss & Collaborate
GRADE: 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Discussion Café

Students circulate to different tables to respond to teacher-provided topics or questions and add on to the insights provided by classmates.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: K-2, 3-5

Draw It, Write It

Students use this multimodal method to acquire new vocabulary by drawing a picture and writing a sentence to foster vocabulary retention.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Read Actively
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Draw to Understand

Students use this strategy for reflection, processing new information, recalling key details, and identifying and organizing relevant information.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Read Actively
GRADE: 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Evaluating Evidence

Students will demonstrate understanding of a text by responding to a question with text-based evidence that they name, describe, and interpret.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Discuss & Collaborate
GRADE: 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Flash Debate

Students are assigned/given a position to defend using text evidence; they are then paired with a peer to discuss opposing perspectives and counterclaims.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Read Actively
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12

Foldables

Students use a pre-made foldable or paper with guided instructions to create a visual with sections and headers to record text evidence, ideas, and vocabulary.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Discuss & Collaborate
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Four Corners

Four Corners promotes listening, peer communication, and decision-making through movement as students take stands on controversial statements and ideas.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Frayer Model

Students use a Frayer Model, a four-square/quadrant graphic organizer, to activate background knowledge and foster vocabulary acquisition.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Discuss & Collaborate
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Gallery Walk

Students explore teacher-displayed prompts in groups, fostering active learning, critical thinking, and peer discussion on course topics.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Discuss & Collaborate
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Give One, Get One

Students engage in the reciprocal exchange of ideas by sharing their insights and observations with multiple partners about a question, image, or text.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Discuss & Collaborate
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Guided Image Observation

This directed visual analysis tool requires students to critically examine image components such as objects and lighting to form ideas.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Hexagonal Clusters

This strategy helps students link key terms visually, promoting vocab growth, critical thinking, and collaboration both pre- and post-reading.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Discuss & Collaborate
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Human Continuum

This metacognitive discussion tool asks students to be flexible and reflective listeners and thinkers and evaluate their statements about topics.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Organize Thinking
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Idea Funnel

Students brainstorm and thematically group ideas on a funnel graphic organizer and evaluate their contributions for alignment, impact, suitability, and viability.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Discuss & Collaborate
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Jigsaw

Jigsaw promotes collaboration and movement by assigning students to expert and home groups to facilitate the sharing of well-understood ideas.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Question & Inquire
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

K-W-L

K-W-L is a graphic organizer/chart system students use to determine what they already know, what they want to know, and what they learned during a lesson.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Develop Language (MLL)
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Language Domain +1 Matrix

Teachers use a structured matrix to plan comprehensive language supports across receptive and productive domains for MLL student success.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8

Linked Words

The Linked Words strategy connects new vocabulary to familiar terms. Students create thematic links and draw on personal knowledge.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

List-Group-Label

This strategy helps students group words and find connections while boosting vocabulary, critical thinking, and comprehension.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Make It Stick!

Make it Stick! graphic organizers build vocabulary by asking students to analyze new vocabulary using images, examples, and contexts for words as they read.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12

Mini Glossary

Mini glossaries are used to foster vocabulary comprehension and retention so that students can integrate learned vocabulary into their written expression.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Summarize & Synthesize
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing requires students to maintain the integrity of a passage or text by capturing the main ideas and details without directly quoting.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: K-2, 3-5

Picture Glossary

This vocabulary-strengthening activity connects pictures and words whereby students draw visuals for new vocabulary words they encounter while reading.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Discuss & Collaborate
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Portrait Sorting and Analysis

Students develop visual perceptual skills by analyzing and sorting portraits to uncover meaning behind artistic renderings of individuals and groups.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Question & Inquire
GRADE: 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Question It!

Students create and explore diverse questions about texts, enhancing comprehension through inquiry and discussion.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Question & Inquire
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Question Pyramid

Students create Who, What, Where, When, Why, How questions about an assigned or selected topic to encourage curiosity and analytical inquiry.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12

Roll and Practice Vocabulary

This game-based vocabulary strategy requires students to take turns rolling a die; the number they roll determines the vocabulary task they will perform.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Question & Inquire
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

See-Think-Wonder

See-Think-Wonder graphic organizers help students unpack visual stimuli by documenting their observations, interpretations, and questions about images.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Semantic Feature Analysis

Students build vocabulary by examining how words and related traits connect to one another by charting their relationships on a provided matrix.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Summarize & Synthesize
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12

Six-Word Summary

Students demonstrate their reading and listening comprehension skills by homing in on a text’s main ideas to distill it to a six-word summary.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Summarize & Synthesize
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Summarization Note-Taking

Summarization through note-taking is an information management and processing tool that helps students engage with text to create concise understanding.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Discuss & Collaborate
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Think-Pair-Share

Students adequately develop ideas independently by being given ample time to consider a question or topic before pairing up to share ideas.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Summarize & Synthesize
GRADE: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12, UNIV

Visual Note-Taking

Visual note-taking can be paired with traditional note-taking; students use simple symbols and drawings to capture key points.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12

Vocabulary Cloze

This strategy helps students use context to infer missing words, boosting vocabulary, comprehension, and language skills.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12

Vocabulary One-Pager

Teachers can use this visual technique to build students’ vocabulary by pairing words with student-created symbols, pictures, and phrases.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: K-2, 3-5

Word Categories

This word-sorting exercise encourages students to group new vocabulary based on thematic concepts to deepen their understanding of a topic or text.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: K-2, 3-5

Word Friends

Students are given a list of preselected vocabulary words to group and label with appropriate headings that reflect definition-based connections.
INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY
Acquire Vocabulary
GRADE: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12

Word Sketch

Students personalize their understanding of new vocabulary by drawing pictures and writing words, phrases, and names they associate with new vocabulary.
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