Information Exchange Strategy
One team of sixth grade teachers designed a strategy to help their entire team of 125 students exchange information during Phase III of a unit on "How the Atlantic Ocean Affects New England's Economy: Past, Present, and Future." The goal was to give students who were not in the same classes a chance to come together to collaborate. As a first step, the teachers asked students to fill out information sheets that had two parts: (1) interesting information they were learning and (2) difficulties they were having in locating information. Teachers divided responsibility, with each one agreeing to oversee one group of students. What bound these students together was a shared interest in similar aspects of the unit's theme and overarching concepts. The graphic below shows how the teachers "advertised" what content would be discussed in their classrooms by hanging charts on their classroom doors. Teachers rearranged the schedule so that there would be a solid block of time to carry out this activity.
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