Flashback Days

I read the book Powerful Teaching by Pooja K Agarwal and Patrice M. Bain a few years ago and the message stuck with me.  I highly recommend reading this book and putting it's ideas into practice. The book highlights these four power tools:

1) Retrieval

2) Spacing

3) Interleaving

4) Feedback

I created what I like to call Flashback Days to have my students engage in all four of these tools.  

I like to create activities with the Desmos activity builder.  The problems and questions that are included can be anything that was previously covered in class (retrieval), there has been some time between when we learned the topic and when we are again practicing it (spacing), the problems are not in any particular order (interleaving), and the students get feedback immediately about their answers (feedback).

I made the questions in such a way that students were not able to access the next question until the current question was correct.  This isn't necessary but I noticed that when I put students into groups to do work they often "divide and conquer".  Meaning, they assign each group member certain problems to do, copy from each other, and never check each other's work. 

I also have a little prize if they make it to the end of the activity.  I have a lock box at the front of the room with a few small prizes inside.  

Here is a link to the most recent Flashback that we completed.  If you are following my Algebra 1 curriculum, this can be used once you have completed at least unit 4 lesson 4.

Click Here for Flashback.


Algebra 1 Curriculum

Algebra 1 Curriculum with Activities



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