Enhance your curriculum with choice boards

Have you ever heard of choice boards? I LOVE using choice boards in the classroom. I use them in math, reading, language arts, science, social studies, etc. They work in ANY subject and with ANY topic.

Here are my top ten reasons to love choice boards!

1. Students love to be able to make choices in their learning
2. Allow for differentiation
3. Allow for student choice
4. Students can choose according to their multiple intelligence
5. You can have the students do as little or as many as you want
6. You can enforce that students do one or two activities in particular if you choose
7. You can also differentiate among your students how many activities for each to complete
8. You can choose to assign them as homework or classwork…and independent or partner work
9. Students love to be able to choose how they show you what they know
10. Students love them!

We of course know that all kids learn differently and that all kids learn at different rates.

Choice boards are PERFECT for differentiation for the different needs of your students.

• The students can work on them during work station time while you are working with small groups
• You can use them for review, practice, or assessment
• You can have the students choose 1 project, 2 projects, or as many projects as you think time will allow
• You can have students work individually or with a partner
• You can pair up high students with low students so that they help each other
• You can have them choose 1 project from each row

The possibilities are endless!

They are also a great way to bring creativity to the classroom and get rid of those boring worksheets. These projects literally force students to think creatively, using their creative thinking skills.

I was adamant in modeling good examples of choice board projects and showing them what I expected up front.

These work great with biographies and learning about people.

 

After learning about Christopher Columbus, they could choose to create a “Fakebook” profile on him.

After learning about World War II and Anne Frank, students could choose to create a flow chart on the main events of Anne Frank’s life.

Choice boards work fabulously in reading during independent work time or Daily 5.

I’ll admit. I love the character, Lilly, in Kevin Henkes’ books. I read several books with Lilly as the main character to my fifth graders, and they absolutely loved her. She provides such a great character to analyze. Instead of filling out a worksheet on Lilly, they could create a character poster on her, using several descriptive words to describe her and backing them up with evidence from the text.

During the holidays (you know…those times when your students are jumping off the walls), choice boards are great because they are motivating and engaging for the students, and they keep them busy yet learning at the same time.

Here’s an example of Instagram pics and captions of Santa Claus around the world…

..and a Venn diagram comparing the first Thanksgiving to Thanksgiving in today’s world.

Choice boards also work great in science. After all the textbook work and labs, let your students choose how to show what they know! At the end of your adaptations and survival unit, they could choose to create a concentration game on important vocabulary words related to the unit.

In math, I love to use choice boards during math stations. While I’m working with small groups, my other students worked on choice boards. They loved them!

Here are some examples…

When practicing perimeter in the real world, students could choose to create a problem of the day, including the correct way to solve the problem and two wrong ways to solve it. Talk about critical thinking!

Or they could create a poster on perimeter.

While working on problem solving skills, they could choose to create a game.

At the end of your unit, they could create an acrostic poem

 

Or a Frayer model

Students will also LOVE you for giving them a choice in their learning! Being able to choose will keep them motivated and engaged….and isn’t that what we’re always aiming for?

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Looking for even more examples of student projects? Here you go!

Social Studies – Cause and effects of the Civil War

Health – A comic strip on good personal hygiene habits

Writing – Writing a fun and creative persuasive story during autumn, pretending that you’re a pumpkin and trying to persuade someone not to carve you into a jack-o-lantern

Are you ready to try choice boards in your classroom? Click HERE to see all the choice boards I have available.

I look forward to seeing your students’ choice boards projects!