Rainbow Logic - An Activeness To Promote Give-And-Take Inward Grouping Work

First off, how is it already August?!?  This month, I'm participating inwards Blaugust, a weblog challenge to weblog every twenty-four hr menstruum inwards August.  You tin depository fiscal establishment lucifer out a listing of other participating bloggers here.

Remember that majority I was gushing almost before this summer?  Well, I'm yet SUPER excited almost it!  In illustration you lot demand a refresher, the majority is Elizabeth Cohen's Designing Group Work: Strategies for the Heterogeneous Classroom (affiliate link to 2nd Edition / 3rd Edition).

  

I already wrote a postal service almost the outset activeness I desire to try, Broken Circles.  That's my electrical current outset twenty-four hr menstruum of schoolhouse plan.  I've got my circles laminated, as well as I fifty-fifty cutting the actual circles out.  The envelopes that I desire to role to shop the pieces are at school, as well as therefore I'm waiting until I learn them to cutting the actual circles apart into their pieces.  

  

There were a few to a greater extent than activities for instruction grouping run norms inwards the majority that had caught my optic during my outset read, as well as therefore I did a quick revisit this past times weekend to encounter what other activities I wanted to create to comprise inwards my outset calendar week of class.  I've decided that to practice grouping run good this year, I've got to pass a pregnant amount of fourth dimension at the start of the twelvemonth instruction students how to run together effectively inwards a group.  This volition pay off every bit the twelvemonth progresses.  (At to the lowest degree that's what I proceed telling myself!)  

The side past times side activeness from the majority I've decided to brand as well as role is called Rainbow Logic.  Depending on how long it takes my students to run through Broken Circles, I may practice this amongst my students on the outset twenty-four hr menstruum or the 2nd day.  I was planning on Broken Circles taking at to the lowest degree one-half a degree period, but someone on Twitter said that his students completed their circles inwards solely TWO minutes.  I'm non expecting that, but I practice campaign to e'er hold upward over-prepared rather than under-prepared.  

There's a description of the Rainbow Logic activeness posted on Stanford's website that you lot tin read if you lot like.  

Just similar amongst Broken Circles, I made a chore menu to laminate as well as manus to each grouping amongst the supplies, objective, rules, as well as norms that the activeness is supposed to emphasize.  

In illustration that's blurry, here's a cleaner version:

(And, I've uploaded it every bit a PDF as well as editable Publisher file at the destination of the postal service if you lot desire to brand tweaks!)

I also went ahead as well as made game boards as well as game pieces, too.  

Game Boards (2 to a page)

 Game Pieces:

If you lot don't desire to worry almost cutting the private game pieces, you lot could merely direct hold menu stock to a newspaper chopper as well as chop it into small-scale squares.  But, I wanted my pieces to hold upward laminated, as well as therefore I decided this was the easiest road for me.  

Here's what they destination upward looking like:

I merely used the outset 4 colors of newspaper that appealed to me.  Any colors would work!  

Each individual inwards the grouping volition demand a game board as well as xvi pieces (4 of each color).  

The full general gist of the game is that 1 individual inwards the grouping makes a colored grid inwards secret.  However, you lot can't brand merely whatever grid.  You tin solely role 3 colors, as well as you lot must role 3 of each of the 3 colors.  And, all of the squares of the same color must hold upward connected past times at to the lowest degree 1 total side.  

Here's a visual of what's allowed as well as what's not: 

Image Source: http://web.stanford.edu/class/ed284/csb/Rainbow/RLgrid.pdf

Once the grid is made, the grouping discusses which questions they should inquire to figure out what color goes inwards each box of the grid.  

I roped my hubby into playing a few rounds amongst me to exam it out.  

We realized that around lines of questioning atomic number 82 to to a greater extent than efficient solutions than others.  

Of course, when students are working on this inwards groups, they are bespeak questions every bit a group.  Therefore, they demand to beak over their questions before they select which 1 to inquire to encounter which questioning path volition hopefully hold upward the most efficient. 

The norms this activeness is supposed to promote are: 

* Discuss as well as decide.

* Give reasons for your suggestions. 

After each pupil has a direct chances to hold upward the grid keeper, I invention on having groups fill upward out this reflection form: 

Given that Shaun as well as I are both math teachers, nosotros industrial plant life the activeness to hold upward pretty uncomplicated as well as straight-forward.  When Shaun was the grid keeper, I was able to figure out where to house each color amongst solely 4 questions.  If your students are finding this activeness also easy, you lot could easily modify the rules to learn inwards a combat harder.  I would propose taking away the restriction of having to role solely 3 colors as well as precisely 3 of each color.  This would learn inwards much harder.  

I've e'er complained that my students don't know how to direct hold a proper, productive give-and-take when I set them inwards groups.  This year, I'm going to practice something almost it.  I can't recommend the majority Designing Groupwork past times Elizabeth Cohen (affiliate link) enough.  

If you lot would similar to download the files to campaign this activeness amongst your ain students, you lot tin honour them here.  For the Publisher files, you'll demand to download these gratis fonts: Flavors, HVD Comic Serif Pro, as well as Open Sans.  If you lot don't desire to worry amongst the fonts, merely download the PDF version. 

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