Compare and contrast

Students are given two images and asked to consider the differences and similarities between them

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Acting up

A fun starter activity.

Students are given a character card. They then have to explain a term related to this topic whilst staying in character.

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topics

characters

Word Chain

Starting with the shaded letter,students find the adjacent letters which spell out a word related to this topic.  Letters can go horizontally, vertically and diagonally in any direction.

Two differentiated versions of the task are supplied

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task v1

task v2

answers

Odd One Out

Students are shown a number of key terms.   They have to decide which of the terms is the ‘odd one out’ and give a reason for their choice

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10 Seconds

Students are shown a term or given a scenario and they have exactly 10 seconds to come up with 5 different, suitable answers.

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10 Questions

A volunteer (either a student or class teacher) is given a slip of paper so they know 'what they are'.

The rest of the class can ask up to a maximum of 10 questions to guess what they are. The volunteer can only answer 'yes' or 'no'

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subject

Word Tennis

Students work in groups of three with two 'serving' words related to the topic. The observer monitors for words which are 'out'

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Memorise This!

Students work in pairs or small groups to remember words which have been shown to them.

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30 Seconds

Students are shown a number of terms for exactly 30 seconds. They need to memorise as many as possible. After 30 seconds, the terms are hidden and they need to write down as many terms as they can remember along with at least one fact about that term.

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ppt

Scrabble

Students are given a blank scrabble type sheet and take it in turns to write down key words related to this topic

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task

Teach me about ...

Lesson starter

Students become the teacher! One student is tasked with preparing a five minute revision starter about this topic for the beginning of the following lesson.

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When I went on holiday

A starter task

Based on the old childhood game of ‘when I went on holiday I took a ...’

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Draw me a picture

Starter or plenary

Students are given a selection of key terms and are asked to illustrate one of them in a diagram.

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Teacher Talkabout

The class 'test' the teacher on their knowledge of key words related to this topic

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Give me ten

A starter or plenary task

Students work in pairs to come up with ten words related to this project before joining up with another pair to expand their list.

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Just a minute

Starter or plenary task

Students are asked to talk to a partner about this topic for 60 seconds whilst abiding by a set of rules

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Lucky Dip Questions

Every student is given a number at the start of the activity. This is used to help pick who will ask and answer questions about what has been learned during the lesson.

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Pass the Buck

An excellent starter or plenary for involving all students and getting them to identify a large number of facts about the current topic

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One, Two, Three

Can be used either as a starter or a plenary task.

Students are given a sheet to complete firstly on their own, then with a partner and then joining up with another pair

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Word Association

A starter or plenary task.

Students are asked to write down all of the words they associate with this topic. They then work with a partner to categorise them.

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Call my bluff

A plenary activity based on the popular game show, ‘Call My Bluff’

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Mastermind

A plenary activity which is loosely based on the game show 'Mastermind'

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Taboo

A plenary activity.

This task follows the traditional Taboo game. Students work in teams with one student from each team having their back to the board. A word is displayed on the board and teams take it in turns to describe the word to the student without actually mentioning the word itself.

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Word building game

Plenary task
Students work in groups to construct a sentence about today’s lesson

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4-4-2

A plenary activity where students are asked to summarise the lesson and pick out the main key words related to the topic.

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Corkboard

A great plenary idea both for AFL and for getting feedback from every student

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I predict

This task acts as the plenary from one lesson and the starter for the next lesson

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Lesson summary

This plenary provides students with an opportunity to evaluate the lesson and their learning and an AFL opportunity for the teacher.

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Pyramid

A plenary activity.

Students are asked to complete a self assessment sheet to indicate what they have learned during this lesson

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Text me

A plenary activity where students are asked to write a text message to explain what they have learned during the lesson

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Tweet it

A plenary activity
Students write a ‘Tweet’ message to sum up what they have learned during the lesson

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Theory Notes Task

Students read the theory notes on the mini website and then answer the questions on the task sheet.

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task

Noughts and Crosses

Students work in pairs to take turns at answering questions. If they get the answer correct, they take a turn on the noughts and crosses grid.

Full instructions are given in the task sheet. Requires preparation prior to the lesson

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answers

Exam question - what is wrong?

Students are given a genuine answer written by another student in response to an exam style question. They have to be able to determine what is wrong with the answer and then write a better one themselves.

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answer

Crossword - differentiated

Students are given a crossword to solve with clues relating to key words for this topic.

There are three differentiated versions to allow students to choose the best level of difficulty for themselves.

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version 1

version 2

version 3

answers

Identify the input, output and storage device task

Students are given a list of input, output and storage devices and asked to correctly identify which category each device belongs to.

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answer

Identify the input and output device task

This task asks students to look at the names of a number of different devices and drag them under the correct headings of input or output

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Mind Map

Students are given the basic structure of a mind map for this topic. They are asked to complete the mind map by adding extra branches.

Mind maps are a useful tool to use as a revision aid.

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Mnemonic

Students often find it hard to remember long lists of items. A mnemonic is a rhyme or acronym that they can create to help them recall such a list.

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Key Terms Task

Students are asked to provide a definition and example for key terms related to this topic

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Pros and cons

Students are given a document to complete where they identify the pros and cons for the main factors related to this topic.

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100 words

Students have exactly 100 words to summarise the key points about this topic

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Agony aunt

Students are put into the role of an agony aunt who has to answer a set of letters about technology related problems.

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