Getting students involved in their learning and keeping them interested and engaged can be the most difficult thing to accomplish as an educator.  Many students are very reluctant to get involved and some fear it due to social pressures or a lack of knowledge.  By creating a learning environment where students aren’t afraid  to get involved, many of your students will benefit greatly. Below is a list of 10 things you can do to get your more reluctant students to participate.

1. Start small. When you ask a question, have students first discuss it with their partner. Then, have the partners pair up (groups of 4) and share. When students get comfortable sharing with a group of 4, start having them make groups of 6, then 8, then 10. Each time, students will become comfortable with a slightly larger group. Eventually, they’ll be ready to share with the whole class. And they’ll already have had lots of practice!

This posting was originally posted by theorganizedclassroomblog.com and can be found HERE:

2. Scaffold reluctant or struggling students.  Let them know that you are going to help them participate.  Ask them what would help or what would make them feel more comfortable.  One strategy is to choose one question you’d like them to share about and let them know the question ahead of time.  Then they can prepare an answer and be ready when you call on them.  Or, you can let the student choose which question they would like to answer out loud.  Another strategy is to let the child know that you are only going to call on them when you know they have the right answer (because you saw it on their paper or heard them say it during turn and talk).  This will give them the confidence to share their idea because they’ll know it’s right.

3. Allow for wait time ……

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