CRASH COURSE IN HOOKS
"...don't take it too seriously. Be willing to have fun with the process."(Burgess p.85)
The hooks that Burgess shares are really brain teasers for teachers when they are creating lessons. It goes back to the Ask & Analyze section of the book. If you don't ask the questions, you'll never come up with the answers. So - ask these questions!
"I LIKE TO MOVE IT, MOVE IT"
KINESTHETIC HOOKS
- How can I incorporate movement into this lesson?
- Can we incorporate gestures and motions that students could do from their desks?
- Can I use a game that incorporates movement and action to enhance this lesson?
- Or, do I just need to do a brain break as a transition?
PEOPLE PROP HOOK
- Can I use my students as props, inanimate objects, or concepts?
- Can we create a human graph, chart, map, or equation?
- Can students be assigned a specific step in a process or an event?
- Can some students be props and others prop movers?
SAFARI HOOK
- How can I get my class outside of my four walls?
- Where would be the best places on campus to deliver this content?
- Is there an area of the school that serves as the perfect backdrop for this lesson?
- Can I plant key items outside for us to "discover"?
LONG LIVE THE ARTS
- How can I incorporate art into this lesson?
- What can my students draw or make that would help them understand the material?
- Can they make some kind of non-linguistic representation of the material?
- Can they design word pictures in which the way the word it written reveals its definition?
MOZART HOOK
- How can I use music to aid my presentation?
- What would be the perfect song or type of music to create the right mood and proper atmosphere?
- What songs have lyrics that relate to this lesson?
- If I don't know, can I ask my students to find examples of music that relate to this topic?
- How can I most effectively use music as they enter the room?
- Can students change the lyrics of a song to better reflect the content they are learning?
- Can students create raps/songs that demonstrate their understanding of the content or standard?
- Can I use music to transition?
- Can I provide the opportunity for my students to do skits or appear in videos related to what we are learning?
- Can they learn and perform a relevant dance?
- Can they impersonate key people from history in a panel discussion or interview format?
- Can the reenact historical events?
- Can they write a script and create a video to play for the class?
- How can I incorporate a craft into this lesson?
- What can my students make that relates to this material?
- Could there be craft skills my students already possess that could enhance my curriculum and simultaneously allow them the chance to be an expert for a day?
- Can I provide some basic supplies such as craft sticks, pipe cleaners, and duct tape, give them an open-ended creative project, and turn them loose?
WHAT'S IN IT FOR ME?
"It's human nature to ask (or at least think), What's in it for me? We all want to know how current events might have an impact on our lives." (Burgess, 103)
- How can I incorporate the hobbies and outside interests of my students into this material?
- Do I even know the this about my students?
- How can I harness the power of connecting my content to what students are already interested in?
- How can I show my students why learning this content is important in the real world?
- How will they possible apply this in their life?
- Can we increase motivation and engagement by offering reasons to learn that go beyond - because it's on the test?
- Can they create something real that will be more than a classroom project but actually allow them to interact with the world in an authentic way?
- How can I use this lesson to deliver an inspirational message?
- What type of life-changing lesson can be incorporated into the content?
- What type of essential questions can I ask that allow students the opportunity for personal reflection and growth?
- How can I provide opportunities for autonomy and choice in this unit/lesson?
- Can I allow students interest to dictate our direction and learning while still covering what we need to address?
- How can I release some of my control and provide students the chance to be the experts and directors of this subject?
- What current events are related to this lesson?
- Is there a hot topic in the news or on campus that I can use to capture student interest?
- What aspect of current pop culture can I tie into this material?
- In what ways can I incorporate currently popular trends, fads, TV shows, and movies in order to make this relevant and engaging for my class?
- Can I put intriguing images of current events on the walls with QR codes underneath that link to more information?