We all have those students that raise their hand and say, “I’m done, now what do I do?”  We also have those who finish with their work and decide its time to play and distract others.  Does this sound familiar?

I want my students to be engaged with something meaningful at all times.  I believe in the power of choice when it comes to choosing what to do when all work is complete.  This is where the choice board comes in.

A choice board is a tool that ensures students incorporate a range of multiple intelligences, and/or learning preferences.  This is an example of a choice board that I have displayed in my class.  I have made it so that I can change out activities as needed.  Each subject is color coded so that students can easily locate what they want to complete.

Choice Board

Topics

For every 9 weeks, I provide my students with a total of 72 activities that address Reading, Writing, Words, Math, Science, and Social Studies.  There are 2 activities per subject/per week.  I color code each subject for students to easily distinguish between subjects.

Projects

I allow my students to chose the way in which they compile their activity.  They are provided 8 project ideas to choose from.  All eight intelligences are addressed with these projects.

Multiple intelligences Projects Multiple intelligencesProjects 2 copy  

Free Choice

Because the purpose of The Choice Board is choice, they also have the opportunity to choose their own topic and/or  project to complete with approval.  We call this free choice.

Choice Board Choices
 

Grading

I choose not to grade the projects, but that is your choice.  I choose not to grade them as they are used as sponge activities. The Choice Board provides my students with a learning experience without an attached grade. Students are excited to work on them and are proud of their finished product.

I have a 36 week collection of Choice Board activities.  You can find it HERE.

Mandy Neal at Teaching With Simplicity
Mandy Neal at Teaching With Simplicity

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