Engage, Excite, and Assess: 5 fun and interactive ways to check for understanding
Are you looking for ways to make your lessons more interactive and engaging? Do you ever find yourself doing most of the talking during theory, unsure if your students are really following along? It happens to all of us—but the good news is, it doesn’t have to!
Theory is often the part of class students least look forward to. We try our best to make it fun, but sometimes a lecture can feel long and one-sided. While note-taking is important—whether it’s flashcards, charts, tables, or vocabulary in spirals—students can still zone out if we’re just talking at them.
The key is to break your lesson into chunks with short, interactive activities that help you check for understanding while keeping students engaged. Below are 5 quick and fun strategies that will have your students participating, retaining information, and enjoying theory time!
TUrn and talk:
Simple, effective, and quick! After explaining a section of your lesson, have your students turn to a partner and discuss what they just learned. Ask them to define a term, give an example, or answer a question. Set a timer for 30 seconds to 1 minute, then bring the class back together to share answers.
For a more thorough check, have students write down their discussion points and collect them. This ensures everyone is engaged and allows you to review understanding from the whole class.
boards and markers:
Every student gets a whiteboard and marker. After teaching a concept, ask a question, display definitions, or provide examples. Students quickly write their answers and show them to you.
This method allows you to see everyone’s responses at once. If most students understand, you can move on. If not, you can reteach and do another quick check before continuing.
short online games:
Students love online games! Incorporate a quick Kahoot, blooket, or Quizizz game after teaching a section to review key points. Keep it under 10 minutes.
If you prefer offline activities, try matching games with terms and definitions—students can do these individually or in small groups. These games are fun and give instant insight into understanding.
review questions:
This classic method is quick and easy. After teaching, ask a few review questions to the class. You can:
Ask aloud and call on students randomly
Display questions on the board and have students write answers
This keeps students attentive, reinforces the lesson, and breaks up the lecture without needing extra materials.
True/False This or That Review
Combine movement and instant feedback with this fun, interactive activity. Use your students’ Milady workbooks or your own review questions:
Mini Whiteboard Option: After completing a True/False question, students write their answer on a whiteboard and hold it up. This allows you to see everyone’s responses at once and quickly spot misunderstandings.
This or That Movement Option: Turn it into a movement activity! Assign one side of the room as “True” and the other as “False.” Students move to the side that matches their answer. Then, select a few students to explain their choice, reinforcing understanding while keeping them engaged.
This activity mixes visual, physical, and verbal learning while making review fun, interactive, and effective.Lastly, if you want to get your students up and moving, you may choose to play this or that! After explaining the section of the lesson, have your students to stand up. Ask them questions or read Definitions, giving them 2 answer choices per question. make one side of your classroom the “this” option and the other side of your classroom the “that” option. Have the students to move to either side of the classroom they choose, depending on the answer they believe to be correct.
You may select someone to explain why they chose the answer they chose or to explain the answer after each question to help further review.
Final Thoughts
Engaging students doesn’t have to be complicated. By mixing in these 5 quick checks, you’ll keep your lessons lively, interactive, and more effective. You might even find yourself enjoying theory more than ever!
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