2. Session Aims:
Key Topic: To provide motivational and challenging learning activities that develop and stretch students understanding and/or skills.
Identify learning activities used when teaching that motivate and inspire students.
Demonstrate and discuss creative teaching methods and activity ideas through paired work and feedback.
Investigate learning activities used across departments to develop higher order thinking.
Analyse, evaluate and share how learning activities you have used develop or could develop higher order thinking skills and critical analysis skills.

3. Students were picked at random and the panel changed each time.
1. Learning Activities:
Key from day one: be motivated and enthusiastic students learn by example.
The point of the activity is for one student to provide three facts about an artists
based on research carried out, one of which is incorrect and relates to another artist.
They deliver this to a panel of three peers with the other students in the audience.
The panel have to work together to work out the bluff and the audience have to try and guess who the artists are.
Students were picked at random and the panel changed each time.
Making research engaging and sharing knowledge.
Creative activities that require team work, inclusion and communication - “help retain attention and keep motivation high.” (Gravells, 2008)

4. 2. Paired Activity:
1. In Pairs – discuss teaching activities and methods you have used/or plan to
use (work with a peer that you do not usually work with to share ideas).
2. Select one of the activities/methods and note 3 key points about your pairs choice,
one of which needs to be a convincing bluff.
3. Feedback to set groups your paired peers 3 points for the whole group to discuss
and evaluate the bluff. (Set groups will be another 3/4 pairs.)
Teaching is fun and rewarding,
enjoy what you do and always be willing to try new ideas.
High Order Thinking Skills: “Promote retention and transfer of information” (Brookhart, 2010)
Critical thinking
Problem Solving

5. 3. Learning Activities:
Function Skills Math Revision Task: Set smaller achievable targets to meet end goal.
In pairs students were given set time to research a specific math topic – following a recap on previous knowledge.
Individually with a set time students had to create their own questions using the math topic – at least one question and up to three to stretch stronger students.
They had to find the answers to there own questions. Students were asked to make the question relatable to them.
Key: found out what makes them tick. This is a big driver to help develop skills and drawing the students in. Linking it to real life.
Each student then at random had to deliver there questions to the the group and help the group individually work out the answers.

6. 4. Higher Order Thinking:
High Order Thinking Skills: students evidenced in the learning activity for Maths.
Blooms Revised Taxonomy: (Anderson and Krathwohl’s Taxonomy, 2001) – Higher Oder Thinking skills - HOT
Analysis – breaking the information down into parts
Evaluate – make judgments
Create – putting all the part together to create a functioning whole
“Problem solving: seeking and identifying strategies and reasoning”
“Comprehension and interpretation”
“Flexibility of thinking”
“Using and understanding appropriate mathematical vocabulary” (Education Scotland, 2018)

7. 4. Paired Activity: Higher Order Thinking:
In your Pairs – log onto Oaklearn and select - Teacher Training - Quality
Improvement Facilitators - Sharing Practice.
2. Sharing Practice: using the forum link: add your examples from today, or any
other you wish to share, discuss and review with your peer what higher order
thinking skills and evidence if critical analysis has been used.
3. Then add to forum how you have helped motivate and inspire and further
develop higher order thinking skills and critical analysis skills in your students.
Finally you can add Feedback to other forums, with feedback, ideas or
questions.
Please continue to add to the site and look for further sharing of practice and support from the QIF team.

8. References
Gravells, A. (2008). Preparing to teach in the lifelong learning sector. 3rd ed. Exeter: Learning Matters.
Brookhart, S., (2010). How to Assess Higher-order Thinking Skills in Your Classroom. 1st ed. United States of America: Association for Supervision & Curriculum Development..
Education.gov.scot. (2018). Higher order thinking skills in maths. [online] Available at: [Accessed 29 Jun. 2018].
The Second Principle. (2018). Anderson and Krathwohl - Bloom's Taxonomy Revised - The Second Principle. [online] Available at: [Accessed 29 Jun. 2018].