Grouping Cards

 For the month of August, I am going to try to make a quick blog post each day.  Every.  Single.  Day!  I initially saw the idea on Twitter by @druinok.  Here's the post that sparked my inspiration.  

As many of you know, I am currently in school to receive my Ed.D.  Part of my dissertation will be looking at groupings.  I've seen where teachers do random groupings with playing cards, a wheel, an online platform, or just group numbers/letters written on a piece of paper.  I have done the latter in the past.  The only downfall was that students would swap their cards so that they were in a group with their friends.  Then, I saw grouping cards.  On a single card, there are multiple objects/words/pictures.  Students get a card without knowing how they'll be grouped.  Then, the teacher can group students however she wants.  This is how I will use them in my class.  Please note that I use VNPS (vertical, nonpermanent surfaces) in my classroom.

  1. Students will come into class and head to their base groups.  This is where they will sit (for about a week at a time).  This is not the group they will be completing tasks in.
  2. When a random group is needed for the VNPS, students will get a grouping card from me.  
  3. Once all students have a card, I will tell the class how they're being grouped.
  4. Then, they will find that object at a VNPS, and that will be their board.
This will be my first year doing this, so tweaks will probably be needed.  My grouping cards are below.  There are 27 distinct cards and 10 ways to group students.  These cards are ideal for groups of 3.  Let me know your thoughts and suggestions!

Google Slides - Grouping Cards (will force you to make a copy)

Until next time,

Cononiah W.

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