Active Learning Activities

Group Work Project Contracting

For instructors planning student group work projects over many weeks or months.

Electron Odyssey: Journey through the Mitochondria’s Electron Transport Chain

Students play the roles of protein complexes to see how electrons, protons, and energy moves through the ETC to produce ATP.

Put Your Theory on Trial

Scaffolded debate that explores the nuances of a belief that the teacher has introduced.

Navigating the Grey: Ethics in Nursing

In this card sorting activity, students create categories with words related to ethics in nursing.

Safety First! Rank and Sort Case for Clinical Reasoning Skills

Case-based ranking & sorting activities based on pre-class quiz on exercise safety in a client with a cardiac condition.

More Than One Way to Cook an Egg: Exploring Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences

Teams explore Gardner's Theory, present one component, summarize presentation content, and conduct a self-assessment.

Mechanics in Motion: Iterative GIF Creation

In groups, students create GIFs to demonstrate and explain how mechanic principles apply in real-life scenarios.

The Heart of the Matter: Exploring Exercise in Cardiac Disease

Before class, students read an article and gather 5 elements. In class, they "pool" findings and sort into categories.

Nature of Science Ice-Breaker

A first class ice-breaker activity introducing the nature of science.

COPD Pathophysiology: Construct One Patient Description

Create a clinical presentation for a COPD patient, linked to pathophysiology & differentiated from other COPD conditions

Data Mining and Sorting: Scaffolding the Exploration of Scientific Articles

The purpose of this activity is to deepen students' understanding of cardiac pathophysiology

It’s All in the Delivery: 6 Rounds to Effective Presentation

Groups of students orally present a poem six times, focusing on six key aspect of effective oral presentations

Rough Draft Workshop: Group Peer Assessment Jigsaw Activity for Case Study or Procedural Writing

Students bring a rough draft of a written group project for peer evaluation and feedback

Communicable Puzzles: Children’s Most Common Infectious Diseases

Using the Jigsaw strategy, students become an “expert” for one communicable disease through self-directed research.

To Pass or Not to Pass: Acting out Membrane Transport

Aim of the activity is to increase students’ understanding of molecules’ movement through the cell membrane.

Card Sorting Activities for Mechanics

Can I Use the Internet?

Peerwise Assignment: Human Body

Categorizing for Review

Peer Review, Assessment & Feedback

Interrupted Case Study in Material Engineering

Gender Socialization throughout the Life Course

Students complete a grid that illustrates different life periods that reinforce gender narratives.

Harvard Implicit Bias Test

Building Effective Teams