Active Learning Activities

Quote Unquote: A Two-Stage Quiz

Students learn to apply the rules for integration, punctuation, referencing and formatting of direct quotes in their writing.

Let Me Draw You a Picture…

Students use visual thinking to diagram / illustrate a subject with the only criteria being they have expert knowledge of it.

Drawing to Learn: Doing Science is more Complex that You Think

Students draw a diagram of how they think scientists "do science." These are improved then compared with an expert diagram.

Group Work Project Contracting

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

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.

Cross-Disciplinary Synergy 101: Uniting Expertise for Success

In teams, students interact, share information on their profession, and create cases where each discipline is needed

Controversy in the Science Classroom: Nature of Science Quiz

This activity aims to bring about conceptual change by making explicit common misconceptions about the nature of science.

Don’t go NUTS: A Case Study on the Physiology of Stress

In this activity students apply their knowledge of the physiology of the stress response to a real-life research scenario.

Feeling Feverish: Homeostasis of Pyrexia

This activity helps students consolidate their knowledge of homeostatic feedback loops through application & interpretation.

An Abundance of Bells

The aim of this activity is to demonstrate that many continuous data of nature and psychology follow a normal distribution.

Projects on Junot Diaz: “The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao”

Cycles of Matter

Students are assigned to groups and presented with a take-home reading assignment on the transformation of matter and energy.