Active Learning Activities

Active learning activities are tailored to specific learning outcomes and content. They incorporate one or more of the evidence-based strategies. Structured to expose their theoretical underpinnings, the activities can be used by practitioners and researchers alike.

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Physics STEM

Mystery Tube Challenge: The Nature & Process of Science

Students model the hidden structure of a sealed tube as a metaphor for how scientists explore the unseen.

Languages and Literature

Editing Exercise: Mock Academic Conference

Research, writing & editing activity that builds interpretive skills and the ability to incorporate research.

Humanities Social sciences

Finding Catharsis in Film and Media

Students analyze a film or piece of media watched in the course using two concepts: climax and catharsis.

Biology STEM

Hemoglobin Hustle: An Adaptation of Race for the Hat

Used the Race for the Hat activity to create a Jeopardy-style session on blood & blood disorders for a pathophysiology class.

Psychology Social sciences

Dragon’s Den – Brain Exploration Techniques

Students engage in a gamified activity mimicking the popular tv show the Dragon's Den.

Humanities Social sciences

Group Work Project Contracting

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

Languages and Literature

Taskmaster: Diction Icebreakers

These gamified activities will help sensitize students to the nuances of diction and allow them to work together.

Collaborative Meeting - Photo by Redd F from

Psychology Social sciences

Learning in Everyday Life

In this integrative assignment, students analyze their everyday activities through the lens of various learning theories.

Languages and Literature

Silent Discussion

Conduct a discussion in your class without students ever speaking a word!

Mathematics

Crossing Dimensions: A Math Odyssey into Cross Products

In groups, students learn about orthogonality and cross products by creating geometrical shapes.

Health science STEM

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.

Young university students studying with computer in cafe. Group of people in campus library. College teenager using laptop at table. Group study for school assignment.

Psychology

Sensation and Perception Lab

The lab explores the senses of taste, smell, touch, proprioception and vision.

Psychology Social sciences

Who Are You? A Multidimensional Examination of Self-Concept

Students investigate their self-concept, compare it to a classmate, assess differences between self- and social perception.

Health science

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.

Health science STEM

Data Mining and Sorting: Scaffolding the Exploration of Scientific Articles

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

Psychology Social sciences

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs in the Workplace

In groups, students explore Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs in its application to workplace scenarios

Health science Interdisciplinary

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

Chemistry

Crash Course: Collision Theory

Students use PhET simulation to learn how factors affect reaction rate (collision theory) through hands-on activities

Physics STEM

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.

Biology STEM

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.

Biology STEM

Feeling Feverish: Homeostasis of Pyrexia

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

Mathematics STEM

An Abundance of Bells

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

STEM Biology Social sciences

Peerwise Assignment: Human Body

this activity is for students to design high level questions related to course material as a review and application exercise.

Biochemistry STEM

Blended Learning: Just in Time

This activity benefits students by exposing them to literature in their field while preparing them for the following lecture.

Active Learning Activities