2. Motivate students to read assigned material

4. General summary of reading assignment

5. Focused discussion of reading assignment

7. Add mini-assessments/quizzes to Discussion BoardsSample Prompts for Each Type of Discussion Board:<br />1.Getting to know each other<br />This discussion will help us get to know each other while we practice using the Discussion Board. By 9 am on XXX, you should:<br />1. Respond to ONE of the prompts below, and<br />2. Comment on at least ONE classmate’s postings.<br />Your postings should be at least 3 sentences long. For example a response to quot;
My hobby is . . .quot;
could be “My hobby is cooking. Each year I try to learn how to cook foods from a new ethnic region of the world. This year I am trying to cook Lebanese foods.”Do NOT reply to this message. Instead, read the forums following this one, choose one of them, and post your response. Then read your colleagues' responses, and pick at least one to respond to. <br />2.General summary of reading assignment<br />Read chapter 6. Then log-in to the Discussion Board at least twice by 11 pm on XXX to complete the following:Part One:--Start a new thread labeled with your name,--List at least 2 points or topics from the chapter that you found interesting, and explain why, and--List at least 1 question that you have, point that you're uncertain about, or thing you’d like to learn more about.Part Two:--Respond to at least two classmates’ responses to Part One.<br />3.Focused discussion of reading assignment<br />Place-value Centers<br />Instructions: Watch the “Place-value Centers” video. Then select 2 of the questions below and post your responses by 11 PM on XXX. <br />Place-value Centers Question 1: How did the calendar activity help students develop an understanding of place value? Describe the long-term nature of the calendar activity and the benefits it has for students' learning.Place-value Centers Question 2: The informal place-value language used by teachers varies. What language did Ms. Vigstrom use? What other words describe place values? Describe the differences in how children might hear these words. <br />Place-value Centers Question 3: Ms. Vigstrom set up several place-value centers with different materials. Identify the various manipulatives used in this lesson. How effective were the materials in helping develop place-value concepts? Which materials were most effective and why? <br />Place-value Centers Question 4: An important development in students' place-value understanding is their move beyond counting by ones to counting by tens and ones. Cite observations of this progression in the video. <br />Place-value Centers Question 5: Both ungrouped materials (Unifix cubes, beans, buttons, and stones) and pre-grouped materials (base-ten blocks) were used for manipulatives in this lesson. Describe the advantages and disadvantages of each type of material. What is the developmental progression in using these materials? <br />Place-value Centers Question 6: The materials listed in the previous question are considered proportional place-value materials. Non-proportional place-value materials and activities include money-such as trading a penny for a dime-and poker chips-such as trading a blue chip, which has a value of 10, for a white chip, which has a value of 1. What are the advantages and disadvantages of proportional and non-proportional materials for developing place-value concepts? <br />4.Group discussions<br />I use these when teaching larger classes, so that students feel that they’re discussing the topic with a smaller group of fellow students. I usually use the same prompts, but the smaller number of participants in each group supports strong interactions among participants.<br />