Interactive Lessons at a Glance
Interactive lessons contain pages (online screens) that students click through. Lessons vary in length but are generally 8 to 10 pages. An IL can stand alone or be part of a larger lesson plan or unit.
Lessons for pre-readers are teacher led. Some lessons include an audio recording of the lesson text. Students can follow along as the words are highlighted on screen—particularly helpful for younger students, struggling readers, or English learners.
Most pages of an IL invite students to directly interact with the content, using not only media but also special learning and assessment features. These features are designed to build skills and strengthen content knowledge. Click below to see a description of these features.
- Notes—a provided space for students that helps them practice note taking while responding to writing prompts
- Chart It—a graphic organizer that helps students organize and sort information
- Draw & Label—a drawing and labeling tool that helps students recall information or demonstrate understanding
- Highlight It—a virtual highlighter that helps students identify words or passages in response to a prompt when doing a close reading
- Arrange It—a graphic organizer that helps students understand relationships between/among core concepts
- Match It—a fill-in-the-blanks tool that helps students practice vocabulary
- Review It—a multiple-choice quiz that helps students check their knowledge and understanding
- Organize It—an outlining tool that students can use to prepare a final essay
- Write It—a tool for students to complete a final writing assignment, or to upload a file or provide a link to an online document
One of the distinguishing features of ILs is the variety of media they use, which can be viewed and revisited throughout the lesson. Watch second-grade teacher Susanne Logan talk about the benefits of using media, and then see how her students get information from the pictures on screen.
| Keyboard Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Space | Pause/Play video playback |
| Enter | Pause/Play video playback |
| m | Mute/Unmute video volume |
| Up and Down arrows | Increase and decrease volume by 10% |
| Right and Left arrows | Seek forward or backward by 5 seconds |
| 0-9 | Fast seek to x% of the video. |
| f | Enter or exit fullscreen. (Note: To exit fullscreen in flash press the Esc key. |
| c | Press c to toggle captions on or off |
Take Notes
Review the possible ILs that you’ve selected. Choose the one that seems most suitable for your students and curriculum. Which learning and assessment features does it contain? How might each be useful to you and your students in your teaching? In the chart below, list the learning and assessment features, and write down which learning needs they address.
