Constructivist Techniques

1) Constructivism – concept map
Construct or build knowledge based on internalizing a concept learned through social interaction | Analyze the content from different perspectives (social, cultural, historical, etc.) | Learning experience enhanced by authentic projects similar to what you experience in the real world |
Discussion | Knowledge is fluid | Active participation |
Curiosity |Questioning | Reasoning |
Social interaction | Open-mindedness | Applicable knowledge |
| Critical thinking | |

2) Constructivism – activity
Topic: History – Abraham Lincoln and Euclid connection
1. Read and reflect upon the following paragraph
Activity duration: 3 minutes
Individual activity
At age forty, Abraham Lincoln studied Euclid for training in reasoning. Euclid, was aGreek mathematician born approximately 330 BC, often referred to as the "Father of Geometry," who wrote the “Stoicheia” or “Elements”, a comprehensive compilation of geometrical knowledge. Euclid’s elements included a set of axioms, statements that are accepted as true. The "Common Notions," were Euclid’s first five axioms. They are called ‘common notions’ because they were common to allsciences:
1. Things which are equal to the same thing are also equal to one another.
2. If equals are added to equals, the sums are equal.
3. If equals are subtracted from equals, the remainders are equal.
4. Things which coincide with one another are equal to one another.
5. The whole is greater than the part.

As a traveling lawyer on horseback, Lincoln kept a copy of Euclid'sElements in his saddlebag. In his biography of Lincoln, his law partner Billy Herndon tells how late at night Lincoln would lie on the floor studying Euclid's geometry by lamplight. Lincoln's logical speeches and reasoning are attributed to his reading of Euclid.
It is thought that Lincoln based his reasoning behind anti-slavery arguments on Euclid’s first axiom “Things which are equal to the samething are also equal to one another.”

2. Class room work - Complete the following activities
Activity duration: 10 minutes
Team activity

Students:
* After reading the paragraph, team up with a classmate.
* Discuss how each of you thinks Euclid’s first axiom relates to the abolition of slavery. (2 minutes)
* With your teammate, come up with another application of any ofEuclid’s axioms to a real life example. Be prepared to briefly present your idea to the group. (5 minutes)
Professor:
* Ask a few students to share their team’s thoughts with the group.
* Prompt students to discuss how learning about two apparently unrelated topics can help us see things from different perspectives (3 minutes)

3. Home research - Complete the followingactivities
Activity duration: 30 minutes
Individual Activity
* Create a KWL chart to write what you know and want to know about the Lincoln-Euclid connection
* Research online the Lincoln-Euclid connection
* Complete your chart with what you learned about the Lincoln-Euclid connection and post it to the discussion board.

3) Constructivism – 10 classroom activities
I found thefollowing article on constructivist activities http://www.calpro-online.org/eric/docs/brown/brown01_06.pdf. This article lists eight principles for guiding instructional design as shown below. I’ve taken these guiding principles as well as other online resources with suggested classroom activities specific to the lesson’s topic to create a list of constructivist classroom activities.
1. Providemultiple representations of reality.
2. Represent the natural complexity of the real world.
3. Focus on knowledge construction, not reproduction.
4. Present authentic tasks (contextualizing rather than abstracting instruction).
5. Provide real-world, case-based learning environments, rather than predetermined instructional sequences.
6. Foster reflective practice.
7. Enable context- and...