Brain research tells us that the brain can only hold about 7 pieces of information for less than 30 seconds. If we want to extend that time, we need to consistently repeat! (Brain Rules; Dr. John Medina). “Quick Writes” and “Reciprocal Teaching Pairs” are strategies that can easily be embedded within a lecture to improve engagement, repetition, and synthesis of information. For quick writes, after 10 minutes of lecture/teacher talk, stop and ask students to write what they learned – keep it short – 1 to 2 minutes. Then, have students pair up and stand facing each other. Instruct them to take turns teaching the information to each other and to sit and look at you when finished (by having them stand and then sit- it is structured and the conversation doesn’t stray😊). Then continue with your lecture and repeat! The students have now heard, written, and talked about the information. Repeat to remember! 

-WICOR tip provided by Dawn Zosel from our awesome Science Department and AVID Site Team Member