Breakout Room Success

Providing students with the opportunity to participate in shared small groups can foster a deeper connection and communication level. Still, depending on your class, the students' age, and the subject matter, it can be a frightening experience to release control and trust the process. After all, a teacher cannot be everywhere, and if we are, are we really able to focus and offer support?  

Allowing students to meet to work in small groups helps build community and fosters deeper learning.

Breakout rooms allow students to connect with me and one another in a way that is only possible in a smaller setting. I wanted to give you some tips I have used to make Breakout rooms successful in my classroom.

1. It's all about organization!
Just like in the actual classroom, our kids need to be placed in differentiated groups according to their levels in the subject being taught. So, according to ability, I organize my kids into breakout room groups for each subject. Each group contains a high. high medium, low medium, and low student. Each student is numbered as either a 1A, 2B, 3A, OR 4B. My students know when they log into Zoom they need to put their number and letter in front of their names; that way, it's quick and efficient when I place them into breakout rooms. When using a Round Robin structure, my kiddos can easily use their numbers to know the order that they share. When speaking with a partner, students understand that A goes first and B follows. I also like to make my 1/A's my team leaders. That way, they can help lead the team if they get stuck or if a teammate needs assistance. I always make the team leader repeat the task aloud before letting the breakout rooms begin. Besides team leaders, it's a good idea to assign other roles to the team members. For example, if the team is working out a math equation, maybe one member is the recorder, one is the timekeeper, and one is the presenter. These jobs can be swapped or set in stone to cut down on confusion and keep routines.

    

2. Short and to the point

Make sure to keep your breakout time very short! This will ensure students focus and stay on track. By keeping breakouts to under five minutes can help students accomplish the task promptly. It's a good idea to have your team leader keep everyone on track. Once the time is up, have them come back as a whole class to discuss their conclusions, findings, and questions.  

3. Sentence Stems/Whiteboards

To help your younger students understand how to talk to one another, send them into their breakout rooms with a sentence stem/starter or their whiteboard with the problem already solved. Since they only have a short time to share, you want to set them up for success. It's not fun to enter into a breakout room and have complete silence. Most of the time, students just don't know where to begin and need guidance. Sentence stems or whiteboards can help them understand expectations and give them the language to get started.

4. Volunteers

It might not be feasible for all teachers, but I have found it very beneficial to have volunteers help out during breakout rooms. It's helpful to receive the support and that outside presence. I've enlisted all sorts of volunteers- approved parents, student teachers, staff members, and our principal to volunteer in our classroom. These people can actually be part of the conversation, or they can be there to just facilitate and help students focus. It takes a village!

Breakout rooms take time. When we first started, we practiced as a whole group. When we practiced everyone muted and turned their cameras off beside the chosen team members. Then we all watched them answer a simple question as a team.  The process, like everything in our classrooms, takes time and practice. When we provide a meaningful process, we can create an atmosphere that values student voice and choice.

If you'd like to see this in action please contact Tamara Moyers at tamara.moyers@omsd.net to set up a Spotlight visit.

Positively Teaching,  

Randi Muehlen