Kick Me: Making Vocabulary Interactive (4:54)
Jodi Macauley: Hi. I’m Jodi Macauley. I teach 7th grade writing at Wilmette Jr. High School in Wilmette, Illinois.
This lesson is called “kick me.” The “kick me” method is based on the prank of putting a note on someone’s back that says “kick me”: that is the inspiration. I use “kick me” for analogies by taking out one word of the analogies and putting it on the students back. They had to take a minute to analyze the relationship and then find the missing word on their classmate’s back. Because there is a limited amount of answers, they had to find the right answer or the best answer just like in a standardized testing situation.
The need to have a time limit is also very important because if you would leave it open ended until everyone finishes it just ends up being that some kids are done early and some kids are just goofing around. If you give them ten or fifteen minutes and they know the timer is ticking, they will move much more efficiently and get the answers.
I think we should all read the first rule of “kick me” together: There is absolutely no kicking. Okay get up and find the answers and I will set the timer.
Most of them just have to do with word choice which is something they are studying all year long and making connections between words to help you remember the word choice. Looking at analogies has the kids thinking at a higher level: they have to analyze the relationship before they can come up with the answer.
“Kick me” can be used for anything. It’s a great pre-teaching lesson when the kids don’t really know the answers so they really have to look for the answers. It could also work as a review activity: they already know the answers but they have to find the exact words.
I think they like it because they can get up and move. They are not just listening to me talk and they can interact with each other. It forces them to work with everybody and they have a lot of fun with that. It makes the time go by quickly and they actually learn something.
Moving is really important especially for this age level because at the junior high level so often they are just sitting and listening to lecture. Anytime that they can move they are more engaged which means they are going to learn more. There is also brain research that supports having the blood moving to the brain will help with retention and focus.
Students: It gets us up and interactive which is a lot more fun than just taking notes the whole period.
It’s really fun to get to move around and watch people and learn interactively instead of just staying in our seats.
It helps you remember things when you are moving around because it gets planted in your brain better. You remember what you were doing and then make connections.
Some other ways that I have used it is for figurative language where the kids have the definition of hyperbole, simile or metaphor. I put examples on their backs and they have to go and find it from their classmates and fill in a chart. They have to come back together and see if they put it in the correct places. It also works for definitions. You put the definitions on their backs and they have to copy the definitions. We know that kids do not like to copy definitions but this forces them to do it and they do it gladly because they are up and moving and they are having fun with their peers.
Students: It’s a different way to learn vocabulary and sometimes just learning vocabulary and definitions is boring, so this is more fun.
I’m going to give you my lessons learned and my smart board activity so that you can do “kick me” in your classroom.