Four+Corners+(2)

Teaching Strategy Four Corners

 **Description**: Four Corners is a strategy in which you pose a question to the students and provide them with four choices- each choice posted in one of the corners of the room. The choices help the students rethink and connect to the content. Once in a corner, instruct students to share their ideas with others in the same corner before each group defends their choice to the others in the room.

 **Strengths**- This strategy is great because it poses friendly debate and discussion in the classroom. Students have to make a clear choice (not stand in between two corners), and then be able to defend their reasoning for making that choice. It can be used for almost any topic in social studies, and adapted to serve your goals and objectives. The items in the corners do not have to be ‘agree’ or ‘disagree’ type answers. They can also be different pictures, sayings, or historical figures and students might choose their favorite, which was most meaningful to them, or which they made a personal connection with.

 **Limitations**- Some students may feel torn between two responses and ‘unable’ to choose which they like better. Also, similarly, students may not want to choose any of the choices and again, feel stuck or lost in the exercise. Students who are not very opinionated may just make a selection and not be able to justify their choice. Because of time limits, it is usually one or two people who share for the group, leaving out the others to voice their opinion to the class. Finally, this activity involves students getting up and walking around the room, which can cause excess distractions, and use up a lot of time during transitioning.

 **Directions**- Pose the question to the students. Have them go to a corner that best answers this question. Discuss with the other people at your corner why you chose this place. Then, hold a class discussion as to why the choices were made. [Reading on pages 541-552.]

 Question- Which quote most changed your opinion of President Clinton?  Four Corners- 1. “I did not have sexual relations with that woman.” 2. “It depends on what the meaning of the word ‘is’ is.” 3. “I never told anybody to lie, not a single time, never.” 4. “I tried it once, but I didn’t inhale."

By: Stephanie Furst