IQ (Investigating the Question) Slap Down

Purpose

Students analyze or practice assessment questions by determining the worst answer, the distractor, and the correct answer through a slap-down game.

Materials

• Assessment question
• Notebook paper or index cards to create response cards

Instructions

1. Provide students with an assessment question.
2. Students create a set of response cards based on the type of question:
   • Multiple Choice – create A-B-C-D cards
   • Drag and Drop – create cards with drag options
   • Inline Choice – create cards with the inline response choices
   • Hot Spot – create cards over the hot spot options
   • Multipart – create A-B-C-D cards
   • Multiselect – create answer cards
3. Organize students into thinking partners.
4. Round 1: At teacher’s signal, students slap down the WORST answer, justify with their partner, and pick up their cards. Teacher clarifies.
5. Round 2: At teacher’s signal, students slap down the DISTRACTOR answer, justify with their partner, and pick up their cards. Teacher clarifies.
6. Round 3: At teacher’s signal, students slap down the CORRECT answer, justify with their partner, and pick up their cards. Teacher clarifies.
7. Observe students’ thinking and clarify/verify as appropriate.
8. Students summarize what they learned in writing and note how to avoid those mistakes in the future.

Classroom Management

• Model how to create the cards and demonstrate how to slap them down appropriately at the same time so no one cheats.
• Explain that a “distractor” may represent a partially correct answer.
• Remind students there will be no harm or humiliation for incorrect answers because correcting mistakes is a sign of intelligence!

Differentiation

• Promote access by previewing the question and pairing students with a supportive peer.
• Promote access by allowing the use of student/teacher summary notes.
• Provide response support by providing the correct response and the distractor so students only explain/justify.

Think It Up!

• Have students think more deeply about the concept by responding to a Think It Up prompt as an exit ticket or journal entry:
  • What was the main cause of mistakes on this question?
  • Predict another way this question might be asked.
• Encourage students to use lead4ward’s Thinking Stems (English/Spanish) to frame their responses, if needed.