EduProtocol: Fast and the Curious

EduProtocols have gained popularity for fostering a supportive and close-knit learning environment. They are versatile, hands-on lesson frames that can be easily adapted to teach any content using the same protocol. Repetition is key to the success of any protocol and eduprotocols are no different. While the task itself remains consistent, you can swap out the material and audience, making EduProtocols flexible for any subject and grade.

The Fast and the Curious

The Fast and the Curious EduProtocol is ideal for teaching new information such as math facts or vocabulary words. Anything that with repetition would improve understanding and more to long term memeory.  This protocol spans five class days, using just 15 minutes each day. It is perfect to start at the beginning of the school week.

Implementing The Fast and the Curious in Your Classroom

To plan and customize this EduProtocol for your classroom, follow these steps:

• Block Out Time: Ensure you have 15 minutes each day dedicated to this task.
• Prepare Content: Create a Classtime question set with the information you want to teach using your favorite quiz product.  Some of my favorites are Quizizz, Blooket, and Gimkit. The key for a program is to have reporting data.

Day-by-Day Guide

Day 1: Introducing New Material

1. Create a Live Session: Use the question set you prepared and invite your students by providing the session code or URL.
2. Start the Session: Run through the questions with your students. You can conduct a normal session or incorporate gamification using such features are Boss Battle in Gimkit.

The Fast and the Curious protocol, with its structured yet flexible approach, ensures students stay engaged and retain new information effectively.

Reviewing and Reinforcing

When looking at the results you may notice some data points are similar. If all students are struggling with a concept of word you can spend that time reviewing and providing a mini-lesson. This is data driven instruction at its best. Solving the challenge in the moment. Now, this is where the “fast” in the Fast and the Curious EduProtocol emerges. Have your students take the session again. It may seem repetitive, but in a way, that’s the point. You want to reinforce the newly corrected answers and let the information sink into your students’ minds while it is still fresh in their memories. You want them to lock in the right answers before they forget what they just learned.

Day 2 and Day 3: Repetition of Material

• Repeat the same steps as Day 1
• Alternatively, conduct the session as usual but drop questions that the students seem to understand well using Classtime’s Session Playlist feature.

Like Day 1, these repetitions should only take 15 minutes at most.

Day 4: Assessing the Class’ Knowledge of the Material

Think of this day as the final test. Conduct a session with the original question set one last time. If the entire class scores 95 percent or better, you can give them an A for that assignment in your gradebook and go on to explore new material. Admittedly, it might initially feel strange to give the entire class an A. However, the more one thinks about it, the more it makes sense. We assess students to analyze their mastery of the content you’re teaching. So, if everyone shows mastery through completing this session with a high score, it’s logical to give them an A and move on to whatever’s next on your agenda. On the other hand, if your students score less than 95 percent, you have time to repeat the process from Days 1 through 4 and try again on Day 5.

Day 5: Buffer/Free Day

If your class did not get 95 percent or higher on Day 4, don’t worry! Day 5 is a buffer day for you to clarify any information your students seem to struggle with. However, if your class scored 95 percent or better on their Day 4 “test,” Day 5 is a free day to pursue whatever you’d like. After all, the Fast and the Curious EduProtocol is not designed to give a formal quiz on the final day but to decrease the stress on both you and your students. Day 5 is dedicated to rest and relaxation in the form of more enjoyable activities or getting to teach your students something you ne

ver thought you’d have the time to fit into your curriculum.

Ultimately, Eduprotocols can be used in any curricular area and grade level. I hope you check out one of several of the protocols I have shared. I have found them to be engaging and fun for students and adults alike. Check out the video from Ditch that Textbook’s Matt Miller to see it in action.