What’s new with SOS?

We’re excited to share a new project, resources to spread the word, and the latest SOS additions.

Spotlight on Strategies, or SOS, is a collection of creative, research-based instructional strategies, presented by teachers for teachers. These simple instructional strategies incorporate digital media in meaningful, effective, and practical ways.

The SOS series has become one of the most popular collections in Discovery Education, and we know this is all because of YOU: your ideas, your insights, your enthusiasm, and your sharing have taken SOS around the globe and back again.

SOS in Action

We were so inspired seeing all the ways you were using SOS through #SpotlightOnStrategies that we are launching a new series dedicated to showing SOS in Action: how you use, modify, and support learners with SOS. Want to share what you’re doing in your classroom? Fill out this form and let us know!

How Do You Share?

Introducing Professional Learning Toolkits – a growing library of ready-to-go resources to help share Discovery Education with colleagues. Everything needed to excite, engage, and encourage participants is contained within each toolkit and its notes.

Check out the Spotlight on Strategies Professional Learning Toolkit, as well as the SOS Networking Activity (perfect for a staff meeting or professional development icebreaker), or the SOS Packet Activity featuring the favorite strategies from the community.

New Questioning Category

Research suggests teachers ask about 300–400 questions per day and as many as 120 questions per hour. Looking for a few new effective questioning technique? Check out the new SOS Questioning Collection for ideas to use questioning to actively involve students in the lesson, develop critical thinking skills, nurture insights, and more.

New Additions

With 100+ strategies, we’re not stopping! Check out the latest additions to the growing Spotlight on Strategies collection.

Spotlight on Strategies: Two Stars and a Wish

The Two Stars and a Wish strategy engages students in providing constructive feedback to one another. Students trade work with one another and provide two positive comments and one “wish,” or a comment that provides constructive feedback.

Spotlight on Strategies: Fold Draw Learn

Fold Draw Learn engages students in an ongoing activity that strengthens vocabulary and reasoning. Students create hidden drawings of vocabulary words and attempt to follow the reasoning from definition to drawing and back again.

Spotlight on Strategies: Take a Stand

The Take a Stand strategy is a simple game that can be used in a variety of ways. Teachers can ask students to take a stand on their opinions, their understanding or to express their background knowledge of a particular subject area.

Spotlight on Strategies: Songwriting 101

Hook students interest by having them write songs to teach content they are learning!