At a recent SERC workshop on co-teaching, teachers from districts across the state participated in a cooperative learning structure called Corners, developed by Kagan Publishing and Professional Development (1995). Corners is a quick and easy activity that helps participants see a variety of viewpoints, and helps them examine a topic in ways they might not previously have considered.

How It Works

The group facilitator provides a topic and announces four alternatives related to the topic. Each of these is represented by a corner of the room. Participants are told to make a selection, write it down, and go to the corner of the room that represents their choice. They then discuss why they made the selection they did with those who chose the same corner. You can also use Corners with your students (see page two of this article).

Participants in the SERC workshop were given these choices:

Co-Teaching is Like…

• driving a motorcycle
• driving a luxury sedan
• driving a minivan
• driving a sports car.

Through the activity they explored many aspects of co-teaching – some of the observations were predictable, and some not so! Here were the responses:  

Co-Teaching is like driving a sports car because:

• There’s a lot of stuff in a small space, and time is short
• You have radar but need to be alert
• It’s fun zooming around together
• You’re always shifting gears
• It’s “open” to fresh air and new ideas
• You’ll have to make pit stops along the way
• There are lots of “models” to choose from
• There’s room for 2
• You feel energized with the performance
• It’s something you have always wanted and finally are grown up enough to have!

Read on to find out how to use Corners in your Classroom