There are at least 35 ways to check learner retention at the close of a training session. Last week’s Tip looked at 15 Paper-Based closing activities. This week’s Tip will look at Spoken Word, Materials and Movement-based closing activities.
With only one or two exceptions, these learning activities are also completely self-directed. This means that the facilitator simply provides the necessary instructions and materials, and then gets out of the participants’ way.
The facilitator will need to allocate from 10 to 50 minutes for these ways to check retention. Most of these activities involve pairs, small or large groups.
Spoken Word-Based Closing Activities to Check Retention
- Key Take-Away: Stand and report their key take-away from the session.
- Paired Instruction: Pair up and explain to their partner the key learning from the day. Do this as if their partner had not been at the session. Each participant will have 5 minutes to talk.
- Stations: Stand at assigned different stations that represent a key topic from the day. Explain the major points in 2 minutes.
- Radio Commercial: Create and present a commercial selling the key learning.
- Skit: Act out the key learning in a humorous fashion. Act out what to do and what not to do.
- Song: Speak or sing the lyrics to a song that captures the essence of what has been learned.
- Key Concept Briefing: When the facilitator calls on you, pop up out of your chair. Provide a 2- minute briefing for a key concept that the facilitator selects at random.
- Verbal Relay: Stand in parallel lines facing each other. Take turns to report one key concept and/or build on what someone else has said.
Materials-Based Closing Activities to Check Retention
- Quilt: Write key learning on small construction paper squares. Then state what is written as you paste them onto a flip chart or foam board.
- Puzzle: Select the most important learning points from a roll of labels with different learning points on them. Place each selected label on a puzzle piece. Next, create a puzzle (which can be free form or pre-designed).
- Tinker Toys: Build something with Tinker Toys that represents key learning.
- Totem: Select an item from a bag of miscellaneous items. Explain how it captures the essence of what has been learned.
- Beach Ball: Stand and throw a beach ball that has different content-related questions written on different sections. Answer the question that faces the participant.
- Collage: Create a collage depicting key concepts using pictures already cut from magazines.
- Building Blocks: Explain the stages involved in a learned process. Use blocks to represent each stage.
- Merry-Go-Round: Create a Tinker Toy merry-go-round. Explain what concept each colored piece represents and how the concepts relate to each other.
Movement-Based Closing Activities to Check Retention
- Relay Race: Compete in teams to add content-related words or phrases that begin with each letter of the training program’s title.
- Scavenger Hunt: Talk with different participants to complete a worksheet identifying how each plans to incorporate what they learned into their daily work activities.
- Charade: Act out key learning concepts.
- Gallery Walk: Walk from flip chart to flip chart (each titled with a different key learning point or training topic covered that day) and write do’s and don’ts, or tips, or action items.
If you would like to learn about experiential learning activities, please book a call to discuss a tailored train-the-trainer program. https://laurelandassociates.com/contact/
May your learning be sweet.
Deborah