Teaching Strategies Table[1]
STEPS	TEACHING STRATEGIES	WATER QUALITY PROGRAM OUTREACH EXAMPLES
STEP 1: Connect — establish a relationship between the learners and the content, connecting it to their lives.	Discussion; Hands-on involvement; Brainstorming; How many of you ?; Guided imagery; Cooperative learning; Simulation; Mind mapping; Sensory awareness	Brainstorm: When I say the word "stream," what do you think of? Compile a list
STEP 2: Attend — analyze what just happened by attending to their own experience.	Analyze Step 1; Discuss Step 1; Write about Step 1	Discuss: Looking at the list, what items could we group together? (e.g., all items related to pollution, recreation).
STEP 3: Imagine — visualize the concept, as the learners understand it and experience it.	Structured creative drama; Group experience; Guided imagery; Performer; Metaphors and similes; Concept mapping	Do the guided imagery activity from Project WILD Aquatic, "Riparian Retreat."
STEP 4: Inform — receive and examine the expert knowledge.	Videos; Slides; Overheads; PowerPoint; Lecture; Textbooks; Reference materials; Demonstrations; Guided Tours; Internet/Web; Maps, charts, graphs; Satellite conferencing	Give a presentation on water quality and how we measure it: Biological monitoring Chemical monitoring
STEP 5: Practice — practice the learning as the experts do it.	Drill and practice worksheet; Structured activity; Structured writing; Controlled experiment	Do the activity "Macro-invertebrate Mayhem" from Project WET. Practice how to do chemical testing.
STEP 6: Extend — see how it works for the learner.	Inquiry; Open-ended experimenting; Tinkering; Problem solving; Unstructured exercise; Kinesthetic experiences; Field investigations; Model making; Hands-on tasks	Go to a nearby stream and monitor the water quality at two locations.
STEP 7: Refine — evaluate the extension from Step 6.	Analyze Step 6; Sharing; Peer presentations; Committee reports; Demonstrations; Graphic presentations; Portfolio	Present group reports and compare results. Discuss similarities and differences.
STEP 8: Perform — look for relevance and connections to larger ideas that are immediately useful to the learner.	Invent new applications; Develop future uses; Simulations; Role playing; Creative projects; Action projects; Service Learning	Create a public display to teach others about water quality.

[1] Adapted from Soil and Water Conservation District Outreach: A Handbook for Program Development, Implementation and Evaluation , Ohio Department of natural Resources, Division of Soil and Water Conservation, 2003 and from B. McCarthy (1980, 2000).

REFERENCES

McCarthy, B. (2000). About Teaching: 4MAT® in the Classroom. Wauconda, IL: About Learning, Inc.

McCarthy, B. (1980). The 4MAT® System: Teaching to Learning Styles with Right/Left Mode Techniques. Barrington, IL: EXCEL, Inc.

http://www.aboutlearning.com/what_is_4mat.htm