Simple interactive lesson starters for 100% participation
A typical day in the classroom: you need five minutes to fill in the register. Start your class by adding one simple interactive slide to your regular lesson flow. It takes just a moment and gets all students active!
The ideal lesson starter slide: easy to create + interactive + engages every student
Activate prior knowledge
The word cloud is one of the easiest and most fun ways to collect input.
Ask learners to explain something
Students can reply digital open questions without having to speak out loud.
Show an interest in students' opinions
A simple poll allows learners to respond anonymously, so everyone can take part.
What do you already know about…?
Activating prior knowledge is always a great way to start a lesson.
It gives you an idea of what your learners already know about a topic, and it helps them organise their existing knowledge, making space for new information.
There are many ways to activate prior knowledge. LessonUp’s word cloud is one of the easiest and most fun ways to collect ideas from the whole class.
All responses appear on a single slide, giving you a visual snapshot of what the class already knows. Learners also enjoy seeing their answers pop up on the board in real time.
Is it easy to create a word cloud slide in LessonUp? Yes. It’s done in 1-2-3.
🚀 Click Add slide
🚀 Select Word cloud from the slide menu
🚀 Type: “What do you already know about…?”
Student answers will appear on the interactive whiteboard and can be discussed together with the class.
Tell me something in your own words
“Write a few sentences about how you felt on your first day at college.” or “Write a descriptive paragraph about…”
An open question is often all you need to get learners thinking and writing in their own words. It’s a simple but powerful way to start a lesson by asking them what they think, feel, or know.
With LessonUp, the open question becomes digital. Students can respond from their own devices, without having to speak in front of the class. This makes it ideal for quieter or less confident learners, while giving more confident students a moment to reflect before sharing their thoughts.
How do you create an open question slide in LessonUp?
🚀 Click Add slide
🚀 Select Open question from the slide menu
🚀 Type your question in the text field
Also in this case, student answers will appear on the interactive whiteboard and can be discussed together with the class.
I see you: I’m interested in your opinion
Everyone wants their opinion to be heard, including students.
If you ask learners to share their opinion verbally in front of their peers, you might not always get honest responses. Quieter or less confident learners may also feel uncomfortable speaking up.
A simple interactive poll solves this. It allows learners to respond anonymously, so everyone can take part.
Once all students have answered, the results appear on the board as percentages. Ready for a quick discussion if you wish.
Is it easy to create a poll slide in LessonUp? Yes. Very easy!
🚀 Click Add slide
🚀 Select Poll with text from the slide menu
🚀 Type your poll question and answer options, for example:
Yes / No / Not sure
A poll is answered in seconds, so it’s often useful to follow it up with an open question asking learners to explain their choice.