1. Popcorn Responses: Have participants quickly share thoughts or ideas following an idea or breakout session. 

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2. Storytelling: Share stories from your firsthand experiences to create connection with students/others.  

• Make sure the story is relevant to the situation/topic. Encourage storytelling for students. 

• When introducing a new topic, tell story to give an example and make a point of the importance of what is about to be covered next. Provides emphasis and grabs participants’ attention. 

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3. Change Zoom View: 

• Changing from speaker view to gallery view or cameras off are ways change up the meeting/session to maintain audience engagement.  

• Signal transitions between activities or topics. 

• Gallery view for freeze frame, speaker view for “human slideshow”  

• Give the instructions and explain why to change views. 

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4. Repeating Directions: Before breakouts or any activity, repeat the instructions and the question or activity to be done several times.  

• Make a point to say that you are repeating the instructions for those who may have allowed their minds to wander – this will grab everyone's attention when you repeat the instructions.  

• This can also be done during an activity. 

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5. Using Props to Make a Point: Use the We!Connect or We!Engage cards or an interesting object or prop as an anchor for an idea or transition into a new topic/segment.  

• In Context Hook session, Chad brings out “huge” letters M and E and uses them to make a point (7:27 - 7:34). 

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6. Video Break – Use as a critical element to maintain student attention. Can be used as a full break from the session or as just a visual break to have them focus on content by listening. 

• Have everyone kill video for a short break—this can actually lead video-resistant students to join back in after the break. 

• Tell students why it is important to take a break then re-engage.  

• If it is a full break from the session, give them suggestions of what to do on the break: 20/20/20 rule, take a walk, stretch, get more coffee, etc.  

• In the Context Hook session, the concept of a video break is discussed. This discussion includes why and how to give an effective video break and then demonstrates. (1:00:15 – 1:05:58)   

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7. Busy Hands: Use hands in front of the camera to engage with the audience and make a point while speaking: provides emphasis and grabs attention in an online setting. 

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8. Mute/Unmute - Have everyone unmute all at the same time and popcorn out responses to a question or request. This is a nuance of Popcorn Responses that is done intentionally to focus the group. 

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9. Countdown Clock:  

• Picture-in-picture timer – still able to see the instructor but the majority of the screen is taken up by a timer 

• Use a song as a timer – tell students they have the length of a song to complete an activity 

• Use fingers for a 10 second timer – quick and easy way to count down to when you want audience participation in Zoom. 

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10. The Change-Up: Change distance from camera or closeness to microphone to create visual and auditory interest/differences that trigger minds to re-engage if they are wandering.