Ways to Hook Students into a Lesson: 21 Examples
A lesson hook in elementary school is an engaging and interactive activity, question, or prompt that is used at the very beginning of a lesson to capture students' attention and spark interest in the topic. It is a tool that many teachers use to begin a lesson in an engaging way and get kids invested in the learning process by creating a sense of excitement and curiosity about the topic.
There are several reasons why using lesson hooks can be beneficial in the classroom.
Increases engagement:
A well-crafted lesson hook can engage students and motivate them to want to learn more about the topic. By using an interactive and engaging activity or prompt in their lesson plans, teachers can stimulate students' interest and curiosity, which can lead to increased engagement and participation with the learning targets.
Enhances learning:
When students are more engaged and invested in the learning process, they are more likely to retain the information being presented. By using lesson hooks, teachers can help create a positive and memorable experience that students can draw on when trying to remember important concepts or ideas.
Builds relationships:
Lesson hooks can also be used as an opportunity for teachers to connect with their students and build relationships with them. By using a fun and interactive activity, teachers can create a positive and enjoyable classroom environment, which can help foster a sense of trust and collaboration.
Sets the tone:
Finally, using lesson hooks when you introduce new material can help set the tone for the rest of the class. By starting off with an engaging and interactive activity, a teacher can establish a positive and upbeat atmosphere that can carry through to the rest of the lesson. This can help create a more enjoyable and productive learning experience for everyone involved.
Using a lesson hook is a simple but effective way to create an engaging and dynamic classroom environment that promotes learning and helps build relationships. By using this technique, a teacher can capture students' attention and motivate them to want to learn more, which can lead to better academic outcomes and a more enjoyable experience.
So, what can you do to “hook” your students? There are so many great ideas that can be applied in different scenarios!
When I’ve used these types of hooks in my own classroom, I have seen engagement skyrocket! It’s crazy how well lesson hooks can work! Use the following examples to write your own hook lesson plan.
Download the FREE pdf listing these 21 lesson hooks, 41 differentiation strategies, 24 formative and summative assessment ideas, and 10 posters and exit tickets for active learning.
Tell a Joke
A simple way to hook your students into your lesson is to tell a joke. Just google your topic or a keyword and add the word “joke” or “riddle” to the end of your search. You can find kid-friendly jokes for almost any topic. It might be harder to find, but you can also show a short comic about your topic too.
This hook is great to use when you don’t have any other ideas or if you need something quick.
For example, when teaching about a lion’s habitat, you might tell the following joke:
I'm at the lion habitat at the zoo with my daughter and say, "You know you can't trust lions. They're always lion to you!"
Share a Quote
Another short and easy lesson hook is to start with a quote. These quotes can be from the historical figure you are learning about or they can be a quote about the topic you are learning. You can write the quote on the board and let students guess who said it, or you can share the quote out loud and ask a student what they think it means.
Share a quote when you need a quick lesson hook. Use this strategy in history class when you are learning about historical figures or when learning about significant events or topics.
For instance, when teaching students about Benjamin Franklin, you might start your lesson by sharing one of his quotes:
“Never leave that till tomorrow which you can do today.”
Ask students what they think about Benjamin Franklin based on this quote.
Tell a Personal Story
Find a story about yourself that you can tell related to your topic. Maybe it's about when you used a math concept in real life or a time when you experienced what a book character or historical figure went through. This is great for creative writing too.
Use this hook when there is text-to-self connection.
For instance, you can tell a story about a time you used knowledge of fractions to bake a cake for a party.
Take a Survey
Take a survey of your class to get your kids hooked. This can be as simple as having your pupils raise their hands to vote, but you can also have students write their answers and count up the votes.
Take a survey with lessons where there are 2 points of view.
For instance, ask students to vote on whether they believe the federal government or states should have more authority about laws. Then, start your lesson on what the Founding Fathers believed about this idea.
Present a Scenario
Before beginning the lesson, present a related scenario to your students. This could be a hypothetical or “what if” scenario, but it can also be something from real life or a current event. Present the scenario to your students and give them time to discuss how they would respond to the scenario. This might be a great time to use think-pair-share to help students understand the scenario.
Present a hypothetical scenario when your topic has real-world applications.
For example, ask students what kind of government they would create for a new country. Have them come up with a list of 10 ideas or laws they would include. Then, transition into how the Founding Fathers had to create a new government after the American Revolution.
Use Word Association
Present a word to the class and have them come up with other related words. Put them on the board for the entire class to see. This is a great way to activate prior knowledge.
Use word association when your lesson can be boiled down to a word or two.
For instance, give students the term “solar system” and let them give you related words. After taking suggestions, transition into how you will be learning about the solar system, including many of the terms your students gave you.
Analyze a Graph
You can do this two different ways. You can present your students with a graph that is labeled and have your students discuss it and make inferences about it, or you can present your students with an unlabeled graph and have students work to interpret it using clues. Then, you would reveal what the graph is about.
Share a graph when your lesson has clear data attached to it.
For instance, present students with a graph of the ways Native Americans died during European Exploration. Have students discuss this graph before teaching your lesson on the history of European Exploration and how it impacted Native Americans.
Play a YouTube Video
A YouTube video is a great way to get students’ attention.
Play a short video, 30 seconds to a few minutes, and then get into your lesson. This can be a video related to your topic or it could be an introduction or overview of what you’ll be teaching.
Finding an intro video will be easier, but if you can find a movie clip (or something similar) that you can relate to your topic, go for it! (Just screen it to make sure it's appropriate.)
Play a video clip when you are teaching a very popular topic that will have a lot of good options or when you’re teaching a more boring topic to try to hype it up!
For instance, play a National Geographic video of different ecosystems before starting your ecosystem unit.
Play a Music Clip
This hook is a little harder to plan out, but a fun idea if you can think of a good song to go with your topic. Play a song or part of a song for your students and ask them what they notice about it. Do this as students enter your classroom.
Make sure you preview any music you will be playing for your class to make sure it’s appropriate.
Play music when there’s a related song that you can think of.
For instance, play the chorus to Aretha Franklin’s R-E-S-P-E-C-T before teaching your students your classroom expectations at the beginning of the year.
Present a Picture
Show students a photograph or picture on your projector to introduce a lesson and engage your students. Present the picture without saying anything, letting students figure out the clues to the new topic. Ask then what they notice and what they wonder about the picture.
You can tell them what the picture is right then and there, or you can make it suspenseful by starting your lesson and letting them figure it out as you go along. Just make sure you go back to the picture at the end of your lesson for closure.
Another way to do this is to show a zoomed in picture of an item related to your topic and have students guess what it is.
Present a picture when you are talking about a historical event or teaching a scientific concept.
For instance, present a photograph of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing. Have students discuss what they notice and what questions they have. Then, start reading the book “The Watsons Go to Birmingham, 1963”. This is a great way to give students background knowledge.
Grab a Prop
This is a great idea for younger kids, but it works well for older students too! Grab a prop to share with your students. It can be something form home or something that you picked up from the store. Pass the item around and let students make observations and ask questions (that you’ll answer later). Connect the prop with your lesson.
Show a prop when you’re introducing a new tool students will be using in class.
For example, hand out protractors to your class. Let them make comments and ask questions about them. Then, start your lecture on measuring angles using a protractor.
Download the FREE lesson planning resource that includes a “cheat sheet” of these 21 lesson hooks, as well as 41 differentiation strategies, 24 formative & summative assessment ideas, and 10 posters & exit tickets for active learning.
Ask, Would You Rather?
Ask your students a “Would you rather?” question. You can have students answer the question by show of hands or you can have them partner up and tell their partner their thoughts. “Would you rather?” can be a fun introduction because it gets students invested right away.
Use this hook with lessons that have two views or two options or when a character of a novel has to make a choice.
For instance, ask students “Would you rather be timid and intelligent or brave and stubborn?” before reading Where the Red Fern Grows. (This is how the two dogs are described.)
Ask a Debate Question
Ask your students to take sides on a controversial or thought-provoking topic. Break students up into small groups to let them discuss their views before bringing the whole class back together and starting your lecture. This is a great way to gather information about what your kids think about a topic.
Use this hook when the lesson is open-ended or information is debatable. This is also great before starting a persuasive essay.
For instance, ask students whether they think children should have screen time before asking them to write a persuasive essay on the topic.
Think of Cause & Effect
Tell your students about a cause and ask them what they think the effect would be. Give them the opportunity to think about their ideas before teaching your lesson and giving the answer.
Use this strategy when your lesson is based on cause & effect, especially with historical events or scientific principles.
For instance, tell your students about some of the events leading up to the American Revolutionary war, such as the stamp act and the quartering act. Ask them what they think the effect of these events would be.
Present a Challenge
Give your class a challenge to solve and write it on your classroom board. This could be a problem that historical figures had to deal with, a challenge scientists had, a problem a novel character faces, or a math problem students haven’t learned how to solve yet. Give students time to try and solve the challenge and discuss their strategies.
Use this strategy when there is a problem within your lesson topic.
For example, math teachers can present students with a math problem that they haven’t seen before. Give them time to solve the problem together. Affirm correct answers. Then, show them how to solve it.
Read a Story
Find a picture book related to a new unit you are starting. Read the book out loud and talk about it. Then, start your unit.
Use this lesson hook when introducing an entire unit.
For instance, read the story “If You Had Your Birthday Party on the Moon” before starting a unit on space to introduce some space facts and pique students’ interest.
Do an Experiment
Start your science lesson with an experiment, rather than ending with one. Instead of teaching students a lesson, which tells them exactly what to expect in a science experiment, start with the experiment and then discuss what happened and why. If you want, you do the experiment again at the end of the lesson or unit to reinforce the information your students learned.
Use this strategy when teaching a science lesson that has an experiment to get your students immediately engaged.
For instance, set out some glasses with water and food dye in each, connecting the water in each glass with a folded paper towel. Allow the water and dye to climb up the paper towels toward the next glass. Then, move onto capillary action and how it works.
Get Hands-On
So much of teaching is based on audio and visual information. Change it up with a hands-on introduction activity. Do a craft or play a game. Have students create or build something. Just make sure it’s related to your lesson.
Use this lesson hook for lessons with real-world application.
For instance, have students use recycled items to create a craft project before starting a unit on recycling.
Do a Puzzle
Before you start your lecture, have your pupils complete a puzzle to find out what they’ll learn about. This could be a physical jigsaw puzzle that you make out of cardstock, or it could be a riddle or code that needs to be deciphered.
Playing “hangman” could also work. Just make sure the answer is your next theme.
Use this strategy with any lesson.
For example, before starting a lesson on “show, don’t tell” writing, play hangman, where “show, don’t tell” is the answer. Then, begin your module.
Role Play
Role play as a confused student who is trying to solve a math problem, using a strategy you’re about to teach. Role play as a historical figure that you are about to talk about. Pretend to be an expert scientist who is talking out loud as they make a discovery.
Ignore your students’ confusion for a moment just get them excited, wondering what will happen next.
Use this lesson hook with any lesson that has a storyline, especially history or reading.
For instance, go just outside your classroom door as your students are transitioning back to their desks. Then, run into the room and shout, “The Regulars are coming! The Regulars are coming!” Go up to students individually and tell them to get ready to stand up against the British soldiers who are coming to Lexington and Concord.
After your students finish laughing at you and giving you confused looks, teach them about Paul Revere’s Midnight Ride.
Present a Case Study
Present a case study to your students before starting a lesson related to real-world problems. This might be a problem that historical figures faced in the past or a problem that people face today.
Use this strategy for lessons about real-world problems.
For instance, tell students that a class in their school is admitting a student who is blind. (Tell them this is a hypothetical scenario.) Ask them what the school should do differently to accommodate this student. Then, teach a lesson on Helen Keller and how to help blind people today.
Download the FREE 26-page pdf file with these 21 lesson hooks & examples, 41 differentiation strategies categorized as content, process, product, & learning environment, 24 formative & summative assessment ideas, and 10 posters & exit tickets for active learning.
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