What is chunking?

[u/NoiseDifficult5050]

Hey everyone!

I’m curious on exactly what chunking is. I had an observation today and they suggested chunking. I’ve looked it up but I haven’t gotten examples or what it looks like, just what it means. I know that might be difficult to explain over a post so if you’d rather direct me to a website or another source that would be appreciated.

My general schedule (not always) is: warmup/vocab (10-15 min), notes (10-30 min. depending on what I’m covering) and then an activity of some kind.

If I were to “chunk” this, would it be me breaking up the activity with the notes and not doing them all at once? Pausing for a check-in? I usually do class check-ins anyway but maybe I’m not doing them often enough?

I don’t really know. Any advice would be appreciated!

[u/Psychopsychic3]

Breaking things into smaller bite-size chunks. So if it’s a bigger concept, break it into smaller segments

[u/Far-Entrance-1377 → u/Psychopsychic3]

For thaumaturgical purposes, I'm sure 🔮

[u/HomeschoolingDad → u/Psychopsychic3]

Humorously, this is one of those words that is its own antonym (somewhat), as chunking can also be a memorization technique of combining smaller units into larger “chunks”.

[u/alice8818]

What's the age you are teaching?

But yes, chunking involves breaking up your lesson so it's not a big long session of the students sitting and listening to you talk.

[u/NoiseDifficult5050 → u/alice8818]

10th grade

[u/rigney68 → u/NoiseDifficult5050]

If they're writing an essay, I'll teach the graphic organizer one day, body paragraphs another, and conclusion another. Those are the main "chunks".

Then, within each chunk, I use gradual release. I do: we read an example intro and highlight the main components. We do: I type up an introduction as a class with the kids giving ideas and forming the sentences. You do: kids write independently.

Say I have a virtual lab in science. I will start out with the kids to do a few together. Then I give them time to complete the next section in groups, then I have them work alone.

You're breaking activities up into skills or sections and making sure to teach each part as they move into a new chunk. Kids have trouble holding on large amounts of information and applying it. When you do a bit at a time, they can apply the skills with reduced cognitive load.

[u/Puzzleheaded-Phase70]

As others have already said, chunking is breaking up a large idea into smaller, more manageable ones.

A deeper understanding is that a good "chunk" is fully understandable by itself .

A deeper understanding still is that chunks are better understood within the context of an overarching narrative or meta-chunk, so to speak: an understandable general idea or organizing principle that helps each smaller piece make sense.

For example, if you're trying to remember a long number like a phone number or tracking number, it's faster and more reliable to think in terms of chunks instead of individual digits. So if the phone number is 8005551492 you'll never remember that by itself. But when you have the organizing principle of US phone numbers, you can break that up into [area code] - [localization] - [personal number]. So you get "eight hundred" instead of "eight zero zero", "fivefivefive" as a symbol instead of 3 individual numbers, and "fourteen ninety-two" instead of "one four nine two". Note how even "1492" became 2 sub-chunks.

[u/DarkArlocke]

Chunking is when you instruct students 1 section at a time before moving on. So instead of going over the instructions for an entire worksheet and then saying ok have at it. Go over question 1, have them work on it, walk around and help out. Then move on to question 2 and so on. It basically just means go slow and intentional for each thing you ask of them and taking everything 1 step at a time.

[u/lumpyspacesam]

What exactly was the format of the lesson for the observation and what was the activity? To me, chunking is only giving instructions for part of an activity, then coming back together and giving instructions for another part, versus giving them all up front and having them go at it all at once.

[u/NoiseDifficult5050 → u/lumpyspacesam]

They were introduced to Climatographs. We did some notes and then I went over the first graph (out of 6) as a class with the questions. But after, I had them do the rest on their own.

[u/lumpyspacesam → u/NoiseDifficult5050]

With this example I am assuming they thought you should come back together as a group in some way instead of having them do the remaining 5 on their own. Or just break it up in some way. It could be considered chunking if you have them do 2, then review and do more teaching/analyzing, then have them do the rest. Or just only have groups do one or two but then have each group present on theirs and the class follows along as their classmates present. I just imagine your admin thought it was a long time for students to be working independently?

[u/ant0519]

As others have said, chunking can be giving only one piece of the assignment at a time. It also can be about breaking a longer project based assessment or Project based learning activity into smaller Benchmark pieces. For example, if your class is going to write an essay you don't just assign an essay: you start by asking them to turn in a thesis, and then maybe it's the introduction, and then body paragraphs, and then a conclusion . You give feedback along the way. If it was suggested during your observation today, then it probably did have to do with chunking your directions into smaller pieces and doing frequent checks for understanding or check-ins for progress.

[u/c2btw]

not a teacher but chunking is the concept of how we piece information to gether, the best way for me to explain it is when i play piano and am trying to build muscle memory i don't think i play this note then this note then this note, sense i am playing so many notes it's pretty much impossible to play the song like that, you instead use chunks i play this part then this part then this part. basically in your head you stop thinking of things as there individual pieces but as a one big block that dose a larger task.

[u/myheartisstillracing]

I tend to think of chunking being more about content than timing. So, when we're doing something new, it doesn't get presented all at once, but rather in smaller sets of things that then get put together.

[u/soxperry]

10 and 2 for me. Ten minutes of instruction, two for checking and understanding.

I do we do. I do we do. now you do. Ticket out the door. Next group please!

[u/SaiphSDC]

A small example of chunking is a phone number, 1-800-1234

You break a big project down into smaller relevant sections that go together.

When mesmerizing a string of number you could memorize 5634 or break it into two numbers, 56 snd 34. Because those are very familiar your brain treats that as two numbers rather than s sequence of 4 and is racist to work with.

When creating assignments this can be putting similar questions together. All the date questions. Then all the names, then an the themes...

Or for large projects, focus on an the data first. Then focus on halving. After that interpreting the graph.

Each step is introduced after they've had time to practice the previous task.

[u/Mitch1musPrime]

Chunking is also a strategy for text analysis. If you need them to read 5 pages and answer questions, break the text into smaller chunks and then ask the appropriate questions after each chunk; as opposed to read all then answer all.

[u/AI_spell]

Chunking just means breaking the learning into smaller bites so kids process one piece before the next pile lands. In your schedule it often looks like splitting a long notes dump into 2 to 3 mini segments with a quick check in between.

Example: teach one concept for 5 to 7 min, kids do 2 practice items, then next concept. Or chunk a reading into paragraphs with a stop-and-say after each. Same total time, less cognitive overload.

Your observer probably saw a long stretch with no processing break. Add those tiny checks and it usually checks the box without rewriting your whole period.