Instructional Minute

Week of November 14th:

• Walkthroughs with feedback
• Celebration of Direct Instruction across the district

Teachers:

• Circulate the classroom to observe if students are ready to complete the learning target independently
• Lean in and listen to the dialogue that students are having to monitor if students are understanding the learning target
• Take quick anecdotal notes while circulating the room to monitor which students are understanding the learning learning target
• Use a checklist to record which students are understanding the learning target
• Response cards, mini whiteboards, etc.

• This is from the Teach Like a Champion Field Guide

  
  

  In a high-performing classroom, a verbalized or unspoken “I don’t know” is cause for action.

  • When a student begins by being unable or unwilling to answer, you should strive to make the sequence end as often as possible with the student giving a right or valid answer.
  • It is important not to "steal the student's struggle". Let the awkward pause happen. Do not be tempted to fill the silence with giving students the answer.
  
  

  Choose among four basic formats to respond:
  

  • Format 1. You provide the answer; your student repeats the answer.
  • Format 2. Another student provides the answer; the initial student repeats the answer.
  • Format 3. You provide a cue; your student uses it to find the answer.
  • Format 4. Another student provides a cue; the initial student uses it to find the answer.
  
  This is surely among the most helpful and efficient techniques for raising classroom expectations, especially if:
  
  • Students tend to duck away from questions rather than answer them.
  • Students don’t hear themselves getting answers right.
  • The class lacks a culture of accountability and incentive for each individual.
  
  Take the rigor of your interaction up a notch by wrapping up the sequence with a request for another correct answer or an explanation of the “why.”
  

You can find all of the Instructional Minute Newsletters in one place on the Lansing School District Website with descriptions by week.

https://www.lansingschools.net/departments/deputy-superintendent-of-schools/instructional-minute/

More great examples of the Workshop Model in the Lansing School District!

Click the link below, "Share Your Ideas", to submit interest in having your lesson recorded. We would love to feature your classroom as part of the Workshop Model Teaching and Learning Series.

We are collecting your suggestions for great Do Nows and Direct Instruction techniques that you use in your classroom.

Please click the "Share Your Ideas" image to the left and submit your ideas so they can be shared with other teachers in the district!

Below is a PDF and fillable PDF of the Workshop Model Lesson Framework for your use.