The Philosophy of Lesson Design:

Being the Best Teacher You Can Be

Mary Barrett

Mayo High School

1420 SE 11th Avenue

Rochester, MN 55904

Whenever humans are involved, we are dealing with probability, not certainty.

TEACHINGis a constant stream of professional decisions made before, during and after interaction with the student; decisions which, when implemented, increase the probability of student learning.

Much of traditional education breaks wholes into parts, and then focuses separately on each part. But many students are unable to build concepts and skills from parts to wholes. These students often stop trying to see the wholes before all the parts are presented to them and focus on the small memorizable aspects of broad units without creating the big picture. … We need to see the “whole” before we are able to make sense of the parts.

(Brooks and Brooks 1993)

Your skill as a teacher is not to be able to classify the level of thinking of every lesson or assignment, but to be aware that the cognitive launching pad of knowledge and comprehension leads to higher levels of thinking and allows students’ minds to soar.

Teach with passion; manage with compassion.

These tips mainly have to do with helping participants stay clear about what train they are on, where it has been, where it is currently, and where it is heading.

How you teach determines how well students learn.

Overview: Philosophy of Lesson Design

  1. Research-Based Teaching
  2. What Every Teacher Should Know (p. 6)
  3. Scaffolding Instruction (p. 9)
  4. Research-Based Lesson Design (McREL) (p. 10)
  5. 6 Components of Instruction (p. 11)
  6. Madeline Hunter Lesson Design (p. 12)
  7. Strategic Instruction (p. 13.)
  8. Sample Strategies (p. 14-22)
  1. Climate/Learning Environment (p. 22-25)
  2. Interpersonal Communications
  3. Organizing Space
  4. Organize and Monitor Students
  5. Organize Materials
  6. Organize Time
  7. Respond to Questions/Challenges
  8. Organize your life
  9. Maintain Student Attention
  1. Before Students Come
  2. Design for Learning (p. 26)
  3. Establishing Purpose (p. 27)
  4. 4 Presentation Stages (p. 28)
  5. Knowing your Audience (p. 30
  6. Balancing Lesson Presentation (p. 31)
  7. Self-Checks During the Lesson (p. 32)
  8. Creating Visuals (p. 33)
  9. Grouping Students (p. 35)
  10. Lesson Format (p. 37)
  1. Lesson Content: Promoting Student Success
  2. Lesson Design (p. 38)
  3. Brain Research (p. 41)
  4. Choose Content (p. 44)
  5. Differentiation (p. 45-50)
  6. Creating an Assignment (p. 51)
  7. Second Language Learners (p. 53)
  8. Creating a Rubric (p. 52)
  9. Sample summary – Rocket Principles (p. 54-55)
  10. Bloom’s Taxonomy (p. 56)
  11. Cognitive Levels and Questioning (p. 57-61)
  12. Classroom Graded Discussion (p. 62-63)
  13. Sample Questions using Blooms (p. 64-65)
  1. Assessments (p. 66)
  2. Formative
  3. Summative

Mary Barrett – Lesson Design1

These materials may be duplicated for nonprofit, educational use.

What Every Teacher Should Know

Shirley Armbruster & John Anderson

Teachers College Record – Columbia University

  1. To teach whole to part
  2. To understand that there is a progression from novice to expert.
  3. To teach according to authentic tasks and not artificial tasks.
  4. To understand that learning is action-oriented.
  5. To teach on the edge of scaffolding – the edge of the individual’s background.
  1. To understand the power of modeling.
  2. To coach their students.
  3. To understand that students must articulate what they are learning.
  4. To prompt students to reflect on how they are learning.
  5. To force students to look at their learning from different perspectives and points of view.

Mary Barrett – Lesson Design1

These materials may be duplicated for nonprofit, educational use.

What’s the big idea?

SURVEY the entire chapter using THIEVES

  • title
  • graphics
  • introductory ¶s
  • concluding ¶s or summary
  • questions at end of chapter

PREDICT

Make predictions about the content of the chapter: What is the big idea? Write your summary of the chapter’s Big Idea below.

Mary Barrett – Lesson Design1

These materials may be duplicated for nonprofit, educational use.

Table of Influence

Imagine that you can invite the 12 individuals who have most influenced you, both personally and professionally, to dinner. Who would you invite? Write their names on the twelve seats around the table.

Why did you put each of these people around your table? List the type of influence that each had on you that helped you develop personally and/or professionally.

Mary Barrett – Lesson Design1

These materials may be duplicated for nonprofit, educational use.

SCAFFOLDED INSTRUCTION

Gradual Release of Responsibility

Mary Barrett – Lesson Design1

These materials may be duplicated for nonprofit, educational use.

Three Interactive Elements of Reading:

The Lesson

Research Suggests a New Format

Traditional FormatNew Format

SIX COMPONENTS OF INSTRUCTION

  1. Direct teaching of strategy or information
  1. Demonstration/Modeling/Think-Aloud of use of new strategy or information
  1. Guided Practice & feedback on using the new strategy or information
  1. Independent Practice using the new strategy or information
  1. Assessment of mastery of strategy or information
  1. Generalization/Application of strategy or information

Madeline Hunter's Lesson Plan Format

Getting students set to learn

Step 1: Review -- Typically at the beginning of the lesson, review previous material (or prior knowledge) that is relevant to this lesson

Step 2: Anticipatory Set -- Getting students to focus their attention on the material to be presented -- getting them interested or prepared for what they are about to learn

Step 3: Objective -- State the objective for the lesson

Instruction

Step 4: Input and Modeling -- Present new information to students, modeling where appropriate as one form of instruction

Checking for Understanding

Step 5: Checking Understanding -- Determine whether or not students are making sense of the material as the material is being presented

Step 6: Guided Practice -- Immediately after instruction, students are given the opportunity to apply or practice what they have just learned and receive immediate feedback

How are checking understanding and guided practice different?

  • Checking understanding occurs in the process of instruction. Guided practice takes place just after instruction has occurred.
  • Checking for understanding is often a whole-class process by observing body language or asking a simple question to the whole class.
  • Guided practice may be done individually. Both involve quickly assessing whether students understand what has just been presented.

Independent practice

Step 7: Independent Practice -- After students appear to understand the new material they are given the opportunity to further apply or practice using the new information. This may occur in class or as homework, but there should be a short period of time between instruction and practice and between practice and feedback.

Climate/Learning Environment

Interpersonal Communications

Before Class

Greet students by name at the door.

Connect to students regarding activities outside your class.

During Class

Show students how much you enjoy your field and sharing information with them. This can be done through body language, smile, voice, and comments.

Use anecdotes to help students understand concepts.

When you are leading a discussion, listen to the students’ ideas, record their ideas, and share their ideas as a way of validating each student’s contribution.

Organize Space

Create a classroom arena

Slant desks/tables to increase visibility

Allow for ease of monitoring

Arrange furniture so that participants can work in pairs or teams

Create and orderly environment

Designate parts of the room for different activities

  • Word Wall
  • Creation Station
  • Classroom Library
  • Question Board
  • Materials Storage

Remove distracting items.

Monitor physical comfort

  • Room temperature
  • Sun in someone’s eyes

Organize and Monitor Students

Create a seating chart that allows you to see all students and reach their desks easily. Check the sight lines to make sure students can see all your teaching points.

What you accept is what you get.

Glance. Glance. Gaze.

Use proximity control.

Walk around. Students are much more likely to ask you questions when you are standing next to them than when you are standing at the front of the room or sitting at your desk.

Change seating charts on a regular basis. Then, if you need to move students because of negative behavior, the move can be seen as part of the routine rather than punishment.

Organize Materials

Have all materials prepared in advance

Overheads should have a font size of at least 14 to be seen from all parts of the room.

Have blank overheads for group members to write on for sharing responses.

Create a questions board for students and provide sticky notes for them to post questions.

Get materials ready for the next activity during a student break or group activity

Organize Time

Use class time efficiently, especially at the beginning and ending of the class period.

Allow for time for groups to form for an activity when planning how much time an activity will take. Allow time for the class to come back together as a whole.

Post a calendar for the week and an agenda for the day.

Follow the calendar and agenda as closely as you can.

Respond to Questions/Challenges

Give attention to the student.

Turn to the entire group and restate the question

Answer the question for the whole group in a respectful manner

Use AAA: Acknowledge – Accept – Analogy

Postpone the question for private interaction.

Keep things in perspective. Kids are just being kids when they act out and make your life miserable. It is easy to take their behavior personally.

  • heck to see if some aspect of your classroom or instruction is leading to unacceptable behaviors. If you find problems, you can fix whatever it is that needs fixing.
  • Chances are you ARE NOT part of the problem, so keep a log of the student’s behavior so you can document specific incidents and your interventions if it becomes necessary to have a conference with the parents, counselor, administrator, or other school officials.

Organize Your Life

Take time to eat lunch with your colleagues.

Join in or help organize social activities.

Find a mentor in your building.

Learn to drink coffee or participate in some other, minor social activity.

Get to know the building secretaries and custodians.

Keep up your professional reading so you stay current with the research.

Leave school behind at least some of the time! You will be a better teacher for being relaxed and having had enough sleep.

Maintain Student’s Attention

  1. Utilize novelty and variety by changing responses, perspectives, and materials.
  2. say things together in a choral response
  3. have students say things to a partner
  4. write something down
  5. look something up in a book
  6. circle something
  7. have students present their ideas on the board, the overhead, or on a chart
  1. Increase physical proximity
  1. Maintain a perky pace (perky not poky)
  2. Don’t sacrifice “think time” – 5 seconds (Ask a question and give kids 5 seconds to think about a response before you call on anyone; I hold up my fingers and count down the 5 seconds.)
  3. Allow time for processing
  1. Elicit responses
  2. 3 to 1 Rules (3 teacher; one student)
  3. Think-pair-share
  4. Response can be verbal, nonverbal, or written.
  5. Have students write down all that they remember without checking their notes.
  6. Have students write questions. Individuals can read their questions aloud, and you can call on someone in the class answer the question.
  1. Connect with students
  2. maintain eye contact
  3. smile
  4. say student names
  5. move around the classroom to monitor progress
  1. Utilize humor
  1. Maintain enthusiasm

Mary Barrett – Lesson Design1

These materials may be duplicated for nonprofit, educational use.

Exit Slip Questionnaire

Name: Date: Hour:

  1. What was the main idea of today’s lesson?
  1. What did you learn today?
  1. What confused you about the lesson?
  1. What do you still need to know?
  1. How will this lesson help you in the future?

Exit Slip Questionnaire

Name: Date: Hour:

1.What was the main idea of today’s lesson?

2.What did you learn today?

3.What confused you about the lesson?

4.What do you still need to know?

5.How will this lesson help you in the future?

Before Students Come

How to design for learning.

  1. Know yourself and your role in the classroom at a given time. At different times, you will take on all of the following roles:
  2. BOSS – Authority figure who sets rules and supports the organization
  3. EXPERT – Share information and correct misinformation
  4. COLLEAGUE – Become one with your students
  5. SISTER/BROTHER – Communicate concern and warmth
  6. NOVICE – Enthusiastically share new discoveries
  1. How much will you let your personality come through in lessons?
  2. Song? joke?
  3. Silly activity to energize the group?
  4. Personal revelation?
  1. What are your intended outcomes?
  2. Big Picture – overall learning
  3. Today – this lesson as it fits into the big picture
  1. How can you best present the information of the lesson?
  2. Time Sequence – Follow a specific order in which you want to introduce ideas and concepts in a logical, pre-determined way.
  3. Question/Answer – Frame a key question, answer it; frame another key question and answer it. Tie all the key questions together.
  4. Three* Ideas – Open by stating the three key ideas. Introduce each one after the other. Close by summarizing each of the three key ideas. (*Of course you can have a different number here!)
  5. Startling Statement/Reasons-Solutions – Grab the students’ attention with a problem statement and then state the reasons for the problem. Finally wrap the lesson up with the solutions – or have students investigate and present their own solutions.
  6. Topical Grouping – Divide your overall topic into several subtopics. Discuss each subtopic thoroughly, using transitions to link the subtopics back to the whole.

Remember that you are not the sage on the stage; you want to involve the students in the learning process wherever you can. Looking at #4, highlight areas where students could be active participants.

  1. How much content should you include? What you present has limited value unless the students understand it. (DUH) How much you include should depend on several factors:
  2. How dense is the concept or information you will share?
  3. Is there a way to simplify the information and give concrete examples?
  4. How much prior knowledge do the students have on this or similar topics? Or is this the first time students have heard of this concept?
  5. How much experience have students had with this topic?
  6. Are there many new terms to master with this concept?
  7. What level of understanding (Bloom’s Taxonomy) do you want students to have after you finish this portion of your presentation?
  8. Awareness
  9. Knowledge
  10. Skills Acquisition
  11. Attitude Development
  12. Application
  13. What will you expect the students to do with the knowledge once they finish studying the new concept or strategy?

The decision you make about how much to present should be based on how dense the concept is, how much prior knowledge and experience the students already have, and how familiar the students are with related concepts.. As you climb Bloom’s Taxonomy in level of sophistication of what you expect from students, you need to build in more time for processing information, whether through thinking time, discussion, or group activities.

ESTABLISHING PURPOSE

  1. Aids comprehension
  2. Sets a target level of comprehension
  3. Suggests how to reach the target or destination

DO NOT simply tell students to “read chapter 3 for tomorrow.” Why not? Imagine someone telling you to come to their house for dinner, but not telling you where they live or giving you directions to their home. Not giving students a purpose for reading is similar: if students don’t know why they are reading or what they need to do with the information, they will not comprehend well.

FORMAT:Read in order to (level of understanding) so that you can (task to complete after reading).

EXAMPLE OF READING ASSIGNMENTS:

  1. Read in order to understand the cause and effect chain link eventsleading up to Lexington and Concord.
  1. Read in order to compare and contrast the British/Colonial tactics with the French/Indian tactics during the French and Indian War.
  1. Read in order to explain the main steps in the process of photosynthesis.
  1. Read so that you can debate the problem posed in this article and the author’s solution.
  1. Read to prepare for seminar discussion on the roles of women during the Revolutionary Era.

Note that the single underline refers to Bloom’s Taxonomy for level of understanding. The double underlining generally tells you what to have students do while or after they read (complete a C/C or C/E graphic organizer, for example).

Jan Vortmann Smith – Mayo High School – April 1998; Revised Mary Barrett May 2004

Mary Barrett – Lesson Design1

These materials may be duplicated for nonprofit, educational use.

4 Presentation Stages

  1. Preparation
  2. Prepare the room. Make sure that all students can clearly see you or the focal point for today’s lesson.
  3. Have all handouts ready to distribute or all classroom materials prepared.
  4. Have all materials ready for group or individual projects.
  1. Opening
  2. Introduce topic
  3. Help students Access Prior Knowledge
  4. Make Connections (text to text, text to world, text to self)
  5. Establish expectations for learning by talking about purpose and what you expect students to do with the information.
  1. Body
  2. Preview the lesson in a way that raises the students’ anticipation to hear what is coming next.
  3. Provide transitions as you move from one idea to the next. A transition helps make the connection to where you’ve just been and where you are going.
  4. Review two or three times during your presentation to make sure that students do not lose sight of the big picture. This helps students recall what they’ve already heard and helps them stay connected.
  5. Give clear directions about what you want students to do during the presentation. Make sure that any movement students have to make into small groups and back into the whole group goes smoothly.
  6. Allow students time to process information.
  7. Think-Pair Share
  8. Personal journal writing
  9. Exit Slip
  10. One sentence summaries
  1. Closing
  2. Summarize key ideas.
  3. Explain next steps.
  4. Give a quality assignment, and preview the assignment.
  5. Collect any student written work completed during the presentation.

Know Your Audience