Teach Like a Champion

1. Check for Understanding: The Foundation of Effective Teaching

"There's a real risk to calling 'right' that which is not truly and completely right."

Gather data continuously. Effective teachers constantly assess student understanding through various methods, including targeted questioning, observation, and standardized formats. They reject self-report and instead use techniques like Show Me and Affirmative Checking to gather objective data on student mastery.

Act on the data promptly. Once data is gathered, teachers must act on it immediately. This might involve re-teaching, providing additional practice, or moving on to more advanced material. Building a Culture of Error is crucial, where mistakes are seen as opportunities for learning rather than sources of shame.

Key techniques:

• Reject Self-Report
• Targeted Questioning
• Standardize the Format
• Show Me
• Affirmative Checking
• Plan for Error
• Culture of Error

2. Set High Academic Expectations to Drive Student Achievement

"Great teaching is an art. In the other arts—painting, sculpture, the writing of novels—great masters leverage a proficiency with basic tools to transform the rawest of materials (stone, paper, ink) into the most valued assets in society."

Establish a culture of excellence. Champion teachers consistently communicate and reinforce high expectations for all students. They use techniques like No Opt Out to ensure that every student participates and succeeds, and Right Is Right to hold out for fully correct and rigorous answers.

Challenge students continuously. Use Stretch It to reward correct answers with more challenging questions, pushing students to deepen their understanding. Format Matters emphasizes the importance of clear, precise communication, while Without Apology reinforces the value of rigorous content and hard work.

Key techniques:

• No Opt Out
• Right Is Right
• Stretch It
• Format Matters
• Without Apology

3. Plan for Success: Detailed Preparation is Key to Effective Lessons

"If you commit yourself and your talents to this work, you deserve to be successful and to change lives. If you are successful, you will most likely be happy in the work, and when you are happy, in turn, you will do better work."

Begin with the end in mind. Effective lesson planning starts with clear, measurable objectives. Use the 4 Ms (Manageable, Measurable, Made First, Most Important) to craft effective objectives that guide your lesson planning and execution.

Double Plan for student engagement. Consider not only what you will do during the lesson, but also what students will be doing at each point. Create lesson packets that provide everything students need in one place, supporting efficient pacing and maximizing learning time.

Key planning elements:

• Begin with the End
• 4 Ms for objectives
• Post It (display objectives)
• Double Plan
• Create comprehensive lesson packets

4. Structure Lessons for Maximum Learning and Engagement

"Nothing else inscribes and refines a skill like At Bats, so great lessons should have plenty of them."

Follow the I/We/You model. Structure lessons to gradually transfer responsibility from teacher to student. Begin with direct instruction (I), move to guided practice (We), and conclude with independent practice (You).

Incorporate key structural elements. Use techniques like Do Now to start class productively, Name the Steps to break down complex tasks, and Exit Ticket to assess understanding at the end of each lesson. Ensure students get plenty of practice through At Bats.

Essential lesson components:

• Do Now
• Name the Steps
• Board = Paper
• Control the Game (for reading)
• Circulate
• At Bats
• Exit Ticket

5. Master the Art of Pacing to Optimize Student Focus and Retention

"Every minute of it matters. Yet, in a variety of situations, we risk letting the minutes slip by, often without realizing it."

Vary activities strategically. Change the Pace by shifting between different types of activities to maintain student engagement. Use techniques like Brighten Lines to make transitions between activities clear and crisp.

Manage time intentionally. Work the Clock by using timers and specific time allocations to create a sense of urgency and keep lessons moving. Ensure Every Minute Matters by having productive activities ready for any unexpected downtime.

Pacing techniques:

• Change the Pace
• Brighten Lines
• All Hands (for hand-raising)
• Work the Clock
• Every Minute Matters

6. Increase Student Participation and Thinking Through Strategic Questioning

"Cold Call works in building a culture of engaged accountability—in part because students know a Cold Call is a possibility."

Use a variety of questioning techniques. Employ Wait Time to allow students to think before answering, Cold Call to maintain engagement and accountability, and Call and Response for quick, energetic review. Break It Down helps students who are struggling to arrive at the correct answer.

Push for deeper thinking. Use techniques like Pepper for fast-paced review and to build energy in the classroom. Always strive to increase both participation ratio (how many students are engaged) and think ratio (the depth of their cognitive work).

Key questioning strategies:

• Wait Time
• Cold Call
• Call and Response
• Break It Down
• Pepper

7. Leverage Writing to Deepen Understanding and Boost Cognitive Skills

"By having students write more, we cause them to push their ideas from vague notion (developing idea) to complete thought, and to practice developing complete thoughts is to practice perhaps the core task of thinking."

Incorporate writing throughout lessons. Use Everybody Writes to ensure all students engage with challenging questions before discussion. Employ Art of the Sentence to push students to synthesize complex ideas concisely.

Build writing stamina and quality. Use Show Call to create accountability for written work and to provide opportunities for revision. Build Stamina by gradually increasing writing time, and Front the Writing by arranging lessons so that writing comes earlier in the process to ensure rigorous, independent thinking.

Writing techniques:

• Everybody Writes
• Art of the Sentence
• Show Call
• Build Stamina
• Front the Writing

8. Foster Productive Discussions to Enhance Learning and Critical Thinking

"A discussion is supposed to be a mutual endeavor by a group of people to develop, refine, or contextualize an idea or set of ideas, and that's different from what sometimes gets called a discussion—a series of loosely related comments occurring in the same room."

Establish discussion norms. Teach and reinforce Habits of Discussion to make conversations more productive and connected. This includes speaking audibly, tracking the speaker, using names, and building on others' ideas.

Structure discussions for maximum engagement. Use Turn and Talk for quick pair discussions to help students formulate their thoughts. Implement Batch Process to give students more ownership and autonomy in longer discussions without constant teacher mediation.

Discussion strategies:

• Habits of Discussion
• Turn and Talk
• Batch Process
• Follow-on prompting
• Sentence starters for building on ideas

Last updated: January 23, 2025