Engaging Students in Every Lesson–Part 1
In February, I attended a training conducted by Dr. Kevin Feldman of the Sonoma County Office of Education in California. During the training, he reminded us that RtI is not only an acronym for “Response to Intervention,” but also “Response to Instruction.” Another possible acronym he suggests is “Really Terrific Instruction.” Without good initial classroom instruction, we may find ourselves intervening with most of our students rather than just a few.
The first step in providing really terrific instruction is to engage all students in every lesson. How do you ensure every student is engaged? By making sure every student makes concrete observable responses during the lesson. Responses can take the form of written or oral predictions, note taking, sharing with a partner, etc. No more than 2 to 10 minutes should go by without some concrete response.
No one can keep 100% of the students engaged 100% of the time, but we can come closer by using guided practice followed by independent practice and feedback. Dr. Feldman suggests using a four step pattern of instruction to help keep students engaged. It is similar to Madeline Hunter’s lesson model.
- I do it. (The teacher provides input or examples or models. The teacher thinks aloud.)
- We do it. (The class, along with the teacher, performs a task similar to what the teacher modeled)
- Y’all do it. (Partners practice the skill or learning together)
- You do it. (student independent practice with feedback)
To see this in action, visit the iTunes store and subscribe to Dr. Anita Archer’s strategic literacy video podcast. Download the episode “Structuring Active Participation–7th Grade” (it’s free). In this episode, Dr. Archer demonstrates the 4 steps above while also introducing another activity (SLANT) to teach her students how to stay engaged.
Next week’s post will continue with the topic of student engagement. Leave a comment to share methods you use to keep students engaged in lessons.
Great resource! Thanks for posting it, Mike!
Comment by Gayle — March 12, 2009 @ 9:18 am
At the fall Nebraska Speech, Language, Hearing convention, Dr. Bonnie Singer from Architects for Learning presented on “Intervention Methods that put students in control of their writing”. She spoke of ways to use the “I do it, we do it, y’all do it, you do it” strategy in helping students with writing.
Comment by Kara — March 12, 2009 @ 9:40 am
[...] you may recall from last week’s post, Dr. Feldman would like students to make a concrete response to instruction every 2 to 10 [...]
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