Book Study:Teach Like A ChampionChapter 1
By: Shane Hubbard
What Are High Expectations?
High Expectations are not easily defined.
High expectations are very subjective.
High expectations are extremely necessary with the introduction of the STAAR exam.
We always hear about having high expectations for students, but we are rarely shown what that actually looks like in a classroom setting.
Setting High Academic Expectations
5 Techniques:No Opt Out
Right is Right
Stretch It
Format Matters
Without Apology
No Opt Out• Maintaining the expectation
that it’s not okay not to try
• Addresses the student who is using ‘I don’t know’ as an excuse to be left alone
• Addresses the student who is honestly trying to get the answer but doesn’t know it
The Key Idea to No Opt Out
A sequence that begins with a student unable to anwer the
question should end with the student answering that question as
often as possible.
What it Looks Like4 Ways to Do It
• You provide the answer; the student repeats the answer.
• Another student provides the answer; the initial student repeats the answer.
• You provide a cue; your student uses it to find the answer.
• Another student provides a cue; the intial student uses it to find the answer.
Right is RightSet and defend a high standard of
correctness in your classroom.
Student’s answers should be 100% right before you tell him/her it is right.
In doing this you set the expectation that the questions you ask and their answers
truly matter.
4 Ways to do Right is Right• Hold out for all the way: make sure students
completely answer the question correctly.
• Answer the Question: make sure students are answering the actual question you asked.
• Right Answer, Right Time: make sure students are not jumping ahead of your questions.
• Use Technical Vocabulary: make sure students use technical vocabulary in thier answers.
Stretch It
The sequence of learning does not end with a right answer; reward right answers with follow-up questions that extend knowledge and test for reliability.
How to “Stretch It”
Ask how or why
Ask for another way to answer
Ask for a better word
Ask for evidence
Ask students to integrate a related skill
Ask students to apply the same skill in a new setting
Format MattersUse Format Matters to prepare your students to succeed
by requiring complete sentences and proficient grammar every chance you get.
• Grammatical Format: correct slang, syntax usage, and grammar
• Complete Sentence Format: students must use complete sentences
• Audible Format: make sure everyone can hear VOICE
Without ApologyAssuming something is boring: if you say it’s boring it will be
Blaming it: when you blame someone else the students won’t respond to it
Making it “accessible”: find a way to make challenging content seem attainable
Chapter 2Planning That Ensures
Academic Achievement5 Planning
Techniques:
1. Begin With the End
2. 4 Ms
3. Post It
4. Shortest Path
5. Double Plan
Begin With The End
Questions:
ASK YOURSELF:
Why are you teaching the material you are teaching?
What’s the outcome you desire?
How does this relate to what you will teach tomorrow and to what your students need to have learned to be ready for the next grade?
It means:
Progressing from unit planning to lesson planning
Using a well-framed objective to define the goal of each lesson
Determining how you will assess your effectiveness in reaching your goal
Deciding on your activity
4 Ms• Manageable: an effective objective should be of a size
and scope that can be taught in a single lesson
• Measurable: an effective objective should be written so that your success in achieving it can be measured, ideally by the end of class period
• Made First: an effective objective should be designed to guide the activity, not to justify how a chosen activity meets one of several viable purposes
• Most Important: an effective objective should focus on what is most important on the path to college and nothing else
What is Wrong With These Example Objectives?
Students will be able to add and subtract fractions with like and unlike denominators.
Students will be able to appreciate various forms of poetry, including sonnets and lyric poetry.
Students will view scenes from the film version of The Crucible.
Students will construct a poster to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
What is Wrong With These Example Objectives?
Students will be able to add and subtract fractions with like and unlike denominators. Not manageable
Students will be able to appreciate various forms of poetry, including sonnets and lyric poetry. Not measurable
Students will view scenes from the film version of The Crucible. Not made first
Students will construct a poster to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Not most important
Examples of Good Objectives
Recognize and list the literary devices found in Twilight.
Identify and describe polygons using the language of Geometry.
Understand the basic structure of the atom.
Identify the contributions of Kim Kardashian to the nation as a whole.
Post ItWrite the objective in a visible location every day.
Write it in the same place every day so that students can easily recognize it.
Point out the objective every day to the students and go over it.
Double PlanIt’s as important to plan for what students
will be doing during each phase of your lesson as it is to plan for you’ll be doing
and saying.
Too often teachers forget to plan what students will be doing each step of the
way. What will they be doing while you’re reviewing the primary causes of
the Civil War?
Draw The MapQuestions to ask yourself:
1. When should students interact in school?
2. How should students interact in school?
3. What should the way students sit signal and incentivize about the various kinds of interactions?
4. What kinds of interactions support which kinds of lesson objectives?
5. What other kinds of ways can students be socialized to interact appropriately without necessarily building the classroom around that one idea every day.
Chapter 3:Structuring and Delivering
Your Lessons5 Step Processof I/We/You: This process helps to
relinquish the responsiblity of learning from the teacher to the student.
I. I I do.
II. We I do; you help
III. We You do; I help
IV. You You do
V. You You do, and do, and do
The HookA short introductory moment that
captures what is interesting and engaging about the material and puts it out front.
Story: tell a quick and engaging story that leads directly into the material.
Analogy: use an interesting and meaningful analogy to start the lesson
Prop: bring in a prop from home and use it to get the student’s attention
Media: use a picture or video to capture the student’s attention
Status: describe something great: could be great work by a student etc.
Challenge: give students a difficult task and let them try to accomplish it
Name the StepsIdentify the steps: make complex skills transparent to students (no more than 7 steps)
Make them sticky: make the names of the steps memorable and something that sticks in the student’s minds (mnemonics can work well)
Build the steps: designing the steps in an activity is just as important
Use two stairways: have two parallel conversations going about how to get an answer to the current problem and how to answer the problem
Board = Paper