How to teach an outstanding lesson

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How to teach an Outstanding Lesson

… Key questions to ask yourself

Loic MenziesDirector and Lead ConsultantL.K.M Consulting (Education and Youth-Development)

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.lkmconsulting.co.uk/




1. Have you set appropriate objectives?2. Have you included a range of strategies including

collaborative learning?3. Have you used a range of assessment strategies?4. Have you personalised up, down and across?

(including use of TA/LSA/RW)5. Does your plenary (or plenaries) include everyone

and demonstrate progress?6. Have you maintained an exciting and challenging

pace which uses every minute for progress?

Key Questions to ask yourself about your Lesson






• Are the objectives descriptions of what’s being done or justifications for why it’s being done?

• Do they fit with the course/SOW (previous and next session)?

• Can you definitely show that each activity in the session helps move pupils towards the objectives?

• Do the objectives provide a challenge for all learners- if they achieve the objective will they have made meaningful and substantial progress for them?

• Are they realistic?

Have you set appropriate objectives?






Have you included a range of strategies including collaborative learning?• What strategies does your plan include?Just one lesson could include: Brainstorming with visual stimulus, teacher led

listening, paired discussion and kinaesthetic information sharing, group discussion, tutor assessment through open questioning, information gathering from written source, independent writing, peer assessment, short video, summative assessment through team quiz.

• Where can learners get information from?- From each other- Are there questions about things they already know which you could ask

to help them find the answer themselves?- From a real life source (can they use different sources and share what

they’ve found out)- From the internet






Have you used a range of assessment strategies?

• Sharing of assessment criteria• Formative / Summative• Peer / Self / Group / Teacher• Traffic lighting / Tick sheets • Feeding back to each other – What Went Well / Even

Better If• How could you add to that answer to make it better?






Have you personalised up, down and across? (including use of RW)

• By: Objective, support (peer, TA/LSA/RW, scaffolding, clue sheets), success criteria, task (type of, number of, time allowed), grouping/seating (mixed/ability groupings)

• Learning style• Questioning type and directed questioning/no

hands up (NB- general question about Q&A sessions - What is the purpose of the session? Correcting answers, learning from each other or pushing things further and challenging)

• Extension tasks (HOTS not MOTS – Higher Order Thinking not More Of The Same)






Does your plenary (or plenaries) include everyone and demonstrate progress?• What do you achieve if you just ask 2 questions at the

end which 3 learners answer?• What would it look like if your learners had achieved

the objectives and outcomes? How can your plenary show this?

• How can your plenary show that ALL learners have progressed?

• How much time have you set aside for your plenary?• Show that your learners have enjoyed learning, (use of

competition, change the atmosphere)?




Have you maintained an exciting and challenging pace which uses every minute for progress?• Look at each of your learners and ask yourself, “what is

he/she doing at this moment?” Are they learning?• If they have finished a task and are waiting 3 minutes

whilst others finish 1/20 of an hours session is not contributing to learning. The learner has wasted 5% of their time.

• If they could already have done it before the session started, are they progressing?

• What could they be doing which would be useful?




Feed back with the observer at the end of the sessionMake it worthwhile by proving “ I am a reflective practitioner”• … went well because they learned ... This happened

because I did … I chose to do that because…• It wasn’t so good when… because … Next time I teach

this lesson I will therefore change it by …. This should work better because…

• Do not:- Narrate the session- Make excuses

• Do:- Take responsibility for what went well- Link your teaching to their learning

Documents

How to teach an outstanding lesson