Doug Lemov's field notes

A few weeks ago I shared with readers that the new and dramatically improved Teach Like a Champion 3.0 would be out later in the summer, with early August the target date.

Since then, many of you have asked about its arrival and even pre-ordered copies, for which I am grateful.

It’s been hard work to make sure the new version is the best book it can be, and encouragement from readers has kept me going through much of the process!

Unfortunately, the last stages of the copyediting process revealed a handful of errors- enough that I  could not reconcile myself to its release without further review. Along with the publishing team at John Wiley and Sons, I’ve made the difficult decision to delay the book so that when you finally have it in your hands, it is the best version it can be, worthy of your time and money and a book that serves you as a teacher for years to come.

So the bad news is that the new release date for Teach Like a Champion 3.0 is now September 14^th. It’s important that you hear this from me and understand why. I know this is going to be disappointing for many of you, especially with school starting up before that date, but I have every reason to believe that the process will be smooth from here on out and you’ll have to book in your hand soon.

That said this decision is not without its silver linings. First, I’ll be using the Field Notes blog to share key excerpts of new and revised sections of the book in advance. I know how critical the weeks before school are for planning so I’m going to be sharing a lot in advance of September 14. Second, I’ll be sharing some additional videos and reflections that aren’t in the book to try to make up for the delay. So watch this space!

If you have pre-ordered version 3.0 already, thank you again for your support. I’m grateful for your faith in the book. You will likely receive a notice from the retailer you purchased from that there is a new date for the book, and they will ask if you would like to keep the order or cancel it. It is my sincere hope that you will keep your order- again this new edition is worth the little bit of an extra wait.

If you haven’t pre-ordered it, I hope you will consider doing so at your favorite retailer.

A bit more about what’s inside the 3.0 version. The book is dramatically revised to include:

• Extensive discussions of research connecting the techniques more explicitly to cognitive and social sciences,
• Extensive discussions and reflections on the book’s place in classrooms and schools where diversity, equity, and inclusion are critical issues.
• A dozen new techniques (e.g Exemplar Planning, Retrieval Practice, Knowledge Organizers, Means of Participation)
• All of your standby technique, revise, refined, improved and sometimes renamed for clarity.
• More than a dozen “keystone” videos- longer running clips that show ten minutes or so of a teacher’s lesson, relatively uncut, so you can see how the techniques fit together and build a larger ethos of love and rigor.
• A full (new) chapter on Lesson Preparation and another of Mental Models.
• More than 100 new videos

So… thank you for everything you do on behalf of students and their families, especially now, in the midst of perhaps the hardest year for teachers (and students) in memory. I’m proud of how this version turned out and believe you will love it as well and that it will serve you well at the time students need us most.

Best,

Doug

Teach Like a Champion 3.0