Category: Practice activities
There are no materials available in the category. Check back soon.
Strengthen Knowledge Building
Embed long term learning through Common Place Books and Factual Margin Notes.
Click here to download >>
Support Vocabulary Development
Use a variety of different methods to expand and support the vocabulary development of your students.
Click here to download >>
Guide teachers to finding their authentic teaching voice through Practice vs. Role Play: leaning on what works for other teachers.
Click here to download >>
Do Now Checklist and Resources
Start your teaching day off right with a Do Now ready for your students as soon as they walk in the door. Use this checklist to remind yourself of best practices and these resources to help craft relevant, sharp Do Nows.
Click here to download >>
Here’s a printable infographic to keep at your desk or at the ready (for when that new teacher next door approaches you for concrete advice)! Circulate is a powerful way to engage students using the tools of affirmation and accountability.
Click here to download >>
No Opt Out Cueing Tool Kit
One consistency among champion teachers is their vigilance in maintaining the expectation that it’s not OK not to try. One key step in the process is eliminating the option for students of "opting out": muttering "I don’t know" or shrugging impassively when asked a question. How a teacher chooses to respond to a student’s “I don’t know” can be pivotal in the life of a classroom. This month’s Grab and Go resource provides ideas for how to respond effectively.
Click here to download >>
Positive Framing Examples and Non-Examples
People are motivated by the positive far more than by the negative. Seeking success and happiness will spur stronger action than seeking to avoid punishment. The power of the positive should influence the way you teach. Positive Framing, then, is about framing your interactions— particularly corrections of the academic and behavioral variety—so that they reinforce this larger picture of faith and trust...
Click here to download >>
Phrases to Build Students' Writing Stamina
Adding Everybody Writes to your lesson is one of the best ways to instantly boost rigor in your classroom. For students to reap the full rewards of this technique, they need to be writing the entire time. This Grab and Go resource helps you anticipate common expressions of struggle – “I’m not sure what to write,” or “I’m already done,” for example– and equips you with at-the-ready phrases to prompt students to continue writing.
Click here to download >>
Sharpen Up Phrases for
Call and Response
When your students return in the fall, you’ll be concentrating in the first weeks on establishing a positive, engaging, productive academic culture. One technique teachers use to inject energy, maintain focus, emphasize key words or ideas, and support clarity of directions is Call and Response. With Call and Response, the teacher gives a clear cue (verbal and/or nonverbal), and the entire class responds in unison.
Click here to download >>
Inevitably at our workshops, we have more content than we can get to. Here’s a simple, powerful planning activity that all teachers can use to increase students’ consistency with and eagerness to meet and exceed expectations. Naming the specific actions a student is taking helps the student to replicate that action in the future and guides others for what to do as well. Precise Praise teaches and motivates. Bonus! This works for spouses and your own kids too.
Click here to download >>
What’s that finger-snapping you’re seeing in a Teach Like a Champion video clip—as the class snaps a couple of snaps as one student strives to answer a challenging question? An example of a Prop! Props are a form of public praise for students who demonstrate excellence or exemplify virtues. Build a culture that valorizes achievement and effort in your class (and do it without sacrificing order of "time on task"). This month’s download is a quick cheat sheet of Props. Borrow or adapt from this list of tried-and-true to add joy to any lesson.
Click here to download >>
