Lemov Techniques

1. Structuring & Delivering
Your Lessons

2. → Doug McCurry coined the phrase “I/We/You”
to represent direct instruction from the teacher,
guided practice by the teacher, and eventually
the observation of independent practice by the
student.
→ “I” is represented by instructors displaying a
model and/or delivering key information about
the subject and the expectations to students.
→ “We” is a gradual process of weaning the
students off of full instructional support. The
students are instructed to provide examples with
less and less assistance from the teacher.
→ “You” is the final step. Students are given the
chance to display their understanding through
independent practice.

3. I/We/You
I Techniques:
The Hook, Name the Steps, Board=Paper, and Circulate
We Techniques:
Break it Down, Ratio, and Check for Understanding
You Techniques:
At Bats, Exit Ticket, and Take a Stand

4. The Hook
Technique 12

5. The Hook
→ Quickly engages the student with an
interesting and meaningful phenomena that
“hooks” the student (i.e. riddle, picture, brief
story), and invites them to be positive and
present in the new lesson being taught.
→ Utilize a variety of “hooks” (like the ones
listed on the right) to entice all students, to
help develop their understanding, and to
advance student achievement.
Hook ‘em with a. . .
Story
Analogy
Prop
Media
Status
Challenge

6. Name the Steps
Technique 13

7. Name the Steps
→ Break down the steps for
students, and create manageable
steps that can be achieved!
→ It’s important to “name the
steps” as an intuitive teacher, and
make this a sole habit, so student’s
can build up knowledge
systematically in a “story-like
progression” and be academically
successful.
→ “Stairways” help with creating
manageable and attainable goals
for the students, and also provides
a source of consistency.
Four Components:
1. Identify the Steps! Students learn
through the process, by being
able to identify their next step if
they are feeling too challenged
and “stuck”. Students benefit
greatly from scaffolding.
2. Make them Sticky! Create
memorable names, songs, or
mnemonic devices for each step
to help students remember.
3. Build the Steps! Be able to
distinguish between the steps
and design the steps in a way
that guides the student.
4. Use Two Stairways! Once the
students have reached the top of
their staircase, have them

8. Board = Paper
Technique 14

9. Board = Paper
→ Teaching students how to take notes
and keep an ongoing record of their
knowledge is crucial to their role as a
student.
→ Model proper note taking practices,
so students can eventually build their
own process that is automatic.
→ Be organized, craft notes with
purpose, and be the example for all
students and their future academic
success.

10. Circulate
Technique 15

11. Circulate
→ Circulate the classroom in a systematic
way, but make sure it’s in an unpredictable
manner.
→ Be fully engaged with all students and hold
each student accountable for their behaviors
and performance in the classroom.
→ Break the plane in the classroom and have
full access to the entire room by walking
across the imaginary line and establishing
presence and authority.

12. Break it Down
Technique 16

13. Break it Down
→ The gap that exists between a student’s
knowledge and the mastery of knowledge
needed in order to answer a question is
unknown. The gap could be large or small.
→ Know the different levels of a question, and
understand the process of breaking it into the
smaller understandable units in order to guide
the student toward the correct answer.
→ Be quick and efficient with time by providing
examples, context to the question, rules, and
missing steps. Teachers can also “rollback” or
repeat a student’s answer back to them, and
teachers can eliminate the false choices.

14. Ratio
Technique 17

15. Ratio
→ Teachers must “up the ratio” by creating
effective ways to push the cognitive work
out to students when they are prepared
for it.
→ Cognitive work (writing, thinking,
analyzing, talking) must be productive and
focused. It must also have rigor, purpose,
be disciplined and vigilant.
Push the students with these methods. . .
Supporting Evidence - must assemble support for an opinion
Batch Process - try not to validate every student
Unbundle - break questions down
Half-statement - express concise ideas
What’s next? - ask the students what the next step is
Feign ignorance - pretend to be uncertain
Rephrase/Add on - encourage 2nd drafts
Why and Hows - Push for more rigorous work
Repeated Ex. - ask clarifying and complex questions
Discussion Objectives - focused & rigorous discussion

16. Check for Understanding
Technique 18

17. Check For Understanding
→ Constant assessment of students’
understanding is crucial! It’s important to
check for understanding so lesson plans can
be modified accordingly.
→ Gather valid and reliable data by
questioning and observing students on a
consistent basis.
→ Act on the CFU data and immediately
respond to the observations and assessments
appropriately. Effective intervention is
acknowledging a problem, fixing it, and
moving forward.
Does the student
understand?

18. At Bats
Technique 19

19. At Bats
→ Practice. Practice. Practice.
→ Guide the students until they display
independent practice; observing the use of
different formats and variations is crucial.
→ Enrich the students who have achieved
mastery by providing a challenge and pushing
each student to the next level,

20. Exit Ticket
Technique 20

21. Exit Ticket
→ Quick assessment of students’
understanding, which also provides a strong
expectation for full attention in the classroom
and completion of daily coursework.
→ Provides critical insight to the progress and
achievement of each student, or potential
confusion or struggles.

22. Take a Stand
Technique 21

23. Take a Stand
→ Giving students the opportunity to stand
up and actively participate and be engaged is
a great tool to increase participation.
→ Teachers can use snapping, stomping,
standing, sitting, etc. to engage all students.
→ This method allows students to process
the content and respond, and it also allows
the teacher to check for understanding.
→ To add to this, teachers must make sure
students are held accountable for their
opinions and decisions with evidence and
support.