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https://www.teachingwithkayleeb.com/ideas-for-student-engagement-direct-instruction/

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Direct instruction is the part of the lesson where the teacher explicitly teaches the content. It is before guided practice and independent practice. Usually during guided and independent practice is where it is easy to use student engagement strategies. But what about direct instruction? Isn't that just where the teacher talks? Well... There are simple strategies that teachers can use during direct instruction to engage students. In this post, I am sharing simple ideas for student engagement during direct instruction.
Show your Passion:
This first idea for student engagement is so, so important but can make the biggest impact. Show your passion! What can your students tell about your attitude towards the content subject? Can they see that you genuinely love it? My students know that I love teaching addition and subtraction strategies because we make connections through those strategies. Each of our brains are different. So by learning multiple strategies we get to pick the ones to use that makes the most sense to us! You can bet I tell my students over and over again how much I like them, because the more enthusiasm I show, I know the more they will have.
Bring in Songs and Chants:
Children naturally remember songs and chants. Try putting the important facts or processes of a lesson to the tune of a common nursery rhyme. Students eat this stuff up! Not only does it help them remember, but it is a change from just hearing the teacher's voice. Everyone is involved and engaged as they are singing.
Tell Stories:
The best speakers always tell stories to prove their point. Tell a story about you learning the subject in school. Or tell a story about a famous person that goes along with the content. Help the students picture something in their heads. The truth is, stories stick. So use this idea for student engagement more in direct instruction!
Bring in Humor:
Kids love being silly and they laugh so easily! That's one reason why teaching is so fun! So bring in humor into the direct instruction portion of your lesson. Help students remember the short u sound by sound it's the first sound in underwear. They won't forget because it is funny to them! I like to say words in a funny way in my lessons. For example when we were working on addition equations like 4 + _ = 7, I would always say, "4 plus some'pin equals 7. What's that some'pin?" The students loved it and would chime in saying "something" in a funny way. It kept their focus on the lesson and got them involved.
Add Visuals:
We learn 20% of what hear. We learn 30% of what we see. We learn 50% of what we see and hear. So bring in more visuals! Make an anchor chart with your students as part of direct instruction. Have a poster or a chart up to help aid in the lesson. Show a picture from the internet or a video. Images stick in our heads more than words alone. Try to have at least one visual in every lesson and see how it does wonders.
Use Examples/Non-examples:
It's great for students to see examples in a lesson. For example, if you are teaching the phonics pattern of "ar" show them lots of examples or "ar" words. But also let them see non-examples. Tell your students to stand up if they hear the "ar" sound and say words with "ar" and without.

Using examples and non-examples also works great with learning new vocabulary. After learning the definition of words we often are good at giving examples. But tell your students you are going to list off some scenarios. If the scenario matches the word, have them stand up. If the scenario does not, have them sit down.

You can also make using non-examples into a fun game. I usually do this in math, I have go about solving the problem, but I make mistakes and have the students correct me. They love this! And it helps them see common mistakes to avoid.
Turn and Talk
Talk less and have your students talk more. If you have been teaching and talking for a couple minutes, ask a quick question to your students. If you ask it to the whole class you will get a few hands. But if you have students turn to their neighbor and talk, everybody is now engaged! It's a great change of pace if you feel like you are losing student's attention. Turn and Talk works best if you teach it as a routine in your lessons. Find my classroom routines and procedures editable powerpoint here.

I hope that you have found these ideas for student engagement during direct instruction. They are simple but can make a big difference! They are quick student engagement ideas for busy teachers! Looking for other engagement strategies to help during guided practice or independent practice? Check out this blog post: 4 Amazing Student Engagement Strategies

Getting students engaged in lessons doesn't have to be over the top or time consuming. Looking for more ideas how to engage students in lessons? I've created a free workbook for teachers called The 7 Steps to an Engaged Classroom. Download your free digital copy here.

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Ideas for Student Engagement - Direct Instruction - Teaching with Kaylee B

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Direct instruction is the part of the lesson where the teacher explicitly teaches the content. It is before guided practice and independent practice. Usually during guided and independent practice is where it is easy to use student engagement strategies. But what about direct instruction? Isn't that just where the teacher talks?

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Play-based learning

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20% project

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http://experience.jumpfoundation.org/activities/

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Time: 5 Minutes Materials Needed: None Instructions: Start by having the group stand in a circle The objective of this activity is to pass the "Ball of Focus" between Samurais These are the ways you can pass the "Ball of Focus": Ha! : This is your main and...

Typical Grade Level: All Typical Time Frame: 15 Minutes Materials Needed: 3 sticky notes or index cards 1 pen per participant Instructions: Start off by having the participants sit in a circle Discuss what a value means so everyone has a common frame around what a...

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Time: 5 Minutes Materials Needed: None Instructions: Start by having the group stand in a circle The objective of this activity is to pass the "Ball of Focus" between Samurais These are the ways you can pass the "Ball of Focus": Ha! : This is your main and...

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https://courses.lumenlearning.com/educationx92x1/chapter/direct-instruction/

https://www.bookwidgets.com/blog/2019/03/direct-instruction-a-practical-guide-to-effective-teaching

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In general usage, the term direct instruction refers to (1) instructional approaches that are structured, sequenced, and led by teachers, and/or (2) the presentation of academic content to students by teachers, such as in a lecture or demonstration. In other words, teachers are "directing" the instructional process or instruction is being "directed" at students.

While a classroom lecture is perhaps the image most commonly associated with direct instruction, the term encompasses a wide variety of fundamental teaching techniques and potential instructional scenarios. For example, presenting a video or film to students could be considered a form of direct instruction (even though the teacher is not actively instructing students, the content and presentation of material was determined by the teacher). Generally speaking, direct instruction may be the most common teaching approach in the United States, since teacher-designed and teacher-led instructional methods are widely used in American public schools. That said, it's important to note that teaching techniques such as direct instruction, differentiation, or scaffolding, to name just a few, are rarely mutually exclusive-direct instruction may be integrated with any number of other instructional approaches in a given course or lesson. For example, teachers may use direct instruction to prepare students for an activity in which the students work collaboratively on a group project with guidance and coaching from the teacher as needed (the group activity would not be considered a form of direct instruction).In addition, the basic techniques of direct instruction not only extend beyond lecturing, presenting, or demonstrating, but many are considered to be foundational to effective teaching. For example:

Establishing learning objectives for lessons, activities, and projects, and then making sure that students have understood the goals.

Purposefully organizing and sequencing a series of lessons, projects, and assignments that move students toward stronger understanding and the achievement of specific academic goals.

Reviewing instructions for an activity or modeling a process-such as a scientific experiment-so that students know what they are expected to do.

Providing students with clear explanations, descriptions, and illustrations of the knowledge and skills being taught.

Asking questions to make sure that students have understood what has been taught.

It should be noted that the term direct instruction is used in various proprietary or trademarked instructional models that have been developed and promoted by educators, including-most prominently- Direct Instruction, created by Siegfried Engelmann and Wesley Becker, which is a "explicit, carefully sequenced and scripted model of instruction," according to the National Institute for Direct Instruction.

Debate

In recent decades, the concept of direct instruction has taken on negative associations among some educators. Because direct instruction is often associated with traditional lecture-style teaching to classrooms full of passive students obediently sitting in desks and taking notes, it may be considered outdated, pedantic, or insufficiently considerate of student learning needs by some educators and reformers.

That said, many of direct instruction's negative connotations likely result from either a limited definition of the concept or a misunderstanding of its techniques. For example, all teachers, by necessity, use some form of direct instruction in their teaching-i.e., preparing courses and lessons, presenting and demonstrating information, and providing clear explanations and illustrations of concepts are all essential, and to some degree unavoidable, teaching activities. Negative perceptions of the practice tend to arise when teachers rely too heavily upon direct instruction, or when they fail to use alternative techniques that may be better suited to the lesson at hand or that may improve student interest, engagement, and comprehension.

While a sustained forty-five-minute lecture may not be considered an effective teaching strategy by many educators, the alternative strategies they may advocate-such as personalized learning or project-based learning, to name just two options-will almost certainly require some level of direct instruction by teachers. In other words, teachers rarely use either direct instruction or some other teaching approach-in actual practice, diverse strategies are frequently blended together. For these reasons, negative perceptions of direct instruction likely result more from a widespread overreliance on the approach, and from the tendency to view it as an either/or option, rather than from its inherent value to the instructional process.

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In general usage, the term direct instruction refers to (1) instructional approaches that are structured, sequenced, and led by teachers, and/or (2) the presentation of academic content to students by teachers, such as in a lecture or demonstration. In other words, teachers are "directing" the instructional process or instruction is being "directed" at students.

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Comprehension question for a reading

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Instructional Strategies