PLG3 - Leading Teaching by Emma Rickard

melfar_tbs — 2025-11-12 02:11:36 UTC

What stands out as new or at least newly prioritised is the emphasis on thinking as an active process not simply a product of good explanations. The model reinforces that questioning, structuring and feedback are not separate techniques but part of a deliberate sequence that continually challenges and supports pupils to think hard and think well.

The model explicitly includes 'activation' - helping students to plan, regulate and monitor their own learning.

2025-11-12 02:14:28 UTC

Transitions

emma_ri — 2025-11-12 03:03:32 UTC

Consistent classroom routines that students are used to can aid pace and transitions

Sleek classroom management routines that create a productive classroom environment, such as entering the classroom calmly, students know to take out books and pencil cases immediately and open onto first page etc.

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Habits can help warm up the brain for the day/class and free up mental resources to focus on other things that demand more attention.

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Consistent routines in lessons, especially at the start of a lesson - reducing the chaos of entering the room by giving students something they know will happen 95%-100% of the time frees up their cognitive capacity for learning

Routines and sequences that provide a supportive classroom environment

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Setting homework consistently and using the same tools to set it e.g. Google classroom

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Maureen

melfar_tbs — 2025-11-12 03:04:28 UTC

Positive habits such as greeting pupils by name, using consistent praise language, and maintaining clear expectations also build trust and belonging. When instructional habits like using retrieval starters or scaffolding questions become automatic, they create stability and help pupils internalise effective learning routines. In this way, habits reduce uncertainty and increase cognitive engagement, especially for EAL or SEN pupils who rely on predictable structure.

2025-11-12 03:04:41 UTC

Routines set in place and students know expectations of the teacher.

Limited lesson time

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Habits and routine help students and teachers make the most of the limited time they have in the lesson.

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Excessive teacher talk (we're all guilty of it sometimes!) and tangents distract from students' ability to process information

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EY - all learning being threaded into daily routines, e.g. self-registration, talking about the days of the week etc to incorporate mathematical conversation everyday. Teachers taking the time to value these routines and discussions in order to nurture the learning that follows

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Habitual behaviours support student transitions- everyone knows what to do and what is expected. Consistency!

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Teachers personality e.g. humour in the classroom, relationship forming etc.

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When activities are too much based around habits and routines the teacher has created, it can limit students imaginations or student-led learning.

Calms the students down as they enter the classroom and gets them ready to work

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Too much teacher talk

emma_ri — 2025-11-12 03:05:14 UTC

Tangents and anecdotes add extra load that children don't need.

Health and safety in a lab

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Managing and minimizing risks such as keeping bags outside etc.

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Teacher might find it hard to implement new and improved ways to do certain things.

Students sit in a consistent seat, or teacher changes to seating plan at specific points in time e.g. once per half term.

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Consistency in how a lesson flows helps our EYC students feel 'safe' and therefore takes away the 'worry' of what comes next, meaning they can focus on the learning

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Lack creativity and adaptability to scenarios, students or learning moments are inhibited by habitual behaviour

Amber

2025-11-12 03:05:41 UTC

Repeated language that is consistent for book talk or conversations about behaviour

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Trying the silent modelling practise, especially with EAL or older year groups

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Improve the effective teaching through setting the routine

Not willing to adapt

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Teachers that feel they know the best way to teach and are not willing to adapt to classes or their teaching style

habitual behaviors can become boring, with the response of "are we doing this again?"

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Being glued to the front desk creates a them vs me environment that reduces the teacher's ability to circulate adequately and CFW

Over-explaining

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Being stuck with the resource / material used before, just because it worked for one group doesn't mean it will for all

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Assessment - thumbs up/down, think pair share

Chalk and Talk

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Some more experienced teachers may not use resources which aid student learning and progress, but can be unwilling to use resoruces available just cos its not the way they teach

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use of visuals

Use specific tools that suit the teacher learning style, rather than the learning styles of diverse learners

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creating a supportive environment

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Building trust with students and make them feel safe to learn and to explore the subject knowledge.

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Building a warm and safe environment for students, this builds the rapport very quickly

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Designated Individual Reflection Time (DIRT) at the beginning of lesson who help students learning new concepts based on previous learning

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changing seating plan, grouping, classroom display

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Cold calling to build the expectation that opting out is not an option

Too much talk

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The pace of the lesson can sometimes be slowed down, meaning students don't get time for collaborative or independent work.

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the teacher's quick-answer cue (undermines students' thinking)

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fail to promote student-center learning

Focussing too much on the exam specification (usually due to time), but this limits the ability to be sponteanous and engage in passionate discussion

2025-11-12 03:07:48 UTC

melfar_tbs — 2025-11-12 03:07:50 UTC

over time, habits can limit growth if they become automatic and unexamined.

good habits which are good for pupil's independent learning

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Ending sentences with "okay?" and "alright?" instead of properly checking for understanding lets students opt out of showing their knowledge

Explanations

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Teachers using examples from other contexts/cultures that are less accessible for the current classroom/students

Wanting to be too helpful. In EY, it's easy to fall into the habit of helping children do things they need to learn how to do independently, such as putting on coats, shoes, etc.

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Habitual behaviours might cause students to think the lessons are the same - might be boring.

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Forget where up to with a given class if always doing same lesson across multiple classes/terms/years

Teacher centered teaching strategy

2025-11-12 03:08:39 UTC

Students need more time to explore and being creative. It is crucial for teachers to offer a safe environment for students to maximizing opportunities to learn

2025-11-12 03:08:42 UTC

Always call on the first student with their hand up. The cue is an eager student, and the reward is a quick answer. But this stops other kids from thinking. It's constraining because only the fast students participate.

2025-11-12 03:08:52 UTC

Not willing to adapt or adjust lesson planning, because teacher has "done it before"

2025-11-12 03:09:34 UTC

Too much support, leading to over-dependence of students

In EY, habits and consistent routines create a safety net. Children feel safe and settled when they know exactly what to do and how to do it.

2025-11-12 03:10:43 UTC