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💡 A tip to try in class this week 💡
I have written previously about why I like to do Explain, Frame and Reframe when doing Call and Respond. Recently, I saw a lesson that reminded me just how vital the Reframe part is.
Students were learning the formulas for the area of a triangle. The teacher did the Explain:
The formula to work out the area of a triangle is half multiplied by the base multiplied by the perpendicular height.
He then did the Frame:
The formula to work out the area of a triangle is…
In unison, students chanted back:
… half multiplied by the base multiplied by the perpendicular height
He then asked them again:
The formula to work out the area of a triangle is…
Back came the response:
… half multiplied by the base multiplied by the perpendicular height
He repeated this a few more times, and then moved onto a worked example that used this fact.
All appeared well. But I had a hypothesis that I wanted to test.
I chose three students and asked them what the formula to work out the area of a triangle is. All three could tell me.
I then chose another three students and asked them what half multiplied by the base multiplied by the perpendicular height gives us. Only one could tell me.
Why?
Because students had only been asked to repeat the second half of the sentence, this was the only part that had been internalised. Their knowledge was fragmented. This is where the Reframe comes into play:
Explain: The formula to work out the area of a triangle is half multiplied by the base multiplied by the perpendicular height.
Frame: The formula to work out the area of a triangle is…
Reframe: Half multiplied by the base multiplied by the perpendicular height is…
What do you think of this idea?
What would you need to change to make this tip work for you?
When could you try it for the first time?
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🏃🏻♂️Before you go, have you… 🏃🏻♂️
… tried last week’s tip about asking an impossible question?
… read my latest Eedi newsletter about the danger of assessing prerequisite knowledge in the Do Now?
… listened to my latest podcast with Ollie Lovell about a recent lesson he taught?
… read my Tips for Teachers book?
… considered booking some CPD, coaching or maths department support?