Modelling and Demonstrating

This strategy will help students to: 

• Modelling is used as an instructional move when the lesson addresses using a cognitive process, such as reading, writing, mathematics and such.
• Demonstrating is what a teacher does when focusing on physical tasks, such as the proper stance for swinging a baseball bat or the procedure for turning on a Bunsen burner.
• Modelling and demonstration is a combination of verbal and visible elements reinforcing specific important aspects of the task.

Implementation:

1. Name the strategy, skill, or task.
2. State the purpose of the strategy, skill, or task.
3. Explain when the strategy or skill is used.
4. Use analogies to link prior knowledge to new learning.
5. Demonstrate how the skill, strategy, or task is completed.
6. Alert learners about errors to avoid.
7. Assess the use of the skill.

Example of how a language arts teacher might model the process of sentence-combining:

1. Name the strategy, skill, or task. “Today I am going to show you how to combine sentences to make more interesting and complex standards.”
2. State the purpose of the strategy, skill, or task. “It’s important for a writer to be able to construct sentences that aren’t repetitive or choppy. Sentence-combining is one way to make sure your sentences read more smoothly.”
3. Explain when the strategy or skill is used. “After I have written a passage, I reread it to see if I have choppy sentences or if I am repeating information unnecessarily. When I notice that’s occurred, I look for ways to combine sentences”.
4. Use analogies to link prior knowledge to new learning. “I like to think of this as making sure I make a straight path for my readers to follow. When I eliminate choppy or redundant sentences, it’s like making a straight path of ideas for them to follow.”
5. Demonstrate how the skill, strategy, or task is completed. “I’m going to show you three short, choppy sentences. I’ll look first for information I can cross out because it is repetitive. Then I’m going to combine those three sentences into one longer and more interesting sentence.”
6. Alert learners about errors to avoid. “I have to be careful not to cut out so much information that I lose the meaning. I also neeed to watch out for sentences that become too long. A reader can lose meaning of a sentence that’s too long.
7. Assess the use of the skill. “Now I am going to reread my new sentence to see if it makes sense.”