TEACHER RESPONSIBILITY
“I do it”
Focused Instruction
Guided
Instruction
“We do it”
Collaborative
“You do it
together”
Independent
“You do it
alone”
STUDENT RESPONSIBILITY
A Structure for Instruction that Works
(c) Frey & Fisher, 2008
The established purpose contains both
content and language components.
What is a language purpose?
• An analysis of the language demands of
the task
• An understanding of the way students
demonstrate their thinking through
spoken or written language
Why have a language purpose?
• Supports student understanding of what
they will be asked to do with their
learning
• Clarifies what needs to be modeled by
the teacher
All learning is based in language.
Three Types of Language Purposes
• Vocabulary: (specialized, technical)
• Structure: (the way the vocabulary is
used in sentences to express ideas)
• Function: (the intended use of those
ideas)
These language purposes build upon one
another over a series of lessons.
Vocabulary
• Specialized
– Words whose meaning changes depending on the
context (problem, simplify, value)
– Multiple meaning words (run, place)
These can be “brick” or “mortar” words
• Technical
– Words that represent one concept only
(denominator, photosynthesis)
These are the “bricks” of language
Language Structure
• Grammar/syntax: rules for language use
(e.g., plurals, noun/verb agreement)
• Signal words: guideposts to support
understanding of listener/reader (e.g., If/then,
first, last, compared to)
• Frames and templates: scaffolds for
apprentice language users (“On the one
hand, ________. But on the other hand,
_______.”)
Language Function
• Halliday identified 7 language functions
(Instrumental, regulatory, interactional,
personal, imaginative, heuristic,
representational)
– These are translated into classroom interactions
(express an opinion, summarize, persuade,
question, entertain, inform, sequence, disagree,
debate, evaluate, justify)
The same content objective
can have many different
language purposes
CO: Identify the phases of the moon.
LP #1: Name the phases of the moon. (vocabulary)
LP #2: Use sequence words (first, next, last) to
describe the phases of the moon. (structure)
LP #3: Explain how the moon, earth, and sun move
through the phases. (function)
TEACHER RESPONSIBILITY
“I do it”
Focused Instruction
Guided
Instruction
“We do it”
Collaborative
“You do it
together”
Independent
“You do it
alone”
STUDENT RESPONSIBILITY
A Structure for Instruction that Works
(c) Frey & Fisher, 2008
Zone of Proximal
Development
Scaffolding
“As
easy
“As
easyasaslearning
learning
to to
ride
”
ridea abike
bike”
Scaffolds
extend the
range of the
worker
Robust questions
Prompts
Cues
Direct
explanation
and modeling
Robust questions
Prompts
Cues
Direct
explanation
and modeling
Robust Questions to
Check for Understanding
Teacher Poses a Question
Student responds
Teacher: What is a nocturnal animal?
Student: An animal that stays awake at
night.
Teacher: Good. What is a diurnal
animal?
Teacher: What is a nocturnal animal?
Student: An animal that stays awake at
night.
Teacher: Tell me more about that. Does
a nocturnal animal have special
characteristics?
Student: Well, it doesn’t sleep a lot.
Teacher: What is a nocturnal animal?
Student: An animal that stays awake at
night.
Teacher: Tell me more about that. Does
a nocturnal animal have special
characteristics?
Student: Well, it doesn’t sleep a lot.
Prompting for Cognitive and
Metacognitive Thinking
Teacher Poses a Question
Student responds
Yes
Is the answer
appropriate?
Probe to elicit more information
No
Prompt to elicit background knowledge
Focus on cognitive/metacognitive
Background
knowledge
prompts
invite students to
use what they know
to resolve problems
Process or
Procedure
Prompts
To perform a
specific task
Reflective
prompt
knowing about knowing
“What are we learning today?”
Heuristic
prompt
Informal and
less defined
“Make a graph so you can see it.”
How do you
find parking?
Teacher: What is a nocturnal animal?
Student: An animal that stays awake at night.
Teacher: Tell me more about that. Does a nocturnal animal have
special characteristics?
Student: Well, it doesn’t sleep a lot.
Teacher: I’m thinking of those pictures we saw of the great horned
owl and the slow loris in the daytime and at night. Does your
answer still work?
Cues to Shift Attention
Teacher Poses a Question
Student responds
Yes
Is the answer
appropriate?
No
Prompt to elicit background knowledge
Probe to elicit more information
Yes
Pose new
question
Is the answer
appropriate?
Focus on cognitive/metacognitive
No
No
Cue to shift
Attention to
Information source
Is the answer
appropriate?
Yes
Pose new
question
Cues
Shift attention to
sources of
information
More direct
and
specific than prompts
the expert commentator
sees things you don’t
cues do the same for
novices
Attention grows with competence
Visual
Physical
Gestural
Positional
Verbal
Environmenta
l
Using Prompts and
Cues
Context: Students are creating a
Jeopardy®-style game. The teacher is
building the background knowledge of a
group of students. He draws their attention
to a sentence in the text: “When you eat
foods—such as bread, meat, and vegetables—
they are not in a form that the body can use as
nourishment.” He asks Mauricio to retell it is
his own words...
Mauricio: So, I think it says that your body can’t use meat like it is meat. It has to be changed.
Jessica: But that’s what we eat to live. That’s good eating.
Russell: I don’t eat any vegetables. I only like the meat and bread from this, like a hamburger.
Mr. Jackson: How does that meat change so that your body can use it? Russell?
Russell: It doesn’t change. It’s meat.
Mr. Jackson: So let’s think about what we know about nourishment and our food. There’s a process
that it goes through, right? [they nod in agreement] What’s the first step? You know this because
you do it several times a day.
Sarah: The first thing to eat? Is that what you mean?
Mr. Jackson: Yeah, the first thing.
Sarah: You take a bite.
Mr. Jackson: Exactly, right on. So you’ve changed the food, right?
Russell: Yeah, but it’s still meat.
Mr. Jackson: It sure is. But it’s changed a bit, and will change more. Remember we talked about
different kinds of changes. Physical … Chemical
Russell: So the first thing, when you bite it, it’s a physical change, right?
Mr. Jackson: You know it! And then what happens?
Direct Explanation
and Modeling
When prompting
and cueing fail,
it’s time for
direct
explanation.
QUESTION
Responds
No
Appropriate?
Yes
PROMPT
Probe
Yes
Appropriate?
No
No
New
question
Appropriate?
New
question
CUE
No
Is the answer
appropriate?
OFFER DIRECT EXPLANATION
AND MODELING
Pose original
question again
Yes
Yes
Pose new
question
Direct Explanation
Identify
Explain
Think aloud
Monitor
Take care not to re-assume responsibility too quickly