To see a complete list of the reflection activities and for an explanation of the program, visit my Day By Day Main Page.
Mini-Lessons Cycle 1: Meaningful Mini-Lessons
Day 5: Effective and Short
Challenge: Consider the list of ways to keep a mini-lesson concise, and think about what tends to be a cause for lengthy mini-lessons in your workshop Then spend a few days intentionally keeping your lessons short and effective.
Today, I laid out our writer’s workshop structure and told students that my lessons should never be longer than 20 minutes. I plan to give one student a stopwatch and ask him or her to let me know when I have five minutes left.
What is the average length of your mini-lessons during a week?
15-20 minutes
As you increased your awareness of the length of your mini-lessons, what did you notice about your instruction?
I notice that when I shorten my main lesson, I have more robust mid-workshop teaching points, and our sharing/closing section seems more meaningful rather than just an add-on.