In this week’s episode of Spot the Spinach, we’re focusing on a powerful teaching technique championed by educational consultant and an expert on explicit instruction, Anita Archer. It’s called the “I do, We do, You do” approach to modeling, and it involves breaking down a task into three distinct steps.
First, the teacher models the task while the students observe (“I do”). Second, the teacher and students work on the task together (“We do”). Finally, the students complete the task on their own (“You do”). This approach is highly effective because it scaffolds learning and provides students with the necessary support to master a new skill.
Regrettably, some teachers fail to structure their modeling into three distinct steps, which can create difficulties in determining whether students have a thorough understanding of how to solve complex problems. This can pose a challenge during the independent phase of the task, where students are expected to apply what they have learned without guidance.
To illustrate this point, we’ll watch a non-example from Omer Pazar at Cumberland Community School, followed by an example of What A Good One Look Like, WAGOLL.