BBL stands for Bread & Butter Lesson. This is a technique which has several advantages:
a) initially, it does not require you to change the way you teach at all
b) it is quick, it is easy.
c) it is widely applicable: any improvements will apply to the majority of your lessons, not the minority.
d) it is intended to be used every day, every lesson; it is intended to benefit your students, not to impress your leadership.
There is a great deal of focus in teaching on variety and diversity. Don't worry - BBL1 acknowledges and embraces this; however, there is takes a single-minded perspective: in order to vary your lessons, you must have something to vary from. This 'something' is your bread-and-butter lesson.
BBL1 has two variants:
magpieplanning is designed for classroom teachers. It has one feature which distinguishes it: an unrelenting focus on electronic, re-usable resources. PowerPoint (or alternative presentation software) is used extensively to support every aspect of lesson planning, and to enable and ensure re-use. The pattern of work for a teacher involves stockpiling a range of electronic resources (Presentations, games, worksheets, quizzes, videos...) which can be deployed flexibly.
S&F (pronounced 'sniff') is designed for those who teach on a games field, in a drama studio, or anywhere that you don't routinely deploy an IWB or have access to a PowerPoint presentation. S&F stands for Script and Features, and it breaks down the planning of individual lessons into two distinct elements.
Note: followers of the S&F method need one additional item: a clipboard. The clipboard should have three sheets of paper on for each lesson:
- a Script, showing the steps of the lesson. These are not 'formal' stages, they describe what will actually happen.
- a Classlist, or Seating Plan, which can be used as a register, or to annotate with assessment information.
- a Features sheet, which may contain absolutely anything. More details on S&F here.