Focused Time!

Two weeks ago I hosted the third annual Tundra EdTech Tool Slam. For those of you who don't know about the event, it features a format where 10 presenters are given 4 minutes each to share an exciting new educational technology tool to use in the classroom. We always collect exit tickets from our attendees and the feedback is very positive, specifically around the amount of purposeful information that can be shared in such a short time.

As I reflected on this, I wondered how this could be replicated in daily lesson plans. Fisher and Frey's "Focused Instruction" and Calkins "Mini-Lesson" components are awesome examples.

Knowing what the research says, the success of the Tundra EdTech Tool Slam makes perfect sense. The learner (attendee) knew they were going to be presented with explicit and relevant instruction in a very short amount of time, which equaled engagement. The teacher (presenter) knew that they a limited amount of time with a defined purpose, which equaled focused instruction.

Below is a quick idea for how you can create a digital "Focused Instruction Timer" for your next mini-lesson.

Having a visual timer can help keep you on track and your students focused. A quick and easy way to accomplish this is using Google Slides with a YouTube timer video. The video on the left is me creating the tool, the slideshow on the right is the finished product.