Standards & Alignment
Identify the state standard/TEKS or learning objective.
What is the first step when planning a standards-aligned lesson?
Interest surveys, icebreakers, or student interviews.
One way to learn about students’ interests.
Think-Pair-Share, hands-on experiments, or debates.
What’s one example of an active learning strategy?
Establishing trust and respect through clear expectations and relationships.
What’s the first step to building a positive classroom culture?
Create and teach expectations explicitly at the start of the year.
What’s one way to set clear behavior expectations?
Use the Depth of Knowledge or Bloom’s Taxonomy to align tasks with the standard.
Name one way to ensure activities match rigor and content.
Grouping students by readiness, adjusting content or pace, or offering tiered tasks.
How can student data be used to differentiate?
Using interactive tools like Kahoot, Flip, or collaborative Google Docs.
How can technology increase student engagement?
Using interactive tools like Kahoot, Flip, or collaborative Google Docs.
Bell work, clear transitions, or posted daily agendas.
One routine that helps maximize instructional time.
Praise, points, class rewards, or recognition.
An example of positive reinforcement.
Vertical alignment or scaffolding
This term describes connecting daily lessons to long-term goals.
Incorporating students’ backgrounds, languages, or experiences into lessons.
A strategy for culturally responsive teaching.
Jigsaw, Round Robin, or Rally Coach.
A cooperative learning structure.
Organized materials, student work displays, flexible seating.
An example of how to make a classroom physically inviting.
Calmly state the behavior and expected action, or use nonverbal cues.
What’s an effective strategy for redirecting behavior?
Unpacking standards into “I can” statements and building lessons around them.
What is one example of using TEKS or standards to drive instruction.
Using multimodal instruction (visual, auditory, kinesthetic).
What’s one way to support varied learning styles in one lesson?
Connect lessons to careers, current events, or community problems.
What’s one way to make content relevant to real-world situations?
Goal-setting, choice boards, or student-led conferences.
What’s one way to promote student ownership of learning?
Smooth, practiced transitions reduce downtime and off-task behavior.
Explain how transitions affect classroom management.
Starting with the desired learning outcome or assessment and planning lessons backward to reach that goal.
What is the meaning of "backward design".
Lessons can be made relevant, challenging, and supportive when tailored to students’ needs and interests.
Describe how knowing students impacts engagement and rigor.
It requires analysis, synthesis, and evaluation rather than recall.
Explain how higher-order questioning promotes critical thinking.
Proximity, silent cues, or private redirection.
A way to address off-task behavior without disrupting class flow?
Facilitate discussions to brainstorm rules, then agree and post them.
How can classroom rules be co-created with students?