Informal Activities and Teacher-Directed Instruction/Activites

Informal activities

this refers to engaging, playful, and non-structured learning experiences that promote mathematical understanding and skills outside the traditional classroom setting. often involves games, hands-on tasks, real-life applications, or creative projects that allow students to explore mathematical concepts in a fun and interactive way.

informal activities during a lesson can help you to determine how a child is performing and provide insight into how they are progressing based on past performance.

Informal activities

this refers to engaging, playful, and non-structured learning experiences that promote mathematical understanding and skills outside the traditional classroom setting. often involves games, hands-on tasks, real-life applications, or creative projects that allow students to explore mathematical concepts in a fun and interactive way.

informal activities during a lesson can help you to determine how a child is performing and provide insight into how they are progressing based on past performance.

making their own clock, trying pizza activities, doing puzzles and riddles

example of informal activities

Teacher-Directed Instruction

this is a highly structure, teacher-centered approach where the teacher takes full control over the learning environment. This method is often used when introducing new material or concepts, providing students with step-by-step guidance, and ensuring that they achieve specific learning objectives.

Key Features of Teacher-Directed Instruction

Explicit Teaching, Teacher as the Knowledge Source, Structured Environment, Assessment of Understanding, Feedback and Correction

Directed Instruction, Lecture-based teaching, Guided Practice with Scaffolding

Types of Teacher-Directed Instruction

Directed Instruction

this is a structured, teacher-centered approach that explicitly teachers skills through clear, step-by-step guidance. It is effective for foundational learning in subjects like mathematics and language arts.

Lecture-Based Teaching

this involves the teacher delivering content directly to students, often using visual aids. This method is ideal for conveying large amounts of information in subjects like history and science.

guided practice with scaffolding

this provides temporary support as students practice new skills. The teacher offers direct assistance and gradually reduces support, helping students develop independence, particularly in skill-based subjects.

Directed instruction

identify the type of teacher-directed instruction in this scenario: a fifth-grade math teacher introduces the concept of long division. The teacher explains the long division process step-by-step on the board, demonstrating how to divide, multiply, subtract, and bring down numbers. After modeling several examples, the teacher provides guided practice problems for the class, ensuring that each student understands the steps before allowing them to complete similar problems independently.

Lecture-based Teaching

a high school algebra teacher delivers a lecture on quadratic equations/ The teacher explains the standard form of a quadratic equation, discusses the significance of the coefficients, and presents the quadratic formula. Throughout the lecture, the teacher uses visual aids, such as graphs and charts, to illustrate key points

Guided Practice with Scaffolding

in a middle school geometry class, the teacher introduces the Pythagorean theorem. the teacher first demonstrates how to identify the sides of a right triangle and applies the theorem to find the length of one side. Then, students work in pairs to solve practice problems while the teacher circulates around the room, providing guidance and answering questions as needed. As students gain confidence, the teacher gradually reduces assistance, encouraging them to solve more complex problems independently.

Efficient delivery of Information, Clear structure and focus, Immediate Feedback, and Useful for Novices

Advantages of the types of Teacher-Directed Instructions

efficient delivery of information

type of advantage where the teacher can cover large amounts of content in a relatively short period,, making it suitable for content-theory subjects.

Clear Structure and focus

the teacher sets clear objectives, which helps students stay focused and understand the goals of the lesson.

Immediate Feedback

students receive quick feeback on their performance, allowing for corrections before misunderstanding become ingrained.

useful for novicesq

this method is particularly effective for students new to a subject, as it provides a strong foundation before more independent learning takes place.

Limited Student Autonomy. potential for passive learning, less differentiation

disadvantages of teacher-instructed learning

limited student autonomy

because the teacher controls most aspects of the learning process, students may have fewer opportunities for creativity of independent problem-solving

potential for passive learning

if students are only passively listening or following instructions, they may not engage deeply with the material, which can reduce retention.

less differentiation

a disadvantage that may take place as teacher directed instruction may not always cater to the diverse learning styles and needs of all students, as the focus is on the teacher’s delivery rather than individualized learning.

Introducing new concepts, when precision is Essential, For large group

when is is best to use teacher-instructed learning

introducing new concepts

teacher-directed instruction works well when students are unfamiliar with a subject and need structured guidance.

when precision is essential

teacher-instructed learning is particularly effective in subjects like math, science, grammar, where students need to master specific procedures or skills.

for large groups

teacher-instructed learning can be efficient way to teach a large group of students when the same information needs to be delivered to everyone at once.

explicit teaching

a key feature of teacher-instructed learning where the teacher directly explains the material, breaks down complex concepts, and demonstrates skills in a clear and systematic way.

teacher as the knowledge source

key concept of teacher-instructed learning where the teacher is viewed as the main provider of knowledge, responsible for delivering information and guiding learning

structured environment

key feature of TIL that refers to the lessons being highly organized with clear objectives, step-by-step instructions, and designated time for guide practice.

assessment of understanding

key feature of TIL in which throughout the lesson, the teacher checks for understanding though questioning, guided practice, or short assessments to ensure that students are following along.

feedback and correction

key feature of TIL where the teacher provides immediate respond to the student to ensure student’s understanding of the material.