Ella and Manny, a co-teaching team at a middle school in Albuquerque, New Mexico, found themselves in just this situation. I brainstormed with them and we came up with a variation on “Teach Half, Then Switch” called “One Review, One Run Lab.”

During the class period, Manny took half the students and reviewed a topic that was essential to the curriculum but that did not need lab time to understand. This could be a direct-teach type of review. Sometimes, Manny would play a PowerPoint version of Jeopardy to go over the forensic techniques they were learning.

At the same time, Ella took the other half of the students and ran the lab. To make sure enough stations and materials were available, she had the students group in triads rather than in pairs.

The next day, Manny’s group of students switched over to Ella and the hands-on lab portion of the lesson, while Ella’s group of students switched to Manny and the review session.

Teach Half then Switch: One Review, One Run Lab can be used not just in science classrooms but in any class where a hands-on practice is essential to understanding the lessons. Culinary arts, electronics, programming and web development are a few examples. Not only does it help manage larger class sizes and limited materials, it reduces the teacher-student ratio during an activity that requires more focus. Safety is increased as is the opportunity for deeper learning.

Tips:

• Plan ahead for this co-teaching variation: Will you need more than one classroom for this activity? How long will the split session run—one day or two, or more? Which co-teacher will handle the hands-on activity? Who will handle the review session? Make sure both activities align with the goals of the lesson and curriculum.
• Divide the class into mixed-ability halves so everyone learns equally, but do so strategically: in the lab portion, those with lower ability can be paired with those of higher ability. Or, if two students tend to play off each other, place one in each group.

For Ella and Manny, this variation of Teach Half, Then Switch helped them to make sure all of their students got hands-on lab time with the materials available. It also gave them the opportunity to work more closely with and support their students.

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Two Support Student Participation and Engagement – The HOW of Co-teaching

While this implementation of the co-teaching models is very similar to Both Facilitate Participation and Collect Data, there is one key difference: The focus is on engaging with students rather than collecting data during student pair shares. This co-teaching implementation provides a tremendous potential to ensure students stay on task.

Specialist content expertise required: Minimal to moderate, depending on content.

Planning time required: Minimal. Can be implemented quickly and informally without preparation.

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Two Teach and Debate – The HOW of Co-teaching

This co-teaching implementation is a powerful way to co-teach, and a surprisingly simple and flexible co-teaching model. It could take two minutes, or ten, or even half a class period, if you choose. This implementation is a live demonstration for students on how to have a thoughtful discussion and defend a viewpoint, while listening to and considering what another person has to say.

Specialist content expertise required: Minimal to moderate, depending on content.

Planning time required: Minimal. Can be implemented quickly and informally without preparation, provided both teachers are ready to defend a position

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I walked into an eighth-grade language arts classroom in Kinston, North Carolina, to find two co-teachers and 28 students absolutely focused on the lesson.

The desks and chairs had been arranged into two sections: seven desks and chairs faced seven more desks and chairs, creating a makeshift conference table. On the other side of the room, the same arrangement was repeated.

For this co-teaching model, each teacher was seated at one “conference table,” working with 14 students apiece.

At one table, a teacher was reviewing the skill of drawing inferences from text, using several poems scattered around the desks. At the other table, the teacher was reviewing grammar and test-taking skills, getting the students ready for the upcoming state test.

After 10 minutes, a timer went off, and the groups switched places. Now, the students who had been learning to draw inferences from poetry were learning grammar, and vice versa.

Afterward, I asked the teachers about their experience implementing “Teach Half Then Switch” to covers skills and rigor.

“I love teaching poetry,” the general education teacher exclaimed, “but this is eighth grade and we have 28 students in the class, mostly boys. Try to get eighth-grade boys interested in poetry. It ain’t easy!” she laughed. “But with this small group, I can do it.”

Likewise, the special education co-teacher liked teaching the grammar section. “I’m not comfortable teaching poetry or drawing inferences. However, I’ve spent my entire career as a special educator correcting grammar and teaching students how to take a test. That I feel confident with.”

Now, these two teachers could have stuck with the tried-and-true “One Teach One Support” method, with the general education teacher reviewing drawing inferences from poetry and the special education teacher supporting students in the background. They could have “chunked” the lessons, spending 10 minutes on drawing inferences and then switching to reviewing grammar and test-taking skills. This method is fine, but they would have been teaching all 28 students at once and trying to keep them focused on the lesson.

By instead implementing the “Teach Half Then Switch—Skills and Rigor” (a topic I cover in my latest book) co-teaching model, they were able to engage a much smaller group of 14 students in targeted instruction. Students who might present behavior problems were divided between them, making potential behavior issues easier to address.

Here are some tips to implement this in your classroom:

• Arrange student desks so that there are two sections of desks and chairs.
• Strategically divide the class into two mixed-ability halves, with each teacher taking one half. Sit on opposite ends of your makeshift “conference tables” so you can see the entire room and signal each other.
• One teacher teaches their half of the class that day’s objective with appropriate rigor for the class or grade level.
• The other teacher teaches their half of the class focusing on a skill necessary for the subject. For example, students might be reviewing and relearning the skill of grammar or creating charts and graphs, or how to read a map (topographical, weather, or geographic), etc.
• After 10 minutes, switch. Either the students or the teachers can move.

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We’re familiar with the “one teach, one observe” method used in many co-teaching situations. And recently I suggested that co-teachers build on this with “one teach, one take notes,” as a good way to internalize the material being taught and to present a good face to external observers, like administrators, who may not immediately perceive the reason why one teacher appears to be simply observing.

One teach, one interpret takes co-teaching to another level. Let’s say one teacher is a content area expert who excels at delivering information through direct teaching. Meantime, the other teacher’s strong suit is in converting textual information, whether orally or by writing it into a visual format.

How would the above example work in the classroom? Visualize this: The content specialist is delivering the information verbally, augmenting it with notes via PowerPoint. At the same time, the other teacher may be drawing a picture on the board—a “snapshot device” that incorporates the first teacher’s concepts into a drawing that looks like a snapshot from a camera.

Another example is while the subject matter expert is direct teaching the content, the other teacher is dramatizing the information. Imagine how using actions to exemplify the content, or even adding costumes and props to this dramatization, can engage students!

Both teachers can think up any number of implementations: If one teacher knows sign language, he or she could sign specific keywords and phrases and have the students repeat those phrases, and the correlating signs, at certain periods during the lesson. Or, the teachers could convey the objectives being taught using analogies, real-world experiences, stories or any other variation to reinforce the content by reframing it from a slightly different perspective.

Interpreting in a visual way the material being taught provides a new dimension to co-teaching and fully engages both teachers. It can also appeal to the visual-kinesthetic learner.

“One teach, one interpret” does not require extensive content area expertise, nor does it require substantial planning time. It’s very possible that a specialist in the classroom knows little about the content, yet can listen and interpret the content differently for the students, thereby providing instruction that reaches more learners and is increasingly memorable. It also supports the specialist in learning the curriculum. That’s a win-win for everybody.

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This is fine, but why not change it up sometimes?

To make this work, try a slightly different model I call “one lead, one student support.” Unlike one teach, one support, this allows any of the adults in the room to lead the instruction for a chunk of the class — whether the general education teacher, the content specialist, the paraprofessional or the specialist.

I’ve even worked with teachers who made a good case for the lead to be another student! By switching the verbiage from “one teach” to “one lead” we expand our thinking into other options for leading instruction in the classroom, and we don’t get locked into the “one teach, one support” model with the same teachers always taking on the same roles.

When we vary the person who is leading instruction, we can also vary which students need support. It’s possible that support is being provided to students who are working on enrichment projects. Possibly, the students who need support are students who do not understand the instructional language and need an interpreter. Of course, it could also be the students who are struggling, yet that group might include students who are not on an individual education plan, but simply having difficulty with that day’s learning objective.

Co-teachers will want to plan this method ahead of time, especially if it’s the first time you’re trying it. Who will lead, and who will support? During which chunk of class time will you implement it? Determine afterward how effective this new teaching method is, and what changes you can make the next time you do it.

The goal for the “one lead and one student support” co-teaching implementation is to break out of rigid mindsets that cause us to believe that the lead is always the content area specialist or the general classroom teacher and the one providing student support is always the specialist.
Expanding our language to be more inclusive of a variety of roles increases our ability to view co-teaching as an opportunity to reach all learners in a manner that is highly effective for a variety of goals and learning styles present in the classroom.

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To an outsider, though, the co-teacher who is observing or supporting doesn’t appear to be doing anything. That can cause some misunderstandings with administrators or even other teachers in the staff room. “Oh, wouldn’t it be nice to have a job where I just sit around in the back of the room and help kids?” other teachers might say.

There’s a simple way to defeat that: carry a clipboard and a pen. Collect some data. So, rather than “One Teach, One Support,” the model becomes “One Teach, One Collect Data.”

Now, the notes you take depend on the lesson and the classroom, of course, and they should be agreed upon with your co-teacher beforehand. For example—you can take notes on student behavior, on which students have their books open, or on which students need more support. Write it down. Are there students who are off task? Check that off next to their name. Students who make a positive impact on the day? Note that, too. Include comments, if you have time.

Use those notes to adjust teaching plans. For example, a comment on your clipboard may read, “At 10:45, teaching biome, 6 students were not paying attention.” When you debrief with your co-teacher after the lesson, you can discuss why the students were checked out mentally and what you can do to change that in the following lessons.

Use that data to adjust lessons. Use that data to support students. But most importantly, carry that darn clipboard so that to outsiders it looks like you’re doing something. Because you and I know that you are, but it lessens friction between your colleagues or administrators when you’re outside the classroom.

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In a class with students at different levels, the traditional model of station teaching is one way to do it, where you split the class into two different activities to learn the same standards. But co-teachers can also individualize while doing station teaching, or mix other co-teaching models like “one teach, one support.” You can do this when chunking lessons.

For example, Erin and Michelle were two co-teachers that I worked with at a middle school in New Hampshire. They used 20-minute chunks of time for station teaching: The first five minutes of the class or the lesson were a warm-up, while the next 10 to 15 minutes were used for direct instruction with the whole class on the objective for that day. That was accomplished either through team teaching or “one teach, one support.”

During the direct instruction period Erin and Michelle also set behavioral expectations for their students for the next chunk of class time. Students could choose to work alone, or with a partner, or in small groups. They could choose what approach they wanted to take to complete the assignment.

After setting those expectations, they had the students get into their stations. All the students had to complete the assignment, but they had choices on how to do it, and could choose how to accomplish the tasks necessary to meet their goal. Some did the work on their laptops, some wrote it out by hand. Some students read the book while others listened to an audio version. However, they were all working toward the same objective. That was key.

Combining station teaching with individualized work gave students the freedom to work at their own pace, while honoring their learning style. Michelle and Erin rotated through the stations to make sure they supported every student, not just the ones who needed intervention.

This co-teaching model offers a lot of room for customization. Depending on the rapport between you and your co-teacher, and the atmosphere of the classroom, you can vary the station teaching and maximize your opportunities for student success. Whether the student is struggling or has needs, or is high achieving, each one gets the attention they need, and that’s a beautiful thing.

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Teaching Strategies that Work

How to Implement Co-teaching Models with Flexible Grouping

Flexible grouping can be a great strategy to incorporate into your lessons, especially if you are co-teaching.  With flexible grouping, students’ level of learning, no matter what the curriculum, is assessed when leaving class, usually with exit cards or some other form of assessment.  Then, students are grouped according to their level of understanding.  With this strategy, students are not put in a group and then forced to stay at that level- they can advance or get more instruction at their own pace.

Implementing Co-teaching Models: Examples of Flexible Grouping Include:

1) Flexible grouping is the most commonly referenced form of station teaching when researching co-teaching models. Exit cards work beautifully for flexible grouping. For instance, if I’m doing flexible grouping, I might have one enrichment group, one on-track group, and one review group. I could have each teacher facilitate one of the two groups and one group working on its own.

2) You might also have three mixed-ability groups differentiated by process. For example, one group of students engages in a hands-on activity to learn the planets. Another group of students uses a computer-based activity to determine how far apart planets are from one another. The third group creates a dramatic skit to teach the rest of the class about the solar system and the planets. This type of flexible grouping is ‘differentiating by process.’

3) Another model for flexible grouping has each mixed-ability group working on the same concept and output requirements. However, each group may vary on how they collaborate to accomplish that assignment. In this model, teachers circulate among the groups, supporting students as needed. Another option: one teacher supervises and supports while the other teacher collects data.

Implementing Co-teaching Models: Flexible Grouping Basics

For teachers who are most comfortable with direct teaching via whole-class teaching, moving toward small groups and flexible grouping can be very intimidating. This is especially true in situations where group dynamics in the classroom are extra-lively and teachers are concerned about managing behavior and keeping kids on task. This section provides strategies and techniques for effectively implementing small groups and flexible groups.

What Constitutes Effective Small-Group Construction?

Effective small-group instruction:

• Uses assessment data to create lesson plans and determine the groups.
• Keeps groups small, preferably three to four students to a group. Sometimes it might even be appropriate to have pairs.
• Groups are flexible. This means that groups change as students grow, test out of a curriculum section, choose activities based on the type of activity required, etc.
• Learning profile instructional materials are geared toward student ability levels when activities are not based on differentiating by process or student.
• Small-group activities are tailored to address student needs.

Ineffective small-group instruction:

• Has kids in groups, but all activity is directed by the teacher.
• Keeps kids in the same groups continually, usually in same-ability groups. This is actually tracking within a class.
• Uses the same materials with all students in all groups.
• Uses the same independent-state work assignments for the entire class.
• Uses small groups to complete worksheets, and more worksheets, and more worksheets.

When Implementing Co-teaching Models, Remember:

• An ability group is a group where all the students are at the same level.
• A mixed-ability group includes students of all different levels together, strategically placed.
• A flexible group is one which will have different members at different times. That, by the way, is the main goal. Students don’t get pigeonholed or typecast this way.

Excerpted from Special Needs in the General Classroom, 500+ Teaching Strategies to Differentiate Instruction

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Research indicates that cooperative learning increases achievement. (Marzano, Robert. Classroom Instruction That Works. Prentice Hall, 2004)

Here are a dozen things to consider when setting up and implementing independent and small-group activities in order to foster the best results:

1. Provide instruction and activities that match students of varying skill levels.
2. Assess student progress frequently by monitoring student work and error patterns to identify what needs to be re-taught.
3. Avoid using worksheets as the primary focus of small-group work. Worksheets should be kept to a minimum, if not eliminated altogether.
4. Establish clear routines for students to follow. Model and practice those routines. Rehearse the expectations and review expectations frequently.
5. Notice positive group behavior. Research indicates that teachers should give students more positive comments than negative comments.
6. Calmly, quietly, and quickly approach and redirect students who are off task. Use a nonverbal cue, a cue card (see cue card example)
7. Use proximity control. The co-teaching environment makes this much more doable.
8. Use assessment data to create lesson plans and determine the groups.
9. Keep groups small, preferably three to four students to a group. Sometimes it might even be appropriate to have pairs.
10. Change groups often as students grow or test out of a curriculum section.
11. Describe, show an example, or model the expectations for assignments and activities as well as examples of what the outcome should, and should not, look like.
12. Correct misbehavior and teach appropriate behavior and expectations (we cannot assume that students know what to do).

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