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George Lucas Educational Foundation

60-Second Strategy: Framing the Lesson

When teachers make their teaching and learning goals clear to their class, every activity has a purpose and every student understands what they’re doing.

October 4, 2023

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At P.S. 249, the Caton School, in Brooklyn, New York, kindergarten teacher Julie Jay starts nearly every lesson by stating exactly what she wants her students to learn. She closes by circling back and having the kids share what they just learned—and how they know they’ve got it. This brings clarity to her classroom, she says, and makes it clear how every part of the lesson relates back to her objectives. On top of that, the built-in reflection helps the learning stick. 

Schools That Work

P.S. 249 The Caton School

Public, Urban
Grades PK-5
Brooklyn, NY

At P.S. 249 in Brooklyn, New York, about half of the student body are from Spanish-speaking countries—but what might be considered a language challenge for some has been turned into an opportunity here. The school’s dual-language Spanish program starts in kindergarten. Nearly every teacher is trained to teach English as a second language, and consistent with best practices in ELL, standards remain high despite understandable gaps in language comprehension. Through a robust math curriculum, engaging science days, and a new way of doing professional development that frames classrooms as teaching labs, the neighborhood school not only brings out the best in kids—it has become a high performer over the past decade.

  • Earned an America’s Best School Award from the National Center for Urban School Transformation in 2023.
  • Received a Blue Ribbon Award for Exemplary Performance from the U.S. Department of Education in 2021.
  • Named a Reward School for 2 years in a row (2018–19) for high academic achievement—with no significant gaps between subgroups—by the New York Department of Education.

4 Comments

  1. Alicia S

    August 11, 2024

    How we use language and listening skills are so important. If we aren’t clear about things like expectations, procedures, and directions…. then we leave our students unclear on the need for education.

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  2. W
    Will O

    August 2, 2024

    It’s a good strategy all around. Just like giving a speech: tell them what you will tell them, tell them, tell them what you told them.

    You marked this comment useful.

  3. Laura B

    August 1, 2024

    If I had a nickel for every time I gave students the directions for an assignment and they said, “Wait, what are we supposed to do?” lol oops! I love how these students get very clear directions and expected outcomes, and they get this for every lesson (see Samer’s comment below). I know I can settle into work much better when I know exactly what is expected of me. 

    You marked this comment useful.

  4. S
    Samer R
    Moderator

    July 31, 2024

    We had a question pop up on social media about the frequency of using this framing. In looking at the transcript of our interview with Julie, the teacher featured in the video, we found that she said:

    “Every lesson every day has that frame. So problem of the day has a frame. Reading workshop has the frame. Writing workshop has the frame. It’s not a unit frame. It’s a specific frame for today’s lesson.

    ‘This is what I’m teaching you today, and this is what you will be able to do by the end of the lesson today.’ “

    You marked this comment useful.

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