Classroom Chronicles: The 16 Elements of Explicit Instruction.   

When it comes to helping students make the most academic progress, one of the most effective approaches teachers use is explicit instruction. This teaching method is clear, structured, and purposeful. It’s called explicit because the learning isn’t left to chance, teachers guide students step by step with direct explanations, clear demonstrations, and plenty of supported practice. 

Explicit instruction involves carefully designed scaffolds that help students build confidence as they learn. Teachers explain the “why” and “what” of new skills, model exactly how to do them, and then provide guided practice and feedback until students are ready to succeed independently. 

Educational researcher Rosenshine (1987) described explicit instruction as “a systematic method of teaching with emphasis on proceeding in small steps, checking for student understanding, and achieving active and successful participation by all students.” 

Element #2 – First things First! Otherwise known as Sequencing Skills Logically.

This elements requires teachers to consider several curricular variables, such as teaching easier skills before harder skills, teaching high-frequency skills before skills that are less frequent in usage, ensuring mastery of prerequisites to a skill before teaching the skill itself, and separating skills and strategies that are similar and thus may be confusing to students.

Parents often wonder why teachers don’t just “dive in” and teach kids the good stuff right away — like solving simultaneous equations, pondering financial real world mathematics, persuasive essay analysis, or decoding words with split diagraphs (magic “e” for a certain generation!!). The answer is simple: teachers like children to have a fighting chance at long term learning success, which means teaching skills in a logical sequence. Think of it as assembling IKEA furniture with a toddler: you wouldn’t hand over the screw-driver, start at Step 47 and hope for the best! 

Here’s what “sequencing skills logically” looks like in practice (with some real-life parent parallels):

Easier Before Harder - a.k.a. “Don’t Ask a Preschooler to Drive the Maserati”
Imagine asking your child to cook a five-course meal before they’ve learned how to hold a knife safely then butter the toast. Disaster. In classrooms, this means teachers teach the basics first. Counting and grouping with manipulatives before multiplication, phoneme grapheme recognition before spelling bee trophies. Nobody likes burnt toast — or burnt-out students.

High-Frequency Before Rare and Exotic (like teaching ‘Stop, Drop, and Roll’ before Flamethrower Safety 101)
Teachers focus on the skills kids use most often. High-frequency words like the and and get top billing. The word pterodactyl? Fun at parties, but not exactly a kindergarten essential. Parents secretly cheer this strategy — because helping with homework is much easier when the words are “cat” and “dog” instead of “archaeopteryx.”

Master the Prerequisites - a.k.a - “You Must Crawl Before You TikTok Dance”
We don’t hand kids a bike without training wheels and say, “Good luck, sport.” Likewise, teachers ensure children have mastered the stepping stones before moving on; like fractions before algebra, simple sentences before compound and complex sentences, paragraphing with topic sentences before whole essays or … crawling before uploading choreographed dance videos to the Tik Tok. Skipping prerequisites is like building a house without solid foundations: it might look okay for a while, but then the cracks start to show and grow larger over time until……crash.

Separate the Easily Confused (like Not Teaching b, p, d and g on the same day)
Children can be tripped up by lookalike or sound-alike skills. Teachers know not to pile on “there, their, and they’re” all at once. It’s like trying to explain to a four-year-old that “dessert” and “desert” are totally different. Cue the meltdown. Teachers make planning decisions continuously, to separate the teaching of skills that may be confused by children, to prevent the students from getting overwhelmed and help them build confidence step by step.

In Summary

Sequencing skills logically (Explicit Instruction Element #2) isn’t just educational jargon. It’s the teaching equivalent of baby-proofing the curriculum or help our students build competence step by step.

As teachers, we make these complex decisions look easy, but they are far from it.  So please continue to support your child’s literacy and numeracy growth at home like sharing and discussing stories, TV shows, novels and films, playing number games, organise pocket money budgets, plan and make family meals.  When it comes to the heavy lifting in English and Maths, however, it’s wise to let the teaching experts steer the ship. Jumping into the deep ocean without a flotation device can lead to learning that looks impressive at first but ends up shallow and about as effective as a snorkel in a bathtub. 

So next time you wonder why your child is still practicing “easy stuff,” rest assured: the teacher is just setting them up for success. After all, even rocket scientists had to learn how to count down from ten before they could launch.

During Health and Physical Education lessons this term, students in Years 3–6 completed their Health Assessments, with each year level focused on a specific topic related to sport and well-being, unpacking the content and applying this knowledge in a practical setting

• Year 3 students investigated sustainability, looking at ways to reduce waste, such as using reusable drink bottles and recycling old equipment.
• Year 4 focused on multiculturalism in Australian sport, identifying how heritage and culture influence our identity and explored communication skills and strategies for working cooperatively during games.
• Year 5 studied diversity and personal development, examining the importance of teamwork, inclusion, and setting personal fitness goals.
• Year 6 concentrated on transitioning to high school, discussing strategies for building resilience, making healthy choices, and managing change.

Students have also started to learn new physical education skills, building on foundations such as throwing, catching, coordination, and teamwork.

In Term 4, students will have the opportunity to explore activities tailored to their year level.

• Year 6 will try Badminton and Tennis, refining racket skills and court awareness.
• Year 5 will take on Basketball, focusing on dribbling, passing, and game strategies.
• Year 4 will explore Circus skills, developing balance, rhythm, and confidence.
• Year 3 will dive into Dance, expressing movement through rhythm and choreography.

Japanese  - Years 1- 3 Term 3

Our Japanese lessons have been full of energy and learning this term!

• Year 1 students explored how to give a weather report in Japanese, linking language with real-world situations. Hare, Kumori, Ame, Yuki, Atsui and Samui.
• Year 2 students discovered the richness of Japanese culture through traditional folk stories, learning key phrases along the way. We use Mukashi mukashi  to begin a traditional story and shiawase to end.
• Year 3 students focused on teamwork, using Japanese expressions to encourage and support one another. We chant がんばってganbatte、がんばれ ganbare、ファイトfaito！

It’s wonderful to see our students building language skills while also developing cultural understanding.