Mentor materials
Types of knowledge
Select a development area
Consider the development areas for this topic (below). Then make a note of the area you plan to zoom in on and when you plan to visit so you can observe your teacher in this area. Familiarise yourself with the focused development areas. You will select one later when you observe your teacher.
Development area 1: Critical and supporting content
Focused development area
- Teacher, with the support of a colleague, uses subject resources to identify the critical content (knowledge, skills and concepts) that pupils need to remember and how it can be brought to life and supported by additional supporting content.
- Teacher, with the support of a colleague, accumulates and refines supporting content such as powerful analogies, illustrations, examples, explanations and demonstrations that support pupils to understand critical content and bring teaching to life.
Example precise target: Teacher, with the support of a colleague, uses subject resources to identify the critical content (knowledge, skills and concepts) that pupils need to remember and how it can be brought to life and supported by additional supporting content
- Not doing it at all: With the support of a colleague and using subject resources, e.g. a scheme of work, lesson resources or the relevant national curriculum document, identify critical content you will need to ensure that pupils remember.
- Doing it but needs some improvement: With the support of a colleague and using subject resources, e.g. a scheme of work or lesson resources, distinguish between content that is critical (that you will need pupils to remember) and supporting content that is important to bring teaching to life and help pupils understand critical content.
- Doing it well and needs some stretch: With the support of a colleague and using subject resources, focus on a particular element of the critical content you need to teach and discuss how some of the supporting content in a scheme of work, lesson resource or curriculum document can help bring teaching to life and help pupils understand the critical content.
Development area 2: Sequencing and revisiting knowledge
Focused development area
- Teacher, with the support of a colleague, identifies and plans for necessary prior knowledge to be taught or revisited before it is built upon.
- Teacher, with the support of a colleague, uses subject resources to identify core concepts (ideas that reoccur across the subject) and understands where these reoccur in the curriculum.
- Teacher, with the support of a colleague, plans for pupils to revisit and retrieve critical content (knowledge, skills and concepts) over time so pupils can master it.
Development area 3: Connecting knowledge in mental models
Focused development area
- Teacher, with the support of a colleague, uses subject or phase resources to identify the core concepts that reoccur in the subject and plans to link to these in their teaching.
- Teacher, with the support of a colleague, plans how they can link critical content (knowledge, skills and concepts) to what pupils already know.
Observe
Consider the following questions based on a short (approximately 15 minute) observation of your teacher.
What was your teacher’s previous target? Are they meeting it? How do you know?
Thinking about the development area you have selected for this topic, what is your teacher already doing well in this area? Which focused development area best aligns with what your teacher needs to get better at? What one precise target (bite-sized action) might you work with them on during your mentor meeting?
Reminder: You can choose to stick with this previous target if they have not made enough progress. When moving on to a new precise target, you can select one from the table above or, if this doesn’t fit your teacher’s needs, you can write your own.
How will you model the target to your teacher to show them what good looks like? What questions will you ask to check your teacher understands the model? For example, ‘How it is different from your current practice?’ and ‘What impact might it have on your practice and pupils?’
Reminder: Your model should help your teacher develop their ability in some of the following:
- Link what pupils already know to what is being taught.
- Sequence lessons so that pupils secure foundational knowledge before encountering more complex content.
- Identify essential concepts, knowledge, skills and principles of the subject and provide opportunity for all pupils to learn and master these critical components, drawing explicit links between new content and core concepts.
- Ensure pupils’ thinking is focused on key ideas within the subject, using retrieval and spaced practice to build automatic recall of key knowledge.
- Discuss curriculum design with experienced colleagues and balancing exposition, repetition, practice of critical skills and knowledge.
- Revisit the big ideas of the subject over time and teach key concepts through a range of examples, using resources and materials aligned with the school curriculum (e.g. textbooks or shared resources designed by experienced colleagues that carefully sequence content).
Next, meet with your teacher to work through the ‘feedback’ stage of instructional coaching.