1. Practicing Skills, Strategies, and Processes
Design Question 3 – Element 19:
When the content involves a skill, strategy, or process, how does the teacher engage students in practice activities that help them develop fluency?

2. Before we begin…
Before we begin talking about element 19, let’s be sure that there is an understanding about how the elements in Design Question 3 are related. This is important as you plan your lessons. Directions: watch the video on the next slide. Please identify the difference between the purpose of Design Question 2 and Design Question 3.

3. Video – How does Design Question 3 differ with Design Question 2?
Click on the link to view a video from Pasco County Schools that introduces Design Question 3.

4. How does Design Question 3 differ with Design Question 2?
You should have noticed that:
The purpose of Design Question 2 is to introduce new material to students while
The purpose of Design Question 3 is to give the students an opportunity to practice using material that was previously taught so that they deepen their understanding; therefore,
Teachers have to perform Design Question 2 before Design Question 3.
Now let’s talk about element 19, specifically.

5. Review Teacher and Student Evidence NOTE: This list of evidence is not all inclusive but is instead a list of possible examples.

6. Review Scale for Element 19

7. Desired Effect in the Students
The desired effect is, “Students develop automaticity with skills, strategies, or processes by engaging in appropriate practice activities.” To receive an Innovating rating, the teacher must monitor and make accommodations so that every student in their classroom achieves this desired effect.

8. Task While watching the below video, answer these two questions.
How does the science teacher apply this element to her teaching? Give a specific example.
How does the language arts teacher apply this element to her teaching? Give a specific example.
Click here for the YouTube video: “Element 19: Practicing Skills, Strategies, and Processes”.

9. Video Questions and Answers
Q1: How does the science teacher apply this element to her teaching? A1: The science teacher teaches a concept on one day, such as the concept of “work”, and then provides a hands on lab the following day so students to interact with “work” and practice the concept in a real-world setting. Q2: How does the language arts teacher apply this element to her teaching? A2: The language arts teacher gives her students different types of texts to practice identifying literary elements such as theme, villain, and hero by using archetypes.

10. Video
Log in to Then search “Protocol Video: Practicing Skills, Strategies, and Processes (Dance)” in the Resource Library.
After watching the video you will be asked to identify the teacher and student evidence and to rate the teacher on this element.

11. Task
On the next slide is the teacher and student evidence. What evidence did you see and were able to document? Use this to rate the teacher as you walk through the next few slides.

12. Review Teacher and Student Evidence What did you see?

13. Review Teacher and Student Evidence What did we see?

14. How to Rate Teacher Evidence
You can only give credit for what you see.
Teacher Evidence
Teacher engages students in massed and distributed practice activities; independent practice if students can perform the skill, strategy, or process independently.
The teacher had the students practice a dance they’ve obviously been studying. She mentions that they’ve discussed the meaning of the lyrics and now she wants them to practice putting the movement to the emotion of the song.

15. How to Rate Student Evidence
You can only give credit for what you see.
Student Evidence
Students performed the skill, strategy, or process with increased confidence and increased competence.
Students knew the movement of the dance. Some were certainly better than others but every student was dancing the same movements as the girl next to her.

16. Review Scale for Element 18 to Rate the Teacher

17. How we Rated the Teacher
We rated the teacher as APPLYING. The teacher clearly taught the students the dance movements ahead of time because while listening to the music, they all began at the same time. All students had the opportunity to practice their skill of dance. The teacher was monitoring her students, looking for students who were performing exceptionally well and others who needed to refine their skills. We did not give her an Innovating rating because there was no evidence that she made an accommodations for any of her students.

18. Videos
Here are two more videos in the Marzano resource library that give examples of teachers helping students examine errors. Log into and click on the Resource Library tab.
Search “Protocol Video: Practicing Skills, Strategies, or Processes (Fourth Grade)”. This is in a music class.
Search “Protocol Video: Practicing Skills, Strategies, or Process (Mathematics)”. This is in a middle school classroom.

19. Other Marzano Resources
There are additional resources for you to use. First, sign into Then click on the link to the Resource Library. Use the search engine in the Resource Library to find the articles by the titles listed below.
How To: Use Massed vs. Distributed Practice DQ3 E19
Strategies for DQ3 E19
Read and Reflect DQ3 Helping Students Practice Skills, Strategies, and Processes

20. Other Resources Not Found in iObservation
Click here for a video on YouTube titled “Week 6 Marzano Element 19”. This is great for all teachers but the specific examples are for math teachers.
Click here for a great resource about all elements in Design Question 3.
Click here for an article titled “7 Infallible Tricks to Help ESL Students Remember New Vocabulary”. Focus on the tricks that involve practice.
Click here for an article titled “17 Ways to Meet Individual Learning Needs in the Math Classroom.” We loved this article because the author says what we all know: those students who need to practice math the most, are the most reluctant to do so. Her 17 practice ideas are engaging. You’re sure to find a few that you can use!
Click here for an article for art teachers. The entire article is great but point #4 speaks volumes about practice in art class.

21. What is next?
Identify a lesson you have coming up in the next week that you can have students practice a skill, strategy, or process.
If you want an Applying rating, determine how you will monitor the majority of the students to make sure they are able to examine errors in reasoning and/or make claims with evidence.
If you want an Innovating rating, determine how you will adapt and monitor to make sure that EVERY student has the ability to practice the skill, strategy, or process.

22. Is this element in your PGP? Then you need to…
Sign into Click on the Growth tab and then click on the Plans option. Open your current plan and fill out a new Reflection Log, answering the appropriate questions.
Decide how you will change your teaching as a result of viewing this module.
Execute your change, reflect on its impact, and fill out another Reflection Log in iObservation.

23. Further questions?
Here are resources in case you have further questions:
Your evaluator
Another evaluator on your campus
Your school’s Classroom Practice Mentors (CPM)