Why?
When delivering new content, it’s important to teach in small steps to reduce cognitive load.
Checklist
| Don’t ask questions: teach the new content. | ✔ |
| Reveal new information slowly. | ✔ |
| Avoid using speech and text simultaneously: children cannot listen and read simultaneously. | ✔ |
| Strip back presentation: remove extraneous visuals and text. | ✔ |
| Use signalling to direct pupils’ attention where you need it (use highlighting, underlining, pointing and bold text/text size). | ✔ |
| Use visual representation, allowing thinking and processing time (for example, in science, a simplified diagram of the heart). | ✔ |
| Use simple diagrams/models. | ✔ |
| Using speech and diagrams together aids learning. | ✔ |
| Be concise with your language to reduce cognitive load. | ✔ |
| Explicitly teach vocabulary. | ✔ |
Example of how to explain and present content clearly
In a science lesson when teaching children about how the heart works, show a simplified diagram of the heart without labels. Then use concise language to explain the different functions.
Further Information
Power Up Your Pedagogy: Bruce Robertson (Page 157)
Video
Coming soon.