Effective Procedural Instruction Using TEACH FAST

Procedural Knowledge

Procedural knowledge refers to a series of steps students follow to solve mathematical problems. In science, it gives students the tools and processes needed to apply scientific concepts in a meaningful way. However, I often find that students feel overwhelmed when they are expected to understand scientific concepts and carry out calculations at the same time.

For example, many students in chemistry struggle with understanding and calculating molarity. Molarity is a way of measuring how concentrated a solution is. For example, let’s say you are making a Kool-Aid drink. The more Kool-Aid powder you add to water, the more concentrated the drink becomes. Simple right? But in chemistry, calculating the concentration of a solution is a bit more complicated.

Take a look at what students need to understand to solve a molarity problem:

• Significant figures
• Key terms: solute, solvent, solution
• Identify the solute in the solution
• Find the elements on the Periodic Table that make up the solute
• Determine the atomic masses of these elements
• Add the atomic masses together to calculate the molar mass
• Use the correct units for molar mass
• Convert grams into moles using the molar mass and dimensional analysis
• Concept behind concentration
• Convert milliliters to liters
• Plug values into the molarity formula to calculate concentration

To a science teacher, all of this seems straightforward. Of course it does. We’re the experts. But to a student seeing this for the first time, it can easily overload their working memory. So how do we teach this concept without overloading students’ working memory?

I use a lesson format based on Teach FAST: Focused, Adaptable, Structured Teaching¹. Let me walk you through how I apply this approach to teach molarity. Even though this example comes from Chemistry, the structure can be adapted to teach any lesson that involves procedural skills.

1. Preview

The first thing a teacher should do is connect the content to students’ everyday experiences. This makes the material more relatable and easier to understand. For this lesson, I presented pictures of strawberry Kool-Aid and asked students which cup would taste sweeter. This helped lead into a discussion about solutions and concentration.

Teacher: Okay class, let’s look at the picture. All cups have strawberry Kool-Aid. Which one do you think would taste the sweetest? The one on the far left or the one on the far right? (Give thinking time) As a class on 3! 1…2…3!

Class: Far right!

Teacher: Exactly. Can someone explain to the class why that is? (Give thinking time) All hands in the air! (Call on student).

Student: Because it probably has more Kool-Aid powder in it?

Teacher: Right! That’s a great observation. The darker one tastes sweeter because it has more solute. In this case, the Kool-Aid powder. In everyday life, we use words like “stronger” or “sweeter.” In chemistry, we use the word “concentration.” What word do we use in chemistry everybody?

Class: Concentration.

2. Learning Objective

Next, I read students the learning objective and then have them read it through a choral response: “Students will be able to calculate how concentrated a solution is using molarity.”

The learning objective should be simple. It should contain the skill and concept students are going to learn that day. In this example, the skill is “calculate” and the concept is “concentration” and “molarity.”

3. Review

Next, I make sure students have the foundational knowledge from previous lessons by implementing a review session.

Of all the knowledge required to calculate molarity, my students have already learned the following key concepts in bold:

• Significant figures
• Key terms: solute, solvent, solution
• Identify the solute in the solution
• Find the elements on the Periodic Table that make up the solute
• Determine the atomic masses of these elements
• Add the atomic masses together to calculate the molar mass
• Use the correct units for molar mass
• Convert grams into moles using the molar mass and dimensional analysis
• Concept behind concentration
• Convert milliliters to liters
• Plug values into the molarity formula to calculate concentration

However, just because I’ve previously taught the content doesn’t mean students have stored it in their long-term memory. It could be that students have forgotten the information. Or maybe they were absent. That’s why the review session is so important.

A common mistake teachers make is simply telling students the review information, which doesn’t promote active recall. Instead, students should be asked to retrieve the information by answering questions. This strengthens memory and better prepares them to learn new content. For example, as a review, I have students answer the following prompts using the Brain, Book, Buddy system. I chose these specific prompts because they review content from previous lessons that students need in order to understand the current one. If the majority of the class gets it wrong, I teach the concept again.

1. Define solute.
2. Define solvent.
3. Define solution.
4. Calculate the molar mass of CaCO₃.
5. Convert 150.0 grams of CaCO₃ to moles.

4. Key Ideas

Before teaching molarity calculations, I first make sure students have a conceptual understanding of molarity. The goal is for students to grasp the science concept before applying them through calculations.

Here is an example:

Teacher: When we looked at the Kool-Aid pictures, we noticed that one drink was darker than the other. In chemistry, we use the word “concentration” to describe how much solute is dissolved in a given amount of solvent.

Teacher: A solution with low concentration has a small amount of solute. A solution with high concentration has a large amount of solute.

Teacher: Now what is the difference between low concentration and high concentration? (Give thinking time.) Talk to your partners.

Class: Talks to their partners.

Teacher: What is the difference between low concentration and high concentration? (Calls on student.)

Student: Low concentration is when a solution has a little bit of solute. High concentration is when it has a lot of solute.

Teacher: Good! So today, we’re going to learn how to calculate concentration using molarity. We can use this number to help us determine the exact concentration of a solution.

5. Expert Thinking

I then model to students how to solve for molarity through a step-by-step process. As I model this process, I emphasize the concepts behind molarity. For example, when going over Step 1, I might say the following:

“Let’s say we’re making a saltwater solution by dissolving NaCl (sodium chloride) in water. The solute is what’s being dissolved, and the solvent is what it’s being dissolved in. So here, NaCl (sodium chloride) is the solute, and water is the solvent. Knowing the solute matters because it tells us what molar mass we need to use next.”

Generalized Steps:

1. Identify the solute.
   
2. Calculate molar mass.
   
3. Convert to moles.
   
4. Convert mL to L.
   
5. Plug values into the molarity formula.

Notice that the steps are grouped into broader, conceptual categories rather than broken down into overly specific instructions. This encourages students to engage with the underlying concepts rather than simply following a checklist. For example, instead of telling them how to calculate molar mass step by step, I simply state “calculate molar mass.” This prompts students to recall and apply what they’ve reviewed from the review session giving them more opportunities to retrieve information from their long-term memory.

6. Guided Practice

After modeling, I go into guided practice using mini-whiteboards. However, instead of having students solve the whole problem on the mini-whiteboard, I instruct them to solve the problem one step at a time. For example, instead of telling students “Solve this problem,” I say “Do step 1 of this problem.”

By having students solve the problem one step at a time, it allows me to control the variables during instruction. If I have students solve the whole problem at once, I won’t be able to determine which step they are specifically struggling in. However, if students solve the problem one step at a time, I am able to check each step before they move on and address common errors. This can help me determine exactly where students are confused, allowing me to give more specific feedback. During this time, I use a class tracker to record which steps students are struggling in (which would be useful during small-group instruction during independent practice).

I then gradually combine steps to build independence. For example, I might say, “Complete Steps 1 and 2 together.” Eventually, I remove these step-by-step prompts entirely, gradually fading the scaffolds so students can solve the entire problem on their own.

In total, I usually do 3 problems. The first problem is done step-by-step. The second problem is done by combining steps. Then the third problem is done without the steps.

7. Closure

At the end of guided practice, I do a final check for understanding. This is known as closure. It connects the learning objective, key ideas, and expert thinking altogether. And as always, instead of telling students, I ask them. This is how closure looks like for this lesson:

Teacher: What was our learning objective? As a class on 3! 1…2…3!

Class: Calculate how concentrated a solution is using molarity.

Teacher: Good! Now what exactly is molarity? Hmmmm All hands in the air! (Call on a student.)

Student: The number of moles of solute per liter of solution.

Teacher: Great! Now how do we calculate molarity? (Give students think time) Talk to your partners.

Class: Talks to their partners.

Teacher: How do we calculate molarity? Hmmm…all hands in the air! (Call on student).

Student: You find the moles of the solute and divide it by liters of the solution.

After this exchange, I show the class the following Phet Simulation and guide them through the components of the simulation:

As a class, through cold calling, choral responses, and turn and talks we go through the following questions:

1. How does increasing the amount of solute affect the molarity of a solution, assuming the volume remains constant?
2. What happens to the molarity when the volume of the solution increases while the amount of solute remains the same?
3. Describe how the color intensity of the solution in the simulation correlates with its molarity.

8. Independent Practice

If students demonstrate understanding during closure, I provide them with independent practice. During this session, students attempt to do practice problems on their own. I provide students with the final answers. Students are well aware that I grade the work that takes them to the final answer. Not the final answer itself. This helps build their metacognition by evaluating whether the answers are correct or not on their own. This also reduces the likelihood of reinforcing misconceptions through unchecked repetition by ensuring that students practice correctly.

For students who have not yet demonstrated understanding during the guided practice, I pull them out into a small group and give them one-on-one instruction while everyone else does independent practice. It is important to note that the entire lesson is not retaught. I only focus on the parts that students struggled in based on the class tracker used during guided practice. Small group instruction is beneficial for struggling students because I am able to give personalized attention and specific feedback.

When the bell rings, students put their work in their folders, place them in the folder bins, and push in their chairs.

Further Information

This lesson format was adapted from the book Teach Fast: Focused Adaptable Structured Teaching. While this example focused on using the framework for teaching procedural skills, the same approach can also be applied to teaching declarative knowledge. The book provides additional helpful details and examples that go beyond what I include here. I always pick up this book when lesson planning. Highly recommend! 🙂 

Note:

1. This isn’t a sponsored recommendation. I genuinely find it valuable. ↩︎