Direct Instruction was created by Siegfried Engelmann and has proven to be an effective teaching method for students and schools that are at-risk. Project Follow Through used Direct Instruction within schools to see how effective it really is. This guide will explain what steps and skills are important in implementing Direct Instruction.

Project Follow Through is a program that uses full-school implemented instructions to help increase the success of at-risk schools. Different instructions would be applied to different at-risk schools and children to determine which it the best approach to instructing at-risk children. Direct Instruction was one of the programs implemented by at-risk schools to see if it was one of the most effective approach to teach at-risk children.

Direct Instruction (DI) incorporates explicit instruction, increasing on-task behaviors, high levels of success, emphasis on curriculum design and has extensive teaching procedures. DI teaches children until they reach mastery level. Once the material is mastered, they can then move onto the next step of the material.

Step 1: Homogeneous Grouping

Begin by grouping your students into three groups. The groups should consist of the low, middle to high students. By grouping the children homogeneously, all the students in each group will be on the "same step of the instructional sequence" (Engelmann, 2004). The higher students will not become bored while the lower students struggle with the material. Everyone can learn at the same pace within the group and each student will be able to reach mastery.

Engelmann, S. (2004). Foreward. In V. Lanigan (Ed.), Introduction to direct instruction (p. xxiii). Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.

Step 2: Use a Consistent Signal

Incorporating a signal within your teaching helps the students know to respond after hearing the signal. Within a school in Providence, the teacher asks "'We're going to start with the days of the week. Tell me what day is today...Get ready.' The teacher claps. As she does, nearly all the children respond, 'Tuesday'" (Engelmann, 2007). This example shows how all the students responded as soon as they heard the clap. After that, whenever the teacher clapped, the students responded in unison after the signal.

Engelmann, S. (2007). Teaching needy kids in our backward system (p. 150). Eugene, OR: ADI Press.

Step 3: Short and Simple

When teaching, keep your wording as short and simple as possible. If the wording of a explanation becomes too long, the students can become distracted or are not sure as to what you are teaching. The wording should be short and to the point when teaching a new concept. Minimize your wording to avoid any confusion among your students. "If the program were designed so that it communicated very directly and clearly to the students, the number of misinterpretations would be reduced and learning would occur faster" (Engelmann, 2004).

Engelmann, S. (2004). Foreward. In V. Lanigan (Ed.), Introduction to direct instruction (p. xx). Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.

Step 4: Instructional Sequence

Sequence your instruction so that the easy skills are taught first and any skills that are then added too later on should be taught first. Avoid jumping around when teaching new material so the students can understand the order and why the steps are important being taught in that way. Think of the sequence as a staircase that you are building on and teaching a little each day. "But if we designed the sequence properly, any child who could stand firmly on the first step of the staircase-performing perfectly on the basic skills-could learn enough to reach the next step and the next and, ultimately, reach the goal of the sequence" (Engelmann, 2004).

Engelmann, S. (2004). Foreward. In V. Lanigan (Ed.), Introduction to direct instruction (p. xix). Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.

Step 5: Use a Script

Using a script allows for all teachers within a school district to teach the same content, in the same way and without confusing any students. Each class is learning in the same format and all the teachers are coordinated in their efforts. The script helps the teacher know what to say and how to present the material so there is less confusion on how lessons should be created.

Only watch the first minute and 2 seconds to see the teachers holding their "scripts."