Instructional Routines

First Weeks of School

Routines reduce cognitive load, make student thinking visible, and support scientific discourse. They work because they’re predictable—students know what to expect, which frees them to focus on the science. The first few weeks feel slow as students learn the routines; by mid-module, they run themselves.

Collaborative Conversation Routines
Think–Pair–Share, Question Corners, Inside–Outside Circles, and Jigsaw are embedded in lessons throughout each module. These support student-to-student discourse, which is central to the PhD Science experience.

Written Response Routines
Chalk Talk (silent conversation on chart paper) and Gallery Walk (sticky-note feedback on peers’ work) foster universal participation and give every student a voice, including those who may not speak up in whole-class discussion.

Vocabulary Routines
PhD Science introduces terminology after students have developed conceptual understanding—not before. When a new term is introduced, use the explicit vocabulary steps: oral introduction, morphology, cognates, alternate definitions, varying contexts, and images or movement. Reusable sentence frames (“I notice ___,” “I think ___ because I see ___,” “When ___, then ___”) support scientific language development for all learners.