Teach Like a Champion

Teach Like a Champion – Doug Lemov

What exactly do the most effective teachers do differently in their classrooms? Doug Lemov, a teacher, school leader and managing director of Uncommon Schools, spent years observing outstanding teachers in high-performing schools, many of them serving students from low-income communities, to find out.

In Teach Like a Champion: 49 Techniques That Put Students on the Path to College, Lemov describes the specific, practical techniques he saw these teachers use to raise student achievement. Rather than focusing on broad educational theories, he breaks great teaching down into concrete, observable actions that any teacher can learn and practice.

The techniques cover key areas of classroom practice: setting high academic expectations, planning lessons that ensure student achievement, structuring and delivering lessons effectively, engaging students, creating a strong classroom culture, setting and maintaining high behavioral expectations, building character and trust, and improving pacing and questioning. Memorably named techniques, such as No Opt Out, Right Is Right, Cold Call and Wait Time, make the ideas easy to remember and discuss.

The book also includes guidance on reading instruction and was accompanied by video examples of teachers using the techniques in real classrooms.

Practical, detailed and widely used in teacher training programs, Teach Like a Champion is an essential resource for new and experienced teachers, school leaders and teacher educators who want to improve classroom practice and help every student succeed.