Last week’s theory blog focused on a critical shift: learning is not strengthened by clarity alone, but by what learners are required to generate from memory. Students can watch, listen, and nod along and still learn very little. Generation is what turns instruction into learning. 

This blog focuses on simple strategies you can use in your classroom tomorrow. Everything below can be implemented without redesigning your unit or rewriting your materials.

As you try these routines, keep three principles in mind:

• Generate before giving answers.
• Keep it brief, frequent, and low-stakes.
• Use what students generate as evidence to guide next steps.

Pick one or two routines, try them for a week, and watch what becomes visible. Remember that effective retrieval assumes there is already something in memory to retrieve. Retrieval activities do not replace instruction or serve as initial comprehension tasks. Instead, they are used once learners have begun encoding new knowledge and are ready to consolidate and strengthen the neural pathways associated with that learning. When used at the right time, retrieval stabilizes what has already been learned and makes it more accessible in the future

1.  The 90-Second Generate-First Warm-Up

Goal: Replace passive review with retrieval and explanation. 

How to run it tomorrow:

• Post one prompt aligned to a current or recent scale target.
  • Explain the difference between renewable and nonrenewable resources.
  • From memory, list the steps we use to solve a system of equations.
• Give students 90 seconds to respond from memory—no notes, no slides.
• Ask students to underline what they are confident about and star what feels uncertain.
• Briefly model or clarify, then move on.

Why it works:

Retrieval followed by immediate feedback strengthens memory and reveals what students actually know, not just what they recognize.

 CBE connection:

This routine produces clear 2.0 and early 3.0 evidence and helps students monitor their own progress on the proficiency scale.

2.  Predict Before You Show

Goal: Surface prior knowledge and assumptions before instruction.

How to run it tomorrow:

Before demonstrating a process, experiment, or solution:

• Ask students to predict what will happen or what the answer might be. Include asking them why and it takes it to another level.
• Collect responses quickly (notebooks, whiteboards, or a quick poll).
• Then model the correct process or outcome. 

Why it works:

Prediction activates existing schema and creates productive cognitive tension. Even incorrect predictions strengthen learning by preparing the brain to revise understanding.

CBE connection:

Predictions provide diagnostic evidence of foundational knowledge and misconceptions before formal instruction begins.

3. Explain It Like You’re Teaching It

Goal: Move students from recall to meaning-making.

How to run it tomorrow:

After teaching a concept:

• Ask students to write or record a brief explanation as if they were teaching a peer.
• Prompt them to explain the why, not just the steps.
• Attempt to encourage them to keep it short. Do not exceed one paragraph, one minute, one diagram.

Why it works:

Explanation requires learners to organize ideas, connect concepts, and retrieve knowledge independently.

CBE connection:

Student explanations are strong 3.0 evidence and often reveal misconceptions that would otherwise remain hidden.

4.  Generate Before the Notes

Goal: Thinking this way helps prevent the processing and recording steps of the Marzano Academies Instructional Model from devolving into transcription during note-taking. Simply having notes is not the key to learning; at best, it encourages rereading or reviewing prior to an assessment. This approach to studying has shown to be ineffective for strengthening learning. Instead, instruction should require students to process information and make their own connections so new material is meaningfully consolidated with prior knowledge.

How to run it tomorrow:

• Pose a question or problem related to the day’s learning goal.
• Give students 2–3 minutes to write what they already know or think they know.
• Then provide notes, models, or examples.
• Ask students to revise their initial response in a different color.

Why it works:

Generation primes attention and makes new information more meaningful because students are comparing it to their own thinking.

CBE connection:

This routine supports self-assessment and helps students see how their understanding develops over time.

5.  One-Take Representations

Goal: Make thinking visible through drawing or modeling.

 How to run it tomorrow:

• Ask students to create a quick representation of a concept (diagram, model, flowchart).
• No notes. One attempt.
• Afterward, compare to a model and allow brief revisions. 

Why it works:

Representation forces learners to select key ideas and organize relationships, strengthening schema construction.

CBE connection:

Representations provide concrete evidence of understanding and are especially useful for monitoring progression from 2.0 to 3.0.

6.  Justify the Answer, Not Just the Answer

 Goal: Deepen reasoning and accuracy.

How to run it tomorrow:

When students respond to a question, add one follow-up prompt: Why does this answer make sense? or What evidence supports your claim?

Why it works:

Justification pushes students beyond recall and into reasoning, revealing how well knowledge is integrated.

CBE connection:

Justifications align directly with 3.0 expectations and help differentiate between correct guesses and genuine understanding.

7.  The “What’s Missing?” Check

Goal: Identify errors of omission early.

How to run it tomorrow:

• After a generated response, ask students: What information would make this answer stronger or more accurate?
• Collect responses quickly and scan for patterns.

Why it works:

Students learn to recognize gaps in their own understanding, a key metacognitive skill.

CBE connection:

This supports accurate self-assessment and prevents students from moving forward without secure foundational knowledge.

Try One, Not All

You do not need more activities. You need more generation embedded into what you already do.

For this week:

• Choose one “generate-first” routine.
• Apply it to one learning target.
• Use the evidence to adjust instruction.

When students generate, their thinking becomes visible. When their thinking becomes visible, instruction improves. And when instruction improves, learning follows.

If you would like to deepen your understanding of generative learning within the Marzano Academies Instructional Model, consider exploring one of the Learning Hub’s Badging Experiences or subscribing to the Learning Lab for access to research folios, strategy guides, and a professional community focused on competency-based practice.