BONUS: Drowning in Standards? How to Cut Back to What Matters MOST
Schoolutions: Curious Educators. Evidence-Based Strategies. Classrooms Where Every Child Thrives.
11/07/25
•13m
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In this S5E10 Schoolutions Teaching Strategies BONUS, I break down the Essential Standards Framework from Larry Ainsworth that completely transformed my teaching—and can transform yours too. Stop drowning in standards and start teaching what actually matters.
🎯 The Game-Changer: Research shows students who master 88% of standards perform BETTER on tests than those who skim through 100%. This episode gives you three actionable insights from my conversation with Larry that you can implement Monday morning.
What You'll Learn:
✅ How the 88% solution frees you from coverage panic and improves student success
✅ A breakthrough approach for special education that maintains rigor while ensuring access (7th-grade thinking with 3rd-grade texts!)
✅ How to transform performance tasks from extra work to THE work
✅ The R-E-A-L criteria framework to identify your own essential standards (even if your district hasn't done this work)
Key Topics Covered:
- Overcoming teacher test anxiety through focused instruction and lesson planning
- Using the R-E-A-L criteria: Readiness, Endurance, Assessment, Leverage
- Maintaining rigor for students with disabilities and multilingual learners through inclusive teaching
- Replacing traditional instruction with authentic performance tasks that drive student engagement and active learning
- Creating clarity for student success and thriving students
This isn't about lowering expectations—it's about raising achievement through innovative teaching and a pro-kid mindset. Stop covering content and start uncovering what your students truly need with these practical teaching tips and instructional coaching insights.
Chapters
0:00 - Introduction: The Essential Standards Framework
1:00 - The 88% Solution: Why Less Coverage = Better Results
3:00 - Teacher Test Anxiety & the R-E-A-L Criteria Framework
5:00 - Monday Move: Identifying Your Essential Standards
6:00 - Game-Changer for Special Education & Multilingual Learners
7:00 - The Formula: Grade-Level Thinking with Accessible Texts
8:00 - Performance Tasks: Replacement Work, Not Extra Work
9:00 - Authentic Learning Examples (Instagram Profiles, Podcasts, Community Gardens)
10:00 - Your Practical Roadmap: Where to Start
12:00 - The Power of Clarity in Teaching
13:00 - Challenge: Use the REAL Criteria This Week
14:00 - Final Invitation & Closing Thoughts
🚀📚 Watch the full S5E10 @schoolutionspodcast interview here.
Join our community of educators committed to cultivating student success, inspired teaching, and creating inclusive classrooms with a pro-kid mindset focused on the whole child. When coaches, teachers, administrators, and families work hand in hand, it fosters a school atmosphere where everyone is inspired and every student is fully engaged in their learning journey.
📧 Connect: schoolutionspodcast@gmail.com
🎵 Music: Benjamin Wahl
#EssentialStandards #TeachingStrategies #EducationPodcast #TeacherLife #InstructionalCoaching #StudentEngagement #ActiveLearning #EffectiveTeaching #LessonPlanning #InnovativeTeaching #InclusiveTeaching #SpecialEducation #TeacherSupport #ProfessionalDevelopment #InstructionalLeadership #StudentSuccess #ThrivingStudents #EmpoweredEducators #EducationTransformation #TeacherImpact #EquityInEducation #InclusiveClassrooms #ProKidMindset #W
When coaches, teachers, administrators, and families work hand in hand, it fosters a school atmosphere where everyone is inspired and every student is fully engaged in their learning journey.
Previous Episode
Less is More: Rethinking Essential Standards for Deeper Learning
November 3, 2025
•43m
In this S5E10 Schoolutions Teaching Strategies conversation, join me with Larry Ainsworth, the pioneer of essential standards work, where he reveals why focusing deeply on fewer standards leads to BETTER assessment results than frantically trying to cover everything. Yes, you read that right: 88% focused teaching outperforms 100% surface-level teaching.
What You'll Learn:
✅ The REAL criteria for identifying essential standards (Readiness, Endurance, Assessment, Leverage)
✅ How to support students with disabilities and multilingual learners with essential standards
✅ Why teachers MUST be involved in selecting essential standards (ownership matters!)
✅ How to scaffold instruction for students reading below grade level while maintaining grade-level expectations
✅ The connection between essential standards and project-based learning, classroom engagement, and student motivation
✅ Why Arizona is now weighting its state assessments toward essential standards
✅ How essential standards save time and guide effective teaching, lesson planning, and instructional strategies
Larry has guided educators for over two decades and helped countless schools create culturally responsive teaching environments with equity in education at the center.
Resources from Larry:
💫Inquiring Minds Want to Know: FAQs About Prioritizing Standards
💫Integrating Teaching & Learning Newsletter & Books
💫Essential Standards: Pathway to Success for All Students Course
CHAPTERS
0:00 - Introduction: The Standards Struggle
0:41 - The 88% Solution: Focus Over Coverage
3:00 - Meet Larry Ainsworth: Pioneer of Essential Standards
5:00 - Defining Essential Standards: Power, Priority, or Essential?
9:00 - The 88% Question: Will Students Fail the Test?
14:00 - Supporting Students with Disabilities with Essential Standards
17:00 - Scaffolding Strategy: Meeting Students Where They Are
19:00 - The REAL Criteria: Readiness, Endurance, Assessment, Leverage
23:00 - Assessment and the State Testing Reality
25:00 - Project-Based Learning and Essential Standards
27:00 - This IS the Unit: Depth Over Breadth
28:00 - Focus Dispels the Illusion of Coverage
30:00 - The Administrator's Role: Coach, Cheerleader, Quarterback
33:00 - Lightning Round: Essential Standards vs. Backward Design
35:00 - State-Level Essential Standards: Good or Undermining?
37:00 - The Spectacular Failure: When Teachers Aren't Involved
39:00 - Final Takeaway: Essential Standards as the Foundation
41:00 - Closing: Resources and Next Steps
Join our community of educators committed to cultivating student success, inspired teaching, and creating inclusive classrooms with a pro-kid mindset focused on the whole child.
📧 Connect: schoolutionspodcast@gmail.com
🎵 Music: Benjamin Wahl
When coaches, teachers, administrators, and families work hand in hand, it fosters a school atmosphere where everyone is inspired and every student is fully engaged in their learning journey.
Next Episode
5 Steps to Creating a Classroom of Problem Solvers
November 10, 2025
•45m
In this S5E11 Schoolutions Teaching Strategies conversation, elementary educator and math coach Mona Iehl shares her transformative 5-step Word Problem Workshop method that's revolutionizing how students engage with mathematics. From "I'm not a math person" to confident problem solver—this conversation will change how you think about teaching math.
🎯 What You'll Learn:
- The 5 steps to creating a classroom of problem solvers (Launch, Grapple, Share, Discuss, Reflect)
- How to plan an entire week of word problems in ONE prep period
- Why student-centered methods foster student engagement and student motivation better than traditional approaches
- The forecasting guide that transforms lesson planning and instructional strategies
- How to choose problems that challenge WITHOUT overwhelming
- Building positive math identities through classroom belonging and student participation
This isn't just about math—it's about effective teaching that builds the whole child through culturally responsive teaching and equity in education.
Resources Mentioned:
📚 Word Problem Workshop by Mona Iehl
📚 Five Practices for Orchestrating Mathematical Discussions by Peg Smith
📚 Adding It Up - Five Strands of Mathematical Proficiency
Chapters:
0:00 Introduction & Preview
2:00 Welcome & Guest Introduction
3:00 Book Reveal: Word Problem Workshop
4:00 Research Foundation: Peg Smith & Five Practices
5:47 Math Identities & Personal Journey
7:00 Project-Based Learning vs. Traditional Math
8:00 Traditional Word Problems vs. Word Problem Workshop
10:00 Student-Centered Learning & Building Confidence
11:00 Five Strands of Mathematical Proficiency
12:00 Conceptual Understanding in Practice
13:00 Strategic Competence & Adaptive Reasoning
15:00 Community-Based Learning Approach
16:00 Step 1: Launch - Packing the Backpack
16:37 Step 2: Grapple - Independent Problem Solving
17:00 The Joy of Figuring It Out
18:00 Step 3: Share - Making Thinking Visible
18:30 Step 4: Discuss - Facilitating Discourse
19:00 Step 5: Reflect - John Dewey's Wisdom
20:00 The Power of Reflection (Nuthall's 20% Research)
21:00 Teacher Roles in Word Problem Workshop
22:00 Getting Curious About Student Thinking
24:00 Teacher as Scribe During Sharing
25:00 Planning Magic: A Week in One Prep
26:00 Choosing Learning Goals & Problems
27:00 The Challenge Problem Philosophy
29:00 The Forecasting Guide Tool
30:00 Planning for All Learners
31:00 Collaborative Planning Time
33:00 Overcoming Fear: First Steps for Teachers
35:00 Administrator Support & Clear Focus
37:00 Supporting Math at Home: Caregiver Tips
38:00 Modeling Mathematical Thinking
39:00 Lightning Round: Math Misconceptions
40:00 Vision for Positive Math Identity Classrooms
42:00 Equitable Access & Confident Communities
43:00 Final Thoughts: Teachers as the Most Important
44:00 Closing & Call to Action
Connect with Mona:
📧 Connect: schoolutionspodcast@gmail.com
🎵 Music: Benjamin Wahl
When coaches, teachers, administrators, and families work hand in hand, it fosters a school atmosphere where everyone is inspired and every student is fully engaged in their learning journey.
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