The greatest myth of math education is not learning styles, not timed tests, and not productive struggle. It’s that we should pretend that kids hating math has to do with some mystical mindset and not the quality of instruction. educationrickshaw.com/2025/09/20/s...

Success breeds success. Direct and explicit instruction propels a virtuous cycle. It gets kids on a winning streak. educationrickshaw.com/2025/09/16/d...

S5E02: Linda Diamond & Paige Pullen on Connecting Learning, Literacy, and Instruction educationrickshaw.com/2025/09/15/s...

The latest episode of Progressively Incorrect speaks to a missing piece of some districts’ science of reading initiatives: the crucial role of effective instruction and the broader science of learning. educationrickshaw.com/2025/09/15/s...

@gregashman.bsky.social was the first person who I engaged with and challenged me in a way that shattered my pedagogy and I hated him at first for it. Craig Barton has a much better story of leaving behind the inquiry-led drivel. But I’ll always appreciate what Greg Ashman did for me and my students

Wonderful news: lots of people like this episode, where myths are dispelled and evidence is discussed about explicit instruction. educationrickshaw.com/2025/09/02/s...

This post is about how I plan lessons from scratch, what we get right and wrong about lesson planning, and the great paradox of lesson planning: In a perfect world, it wouldn’t even exist! educationrickshaw.com/2025/09/06/t...

Season 5 is here! 🎉 Episode 1 is an absolute firestarter 🔥 - Greg Ashman joins me to unpack recent attempts to villainize “step-by-step instruction." We dive into productive failure, teacher prep, and the ideological divides in education. educationrickshaw.com/2025/09/02/s...

Lovely interview with host, Robyn Young, about the importance of evidence-based teaching, cognitive science, and how to avoid common instructional myths. open.spotify.com/episode/1ijC...

Somewhere amid the cajoling for a 5:1 ratio of praise to reprimand, and the countless attempts to gamify and incentivize student achievement, there is a path towards using praise in conjunction with Direct and Explicit Instruction to move kids forward educationrickshaw.com/2025/08/08/d...

I’ve done many writing episodes this season, including the very popular Writing Revolution episode. Great to end this season talking with a researcher- who has always been one foot in the classroom - about what research implies for writing instruction! educationrickshaw.com/2025/08/10/s...

"And students like Micah learn the wrong lesson: that surface-level activity earns the same praise as newfound competence." Spot on.

Here is the highly awaited Part 2 of my series on motivation within Direct and Explicit Instruction. This one is all about praise and acknowledgement. Engelmann makes an appearance, as does poor Micah's hot glued "robot." educationrickshaw.com/2025/08/08/d...

Over 100 reviews! a.co/d/4ZNX4IK

My latest blog on knowledge and explicit instruction educationrickshaw.com/2025/08/08/k...

As a school leader, you’re largely unable to locate a teacher on a rubric with accuracy, but you are perfectly positioned to create an effective PD program and a culture of feedback. Join our new cohort for once a month online training 👇👇👇 steplab.co/news/steplab...

Teachers in England know retrieval practice and cognitive load theory and American ones don’t - The Reverse Beatles Effect happening right now in education. educationrickshaw.com/2025/07/25/w...

I trust the words of this guy @mrarobbins.bsky.social

It’s a whole lot easier to implement the science of learning with a program that contains interleaving, spacing, incremental introduction of new topics for novices, etc, supported by active training/live coaching. This is not in place in many schools. educationrickshaw.com/2025/07/24/w...

At the National DI Conference, you’re expected to work on teaching, not merely talk about it. There’s rehearsal. There's feedback. There’s repetition. And there’s a final Check Out form - because ultimately we all came here to learn new skills. educationrickshaw.com/2025/07/24/w...

Direct Instruction Conference: No Flash, All Function educationrickshaw.com/2025/07/21/d...

Taking the long way to the Direct Instruction conference in Eugene, OR. Somehow at Claire’s in an outlet mall - oldest daughter is overjoyed Check out the latest episode of The DI Pod zachgroshell.wordpress.com/2025/07/13/h...

While critics paint explicit teaching as boring or uninspiring, the truth is that its structure, pace, and design motivate kids better than any other system. Here is my first post in a series about motivation. This one is about: momentum and perky pace educationrickshaw.com/2025/07/01/d...

Explicit instruction is a coordinated set of design and delivery tactics - a problem-solving approach - guided by working models of learner readiness and task complexity that adapt in response to observable changes in student performance. It’s not just the part where you talk. a.co/d/3DyjV8g

“There’s no time for x” and yet here we are, sitting for 60 minutes in a cafeteria, talking about a minor change to the teacher evaluation form via a 27 slide PowerPoint, while our test scores are at the bottom of the state and behavior is embarrassingly dismal. educationrickshaw.com/2025/06/12/w...

I’m proud of this episode because it’s “raw” and natural, and sort of documents exactly what I was thinking about on this one day in time haha educationrickshaw.com/2025/06/08/s...

While the world imagines that direct and explicit instruction is the "Anyone, anyone" scene from Ferris Bueller's Day Off, teachers that focus on honing their skills with this methodology become energized by the success of their students. educationrickshaw.com/2025/06/13/a...

The best schools develop teachers within the same time limits as everyone else—by stripping away fluff and protecting time for what matters. educationrickshaw.com/2025/06/12/w...

Join us, or simply register to get the recording, for a free flash webinar on practical ways to implement science of learning principles www.eventbrite.com/e/harnessing...

Free webinar today with myself and @mrzachg.bsky.social. It will be recorded if you cannot make it to the live event. 🙂 Not too late to sign up. Check out the link below for more info: www.eventbrite.com/e/harnessing...

I just bought your book Zach and am very much looking forward to getting into it! Making the leap from EYFS to Y5 next year 👍🏼

Sooooo cool to see this appear in Teach Like a Champion training! a.co/d/3PqNo4d

Amazing time catching up with Peps about some of the recent shifts in his thinking, including around whole school alignment and centralized planning educationrickshaw.com/2025/06/08/s...

Schools always find hours for meetings that don’t move the needle, yet when it comes to the one thing that matters most—instruction—suddenly there’s no time. But the truth is, when something matters, we make time for it. educationrickshaw.com/2025/06/12/w...

Read this book this summer. Then do one thing at a time. It's amazing how much each suggestion helps me be more effective.

Free books is cool!

The theme of this conference was “Next steps in the science of reading” and I made the argument that we need to apply what we’re doing in early literacy - explicit systematic instruction to manage working memory - to everything else we teach because learning is learning.

I helped put together this conference for teachers about direct and explicit instruction - a method that is both research-based and frequently mischaracterized by the overlords of education.

Pretty sure this amazing educator is in the air right now, but we’re going to be doing a lot of presenting together this week. Fly on! educationrickshaw.com/2025/05/14/s...

Spring has sprung & it’s time to re-read a few favourite books on the #ScienceOfReading! Re-Read Recommendation #7: Just Tell Them, @mrzachg.bsky.social 📕 Give clear explanations to students because they benefit from explicit explanations 📕 Use the “I do, We do, You do” model 📕 Minimize distractions

Rachel Ball, history nerd and instructional menace, chats about scaffolding and alternatives to differentiation-gone-mad educationrickshaw.com/2025/05/14/s...

Over the past year, I have released 10 episodes of The Direct Instruction Podcast. It has been well received, and my hope is that it has inspired discussion not just about the delivery of instruction, but the design of effective materials educationrickshaw.com/2025/05/15/t...

🚨🚨NEW PAPER ON INCLUSIVE TEACHING ...that I've been working (pretty intensely) on for the last few months. Details below: ↓

Going to be required reading…..

“In the United States, the teaching world is being thrilled by a young, new voice, with an engaging enthusiasm in explaining the instructional rethink for teachers. Guys, check out Zach Groshell’s book “Just tell them” Great review of my work and my book! www.educationtoday.com.au/news-detail/...

Some thoughts on educational consulting that is built to change schools vs educational consulting that is built to make schools feel good. educationrickshaw.com/2025/05/21/s...

Harnessing Attention and Explaining Better Webinar with @mrzachg.bsky.social and myself! It's FREE! effortfuleduktr.substack.com/p/harnessing...

This webinar, with @mrzachg.bsky.social and @blakeharvard.bsky.social is sure to be great! And it’s free!

Attention is often referred to as the gateway to cognition. Securing attention should be a major focus! But you also have to give students something to attend to. Faultless communications are also necessary. Registration is open for this free webinar! educationrickshaw.com/2025/05/19/h...

As schools move towards structured learning, it’s critical that they consider the scaffolds and adjustments that are needed to help all students achieve - and not fall back into the illusion that a single teacher should plan 30 different lessons for 30 kids. educationrickshaw.com/2025/05/14/s...