Application of the Presentation Model of Teaching with a Lesson on the Ten Commandments

When mentoring our pre-service and in-service teachers we need to describe and model both research-based and clinically tested best practices. Accordingly our mentees should know about the Presentation Model of Teaching.

The presentation or advance organizer model of teaching is a teacher-directed and systematically organized way of delivering information to students. An application of the Presentation Model of Teaching follows:

Four Steps of the Presentation Model of Teaching

Enduring Jewish Knowledge: Mitzvot are commandments that Jewish people are obligated to observe.

Content: The First Ten Commandments or Statements

Steps	Description	Teacher and/or Student Behavior
1	Get students ready to learn and clarify the objective/s of the lesson	Teacher presents a replica of the Ten Commandments to the students with only the Roman numerals (I, II, III … X) visible and asks: “What does this represent?” I VI II VII III VIII IV IX V X After facilitating a brief classroom discussion, the teacher says, “the objective of today’s lesson is to learn the meaning of each of the Ten Commandments or Statements.”
2	Present the advance organizer	Teacher notes that next to each Roman numeral is a blank space, and today we will record the correct Commandment next to each number.
3	Present new information	Teacher reads each statement aloud, and then records each one next to its corresponding number, gives an explanation of difficult points, and shares concrete examples. For example, the teacher says, “The first Commandment on the tablet says ‘I am the L-rd your G-d.’ This tells us that there is only one G-d, your G-d. The second Commandment says, ‘You shall have no other gods before me.’ This tells us that you may not worship other gods.” The teacher continues recording, and explaining the Ten Commandments.
4	Check for student understanding, extend and strengthen thinking skills	Teacher checks for student understanding During the presentation the teacher makes certain that each student understands the meaning of each Commandment by inviting class members to complete the handout displayed below. Teacher asks questions to assess student comprehension. Teacher asks students to summarize or paraphrase the main points. Teacher re-teaches content when students appear confused about the meaning of a Commandment.

The Ten Commandments/Statements and What They Mean To You

(Handout)

Commandment Number	What the Commandment Says	What Does the Commandment Mean to You?
1	I am the L-rd your G-d (Ex. 20:2)
2	You shall have no other gods before me (Ex. 20:3-6)
3	You shall not take the name of G-d in vain (Ex. 20:7)
4	You shall remember the Sabbath and keep it holy (Ex. 20:12)
5	You shall honor your father and mother (Ex. 20:12)
6	You shall not murder (Ex. 20:13)
7	You shall not commit adultery (Ex. 20:13)
8	You shall not steal (Ex. 20:13)
9	You shall not bear false witness (Ex. 20:16)
10	You shall not covet (e.g. your neighbor’s house, wife, property, etc.) (Ex. 20:14)

On the next post we will share additional applications of the Presentation Model of Teaching in seven different Judaic content areas.