Teachers carry their new learning forward when they co-plan a lesson they will co-teach in the host teachers’ classrooms later in the day. As they begin co-planning, a teacher from the PD site who will serve as a ‘host teacher’ orients their colleagues to what their students have been learning prior to the LLSS PD day, to where they are in a RIW investigation, and to their goals for students’ learning on the PD day. Teachers then develop a lesson or refine a draft lesson that can extend their new learning and support the goals for students’ learning. Focusing the lesson on one phase of social studies inquiry and corresponding RIW instructional routine or tool creates structure while also offering the collective an opportunity to draw on shared experiences and language from the inquiry teaching they are doing in their ‘home’ classrooms. Looking at concrete artifacts that pertain to the lesson in some way can support teachers in thinking together about the lesson. Identifying student artifacts that will be created during the lesson (their notes, annotations, etc.) is also important for supporting reflection on concrete examples of students’ thinking and learning after the lesson.

It is important to plan specifically who will lead-teach which parts of the lesson, so that teachers have the opportunity to take turns closely observing student thinking and trying out a part of a new lesson. This creates a sense of shared responsibility for supporting students’ learning, offers everyone practice in noticing students’ thinking, and positions all of the adults in the classroom equally, increasing trust and mutual support and putting everyone “on the same team” as they work together to learn more about student thinking and support student learning. Potential places for calling Teacher Time Outs (TTOs)* can also be identified in this planning.