Veqtari
The framework

The Outstanding Lesson Framework

Eight strands, in Veqtari's own words, drawn from widely respected evidence: Rosenshine's Principles of Instruction, cognitive load theory, Dylan Wiliam's formative assessment strategies, and the guidance of England's Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework and the Education Endowment Foundation.

Lesson Builder plans for every strand. Lesson Review rates each one, from Not yet to Exemplary, quoting the lesson as evidence. The ratings are a guide for professional reflection.

Veqtari supports teachers' professional judgement; it does not inspect, grade or certify lessons.

1 · Not yet2 · Developing3 · Secure4 · Exemplary

1Purpose and hook

Students know what they are learning, why it matters and how it connects.

What we look for

  • A key question, not just a title
  • A clear link to prior learning
  • A clear link to what comes next in the sequence
  • A hook: a puzzle, a story, an image, a real-world case
  • Success criteria students can check against

Common gaps

  • Learning objective copied from the scheme and never returned to
  • Activity-led lesson with no clear end point

Quick fixes

  • Turn the title into a key question and return to it at the end
  • Add a 'last lesson / next lesson' strip to the title slide

2Retrieval and recall

The lesson opens by making every student recall earlier learning.

What we look for

  • A Do Now ready on entry, answered in silence by every student
  • Questions from last lesson, last week and last term (spaced)
  • Mixed topics (interleaved), not just this unit
  • Answers checked quickly and gaps noted

Common gaps

  • Starter about today's topic, which students have not met yet
  • Retrieval only from last lesson

Quick fixes

  • Use a 5-question Do Now: 2 last lesson, 2 last month, 1 last term
  • Self-mark with a show of fingers or whiteboards

3Explanation, modelling and vocabulary

New material is taught in small steps, modelled and made concrete.

What we look for

  • New content in small steps, one idea per slide
  • Worked examples before independent work
  • Words and pictures together (dual coding), with little text per slide
  • Key vocabulary taught explicitly: said, defined, used
  • Likely misconceptions named and corrected
  • Thinking aloud: the teacher shows how an expert approaches it

Common gaps

  • Text-heavy slides read aloud
  • Students asked to do before they have been shown

Quick fixes

  • Split dense slides; move text into the speaker notes
  • Add a worked example, then a near-identical 'your turn'

4Checking for understanding

The teacher knows, during the lesson, what every student understands, and acts on it.

What we look for

  • Hinge questions at key moments, with plausible wrong answers
  • Mini whiteboards or other all-student responses
  • Cold calling, with no hands up for checks
  • A planned response when many students get it wrong

Common gaps

  • 'Any questions?' or 'Does everyone understand?' as the only check
  • Only volunteers answer

Quick fixes

  • Insert a multiple-choice hinge question after each explanation
  • Add a 'if fewer than 80% correct, reteach with...' note

5Practice and independence

Students practise enough, with support that fades, to reach a high success rate.

What we look for

  • I do, we do, you do sequence
  • Scaffolds that are removed step by step
  • Enough practice questions, of rising difficulty
  • Success rate around 80% before independent work

Common gaps

  • Jump from one example to a hard task
  • Too little practice time

Quick fixes

  • Add a guided-practice slide between the model and the task
  • Grade practice questions: bronze, silver, gold

6Adaptive teaching

Every student can access the lesson and every student is stretched.

What we look for

  • Support built in: sentence starters, glossaries, chunked tasks
  • Stretch built in: harder questions, open tasks, 'why' prompts
  • Reading load matched to the class
  • SEND and EAL access considered in the plan

Common gaps

  • One task for all, with 'extension: do more'
  • Ability labels given to students

Quick fixes

  • Add a scaffolded version of the main task
  • Replace 'do more' with a deeper-thinking challenge

7Feedback and assessment

Students know what good looks like and get feedback they act on.

What we look for

  • Success criteria and a model answer
  • Whole-class or live feedback during the lesson
  • Time to improve work (DIRT)
  • An exit ticket that checks the key question

Common gaps

  • No model of a good answer
  • Lesson ends without any check

Quick fixes

  • Add a model answer with annotations
  • End with a 3-question exit ticket tied to the key question

8Climate and behaviour for learning

Routines and expectations make learning the norm.

What we look for

  • Clear routines for entry, transitions and exit
  • Step-by-step instructions, given once, checked
  • Positive framing and high expectations
  • Timings visible, pace kept

Common gaps

  • Long, spoken-only instructions
  • Unplanned transitions

Quick fixes

  • Add an instructions slide: what, how long, how, then
  • Add a countdown and a routine for handing out resources