School assembly talk
A ten-minute assembly for teachers, principals or student leaders: a hook, a theme like kindness or resilience, a story, a challenge for the week and notices.
Presentation10 cardsAbout 8 min to speakBeginnerSchool
Lesson introduction
Teacher cue cards for the first eight minutes of a lesson: settle routine, a hook, the learning intention and success criteria, a recall check and a clear first task.
Free to use, edit, print and study. No account needed: your set stays on this device.
The cards
- 1
Settle (1 min)
Good [morning / afternoon], [class]. Bags down, [books / laptops] out, date and title: [lesson title].
Wait for quiet. Thank students who are ready.
- 2
Do now (3 min)
On the board: [two or three quick questions on last lesson / a picture to describe / a word to define].
Work silently, on your own.
- 3
Hook
[A surprising question, object, image, short clip or real-world problem, e.g. "Why does ice float when most solids sink?"]
Turn to your partner: what do you think?
- 4
Learning intention
Today we are learning [to ... / about ... / how ...].
This matters because [link to real life, the next topic or the exam].
- 5
Success criteria
You'll know you've got it when you can:
- [I can ... (basic)]
- [I can ... (secure)]
- [I can ... (stretch)]
- 6
Key vocabulary
Three words we'll use today:
- [word]: [student-friendly meaning]
- [word]: [meaning]
- [word]: [meaning]
Say each one together as a class.
- 7
Recall check
Cold call or mini whiteboards: [two questions on what they need to know first].
If many students are unsure: [quick reteach plan].
- 8
First task
Your first task is [task] on [page / worksheet / screen].
You have [minutes]. If you finish, [extension]. If stuck, [help strategy: check notes, ask partner, then me].
- 9
Check instructions
[Student name], tell me what you're doing first. [Student name], how long do we have?
Start the timer. Circulate to the students who usually need help first.
- 10
Mini check-in (after 5 min of the task)
Pens down for a moment. Thumbs up, sideways or down: how confident are you with [the first success criterion]?
[Group the thumbs-down students for a quick reteach while others continue.]
How to use this template
The first few minutes of a lesson decide how the rest of it goes. This lesson introduction template gives teachers, student teachers and relief teachers a calm, repeatable start that works in primary and secondary classrooms in any subject. The cards cover a settle routine, a do-now activity that reviews prior learning, a hook that sparks curiosity, the learning intention and success criteria in student-friendly language, a quick recall check and a clear first task with time, extension and help strategy. A final card checks that instructions have landed before students start. Fill in the brackets for your topic. The cards are especially useful during observations, when nerves make it easy to forget a step. A vocabulary card introduces the three key words before students meet them in the task, which helps every learner, not only those learning in an additional language.
Tips
- Have the do-now on the board before students arrive so the lesson starts the moment they sit down.
- Write success criteria at three levels so every student can find a starting point and something to stretch towards.
- Use cold call or mini whiteboards for the recall check, so you hear from the whole class, not just the confident hands.
- Keep the hook short: one or two minutes of curiosity is enough to carry into the learning intention.
- Ask two different students to repeat the instructions back before you start the timer.
- Use the same structure every lesson; routines free students to think about the content rather than what happens next.
- Note on your last card which students needed help during the introduction, so you can check on them first in the next lesson.
Make it fit
- For younger primary classes, use pictures for the success criteria and a song or signal for the settle routine.
- For practical subjects such as science, art or technology, add a card on safety and equipment before the first task.
- For a relief or substitute lesson, add a card with your name, the class teacher's expectations and where the work is.
- For English language learners, add key vocabulary with pictures to the learning intention card.
- For online lessons, use a chat question for the do-now and polls for the recall check.
Updated October 28, 2026