This Japanese teacher offers an example of how to scaffold students through challenging work. The teacher is committed to build a deep understanding of mathematics and does not want to take any shortcuts. Noticing that students are struggling to understand, he provides different examples to lead students through step-by-step. The teacher speaks out their thinking to expose his reasoning to the class.

This is an urban, public school. Watch out for how the teacher:
- Notices students are struggling to understand

- Uses visual aids to assist their explanation

- Models another example problem

How do you align instruction to student thinking in your own classroom?