Introduce the language concept (skill or knowledge) using examples from material students are presently listening to or reading, or from students' own speaking or writing.

Provide students with any additional, relevant information about the concept and use more samples, if necessary, to explain further or exemplify the concept.

Provide a brief interactive activity to help students establish relationships between the new skill or knowledge and their current language use. Activities in which students work in pairs or small groups are useful because, as students talk, they clarify their own and others' understanding. Activities should make use of language experiences in which students are currently engaged in order for learning to be relevant (e.g., have students locate examples of compound sentences in the novel they are reading or in their own writing).

Review the major points made during the mini-lesson and record the information with some examples. Post the information in a prominent place in the classroom or have students take brief notes for future reference.

Have students immediately apply the new knowledge or skill in their own speaking, listening, writing, or reading experiences. For example, following a mini-lesson about sentence combining, have students combine several sentences in a draft of their own writing.

Mini-lessons may be taught to the whole class, to small groups, or to individual students, depending upon their assessed needs. The lesson objectives and student needs will determine the type of language study instruction required at any given time. Teachers can identify the language concepts they need to teach by observing students' language use, noting their abilities, and keeping track of the types of errors they make.