If you want your children to learn and retain a new skill or concept, what way of teaching that skill or concept do you think works best? Look over the teaching strategies listed below and pick the one you think would have the greatest impact on retention of material.

Explaining it to them verbally.
Having them read the material to themselves.
Demonstrating the skill so they can see it being done correctly.
Having them do it themselves.
Testing them on it.

None of the items listed creates the greatest incidence of retention of material. The teaching strategy that has the best impact on remembering skills or concepts is not listed here.

There are two ways to measure retention of material. One is to measure the percent of the material that is remembered. The second is to measure the length of time the material is retained before it is forgotten. Explaining a skill verbally is not the most effective way to promote either the percent of material retained or the length of time for which it is retained. Nor is having children read the material to themselves, demonstrating the skill, having them do it themselves, or testing them on it. The greatest amount of retention of material occurs when children teach a concept or skill to someone else.

Teaching a skill to someone else moves that concept from short-term to long-term memory. If you explain how to do long division to another person two or three times, they may never understand the process, but you (the explainer) will experience greater clarity and learning. When you teach a skill or concept, you have to think about it, formulate it in your mind, rehearse how you want to explain it, say it aloud, and adjust your responses to the learner