BOPPPS Model
BOPPPS is a six-part lesson structure from the Canadian Instructional Skills Workshop: Bridge-in, Objectives, Pre-assessment, Participatory learning, Post-assessment and Summary. It gives any single session a clear opening, a checked starting point, an active middle and a verified close.
When your sessions feel disjointed or participants lose focus
Your meetings or sessions need better pacing, clearer transitions, or more engaging sequences to keep participants engaged.
When you need a reliable, easy-to-teach structure for a single training session or lesson, especially for new trainers or subject experts who tend to lecture.
Bridge-in
Open with a question, story or problem that shows why the topic matters to this group. It earns attention and links to what people already know.
Objectives
State in plain terms what participants will be able to do by the end. Keep it to one to three outcomes that can be checked.
Pre-assessment
Find out quickly what the group already knows or can do, for example with a poll, a show of hands or a short task. Adjust the depth of the next part to what you learn.
Participatory learning
The core of the session, usually about half the time: people work on the content through discussion, practice, cases or problem-solving rather than listening only.
Post-assessment
Check whether the objectives were reached with a short task, quiz, demonstration or reflection. Use it to see what needs revisiting.
Summary
Close by pulling together the key points, returning to the objectives and pointing to what comes next or how the learning will be used.
Creates natural rhythm and momentum that keeps energy high throughout.
Use the six letters as a checklist when drafting a session or a single block: each part becomes a timed agenda item, with participatory learning taking the largest share. It works as the default skeleton for a 45-120 minute training module.
- 1Vary the pace between high and low energy activities
- 2Use clear transitions between sections
- 3Build complexity gradually throughout
- 4End with actionable takeaways
- Single training sessions and modules
- Subject experts learning to teach
- Train-the-trainer programmes
- Higher education and professional courses
- Start from relevance and prior knowledge
- Make outcomes explicit and checkable
- Assess before and after, not only at the end
- Active participation is the core of the session
- Designed for a single lesson, so it does not shape a multi-day arc by itself.
- Pre- and post-assessment can feel like testing; keep them light and formative with adult groups.
- Much of the published effectiveness research comes from medical education in China, often with small samples and short follow-up.