One major thing

Like saying "Thanks for the food, it was awesome!" after a really good meal.

I am definitely doing this wrong so far:

Algebra 1 gets a lot of feedback from me because they are much more free about responding when I check for understanding in class.

Algebra Readiness does not get enough feedback from me because I do not illicit their response enough. They are not free about shouting out answers (when it's appropriate to shout out of course).

Hence, my Algebra 1 classes are going WAY more smoothly than Algebra Readiness. It can be that they are Algebra 1 students, who (at the 7th and 8th grade level at least) are considered "advanced math" students anyway.

But Algebra Readiness students need much more careful attention than I'm giving them so far.

Teacher action: MAKE THEM RESPOND! Coach the answer out of them! Positive pressure them until they say something!

I've been WAY too delicate about "not embarrassing them" in my first three weeks of teaching (to build positive relationships with students) that I don't even bother getting enough CFU in Algebra Readiness.

Well, that's going to change. Starting now.