Kids on the Cusp / Passion-based Learning
by Mary Tarashuk · Published 01/23/2014 · Last modified 11/19/2019
Storytelling, in its richest form, has an incredible impact on children, writes 4th grade teacher Mary Tarashuk. As her students explore the world of August Pullman in R.J. Palacio’s novel Wonder, she witnesses passion-based learning in full flower.
Although skimming might seem to be the opposite of close reading, it is a crucial Common Core skill for pulling information out of a text – and one that’s often overlooked by teachers, says consultant Sarah Tantillo, author of The Literacy Cookbook.
How often do you share poetry with students? Reading interventionist and literacy coach Gwen Flaskamp shows how increasing students’ experience with poetry can build literacy, analytical and social-emotional skills and help meet Common Core standards.
Our chief guideline is the same for articles, book reviews and interviews: Tell our visitors what YOU would want to know if you were the reader, not the writer, and you are looking for ideas, practical tips, inspiration and collegiality.
In Celebrating Writers: From Possibilities to Publication, Ruth Ayres & Christi Overman provide clear, powerful ways to recognize and encourage the writer in all students – even those reluctant ones, says middle grades ELA teacher Kevin Hodgson.
Professional community / Working Draft
by Kevin Hodgson · Published 12/15/2013 · Last modified 11/25/2019
While teachers often lead a vibrant learning community within their classroom’s four walls, those walls can also be professionally isolating, says 6th grade teacher Kevin Hodgson. “Being part of a larger network…is empowering in ways that is difficult to put into words. Connections make you feel anchored to a movement. Seeking help is a show of strength.” The Nerdy Resolutions (#nerdlution) hashtag community, he says, is a prime example.
Reviewer Linda Biondi says Aimee Buckner’s new Nonfiction Notebooks “has been my friend, companion, teacher, and guide as I begin to navigate a new curriculum,” taking the angst out of teaching informational writing and replacing it with confidence.
Reviewer Susan Shaver recommends Igniting Your Potential to help adolescents develop into responsible & successful adults. The conversational writing & organization make the book good for sharing with parents & teens or in guided class discussions.
Working Draft / Writing & Game Design
by Kevin Hodgson · Published 12/01/2013 · Last modified 11/14/2019
Middle school teacher Kevin Hodgson describes how his ELA unit on video game design helped inspire a very reluctant writer to become an eager scribe.
For the 2013 EduBlog Awards we’re defining “best” as among the “especially interesting & attention-worthy.”
