In The Gift of Failure, teacher/writer Jessica Lahey calls on parents to value failures along the way to help children build growth mindsets. She also effectively describes how educators can work with parents, reports retired principal Mary Langer Thompson.
Education leaders Ruth Ash and Pat Hodge examine how middle level principals, working with teachers and students, are creating high performing learning cultures using five key leadership practices. It’s not magic, they say, but method, logic, perseverance, and heart.
Wordl clouds are everywhere, in every color and size. Middle grades teacher and Scholastic author Marilyn Pryle shows 10 ways word clouds made from free generators on the web can be crafted into powerful literacy teaching tools, using the right prompts and directions.
Literacy expert Sarah Tantillo shares teacher Jamison Fort’s engaging multi-day lesson that helps student writers sort through multiple claims in the case of Sandra the Orangutan and identify the best evidence to support arguments. Graphic organizer included!
Effective group work sparks student engagement and builds communication skills for the future. But how do teachers structure teamwork activities so kids are cooperative and everyone learns? Instructional expert Barbara Blackburn offers a step-by-step blueprint.
Research Projects / Working Draft
by Kevin Hodgson · Published 03/06/2016 · Last modified 12/03/2019
Text sets can help kids enrich their studies in any content area. MS teacher Kevin Hodgson tells how teachers are using Library of Congress primary resources to create engaging text sets that help students contextualize the present by exploring the past.
Being a school leader is incredibly demanding, requiring principals to stay current on education trends while managing day to day operations. Williamson and Blackburn share five actionable trends they’ve observed in their work with middle grades leaders.
Marie C. White and Maria K. DiBenedetto offer a toolbox of strategies that teachers can use to help students become positive, self-regulated learners and practice self-efficacy. Linda Biondi found their description of a self-regulated teacher revelatory.
Articles / Writing across Content Areas
by MiddleWeb · Published 01/25/2016 · Last modified 11/24/2019
Four educators explain how the Western Massachusetts Writing Project joined forces with the National Park Service to help middle school teachers and students explore and write about a major history resource right in their backyard – the Springfield Armory museum. DIY tips included!
In “Standing in the Gap” Lisa Dabbs and Nicol R. Howard encourage all educators, especially new teachers, to find support by connecting on social media, using internet resources in class, and facilitating e-communication with parents. A must read, says educator/writer Mary Langer Thompson.
