With finals fast approaching, Stephanie Farley created a summative assessment experience to encourage every student to demonstrate their mastery of the learning targets as well as be acknowledged and appreciated for their contributions. The exam period “dinner party” was a hit.
With its checklists, scenarios, and tools, The PD Book by Elena Aguilar and Lori Cohen is a valuable resource and guide for anyone tapped to become a professional learning provider – either internally or externally, writes adult learning consultant Cathy Gassenheimer.
How-to articles often tout the idea of starting the school year with blank walls. 7th grade team leader Katie Durkin decided to finally let go of her need to fully decorate things herself and invite students and teachers to fill the empty spaces with community-building visuals.
Dina Strasser recommends ditching the reading wars that are distracting educators across America. Tracking the changing theories and practices of recent decades, she concludes that phonics, the science of reading, and balanced literacy can work together to benefit students.
Aileen Hower and Lynne Dorfman refresh our thinking about the advantages of facilitation over too much center-stage teaching. If we learn how to facilitate effectively and balance instructional methods, students will retain more and reteaching time will shrink significantly.
Is reading a treat or a chore? The answer depends on the reader’s experience. In preparation for summer reading opportunities, literacy interventionist Kelly Owens suggests some favorite strategies teachers and parents can sneak in to give under-motivated readers a reboot.
As society experiences increasing complexity, educators and education struggle to keep up. Principal Matt Renwick takes a look at AI/ChatGPT challenges and shares a process school leaders can use to support teachers’ use of new technology. Don’t miss the template he includes.
In Unjournaling by Dawn DiPrince and Cheryl Thurston, students will find the book’s 250 prompts interesting and challenging, and teachers will appreciate the flexibility and variety this second edition brings to class. Everyone will have fun too, promises Anne Anderson.
Math teacher Michelle Russell remembers her own anxiety each year when the time came to teach statistics to middle schoolers. She shares two fun activities she’s discovered that address 6th and 8th grade standards: cup stacking and the candy grab! Student handouts included.
While there are times when consensus makes sense, collaborative experiences are often most beneficial when they center on open-ended questions that invite students’ thinking. Teaching coach Gravity Goldberg shares ways to encourage exploration and creative expression in groups.
