Teaching and learning in grades 4-8

Drones Take Flight in Middle School Program

Reading is reinforced when students have hands-on experience with the ideas they find in informational texts. ELA teacher Brian Cook’s after-school drones program helps students explore flight, consider privacy and safety issues, and learn more about new careers.

The Worst Teaching Mistake I Ever Made

Debbie Silver’s worst mistake? She managed to teach middle level science classes for too many years without ever fully embracing the practice of pre-assessment. See how her teaching changed and how yours might too with her simple go-to pre-assessment tools.

Challenging Learning Through Real Dialogue

Noting that high quality classroom discussion fosters content learning and critical thinking, social studies teacher Michael Yell reports that Challenging Learning through Dialogue is a powerful resource to help make middle grades discussion more thoughtful, engaging, and real.

A Guide to Multi-Tier Systems of Support

Catherine Collier’s strategies for building a multi-tier system of support (MTSS) fit into the planning, implementation, and monitoring of interventions to meet the needs of all students. Educator Rita Platt finds the RTI-focused book a useful addition to teachers’ resource shelf.

Responding to Bullying and Cyberbullying

National Bullying Prevention Month begins October 1. Throughout the year MiddleWeb’s collection of anti-bullying resources from educators, nonprofits and agencies can help teachers and schools respond to bullying and cyberbullying, both of which peak in middle school.