Kelly Owens saw that polished texts didn’t model the struggles writers go through. “It was like showing kids an elite Olympian’s performance and asking them to replicate it.” With her ‘Draft Along’ activity, students now experience the wrinkly reality of the writing process.
“Text Sets in Action” provides expert guidance for any teacher interested in using this engaging strategy to deepen learning. The authors define “texts” broadly and provide advice and examples across the core content areas, writes teacher educator Dr. Sarah Pennington.
Michelle Blanchet and Darcy Bakkegard offer teachers ways to turn ideas into actions, personalize professional development, and create innovative learning experiences for themselves and their students. Reviewer Linda Biondi highly recommends the book.
Did the sheer exhaustion of teaching in 2021-22 cause you to take a pass on some good but long MiddleWeb articles? Here are 18 insightful posts covering a wide range of topics that you might want to look over, in the calm before the next storm.
Because motivation is intrinsic, the two words Debbie Silver finds essential are ‘Empower Them.’ The teaching coach and bestselling author shares ways to help students grow into self-directed learners, using constructive feedback as the tool to help them see their growth.
Book Reviews / Student Driven Learning
by MiddleWeb · Published 07/15/2021 · Last modified 07/16/2021
With authors Susan Brookhart and Alice Oakley as guides, teachers can uncover the clues in student work, offer effective feedback, improve lessons and plan next steps, says reviewer and ELA/ELL teacher Josefine Carrion-Dreyer.
A writer’s notebook is a place to write down what you notice and don’t want to forget; a place to record your ideas and reactions to things. Most of all, it’s a place for students to take what they’ve learned in class and make it their own. It’s a place to live like a writer.
Reading books written for today’s middle schoolers helps teachers gain insight into the different ways students experience their adolescence. ELA teacher Kasey Short spotlights 21 novels, memoirs and collections that explore a wide range of race and gender issues and social-emotional challenges.
As school leaders begin typical summer work, they will need to include recovery strategies that identify effects of the pandemic and address emerging issues. Ron Williamson and Barbara Blackburn share key areas of focus to help teachers and students thrive in the new normal.
STEM and the Future / STEM By Design
by Anne Jolly · Published 06/29/2021 · Last modified 08/28/2024
To cope with the next iteration of our world, students will have to master the art of continual learning. Fresh from a lengthy stint writing workplace-savvy STEM curriculum, Anne Jolly has insights educators can use to reboot teaching and help students better create their future.
