Teaching and learning in grades 4-8

Helping Students Track Their Own Progress

Tracking progress toward a larger goal helps us build a sense of achievement and the courage to keep going. “That’s the same cycle you want to build in your students,” says Barbara Blackburn, who shares ways to help kids see their growth and recall their victories.

A Guide to Creating an Inquiry Classroom

The second edition of John F. Barell’s “Why Are School Buses Always Yellow?” shows teachers how they can inspire young minds to think beyond the text, to ask questions and to wonder, achieving inquiry learning while meeting standards, says reviewer Linda Biondi.

A 90-Day Plan for Coaching New Teachers

Bambrick-Santoyo’s Get Better Faster offers a convincing argument and a comprehensive program for developing new teachers. Retired principal and teacher educator Mary Langer Thompson finds the 90-day plan sensible, fast paced, demanding, and dense with resources.

A Sentence-Composing Approach to Nonfiction

Those eager to share “pristine” nonfiction text with students may appreciate the Kilgallon’s mentor sentence choices, which cross genres, topics, and cultures. But ELA teacher Amy Estersohn finds their workbook approach at odds with her workshop vision of teaching.

Problem-based Science for the Common Good

Problem-based Science encourages students to develop a love of scientific thinking, math, and the creative use of technology as they learn through invention, design thinking, fixing and tinkering. Teacher-author Christa Flores demonstrates her hands-on PbS model.