Research leaves little doubt that strategic use of groups and teams boosts achievement for most students, says teacher educator Curtis Chandler. Learn about the key elements of group work and several digital tools that make forming groups flexible and efficient.
If bibliotherapy is an effective way to ease the growing pains of adolescents, writes 7th grade teacher Laurie Lichtenstein, The Outsiders is “the gold standard of therapy in middle grades literature.” It’s the only whole class novel she teaches each year.
What’s one of the best things a school day can offer? Exposure to newly learned words – provided that exposure is in context, well-timed, multisensory, and question-based. Literacy expert Amy Benjamin suggests five ways to achieve these “durable learning” goals.
Articles / Book Reviews / Reading / Whole Novels
by MiddleWeb · Published 03/16/2017 · Last modified 07/07/2024
Ariel Sacks’ Whole Novels for the Whole Class is “the ultimate teacher-friendly manual for accommodating all students around a single book,” says ELA veteran Mary Tedrow, who finds Sacks’ practical specificity convincing and her confidence infectious.
Close Reading the Media / Covering the Presidency
by Frank Baker · Published 03/13/2017 · Last modified 11/26/2019
How the news media functions and how it covers the White House are important for today’s students to understand, says media literacy expert Frank Baker. He reviews current controversies growing out of President Trump’s “war on the media” and offers teaching ideas.
Current Events / Future of History
by Sarah Cooper · Published 03/05/2017 · Last modified 11/21/2019
Social studies teacher Sarah Cooper improved classroom conversation and debate when she let students select and then rate current events articles as “super,” “okay,” or “not that great for discussion.” Cooper shares her process and some samples from each category.
Calculators in Class / Meaningful Math
by Michelle Russell · Published 02/26/2017 · Last modified 12/10/2019
Math teacher Michelle Russell is rethinking her open-use policy toward calculators in her classroom. Is ready access hindering students’ grasp of the fundamentals? She’s decided to be more intentional about timing and helping her students recognize reasonable answers.
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.
Ariel Sacks says teachers who read The Flexible ELA Classroom will get to know “an enthusiastic, skilled teacher” effectively applying “many of the best current teaching trends.” Amber Chandler’s practical, student centered ideas include flexible differentiation, PBL infusion, family involvement and more.
Rather than “covering” a curriculum with instruction that’s driven by the chapters in a textbook, Diana Fenton and Nancy Van Erp advocate student centered standards-based lesson planning, relying on frameworks like Understanding by Design and concept-based teaching.
