First and foremost, writes EL expert Valentina Gonzalez, new teachers need to view multilingualism as a student asset. Learn her five proven strategies to achieve teaching success with multilinguals, who need to be valued, respected and supported to master academic content.
Classroom Decoration / New Teacher Tips
by Curtis Chandler · Published 10/25/2022 · Last modified 07/17/2024
How can teachers make sure “visual classroom noise” doesn’t diminish learning opportunities for students? Curtis Chandler draws on research to suggest we choose colors carefully and reduce clutter – stowing away anything that doesn’t have a direct, daily impact on learning.
Laura Robb has long championed the idea that reading and access to books are civil rights. In this story of turning around reluctant readers, the celebrated educator makes a powerful case that when kids have lots of book choices and lots of time to read in and out of school, they’ll become readers for life.
Learning to problem solve is no easy feat for the students or the teachers in math classrooms. 5th/6th grade teacher Mona Iehl shares ideas for incorporating practices in daily lessons that can help build a ‘safe and sure’ culture where reasoning and problem solving are the norm.
Stress, excessive workload, unrealistic mandates, and daily expectations can add up to burnout. Jenny Grant Rankin’s First Aid for Teacher Burnout combines strategies to alleviate stress, streamline grading, tame technology and practice self care. Essential reading!
The life skills students learn in our classes prepare them to thrive in the real world. Middle grades teacher Laleh Ghotbi shares some lessons from her effort to use weekly community-building circles in her classroom to help students learn to respect their differences and focus on common values.
Choice in reading is about student autonomy and motivation. It’s especially effective with kids who don’t like to read. Stephanie Farley’s well-honed system lets 8th graders read any text they choose AND meets standards – even though they never all read the same book.
Educational leadership classes are great for the principalship. Not so much for the job of assistant principal. AP DeAnna Miller shares helpful advice she has found on her own in the books of Baruti Kafele (values and beliefs) and Ryan Donlan (day-to-day management and more).
Compassionate discipline calls us to action, writes SEL & the Brain expert Marilee Sprenger – actions much different from our usual vision of discipline. Showing compassion and managing our behavior can help our students recognize their own emotions and regulate themselves.
To guide middle grades students into paying more attention to poetry – and reconsidering their often negative attitudes about reading and writing poems – author and teacher Linda Rief suggests kids create heart books, do quickwrites and illustrate lines of their own work.
