Professional community / Working Draft
by MiddleWeb · Published 08/13/2014 · Last modified 11/19/2019
Kevin Hodgson joined teacher playmates this summer for a wide-ranging exploration of making and connected learning that, while professional in purpose, reminded participants “of the nature of childhood inquisitiveness and the power of play.”
Teachers, coaches, administrators, and teacher educators will want to keep Nancy Boyles’ Closer Reading Grades 3-6 nearby, says reviewer Linda Biondi, because it shows “how to teach the art of close reading” from start to finish across content areas.
The most effective teachers know that if you want to have a great lesson, you need to plan a great lesson, say experts Todd Whitaker and Annette Breaux. Novice teachers will appreciate their handy planning checklist. Bonus download: How to overplan!
Future of History / Teaching strategies
by MiddleWeb · Published 08/11/2014 · Last modified 12/03/2019
New ideas can improve the curriculum and teaching strategies of history educators, but that doesn’t have to mean throwing out the old to experiment with the new. What to keep and what to add? Our history bloggers share some helpful criteria.
We can thank the Common Core for making “close reading” a buzz phrase. We can thank educators for building the bare concept into strategies that help students more fully understand the texts they encounter. Our Resource Roundup offers some of the what, why and how.
Girls are smart, creative, and talented – they have the right stuff for STEM careers. So where are they? It’s still a front-burner issue – the lack of women in STEM. Anne Jolly talks with several experts, including Chevron executive Blair Blackwell.
In their book Engaged, Connected, Empowered, Ben Curran and Neil Wetherbee examine five major shifts needed in education to provide students with 21st century skills. Reviewer Laura Von Staden found their work easy to follow with lots teachers can use right away.
Calling academic language “the lifeblood of learning in all classes,” Jeff Zwiers describes how focusing on language use will lead to improved student achievement. Then he shows teachers how to help build it, says reviewer Mara Southorn.
When students are challenged to “close read” a movie, they must not only learn how to deconstruct the story, they must also understand the many techniques that are used by filmmakers to create the total effect, says expert Frank Baker.
“I’ve been accumulating guiding principles for creating highly motivating homework assignments for many years,” writes expert Rick Wormeli. “Here are a baker’s dozen. Choose the ones most appropriate for students’ learning goals and your curriculum.”
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