As someone who teaches media literacy and popular culture, Frank Baker understands the need to meet students where they are. We know they watch TV and they discuss the characters, plots, etc. While they’re engaged, why not raise their awareness about TV commercialism?
Whatever you know, sharing it outside school walls can inform policymakers, journalists, the public, other teachers, researchers, and professors – who can use your classroom discoveries to better serve students. Educator and writer Jenny Grant Rankin shows how.
Responsive Literacy’s 400 pages are well worth the read, writes Linda Biondi. Each of the contributing teacher educators present a theoretical framework and practical tools to apply in the classroom and guidance on how to help young students develop a love of literacy. Five stars.
One of the most common concerns Sarah Tantillo hears from ELA teachers is “I want to teach grammar, but I’m not sure how to fit it in.” Her new MiddleWeb post explains a systematic approach that blends grammar into narrative reading and writing classes, day by day.
Meaningful Math / Online Resources
by Michelle Russell · Published 10/29/2018 · Last modified 11/25/2019
Michelle Russell is always looking for new resources for her math classes. But before she spends time incorporating new tools, she wants to know what the resources can do. Here she shares what she and her students think of two online math platforms – IXL and Delta Math.
Future of History / Making History Meaningful
by Sarah Cooper · Published 10/08/2018 · Last modified 11/16/2019
Sarah Cooper’s world has expanded since she became a podcast convert. She’s found many podcasts to love: Malcolm Gladwell’s Revisionist History, Jennifer Gonzalez’s Cult of Pedagogy and more. Among her top favorites is “Teaching Hard History” from Teaching Tolerance.
In Group Work That Works, Paul Vermette and Cynthia Kline draw on research and experience to provide a thorough plan, supported by extensive resources, for implementing collaborative learning. Educator Linda Biondi recommends the book to hesitant secondary teachers.
As a strong believer in teacher as learner, Rita Platt returns to some books again and again – books that continue to guide her work though she may have first read them 20 years ago. With the new school year underway, she shares her 10 most impactful education books.
Current Events / Future of History
by Sarah Cooper · Published 09/23/2018 · Last modified 11/13/2019
Current events add immediacy to history class, but with crowded curricula and the challenges of the political climate, Sarah Cooper is fine-tuning the news discussions in her 8th grade classes. She shares several stories and explains what makes them right for fall 2018.
Close Reading the Media / Literacy and Film
by MiddleWeb · Published 09/19/2018 · Last modified 09/02/2020
Media literacy expert Frank Baker participated in an August conference to introduce educators to a major new curriculum from Martin Scorsese’s Film Foundation – “Portraits of America: Democracy on Film” – which will be available free to educators. Here’s his report.
