In her book Stephanie Affinito brings together the importance of reflection and the need to examine our classroom practices. She provides a framework for celebrating our reading and writing lives and offers ways we can help our students develop these habits for themselves.
Reading books written for today’s middle schoolers helps teachers gain insight into the different ways students experience their adolescence. ELA teacher Kasey Short spotlights 21 novels, memoirs and collections that explore a wide range of race and gender issues and social-emotional challenges.
As school leaders begin typical summer work, they will need to include recovery strategies that identify effects of the pandemic and address emerging issues. Ron Williamson and Barbara Blackburn share key areas of focus to help teachers and students thrive in the new normal.
Each educator braving the gauntlet of Covid-era teaching has been stressed and stretched to wits’ end. It’s time to collect the payoff from this strenuous work. Curtis Chandler relates 5 questions teachers asked themselves during the crisis. “If we begin the new school year with solid answers, we’ll be rewarded.”
Dual Language / The Unstoppable ML Teacher
by Tan Huynh · Published 06/28/2021 · Last modified 07/09/2021
Drawing on his podcast with Dr. Sonia Soltero, language specialist and co-teacher Tan Huynh explains 9 myths that often prevent language learners from receiving the most equitable, rigorous learning experiences and can sever connections to their communities and families.
With eighth grade graduation over, history teacher Lauren Brown will devote her summer break to real self care, concentrating on rejuvenation and resisting the temptation to glance back at the pandemic year or look ahead to anticipated challenges. Finally, it’s time to relax.
Laurie E. Westphal offers a comprehensive introduction to student choice and how to make menus successful. Aimed at high school, the ideas can also work for advanced students in middle school as they develop their strengths, writes history teacher Erin Corrigan-Smith.
Helping students who avoid reading see themselves as developing readers rather than struggling readers can make all the difference, writes Laura Robb. She shows how guided practice lessons give students opportunities to strengthen their skill and move steadily forward.
As educators reflect on the past year, NBCT Elizabeth Stein shares insights from co-teachers in her coaching circle who are grateful for the support they received from one another. She encourages all of us to rest, relax, and find ways to carry forward our own silver linings.
Sometimes you just wanted to scream, writes assistant principal DeAnna Miller, but staying focused on compassionate care, supportive relationships, and flexibility in the face of misdirection and uncertainty helped her remain centered and expand her leadership skills.
