Future of History / Word Choice
by Lauren S. Brown · Published 08/14/2019 · Last modified 06/24/2020
American Indian or Native American? Latina or Latino or Latinx? African American or Black? History teacher Lauren Brown shares activities and resources she uses to help students understand the background and history of such naming choices and why it’s important to teach.
If we want our students to be readers, we have to let them read, writes principal and reading teacher Rita Platt. We have to give them time for the kind of reading that is guided by curiosity, joy, and love of story. Platt shows exactly how her school made this work.
Danny Steele and Todd Whitaker have done an impressive job recognizing and explaining 56 Essential Truths to help teachers be the best they can be for students, writes school leader Doug Dunn. The 99-page book works as a quick read or a source for daily inspiration.
Close Reading the Media / News Literacy
by Frank Baker · Published 08/07/2019 · Last modified 11/20/2019
With the 2020 election underway fake news and deceptive social media posts and imagery are expected to become commonplace. Media literacy expert Frank Baker offers a lesson to help our always-connected students acquire some of the “healthy skepticism” skills they’ll need.
Classroom Goals / Meaningful Math
by Michelle Russell · Published 08/06/2019 · Last modified 08/07/2024
As the school year begins, Michelle Russell has plans to take Geoff Krall’s Necessary Conditions to class. She shares the norms, structures and routines she’ll implement starting day one, from establishing guidelines for group work to assuring academic safety.
New educators – particularly those in the middle grades – find themselves at the edge of the high dive, filled with enthusiasm and uncertainty. As they leap into the profession, Curtis Chandler shows how we can seek opportunities to provide support and collaboration.
Clustering / The Unstoppable ML Teacher
by Tan Huynh · Published 08/04/2019 · Last modified 12/02/2019
Instead of peppering English learners around a large network of schools, districts can benefit those students and their EL support teachers by strategically clustering them, writes Tan Huynh. Included: Ideas to help achieve buy-in from content teachers.
The newly revised and resource-rich PBIS Team Handbook does an excellent job of breaking down what PBIS is, what it means to schools, and how effective it can be when implemented properly. The authors make a convincing case for Tier 1 implementation, says Christina Williams.
6th grade teacher Amanda Xavier was skeptical when colleague Rose Reissman suggested a Mary Poppins book study, but their multimedia approach was a hit. “If a very old fashioned nanny can bring smiles and make modern kids sit up in class and take note, I say, ‘Cheerio’!”
Bridging the gap between “real STEM study” and how school stakeholders may understand it is a doable task for teachers, says expert Anne Jolly. She offers some elevator-speech essentials to get you started (and perhaps avoid that virtual lab that could be in your future).
