Principals are the creators of school culture. Through their words, actions, and policies they can assure ELLs’ success. The work teachers need to do with language learners can’t be done without principal support. Tan Huynh offers 4 principles for school leaders to adopt.
For years teachers have used the gradual release model to shift ownership and responsibility by degrees from themselves to students. In a remote setting, gradual release is often even more important, as students need structure to learn. Barbara R. Blackburn shows how.
Amid pandemic learning, we must address virtual PD experiences for teachers, write experts Barbara Blackburn and Ron Williamson. By considering our purpose, the content, and the appropriate platforms to engage teachers, leaders can assure effective professional learning.
As middle graders face increased responsibility and learning challenges in virtual, hybrid and distanced classrooms, grade 6 teacher Cheryl Mizerny offers strategies in 3 key areas: supporting their need for organization, adapting our methods, and modifying our curriculum.
Once you begin Reading & Writing with English Learners, you won’t want to stop. Better yet, you’ll begin looking at your lesson plans, figuring out how to fit in all the fresh ideas you’ve gathered, writes high school EL teacher Emily Francis, who recommends it for K-12.
When Kathie Palmieri came back to her physical but socially distanced classroom, collaboration was one of her biggest concerns. Drawing on her ‘emergency’ teaching experiences and her new confidence about ed tech, she searched out Google Jamboard “and felt a sense of relief.”
Some lessons don’t qualify for Project Based Learning treatment, even in a “wall-to-wall” PBL school or program. Teaching coach Alex Valencic uses two key PBL questions to create a matrix that can help teachers filter out routine tasks, fluff and busy work.
When Principal Rita Platt tested positive for COVID-19 and isolated at home, her staff put pandemic plans into action while she concentrated on self-care. Writing from Wisconsin, Rita shares her coping strategies and praises her staff’s response to going all-virtual again.
In social studies we want students to visualize the relationships between historical events and be able to think chronologically. Megan Kelly has 6th graders begin with personal timelines. Other teaching tools include videos, a history card game, memes and manipulatives.
Articles / Questioning / remote learning
by MiddleWeb · Published 11/02/2020 · Last modified 11/29/2020
Effective questioning during remote learning doesn’t require new strategies. Consultant Barbara Blackburn suggests building questions with higher order thinking models; including questioning stems; adding cubing for student choice; and having students source their answers.
