Teaching and learning in grades 4-8
Borrowing books from class and school libraries is less common during the pandemic. Kathie Palmieri encourages her students to read using a Bitmoji Virtual Classroom Library, Virtual Book Tasting Rooms, Flipgrid, and Mentimeter. How-to tips and book sources included!
This year the complex and demanding job of a school principal has become even more difficult and challenging. In her book Principal Reboot Jen Schwanke shares ways you can “relax, rediscover, and revive” your success as a principal, writes retired principal Frank Hagen.
Purposeful gaming is a natural complement to learning, writes award-winning middle school history teacher Jennifer Ingold. She shares one of her creations – American Modernization Monopoly – in this fully illustrated “why and how” post, complete with SEL and assessment notes.
For teacher Tan Huynh, nothing is more powerful than having students fall in love with reading. He shares ways to nurture readers, garnered from his podcast chat with Book Love author Penny Kittle. Start with self-selected books and in-class reading, guided by conferencing.
While the news about vaccines is promising, many students will continue to learn from home for more months to come. A big question then is how do we create and host energizing environments to sustain learning? Tara Lash and Sunday Cummins came up with this “club” strategy.
As U.S. history teacher Lauren Brown prepared for her classes to resume following winter break, she considered what she would say to her students about the Capitol riots. “To say nothing says way too much.” See her full discussion of teaching ideas for now and later.
Using the ideas in The Literacy Workshop: Where Reading and Writing Converge can transform literacy teaching, writes Linda Biondi. The authors offer an easy-to-follow, research-based guide as teachers journey into making a dual reading-writing workshop a reality.
In The Math Teacher’s Toolbox Bobson Wong and Larisa Bukalov offer strategies, tools, resources and advice that will help any math teacher better serve middle and high school learners. Laura Von Staden says the book should be part of all new math teacher training.
Overcoming the sense of intimidation she’d felt in the face of the US Constitution’s immensity and importance, Sarah Cooper has found fresh ways to draw her 8th graders into the power and complexity of our divided government during this year’s remote learning.
In a time of great uncertainty and ambiguity school leaders are often left to grapple with the impact of decisions made elsewhere and to support teachers and staff in every circumstance. Ron Williamson and Barbara Blackburn offer strategies to maximize those efforts.