Future of History / Student Research
by Sarah Cooper · Published 04/10/2018 · Last modified 03/30/2024
As students research US history for Sarah Cooper, they are used to trying search terms on a screen. But when assignments require them to wander the stacks for books, sometimes they don’t know where to begin. Answering their questions has given her ideas to share here.
Do teachers need to hire a PR firm or media consultants to effectively communicate their essential contributions to unaware constituents? Or can we begin to build more professional capital in our own schools and communities? Debbie Silver shares starting points.
Meaningful Math / Spring Math Tools
by Michelle Russell · Published 04/03/2018 · Last modified 11/26/2019
Just ahead: Eight weeks of standardized tests, field trips, sports, band, chorus, all altering the daily schedules for Michelle Russell’s school. So what’s a math teacher to do? She shares high-interest activities to ensure learning continues despite the disruptions.
Research-based essays help our students fluently build, develop, and expand on their ideas. But in the real world, not every research process ends in a full-blown essay, says Angie Miller, who shares eight fun ways for students to practice and incorporate research skills.
Articles / STEM in Fiction / Wide Open Learning
by MiddleWeb · Published 04/01/2018 · Last modified 02/03/2025
More emphasis on STEM studies has more language arts teachers working to integrate compatible nonfiction. But what about fiction? Megan Kelly shows how novels with STEM themes let students make an emotional connection to characters while learning scientific concepts.
Diane Heacox presents differentiation tools that can be used immediately, and provides guidance for adapting them for a range of ages and content areas, ELLs, gifted students and kids with IEPs. Jeny Randall agrees with Heacox’s advice, “Start small, but start somewhere.”
How can teachers convince students that learning grammar is worth the effort and can improve their writing? Jeremy Hyler and Troy Hicks suggest ways to implement a range of online tools to bring grammar alive for classes. Lots of ideas, writes Erin Corrigan-Smith.
Close Reading the Media / The Grapes of Wrath
by Frank Baker · Published 03/26/2018 · Last modified 11/12/2019
Why do middle school students study The Great Depression? What do we want them to learn and understand about this period in American history? Media literacy expert Frank Baker offers a wealth of teaching ideas tied to the novel The Grapes of Wrath and its film treatment.
Take an alphabetical tour through advocating for your school in this new book from Robert Blackburn, Barbara Blackburn and Ronald Williamson. Former principal Mary Langer Thompson shares the highlights and suggests the book can be most helpful in ed leadership classes.
The Unstoppable ML Teacher / Vocabulary
by Valentina Gonzalez · Published 03/12/2018 · Last modified 03/07/2025
To create classrooms where vocabulary learning thrives, Valentina Gonzalez recommends an interactive word wall – a large graphic organizer displaying critical vocabulary with related ideas and visuals added by students. Great across subjects, for ELLs and everyone else!
