Kids on the Cusp / Teaching writing
by Mary Tarashuk · Published 11/05/2014 · Last modified 11/29/2019
Leaping into writing with students can be almost as thrilling as sky-diving, says Mary Tarashuk, who has now tried both. Here she describes how she is modeling “the writer as reader” with her 4th graders and shares their organizer for narrative writing.
Want to improve relationships between families and school? Teachers benefit when learning is reinforced and supported from home. Consultant Barbara Blackburn has tips on how to PAIR with parents and avoid school-side mistakes that weaken engagement.
STEM By Design / STEM Teacher Development
by Anne Jolly · Published 10/15/2014 · Last modified 11/17/2019
Your school wants to offer STEM classes to its students. How do you select teachers? And what professional development and other supports will teachers need to successfully involve students and facilitate projects? STEM expert Anne Jolly shares ideas.
Learning to code is an important new literacy. But how, wonders edtech coach Emily Vickery, do we close the opportunity gap between those who have access to coding instruction and those who don’t? Vickery suggests some resources that can help less advantaged students cross the divide.
Literacy expert Laura Robb offers her research-based argument for refocusing American school reform on strategies to strengthen support for teachers and promote opportunities for all children to become creative, divergent thinkers and problem solvers.
Administrative Overload / Kids on the Cusp
by Mary Tarashuk · Published 10/08/2014 · Last modified 11/30/2019
Mary Tarashuk fantasizes about a reality TV show that features education policy makers who must survive for a month as classroom teachers without drowning in the paperwork or getting voted off the island by a misguided performance evaluation system.
Kevin Hodgson assumed his students would enjoy writing Six Word Memoirs, particularly within a comic site. What he didn’t expect was the level of enthusiasm, as even struggling writers dove into the concept, creating a wide range of (very) short stories.
When bickering and bullying began to weaken her classroom culture, 6th grade teacher Mackenzie Grate tried a simple but powerful strategy involving pink and green sticky notes, 30 brown paper bags, and some brutal honesty. The results were impressive.
The Co-Teaching Relationship / Two Teachers in the Room
by Elizabeth Stein · Published 10/01/2014 · Last modified 11/24/2019
Elizabeth Stein believes Jim Knight’s instructional partnership approach to coaching can also benefit co-teachers as they build a relationship. Stein describes how Knight’s seven core principles point the way to a dynamic co-taught learning community.
Amber Chandler has participated on both sides of the Parent Teacher Conference. Here she offers novice teachers five strategies they can use to establish productive relationships, address parent concerns, and find ways to help parents “do something” for their children.
