Guest posts by expert educators
By time-blocking her summer calendar and intentionally carving out space for professional growth, this year NBCT Kathleen Palmieri was able to stay focused, reduce procrastination, and produce some of her best lesson plans ever. She shares some strategies that worked for her.
Two frameworks – Universal Design for Learning and Differentiated Instruction – have emerged as essential “power tools” in creating inclusive classrooms, writes Isaac Nathanson. Understanding how they complement each other can transform teaching and open doors for every learner.
By clearly defining language objectives and developing related sentence frames we can boost language development and impact English language learners’ reading and writing growth significantly. Alma Ortiz-Agib and Sunday Cummins share strategies developed in real classrooms.
Pushback against equity-centered trauma-informed practices is present at all levels today. It’s overwhelming, and teachers feel disempowered. How can we become changemakers with so much stacked against us? Educator and trauma specialist Alex Shevrin Venet shares three insights.
Students who struggle with academic reading can benefit from “a compass of sorts” to help them navigate texts. To accomplish this, educator Ron Klemp developed a four-step quickwrite protocol that’s been “extremely effective” in boosting their engagement and understanding.
Solitary leadership doesn’t work very well because no leader knows everything. Ronald Williamson and Barbara R. Blackburn share strategies to help school leaders systematically build leadership capacity among their staffs and capitalize on the talents of informal leaders.
With the next school year not too far over the horizon, 7th grade teacher Laurie Hornik has tips for getting off to a strong start. She suggests skipping traditional ice breakers and instead introducing the class community by exploring what you will be learning together.
Articles / Artificial Intelligence / Reading
by MiddleWeb · Published 07/13/2025 · Last modified 07/15/2025
Fiction that explores AI through characters that are robots or humans who interact with AI can spark discussions about the future and engage readers with stories grounded in real ethical and scientific questions. ELA teacher Kasey Short shares titles and ideas for discussion.
It’s easy to keep busy in just about any job, writes former principal Matt Renwick, now a regional systems coach. What’s difficult to discern is what we should be focused on in this moment. See how Renwick is using what he calls “productive presence” to stay organized and aware.
We want students to achieve in class and on tests, but we also want them to know how to use reading skills to enjoy reading. Reading aloud provides students with opportunities to experience success through thinking alongside their teachers and peers, writes Jennifer Sniadecki.
