âSmart pillsâ are often marketed to students as a way to fire up the brain and excel academically. Media literacy expert Frank Baker uses a familiar radio ad and other examples to suggest lesson ideas that can actually boost their critical thinking and listening skills.
Create Compose Connect / The Reading Problem
by Jeremy Hyler · Published 09/04/2019 · Last modified 11/17/2019
Teachers and literacy coaches have to realize there really are middle level students who refuse to read a book, says ELA teacher Jeremy Hyler. âAs we look for answers, we have to first understand students today read differently and communicate differently than we did.â
ELA and Equity / I Will Screw This Up
by Dina Strasser · Published 08/21/2019 · Last modified 09/03/2020
Meaning well and teaching well are not the same â a painful truth that ELA teacher Dina Strasser’s exponential learning about race has helped her realize. She uses the story of her unit based on Gary Paulsen’s “Nightjohn” to underscore the difference between intent and impact.
Future of History / Word Choice
by Lauren S. Brown · Published 08/14/2019 · Last modified 06/24/2020
American Indian or Native American? Latina or Latino or Latinx? African American or Black? History teacher Lauren Brown shares activities and resources she uses to help students understand the background and history of such naming choices and why it’s important to teach.
If we want our students to be readers, we have to let them read, writes principal and reading teacher Rita Platt. We have to give them time for the kind of reading that is guided by curiosity, joy, and love of story. Platt shows exactly how her school made this work.
The newly revised and resource-rich PBIS Team Handbook does an excellent job of breaking down what PBIS is, what it means to schools, and how effective it can be when implemented properly. The authors make a convincing case for Tier 1 implementation, says Christina Williams.
Browse our top 10 posts since January 1. Topics include fair grading, dyslexia, teaching ELLs academic vocabulary, connecting with students, teacher buy-in, and SEL for MSâers. Plus, practical tips on quick-writes, class starters, and âhelping students remember stuff.â
Raised in rural Alberta, Canada, Brent Gilson set out to broaden his understanding of racial and cultural diversity, both to improve his teaching and to raise awareness among his mostly white middle grades students. Taking part in the #31DaysIBPOC Twitter project has been a revelation.
Beyond sharing titles, librarians Christina Dorr and Liz Deskins discuss justifications for circulating LGBTQAI+ literature to children and teens and share a brief history and approaches to âdealing with objections.â Sarah Cooper found ideas for her own classroom library.
Umpires focus on the correctness of the game. Coaches concentrate on the growth of their players. Teacher Courtney Rejent and consultant Patty McGee show how to shift the focus from correcting writing to helping students develop good writing strategies through coaching.
