The tagline for “Reading with Pictures” says it all (with maybe a bit of genre hyperbole): “Comics that make kids smarter!” Teacher Kevin Hodgson recommends the cross curricular graphic story collection curated by Josh Elder and its free 146-pp study guide.
Working to bring America’s Colonial Period to life in the classroom? Stephanie Harvey and Anne Goudvis’ new toolkit will help history teachers engage students with primary sources, digital links and visual guides. “A gold mine!” says reviewer Linda Biondi.
Film literacy is an important skill in an increasingly visual world. It’s in the ELA standards for grades 7 & 8. But how do we teach it if we don’t have access to films in the classroom? Expert Frank Baker helps bring film alive without a DVD in sight.
Examining the Evidence explains seven strategies to engage with primary sources, all easily understood by students. Aligned to specific Common Core standards, the strategies are useful in K-8 classrooms beyond social studies, says reviewer Nicole Miller.
Future of History / Understanding Data
by Aaron Brock · Published 11/30/2014 · Last modified 12/05/2019
Teaching history students to interpret charts and graphs is often difficult, especially when their grasp of math is limited. In his low-literacy middle school, Aaron Brock used a small-group, high-interest graphing project to build skills and understanding.
This large collection by educators covers important ground, says classroom tech leader Kevin Hodgson. Discussions of how technology impacts our writing and reading, media literacy principles, and social justice are “important and well worth the time.”
Book Reviews / Vocabulary Instruction
by MiddleWeb · Published 11/12/2014 · Last modified 11/22/2019
Karen Bromley guides educators to “The Next Step in Vocabulary Instruction” by uncovering the “why” of teaching vocabulary and its role in comprehension and fluency. Reviewer Linda Biondi highly recommends the book’s extensive strategies and activities.
As teachers help their students meet Common Core standards through close reading of the movies, they may want to include costume design in their lesson plans, says Frank Baker. In many movies, director Martin Scorsese has noted, “costume is character.”
S.T.E.M. or STEM? STEM or STEAM? STEM for a selected few or STEM for all? What about STEM’s specific technology needs? MiddleWeb’s STEM by Design blogger Anne Jolly shares five hot STEM issues facing educators as schools across the USA begin a new year.
Movies and television are recognized in the Common Core standards as forms of “text” that deserve serious study. Media literacy expert Frank W. Baker suggests ways that the Emmy Awards might serve as a way to engage students around familiar media.
