A New School Year / Kids on the Cusp
by Mary Tarashuk · Published 09/22/2015 · Last modified 11/13/2019
Personal narratives, reading folders, interest inventories – and new nicknames bestowed as the year begins. Mary Tarashuk uses many clues to get to know her 4th graders. PARCC scores haven’t arrived yet. No sweat. All that really matters is arrayed before her.
In a dialogue with Kevin Hodgson, educator-authors Debbie Zacarian and Michael Silverstone share ways to energize teaching and learning by reaching out to students’ families and communities, all with the goal of building partnerships that help students become confident learners.
Communications / Two Teachers in the Room
by Elizabeth Stein · Published 09/16/2015 · Last modified 12/11/2019
Communication is the oxygen in the room when we want any relationship to work. But communication and co-teaching can be a tricky business. Elizabeth Stein looks at surefire ways to make your co-communications work as you speak up for all the students.
Most educators who teach propaganda use examples from the World Wars, says media literacy expert Frank Baker. “But propaganda is happening today—all around us.” Baker introduces a new resource that can help teachers and students exert their “minds over media.”
Emphasizing that the most productive form of formative assessment is self-assessment by students and teachers, the authors apply these research-based ideas to the cultural change required to improve instruction at a school level, says administrator Brian Taylor.
Close Reading for the Whole Class is easy to follow and designed for “real life classrooms.” Research based and with practical lesson plans, the book takes the angst out of close reading. Great for individual or group study, says reviewer Linda Biondi.
Social studies classes are digging into primary sources, learning how to use historians’ methods. Toni Blackwell Rhodes offers medieval and ancient graffiti as an engaging primary source idea in her new book. MS teacher-reviewer Joanne Bell plans to apply the methods to other historical eras.
Of all the ways educators can improve learning in their classrooms, “the Number 1 way is to strengthen students’ speaking and listening skills and habits,” writes teaching coach and literacy expert Sarah Tantillo. Oral fluency deepens understanding dramatically.
Working Draft / Writing with Students
by Kevin Hodgson · Published 08/23/2015 · Last modified 12/02/2019
When Kevin Hodgson finds a student’s thank-you gift in his school email, he writes her a belated letter, affirming his conviction that teachers should always write with students and his belief that “Rebecca” will realize her dream to become a published author.
In his ELA classroom, David Sebek focuses on four aspects of what it means to be a “good citizen” – truthfulness, justice, equality and responsibility – and uses whistleblower stories and dystopian fiction to explore the elusive definition of citizenship.
