There’s an immense difference between rote memorization and giving students tools that allow them to work flexibly and thoughtfully with numbers, writes Kathie Palmieri. When kids learn number sense and can use multiple strategies, they have choice in how they solve problems.
The Reading Strategies Book 2.0 takes a great first edition and makes it even better, says literacy coach Pam Hamilton, noting Jennifer Serravallo’s contention that reading strategies are important across K-12. “This book should be in the hands of every teacher of reading.”
Social media can disrupt concentration and healthy social development in adolescents. To counter its effects, principal Mike Gaskell looks at causes and suggests one helpful strategy to reduce stress and anxiety – ambient sound. Build the focus and flow students need to thrive.
History & social studies / Resources
by Susan Curtis · Published 02/10/2024 · Last modified 02/21/2024
African Americans faced severe repression when Carter G. Woodson established Negro History Week in 1926. In this updated MiddleWeb resource, we share links that trace the impact of African Americans in politics, arts and sciences, and report on the call to teach Black history throughout the school year.
Arab American Heritage Month / Resources
by Susan Curtis · Published 02/09/2024 · Last modified 03/18/2024
During Arab American Heritage Month students explore the diversity within the Arab community, its members’ contributions to the United States, and the discrimination many Arab Americans have faced in the 21st century. This resource collection can help with the exploration.
Embracing failure is a mindset we can weave throughout the curriculum, teaching students that failing isn’t the end but a crucial step toward success. STEAM author-educator Kara Ball shares three activities to help students in persevering through and even celebrating failure.
Emily Mofield offers a practical, realistic and highly readable set of 25 different approaches to teaching in her Vertical Differentiation for Gifted, Advanced and High-Potential Students, a book that almost any classroom teacher would find highly useful, writes Leslie Wise.
To reduce confusion, math professor Dan Ilaria recommends: Stop saying “cancel” and use “name the operation.” Stop saying “plug in” and use “substitute.” Stop saying “reduce” and use “rewrite.” Stop saying “cross-multiply” and allow students to make sense of what they are solving.
Many teachers are intrigued by the Socratic method but worry “it won’t work with my students.” A Socratic seminar calls on ALL the big executive skills. Patricia Cook and Susanne Croasdaile found that we don’t need to wait until they’re all “ready” – we can just dive in!
As she describes some ways she’s begun to work fun, ethical AI components into major assignments, Sarah Cooper wonders how the nature of learning and teaching will evolve in tandem with the evolution of Large Language Models. How do we best prepare our students for the future?
