A safe and stable school is essential to a successful instructional program, write Ron Williamson and Barbara Blackburn. Thatās why itās so critical for school leaders to anticipate what may be needed in a crisis and develop plans with contingencies for anything that may occur.
8th grader Lily Strickland offers teachers a studentās perspective on homework. She knows her teachers care about kids, but sheās not sure they always understand the impact that assigning homework has on busy adolescents. Her six tips draw on the ‘good policies’ of some of her teachers.
Are you looking for lesson plans and ideas to engage your students as they learn to be confident writers? Lisa Eickholdt and Patricia Vitale-Reilly offer a step-by-step plan to develop writing clubs with variations to keep community interest high all year, says Dawna Brandt.
Alyssa Hadley Dunnās Teaching on Days After offers research and narratives on how teachers can respond equitably on days after cataclysmic events so that they and their students āreach the full measure of their humanity.ā Sarah Cooper recommends Dunnās pedagogical strategies.
Digital literacy leader Brett Pierce lays out the elements of digital storytelling and shows how students can take the lead in using digital tools to collaborate, think critically, problem solve, and present publicly, creating digital narratives around core curricular goals.
Pamela Koutrakosā example-filled āMentor Texts That Multitaskā shows teachers how to design lessons that meet multiple instructional priorities. Sherry Liptak found it to be āa great fit for my professional bookshelf ā though I think it will spend more time in my hands!ā
Drs. Tamra Stambaugh and Emily Mofield go beyond the usual guidance on differentiation for gifted and advanced learners, providing teachers with useful graphic organizers, project ideas, and sample complex questions in multiple K-12 content areas, writes NBCT Kim Rensch.
Laura Robb has long championed the idea that reading and access to books are civil rights. In this story of turning around reluctant readers, the celebrated educator makes a powerful case that when kids have lots of book choices and lots of time to read in and out of school, theyāll become readers for life.
Stress, excessive workload, unrealistic mandates, and daily expectations can add up to burnout. Jenny Grant Rankinās First Aid for Teacher Burnout combines strategies to alleviate stress, streamline grading, tame technology and practice self care. Essential reading!
To move beyond traditional classroom discussion focused on answering a few teacher questions, Dr. Barbara Blackburn advocates student-driven discourse that emphasizes āon-taskā talk and academic vocabulary. The result: purposeful dialogue leading to deeper understanding.
