What is Genius Hour? It’s a learning opportunity that gives students time to pursue their passions, explore interesting ideas and create something that they choose and will be proud of. Can we engage students during the pandemic via distance learning? Yes! Here’s how.
Typical classroom spring cleaning and sorting have hardly happened this year. As distance learning dominates schools, teaching specialist Valentina Gonzalez looks instead at sorting through and acting on our teaching practices: what should we keep, throw away, or begin?
Articles / Future of History / Pandemic Activity
by Lauren S. Brown · Published 04/10/2020 · Last modified 04/15/2020
The global pandemic “will be in the history books, won’t it?” Absolutely, 8th grade teacher Lauren Brown told her students. She’s devised a simple home assignment – students create a ‘primary source’ for future historians by jotting down their questions, concerns and observations. See her suggested prompts to get kids started.
What can we do to encourage kids to choose nonfiction more frequently for personal enjoyment? Cate Gerard and Sunday Cummins share what Cate discovered when interviewing middle graders about their reading habits and recommend class and virtual strategies and resources.
Articles / Pandemic Activity / Social Emotional Learning
by MiddleWeb · Published 03/29/2020 · Last modified 03/30/2020
For teachers to help students not only survive but also thrive through this frightening pandemic, we need to underscore both their and our fundamental need for kindness and gratitude. Author-educator Dr. Debbie Silver shares the science of anxiety and lots of options to help.
Science teachers know that some students believe in often-ridiculous theories (the Earth is flat; climate change is a hoax) that are propagated on YouTube and social media. Frank Baker provides a wealth of resources to fight science ignorance with media literacy skills.
The Unstoppable ML Teacher / Virtual Teaching
by Tan Huynh · Published 03/22/2020 · Last modified 04/13/2020
With the increase of schools worldwide offering distance learning or virtual schools in response to the COVID19 outbreak, middle grades teacher Tan Huynh details how his Saigon international school has developed one-to-one online learning for students since February 3.
On the day after school was declared closed, ELA teacher Brent Gilson greeted students from behind a “desk wall” as they came by to pick up personal gear and borrow books from his class library. One girl’s wonderful note inspired him to write a hopeful message of his own.
Meaningful Math / Productive Struggle
by Michelle Russell · Published 03/02/2020 · Last modified 10/19/2022
Michelle Russell realized her students were falling into a rut. They expected her to provide the steps and jump in to help instead of figuring some things out for themselves. Learn what she did to increase engagement and deepen thinking during a challenging unit.
Teacher Social Media has had a powerful positive effect on Brent Gilson’s professional growth. That’s the plus, he says, but there are also the minuses, including too-safe and comfortable conversations, edu-celebrity, and frequent failure to give credit where it is due.
