Current Events / Future of History
by Sarah Cooper · Published 07/29/2018 · Last modified 12/14/2019
When Sarah Cooper launches an op-ed writing project, students respond best if they have wide latitude to choose a topic, picking an issue that sparks a personal connection. Beyond research and writing, the highlight for kids is sharing their op-eds with an audience.
Close Reading the Media / The Emmy Awards
by Frank Baker · Published 07/25/2018 · Last modified 11/17/2019
Studying TV in the middle grades might seem frivolous, writes media literacy expert Frank Baker, but when teachers engage kids through popular culture, they meet them where they are. The Emmys is a perfect example. Baker has background and teaching ideas to get started.
If you’re having tough times at school this year, new teachers and veterans alike can relieve some of the stress that comes when everything seems to be going wrong. Tested advice and actionable ideas from author, veteran teacher, and classroom survivor Julia Thompson.
Ruth Culham’s Teach Writing Well is practical and goes step-by-step through incorporating writing traits into any classroom writing program while undergirding practice with a sense of exuberance and discovery. Reviewer Sarah Cooper can’t wait for fall to try Culham’s ideas.
Blending in the arts is not predestined to create a failure of STEM goals, writes noted STEM author and educator Carolyn DeCristofano, who offers four reasons to consider adopting a well-designed STEAM program that protects the integrity of both STEM and arts education.
Class Apps / Reciprocal Teaching
by Curtis Chandler · Published 07/15/2018 · Last modified 12/05/2019
Reciprocal teaching (RT) helps students deepen their learning by teaching other students. Curtis Chandler shows how kiddos can tackle new texts and concepts by developing their ability to apply cognitive and metacognitive strategies. He includes helpful videos and online tools.
Create Compose Connect / Student Research Papers
by Jeremy Hyler · Published 07/09/2018 · Last modified 03/23/2024
It is not easy for students to research today, or to read with a critical eye. Yet these are the very skills they need in an internet-driven world. In a new MiddleWeb column, teacher-author Jeremy Hyler shares tips that can make research writing more fun, effective and efficient.
Middle school science educator and Albert Einstein Distinguished Education Fellow Joshua Sneideman and energy education specialist Erin Twamley share seven ways that teachers and schools can involve students in climate change studies. Included: Project ideas.
Grammar doesn’t need to be numbing. As you consider curriculum additions and tweaks over summer, author and literacy consultant Sarah Tantillo suggests ways you can incorporate grammar into those refreshed lessons to help students understand structure and write more clearly.
Heart of the School / Understanding Protests
by Rita Platt · Published 07/02/2018 · Last modified 11/15/2019
How can teachers broach the topic as civic protest becomes more visible in society? NBCT Rita Platt offers resources for student reading and discussion “because learning to thoughtfully communicate ideas and entertain the ideas of others is a cornerstone of democracy.”
