The importance of teaching living poets can be highlighted by Amanda Gorman. When the young Black poet in a canary yellow coat dazzled audiences at President Joe Biden’s inauguration, high school teacher Melissa Alter Smith was ready. Using a lesson plan from a friend and fellow teacher, she’d prepared her students to watch Amanda Gorman’s performance and analyze her words. Other teachers took notice, too, and additional lesson plans about “The Hill We Climb” circulated…
For Muniya Khanna, strong emotional reactions and increased social discomfort are predictable responses as youngsters emerge from more than a year of isolation and students re-adjust to altered routines caused by the pandemic. Khanna is a clinical psychologist in Pennsylvania who specializes in treatment of childhood anxiety. She explained that anxiety is part of the body’s fight-or-flight response to uncertainty. While in-person activities may be billed as a “return to normal,” Khanna said it also…
Last fall, teacher Michael Palermo called the crew of Christopher Columbus to the witness stand. Wilfredo Lopez Murcia, a student at Wakefield High School in Virginia, strolled to the front of the classroom, followed by classmate Jhonnatan Moya Miranda. “Hello, mates,” Wilfredo quipped, giving a short salute to his peers. Wilfredo and Jhonnatan were about to defend themselves in The People vs. Columbus, et al. trial, a social studies role play that encourages critical thinking…
Addressing the differing needs of students can make teaching reading a daunting task. Students are expected to have a deep understanding of what they read and provide answers grounded in text. One way for students to interact with the text is through close reading, which can become a powerful classroom tool for fiction and nonfiction texts across grade levels. Teaching close reading to younger students is very doable–here’s how. SETTING THE STAGE At the beginning…
Color-coding strategies are fun, but they also wield a deeper value–colors can have a positive impact on memory and attention. Using color-coding is a great way to provide scaffolding for students who need it and engage those who don’t. As a bonus, it can be applied to every aspect of ELA! READING 1. Want students to analyze a text? Ask them to read with color. This color-coding strategy helps them to delineate between a main…
Here’s the thing about getting students talking about reading: you need a concrete place to start. As in journal response prompts to respond to a text, the stems below are created to help students better understand what they’re reading. Because the focus is on critical thinking and critical reading rather than mere ‘talking,’ I left out more obvious stems like ‘I agree…’ or ‘I disagree…’ or ‘I like…’ or ‘I dislike…’ because opinions are useful…
Schools, as we know them, are changing. Shopping, as we know it, is changing. While both are obvious, one loss seems to breed opportunity while the other makes us hold on for dear life. Why? First, some context. Nestled between the perceived ‘old way’ (learning in person) and ‘new way’ (learning through computer) is Blended Learning. Blended Learning can be thought of as the bridge between eLearning and brick-and-mortar learning. It is a kind of…
As students return to schools shuttered by the coronavirus pandemic, many large school districts are not prepared to meet the needs of well more than 1 million students with disabilities who have a legal right to receive support and services but are not getting them ― and the problem is most severe for students of color, according to a new report. The crisis existed before the pandemic began in spring 2020, but was exacerbated in the…
Storytelling has been around as long as humankind. It is one of the most effective ways to communicate an important truth to another person. It is a connection point between two people. Storytelling gives meaning, context, and understanding in a world that is often filled with chaos and disorder. Because of this, educators must use stories if they hope to reach their students. Here are some storytelling tips that can help you capture students’ attention.…
Vocabulary influences fluency, comprehension, and student achievement, and a broad vocabulary is important for effective speaking, listening, reading, and writing. Vocabulary is a foundational component of an effective K-12 comprehensive literacy framework. And, vocabulary plays an important role in most academic standards. Since a broad vocabulary program includes both direct and indirect word-learning strategies, the following online tools can be easily integrated to support word learning and build vocabulary. In today’s 21st century classrooms, digital…
