Goal Setting 101: Setting Individual Goals
You don’t have to wait to achieve a class goal before teaching students to set personal goals. The steps of the process are the same, although you’ll need to approach the task a little differently.
Freedoms and Responsibilities
Your goal should be to empower students to take a part in their own learning while being held accountable for their behavior and work product. That can be developed through a system of freedoms and responsibilities within the classroom.
Goal Setting 101: The Process in Action
As any effective teacher knows, telling isn’t teaching. The best way to help students see the goal-setting process in action is to set a class goal and work together to achieve it.
Goal Setting 101: Understanding the Process
Many of us never were taught how to set goals for ourselves, and we only discovered the power of goal setting later in life. But with a little creativity, we can adapt the strategies used by successful adults and share them with our students.
Dealing with the Unexpected
“No set of skills comes with a guarantee. Certain individuals in certain situations will respond atypically. In this segment, we will examine a type of child whose response to you meaning business will be the opposite of what you might expect.”
Losing It
“Teachers are human and we lose our cool sometimes. Occasionally ‘losing it’ is an understandably human response to the incessant flow of life pressures and the demands of the classroom. Perhaps, though, we can lose ourselves in song instead.”
What Are You Paying Attention To?
“I tell my friends when they question my sanity (which is quite often) concerning teaching and my ability to maintain a positive attitude, ‘I have a simple choice: I either can focus on whining about teaching or I can focus on winning as a teacher.’”
Keeping Your Cool Amid Classroom Chaos
Can there possibly be a job more stressful than teaching? We asked members of the Education World Tech Team for their suggestions for keeping one’s cool despite career challenges and classroom chaos. Discover what they told us.
Total Reader: How Cool is That?
How cool is your reading assessment program? And does it merely assess current reading performance or, like Total Reader, the program used by Nancy Coleman’s students, does it improve reading performance as well?
Cathy Puett Miller: Teaching Writing as a Process
There are, in the real world, many ways to edit, revise, and organize writing. We help students develop strong writing skills when we not only teach them the steps in the process, but also guide them while they take risks and explore.
Eric Baylin: Oh, Lunch Duty
This song was inspired by my opportunity to perform weekly lunch duty during a high school lunch period. I can manage my classroom well enough, but amid the lunchtime fries and frenetic conversations, I hold little sway. What’s left but to put my woes to song?
Math Chat: Fall Math
Fall presents special opportunities for bringing math to life in meaningful ways, as students observe and quantify changes in the world around them. Discover a windfall of math activities related to leaves, weather, and the changing seasons.
Emma McDonald: Become a Task Master
As a new teacher, it’s easy to become overwhelmed by the number of activities and tasks that fill your time. It’s all too easy to let your tasks control you. That’s where time management comes in. Strive to be a task master -- the master of your own time.
Good to Be Green
Little Gerry Green Thumb has applied to become the newest character in Nursery Rhyme Kingdom. A committee of current characters reviews his application and interviews him. Will they look beyond his unique appearance and accept him into their group?
100 Report Card Comments
It's report card time and you face the prospect of writing constructive, insightful, and original comments on a couple dozen report cards or more. A daunting task? Not with Ed World's help! Included: 100 positive report card comments for you to use and adapt.
Fred Jones: Teaching Rules and Routines
"Research has repeatedly shown that teachers with the best run classrooms spend most of the first two weeks of the semester teaching procedures and routines... A wise teacher knows that spending time on procedures early in the semester saves time and energy in the long run. Prevention is always cheaper than remediation."
Teach Like Every Day Is Christmas
“The night before every new school year, I get to be a child again by re-living Christmas Eve. Because when I arrive on the first day of school, I have approximately 25 to 30 gifts waiting waiting to be opened. And they’re ALL mine.”
Favorite Colors
Before you can teach the child, you have to reach the child.
What Teaching Matthew Taught Me
“When I stopped seeking Matthew out to say a friendly hello in the morning, the students stopped too. When I snapped commands at him, they snapped too. I was treated to a painful refresher lesson about the strength of modeling.”
The Web and Teacher Growth
Do today’s classroom teachers have a shelf life? Is it possible that teacher "restlessness" is a natural consequence of life-long learning? Does being on a constant learning curve alter the persona of our profession? How has the Internet contributed to that change?
School Spotlight
Newman Elementary School colleagues learn by observing one another.
Top 10 Reasons to Build Students’ Moral IQ
Moral Intelligence is what helps youth act right with or without our guidance, and the best news is that this critical intelligence can be taught. Here are 10 reasons why we must build our students’ Moral IQ.
Podcast for Free on a PC
Don’t let Mac users have all the fun. Teachers and students can record, upload, and share online recordings called podcasts using just a classroom computer or even a phone.
Lesson Study Can Improve Teaching, Learning
Through lesson study, teachers learn to work together to develop, teach, and refine a lesson. While this can mean breaking old teaching habits, the authors of a guide to lesson study say the result is improved instruction and student learning.
Ten Things Everyone Needs to Learn
Your school will try to teach you the facts you'll need to pass their tests, but schools won't teach you the things you really need to learn to be successful. What are they? Stephen Downes offers a list of his top ten things you need to learn.
Breaking the Homework Habit
The ideas that homework reinforces classroom lessons, helps children develop good work habits, and improves student achievement have no basis in fact, says Alfie Kohn. Homework should be assigned selectively rather than automatically, he says.
Blockers
Christian Miller was moving uneventfully through his day of subbing third grade. When it was time for the spelling test, students sprang from their chairs to get their blockers. "What are blockers?" asked the surprised sub before teaching his students a lesson in integrity.
Creating Your Own Web Site
Bernie Poole provides 11 easy-to-read handouts designed to lead you or your students step-by-step through the process of creating a content-rich education-oriented Web site.
"You Must Remember This…"
We asked members of the Education World Teacher Team "If you could give a brand new teacher just one piece of advice, what would it be?" Discover what they told us.
Talking to Your Students
Chick Moorman and Thomas Haller on improving your Teacher Talk vocabulary.
"Write" on Target
In its weekly "Teacher Feature," Education World highlights neat activities and classroom practices from educators in all locations and at all levels. Recently, three educators who have enjoyed the spotlight in this feature shared some writing-based activities that they and their students love. From hall graffiti to a winter memoir, these activities will have your students, too, penning with pleasure.
A Defining Moment
Regardless of when it occurs or the context in which it happens, the first occurrence of a mistake is a defining moment in each educator's career. How a teacher handles the event can set the tone for the rest of the school year.
Summer Reading Picks
What's on your summer reading list? Members of the Education World Teacher and Tech Teams share their favorite
books for professional development, personal information -- and pure pleasure.
How to Accentuate Respect and Eliminate Disrespect in Students
The secret of learning new character-building behaviors is that such behaviors are "caught" by watching others
do them well. The secret of teaching new character-building behaviors is to tune up the behavior you want
to be caught and accentuate it.
End-of-Year Activities
This month, we asked members of the Education World Teacher Team to share with us the activities, lessons, projects,
games, and so on that they save for the end of the year, to use either as a culminating activity or to create
a memory of the year for their students.
Schools and Online Social Networking
Most educators working with middle and high school students are aware of the explosive involvement of youth on
social networking sites. Few are prepared to deal with it. In this article, Nancy Willard discusses the risks
and benefits of such sites and offers schools a comprehensive approach to addressing student Internet access.
Five Steps to Teaching Any Character Trait
How do we help students develop strong character? The answer is found in this premise: Character traits are learned;
therefore we can teach them. Building students' character, however, involves five steps. Learn what they are and
how to accomplish them.
Professional Learning Communities
Professional learning communities are teams of educators systematically working together to improve teaching practice
and student learning. Learning communities are characterized by shared values and vision, collaboration, and support.
Learn more!
Teaching and Learning Online
Whether you're planning on taking or teaching an online course -- or pursuing an online degree -- you won't want
to miss this Teacher Team article, in which our resident experts talk about their online teaching and learning
experiences.
Tap In to Tapped In
You've heard about it. You've read about it. Friends and colleagues have raved about the professional development
opportunities it provides through ongoing events, groups, and chats. But you still haven't visited yourself. What
are you waiting for?
Learning Takes Center Stage in Second Grade Opera Company
When Ellen Levine saw firsthand the benefits of having students create, stage, and perform an original opera,
she couldn't have known that she would become part of a dynamic teaching team in a classroom with opera at its
center.
Predictions for Education in 2006
What will 2006 bring for the field of education? Will change sweep through departments of education, state legislatures,
and the federal government? Is there anything pending on the parent front? Will teachers shift consciousness?
Check out these authors' predictions!
My Other Kids
"When a small private school took a chance on me, I spent the first semester scared to death," says writer and
educator Gregory Keer. "Every day, I walked into class thinking, 'What if they find out that I'm a fraud?' How
are things going now, four years later?
NCLB Up Close and Personal
How has NCLB affected how and what you teach? Has it improved student progress? Closed the achievement gap? Created
better students who are better prepared to face the future -- and succeed in it? The Education World Teacher Team
tells it like it is.
A Safe and Orderly Environment
"That's a put-down," John Ash tells his students. "We don't use put-downs. We tell the other person how we are
feeling and what we want to happen." Can Ash's strategy help you eliminate put-downs from your classroom too?
Lessons in Service Learning
Do today's U.S. schoolchildren represent one of the most socially active generations in history? We asked members
of the Education World Teacher Team to tell us about their students' community-service attitudes and activities.
School-Wide Rules Creation
Learn about one school's efforts to improve school climate by developing a more consistent approach to discipline
from classroom to classroom and in common school areas, such as the playground, lunchroom, and hallways.
Who's Fault Is it, Anyway?
Students who fail to make the connection between effort and results attribute their successes and failures to
someone or something other than themselves. Successful students see their successes as something they can influence.
Parents and Teachers Working Together
How do you establish and maintain a good working relationship with your students' parents? The Education World
Teacher Team shares their strategies for increasing parent involvement and ensuring parental support.
Tattle Tales
The important issue to help children understand about tattling is not when to report. Nor is it what
to report. The critical decision involves who to report to. We must help children learn to report to
the right person.
Responsive Classroom: Investing in Parents During the First
Six Weeks of School
Investing in parents as well as children during the critical first six weeks of school yields better school-home
interactions all year, enriches classroom life, and enhances children's learning, say the authors of Parents
& Teachers Working Together.
Tools for Teaching: Bell Work
Bell Work is the work that students are doing when the opening bell rings. It's the work that separates the classroom
from the world of play. It's the work that provides purpose to the process of "settling in." Dr. Fred Jones explains
how Bell Work can add teaching and learning time to your day.
Schools Bring Professional Development In-House
More districts are getting away from generic professional development -- the "spray and pray" approach -- in favor
of their own professional development programs targeted to their needs and presented by their staff.
Coaching Teachers to Success
Staff development teachers in the Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools are coaches, mentors, and on-site
resources for classroom teachers. Many bring years of teaching experience and a desire to help their peers do
the job.
Tools for Teaching: Starting the New School Year
On the first day of school, the first question in students' minds is, "Who are you?" Their second
question is, "Who are they?" Students do better in class when they are comfortable, relaxed, and "at home."
A very good reason to devote the lion's share of your first class period of the year to creating comfort.
The Ten Best Education Conferences
What's the best education conference you've ever attended? The Education World Teacher Team describes their favorite
conferences -- and their favorite conference speakers. Included: Ten top conferences and five inspiring speakers.
Could I Pass the Haberman "Star Teacher" Test?
Martin Haberman's research reveals that not just anyone can or should teach in high-poverty schools. Brenda Dyck
decided to see if she has what it takes! She took Haberman's "Star Teacher" test, and now she shares the results.
Venable School Builds "Able" Bodies
At Venable Elementary in Charlottesville, Virginia, students are encouraged to adopt healthy habits of physical
fitness and nutrition through exciting programs that begin in phys ed class. Included: A guide to Venable's fitness
and nutrition programs.
Kickball, Calisthenics, and Composition?: Writing Fits in
with Phys Ed
Writing assignments are starting to turn up in all kinds of courses -- but in physical education classes? For
sure! While kids get fit, their instructors are using writing to help them focus on the goal of overall fitness.
See how students in your school can exercise their bodies and their writing skills in phys ed!
Readiness Differentiation: Daring to Get Back on My Bike
Max Fischer compares his first steps at creating a differentiated classroom to learning to ride a bike. Differentiating
without drawing attention to students' ability levels has been the biggest challenge.
"You Must Remember This"…Teaching with Mnemonics
Using mnemonics to help students "file" information more effectively makes it possible for them to retrieve material
more easily. Discover some classic mnemonics and some teacher-created originals. Included: Tips for creating your
own memory tools.
Do You Have What It Takes to Teach in a High-Poverty School?
If better teaching causes more learning, is it ethical for excellent teachers to refuse to teach in high-poverty
schools? Brenda Dyck ponders this sticky question. Plus! Take a "test" to learn if you have what it takes to teach
in a high-poverty setting.
Coding and Quilting the Elements
This multi-stage classroom project combines chemistry, technology, the arts, and more to teach students discipline,
problem solving, and the sense of pride that comes from a difficult job done well. Included: Five teacher-created
for your own classroom project.
Token Economies Yield Promising Results
When classroom management is a struggle, the answer might be as simple as the traditional American "five and dime!"
See how systems based on "token economies" can work with even the toughest classes. Included: Tips for setting
up a classroom auction.
Do Good Manners Contribute to Academic Success?
Recently, Education World spoke with school etiquette consultant Linda Williams about what etiquette is, what
educators can do to help students learn proper etiquette and good manners, and how practicing good manners can
help children be successful in life.
Those Who Can, Do… TEACH!
Max Fischer recently attended a local Chamber of Commerce meeting. The evening's motivational speaker got Max
thinking about how successful businesses people and successful teachers have much more in common than either of
them might think.
Can We Teach Social Conscience?
Brenda Dyck examines whether social conscience is caught or taught. She shares how a recent project
about homelessness helped reshape some -- but not all -- of her students' mental models.
Hail to the Chief(s)!: Lessons from Presidential Libraries
Presidential libraries hold the papers and memorabilia of former U.S. presidents, making them available to the
general public, and preserving them for future generations. Discover how you can use online resources from presidential
libraries to teach students about U.S. presidents. Included: Activities using materials from ten presidential
libraries and museums.
New Ways Use Read Alouds to Complement Content Learning
Whether teaching elementary, middle, or high school, read alouds connect students to content, peak student interest,
and provide information. Hear how two experienced educators use read alouds to meet the challenges of differentiating
instruction, expanding student learning, and addressing curriculum. Included: Read aloud tips from the Literacy
Ambassador.
Find Your Benefactor
If Santa overlooked your class's Christmas list, it might be time to request a special delivery from an online
resource. iLoveSchools.com puts teachers in touch with supporters with materials and supplies to donate. Don't
wait until next December to ask for a care package from a benevolent friend.
Adjusting to Accountability
Has the No Child Left Behind Act changed how you teach? Educator Max Fischer says it has affected what and how
he teaches. NCLB's emphasis on testing means he has to pace his teaching differently. He's changed the format
of the tests he creates for students too.
Kids Can Help Too
Children in the United States and around the world have responded to reports of the recent tsunami in Asia by
contributing to the relief efforts in record numbers -- and in unique ways. Learn what they're doing -- and how
your students can help too. Included: Where and how to contribute to tsunami victims.
How to Teach Handwriting
About three-quarters of elementary school teachers say they don't feel adequately prepared to teach handwriting.
That figure isn't surprising when you consider that few teacher training programs in the United States today address
handwriting instruction. Perhaps this article can help! Included: Handwriting lessons, free worksheets.
The Italian Adventures of an "Average, Every-Day Teacher"
Educator Brenda Dyck shares new of a recent 3-day journey to Rome where she was treated like royalty as she took
home an international award. Dyck shares her fairytale adventure -- one all teachers should experience! -- in
this Voice of Experience essay.
How to Write a Five-Paragraph Essay
A new SAT, as well as the mandates of NCLB, make it more imperative than ever that teachers at all grade levels
provide students with increased opportunities to practice and develop their writing skills. Provide that practice
for your students with these step-by-step instructions for planning, outlining, and writing a five-paragraph essay.
Learning to Cope With Larger Classes
Max Fischer reflects on the difficulty of dealing with significant increases in class size. The inclination might
be to become "the sage on a stage," but Fischer hasn't given up on strategies and best practices mastered during
his national board experience.
If I Were Secretary of Education…
Members of the Education World Teacher Team share with readers their thoughts about U.S. education today as they
respond to the question: "If you were U.S. Secretary of Education, what would be your priorities for the next
four years?"
Advice for Future Teachers: Five Questions to Consider
A former sixth-grade student recently approached Max Fischer. After teaching at the college level, Fischer's former
student was considering a transition to teaching in a public high school. Included: Five questions to consider
before making the switch.
Professional Development Via E-Mail: All You Need is a Keyboard!
E-mail is a great way for keeping teachers informed about school goings-on. But are you using e-mail as a tool
for providing professional development for your teachers? Ed World's "Principal Files" principals share how they
are doing just that. Tips included.
Fast and Fabulous Freebies
Need a great idea or a new activity…yesterday? The Internet puts free teaching materials at your disposal 24-7,
if you just know where to find them. From apple growing to ergonomics, get the 4-1-1 on fantastic freebies you
can take advantage of today!
Add Literature -- and Life -- to Content Instruction
Max Fischer bemoans his sterilized history text. Were it not for that text, however, he might not have been forced
to "discover" the value of bringing quality literature into his history classroom. Included: Sources of quality
literature.
Keep It Clean
Do you find yourself spending precious after-school time cleaning up your classroom? Have you tried student cleanup
and decided it wasn't worth the chaos or loss of learning time? Maybe all you really need to turn class cleanup
into a fun and productive activity is a little help from some creativity colleagues.
Me? A Teacher-Researcher?
Brenda Dyck examines the place teacher-research has in the classroom and how it can develop into a kind of "dance"
between students, teachers, and learning. Included: Web sites to help teachers learn more about becoming teacher-researchers.
Eek! Comics in the Classroom!
Are you looking for a way to motivate reluctant readers, engage urban youth, develop the comprehension skills
of second-language learners, or teach visual literacy to elementary level students? Have you considered using
comics and graphic novels?
Letterboxing: Clues Lead Kids on an Educational Adventure
In this pastime turned class-time activity, students solve and follow clues to find a hidden "treasure" -- containing
a stamp, a logbook, and a few other goodies. Included: Experienced educator/letterboxers share tips for getting
started.
The Class Cry-er
For some students, frequent crying is less a reaction to what is happening than an effort to get a reaction.
Such students have learned that crying is an effective way to get what they want. Crying episodes interfere with
lessons, distract other students, and cost valuable teaching time. They must be addressed. Six tips for dealing
with the student who cries easily.
Power Words: Using Positive Words to Energize Your Students
In the classroom, positive reinforcement is easier to talk about than it is to carry out. Brenda Dyck shares a
classroom tradition that celebrates the uniqueness and potential of each child. "What I See in You" time is one
of the most special times in her classroom.
The "Art" of Comprehension
If it wasn't for Howard Gardner's multiple-intelligence theory, educator Max Fischer might never have seen how
art can be used to increase student comprehension of content reading material. Included: Ideas for using pictographs,
storyboards, graphic organizers.
The Overly Dependent Student:
The goal in working with an overly dependent student is to help him become more self-reliant and develop more
trust in his own judgment. That requires that a teacher communicate expectations and set firm limits on student-teacher
interactions. Five tips for dealing with an overly dependent student.
Classroom Management
The term classroom management refers to the procedures, strategies, and instructional techniques teachers use
to manage student behavior and learning activities. Effective classroom management creates an environment that
is conducive to teaching and learning. It is the most important -- and the most difficult -- skill a teacher must
master.
Teaching Reading by Example:
Explore ways to put the power of example to work in your classroom and turn your students into "readaholics."
Cathy Puett Miller shares a series of thought-provoking questions designed to help teachers reassess their influence
on their students, and rediscover how to help students translate the skills they are learning into tools for life.
The Forgetful Student:
Some students practice forgetfulness with almost religious zeal. If you have students who are memory challenged,
you can find yourself spending considerable time tending to their needs, often at the expense of classroom lessons.
Included: Seven tips for dealing with forgetful students.
Can We Talk?: What Parents and Teachers Want Each Other to Know
Most teachers and parents recognize the importance of parent-teacher communication. Few, however, gleefully anticipate
the actual occasions of that communication. If only we understood each other better! Education World answers the
question, "What do you want your child's teacher -- or your student's parent -- to know about you?"
Tools for Teaching: Meaning Business: Part 3
Poker is a simple game. You either bet or fold. In the body language poker game, teachers fold when they turn
a way from a situation before the students have folded. Students fold when they abandon pseudo-compliance and
actually get back to work. You have to stay in the game until the students fold. Dr. Fred Jones provides step-by-step
instructions on how to win at "body language poker."
Fantastic and Free Materials for Teachers
How can you add to your classroom and curriculum without depleting your pocketbook? Request free teaching materials
and other items from organizations that appreciate the services educators perform. Here you will find out how
to obtain hard copies of terrific lesson plans, videos, and other resources for your classroom.
Classroom Problem Solver: Checking the Chatterer
Some students just love to talk -- and their talking can become contagious. To gain quiet, you need to pay attention
to the nature of your instruction, as well as to the structure in your classroom. Dr. Ken Shore offers six tips
for dealing with excessive talking.
The Literacy Ambassador
Create a unique system for student reading success using techniques developed and proven in real school environments.
Independent literacy consultant, Cathy Puett Miller, offers practical steps to building such a system to use throughout
the school year. You will begin a transformation at your school through the marriage of effective parent involvement
techniques and the power of reading.
The Prop Box: Setting the Stage for Meaningful Play
Dramatic play is an essential mode of learning for young children, and "prop boxes," play materials grouped by
theme, make this activity even more effective. Find out how you can use these educational tools to guide your
students toward meaningful role-playing and creative exploration.
Voice of Experience: About Stephen... and Fresh Starts
The promise of a successful year is the hope of every student and teacher. Educator Brenda Dyck shares the story
of Stephen and ponders the importance of offering a fresh start to every student who enters her classroom.
Classroom Problem Solver: Dealing with Teasing
Students need to know that teachers will protect them from teasing. You need to send a strong message that ridicule
will not be tolerated in your classroom, and then be alert for signs of ridicule. Dr. Ken Shore offers eight tips
for dealing with teasing.
Hopes and Dreams: A Strategy to Begin the Year
"In classrooms using the Responsive Classrooms approach, teachers begin their year generating 'Hopes and Dreams.'
The process of developing hopes and dreams each year is a process of reviving hope -- and hope is one of our most
critical community resources. How do we teach or learn without it?" Ruth Charney shares strategies for developing
hopes and dreams.
Bag It: A Professional Development Activity That Works
Looking for a great staff meeting idea? One that is totally practical and fun? The "Brown Bag It" activity gives
all members of your staff an opportunity to play the role of professional developer for an hour. Included: Step-by-step
activity instructions.
Voice of Experience: Professional Development: Following Your Own Lead
As schools move full-tilt towards a professional development model more attuned to collegial school-wide goals,
educator Brenda Dyck explores the need to balance that model with one that recognizes the professional goals of
individual teachers.
Classroom Problem Solver: Prevent Teasing
Teasing can result in anxiety and low self-esteem, affect academic performance, and even escalate to physical
conflict. Teasing hurts some students, and makes all students uncomfortable. Dr. Ken Shore offers six tips for
preventing teasing in your classroom.
Building Close-Knit Communities: Knitting Makes a Comeback
Knitting is a great activity for students with ADHD. It makes a great recess activity, and it meshes with the
multiple-intelligences philosophy. And it's catching on in schools around the country! Included: Learn why knitting
works from teachers at two schools.
Tools for Teaching: Meaning Business, Part 2
Kids read body language. They are born with that ability, and they get better at it with each passing year. Dr.
Fred Jones explains how you can exploit that skill by employing the body language of meaning business. Included:
A step-by-step guide to completing "the turn."
A Teacher's Back-to-School Supply List
Each summer, teachers send home a list of supplies students will need during the upcoming school year. Until now,
little thought has been given to the supplies teachers might find useful. Noted educator Howard Seeman corrects
that oversight with his back-to-school list for the well-equipped teacher. Included: Twenty-seven must-have items.
Running for Fun and Fitness
Not much of a fitness fan as a child, Carol Goodrow wanted her students to develop an appreciation for healthful
eating and exercise at a young age. Her running club teaches kids that keeping fit and eating right is fun and
easy.
Classroom Problem Solver: The Student Who Lies
Most children lie sometimes. Although an occasional lie is not a reason for serious concern, teachers should
be concerned about a student who lies frequently. Dr. Ken Shore offers eight tips for dealing with students who
lie.
Drinking Up Inspiring Words
Who hasn't smiled at the memory of a favorite teacher, student, or teaching moment? Teachers and their admirers
share inspirational stories in the book, A Cup of Comfort for Teachers.
Classroom Problem Solver: The Student with Tourette Syndrome
Tourette Syndrome is a neurological disorder characterized by involuntary body movements and/or verbalizations.
The disorder can present classroom management concerns for the teacher and self-esteem and peer acceptance issues
for the student.
Speaking of Education: The Read-Aloud Experience
Literacy consultant Cathy Puett Miller explores the importance of reading aloud to students. Sprinkled with the
best read-aloud titles, her step-by-step reminders give teachers powerful tools for building comprehension, improving
vocabulary, promoting active thinking, and connecting lessons to life.
From Beginning to End: Making Memories All Year Through
Experienced educators share how they enrich their classes with projects and activities that take students from
the beginning of the school year to the end -- while creating memories that last a lifetime. Included: Ideas for
time capsules, memory books, welcome letters, more.
Different Strokes for Little Folks: Carol Ann Tomlinson on "Differentiated
Instruction"
Professor Carol Ann Tomlinson understands the challenge of providing appropriate learning experiences for all
students. Once a classroom teacher who had to simultaneously meet the needs of kids struggling to read
at grade level and those who were ready for Harvard, she turned to differentiated instruction.
Voice of Experience: Education Conferences: Goin' It Alone
Budget cuts are forcing many teachers into the uncomfortable position of attending educational conferences on
their own. Educator Brenda Dyck shares how going solo to a conference can be frightening -- and unexpectedly enjoyable.
Classroom Problem Solver: Dealing With Student Aggression
In dealing with an aggressive student, you want to send a strong message that aggressive behavior will not be
tolerated while helping the student develop more appropriate ways of settling disputes. Six tips for dealing with
an aggressive student.
Tools for Teaching: Meaning Business, Part 1
Classroom management requires calm. You never will be able to manage another person's behavior until you can manage
your own. A calm response to provocation can be learned. Because upset happens quickly, however, you have to learn
to relax immediately and automatically when confronted. That takes practice.
Seeking Help in the Accountability Era
Long known for its role in preparing students to take college entrance exams, Kaplan, Inc. now is spending more
time helping school districts with curriculum and professional development. Kaplan's Seppy Basili talks about
the company's role in those areas.
Voice of Experience: Teamwork Counts (A Lot!)
Max Fischer draws parallels between his days as a high school football player and his role on a team responsible
for creating an IEP that will get to the bottom of a student's learning issues. In both cases, teamwork is key;
no room exists for prima donnas.
Classroom Problem Solver: Preventing Student Aggression
Aggressive students can engender a climate of fear in the classroom, creating anxiety among other students and
distracting them from their schoolwork. Six tips to help prevent aggressive incidents in your classroom.
Family Fitness Night a Popular School-Wide Event
Reaching students with the message about the importance of fitness isn't enough. Schools are going for the gold
with events designed to bring in kids and their families too. Included: Four teachers share different Family
Fitness Night approaches.
Voice of Experience: Is Differentiation the Answer to the Tracking
Debate?
As Max Fischer tries to transform his classroom into the "differentiated" model experts describe, he's confronting
some roadblocks. Is it possible to achieve the model, he wonders? How much different will his classroom look a
year from now?
Classroom Problem Solver: Preventing School Vandalism
For some students, vandalism is a way of expressing anger or frustration. For others, it is a way of impressing
peers. Whatever its reason, even minor vandalism can markedly drain a district's financial resources. Seven tips
for preventing school vandalism.
Opening the Door: Teaching Students to Use Visualization to Improve
Comprehension
Visualizing text is a proven way to improve reading comprehension. It is a technique that can be taught using
this simple, step-by-step strategy from literacy consultant Cathy Puett Miller. Included: Tips and resources for
developing students' comprehension skills.
Teacher Training: Time to Review, Renew, Redo
The last few weeks of school present the perfect opportunity for staff developers to step back, look at what they've
done, and plan what they're going to do. This is the time, says Lorrie Jackson, for teacher trainers to review,
renew, and redo.
Voice of Experience: Log On to a Blog
Emerging online communication tools have the potential to unleash a new level of creative thought in the classroom.
Educator Brenda Dyck shares her recent experiences with an online journaling tool called a blog. Included:
Blogging resources.
Classroom Problem Solver: School Vandalism
Vandalism in schools can take a variety of forms, from doodling in books to writing on desks; from gouging walls
to breaking windows, from slicing school bus seats to smashing school furniture. Teachers who pay attention to
the reasons for vandalism can play an important role in preventing it. Six tips for dealing with school vandalism.
Voice of Experience: Another Look at "No Child Left Behind" (Year Two)
Max Fischer takes another look at No Child Left Behind. He updates his initial reactions -- published a year ago
-- and takes a close look at the positive impacts the law has had in his own district and classroom. Included:
Join a discussion about NCLB's "positives."
Classroom Problem Solver: Johnny Come Late -- Again!
Some students are late for school for reasons beyond their control. Some students arrive late because of choices
they've made. And some students are late because they like the attention. Dr. Ken Shore offers seven tips for
dealing with the habitually tardy student.
Tools for Teaching: Escaping the Paper Grading Trap
The paper-grading ritual, says Dr. Fred Jones, not only fails to improve student learning, it also cannibalizes
the after-school time available for planning tomorrow's lessons with yesterday's clerical work. The more adept
you become at building work check into teaching, the more responsibility students take for quality control, and
the more your evenings are freed up for lesson planning.
Hold an Interest Fair: Broadened "Science Fair" Taps All Subjects,
Students' Interests
In keeping with their focus on the individual child, one Ohio school opted to shun the "science fair" in favor
of a broader alternative -- the "interest fair." This diverse event encourages participants to investigate and
share information about their favorite topics.
Voice of Experience: Gaga Over Google: Photo Images Bring Lessons to
Life
You probably know about the Google search tool, but have you made use of Google's image search engine?
Max Fischer thinks Google's image library is a virtual goldmine. Included: Ideas for using Google's image search
tool to bring lessons to life.
Classroom Problem Solver: Students Who "Bother" Their Classmates
Students "bother" their classmates in a variety of ways: by poking, tripping, pushing, interrupting, and ridiculing
them. Whatever form the bothering takes, if the incidents come to your attention, you might need to get involved
-- before a small problem turns into a large problem. Eight tips for dealing with students who pester their classmates.
Voice of Experience: Poetry Writing: A Comprehension Tool Across the
Curriculum
Educator Max Fischer's most recent Aha! moment came when he let students use poetry to demonstrate their
comprehension of the history curriculum. Now Fischer has one more tool for engaging students, one more tool for
his growing "bag of tricks."
Classroom Problem Solver: Creativity Flourishes in the Structured Classroom
"Specials," just like regular classroom teachers, need to give careful consideration to discipline in their classrooms.
Structure and limits are important educational tools; tools that give rise to a climate in which creativity can
emerge and flourish. Seven tips for establishing order in phys Ed, music, art...
Classroom Problem Solver: Tips for "Specials"
Regular classroom teachers aren't the only educators who confront behavioral problems. Teachers of special subjects,
such as art, music, and physical education also face disciplinary issues. Six classroom management tips for special
teachers.
Voice of Experience: Tackling Big Projects: No Wonder Students Get
Frustrated!
Have you ever wondered why some students begin project work with a bang that soon fizzles out? Brenda Dyck has
been working on a grad course; that experience has helped her reflect on the role emotions play in student --
and adult -- learning projects.
Classroom Problem Solver: Dealing With Toileting Accidents
When a student wets or soils herself in school, it can embarrass and distress the student, disrupt the class,
and give rise to ridicule and rejection. It is critical that you deal with the incident in a way that is sensitive
to the student's emotional well-being, while preserving her dignity and self-esteem. Eight tips for dealing with
toileting accidents.
No Retiring from Dedication
After 30 years as a third grade teacher, retirement couldn't stop Jill Herrick from being an educator. She founded
a mini-grant program to help teachers fund hands-on projects, and an awards program for third graders who "work
their tails off."
Classroom Problem Solver: Teaching Students With Attention Deficits
Students with attention deficits often have problems focusing, low frustration tolerance, and organizational and
learning difficulties. In fact, about one of every three students with an attention deficit disorder also exhibits
a learning disability. Seven tips for teaching students with attention deficits.
Classroom Problem Solver: Dealing With an Attention Deficit
Almost every classroom includes at least one student with an attention deficit. A child with an attention deficit
can pose serious classroom management problems and take up a considerable amount of instructional time. Seven
tips for dealing with a student with an attention deficit.
Voice of Experience: No-Grade Assignments Open Up Student-Teacher Communication
Educator Kathleen Modenbach reflects on the enormous influence teachers have on the kids they teach -- if channels
of communication remain open. Providing opportunities for student expression -- with no strings (no grades!) attached
-- is a key to opening those communication lines.
Classroom Problem Solver: Bathroom Behavior
Because it often is unsupervised, the school bathroom is a frequent site of behavior problems. Setting firm rules
and carefully monitoring bathroom use can keep those problems to a minimum. Nine tips for dealing with bathroom
behavior.
"Let It Slip!" Admit and Exit Slips in the Classroom
Want to know what your students really learned today, and what might require extra reinforcement? Use exit slips!
When students respond in writing to what they learn and share it, teachers can target the gaps and keep them on
the right track.
Classroom Problem Solver: The Tattler
Elementary students are quick to tattle. Dealing with every report would seriously interfere with your teaching,
and yet you do want to make sure you're told if a student is in physical or emotional danger. The following strategies
will help you spend your time teaching while still safeguarding your students. Seven tips for stopping tattling.
Voice of Experience: Some Classroom "Dilemmas" Are Beneficial
Max Fischer shares his experiences using moral dilemmas to bring classroom lessons to life. Discussions of dilemmas
tied to his curriculum challenge students to think critically as they reflect on history. Dilemmas teach many
other skills too.
What Makes Southdown Elementary a Great School?
Meet the team of educators at Southdown Elementary School in Houma, Louisiana. Each staff member has shared an
idea -- a fun lesson, a special strategy, or a bit of philosophy -- that helps paint a picture of why Southdown
is such a great place to teach and learn.
Voice of Experience: Three Differences Between Teaching and Administration
Educator Arnold Pulda reflects on his move from the classroom to administration. There are big differences, he
says, but the most important thing administrators need to know is that they can never -- must never --
forget where they came from.
Classroom Problem Solver: Angry Outbursts: Part 2:
An angry student might display his temper in a variety of ways. He also might trigger feelings of anger and frustration
in you. In last week's column, Dr. Shore discussed ways to defuse student anger and help him learn better self-control.
This week, he offers some additional strategies. Six more tips for dealing with an angry student.
Tools for Teaching: Adding Motivation to Mastery
The question underlying the topic of motivation in the student's mind is, "Why should I?" If you answer that question
successfully, you can get work from an unmotivated student. If you cannot come up with a good answer, you get
nothing. Included: How the right incentives can motivate your students -- and free up your evenings.
Voice of Experience: Most Direct Route to Parents Is an E-Line
Educator Max Fischer has been doing a little independent research on the effectiveness of phone calls, written
progress reports, and e-mail in raising student achievement. Which communication method do you think he and his
teaching teammates found to be most effective?
Classroom Problem Solver: Angry Outbursts, Part 1
At some point, almost every student becomes angry in school. Anger isn't a problem as long as the student expresses
feelings appropriately. It is a problem if she expresses her anger in a way that is hurtful or disruptive. Your
challenge is to control your own temper as well as that of the student. Five tips for dealing with an angry student.
Voice of Experience: "I Never Knew I Could Be A Hero": Thoughts on
Service Learning
To educator Kathie Marshall, service learning is an effective strategy for engaging students' interest in the
curriculum and in their community. She offers ideas and resources for implementing service learning in any classroom
on a shoestring budget.
Classroom Problem Solver: The School Assembly
Your challenge when faced with student misbehavior during a school assembly is to respond in a way that does not
draw attention to yourself or to your student, that leaves the misbehaving student's dignity intact, and that
allows other students to enjoy a disruption-free program. Included: Six tips for dealing with behavior during
an assembly.
From "Pretty" to Practical: Using Bulletin Boards to Teach
If you've ever been guilty of ignoring a clearly out-of-date bulletin board or of putting up "anything" that will
do, maybe it's time to give your bulletin boards a second look. Experts tell Education World that classroom boards
can be more than just "wallflowers" -- they can be tools for teaching too!
Voice of Experience: Downshifting: Teaching (for Understanding) in
a Lower Gear
An expanding curriculum and high-stakes testing drives many teachers to just "cover the curriculum." Educator
Brenda Dyck reflects on the place "slow teaching" has in a speed-teaching world. Included: A lesson Mrs. Miller
taught me in second grade.
Classroom Problem Solver: Lunchroom Behavior
The lunchroom often presents more challenging management problems than the classroom: students may believe that
classroom rules don't apply in the cafeteria. So it's not unusual for lunchrooms to get out of control. Learn
14 tips for improving lunchroom behavior.
Voice of Experience: Planning for a Substitute Was Never This
Easy
Unhappy with inconsistent results and lousy reports from substitutes, educator Bob Brems came up with a new strategy
for his planned days off. He turns over the teaching reins to one of his students. Included: Tips for planning
for student-as-teacher days.
Voice of Experience: The Importance of Mentors, or What I Learned from
Harold
Max Fischer remembers Harold, the teacher next door when Max was a first-year teacher. That was long before formalized
mentor programs were the norm. Fischer shares what he learned from Harold and from his own experiences mentoring
new teachers.
Tools for Teaching: Exploiting Structured Practice
In a previous segment of this series, we quoted Vince Lombardi, who said, "Practice does not make perfect. Only
perfect practice makes perfect." A key part of teachers' jobs is to create perfect practice. Creating bad habits
is the alternative. Teaching it right the first time is easier than breaking bad habits.
Voice of Experience: Where Have All the Staff Rooms Gone?
As working lunches become the norm in schools, educator Brenda Dyck reflects on a time when the staff room was
the hub of the teaching community. Included: Ideas for improving social networks and teaming in your school.
Latecomers: Tips for Handling the Disruption of Students Who Come
Into Class Late
You're already five minutes into the lesson and a late students walks in. How do you handle the disruption? Do
you stop the class? Do you ignore it? Included: Classroom management expert Howard Seeman offers eight tips for
handling latecomers.
Teacher Training: Staff Development Through
Peer Mentoring
K-12 teachers can be a challenging group to train. Although deeply committed to their students, they often feel
overwhelmed by the many demands on their time and energy. Establishing peer mentor relationships can help encourage
reluctant teachers to implement change in their classrooms.
Making a Difference Is What It's All About
Educator Max Fischer reflects on a turning point in his career. He didn't realize what teaching was all about
until his eighth year in the profession. No wonder so many young teachers leave before they have five years under
their belts!
Classroom Problem Solver: The Chair Tipper
Nothing is more unsettling than watching a student tip back in his chair, teetering on the brink of a dangerous
fall. Before you can break a student of that risky habit, you need to make him aware of what he's doing. Six tips
for dealing with chair tippers.
Manners and Etiquette: Teaching Essential Ingredients for Success
Whether they use a formal curriculum or simply take advantage of serendipitous opportunities, two teachers are
taking good manners off the back burner. Those educators say that focusing on manners in the classroom is not
an option -- it's a must!
Teachers Say Word Walls Work!
Word walls are not just a tool for the primary grades. Teachers across the grades are using them throughout the
curriculum. They find that word walls work -- if teachers work with them. Included: Teachers from grades pre-K
to 8 share their word wall successes.
Voice of Experience: Teacher -- Alias Telementor
Opportunity is often difficult to recognize and it frequently takes the form of an interruption or additional
work. This week, Brenda Dyck shares a teaching opportunity that opened her eyes to the potential we have to influence
students via the Internet.
Classroom Problem Solver: The Note Passers
Passing notes is a time-honored method of classroom communication. Although not a serious problem, it suggests
that the students are not paying attention. Note passing also can disrupt lessons and trigger conflict. Six tips
for dealing with classroom note passers.
Tools for Teaching: Teaching to the Physical Modality
Say, See, Do Teaching, says Dr. Fred Jones, reduces many of the learning and behavior problems that teachers face
every day, by attacking structural problems that underlie the more common "bop 'til you drop" teaching approach.
Classroom Problem Solver: The Backtalker
A student who speaks to her teacher in a disrespectful manner undermines the teacher's authority; the disrespect
becomes even more serious if other students begin emulating the behavior of the student who "talks back." Six
tips for dealing with the backtalker.
Teacher Training: Is Your Staff Development
Program Working?
We train -- and we hope that our training makes a difference. But how do we really know? Gauging the success of
a professional development program requires self-assessment, objective assessment, critical friends, and observation.
Reading Response Journals: Writing After Reading Is Revealing!
In an effort to encourage students to think and share more about what they read, some teachers have turned to
reading response journals -- notebooks reserved for writing in response to literature -- and are gaining new insights.
Included: Teacher tips.
Classroom Problem Solver: The Messy Student
It's not hard to identify a messy student. His desk and his backpacks are dead giveaways, and he spends much of
his day searching for supplies and redoing lost work. Eight tips for helping the messy student clean up his act.
Classroom Problem Solver: While You Are Out
An outsider with no personal connection with the students, a substitute has all of a teacher's responsibilities,
but little of the authority. Six tips for preparing your classroom and your students for your absence.
In the Loop: Teachers and Students Sticking Together for a Second
Year, or More!
Seeking to make more of an impact on students, some educators are choosing to remain with their classes a second
year -- or longer. Is looping right for your school? your teachers? Included: Tips from teachers who have the
scoop on the loop!
Voice of Experience: Put On Your (Six) Thinking Hats!
Want to move your students' thinking from the predictable to the profound? Educator Brenda Dyck describes a powerful
thinking tool that will help students approach problem solving in innovative ways.
Classroom Problem Solver: The Arguer
If you have an argumentative student in class, you can spend considerable time debating, justifying, and explaining
every decision. This diverts you from lessons and can lead to similar behavior in other students. Five tips for
dealing with the argumentative student.
Tools for Teaching: Weaning the Helpless Handraisers, Part 2
Last month, Tools for Teaching looked at verbal modalities for dealing with those helpless students who sit through
Guided Practice with their hands waving in the air, waiting to be personally tutored. This month, Dr. Jones discusses
how to go beyond the verbal to the visual; explaining how a "Visual Instruction Plan" can reduce the duration
of your helping interactions from 30 seconds to 5 seconds.
Teaching Self-Control: A Curriculum for Responsible Behavior
Martin Henley has created a curriculum for teaching 20 self-control skills all children need. The Teaching
Self-control curriculum includes role-plays, simulations, learning center activities, and children's literature
that can be used to teach those skills.
Voice of Experience: Video Time Machine Engages Students, Energizes
Curriculum
Teacher Max Fischer uses his video time machine -- a VCR with snippets of movies that offer teachable moments
-- to bring Ancient Rome and other parts of his history curriculum to life. Included: Guidelines for selecting
video clips.
Classroom Problem Solver: The Spitter
Few behaviors are more unappealing than spitting. The challenge for a teacher with a student who spits is to stop
the spitting, while giving minimal attention to the student's behavior. Five tips for dealing with a student who
spits.
Teacher Training: Delivering Relevant
Staff Development
Teacher training expert Lorrie Jackson explains how K-12 staff developers and administrators can overcome the
barriers of fatigue, boredom, frustration, and distrust, and make staff development relevant and effective for
their teachers.
Classroom Problem Solver: The "Noise Maker"
Students make noise in a variety of ways -- they tap their pencils, click their tongues, sing a song, crack their
knuckles.... Some of the noises can drive you and your other students to distraction. Five tips for dealing with
the classroom "noise maker."
Voice of Experience: Taming the Three T's
The anonymous quote Hold a tight rein over the three T's -- thought, temper and tongue -- and you will have
few regrets got Max Fischer thinking about what happens when teachers let go of their control of any of the
three.
Tools for Teaching: Weaning the Helpless Handraisers, Part 1
Ah, the helpless handraisers -- those students whose hands are waving in the air no matter what you do or say.
Do you have a few in your class? You can break the cycle, says Fred Jones, and turn helpless handraisers into
independent learners.
Cross-Age Tutoring: A Helping Hand Across the Grades
Guidance counselors Christi Bello and Susie Borgnini each created a program that brings the wisdom of older students
to the aid of younger ones -- with benefits for all students. Included: Examples of how cross-age tutoring/mentoring
affects students in all grades.
Voice of Experience: Surprised By Reading -- Confessions of a Math
Teacher
Time pressures and accountability have caused many educators to cut back on -- or cut out -- reading aloud to
students. Teacher Brenda Dyck reflects on the power of reading aloud. Included: Resources to help teachers re-establish
read-alouds.
Rallying Cry from a "Champion for Children"
Thomas Baldrick is author of two books that focus on kids and how adults relate to them, and he is a frequent
presenter at workshops for students, teachers, and parents. Included: Practical tips for celebrating children
in the classroom.
Teacher Training: Navigating the Information
Highway
Successful professional development depends on the acquisition of information. But with so much information available,
how do educators choose what to use? Teacher trainer Lorrie Jackson offers advice on selecting the best resources
for you and your staff.
Shared Reading: Listening Leads to Fluency and Understanding
Many middle and high school teachers use shared-reading -- an approach to teaching reading that engages students
and makes them better readers. Included: Reading expert Dr. Janet Allen and two teachers offer tips for a successful
start to shared reading.
Classroom Problem Solver: The Whiner
Few behaviors are more annoying to teachers than whining. The student who constantly responds in a shrill, high-pitched
voice can annoy even the most tolerant teacher. Seven tips for dealing with students who whine.
Reader's Theater: A Reason to Read Aloud
The Reader's Theater strategy blends students' desire to perform with their need for oral reading practice. RT
offers an entertaining and engaging way to improve fluency and enhance comprehension. Included: RT tips from the
experts!
Tools for Teaching: Rules, Routines, and Standards
Classroom management expert Fred Jones explains why educators need to teach -- not just announce -- classroom
rules and routines. In this month's column, he offers effective strategies for getting students to take your standards
seriously.
Teacher Training: Capitalizing on Conferences
How can you be sure the conferences and conventions your staff attends make the best use of the limited time and
money available? Tips on selecting, preparing for, and getting the most from conferences and conventions.
Tools for Teaching: Effective Room Arrangement
Classroom management expert Fred Jones identifies "three zones of proximity" and discusses how knowing what they
are can help you "work the crowd" in your own classroom.
Back to School Checklist
Are you ready for the first day of school? These twenty Education World resources can take you from the first
day to the last.
In a Million Words or Fewer...
A simple activity offers a powerful tool for learning about your students and connecting with their parents. "I
was suddenly a part of each child's life," teacher Trisha Fogarty said.
Voice of Experience: Summer -- Time to Regenerate
People who joke about teachers having summers off are clueless! In this week's Voice of Experience essay, Max
Fischer reflects on the key role summertime plays in restoring tattered psyches, reviving tired lessons, and regenerating
passion.
Wire Side Chat: Helping "Fake Readers" Become Proficient Life-Long Readers
Cris Tovani, author of the best-selling "I Read It, but I Don't Get It," chats with Education World about
her checkered reading past and about her widely acclaimed work with students and teachers in the area of reading
comprehension strategies.
Voice of Experience: Of "No Child Left Behind" and Blueberries
Max Fischer has worked for a year under the shadow of the No Child Left Behind Act. Now he feels the need to react,
to point out what's really needed in order to "leave no child behind." It's all about blueberries!
Put the "Memory" Back in Memorial Day
Some teachers, concerned about students' ignorance of the origin and meaning of Memorial Day, have created programs
that stress the importance of remembering and honoring U.S. war veterans on that day.
Twenty-Five Activities to Keep Kids' Brains Active in the Hot Summer Sun
As students set out on summer adventures, send their parents a much-needed "life preserver" -- a list of 25 activities
to share and enjoy with their children. These fun activities cover all subjects and grades; you will find something
for everyone.
Voice of Experience: It's Quittin' Time!
Some teachers seem to give up on teaching earlier and earlier each year. Teacher Brenda Dyck looks at ways to
keep students learning until the last minute of the last day. Included: Ideas for making the last few days of
school more meaningful.
This is SBNN Broadcasting Live...from F. H. Tuttle Middle School
Armed with newly acquired research and technical skills, 13 middle school students from South Burlington, Vermont,
produce a weekly live news show that has become their school's "must-see TV." Video of an SBBN news broadcast!
Voice of Experience: Make Time to Teach -- Ten Tools for Reducing Paperwork
What happens when paperwork starts to crowd out time with students? Is there a way to streamline the forms that
can take over a teacher's life? Educator Brenda Dyck has found ten online tools that help her reduce paperwork
and give her more time to teach.
Shaking Willy's Hand: A Collaborative Project Teaming Teens and 'Tweens
A teacher in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, recently completed a project in which Grade 4 and Grade 10 students collaborated
to read, understand, and perform Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Learn how she did it and how
you can do it too.
Voice of Experience: Finding "New Cheese" Requires Adjustment To Change
So many education mandates fail because they lack the teeth to move teachers' "cheese." Will the No Child Left
Behind Act be different? Educator Max Fischer has high hopes that NCLB has the teeth to support teachers and bring
about real change for students.
Wire Side Chat: Lessons of the Holocaust
To help you provide your students with the information and insights they need to understand the events and implications
of the Holocaust, Education World interviews Warren Marcus, a teacher educator for the United States Holocaust
Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.
Voice of Experience: Handling Parent Complaints -- The Good, the Bad, and
the Ugly
Seasoned teachers will recognize all three types of parents -- the good, the bad, and the ugly -- described in
this week's Voice essay. Less seasoned teachers will learn from educator Max Fischer's thoughts about how to handle
all types of parent complaints.
Plan Your Summer Vacation Today!
To help make the upcoming summer as productive -- and as pleasant -- as possible, we asked members of the Education
World Tech Team to tell us about their favorite summer professional development activities.
Teaching Study Skills: Ideas That Work!
Faced with poor student performance on tests and assignments, teachers often recognize that the root of the problem
lies, not in a lack of understanding, but in poor study skills. Discover how three teachers introduce students
to more effective ways of studying.
Voice of Experience: Revisiting Walden Pond in 2003
If your students were to head for a modern-day Walden Pond, what would they take with them? Kathleen Modenbach
shares an activity that helped her students grasp Thoreau's sacrifices and appreciate his work. Included: Cross-curricular
activities extend the lesson.
Awesome Summary Notes Make Studying a Breeze
The Awesome Summary Notes system provides students with an easy and efficient method for organizing information
and studying for tests. Included: Directions for creating summary notes and tips for using them for studying and
review.
Voice of Experience: Written Communication:
An Educator's Calling Card
Today -- with the proliferation of e-mail, classroom Web pages, and newsletters -- a teacher's writing ability
is more important than ever. Max Fischer wonders What do your written communications with parents say about
you? Included: Writing tips.
Lessons in Life: Connecting Kids and Soldiers
Many teachers are finding that both they and their students want to do something to help U.S. troops abroad.
Education World has compiled a list of organizations that link classes with deployed servicemen and women
Lessons for War
As the war in Iraq heads into its third week, teachers at every grade level are struggling for ways to help students
deal with the war and with issues related to the war. To aid you in that effort, Education World has collected
some age-appropriate online lesson plans.
Voice of Experience: When Molding Minds Gets Messy
The war in Iraq has educator Brenda Dyck probing the heavy responsibilities that go along with shaping -- without
bias -- the minds of students. Included: Resources to help teachers facilitate discussions that can help students
reach their own conclusions about the war.
Educator Astronaut Program Continues
Undeterred by the tragic loss of the space shuttle Columbia February 1, teachers are continuing to apply for NASA's
Educator Astronaut program, which is designed to select and train three to six teachers for future space missions.
Voice of Experience: Looking At Your Students in the Future Tense
Brenda Dyck reflects on a night spent watching some of her former students perform before an audience. She wonders
how she might have missed some of the potential she saw realized in them. Plus: Links to articles that shed light
on the middle school years.
The Concept-Mapping Classroom
By providing a framework that allows users to focus on topics, and a structure that permits them to easily convert
diagrams to outlines and back again, Inspiration and Kidspiration simplify the task of organizing thoughts into
effective project plans.
Teaching Kids to Make Moral Decisions
Colorado attorney Michael Sabbeth teaches an ethics “framework” to fifth graders -- to arm them with the skills
for making moral decisions.
Online Book Club Promotes Student Literacy
Are you looking for new ways to encourage students to read and write with greater effort and enthusiasm? Students
in Kentucky have demonstrated both since the Literary Book Club -- an online forum that offers students a real
audience and incentive -- was formed.
Voice of Experience: Middle Schools Are Getting a Bum Rap
A recent USA Today news story took a few swipes at middle schools. In this week’s Voice essay, educator
Max Fischer defends the “middle school” concept against its critics and nay-sayers. Included: Five components
of a successful middle school.
Dealing with War and Terrorism in the Classroom
With security alerts now part of American life and the number of troops in the Middle East growing daily, avoiding
the topics of war and terrorist threats is becoming increasingly difficult for teachers. Today, Education World
offers educators tips on how to address those issues with their students.
Voice of Experience: Service Projects Help Students Find Their Voices
Educator Brenda Dyck describes a service project in which her middle school students participated. She reflects
on how she might be able to take the passion and energy they demonstrated for that project and apply it to the
prescribed curriculum.
Voice of Experience: Choice -- The Ultimate Tool for Engaging and Empowering
Students
Educator Max Fischer recalls a childhood trip to East Germany. In 1966, life in that country stood in stark contrast
to the freedom of choice he enjoyed in his life. Today, Fischer provides his students with choices in projects,
writing assignments, and tests. Choice is "the avenue to empowerment," Fischer says.
Teaching Students to "Go Fourth" Peacefully
Go Fourth, an anti-bullying program based on classroom discussions and exchanges among children around the globe,
recently brought teachers, parents, and fourth grade students from East Greenwich, Rhode Island, school to Shaoguan,
Guandong province, China, on a mission to promote respect for cultural diversity.
Voice of Experience: Is Student Disinterest Curable?
What happens when students "check out" of the learning process? Is it an educator's job to re-engage them? If
so, how can that be accomplished? This week, educator Brenda Dyck reflects on some ways to tackle the sticky problem
of student disinterest.
Cheating: How to Prevent It (and How to Handle It When It Happens)
Have you ever considered that there are things you might do to head off cheating before it occurs? Classroom management
expert Howard Seeman offers tips for preventing cheating and for handling it if it does happen.
Voice of Experience: The Power of Written Praise
Being roused from a sound sleep by a parent can be a rude awakening. But in one case it got educator Max Fischer
reflecting about the power of written praise to raise student achievement. Included: Six reasons to put praise
for students in writing!
Helping the Healing: Tips for Teachers After the Columbia Tragedy
As NASA investigators struggle to find answers for the loss of the space shuttle Columbia and its seven astronauts
on February 1, teachers also search for answers to students' questions about the tragedy. Education World has
compiled a list of resources.
Helping Kids Deal With the Space Shuttle Tragedy
On Saturday, February 1, 2003, the Space Shuttle Columbia broke up over Texas, only a few minutes before its scheduled
touchdown. Today, Education World offers resources to help you help your students deal with the Columbia tragedy,
and to help them understand the history and goals of the space program.
Show Me the Money: Tips and Resources for Successful Grant Writing
Many educators have found that outside funding, in the form of grants, allows them to provide their students with
educational experiences and materials their own districts can't afford. Learn how they get those grants -- and
how you can get one too!
Voice of Experience: The Schoolhouse Rocks -- Using Music to Engage Learning
Educator Max Fischer reflects on the first time he used pop music lyrics in the classroom. Since then Fischer
has found many ways to introduce music -- from the Rolling Stones to Steve Martin -- to achieve learning objectives.
Included: Tips for getting started.
Six Online Projects Anyone Can Join
Looking for something to jump-start students during the post-holiday blahs? Education World has found six teacher-created
collaborative projects sure to engage kids and teachers.
Voice of Experience: A Poetry Slam Cures the Midwinter Blahs
Educator Brenda Dyck reflects on how she uses a poetry-slam event to focus her students. She shares how they took
this 1980s art form and turned it into an opportunity to connect with their peers and teachers. Included: Benchmarks
for student presentations.
Making Parents Part of the "In"-volved Crowd
Parents can be invaluable partners in their children's education, but many take themselves out of the equation
because of mistrust, misunderstanding, the demands of work and home, or other factors. Learn how you can overcome
those obstacles, get parents involved, and promote better home/school communication!
Teacher Diary: Reflections on Teaching and Learning
In Reflections on Teaching and Learning, Education World's teacher diary series for 2003, three teachers
in three different classroom situations take turns reflecting on their professional experiences, problems, successes,
and concerns. We hope their reflections will help you as you face your own classroom experiences.
Kids Count Clams to Spur Community Cleanup
Students in one Maine school count clams instead of Cuisenaire rods and enter data into PDAs instead of notebooks.
But they aren't just learning how to use technology to count clams, they're learning that what they do in school
can benefit the entire community.
Voice of Experience: Chess, Anyone? -- Chess As an Essential Teaching
Tool
Educator Brenda Dyck contemplates whether smart kids play chess or chess makes kids smart as she considers the
integration of chess into the curriculum. Included: Links to resources and research about the impact of chess
on students' skills, thinking and organizational abilities, and self-esteem.
Orphan Train: A Social Studies Project that "Clicked" with Students!
Two 4th grade teachers ride the rails of the "Orphan Train" as they use technology to add vitality to their social
studies curriculum. Included: Links to lessons and resources you can use to develop your own Orphan Train project!
Could Your School Be a "Wiener?"
The Oscar Mayer School House Jam Talent Search offers schools the opportunity to win enough money to start or
restart their music programs. All it takes is a song!
Voice of Experience: Teaching Religion in Public Schools: Removing the
Angst
Do you run from any mention of religion in your public school classroom? How do you escape that during this month
of holy celebrations? Educator Max Fischer has been thinking about this issue, and his thoughts might help relieve
some of your angst.
Fighting 1960s Mental Models of the Perfect Classroom -- and the Perfect
Mom
Brenda Dyck reflects on her mental models of the 1960's classroom and 1960's mom. Those models still haunt her
from time to time, even though she knows they won't prepare her students -- or her own kids -- for the world they
will face.
Bang Bang's Message Reverberates
Author William Mastrosimone has been overwhelmed by students' response to his Showtime movie Bang Bang You're
Dead. Mastrosimone hopes schools will use the movie as part of their own anti-bullying efforts.
Voice of Experience: Handling Difficult Students -- Lessons from Mrs.
G
Educator Perri Gibbons pays tribute to teacher Deb Graudins, whose success with the most challenging students
wins respect from students and colleagues alike. Her measured, consistent approach could hold lessons for any
teacher who must handle difficult students.
The Author's Picks: Must-Read Books For Elementary Students
Are you looking for the best books to read with your elementary school students during National Children's Book
Week? This week, those in the know -- the authors of some of today's best-loved children's books -- share their
personal favorites with you.
Learning Geography Through E-Mail
A month ago, some students in Bellingham, Washington, weren't even sure where to find Arizona on a map of the
United States. Now they can find Australia, Korea, and even Azerbaijan on a map of the world, thanks to an e-mail
activity initiated by their school's library media specialist.
Voice of Experience: Your Students -- No Two Are Alike
Educator Brenda Dyck reflects on how she focuses the first weeks of instruction on helping students become familiar
with their learning strengths. Surveys and activities help students learn which intelligences they favor. These
beginning-of-the-year activities will be revisited throughout the school year.
Toshiba's ExploraVision Launches Student Researchers
The Toshiba/National Science Teachers Association ExploraVision Awards program is one of the nation's largest
K-12 science and technology competitions. The program allows students to be creative as they use research and
scientific principles to design inventions. Included: Comments from last year's winners plus registration info.
Voice of Experience: What I've Learned About Cultivating Parent Involvement
Educator Max Fischer has found that successful teaching often hinges on employing a wide variety of instructional
methods to meet student needs. In this Voice of Experience essay, Fischer reflects on how getting parents involved
in their students' education also requires a variety of approaches.
Meeting With the Parents -- Making the Most of Parent-Teacher Conferences
Research has shown that parental involvement is the most important factor in a student's success in school. For
many parents, however, that involvement is limited to attendance at parent-teacher conferences. Learn how to make
the most of the opportunity! Included: Specific strategies for involving urban parents and a printable conference
planning sheet and conference report form.
Voice of Experience: Driven By Data -- What It's Like to Teach in the Age
of Accountability
Brenda Dyck reflects on how collecting data has become an essential part of teaching. But data collection often
can become such an obsession that it actually gets in the way of student learning. Included: Eight questions to
help determine if data gathering will be worth the effort.
Wire Side Chat: "Mister Rogers" Reflects on Respect, Diversity, and the
Classroom Neighborhood Mister Rogers' Neighborhood lives on in reruns; Fred Rogers, however, has turned his attention to designing
other materials that support children, families, and educators. As a part of his work with Family Communications,
Inc., Rogers has published videos and print materials to help teachers create a nurturing classroom environment.
In this Education World e-interview, Rogers offers advice to teachers who want to promote a "neighborly" feeling
among their students! Included: Rogers shares ways to promote respect and help students cope with stress!
Voice of Experience: Lessons Learned from Howard Gardner and the TV Remote
Control
This week, educator Max Fischer's first days in a middle school classroom -- after years at the elementary level
-- were eye-openers. Would he ever be able to reach the students whose "deadpan stares, wet-noodle postures, and
other lethargic body language screamed ‘Go ahead, make me learn! I dare you!'"?
Wire Side Chat: Reporter Reflects on Year as a Teacher
"I've come to think that only a radical change can address the deep-seated problems in our poor, inner city schools,"
says Christina Asquith, a former Philadelphia Inquirer reporter who spent a year teaching in a Philadelphia
middle school. Asquith, who was hired as an emergency certified teacher, recounts her struggles as a teacher --
and her insights -- in this Education World interview.
Voice of Experience: Reaching the Hard-to-Reach Student
This week, educator Kathleen Modenbach reflects on her summer "vacation." Like most teachers, summer is a time
to reflect on the school year just ended and come up with new ideas for improving learning in the year ahead.
Modenbach has been thinking a lot about how she might do a better job of reaching her hard-to-reach students.
Educating Students to Fight Hunger
Hunger is not the condition caused just by a lack of food; hunger is an issue tied to food access, distribution,
and utilization. These are among the lessons of Feeding Minds, Fighting Hunger, a curriculum about hunger issues
tied into World Food Day, October 16. Sponsors of the program hope widespread awareness of hunger will lead to
widespread efforts to eliminate it.
Voice of Experience: Yearlong Themes Spur Learning and Fun!
In this week's Voice of Experience column, educator Cindy Farnum shares her thoughts about using a yearlong
theme to motivate students and create fun in the classroom. She shares a bunch of ideas from her "plant-astic"
plant theme and seeks your help with her latest theme idea.
Learning While Teaching the First Year
New Teacher Academy, a seminar program based at Teachers College at New York's Columbia University, offers new
teachers advice, information, and support throughout their first challenging school year. The program aims to
ease the teahers' adjustment and keep them teaching.
Class Meetings: A Democratic Approach to Classroom Management
Patterned after family meetings in her own home, teacher Donna Styles established a format for class meetings
that enabled her students to share their thoughts and solve classroom issues on their own. In Styles's model,
students take turns acting as a discussion leader, while the teacher promotes a respectful atmosphere and participates
as a group member. Encouraged by the students' positive response to her approach, Styles decided to share her
expertise with other teachers.
That's the Way the Cookie Tumbles!
In the online collaborative project That's the Way the Cookie Tumbles, students stack Oreos one at a time until
the cookies come tumbling down. The results of their experimentation, combined with the project's supplementary
interdisciplinary activities, help students have fun as they learn math, science, geography, technology, teamwork,
and more. The project is open to students around the world; so far, classes from more than 30 U.S. states, Canada,
Australia, and Uzbekistan have signed up. What about you?
Student Books Capture Feelings About 9/11
Ongoing class discussions about the terrorist attacks on September 11 made teachers realize that students needed
more outlets for their thoughts and feelings. Many educators turned to writing and art projects that culminated
in published collections of students' work, providing the children and others with a permanent emotional record
of 9/11 and the days that followed.
Teaching About Islam, the Middle East
Teachers fielded many questions from students in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, some of them dealing
with the history, culture, and religions of the Middle East. To better prepare themselves for questions this year,
about 60 Connecticut teachers attended a week-long seminar in July about the region and how to use the information
in the curriculum.
Voice of Experience: Weighted Grading Can Work
Max Fischer shares his approach to grading, which takes into account all elements of his students' performance.
It's a weighted system that Fischer believes truly reflects the needs of his students -- and it has the support
of parents too. "No grading procedure completely shields a teacher from parental criticism," writes Fischer. "However,
weighted grading categories offer teachers the opportunity to tailor their assessment practices to the skills
they believe are most critical to student success within their classroom."
Wire Side Chat: Schwarzenegger Seeks to 'Terminate' the Danger Zone With
After-School Programs
Long known as a successful actor, Arnold Schwarzenegger in recent years also has become an influential activist.
The beneficiaries of his efforts? Children! For more than a decade, building on his past experience and his years
of service to Special Olympics, Schwarzenegger has turned his attention to after-school programs for children.
In this Wire Side Chat, he tells Education World how he became involved with this important issue in education
and why he feels after-school programs should be available to every child.
Voice of Experience: Inclusion Can Work -- Without Too Much Work!
Educator Janice Robertson shares how she looks forward to integrating special needs students into her sixth grade
science classes. That was not always the case, though! The simple modifications she made to her usual teaching
practices benefit all the students in her classes.
Truckers, Kids Make Good Buddies
Truck drivers who travel the country often have no one with whom to share anecdotes and insights. A program called
Trucker Buddy International offers such drivers an eager audience. The program pairs truckers and classes, giving
students a driver's-eye view of the world and prolific pen pals.
Voice of Experience: In Classroom, Computers Often Yield More Glitz Than
Guts
Brenda Dyck reflects on how, in our zeal to integrate the most up-to-date technology in our classroom, we can
settle for more "glitz than guts." Dyck suggests that the main goal of educators should be to move past a focus
on the technology tools themselves to how those tools can be used to help students construct new knowledge and
deeper understandings.
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