The past few years I have become so much more conscientious about not only teaching basic money skills to my second graders, but also teaching the concept of money and saving. I have noticed that these concepts don’t seem to be taught much at home anymore. Sure it’s easy for me to implement a token […]
Instruction & Curriculum
Using Literature to Teach Math: Five Great Books to Use in Middle School
I’m always trying to come up with different ways to teach math that will grab the interest of my students. If you’ve ever taught math or been taught math, you know there are some students that just don’t like math, but love reading. So, what if you incorporate literature in math instruction? I’ve got five […]
Sketch Notes in the Elementary Classroom
So many things go beyond content in our classrooms. Teachers model and teach habits of mind, character development, communication skills and study skills in their classrooms as they encourage creativity and provide opportunities for 21st century learning. All this happens while teaching content and standards. Finding a balance among all of this is close to […]
Gatsby for the 21st Century Student
I told my Freshman High School English teacher that even though I loved to read, I didn’t care for English class because we never read anything “cool.” A year later, I returned to her classroom to recant my previous statement. I fell in love with English class when I read The Great Gatsby. As a […]
The Whos, Whats, Wheres, and Whens of Teaching Grammar to Younger Children
I love to teach grammar to my second graders, and they are usually very eager learners when they figure out that the grammar they are learning ties in to the writing that they enjoy. I introduce grammar by engaging students in a ‘hunt.’ We are always searching for parts of speech, punctuation and proper sentence […]
How To Teach Creativity In A Test Driven Culture
I am blessed to have what many other teachers don’t: autonomy. A 2014 Forbes article listed the top 10 skills wanted by employers: ability to work in a team structure, the ability to make decisions and solve problems, the ability to communicate, the ability to plan, organize, and prioritize work; and the ability to obtain and process […]
Eat Your Vocabulary– It’s Good for You!
“If music be the food of love,” as Shakespeare suggests, then the food for the mind is vocabulary. The term vocabulary is defined as “a list or collection of words or of words and phrases usually alphabetically arranged and explained or defined.” There are a number of reasons to think about these lists of words and phrases […]
Have You Tried Socratic Seminars Yet?
Have you jumped into Socratic Seminars in your classroom yet? If not, I’ve got a few easy tips to help you get started – including a ‘real life’ demo video! If you’re already using Socratic Seminar, maybe I’ve got a way you can snazz yours up and take your students’ thinking a little bit deeper. […]