Reason #3: Expanding The Bag of Teaching Tricks. During the regular school year I teach AP courses and the ability to take three days for a project or a class activity or the watching of an insightful and lively film is nonexistent. As much as I would like to do more activities and have in-depth, extemporaneous discussions, the fact that I only have the students for less than an hour each day necessitates a somewhat redundant teaching strategy—especially if the goal is to get through all of the material and have time to review by year’s end. But Summer School is akin to Elementary School as far as scheduling is concerned. I have the same students for a four and a half hour block. Nobody wants to lecture for that long. More importantly, no one wants to listen to me that long. With so much time together each day it is easier to have the discussion, assign the activity that takes two hours to complete, or watch the fascinating film. Differentiated instruction is not an option in Summer School; it is a necessity! Click here for reason number two.
