April is over. However, we acknowledge, celebrate, and honor multilingual and bilingual students and families continues. As we come to the end of another month, some might see it as a couple of months closer to summer break, others as another month closer to the holidays, but some see it as an opportunity to embrace […]
English Language Learners
Over 11 percent of students in the United States—more than 4.8 million kids—are English language learners (ELLs), and the number is on the rise. Though these students do not learn differently than their native-English-speaking peers, they do have particular educational needs.
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Teaching Writing to Secondary Students is Hard, But It’s Necessary
During my first year of teaching, I had a brilliant student named Joshua*. Joshua was a Junior who was wise beyond his years. He loved to talk about books. He loved to debate different topics in class. However, it wasn’t until we read the cult favorite, The Color Purple, during the first nine weeks when […]
Posted inPedagogy
Freshen Up Your National Poetry Month Lessons with These New Releases
Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! As an English language arts teacher of many, many years, poetry has always been one of my favorite subjects to teach my students. Poetry brings out the best in students’ language abilities and challenges them to write in a way […]
Posted inPedagogy
Use Kagan Strategies to Create Student-Centered Classroom
Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Daily Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! My students began to get a little “off” as the second semester approached in my classroom. Off task, off behaviorally, off academically – call it what you will, but they were not the cooperative, attentive fourth graders I had […]
Posted inPedagogy
Honor Mother Languages in Your Classroom
Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Daily Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! As a young girl, newly immigrated from Guatemala, I wondered whether my new teachers and classmates saw the real me -an individual with diverse thoughts, ideas, language, and culture. I felt alone and scared as I tried to overcome […]
Posted inPedagogy
Use the World Cup to Score Higher Engagement with Middle Schoolers
Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Daily Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! Studies have shown over and over again that students learn best when they find the content relevant and engaging. Lately, I’ve found my middle school students to be super engaged with the World Cup. Rather than repeating, “Guys, please […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Jump Start Student Writing with Google Docs
Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Daily Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! As a young teacher, I spent a lot of time bemoaning the fact that my students didn’t follow even the smallest instructions. I told them how to format their papers using careful MLA guidelines, and they would turn in […]
Posted inOpinion
5 Things You Can Do This Month to Support Your Latino Students
Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Daily Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! Last week marked the beginning of National Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs from September 15 – October 15. While Hispanic Heritage Month may not get as much attention or targeted marketing as other national month-long observances, it is a […]