Pharrell Williams, has been around for quite a while seeking his fame in music, yet it wasn’t until his recent hit song “Happy,” that Pharrell became a household name. When interviewed and asked what he thought of his long awaited rise to fame, Pharrell stated that he used to write songs that lacked purpose. He decided that […]
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Posted inCurrent Events in Education, English Language Learners, Featured, From the Front Lines, Middle School, Principals' Corner, The State of Education
How Can We Build "Cultural Capital" With Our English Language Learners?
By Maria Montalvo-Balbed Often, principals or school leaders with whom I am working ask me to provide them with no more than three implementable strategies to make an ELL population successful. I wish it were that easy to name just three “things” to help students automatically develop great listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills. As […]
Posted inAdult Learning, Featured, Instruction & Curriculum
Learning Styles Matter
As teachers, we know that not everyone learns the same way. Some people are auditory learners who do very well in a situation where the teacher lectures. Others are visual learners who must see something to comprehend. If you are a good reader you can succeed as a visual learner. If you are not a good […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, Instruction & Curriculum, Instructional Strategies, Middle School, Opinion
Preparing For Success: Helping Students Prepare For What Comes Next
I have two college-aged children, with my third a sophomore in high school. My husband and I, both teachers, planted the seed of ‘What do you want to be when you grow up?’ in all three of them early on. I remember playing blocks with my oldest and constantly saying things like, “Architects build!” or […]
Posted inFeatured, Instruction & Curriculum, School Improvement
Doing the Differentiation Dance
[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”] Earlier this year, my department administrator came by to do one of the four classroom observations she does each semester. We were at the very beginning of a unit so I […]
Posted inFeatured, Middle School
Off-Team Blues in Middle School
The final bell rang and I look out over the sea of empty desks in my classroom. “Where is everyone?” I ask the spattering of students who showed up. The response: “Team 2 has a field trip today.” Ah. It’s not easy being an ‘off-team teacher’ in a team-based middle school. We are always the […]
Posted inFeatured, Opinion
The Praise Problem
I am of the belief that positive reinforcement is much more effective than punishment. I believe this because I’ve seen it be one of the most powerful tools in my teaching tool belt. Positive reinforcement works across the board. I’m not saying that positive reinforcement has to be something tangible like a treasure box or […]
Posted inFeatured, Parents
Vocabulary: Something to Talk About
Research shows a connection between early elementary students’ word knowledge and reading comprehension in both early elementary school and throughout upper grades (Juel and Deffes, 2004). As a fourth grade teacher and parent of three, I see this connection every day. I am often asked, “What can I do for my kids at home? What […]