A former president once said that it was time for humans to get into the solar system, and we agree (we’re laughing, but we still agree). Our state standards include the solar system from 1st grade (learn the planets in order) to 8th grade (illustrate the solar system within… Continue reading
Science fiction and fantasy is one of the most popular genres for young readers now. Take advantage of the popularity of this style to introduce your students to some new books. Create a display of science fiction and fantasy books on your library table. Here are some of our favorites:… Continue reading
There are so many ways to use video in the classroom! It’s easier than ever to make video recordings and to share them, so much so that video can now be part of your standard repertoire for assessment and instruction. film student projects correspond with video pen pals write… Continue reading
My first day of class had some unusual moments. For example, when I arrived in my classroom, it had apparently been having a party over the weekend. There were stacks of cardboard, folders, CD players and CDs, and enormous canvases strewn hither and yon. The tables had gouges in their… Continue reading
Reading online is different from reading physical books. Note how these students interact with mouse and keyboard immediately. Continue reading
Today is the first day of school in my district. Teachers and students alike view this day with trepidation. We teachers know that the success of the school year depends not only on us, and not only on the individual students we receive (though both those things are certainly important),… Continue reading
A word wall is a bulletin board or wall section covered with words. Words typically are on word cards, such as the one being savaged in the photo above. Word walls are there for your visual students to gaze at, they can be a tactile experience for your kinesthetic… Continue reading
Engaging our students is one of the big topics around the teachers’ lounges right now, or at least the virtual teachers’ lounges. Sometimes it’s presented in terms of educational trends of the future: our students are plugged in multitaskers, and we can’t expect them to sit still and pay… Continue reading
You’ve got to get a feel for your students’ skills, they need to feel connected to one another enough to be able to work together effectively, and everyone has to learn each other’s names. Time for some community-building activities in the classroom! If you’re not in class yet… send… Continue reading
