Mathematicians have been figuring out the mathematical truth for millennia. Can this possibly be relevant for today’s students? Yes! Mathematical argumentation can make your classroom more joyful and engaging. Going beyond just rules to memorize, students are given the opportunity to make sense of those rules
It’s the first weeks of a new school year! I become anxious each fall as I prepare for family literacy classes that may challenge the motivation of students and their families. Here are questions that I ask myself as I prepare my lessons: What are five big ideas that I want to convey in a
Do you look forward to going to work most days? Do you feel that your work matters? Are you part of the decision-making process in your school or district? Do you use your unique strengths and talents most days? If you answered, “Yes” to the above
“Learning doesn't happen from the neck up; it happens from the feet up!” Teacher intuition and a growing body of research tells us that a student’s physical life is undeniably intertwined with their intellectual life. In fact, it’s how they come to school—full of curiosity, excitement,
The most important aspect of engaging and motivating students is creating professional relationships with them that demonstrate a real, genuine, and empathic interest in their lives, hopes, dreams, and lived experiences as cultural beings. It doesn’t hurt to have fun and a shared sense of
Teacher clarity is the precursor to student engagement. Professor John Hattie, author of Visible Learning, who compiled 500,000+ studies on student achievement, ranked teacher clarity among the top 10 influences on student achievement. Yet for two educational terms used widely in the profession and with
Anything easily attained is cheaply held. – Debbie Silver One of the most compelling motivators for students is when they work hard towards a goal and achieve it through their focused efforts and conscious choices. If there is an attentive adult present to give appropriate feedback,
In a recent trip to western Maine, my family sat mesmerized by the glorious visits of a group of hummingbirds to our home in the woods. Visit after visit, each little jewel-colored shimmering bird, eating from the jar of nectar or hovering to look us
The beginning of the new school year offers equal doses of excitement, tempered with a bit of trepidation. “I can’t wait to meet new people!” and “I hope they like me…” seem to compete simultaneously for attention. And we’re talking about the teachers! We don’t
In many classrooms, the pace of interactions is rapid-fire. Teachers “cover the curriculum” by asking many low-level questions, naming one student to answer—usually a volunteer with a raised hand—and quickly evaluating the student answer as to its correctness. This cycle is repeated innumerable times during a class period. The results: Teacher talk dominates. A small percentage of the students