What are best teaching practices? Have you ever questioned your beliefs? When you begin questioning your beliefs, it is referred to as a paradigm shift.Stephen Covey, the author of 7 Habits of Highly Effective People describes in detail what a paradigm shift is. In his book, he says...“Belief is another word for paradigm. It's a synonym. Your belief of the way things are”. -Stephen CoveyWe all have many beliefs when it comes to best teaching practices. These beliefs come from the training we’ve … [Read more...] about When you find out you’ve been teaching wrong…
Differentiation
Want to Get Started With Workshop? Do This One Simple Yet Powerful Thing!
Does this sound like you? You learn a new idea, a new way of teaching, a new strategy and you're all in. You become so convinced THIS is the way to go about things from now on! But, this energy to change everything all at once eventually wears off and you're left with a lot of overwhelming feelings. We have a lot in common if this sounds like you. I love trying new things but sometimes this innovative, open attitude leads to stress and absolute chaos in the classroom! In my years as a … [Read more...] about Want to Get Started With Workshop? Do This One Simple Yet Powerful Thing!
ONE Crucial Thing You Might Not Be Doing When Planning Writing Units and How To Start Doing It!
Teachers are SUPER busy during the school year and need to be efficient when planning new writing units. It is absolutely necessary to find ways to save time. The thing is you are most likely missing one huge step before you even begin planning your lessons. Listen to the podcast episode above or watch the YouTube video below to find out the ONE thing you need to start doing in order to save time when planning but more importantly, to teach students what they actually need to … [Read more...] about ONE Crucial Thing You Might Not Be Doing When Planning Writing Units and How To Start Doing It!
5 Simple Ways to Differentiate Writing Instruction in the Middle School Classroom
Teaching writing is tough and differentiating writing instruction is tougher! Student writers have so many varying needs. What do you do when Steven can crank out a well organized, thoughtful literary essay in twenty minutes and John can barely write a paragraph? What do you do when Cindy says she is confused about how to develop a claim and Sarah says she needs help organizing her essay? This situation can be super overwhelming when 30 plus students are demanding your help or maybe five … [Read more...] about 5 Simple Ways to Differentiate Writing Instruction in the Middle School Classroom
Supporting Writers At All Levels
Teaching writing can be overwhelming to the max! The variety of writing skills students need to master and the multifaceted competencies and struggles our students exhibit can make your head spin! I'm not a fan of labeling students but over the course of twelve years of teaching writing there are some common characteristics I've come to find among students in my classes every year. Below is a list of these groups of students and strategies for supporting them... Fast … [Read more...] about Supporting Writers At All Levels