Conferring is built on learning what students are doing and how they are thinking. In the first stage of a math conference, the teachers looks, listens, and asks with the goal of building an interpretation of student thinking. (continue reading)
The overall design of an academic assignment, from the layout to the words used, is critical to not only how well a student preforms, but how they continue to learn throughout their academic journey. By taking a user approach, Jim Burke suggests that we can design better work for our students. (continue reading)
Getting Started with Beginning Writers is not a script you can follow, of course. But regardless of the children sitting in front of you, and regardless of whether it's the beginning of the year or sometime later, there are very specific big ideas and beliefs that can guide your practice. (continue reading)
While good readers are able to meet state reading standards and often achieve at the highest levels on standardized tests, they can be helped to become more thoughtful readers. (continue reading)
Sketchnoting fosters metacognition. It's a vehicle to help us think about our thinking. The pens, paper, and apps we use aren't the end all, be all; they change with us over time as our thinking grows and changes. The stuff of sketchnoting contributes to the process. The media helps move the message. (continue reading)
If we want to ensure that kids benefit from the way that we choose to do school, we must realize that culture is not naturally occurring. Culture is visible and large and if we are not careful, our classroom and school culture can work to silence, exclude, and oppress children. (continue reading)
How does a conference work? What do teachers think about? What do they say? A conference is not simply a venue for students to report on their thinking. A conference is a shared opportunity for teachers and students to learn together in the moment. (continue reading)
We are happy to share that on Monday, December 10, Heinemann author Marilyn Pryle was named Pennsylvania's Teacher of the Year in recognition of her innovative teaching and dedication to her students. (continue reading)
When students write Reading Responses about a text, they have something to say in class. It may be a minor point, or it may be a major point, but it is a concrete thought and it is tied to a specific part of the text. (continue reading)
Feedback is key to student learning. Since writing conferences are conversations between students and teachers, they provide opportunities for two types of feedback: student to teacher, and teacher to student. (continue reading)
