Setting up classroom spaces has always been one of my favorite things to do as a teacher. Now, as a consultant, I love helping other teachers think of fun and practical ideas for designing great learning spaces. Last year, a
I had the privilege of joining Justin Baeder, Director of the Principal Center, for a fun conversation about my newest book, Learning to Choose, Choosing to Learn: The Key to Motivation and Achievement. In this interview, we discuss many interesting
I was thrilled to once again join Larry Jacobs on EduTalk Radio, this time to talk about how and why to offer students more choices about their learning, the subject of my recent book: Learning to Choose, Choosing to Learn:
Within three full days of work with Mike, my staff was energized and excited to incorporate choice into their classrooms. –Jeanine Heil, Principal, Deerfield, MA
I’ve had the honor and privilege to work with Mike Anderson as a consultant at
In the final weeks of school, teachers can feel even more insane than usual. Paperwork and meetings pile up. As the weather warms, students itch to be outside and start to anticipate summer, for better or worse, leading to more
In May of 2016 I was interviewed on ASCD’s Learn. Teach. Lead. Radio program on the BAM! Radio Network to discuss a few ideas from my newest book, Learning to Choose, Choosing to Learn: The Key to Student Motivation and
One of the most devastating effects of the standardization movement—with its pressures to conform and emphasis on accountability through high-stakes testing—has been the stripping of teacher autonomy—our power to make informed decisions about how best to meet the needs of
Note: This article first appeared on Learning Personalized in April, 2016: http://www.learningpersonalized.com/students-learn-choose-choose-learn/. Thanks go out to my friend and colleague, Allison Zmuda, who originally published the post!
I was recently working with a group of high school teachers, and they
Rod Berger and I had a chance to catch up at the ASCD Annual Conference in Atlanta, GA (April, 2016). Dr. Rod Berger is a global education media personality who has interviewed Ministers of Education, leading voices like Sir Ken Robinson, U.S.
This session summary appeared in the Conference Daily, the daily newspaper for the ASCD Annual Conference in Atlanta, GA, April 2-4, 2016. The original link is: http://annualconference.ascd.org/attendee/conference-daily/2016/choose-to-learn.aspx.
April Bailey
Too often, students figure out what they’re supposed to do based
Many schools are working hard to help promote a growth mindset in their students. I recently facilitated a learning session with a group of teachers that I’d like to pass along. It is a simple activity that yielded some powerful
Dear Kennari-
Greetings once again from Sweet Meadow Acres for Retired Teachers. I only have a few minutes to write today, so let’s get right to it, shall we?
In your last letter, you mentioned that you’re overwhelmed with everything
We all know the power of positive community in the classroom. When students feel valued, are known for their strengths, enjoy coming to school, and feel safe and supported, they are more ready to engage in great learning. Not surprisingly,
You have just finished teaching a lesson, and as you direct students to get started on their work, a familiar chorus echoes across the room, causing your heart to sink.
What do we get for doing this?
Do we have
We all know how important a good breakfast is. When our students have a big day coming up (a research project presentation, a debate, a field trip, etc.), it’s one of the things we encourage them to do to be
Original article: http://www.cfchildren.org/about-us/blogs/self-esteem-can-we-hand-it-to-our-kids-on-a-silver-platter
Published on Wednesday, February 24, 2016
Happy National Boost-Your-Self-Esteem Month! How are you celebrating? I’ve decided to mark the occasion by exploring where the self-esteem “movement” is today. First, though, some thoughts on self-esteem boosting in my
Learning to Choose, Choosing to Learn: The Key to Student Motivation and Achievement (ASCD, 2016) is all about how we can help students become more energized, independent, and self-motivated. Written for a K-12 audience across all content areas, any
Every now and then, I come across a letter from Uncle Curmudgeon, an old retired teacher, to his niece, Kennari, an aspiring new one. I’m happy to pass another along!
Dear Kennari-
So! You’ve signed up for your first committee!
How successful are you at keeping New Year’s resolutions? If you’re like most, you’re not so good at it. In fact, as a general rule, we teachers often struggle with goal-setting in general. This was something that I emerged from
Every now and then, I come across a letter from Uncle Curmudgeon, an old retired teacher, to his niece, Kennari, an aspiring new one. I’m happy to pass another along!
Dear Kennari-
It was another interesting week here at Sweet
The first weeks of school are long past, and your class has likely settled into a rhythm. This is a great time of year to reflect on how things are going. Are routines running as smoothly as you’d like? Are
You have 24 great parent-teacher conferences and one rough one.
Many students had “A-ha!” moments in math around a tough concept, but one just couldn’t get it and was near tears by the end of class.
At the end
This article appeared in the Responsive Classroom Newsletter: November 2015 (https://www.responsiveclassroom.org/article/our-classroom-walls)
During the school day we spend most of our time in our classroom and so do twenty to thirty students (give or take a few!). Many of us feel
This post originally appeared in Education Week Teacher (blog) on October 7, 2015.
By Larry Ferlazzo on October 7, 2015 4:45 PM
(This is the second post in a three-part series on “grit.” You
You’re on your way home from school thinking through the day and trying to figure out how it happened. You replay events….
It was 11:15 and students were in the midst of a chaotic transition—it was noisy, three students were