We want students to be more than compliant, don’t we? In addition to doing the right things, we want them to do so for the right reasons. We want students to pick up trash to keep the room clean, to be
Consequences are complicated. You can’t have an effective approach to discipline without them, yet they can’t be the focus of discipline either. In schools, there are often many different opinions about what appropriate consequences are and how they should be
Have you ever had a student you struggled to connect with? How you ever felt a twinge of guilt as you recognize that there are a couple of students in your class who are harder to like than others?
I
We know about the power of relationships. We’ve heard (and believe!) the old adage, “Kids don’t care what you know until they know that you care.” So how do we build and cultivate those all-important relationships…with some of our toughest
Tell a story that you would want your students to tell about your class at the end of the year.
This compelling challenge was posed by Bena Kallick on a recent video interview I had with her and Allison Zmuda.
In this article published in District Administration, I share some thoughts about the challenges some educators face when they feel that district policies around discipline are at odds with their own core values.
In this lively chat with educators Allison Zmuda (personalized learning guru) and Bena Kallick (co-creator of The Habits of Mind framework), we discuss how to move beyond simply giving students choices about their learning. To really leverage the power of
If you teach reading and/or writing, there’s a good chance that when introducing a new concept or skill, you begin your lesson by saying some variation of, “Good readers….”
“Good readers pay attention to context clues.”
“Good
As the school year winds down, it can be hard for students (and teachers) to keep their positive energy high. With the end in sight, it can be hard to stay motivated to do work. With worries about the end
In this free archived webinar you’ll learn about why teacher talk is so important. You’ll also dig into several specific examples of common mismatches between what teachers want for their students and how they talk with them. You’ll learn how
I hope you enjoy this lively conversation with Jeff Bradbury on The TeacherCast Podcast about my latest book, What We Say and How We Say It Matter: Teacher Talk that Improves Student Learning and Behavior.
One of the most deeply held beliefs of many educators is that we should praise students—a lot. Many of us were taught, early on in our careers, that the more we praise our students, the better they’ll feel, and the
We all have the best of intentions when it comes to our students. We want them to have
I had the honor and pleasure of chatting with ASCD Emerging Leader Rachael George about my newest ASCD Book: What We Say and How We Say It Matter: Teacher Talk That Improves Student Learning and Behavior. The interview was
This quote is one of my favorites. If you’ve attended a professional development session with me, there’s a good chance I’ve shared this with you at some point. It so clearly articulates the importance of
Childhood anxiety is on the rise. According to research cited in a recent Washington Post article, the diagnosis of childhood anxiety in children ages 6-17 has jumped 20% in recent years.
On August 27, 2018, I had the honor of delivering the opening day keynote address to 2200+ educators in Nashua, NH. The main message is fairly simple. If we want today’s children to be prepared for the new world
Traditional praise (such as "Good job!" and "I love the way you're..." can do more harm than good. Read on to find out what to say instead!
The way we introduce learning options to students can make or break a choice experience for students. In this blog post, you’ll learn some practical strategies and ideas from Maggie West, a fifth-grade teacher in Conway, Massachusetts. To get
It seems to be more and more common for teachers to give presentations to adult audiences. Whether it’s sharing with parents at an open house night, making a persuasive speech at a school board meeting, facilitating part of a faculty
“If I give my students choice, I’m worried they’re going to make bad choices,” I often hear teachers say. “They’re just going to choose the easiest option. Or, they’re going to choose what their friends choose.”
There’s no doubt that
Kids who completely disconnect from all literacy and math during the summer may experience the “summer slide.” They return to school in the fall rusty–with little school stamina. They may even lose academic ground that they gained the previous year.
Social-emotional learning (SEL) is a hot topic in schools right now—as it should be. It’s increasingly clear that social and emotional skills are the keys to the kingdom—it’s the skill set that employers are seeking—the skill set that’s less likely to
We all know the importance of the first six weeks of school. We build positive relationships with students and a strong sense of community membership within our classes. We establish consistent and predictable routines to help students feel safe and allow them
Here’s another great post by guest-blogger and teacher, Gillian Andrews. Enjoy!
You may have read my previous blog post, Need More Teachers in the Classroom? Clone Yourself!, and thought this looks like a great idea in theory, but who has