Great Academic Work Archives - Mike Anderson Consulting

Want to Reduce Your Workload and Boost Student Learning? Try This One Powerful Strategy

By Mike Anderson
In Blog, From Surviving to Thriving, Great Academic Work, Homework, Mike's Blog, Motivation, Social and Emotional Learning, Student Choice, Teaching Strategies, Uncategorized, Work Life Balance

What if there was a learning strategy that boosted student engagement, had many (many!) academic benefits for students, and reduced teacher planning and correcting/grading time? Great news! There is–and it’s a tried and true strategy you have probably been using

By David Davis
In Blog, Great Academic Work, Homework, Mike's Blog, Motivation, Student Choice

It might be the understatement of the summer that teachers, students, parents, and administrators are anxious about the upcoming school year. In addition to the priorities of health, safety, and equity of access to education in this COVID-19 period, distance

By Mike Anderson
In Great Academic Work, In the Media, Interviews, Motivation, Student Choice, Teacher Talk, Video

I was delighted to join a group of deep thinkers for an in-depth panel discussion about leaner-centered education. Hosted by Julie Mountcastle of the Slate School, this conversation is rich and engaging. You’ll hear about the importance of cherishing children’s

Self-Care as a Professional Responsibility

A Conversation with Mike Anderson, Little Things First This is part 3 of a four-part series on how to support educators in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. In this conversation with the Little Things First podcast hosts, Tracy

By Mike Anderson
In Blog, Great Academic Work, Mike's Blog, Motivation, Student Choice

A high school math teacher is recording short lessons on his phone in his basement, using a dry erase board and marker as he explains new math concepts. He posts the videos and then offers one-on-one and small group coaching

By Mike Anderson
In Articles, Classroom Management, Great Academic Work

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

By Mike Anderson
In Articles, Great Academic Work

This article was published in the October 2015 edition of Educational Leadership (Emotionally Healthy Kids) as an online-only article. It explores how social and emotional skills are woven throughout the Common Core State Standards and what that means for good

By Mike Anderson
In Articles, Great Academic Work

When I first began my teaching career in the early 1990’s, it felt like an exciting time to be in education. There was incredible momentum building for rich, multi-layered, developmentally appropriate teaching. The reading and

By Mike Anderson
In Great Academic Work

Original Article: http://www.ascd.org/ascd-express/vol6/613-anderson.aspx?utm_source=ascdexpress&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=express613 Displays are essential tools for supporting students’ learning and making the classroom feel welcoming and engaging. They’re also something that most teachers enjoy doing—and sometimes overdoing! It’s tempting to cover classroom walls with bright, beautiful—and teacher-chosen—charts, maps, posters,

By Mike Anderson
In Great Academic Work

Original Article: https://www.responsiveclassroom.org/blog/homework-unwelcome-guest Most Thursday nights, our family joins two other families for what we all call “Dinner and a Show.” We congregate at one of our houses, the kids play together and we all enjoy some appetizers. The kids (seven

Holiday Celebrations

Winter holiday celebrations! They’re such a big part of American school life. But as our schools grow more diverse, traditional celebrations can leave some children and families feeling excluded or uncomfortable. Also, even if everyone at

Keep Learning Going During Holiday & Vacation Times

Original Article: https://www.responsiveclassroom.org/article/keep-learning-going-during-holiday-vacation-times Adapted from Responsive blog posts by Mike Anderson and Margaret Wilson Responsive Classroom Newsletter: November 2010 Suddenly, it seems like the class

By Mike Anderson
In Classroom Management, Great Academic Work

Original Article: https://www.responsiveclassroom.org/blog/comfortable-way-work I remember one third grader who really struggled with sitting still. If I’d required him to sit while he worked, it would have been really hard for him to get anything done. This child needed to move to

By Mike Anderson
In Great Academic Work

Original Article: https://www.responsiveclassroom.org/blog/make-learning-moving-experience So you want to reduce the amount of time that your students are required to sit and to give them more chances to move. Could you build more movement into your lessons? Here’s one idea. Let’s say you’ve

By Mike Anderson
In Articles, Classroom Management, Great Academic Work

What are strategies for helping students be more physically active during the day, and how do we keep control of the group if they’re sitting less and moving more? Try having lessons take place in one area of the room,

By Mike Anderson
In Articles, Great Academic Work, Teacher Talk

Original Article: https://www.responsiveclassroom.org/blog/lecture-less So we know students need to sit still to accomplish some school tasks, but we don’t want to keep them sitting for too long. How can we minimize the amount of time we require children to sit still?

By Mike Anderson
In Articles, Classroom Management, Great Academic Work

“My students have such a hard time sitting still! They call out all the time! They’re constantly out of their seats!” After hearing this refrain over and over again from teachers, I decided to do a

By Mike Anderson
In Great Academic Work

Original Article: https://www.responsiveclassroom.org/blog/every-teacher-tips-displaying-student-work In any classroom, displays should consist primarily of the children’s work, rather than teacher-made or store-bought pieces, no matter how beautiful those pieces might be. Displaying student work sends several important messages: As teachers, we value what students

By Mike Anderson
In Articles, Classroom Management, Great Academic Work

With new technologies arriving on the scene constantly, it can be hard for teachers to keep up. Which devices will improve the learning environment in your classroom? Which will gather dust? Here are some basic guidelines to help you decide

By Mike Anderson
In Great Academic Work

Original Article: https://www.responsiveclassroom.org/article/news-and-announcement-charts A: I incorporate bits of word study into the charts whenever possible. In the younger grades, I sometimes made a stack of word cards and asked each student to place a card into a category on the chart

By Mike Anderson
In Great Academic Work

Link: http://www.ncte.org/search?q=reading+violence+in+boys+writing

Great Academic Work

Shifting from Extrinsic to Intrinsic Motivation

A Deep-Dive Into Learner-Centered Education

Start Planning with Your “Why” Instead of Your “What” and “How”

Our Classroom Walls

Social-Emotional Learning and Academics: Better Together

The Trouble with Testing

Classroom Displays: Keep the Focus on Student Work

Homework: An Unwelcome Guest

Holiday Celebrations

Keep Learning Going During Holiday & Vacation Times

A Comfortable Way to Work

Make Learning a Moving Experience

Move Around the Room

Lecture Less

Sitting Too Much?

Every Teacher Tips: Displaying Student Work

Technology in the Classroom

Q & A: News and Announcement Charts

Reading Violence in Boys’ Writing