-
Happy Birthday #HackingPBL – FREE Course For You
Ross: What do you think about writing a book on PBL? Me: I think you’re crazy. Ross: Just think about it. If I’m being honest, I tried not to think about it. Unfortunately, the idea got stuck in my head. At first I fixated mostly on my failures: terrible rubrics, lengthy directions, displays of content rather than displays of learning, and the list could go on. Eventually, my stream of consciousness turned to the solutions I created (often times through a conversation with Ross), and then my wheels really started spinning. The true tipping point, however, came later in the week, when I bumped into a former student. She approached…
-
#PersonalizedLiteracy – Tackling the Whole Class Novel
One of the things I find myself talking about a lot is our work to transition to Personalized Literacy classrooms. In classrooms where literacy is personalized, students spend time reading and writing in class. They also have the opportunity to talk about their reading and writing with teachers, classmates, and a global audience. The following is episode one in my #PersonalizedLiteracy series, where I will discuss ways to overcome some of the barriers to a learner centered literacy approach. Listen to the podcast:
-
Need More Time? Three Things To STOP Doing In Your Classroom.
How many times a day do you say (or think), “I just need more time.” It is a regular topic of conversation in my circles. So, I have recently tried to tune into creative ways teachers save instructional time. This episode focuses on three ideas I have found to be most effective!
-
Pre-made, download-and-go PBL plan? Ask these questions first! #HackingPBL
Once upon a fifth grade classroom, I hosted a student teacher from a local university. As she began to take over more of the instructional load, she integrated some of my classroom management techniques, including my routine for gaining student attention before giving a direction. This routine, which felt natural for me and was quite effective for my students, always seem to fall short for our student teacher. She struggled to gain student attention and eventually she ended up
-
Leading Project Based Learning – 10 Minute Teacher Podcast #10MT
-
Talking To Teens About Their Brains
When was the last time you thought about your brain? Until a few years ago, I didn’t think very seriously about my brain, at all. It performed all of its essential functions without me paying it much mind (pun intended), so there wasn’t ever a reason to offer it deliberate focus… until I became a middle school administrator. When I tell people I work in a middle school, they often respond with looks of horror, since kids ranging in age from 10 to 13 seem to have reputations that precede them. It’s true that the unique developmental characteristics that make up these formative years can be tricky, but learning more…
