So last week, I was planning my work with teachers in a district that is beginning to design curricula. At one point, I knew we’d be taking a peek at the draft of the new Core Standards, and I wanted to provide everyone the opportunity to highlight different aspects of the draft that they were [...]
So……now what? Seriously. Scores have improved in many of our local schools over the last several years. What does that even mean anyway?
If all of the professional development initiatives teachers have been a part of, all of the learning community work they’ve participated in, and every formative assessment they’ve “given” students inside of classrooms [...]
Young writers and educators are invited to join the fellows of the WNY Young Writers’ Studio at our first annual Celebration of Writing, which will be held on June 5th from 9:30am until noon at Pinnacle Charter School in Buffalo, New York. This year’s theme is A Celebration of Writers and Teachers in Progress.
What makes [...]
Although I may not be spending quite as much time blogging this year, I’ve been finding myself far more active elsewhere online, and in my travels, I’ve found much to recommend. I’ll still be reflecting on what I’m learning and discovering here, but much of that is happening on the ground inside of the classrooms [...]
…….especially if you haven’t had the opportunity to do it in the past. I’m working with quite a few teachers in different places this year who feel very much out of their element when they are asked to teach kids how to write. Sure, “all teachers are teachers of writing,” and I know that most [...]
When groups of learners come together to collaborate, the honeymoon is usually pretty sweet–and oftentimes, short lived. When I first began facilitating group learning experiences, I sometimes found myself thrown off-guard by shifting group dynamics and the uncomfortable challenges that these changes entailed. I learned that it was all pretty normal and healthy though. Whether [...]
Before I spent most of my days literacy coaching, I spent most of them facilitating workshops. Sometimes, I’m asked my opinions about which sorts of learning experiences make the most difference for teachers, and I always stumble over my response. It depends on the purpose of the learning, I guess. It also depends on the [...]
Just as teachers rely upon a gradual release of responsibility model to ensure effective instruction, many coaches begin moving toward similar models once they’ve established agreed-upon learning targets for their efforts with teachers. I was first introduced to this model through my study of Doug Fisher and Nancy Frey’s work and then again when I [...]
I’ve spent some time this summer taking stock of my online habits, including the ways in which I’ve established and engaged with my personal learning network. Bud Hunt recently shared his own reflections about this, describing the intentional shifts he has planned and the ways in which he intends to study them. His process intrigues [...]
“…you are teaching yourselves how you will live and work. Early habits take up residence and are difficult to evict later on.” Jim Burke
I spent a chunk of this weekend getting inspired by the different approaches my favorite edubloggers are taking with back-to-school posts. The start of every year is filled with such incredible [...]