PRIMING THE STUDENT LEARNING PUMP http://snipurl.com/km_learningpump
In this Teacher Magazine essay, new-teacher mentor Kathie Marshall tells the story of a novice middle school teacher who learns some important lessons about student engagement. One reader commented: “As a first year teacher, this was a refreshing article to read and relate to. I know that engaging students is the key to their success, but I, too, became overwhelmed with the curriculum and ignored the most important factor of teaching — engaging the learners!”
http://snipurl.com/ms_global
FRONTLINE/World is a national public TV series that “turns its lens on the global community, covering countries and cultures rarely seen on American television.” The Frontline website features a special section for educators, featuring lesson plans and activities for middle and high school that require no more than 1-2 class periods.
Schools and teachers focusing on the 21st century skill of “global awareness will appreciate this top-quality content. See for example this recent lesson plan for grades 7-12: “Negotiate Peace for India and Pakistan,” which includes standards, cross-curricular activities, and links to literature.
http://snipurl.com/world_lessonplans
MIDDLE LEVEL LEADER: ADVISORY PROGRAMS
http://snipurl.com/mlleader_advisory
Patti Kinney is the person behind NASSP’s newsletter for middle level leaders (and we’d say that includes teacher leaders). A long-time middle school principal and 2003 national principal of the year, Kinney has also been president of NMSA. She brings insider savvy to the editing of this useful monthly publication. Check out the September issue, which summarizes the lastest thinking about the design and implementation of advisory programs, drawing on the experiences of 35 Rhode Island schools. You don’t have to be a member of NASSP to sign up for the no-cost email publication.
GAME-MAKING WITH “SPLODER”
http://snipurl.com/spoder_gaming
Sploder is a game-making toy that “allows anyone to design and publish their own games” using a web interface. We learned about Sploder from a review in MacWorld magazine, which says: “This is particularly great for younger gamers hankering to get their first taste of game creation without jumping waist-deep into hard-to-understand code and scripting technology.” For a similar but somewhat more sophisticated site (with less shoot-em-up), see Scratch, a new tile-based programming language for game-building, developed by MIT’s Media Laboratory and “designed with learning and education in mind.” Check out the educator community and the archives from the first Scratch education conference held at MIT last July.
http://scratch.mit.edu/pages/educators
ONLINE WORKSHOP: TEACHING THE ARTS
http://snipurl.com/annenberg_artspd
The description touts this online professional development experience as “a workshop for high school teachers” but don’t be deceived.
Although the video content features high school students, the principles of good arts teaching put forth in this eight-part series from Annenberg Media apply equally to the middle grades. The content covers visual arts, music, theatre and dance and “is intended for use by mixed groups of teachers from all four arts disciplines, to help them improve their practice.” The first program introduces seven principles of effective teaching; then each principle is explored in depth in a subsequent program. This link leads to a website that includes the video programs, other interactive materials, and a downloadable guide. No-cost registration.
SCIENCE & SOCIETY: EXPLORING YOUR OWN DNA
http://snipurl.com/nytln_redesign
From time to time we tout the great lesson plans at the New York Times Learning Network, linked (literally) to stories in the news.
http://snipurl.com/nytln_dnatest
HELPING NET-KIDS LEARN TO MANAGE INFORMATION
http://snipurl.com/bf_managinginfo
Bill Ferriter, our favorite sixth-grade geek (teacher division), is doing some “second job” work at his own middle school this year, helping “to drive a vision for 21st Century learning in our building’s classrooms.” In this blog post, Bill shares how he’s using webtools like PageFlakes to help students learn to manage information
– “probably the most important 21st Century skill to teach to our kids.” See how Bill and his colleagues are using these tools to help students discern media bias in Election 2008. ALSO: For another interesting view of transformative web tools, read how a wiki has revitalized a science teacher’s classroom and her teaching:
http://snipurl.com/wikiteacher
FASHION RULES IN GIRLS’ FICTION
http://snipurl.com/nyt_girlsfiction
A friend of MiddleWeb sent us this July story from the New York Times parenting column, thinking that English and language arts teachers might enjoy (?) this reflection on “how girls’ fiction of the day conveys values.” It’s based on a recent dissertation that analyzes the best-selling “Clique” books and the series “Gossip Girl” and “A-List.” (Total sales 13.5 million.) Columnist Michael Winerip
writes: “As others have, Dr. Johnson questions the female characters’
preoccupation with looks, thinness, fashion, makeup, wealth — we’re talking spoiled, rich middle-school girls from Westchester County.
But what grabbed me as new was her documentation of what she called the ‘incessant litany of brand names.’”
GET PRACTICAL STEPS FOR CHOOSING AND USING FICTION IN THE CLASSROOM
THE NOVEL EXPERIENCE is a handy 32-page flipchart that helps middle-level teachers and students organize a novel program, choose books that match interests & abilities, foster comprehension, process information, and share responses. Includes over 100 book suggestions; only $11. Click here for details:
http://www.stenhouse.com/8200.asp?r=mw081002
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SPECIAL RESOURCES FOR NEW TEACHERS
http://snipurl.com/NewTeacherResources
We continue to add new resources to our special page for teachers who are just beginning their classroom careers. Among recent additions:
Links to a series of Teacher Magazine’s Teaching Secrets articles; ideas for creating a positive and engaging classroom environment, and one middle grade teacher’s practical advice on developing the “Organized Middle Schooler.” Check back often.
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Michael Vitelli - CEO | http://www.gamingkrib.com mvitelli@gamingkrib.com 727-947-7005 Reinventing Learning in the Digital World
