A wonderful school to emulate!

A fellow Harvard peer just posted this, and I had to share. What an incredible school it depicts, one that is clearly working to meet the needs of ALL students every day. WOW!

Hi Everyone,

I am from T440 class of 2003. Always in solidarity with you, but have never posted. You all inspire me to continue to create places for children (and teachers!) that bring hope and possibility. I am an assistant principal  of a large elementary school in Seal Beach, California. We serve 850 kids, 100 or so have special needs. We also have a long tradition of the arts in our school. We created this video in preparation for a California Distinguished School validation visit. The video touches my heart and so, I wanted to share with you.  Enjoy! http://goo.gl/nADN2p

Tanya

Skype with LitPick - An Online Education Reading and Writing Program

This is VERY cool! Check it out!

LitPick, formerly Flamingnet Book Reviews, has been named a Best Website for Teaching & Learning by the American Association of School Librarians (AASL), a division of the American Library Association.

Please contact us to arrange a virtual Skype tour of LitPick and of our unique FREE online reading and writing program.

Also, check out our new YouTube video.
LitPick - The Movie

Seth Cassel
Founder and President
LitPick Student Book Reviews
www.litpick.com

Text Complexity Resources from NCTE

I love the National Council for Teachers of English!

Here are some resources to support your students in comprehending today's complex literary texts.

• Watch the video "Simplifying Text Complexity" which explores how the way we layer text impacts complexity.
• Check out "Getting Started with Questions of Text Complexity" in the Literacy Learning Exchange.
• Learn more from Eileen Murphy Buckley in her book 360 Degrees of Text: Using Poetry to Teach Close Reading and Powerful Writing.
• View the On Demand Web seminar package on text complexity.
• Join us for the live Web seminar "Collaborative Conversations: Meeting Speaking and Listening Standards" on April 14 with Douglas Fisher and Nancy Frey.

Check out these events on professional collaboration.

• View the #nctechat Archive on "The Importance of Collaboration."
• Join us this summer for the CEL Institute on "Critical Issues: Assessment" for focused, collaborative work with literacy leaders from across the country.

Nominate a colleague for the NCTE Outstanding Middle Level Educator Award (formerly the Edwin A. Hoey Award). The language arts magazine Scholastic Scope sponsors this award and provides a cash award of $2,500. Nominations must be submitted by the May 1, 2014 deadline.

Debbie Zagorski
Middle Level Administrative Liaison
National Council of Teachers of English
1111 W. Kenyon Road
Urbana, IL 61801-1096
800-369-6283 ext. 3612
www.ncte.org/middle

Block Scheduling: The Debate Continues

I have taught in middle schools with and without block scheduling and honestly see the argument on both sides. Check out this fascinating link to form your own opinion:

CCASN (http://casn.berkeley.edu) has just revised its comprehensive writing on block and other scheduling options for high schools. It is probably the definitive work on scheduling.

That having been said, the first question has got to be, "Scheduling for what purpose?"

If you have not addressed purpose, then any old schedule will [not] do. And if you change the schedule radically, you had better give teachers a lot of time to work together to figure out how to design instruction to fit the new system.

But again, I'd rather start with: what do we want kids to learn, and how will we know that they know it? What kinds of things should they be doing to learn that? Then, how should we structure time so they can do that?

TGIF!!

    

Need a laugh?

 

More great books on classroom management and teacher evaluation...

...to not miss out on!

1. Classroom Management that Works: Research-Based Strategies for Every Teacher
By Robert J. Marzano with Jana S. Marzano and Debra J. Pickering

2. Discipline with Dignity, 3rd Edition: New Challenges, New Solutions
By Richard L. Curwin, Allen N. Mendler, and Brian D. Mendler

3. Managing Diverse Classrooms: How to Build on Students' Cultural Strengths
By Carrie Rothstein-Fisch and Elise Trumbull

4. Teacher Evaluation that Makes a Difference: A New Model for Teacher Growth and Student Achievement
By Robert J. Marzano and Michael D. Toth

5. Engaging Teachers in Classroom Walkthroughs
By Donald S. Kachur, Judith A. Stout, and Claudia L. Edwards

6. Teacher Evaluation to Enhance Professional Practice
By Charlotte Danielson and Thomas L. McGreal

7. Classroom Instruction that Works with English Language Learners, 2nd edition
By Jane D. Hill and Kirsten B. Miller

8. Classroom Instruction that Works with English Language Learners Facilitator's Guide
By Jane D. Hill and Cynthia L. Bjork

9. Classroom Instruction that Works with English Language Learners Participant's Workbook
By Jane D. Hill and Cynthia L. Bjork