Group items tagged

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36IBDpTRVNE For some reason the URL that is showing is incorrect. Here is an updated URL

Portable Word Wall and other Word Wall ideas to support struggling readers. I have used Word Walls in the past, but I have not used them for individual students. This form of differentiation can be taken with the student to a reading specialist, brought home, or used in the classroom to support instruction.

SPR15 strategy phonics K-3 resource

Hear Gay Su Pinnell detail strategies for Phonics Mini Lessons, which are designed to support effective and efficient delivery of phonics instruction to young learners. Fountas and Pinnell are renown in the field of literacy instruction. This tutorial is a valuable mini lesson for educators who are not fortunate enough to have participated in their workshops.

FREE online. Teach children to read. For adults too! Fast and easy. Learn to read with interactive audio lessons and hundreds of clickable words. This site offers fun, interactive phonics tutorials with activities are designed to work on specific skills. Students can use this in the classroom or at home.

This research paper examines a strategy of using concordance lines to assist L2 students in identifying patterns in the written language to help inform a student's overall writing. The research included one control and one experimental group. Each group was taught by the same instructor, given the same amount of time and writing prompts. Students in both groups were given a set of (5) new vocabulary terms. They were each given a writing prompt prior to learning the words, just after learning the words, and a delayed post-test. The only difference between the (2) groups of students was that the control group was permitted to use a dictionary to assist them in understanding the words, and the experimental group was required to engage in a series of condordance learning activities. These activities presented the experimental group with multiple, short statements from real text, which each modeled use of one of the (5) vocab terms. Students engaged in an analysis of how those terms were used. They studied grammatical aspects of the statement directly related to the key term. Research results indicated that there was significant improvement in the experimental grouping of students in their ability to correctly use each of the (5) new vocabulary terms. Data from the pre, immediate post, and delayed post-writing assessments showed a vast improvement by the students in the experimental group. Those students were able to construct much more well-developed, descriptive statements using the key terms. There was a marked difference in their language control and the level of their writing.

For teachers looking to keep students learning even outside of the classroom, creating a blog platform for each classroom would be key. Edublogs can be used for e-portfolios and class sites. By uploading videos, pod-casts and notes, my language art students could have an interactive classroom to complete novel study discussions and assignments. In the past, I have used Edmodo and Edublogs is a similar platform. I would recommend for teachers.

As a goal for the next school year, I have decided to include a blog that would accompany my teaching and assignments my students would complete throughout the year. Through my searching, I discovered Kidblog. According to the site, "Kidblog is designed for K-12 teachers who want to provide each student with an individual blog. Students publish posts and participate in academic discussions within a secure classroom blogging community." For my language arts students, they would use this tool by completing and discussing discussion questions relating to a novel study (we complete at least 4 throughout the year). In regards to writing, their personal blog would be a great place to stay organized with their process of writing. I also like how this platform allows students to start an e-portfolio, especially for their writing and composition samples.

Bring the past to life and turn your students into historians with the DocsTeach program from the U.S. National Archives. - Click on Activities to create activities you customize for use in the classroom. - Click on Documents to select from thousands of primary source documents from the billions preserved at the National Archives.

I'm trying this again . . . Docs Teach is digital "warehouse" of primary source documents that include interactive activities, such as evaluating evidence to make a case for a particular argument. This is very useful resource for a social studies class.

Why reinvent the wheel when making PowerPoint presentations? This online tool is used to upload and download PowerPoint presentations and visuals on all sorts of topics. Users may search for an already created PowerPoint on a subject they may teach and download it for their own teaching purposes. Although this online source is open to anyone, it can be used in any classroom content or subject area under discussion; however, a teacher may need to customize sample PowerPoint presentations to fit their classroom needs. For example, if a language arts teacher needed to give notes on grammar and parts of speech, they may search for a PowerPoint already made including that information. This tool saves teacher time and helps spark ideas!

The tool I posted is Slideshare, a presentation platform where users can post PowerPoint presentations they have created for their classrooms or even businesses. I have used this tool in the past in order to find ready made notes presentations I could present to my 6th grade language arts students. The great thing about about Slideshare is that I can use already created PPTs and customize them to fit my students needs. I definitely recommend this site for the teacher who just doesn't seem to have extra time to create all new notes presentations. Don't reinvent the wheel!

Samantha- Are the PPTs all Creative Commons then? You are free to use, and alter?

As an "online work platform with a new take on how everyday work gets done," students could use Podio as a school social network devoted to thier studies. Much like a Facebook account, students would use Podio to complete assignments and discuss classroom content. This collaborative tool can also be used as a place students could use to complete projects and group work assignments. This sort of experience would be effective for teachers looking to have students working with other students from different schools/districts on a common project. This could be useful with Project Based Learning assignments as well.

I see that Podio is targeting higher ed students, and wonder whether it would be to risky to use it in k12. See: http://blog.podio.com/2011/11/16/podios-free-university-program-supports-students-the-real-future-of-work/ There's no teacher control board as there is in Diigo, for example.

I selected a source from ERIC that focused somewhat upon the novelty and implementation on PARCC assessments in place of other testing batteries in school systems. This article may help us to a degree in honing our focus of our EQ as to why students grades declined significantly in the third quarter. Discussing issues with the ELA and the Common Core in Massachusetts, the very novelty of the testing led one overwrought educator to even remark, "...I'm not really thinking about PARCC yet. I have too much else to do" (Barrett, 2014, p. 25). Herein, Barrett mentions that field testing was just implemented into 18 states, just last year, and income and resource availability may play a significant role in Massachusetts' national performance leadership on former testing assessments and the Common Core (p. 24). Interesting to note is that the two parts of the PARCC testing, the PBA and the end of year examinations are only one month apart, spanning from March-April, and May-June (p. 25). Barrett, L. (2014). Common core 'A really big reset'. Education Digest, 79(8), 22.

This citation caught my eye because I am a Massachusetts educator and it is still undetermined whether or not the PARCC tests will be implemented in my district again this year. In general I felt that, last year, the assessment took too much time away from instruction. Now the teachers and parents I know seem more uncertain than ever that all our preparation efforts are worth it. I think if we weren't in such an all-fired hurry to raise our scores PARCC could actually develop into a meaningful exercise. Everybody relax!

An informative and engaging article that provides eight solutions to tackling the achievement gap.  It is well organized and written with clear reasoning for each solution.

I really enjoyed this article. As a new instructor I am constantly looking to engage my adult students. Through my instruction, making that personal connection is so important. Once you make that personal connection I find that students start making a personal connection with their assignments as well. I find having a non-academic conversation at the beginning of class can help the students feel involved classroom citizens.

This article really gives great advice on how teachers can help close the achievement gap by changing small things they do in the classroom. The two things that stuck out to me was allowing more time and progress monitoring. Sometimes time is all a student needs to succeed. When students feel rushed they end up just picking whatever answer they think is right or just something to complete the assignment. Allowing students to return to their unfinished work could really help students concentrate knowing that they don't have to rush to finish an assignment. As far as progress monitoring goes, it helps when the teacher really cares about making sure the students are on the right track and that their parents are aware of the work they have completed or would need to complete to get them on track.

EDTC615 Fall2018 Group1 According to my smart goal: By the end of 1st quarter 75% of the LSN Government students will be able to analyze political cartoons with 75% accuracy for historical content and meaning for the LSN FAST 2 test, my student need to be able to read for accuracy, use effective vocabulary, and understand symbolism of political cartoons. This resources includes a lesson plan which provides strategies for literacy in three stages, before reading, during reading, and after reading. These strategies include a word wall, the first amendment of the Constitution, and the questioning exercise help to prepare the students for reading within the content area and with HIstorical analysis; the major area in which my students struggle. The lesson presented also is in direct correlation with the information that my students need to know as a part of my smart goal.

This is an article about the RTI program and how students who are English Language Learners can benefit from using certain strategies and what areas they might struggle in. Teachers could use this resource as a guide to how to implement their own interventions for their students.

This website gives a good overview of what RTI is, as well as a background and makeup of ESOL learners in the United States. The article also provides teachers with strategies on how to teach certain skills to ESOL students, such as using a table that includes a picture and the word in both English and Spanish. As a user of RTI at my own school, I have seen the positive effects of this tool.

(Week 8: Michele, Ericka and Spencer) This article was retrieved using a search on Diigo. It can be accessed using this link http://www.rtinetwork.org/learn/diversity/response-to-intervention-implications-for-spanish-speaking-english-language-learners In the article, Elsa Hagan provides the reader with insight into ways ELA teachers can improve reading levels of their Spanish-Speaking ELL students. Currently, there is a 29% gap in reading level with Spanish-Speaking ELL students when compared to other ELL students. To help bridge the gap, strategies need to be utilized. One involves the use of Response-to-Intervention (RTI) model to aid in monitoring the individual progress of all ELL students with an extra emphasis placed on the Spanish-Speaking students in the program. This will involve continuous monitoring of the Spanish-Speaking ELL students to ensure they are receiving the appropriate intervention strategies for their current level. Along with using RTI, the author indicates that a Phonological Awareness is needed. By aiding the ELL students ability to "process and manipulate" the sounds of the English language, their ability to read and comprehend information in English will improve. While this article was intended more for ESOL course teachers, the information provided can be utilized with all educators who have an ELL student in their class. The article identified that the Spanish language only has approximately 22 sounds where the English language has double the number of sounds. To aid in the improvement of reading in ELL students, we as non-ESOL class teachers, can exchange text that will be a lower reading level but still mean the same. Reference: Hagan, E. (2010) Response to intervention: implications for spanish-speaking english language learners. Retrieved on October 30, 2018 from http://www.rtinetwork.org/learn/diversity/response-to-intervention-implications-for-spanish- speaking-english-language-learn

This blog post was very eye opening and had me reflecting on my own classroom and teaching style throughout. Jennifer Gonzalez is a middle school teacher who recently read a book called "Culturally Responsive Teaching & The Brain" by Zaretta Hammond. Upon reading this book Jennifer talks about her experience with teaching students whose cultures, race, language, etc. did not match what schools teach and value. Additionally, she felt that she could have done a better job at teaching and reaching these students, who are typically labeled "at risk." Something I often feel. In feeling this way, in what she hopes will help her close the gap, Jennifer talks about the brain-based approach she read about. She touches on the Ready for Rigor Framework and the four separate practices that can help improve teaching. This blog post touched home for me as I taught a handful of ELL students this year and for some I felt like I did not do my best and I could have done better.

Manuel Hernandez Carmona is an ESL teacher from New York. The video describes the importance of providing culturally relevant material to students to ensure academic success. He emphasizes how critical it is to help students make connections with their own personal experiences to build bridges into other content.