Teacher resources and professional development across the curriculum

Teacher professional development and classroom resources across the curriculum

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Let Kids Read Whatever They Want!

Posted on March 5, 2015 Written by Virginia Loh-Hagan Leave a Comment

“You can’t read that.”

“You shouldn’t read that.”

“Why would you read that?”

Leave kids alone. Let them read, for goodness sake!

Well-intentioned adults (teachers and parents) are doing a huge disservice to kids when we doubt their ability to read, when we censor what they read, and when we judge what they read. What happens? Kids stop reading.

We should celebrate that our kids are reading! Especially if they’re reading books (and not scores on video games). We shouldn’t be putting them down.

Isn’t it fabulous that our kids want to challenge themselves with a complex text? It shows initiative. It shows their willingness to grapple. It shows their desire to read more. STOP telling them they can’t read certain books.

Children looking at picture books at school, Santa Clara, Utah. Credit: Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, FSA-OWI Collection, [reproduction number, e.g., LC-USF35-1326]

Children looking at picture books at school, Santa Clara, Utah. Credit: LOC, Prints & Photographs Division

Isn’t it fabulous that our kids want to read books about controversial or gritty topics? It shows intellectual curiosity. It shows an interest in perspectives and worldviews different from their own. STOP telling them they shouldn’t read certain books.

Isn’t it fabulous that our kids want to read all kinds of books? It shows they’re lovers of many types of writing and storylines instead of book snobs. Who are we to determine what are good and bad books for individual readers? Allow kids to form their own opinions. STOP judging their choices.

How many decisions do you think kids make in a day? We decide what they eat. We decide when they go to school. We decide what they read. We might give them options but ultimately, we decide what those options are. Kids make very few decisions – the ability to choose what they want to read should be one of them.

I take great pleasure in choosing books. One of my favorite things about finishing books is being able to choose the next one. I love being in book clubs because I eventually get to choose the book we read. (I pity the fool who tries to take that decision away from me!)

Instead of denying students the pleasure of choosing books, we should model our passion. Take, for instance, Ms. Bileni Teklu in Engaging With Literature, program 8, “Finding Common Ground.”

“…her students come to love reading because she is not dictating what they must read and when they must read it. These students have few choices in their personal lives, and so are especially appreciative of being able to choose what they read.”

In Classroom Lesson Plan: Independent Reading (also watch  the classroom video here), Ms. Teklu models her own decision-making process with students. She empowers them to make reading choices by sharing her personal experience.

I’m a literacy scholar. I’m a teacher educator. I’m a former classroom teacher. I know we need to teach district-sanctioned instructional materials. I know kids should be reading books at their independent level to build fluency. I know kids should be reading books at their instructional level during guided reading. I know kids should be reading complex texts during read-alouds. Effective literacy instruction requires us to make decisions about what kids read.

But, we should ensure kids have opportunities to choose their own books. And, we shouldn’t make them feel bad about their decisions. The consequences are too great.

Filed Under: Across the Curriculum, Literature & Language Arts Tagged: , , , , , ,

Annenberg-Newseum Summer Teacher Institute: Apply Now!

Posted on May 15, 2014 Written by Annenberg Learner Leave a Comment
28 Aug 1963, Washington, DC, USA --- More than 200,000 people participated in the March on Washington demonstrations. The throng marched to the Mall and listened to Civil Rights leaders, clergyman and others addressed the crowd, including Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech. --- Image by © Bettmann/CORBIS

March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, Image by © Bettmann/CORBIS

Dates: Wednesday, July 16 – Friday, July 18

Time: 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day

Where: The Newseum, Washington, DC

Cost: FREE

Application Deadline
Applications must be received by 11:59 p.m. on May 26, 2014

  • Participants will be notified by June 6, 2014. Apply Now

In partnership with Annenberg Learner, the Newseum is excited to offer a FREE three-day institute for teachers using new media. This unique professional development opportunity will include hands-on activities, exploration of artifacts from our collection with an archivist, and time to explore the museum independently.

“Speaking of Change” Institute Description
How has freedom of speech been used to spark movements for social change? What techniques have been effective for catalyzing action and securing the historical record? How can you apply these lessons from history to help your students effectively advocate using today’s high- and low-tech tools? Use resources from Annenberg Learner and the Newseum to explore the power of freedom of speech and help your students communicate effectively in traditional and new media.

The institute begins with an examination of speech and social change in history. Teachers analyze various primary sources for expression of freedom of speech and effective techniques. The institute will feature daily curatorial sessions, showcasing primary sources from the Newseum’s extensive collection. Then, participants will look at the opportunities for and challenges of self-expression in today’s media landscape, and use contemporary tools to update historic messages of change. Throughout the workshops, teachers apply what they’ve learned by working with a partner to create a resource or experience to implement during the 2014-2015 school year.

Attendees Will Receive

  • Classroom-ready and adaptable resources to implement into existing curriculum.
  • Strategies to implement Common Core, C3 and national standards aligned curriculum in the classroom including primary source analysis, media literacy and analyzing historical arguments and research.
  • An overview of digital classroom resources from the Newseum and Annenberg Learner in addition to other new media resources that can be used in the classroom.
  • Copies of select primary sources used in the curatorial sessions to take back to the classroom.
  • A private, behind-the-scenes “Tech Tour” of the Newseum’s production and technology centers.
  • A letter of recognition sent to your principal and superintendent.
  • Opportunity to submit a session proposal to present and attend a regional or national conference as the guest of Newseum Education and Annenberg Learner.
  • Access to Newseum Education staff to personalize a field trip for your class.
  • Monthly insider updates from Ed staff on resource, event and program development.

Complimentary breakfast and lunch will be served each day. Teachers outside of the D.C. metro area are encouraged to apply, but transportation and housing are not included.

Eligibility Requirements

  • Middle and high school teachers, librarians or media resource specialists.
  • Active creators of online content, whether through blogs, websites or social communication tools (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, etc.).
  • Note:
    • Applicants are encouraged, but not required, to apply in pairs to foster cross-curricular collaboration within the school or school district
    • The institute is open to all subject areas, but may be of particular interest to language arts and social studies teachers.

Participant Obligation Agreement

In return for attending the Summer Teacher Institute, educators agree to:

Pre-institute

  • Complete a pre-institute survey.
  • Send an introduction via social media — tweets with institute hashtag and a post on a social media platform of their choice (Facebook, Tumblr, etc.).

During the institute

  • Actively tweet or post throughout the day about activities, resources, etc.

Post-institute

  • Write a guest entry on the Newseum and Annenberg Learner education blogs.
  • Co-host a Google Hangout with the Newseum and Annenberg Learner to expand the professional learning community (PLC) and encourage collaboration with teachers around the country.
  • Complete a post-institute survey.
  • Implement the resource or experience created during the institute.
  • Participate in the Newseum’s Teacher Open House on Oct. 4, 2014. Note: Participation can be an additional blog post prior to Teacher Open House highlighting a specific resource, or participating in a panel that day to share effective, classroom-tested strategies using Newseum and Annenberg Learner resources and new media.

Application

  • Participants will be selected via a competitive application process.
  • Applications must be received by 11:59 p.m. on May 26, 2014
  • Participants will be notified by June 6, 2014.

Click here to apply.
Annenberg Learner is the exclusive sponsor of the 2014 Summer Teacher Institute.

(Reposted from the Newseum site.)

Filed Under: Annenberg Learner Events, Learner.org Announcements!, Literature & Language Arts, Social Studies & History Tagged: , , , , , , , ,

New (Online) Literacies for Your Elementary Researchers

Posted on June 10, 2013 Written by Donelle Blubaugh Leave a Comment

TeachRead_5Are your 3rd-5th grade students learning the skills they need to conduct online research? Last year the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project conducted a survey of over 2,000 advanced placement (AP) and National Writing Project (NWP) teachers to determine their perspectives on students’ research habits and the impact of technology on their studies.

The survey report How Teens Do Research in the Digital World concludes that virtually all (99%) survey participants agree “the internet enables students to access a wider range of resources than would otherwise be available.” At the same time, a significant majority of these teachers strongly agreed that students expect to be able to find information quickly and easily using the internet. 83% felt that the amount of information available online is overwhelming to most students. 71% agreed that today’s technologies discourage students from using a wide range of resources for their research. 60% agreed that these technologies make it harder for students to find credible sources of information.

There’s a lot that 3rd to 5th grade teachers can do give students the foundational skills they need to tackle rigorous research projects throughout their academic careers AND address the Common Core State Standards that concern informational text:

  • CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.5.7 Draw on information from multiple print or digital sources, demonstrating the ability to locate an answer to a question quickly or to solve a problem efficiently.
  • CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.5.8 Explain how an author uses reasons and evidence to support particular points in a text, identifying which reasons and evidence support which point(s).
  • CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.5.9 Integrate information from several texts on the same topic in order to write or speak about the subject knowledgeably.

Check out session 5, “New Literacies of the Internet,” in the video workshop Teaching Reading 3-5. In the video, Donald Leu of the University of Connecticut clarifies some of the differences between reading narrative text and reading informational text, and then defines five skill areas that students need to draw on to learn from online information.

  1. Identifying important questions: In the video you’ll see educators helping students generate questions on topics such as global warming and colonial American history. Good questions lead to good searches.
  2. Searching for information: Young researchers can too easily get in the habit of clicking on anything that turns up on a search results page. The teachers in the session 5 video walk students through taking a close look at search result summaries to make inferences about which sites will be the most useful.
  3. Analyzing and evaluating information: You can learn a lot from an “About Us” page. When was the information created? Who created it and why?
  4. Synthesizing information: Dr. Leu points out that synthesis is different on the internet. In print, the text is contained. Online, the text is constructed as students navigate from link to link. Skimming and scanning with purpose are important here. Students need to practice monitoring themselves to keep from getting distracted from their purpose for reading. Graphic organizers to the rescue!
  5. Communicating information: Students can practice safe and authentic online communications by sharing their research efforts with other students. How about 3rd graders creating a shared list of the “best” sites for learning about Egyptian civilization?

You can use the session’s Literacy Practice Portfolio to reflect on your current practice and to plan for implementing new techniques. And when today’s third grader astonishes his future AP teacher with his online research acumen, you will hear distant applause.

 

Filed Under: Across the Curriculum, Literature & Language Arts, Social Studies & History Tagged: , , , ,

Monday Motivation: Teaching Kindergartners to be Story-Tellers

Posted on May 20, 2013 Written by Annenberg Learner Leave a Comment

Arts_Bringing Artists_warmups In The Arts in Every Classroom, “Bringing Artists to Your Community,” theatre artist Birgitta De Pree involves a kindergarten class in a storytelling activity that engages the imagination while reinforcing story structure skills. She warms the students up with activities that relax them and build trust. Watch the video until 14:00. While Ms. De Pree served as an artist-in-residence in the school, these engaging activities can be adapted by any language arts teacher willing to take on the role.

Filed Under: Literature & Language Arts, The Arts Tagged: , ,

Valentine’s Day in the Elementary School Classroom

Posted on February 13, 2013 Written by Annenberg Learner Leave a Comment

Teaching Math_Valentine's DayOn Valentine’s Day, engage your elementary students in math and language arts lessons that revolve around the holiday. Here are some resources:

Mathematics

Our Teachers’ Lab activity, How Many Valentines? offers a fun way to connect the Valentine’s Day holiday with elementary mathematics.

Observe a fun 4th-grade math lesson incorporating the Valentine’s Day theme in “Teaching Math: A Video Library, K-4,” program 42, “Valentine Exchange.”

Demonstrate reasoning and proof through the mystery of love with an interactive activity on the Teaching Math: Grades 3-5 Web site.

Language Arts

See how kindergarten teacher Cindy Wilson uses the making of Valentines as a means of promoting her students’ oral language skills in Teaching Reading K-2: A Library of Classroom Practices, program 2, “Building Oral Language.”

Filed Under: Literature & Language Arts, Mathematics Tagged: , , ,