Field Trips - One Teacher's Excellent Ideas

Amanda Wall has taken many of her students on overnight trips.  She shares 6 of her lessons as examples for you to see how field trips are worth the preparation and lead to more in-depth learning.  Ms. Wall offers 6 tips for successful academic field trips that you could yourself in planning class trips.


6 Tips to Boost Learning on Class Field Trips.  Amanda Wall. 4.29.13. MiddleWeb, featured in Stenhouse Newslinks. 5.15.15
http://www.middleweb.com/7285/academic-field-trips/

Common Core Math - We Need to Learn Along With Our Students

The new math is a huge change from the way teachers have taught in the past.  Memorization, calculation, and procedures are no longer the "end-all."  What is required is inquiry, communication, connections, and visual ideas. Author, Jo Boaler says,  "We need students who can ask good questions, map our pathways, reason about complex solutions, set up models and communicate in different forms."  Read this article to better understand what Common Core math standards is all about.
Memorizers are the lowest achievers and other Common Core math surprises.  Jo Boaler. 5.7.15.  The Hechinger Report
http://hechingerreport.org/memorizers-are-the-lowest-achievers-and-other-common-core-math-surprises/

What Do Preschoolers Need to be a Success Student?

Research has shown for some time that babies and toddlers benefit immensely from words spoken, heard, and tried themselves.  However, many low income parents do not provide these essential conversations and their children have a great deal of difficulty when they enter school.  The following article points out that if a child is behind in third grade, he/she has a high risk of not finishing high school.  We as teachers must do everything we can to engage parents in filling this need.  Many parents find this very difficult to do even though they love their child.  Often they are not instructed how to help or otherwise their time is spent providing the basic needs for the family.


What Do All Babies Need Yet Aren't Getting Equally, Melissa Fay Greene.  October, Reader's Digest.
http://www.rd.com/advice/parenting/babies-need-words/


                                                             

Use Virtual Field Trips to Enhance Your Curriculum

It is impossible to personally visit many significant sites in the world such as the Louvre, Smithsonian, or Washington D.C. sites.  Other sites close to home may be too expensive to finance bus transportation and supervision.  Realizing the significance of the digital age, many sites have produced virtual field trips that can add immeasurable information to your students in math, reading, science, and social studies curriculums.  Some virtual tours have prepared lessons that you can use.  If not, use the Field Trip model shown in the other field trip blog entry that can tailor a lesson to fit your purposes and those of a variety of learners in your class.  Read this article for ideas you might use.


Virtual Field Trips Spice Up Learning.  Barbara R. Blackburn. 4.26.15. MiddleWeb
http://www.middleweb.com/22188/virtual-field-trips-spice-up-learning/

Using Technology Responsibly

In our connected world it is important for teachers and students to respect the power of technology in revealing the character, habits, and opinions of themselves and others.  In Facebook, the most visited social media site, we need to understand the consequences of posting items/images that we might regret.  Lesson:  Think before you post....   Excellent article that everyone should read and consider.


Tech Tip:  Can we be people of character in a connected world?  Mike Ribble. 4.21.15.
http://smartblogs.com/education/2015/04/21/tech-tip-can-we-be-people-of-character-in-a-connected-world/?utm_source=brief

How to Help Kinesthetic Learners

We assume most students learn using auditory/visual systems, yet many students require manipulation and movement.  In the early years, most children are physically active and teachers respond to this by providing teaching strategies that require movement and manipulation.  Older students may have that kinesthetic tendency so teachers should provide movement, touch, and physical connection.  Not only will kinesthetic learners benefit, but so will all learners in the class.
Read this wonderful article for more ideas.  Share your experiences in Comments below.


Keeping your classroom moving.  Hanptali Hoff. 4.23.15. SmartBlog on Education.
http://smartblogs.com/education/2015/04/23/keeping-your-classroom-moving/?utm_source=brief

Exit Tickets: What a Great Assessment Tool!

Most teachers use some type of assessment to gauge the effectiveness of their lessons and to discover what their students are learning.  Author, Rhonda Stewart, has some excellent examples of exit tools that you can use - on paper and also online.  Ms. Stewart offers prompts for students to select and respond.  Paper samples are reproducible for you, the reader.  Online exit ticket examples are also shown, a tool Ms. Stewart recently discovered.  This is an excellent article that should help you with instruction.


Using Exit Tickets as an Assessment Tool.  Rhonda Stewart. 3.13.15.  Scholastic - Top Teaching Blog
http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/top-teaching/2015/03/using-exit-tickets-assessment-tool