Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL
LARRY FERLAZZO’S WEBSITES OF THE WEEK
September’s (2014) Best Tweets — Part Three
Every month I make a few short lists highlighting my choices of the best resources I through (and learned from) Twitter, but didn’t necessarily include them in posts here on my blog. I’ve already shared in earlier posts several new resources I found on Twitter — and where I gave credit to those from whom I learned about them. Those are not included again in post. If you don’t use Twitter, you can
Around The Web In ESL/EFL/ELL
© 2006 Rex Pe, Flickr | CC-BY | via Wylio I’ve started a somewhat regular feature where I share a few posts and resources from around the Web related to ESL/EFL or to language in general that have caught my attention: A Framework for Raising Expectations and Instructional Rigor for English Language Learners is from The Council of Great City Schools. Here’s an Ed Week article about it. Stanford’s U
Infographic: “Inside the Brain of a Struggling Reader”
Here’s an intriguing infographic: See the original infographic at http://www.scilearn.com/blog.
YESTERDAY
This Week’s “Round-Up” Of Useful Posts & Articles On Ed Policy
© 2012 Brad Perkins, Flickr | CC-BY-SA | via Wylio Here are some recent useful posts and articles on education policy issues: Actually, public education is getting better, not worse is from The Washington Post. I’m adding it to The Best Articles Pointing Out That Our Schools Are Not Failing. Due Process Should Include Peer Assistance and Review is by Anthony Cody. I’m adding it to The Best Resourc
September’s Infographics & Interactives Galore – Part Three
There are just so many good infographics and interactives out there that I’ve begun a new semi-regular feature called “Infographics & Interactives Galore.” You can see others at A Collection Of “The Best…” Lists On Infographics and by searching “infographics” on this blog. I’ll still be publishing separate posts to individually highlight especially useful infographics and interactives, but you
Researchers See What A Growth Mindset Does To The Brain
Many of us teachers have seen the effect of helping our students develop a growth mindset — that their recognizing that effort trumps intelligence will result in success and better learning. You can read more about this idea, coming out of the work of Carol Dweck, at The Best Resources On Helping Our Students Develop A “Growth Mindset.” Now, researchers have announced results of a study where the
SEP 18
VERY Interesting Info On The Results Of KIPP’s “Character Education” Program
© 2009 Loren Javier, Flickr | CC-BY-ND | via Wylio The Fordham Institute has just published a post by Laurence Steinberg titled “Is character education the answer?” It shares some fascinating research results on the KIPP charter schools’ well-publicized character education program. The results came from a Mathematica study that compared KIPP students with those who did not win lotteries to attend
TED-Ed Releases Video & Lesson That Will Be High-Interest For Students: “The History Of Tattoos”
“The History Of Tattoos” is a new TED-Ed video that will be a high-interest one for students. I’ve embedded the video below. You can find the entire lesson here.
PBS Releases “The Roosevelts” Lesson Plans With 19 Video Clips
I don’t know about you, but I’m finding Ken Burns’ “The Roosevelts” fascinating, though I’ve only watched Part One so far (the others are taped, since I’m also trying to watch the third season of Homeland this week ). PBS just released three related lesson plans, along with nineteen video clips from the mini-series. It’s part of a larger PBS site of President-related lesson plans called The U.S.
Three Skeptical Posts About Ed Tech
© 2011 J Aaron Farr, Flickr | CC-BY | via Wylio Here are few interesting recent skeptical posts on ed tech issues: Why I’m Asking You Not to Use Laptops is from The Chronicle Of Higher Education. I’m adding it to The Best Posts & Articles Highlighting Why We Need To Be Very Careful Around Ed Tech. Why I Just Asked My Students To Put Their Laptops Away is by Clay Shirky. I’m adding it to the sa
Nice Video Animation: “Scottish independence referendum 2014 explained”
The citizens of Scotland are voting on whether to be their own independent country. In fact, the voting is taking place as I’m writing these words. I’ve previously shared a nice, short video explaining what’s going on, and here’s another good explanation — an animated video from The Guardian:
SEP 17
An ESL Teacher’s Good Friend –”America’s Funniest Home Videos” — Turns 25
American’s Funniest Home Videos, whose DVD collections have been a great tool in my English Language Learner classes, is turning twenty-five years old, and The New York Times is marking the occasion with a lengthy article, A Generation of Unintended Laughs: ‘America’s Funniest Home Videos’ Turns 25. The program, which now also has a very popular YouTube channel is a great source of videos to use
Our School’s Writing Assessment For Some Students With Special Needs
© 2011 Vassilis, Flickr | CC-BY-SA | via Wylio I’ve shared many writing prompts that I use in my classes (see My Best Posts On Writing Instruction). Included in that “Best” list is a very popular post by my colleague and English Department leader Lara Hoekstra. In it, she describes a pretty sophisticated fall and spring writing assessment process we use with all of the students at our school. Stud
“What Books Should Teachers Read?”
What Books Should Teachers Read? is the latest question-of-the-week at my Education Week Teacher column. Feel free to leave your suggestions there or in the comments section of this blog.
My BAM! Radio Show “Kicks-Off” A New Season With Episode On Teacher Attire
My weekly ten-minute BAM! Radio Show has just kicked-off a new season with an episode where educators Renee Moore and Roxanna Elden discuss how gender, class and race relate to the question of teacher attire. You can also listen to the previous twenty-one episodes at the same link.
Search For Historical Word Use In Movies With “Bookworm”
I’ve previously written about several web tools that let you search for word usage in various places — books, the NY Times, Yelp — and then chart them out over the years. You can read about all of them here. There’s a new addition to that list — Bookworm. Despite its name, it focuses on word use in the movies, and operates in a similar fashion to the other sites I mentioned. Type in a word or phr
“More Advice On Teacher Attire”
More Advice On Teacher Attire is Part Two in my Ed Week series on….teacher attire. In it, educator Robyn R. Jackson shares her thoughts – particularly for women educators. I’m also publishing comments from many, many readers.
SEP 16
Nice Infographic: “Understanding Our Basic Human Rights”
I’m adding this infographic to The Best Resources For “Bill Of Rights Day”: Brought to you by the online international development masters program at American University
Self-Control, Grit & All That Stuff
© 2007 rjp, Flickr | CC-BY | via Wylio Regular readers know that I’m a big advocate of teaching Social Emotional Learning skills in the classroom (see The Best Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Resources), but that I also am wary of how it is being viewed by some as almost a cure-all (see my Washington Post piece, The manipulation of Social Emotional Learning). There have recently been some interest
Video: “See Eyewitness Testimony Fail”
Studies abound on the lack of confidence in eyewitness testimony, and teaching about it is a staple in International Baccalaureate Theory of Knowledge classes when we cover “perception.” The Pacific Standard just published a useful related article titled See Eyewitness Testimony Fail—Right Before Your Eyes that contained this great video I’ll be using next week in class:
Learning From Failure
What The Hype Behind Embracing Failure Is Really All About is a useful article that appeared in Fast Company. Here’s a quote from it: I’m adding it to The Best Posts, Articles & Videos About Learning From Mistakes & Failures. While I’m at it, I’m also adding Rejection letters to superstars early in their careers give us all hope [9 pictures] to the same list.
“Dreamreader” Looks Like An Excellent New Site For English Language Learners
Dreamreader is a new reading site for English Language Learners created by Neil Millington, an English teacher in Japan. Here’s how he describes it: There are 25 lessons on the site right now and they cover a variety of topics. I’ll be updating with more free lessons on a regular basis, and by the end of the year I intend to have over 50 free readings on the site. Teachers can have their students
“Destination Unknown” Is A Well-Done Online Geography Game
Destination Unknown is a very slick online geography game using Instagram photos. It’s particularly good because it offers hints. Unfortunately, since it utilizes Instagram, there’s probably no guarantee that all the photos will be classroom appropriate, though I didn’t see anything bad when I played the game. Because of that potential issue, and because it may not be around for the long-term (si
A comic that perfectly demonstrates the potential downside of tech in the classroom
I’m adding this Frazz comic strip to The Best Posts & Articles Highlighting Why We Need To Be Very Careful Around Ed Tech:
Two New iPad Resources That Look Intriguing
Here are two new intriguing resources I’m adding to The Best Resources For Beginning iPad Users: The Library of Congress has published a series of interactive ebooks: The new Library of Congress Student Discovery Sets bring together historical artifacts and one-of-a-kind documents on a wide range of topics, from history to science to literature. Interactive tools let students zoom in for close ex
SEP 15
Two New Sesame Street Videos On Social Emotional Learning
© 2011 MadAdminSkillz, Flickr | CC-BY | via Wylio Sesame Street has been sharing a series of videos on Social Emotional Learning skills, and you can see their previous ones on self-control at The Best Posts About Helping Students Develop Their Capacity For Self-Control. I think they’ve been pretty good, and my high school students enjoy watching them as a reinforcing/reminder activity after we’ve
Research Studies Of The Week
I often write about research studies from various fields and how they can be applied to the classroom. I write individual posts about ones that I think are especially significant, and will continue to do so. However, so many studies are published that it’s hard to keep up. So I’ve started writing a “round-up” of some of them each week or every other week as a regular feature. By the way, you mi
MOOC’s For English Language Learners & Teachers
© 2012 AJ Cann, Flickr | CC-BY-SA | via Wylio MOOC’s seem to be growing in popularity, even with their well-documented challenges (see The Best Posts & Articles On MOOC’s). There are also popular ones for English Language Learners and ELL teachers. The British Council has 100,000 students in their recently-opened MOOC for English Language Learners. Here are some articles about it: Online Engli
SEP 14
This Week’s “Round-Up” Of Useful Ed Policy Posts — Part Two
© 2012 firedoglakedotcom, Flickr | CC-BY-SA | via Wylio Usually, I just post one “round-up” of ed policy posts and article each week, but I’ve got a backlog. So here’s Part Two: How to Diversify Teaching is from The New York Times. Common Core: yes or no? A debate. appeared in The Washington Post. I’m adding it to The Best Articles Sharing Concerns About Common Core Standards. Focus on teacher ten
Time For Comcast To Step-Up & Provide “Net Access For Poor”
© 2008 San José Library, Flickr | CC-BY-SA | via Wylio I’ve had a keen interest for years in helping low-income families obtain Internet access, including helping to lead our school’s internationally recognized effort with immigrants a few years ago. You can read about that, and other programs, at The Best Resources For Learning About Schools Providing Home Computers & Internet Access To Stude
Great Video: Tavis Smiley On Daily Show Talking About M.L. King’s Final Year
© 2006 Mike Licht, Flickr | CC-BY | via Wylio Tavis Smiley has a new book out titled “Death of a King: The Real Story Of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Final Year.” He did a terrific interview on the Daily Show, and I’m adding this video to The Best Resources To Remember Dr. Martin Luther King’s Death (& Life). The Daily ShowGet More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Indecision Political Humor,The Da
Resources For Teaching About The Fall Season
© 2006 Micky**, Flickr | CC-BY | via Wylio It’s that time of year, and you might be interested in The Best Sites For Images Of Fall Foliage (& For Teaching About The Season). Additional suggestions are always welcome….
“Teachers Should Dress As Students’ Advocate, Not ‘Peer’”
Teachers Should Dress As Students’ Advocate, Not ‘Peer’ is my latest Education Week Teacher post. In Part One of a two-part series, four educators – Roxanna Elden, Renee Moore, Jane Fung, and Rebecca Mieliwocki – share their thoughts on how teachers should dress. I’m adding it to The Best (Or, At Least, The Most Interesting) Posts On Teacher Attire. Here are some excerpts:
SEP 13
Video: Potentially Useful TED Talk – “Why ordinary people need to understand power”
© 2007 Bronson ABbott, Flickr | CC-BY-SA | via Wylio TED recently shared a TED Talk by Eric Liu titled “Why ordinary people need to understand power.” I’ve embedded the video below, and you can access it and the interactive transcript at the TED site. He says some good things in the video the demonstrates he has an understanding of at least a few community organizing concepts, including: He’s cre
September’s Infographics & Interactives Galore – Part Two
There are just so many good infographics and interactives out there that I’ve begun a new semi-regular feature called “Infographics & Interactives Galore.” You can see others at A Collection Of “The Best…” Lists On Infographics and by searching “infographics” on this blog. I’ll still be publishing separate posts to individually highlight especially useful infographics and interactives, but you
Useful Resources On Race & Racism
© 2012 Michael Fleshman, Flickr | CC-BY-SA | via Wylio Here are new additions to A Collection Of Useful Posts, Articles & Videos On Race & Racism: Racial Profiling Curriculum, Resources & Know Your Rights is from the NAACP. I’m using some of their resources here in my IB Theory of Knowledge class when we examine racial profiling. Study finds range of skills students taught in school li
From The Onion: “Tips For Fixing The Nation’s Education System”
Tips For Fixing The Nation’s Education System is another great satirical article from The Onion. Here are a couple of them: Discourage teacher turnover by downplaying the importance of having money and respect Maybe get some underprepared, overconfident recent college graduates in there to figure things out I’m adding it to The Best Education Articles From “The Onion.”
“A Visual History of Kids Being Unimpressed with President Obama” Is Great For English Language Learners
The Atlantic has just published some great pictures at “A Visual History of Kids Being Unimpressed with President Obama.” They’d be perfect to use with English Language Learners to have them talk and write about them. I’m adding this resource to The Best Ways To Use Photos In Lessons.
Video Just For Fun: “La Bamba” From Playing For Change
I’ve previously posted various songs from Playing For Change. Here’s one of their latest ones:
This Week’s “Round-Up” Of Useful Posts & Articles On Ed Policy
© 2012 firedoglakedotcom, Flickr | CC-BY-SA | via Wylio Here are some recent valuable posts and articles on educational policy issues: Lily Eskelsen Garcia talks to Al Jazeera is a good interview with the new NEA President. The Coming Revolution in Public Education appeared in The Atlantic. I’m adding it to The Best Articles Providing An “Overall” Perspective On Education Policy. Usable Knowledge:
September’s (2014) Best Tweets — Part Two
Every month I make a few short lists highlighting my choices of the best resources I through (and learned from) Twitter, but didn’t necessarily include them in posts here on my blog. I’ve already shared in earlier posts several new resources I found on Twitter — and where I gave credit to those from whom I learned about them. Those are not included again in post. If you don’t use Twitter, you can