December Parent Engagement Resources
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Parent involvement in schools ⬆️. 87% of K–12 students from
English-speaking families had parents who reported attending a general
school meeting in 2019, ...
Some Christmas Tunery
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Here at the Institute (where the Board of Directors still firmly believe in
Santa Claus), we like our seasonal music, both as consumers and as
producers,...
Finding Light in Winter by Mary Pipher
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The mornings are dark, the late afternoons are dusky, and before we finish
making dinner, the daylight is gone. As we approach the darkest days of the
ye...
Last Minute Gift Ideas!
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We've been bombarded with "last minute" gift idea promotions since at least
mid-November, but now, finally, the last minute is truly upon us. As a
publi...
Cartoons about the Holiday Season
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Here are some cartoons that got me to smile about this time of year. I hope
they will do the same for you. Happy holidays to all of my readers. Enjoy!
HAIRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAIRY HANUKKAH TOO!
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*HAIRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAIRY HANUKKAH TOO!*
* The Big Hairy Education Ape Spreads Holiday Cheer! Ah, December! The time
of year when the air tur...
About the Social Security Fairness Act
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On December 21, 2024, the US Senate passed the Social Security Fairness
Act, otherwise known as HR 82, a bill that restores full Social Security
benefits t...
Apologies to Dan Alicea
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I want to truly apologize to Daniel Alicea. On November 30, Dan wrote a
blog post about how, despite millions of dollars being available, Mulgrew
refused...
The 2024 NPE “Coal in the Stocking” Awards
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At NPE, we know who is naughty and nice when it comes to supporting our
public schools and their students.
The post The 2024 NPE “Coal in the Stocking” A...
Big Lies of Education: Grade Retention
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The Big Lie of grade retention in the US is that it is often hidden within
larger reading legislation and policy, notably since the 2010s: Westall and
Cumm...
Juntos lo haremos
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En el año que viene, tendremos que tomar decisiones difíciles sobre quienes
queremos ser en cada comunidad y como nación. Ha sido un año muy intenso.
Desde...
WTF, Democratic Caucus?
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Why is the failure of this current budget bill being blamed on Republicans
when almost every single Democrat voted against it? If only half of the
Dems had...
Peace through Beauty
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I am and always have been more musical than I have been verbal. I have
always found beauty in sound. Often it can be purely instrumental, such as
playing...
San Diego School Board Election Outcomes
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By Thomas Ultican 12/17/2024 Before the recent election, I wrote
recommendations for several school board seats in San Diego County. The San
Diego County R...
SPI Supports SB 48 to Keep ICE Off School Campuses
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State Superintendent Tony Thurmond sponsors Senate Bill 48 to keep
Immigration and Customs Enforcement off of school campuses, protecting
school attendance...
Schrödinger’s Cat
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Schrödinger’s cat is a famous thought experiment in which the renowned
scientist pondered how a cat in a closed box could be thought of as
simultaneously a...
In Memoriam: Nikki Giovanni
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The literary and cultural world has lost an irreplaceable voice with the
passing of Nikki Giovanni. As one of the most celebrated poets and
activists of ou...
Education Has Failed and What Can We Do Next?
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Education has failed to prepare children for the world today. Despite the
increased investment, impactful reforms, hardworking teachers and school
leaders,...
Defining Productivity, Cost, and Efficiency
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Recycled material here… The central problem with US public schools is often
characterized as an efficiency problem. We spend a lot and don’t get much
for i...
Try Substack?
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Seems like the popular new thing. Here’s my first try – it’s about
yesterday’s UFT Retired Teachers Chapter meeting – first ever not run by
Unity. (Spoiler...
Number 18 — A barely-hanging-on Blogoversary
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Blogoversary #18 SEPTEMBER 14, 2006 I started this blog while I was still
teaching, in 2006. I had just begun my 31st year as an educator. Just like
in pre...
Student "Growth" Measures Are STILL Biased
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This caught my attention:
New Jersey school districts may soon be evaluated differently, *with a
greater emphasis on student growth* as compared to stud...
AIN’T IT AWFUL
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As the terrible feelings of dread and angst spread across the world the
great majority of the American people feel powerless before the onslaught
of those ...
The Sky is Falling, or is it?
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Well, this is the first anniversary of the introduction of Generative AI in
the form of ChatGPT to the world of education. Before it was a week old,
over o...
Vote NO on the UFT Contract. Here is Why:
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The best reason to vote no on this contract is this: UFT Unity* lied* to us
in 2018. They misrepresented that contract. It was predicated on deals we
wer...
Metaphors in ‘I Have a Dream’ Speech
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In this article, we will explore the powerful use of metaphors in Martin
Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” ...
Read more
Testimony to the CPS Truancy Task Force
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I prepared testimony for one of two public hearings held by the Chicago
Public Schools Truancy Task Force, a body mandated by state legislation.
The meetin...
There Is A Teacher Shortage.Not.
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THERE IS A TEACHER SHORTAGE. And just to be sure you understand, it’s not
that teachers don’t want to teach. It’s not that there aren’t enough
teachers cer...
Book Banning Turns to Dick and Jane
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Breaking News: Dateline February 4, 2022 - Parents in Dimwitty, Alabama
have asked the Dimwitty Board of Education to ban the children's primer *Fun
with...
Have You Heard Has a New Website
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TweetHave You Heard has a new website. Visit us at
www.haveyouheardpodcast.com to find our latest episodes and our entire
archive. And be sure to check out...
Follow me at Substack
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I've moved. Follow me at Substack
I'm now posting regularly at Substack. You can subscribe for free to my new
Edu/Pol blog at michaelklonsky.substack.com
...
Aspiring Teachers Get New Help Paying For College
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[image: colorful classroom pattern]
*; Credit: shuoshu/Getty Images*
Cory Turner | NPR
New rules kick in today that will help aspiring teachers pay for c...
Tips Akses Situs Judi Qq Tanpa Perlu Takut Nawala
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Kegiatan berjudi slot melalui situs judi qq online, sekarang sudah
dilakukan oleh banyak penjudi Indonesia. Tentu, Kamu yang sedang membaca
artikel ini a...
The Threat of Integration
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I have lived in the same house in the Miracle Mile section of Los Angeles
for over 30 years, where up until now I have had little or no interaction
with th...
We fight for a democracy worthy of us all!
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The nation stands at a crossroads, said NEA President Lily Eskelsen García
in her final keynote address to the 2020 NEA Representative Assembly and
it’s up...
The Passing Of Chaz 1951-2020 Age 69
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I am the son of Chaz and like to inform you that he passed away this
afternoon from the COVID virus. My father passed in peace beside his loved
ones. We ar...
The Fight For Our Children
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*The number of suicides among people ages 10 to 24 nationally increased by
56 percent between 2007 and 2017, according to a new federal report showing
the ...
Read to Self: Just a Kid and a Book.
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Date: Monday, January 5, 2020 Place: My classroom Student: Mrs.Mims, could
we start doing Read to Self again because I got this great book for
Christmas an...
Keeping Progressive Schools Alive
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Dear Friends and Colleagues, Happy New Year and a special thanks to those
who respond to past blogs about choice, et al. I always mean to respond to
each c...
Reminiscences
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I just finished dumping the rest of my lesson plans. I guess I held on to
the calculus ones for so long because I spent so much time working on them
an...
Just Asking for some Teachers I know.
-
Recently Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers stated, We must … recognize that
part of supporting our kids in the classroom means supporting the educators
who t...
Cara Menang Bermain Judi Bola Online
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Bermain judi bola online tentu saja memiliki kesenangannya tersendiri baik
itu mendapatkan keuntungan maupun ketika menantikan hasil skor pada sebuah
perta...
A Critique of Standards-Based Grading
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It first happened to me about ten years ago. I was beginning my third year
of teaching in a new school in Washington, DC. Social studies teachers were
si...
My First and Last Visit to Hudson Yards
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Figuring I did not need to invite any more darkness and vulgarity into my
head than that provided on a daily basis from Trump’s White House, and
after read...
The World According to Michelle Rhee
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The men behind the curtain fashioning the brave new world of corporate run
education in America! Michelle Rhee is the founder of StudentsFirst, The
New T...
Whose Opinions Matter in Education World?
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It's hard to identify education heroes and sheroes. And perhaps even harder
to pinpoint just whose work is slanted, paid-for and dishonest.
Blockchain: Life on the Ledger
-
Originally posted on Wrench in the Gears:
I created this video as a follow up to the one I prepared last year on
Social Impact Bonds. It is time to examine...
New Local Businesses in Sacramento
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Starting a new local business in Sacramento is a monumental task, but can
be accomplished with footwork, perseverance and knowledge. One must learn
the loc...
Lesson Plan: Rhyme and Rhythm in Poetry
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I’ve started a recent unit on poetry with my class. I’m not a poet, and I’m
not a poetry fan (I don’t hate it, but I’m a prose gal), so this makes it
harde...
The Apotheosis of Betsy DeVos
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Betsy Devos has drawn few headlines in recent months, and that is a good
thing for the Secretary of Education. Her tenure began with Vice President
Mike P...
Education Is a Civic Question
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In their final post to end Bridging Differences' decade-long run, Deborah
Meier and Harry Boyte urge readers to put the energy, talents, wisdom, and
hard w...
Site News: New Home for Education News & Commentary
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Quick! Get over there! The daily education news roundup and education
commentaries that you're probably looking for are now being published over
at The Gra...
Should We Be Grateful?
-
In an odd turn of events, and with little explanation, Michigan Governor
Rick Snyder has decided to return the state’s School Reform Office back to
the Dep...
An Open Letter to NC Lawmakers
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An Open Letter to NC State Lawmakers and NC State Superintendent Mark
Johnson: I am a NC native, voter, and public school teacher. I am
addressing you all ...
The Secret to Fixing Schools (My Next Bestseller)
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The Secret to Fixing Schools (My next bestseller) Prologue I just finished
watching a fascinating documentary on Netflix entitled, “The Secret”. The
film p...
Farewell, Sleep
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Today is the official last day of my spring break. I've done a scientific
survey: My natural bedtime is 2 AM, and my natural wake up time is 9:41
AM. Tom...
REPORT: States With the Best and Worst Schools
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States With the Best (and Worst)Schools
By *Evan Comen, Michael B. Sauter, Samuel Stebbins and Thomas C. Frohlich*
January 20, 2017- http://247wallst.com
...
Test Refusal = People Power
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In recent months, social media has been ablaze with talk of regular folk
taking action to resist the Trump agenda. Protests are a daily occurrence,
and ev...
Random Musings and Observations. . . .
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I’ve been gone a while from the blogging scene. Some of my more regular
readers no doubt noticed but did not hassle me about it. Thank you for
that. Sinc...
AB 934: A LEGISLATIVE FIX FOR VERGARA?
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By Michael Stratford | in the Politco Morning Education Report | via email
05/24/2016 10:00 AM EDT :: Two national education groups are backing a
Califor...
MY NEW BLOG
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My new blog will consist of fictitious headlines, meant to be a blend of
humor and satire. I apologize ahead of time if any other satirical site has
simila...
Thank you
-
Dear Readers,
Thank you for visiting *The Perimeter Primate*. This blog is being retired
for the time being. Although I no longer post here, I do still s...
I am Retiring
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I have some news: I am retiring from the PBS NewsHour and Learning Matters.
[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other
conte...
New Beginnings: Kickstarter and EdWeek Teacher
-
Greetings to InterACT readers one and all! If you’ve been following posts
here recently you might recall that I’m moving my blogging activity to
other loca...
Adelaide L. Sanford Charter School
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*“With Adelaide L. Sanford Charter School closing, Newark families must
move on.”* The Star-Ledger (NJ), 6/25/2013
NEWARK — Bobby and Troy Shanks saw the...
Collaborate With Colleagues to Make It Through This School Year is the headline of my latest Education Week Teacher column. Wrapping up this series on the do’s and don’ts of teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic, three educators suggest such strategies as creating online and offline content and embracing uncertainty. Here are some excerpts:
Wokandapix / Pixabay I have a number of regular weekly features (see HERE IS A LIST (WITH LINKS) OF ALL MY REGULAR WEEKLY FEATURES ). This is a relatively new addition to that list. Some of these resources will be added to The Best Advice On Teaching K-12 Online (If We Have To Because Of The Coronavirus) – Please Make More Suggestions ! and the best will go to The “Best Of The Best” Resources To
I learned about Gez.la from Google Maps Mania , who wrote: It provides links to virtual content created by museums, galleries, aquariums and zoos around the world. It’s obviously not as exhaustive as Google Arts and Culture , but it seemed to me to have a number of places that you can find at the Google site. I’m adding it to The Best Resources For Finding And Creating Virtual Field Trips .
geralt / Pixabay Here are new additions to THE BEST POSTS PREDICTING WHAT SCHOOLS WILL LOOK LIKE IN THE FALL : Hybrid Schooling May Be the Most Dangerous Option of All is from Wired. Lost Summer: How Schools Missed a Chance to Fix Remote Learning is from The NY Times. Cuomo clears New York schools statewide to open, carefully is from The Associated Press.
Anemone123 / Pixabay As I wrote in my tentative plans for my fall online classes ( HERE ARE DETAILED – & TENTATIVE – DISTANCE LEARNING PLANS FOR ALL MY FALL CLASSES ), I reserved the right to make constant changes as I learned new things and my thinking evolved. Much, if not most, of what wrote there is still holding solid, but I am beginning to make some changes. I’ll write a post next week deta
Now Is the Time to Address Education’s ‘Most Pressing Equity Issues’ is the headline of my latest Education Week Teacher column. Two educators call for schools to use this time of crisis to focus on equity issues like desegregation and community involvement. Here are some excerpts:
I’ve spent several hours this week becoming familiar with Nearpod , and I’m liking what I see. And I’m particularly liking that it looks like our district might purchase a license for its use. It really is sort of an all-in-one tool, and they’ve recently added the ability to create interactive videos like those in EdPuzzle. Teacher Sam Kary has a nice YouTube Channel called New EdTech Classroom ,
Editor’s Note: I think Donna’s activity is a great one to start the first day of school! Using Kahoot can be fun, though the sentence starters and the idea of using them to write an essay about the class can be used with or without the game site. I’m adding this post to Answers To “What Do You Do On The First Day Of School?” Donna DeTommaso – Kleinert Ed.D. is a retired ESL teacher from the North
422737 / Pixabay Many of us are brushing up on tech tools that we might not have tried before the pandemic. I’ve never used Google Classroom for an asynchronous class discussion before, I plan to try it out this year. Here’s a good video explaining it. I’m adding it to A Beginning List Of The Best Resources For Learning About Google Classroom .
kaboompics / Pixabay Here are new additions to THE BEST POSTS PREDICTING WHAT SCHOOLS WILL LOOK LIKE IN THE FALL : How Safe Is Your School’s Reopening Plan? Here’s What To Look For is from NPR. Congress’s Ideological Divide Has Stymied Aid for Pandemic-Stricken Schools is from The NY Times. I’m Tired of Hearing That Teachers Are Only Thinking About Ourselves Right Now is from Slate. What will it
13smok / Pixabay March For Our Lives, the anti-gun violence group begun by Parkland students, are putting this new add on the airwaves (you can read more about it at the Washington Post article, March for Our Lives marches toward November with new campaign ad ). I’m adding it to The Best Resources For Learning About “The March For Our Lives”
OpenClipart-Vectors / Pixabay As we enter a pandemic-shaped school year, one of many questions we teachers will need to deal with is “What are we NOT going to cover this year?” We’re clearly not going to have as much live classroom time with our students, and we need to resist the urge to load-up our students with homework to “make-up” all that lost time. Let’s look at things realistically. Based
Each week, I publish a post or two containing three or four particularly useful resources on classroom instruction, and you can see them all here. Of course, this is a crazy time for “classroom” instruction…. You might also be interested in THE BEST RESOURCES ON INSTRUCTION IN 2020 – PART ONE. Here are this week’s picks: Using Data to Advance Racial Equity is from Edutopia. I’m adding it to a pre
Teachers Should ‘Give Everyone Some Grace’ This Fall is the headline of my latest Education Week Teacher column. Three teachers offer colleagues suggestions for this fall, including showing “grace” to students, parents, and themselves and emphasizing flexibility. Here are some excerpts:
Here are new additions to THE BEST POSTS PREDICTING WHAT SCHOOLS WILL LOOK LIKE IN THE FALL : The Truth Behind A Viral Picture Of A Reopening School Is Worse Than It Looked is from BuzzFeed News. As the Coronavirus Comes to School, a Tough Choice: When to Close is from The NY Times. Special education students are not just falling behind — they’re losing key skills, parents say is from The Washing
Ted Appel, our school’s former – and great – principal, talked about the importance of looking at teacher “input” instead of student “output” when considering if a teacher is doing good work. In other words, if a teacher is practicing instructionally sound pedagogy, then he or she should be considered to be doing good work, even if, due to circumstances beyond the teacher’s control, the student d
Tumisu / Pixabay Instagram just unveiled a competitor to TikTok – it’s called “Reels,” and seems to be pretty much the same as TikTok, except that its videos can only be fifteen seconds. You can read more about it at The Washington Post article, Instagram’s new copycat video tool will have TikTok reeling . Students in both my ELL and Theory of Knowledge classes have used Instagram videos (see T h
Simon / Pixabay Google just announced that “Google Assignments” will go live in G Suite For Education on August 11th: Assignments is an add-on application for learning management systems (LMSs) that helps you distribute, analyze, and grade student work with G Suite for Education. Assignments makes Google Docs and Google Drive compatible with your LMS for file submissions. You can use Assignments
Dos & Don’ts of Teaching in a COVID-19 Environment is the headline of my latest Education Week Teacher column. Four educators share instructional recommendations for the pandemic-influenced fall, including setting boundaries and showing patience. Here are some excerpts:
Here are new additions to THE BEST POSTS PREDICTING WHAT SCHOOLS WILL LOOK LIKE IN THE FALL : When Covid Subsided, Israel Reopened Its Schools. It Didn’t Go Well. is from The NY Times. ‘It screams disrespect’: San Jose teachers must return to the classroom despite safety concerns is from The San Jose Mercury News. Closing schools around the world could cause a ‘generational catastrophe,’ U.N. sec
BiljaST / Pixabay Six years ago I began this 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. You might also be interested in THE BEST RESOURCES, ARTICLES & BLOG POSTS FOR TEACHERS OF ELLS IN 2019 – PART ONE and THE BEST RESOURCES, ARTICLES & BLOG POSTS FOR TEACHERS OF ELLS IN 2019 – PART TWO. A
Start the Year With a ‘Primary Focus’ on Relationship-Building is the headline of my latest Education Week Teacher column. Four educators share ideas on how to start a pandemic-effect school year, including by organizing scavenger hunts and having students share and write captions for their favorite photos. Here are some excerpts:
Pezibear / Pixabay Our school starts one-month from today. I thought it was a good time to send out email messages on our Infinite Campus system, tell students and parents/guardians how much I was looking forward to seeing them, and invite them to join the Google Classroom for our classes (it’s difficult to send them out directly from Google Classroom because our district has not yet “populated”
CNN’s Brooke Baldwin interviewed me live on CNN today about school reopening in the fall. CNN hasn’t put the video up on its website – I don’t know if they ever will. But Mercedes Pilar was kind enough to tape it off her television and send it to me. If and when CNN publishes it on their website, I’ll add it here. https://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/files/2020/08/Interview-with-CNN-1.mp4
I’m making a change in the content of the regular feature. In addition to sharing the top five posts that have received the most “hits” in the preceding seven days (though they may have originally been published on an earlier date), I will also include the top five posts that have actually appeared in the past week. Often, these are different posts. You might also be interested in IT’S THE THIRTE
Nine years ago, in another somewhat futile attempt to reduce the backlog of resources I want to share, I began this occasional “” post where I share three or four links I think are particularly useful and related to…ed tech, including some Web 2.0 apps. You might also be interested in THE BEST ED TECH RESOURCES OF 2020 – PART ONE , as well as checking out all my edtech resources . Here are this w
Q&A Collections: Math Instruction is the headline of my latest Education Week Teacher column. All Classroom Q&A posts on Math Instruction (from the past nine years!) are described and linked to in this compilation post. Here’s an excerpt from one of them:
geralt / Pixabay Here are new additions to THE BEST POSTS PREDICTING WHAT SCHOOLS WILL LOOK LIKE IN THE FALL : ‘This Push to Open Schools Is Guaranteed to Fail’ is from The Atlantic. What a day at school looks like in a pandemic is from Axios. ‘I’m sorry, but it’s a fantasy’ is from The Washington Post. Does the Covid pandemic spell the end of public schools? is from USA Today.
I’m fairly active on Pinterest and, in fact, have curated 22,000 resources there that I haven’t shared on this blog. I thought readers might find it useful if I began sharing a handful of my most recent “pins” each week (I’m not sure if you can see them through an RSS Reader – you might have to click through to the original post). You might also be interested in MY MOST POPULAR PINS OF 2020 – PAR
James Baldwin would have been ninety-six years today. You might be interested in JAMES BALDWIN WAS BORN ON THIS DAY IN 1924 – HERE ARE RELATED RESOURCES .
Q&A Collections: Differentiating Instruction is the headline of my latest Education Week Teacher column. All Classroom Q&A posts on Differentiating Instruction (from the past nine years!) are described and linked to in this compilation post. Here’s an excerpt from one of them:
geralt / Pixabay Here are new additions to THE BEST POSTS PREDICTING WHAT SCHOOLS WILL LOOK LIKE IN THE FALL : A School Reopens, and the Coronavirus Creeps In is from The NY Times. Equity In Pandemic Schooling N YC Releases Plan For Handling COVID-19 Outbreaks In Schools is from The Gothamist. NEW: Schools in NYC will only reopen IF the city can maintain a test positivity rate below 3 percent, de
Syaibatulhamdi / Pixabay I think this would be a good video to show to students. I’m adding it to A BEGINNING LIST OF THE BEST RESOURCES FOR LEARNING ABOUT THE CORONAVIRUS .
Wokandapix / Pixabay I have a number of regular weekly features (see HERE IS A LIST (WITH LINKS) OF ALL MY REGULAR WEEKLY FEATURES ). This is a relatively new addition to that list. Some of these resources will be added to The Best Advice On Teaching K-12 Online (If We Have To Because Of The Coronavirus) – Please Make More Suggestions ! and the best will go to The “Best Of The Best” Resources To
StartupStockPhotos / Pixabay I have my IB Theory of Knowledge students make lots of presentations, and I plan to continue that plan during this year of online learning. Most of the time in a physical classroom small groups create posters which they then present in front (of course, sometimes they also use Google Slides). During this year, I’d like to try having them create Pecha Kucha presentatio
For more information on the #HeLa100 , check out https://t.co/QbPUWYxDBV . — uché blackstock, md (@uche_blackstock) August 1, 2020 Here are my previous posts about her: VIDEO: “THE IMMORTAL LIFE OF HENRIETTA LACKS: OFFICIAL TRAILER” VIDEO: FILM ON HENRIETTA LACKS COMING OUT IN APRIL HERE’S THE VIDEO TED-ED SHOULD HAVE MADE ABOUT HENRIETTA LACKS DISAPPOINTING NEW TED-ED VIDEO & LESSON ON HENRIETTA
geralt / Pixabay The road to a legislative mandated state of California ethnic studies curriculum has been a bit rocky, with a number of objections made to it’s original proposal. You can read about those issues here at an older article from Ed Source . The state took down their initial proposal, but as that article says: The department took down the draft of the model curriculum after the public
The fabulous #EllChat_BkClub just finished a book study of The Science Teacher’s Toolbox , one of the books Katie Hull and I edited, and is now moving on to The Math Teacher’s Toolbox (another one we edited!) and