“Want Successful Professional Development? Try Promoting Curiosity”Want Successful Professional Development? Try Promoting Curiosity is the headline of my latest Education Week column. Some hallmarks of fruitful PD include partnering with colleagues and asking students to take part. Here are some excerpts:
The Eighth Day Of Our Strike Is Nearing Its End – “One Day Longer, One Day Stronger”The eighth day of our strike is almost in the books, and our negotiating team is trying its best to work with district leadership who does not seem to share a sense of urgency to get 40,000 students back to class. We’ll see what happens later tonight and during the weekend. Here are some updates: It's difficult 4 me 2 understand why schl district w/ its coffers full would treat @SacTeachers & @se
Around The Web In ESL/EFL/ELLBiljaST / 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 2021. Also, check out A Collection Of My Best Resources On Teaching English Language Learners. In additi
“What the Teacher and Classified-Staff Strike in Sacramento Means for the Country”What the Teacher and Classified-Staff Strike in Sacramento Means for the Country is the headline of my latest Education Week column. If school district leaders changed their mindset about the concept of sharing power, students would be among the beneficiaries. Here are some excerpts:
Easter & Passover Are Coming Up – Here Are Teaching & Learning Resourcesanncapictures / Pixabay Easter and Passover are both coming up in mid-April. You might be interested in The Best Sites For Learning About Easter & Passover .
A Look Back: 10 Tools For Teaching Typing/KeyboardingPexels / Pixabay I originally published The Best Sites Where Students Can Learn Typing/Keyboarding in 2017, and have been revising and updating it since that time. It includes primarily free tools like Dance Mat Typing , Typing Club , Keymash , and seven more. Check them all out at the “Best” list and let me know what I’m missing!
The Seventh Day Of Our Strike Is Nearly Done, And It Looks Like We’ll Be Back On The Picket Lines TomorrowDay seven of our strike is nearly over, and it looks fairly certain we’ll be back on the picket lines tomorrow. Here are reports on what happened today: Important 2 remember label of “Level 1” or “Beginner” doesn’t identify a student’s acad or social skills or potential, instead it only identifies what a student knows & can do at current stage of English Language Dev Thanks @Larryferlazzo for exp
Google Unveils Fact-Checking ResourcesToday, Google unveiled several new fact-checking tools. You can read about all of them here . The most interesting/useful one appears to be the Fact Check Explorer , which appears to be like Snopes to check on the accuracy of popular claims. They also created a site with fact-checking resources . I’m adding this info to The Best Tools & Lessons For Teaching Information Literacy – Help Me Find Mor
Learning About Our Teachers’ & Classified Strike – Via MemesDamian Harmony is a talented teacher in our district, who also happens to be very creative when it comes to memes. Here are some that help tell the story of our strike: These are actual quotes from our Superintendent, who came to meet with our union’s bargaining team for the first time in three years when we did a sit-in at the District office yesterday (I say “we” but, though I am on the bargain
Join The #MLLChat_BkClub Discussion Of Our New Book! Here’s All The Info You NeedI’ve been saying for years that the #MLLChat_BkClub is the best available online professional development for teachers of English Language Learners. Katie Toppel is its organizer, and she’s done an amazing job! You can read more about her, and the club, at Guest Post: “PD in your Pjs: How to navigate #EllChat_BkClub on Twitter.” Hundreds, if not thousands, of ELL teachers from around the world ha
“The Importance of ‘Learner-Centered’ Professional Development”The Importance of ‘Learner-Centered’ Professional Development is the headline of my latest Education Week column. The best PD sessions help teachers learn by doing and steer clear of sit-and-get presentations. Here are some excerpts:
A Look Back: 59 Of The Best Online Sites For ELL Beginners & IntermediatesI’m continuing my “A Look Back” series by looking at past “Best” lists and updating them. Tumisu / Pixabay I originally published The Best Beginner, Intermediate & Advanced English Language Learner Sites in 2011, and have been revising and updating it since that time. However, it has been a couple of years since I had gone through all the sites. I had time to get rid of a bunch of dead links, but
Ramadan Begins On April 2nd – Here Are Teaching & Learning Resourcesmohamed_hassan / Pixabay Ramadan begins in two days. You might be interested in The Best Sites To Teach & Learn About Ramadan .
Day Six Of Our Strike Is Over & Ready For Day SevenEven though there are easy solutions to our strike, District leadership continues to ignore the obvious. Here are today’s updates: Sacramento teachers and staff march into school district HQ, demand meeting with superintendent https://t.co/oAgUE4gK6N story by @sawsan24 about @SacTeachers — Larry Ferlazzo (@Larryferlazzo) March 30, 2022 . @SacTeachers bargaining team sitting in at Serna Center
The Fifth Day Of Our Strike Is Just About Over – And It Looks Like Day Six Will Happen TomorrowThe fifth day of our strike is just about over, and it appears (though there’s still a slight chance of a change) that we’ll be entering day six. Here are today’s updates: The entire English Language Development team at Luther Burbank High School. When we fight, kids win! @SacTeachers pic.twitter.com/4KwTYfD3ac — Larry Ferlazzo (@Larryferlazzo) March 29, 2022 ABC News coverage of @SacTeachers
SEL Weekly UpdateI’ve recently begun this weekly post where I’ll be sharing resources I’m adding to The Best Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Resources or other related “Best” lists. You might also be interested in THE BEST SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING RESOURCES OF 2021 – PART ONE. Finally, check out “Best” Lists Of The Week: Social Emotional Learning Resources . Here are this week’s picks: Here Are The Three Most Im
This Week’s “Round-Up” Of Useful Posts & Articles On Ed Policy IssuesHere are some recent useful posts and articles on educational policy issues (You might also be interested in seeing all my “Best” lists related to education policy here ): Congress rejected Biden’s bid to double Title I. Now he’s asking again. is from Chalkbeat. If You Think Republicans Are Overplaying Schools, You Aren’t Paying Attention appeared in The NY Times. I’m adding it to The Best Resour
A Look Back: 22 Learning Games Where Students Can Compete Against Each OtherI’m continuing my “A Look Back” series by looking at past “Best” lists and updating them. Victoria_Borodinova / Pixabay I originally posted The Best Online Games Students Can Play In Private Virtual “Rooms” in 2009, and have been revising and updating it since that time. It includes the usual suspects, like Kahoot , Quizizz , Blooket , Gimkit , and Quizlet , but also lesser-known ones like Drawpo
Quizizz Adds Feature Letting Students Respond With Audio Or Video ResponseQuizizz is one of “go-to” web tools, and constantly adds new features (see I USED QUIZIZZ’S “LIVE WHITEBOARD” FEATURE FOR THE FIRST TIME TODAY & LIKED IT A LOT and THIS IS NEAT – QUIZIZZ NOW LETS YOU CREATE QUIZZES WHERE STUDENTS CAN DRAW THEIR ANSWER ). They just added a new great feature – the ability for for students to respond to questions with an audio or video recording. The audio response
Ed Tech DigestTen 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 2021 – PART ONE , as well as checking out all my edtech resources . Here are this we
