Instructional Resources
Interesting Items from around the Internet
Food for Thought
I thought I'd try a new program I learned about in order to send you all some information about interesting resources. This is my first attempt. The program I'm using to create the flyer is www.smore.com - you can sign up for free to create visual posters. It might be a good option for media literacy. They have premade ones that the students can analyze and evaluate as well.
Culture of Thinking
This is an interesting website that references the concept of creating a "Culture of Thinking" in our schools. You can check it out at http://www.ronritchhart.com/COT_Resources.html
One of the resources on the website talks about Defining Thinking Routines and this seems to fit really nicely with the reading comprehension strategies we all teach in our classrooms.
As June comes to an end, and we head into summer, I find myself thinking back to what worked well this past year, and what made me want to tear my hair out by the time I got home. Reflection doesn't have to be a bad word. This article gives some ideas about how to help our students reflect. I think this fits in well with our ideas about teaching students that they have responsiblity for their engagement and effort in school. See what you think http://www.bgsu.edu/downloads/provost/file96971.pdf
A Gift from Stenhouse Publishing
I really like going to the Stenhouse website. They have so many books to offer, and many of them are free to preview entirely online. You can't save or print, but you can read and get ideas and ..... reflect. One book caught my eye as I was looking through the books. It's called Life's Literacy Lessons and you can take a look at some of the pages. It seems to really celebrate those moments in a classroom when it all comes together and we know why we continue to do this work that brings us both joy and stress. It might be a good resource to go to on those tougher days when we go home exhausted.
Mental Health Resource
Mental health has been an issue I've been trying to learn more about this year. One resource available is the book Teaching Kids with Mental Health and Learning Disorders in the Classroom. We have this resource at the school, and it's a well organized read and gives clear advice and suggestions. Let me know if you want to borrow it.
Another resource is the website The ABC's of Mental Health. You can get there through that link, or it is also on the staff website on the home page. You will see a link called The ABC's of Mental Health: Teacher Resource and it will direct you to the above website.