Anxiety and stress can shut down thinking for young kids, teens and adults. Positive thinking and a few simple tricks help restore emotional, physiological and metacognition (brain) balance. Here are a few ideas to try. Step away from engaging in activities that build up your stress levels. Listen to music that relaxes your brain.It fills… Read More »
What can each of us to ensure a great tomorrow? Here are a few thoughts. Follow a simple, peace-filled routine. Get a good night’s sleep. Begin each day with positive thoughts and ample time to start the day with a clear plan. Eat a nutritious breakfast and prep a healthy snack for later during your… Read More »
It’s important to help students understand that thoughtful word choice makes their writing stronger and more clear. Create a mini lesson. Share samples of good and less successful writings. Ask students: Do the writer’s words describe the main characters so we can almost see them? Do the verbs show specific actions? (race instead of went… Read More »
Create a poster like the hand to the right as a quick reminder of a short Writing Process: Rough Draft (first collecting and organizing of your ideas) This will include your characters, setting, problem and solution. Primary Format Use a folder paper to create 4 squares on one side and 4 on the other as… Read More »
Writing skills are needed across all grade levels and usually follows these six steps with an ever-escalating expectation that students will become more detail while also becoming more independent. Starred items may have a variety of “looks” depending on student ages and class goals. 1. Pre-Write Capture your ideas in an outline or sequential listing… Read More »
Close Reading is defined as thoughtful, critical analysis of a text to focus on and look at significant information to develop a deep, precise understanding. Close reading requires spending extra time on text. After two initial read-throughs, a third reading is needed to analyze and evaluate the text. Obviously not every text needs to be… Read More »
Close Reading is defined as thoughtful, critical analysis of a text to focus on and look at significant information to develop a deep, precise understanding. So, how do we engage students to encourage close reading? First, explain that some texts deserve extra considerations. That means we will read and reread them to uncover information. Our… Read More »
Why do any of us checkout? We’re distracted, thinking about something that is more important to us at that moment. With kids, they may also be tired, not interested in what we’re talking about, or have a problem on their mind. Since we can’t peak inside their brains and even if we could, they might… Read More »
As 2017 draws to a close, let’s look at ways to improve our time spent volunteering in general. What might that look like? Volunteerism is one way to give service to others. Retirees make up a large portion of that service, but all of us can find ways to support others in our communities. Provide… Read More »
As 2017 draws to a close, let’s look at ways to improve our time spent volunteering in classrooms. Ask yourself, “Am I setting a good example for students?” Are you a 1 or a 2? (1) Do you pay attention to directions given by the teacher or (2) are you having side conversations with students… Read More »