Articles
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The Education of American Indian Students
I have been working with Navajo teachers and administrators for the past couple of years. It is interesting, and heartbreaking, work. So, I decided to do some research on what the educational needs are of American Indian students. Not all American Indian students’ needs [...]
Cognitive AND Affective Skills
Is there a Yin and Yang in how we view education? For a long time, the educational view of learning has focused on cognitive skills OR affective skills. But can we focus on both, or are they separate? We understand them as separate hierarchies, and [...]
Sparking Creativity—SCAMPER Technique
A technique used by many an advertising or creative think tank for coming up with new products or sales pitches is SCAMPER. This technique is an excellent one for students to learn because it helps in the brainstorming process. [I’ll use Oreo cookies as the [...]
Locus of Control
External and Internal Locus of Control in Regard to Classroom Management A FINE BALANCE! By Virginia Pickerell When one talks about classroom management, it is usually thought that it has to do with rules. And, it does! But, this is just one piece of the [...]
Early Literacy Development – Writing Matters
Writing In my last blog, I mentioned that the next topic I blogged would be on Early Literacy Development - “Writing”. I am going out on a limb and be as transparent as I can – without giving away all of my secrets! I can [...]
Early Literacy Development
Speaking and Listening For the past 18 months I have had the joy and privilege of taking care of my step grandson one full day each week. During these jam packed hours, I have been able to watch and participate in his oral language development [...]
5 Questions to Examine for Revolutionizing Professional Development
As a classroom teacher I have endured many professional development days during a school year. Please note I used the word “endured” to describe my experience: professional development that was boring, irrelevant, repetitive, and, in general, very stagnant. As a result of these trainings, I [...]
A Twist Upon a Concept Map
I’ve often used a concept map with students (and teachers) to pre- and post-assess their knowledge of a topic. Usually, I just put up about four large chart paper sheets around the room, each having a different term or topic on each. The sheets are [...]
The Difference of Opinion Chip
“Oh, that’s stupid.” Or “That’s dumb.” Or, worse comments still. This is verbal bullying in the classroom. These types of comments keep some students afraid of offering answers in the classroom or participating in small group discussions. We have all, I’m sure, tried different methods [...]