Tiered activities are a way to differentiate instruction by providing students with multiple levels of challenge, complexity, or support, This allows teachers to meet the needs of all learners and provide them with choices that are at an appropriate level while ensuring all students are appropriately challenged and engaged in the learning process.

Utilizing the design down process and aligning the curriculum to the district mission makes it truly local and relevant to the community. From the subject mission to the grade level and course purposes, all the way down to the individual outcomes and components, each piece reflects a part of the district mission when using this approach.

A key distinction within facilitation is the opportunity to create leadership capacity within groups. By listening to your audience to meet their needs, creating roles within the group, and establishing a positive environment where participants feel comfortable taking risks, you can empower learners to become leaders.

Create rubrics written with clear, student-centered language from the curricular target you are assessing. Share the rubric with students at the beginning of instruction so they know what the expectations are.

With the beginning of the school year quickly approaching, it’s the perfect time to try something new! Share a new educational tool, strategy, or idea you are excited to try this year.

The development of social language supports academic language, and incorporating opportunities for peer discussions helps foster that growth. Utilizing strategies such as turn and talk and think-pair-share allows students to practice conversational language skills, oral language production, fluency, and listening skills. It also allows students to have wait time to process their thinking and provides an opportunity to activate prior knowledge regarding the content.

One of the benefits of a locally developed curriculum document is the flexibility to include pieces that meet your district’s unique needs. What are the essential elements that you include in your curriculum document?

Typically when we think about teaching a routine in a classroom, we think of the physical or social routines that are taught. However, thinking routines are also a useful and powerful tool that can take students’ understanding to the next level. Some examples you may have heard of include Think-Pair-Share or See-Think-Wonder. Incorporating a formal approach to collecting and classifying information can help students make their thinking more visible and encourage active processing.

Assessment is a vital component that serves many purposes including assessment for learning and assessment of learning. Ensuring both formative and summative opportunities are included will help to check students’ understanding along the way and adjust instruction as needed, as well as measure students’ progress toward learning targets and goals.

Summer often brings the opportunity for a more laid-back schedule where we can fit in time for things such as reading. Whether you are reading to relax or to prepare for the upcoming school year, share what is on your summer reading list!

We often associate the use of manipulatives in instruction with Math or Science, but these tools can provide hands-on, engaging experiences in all content areas. Incorporating manipulatives into Reading, Language Arts, and Social Studies as well can help students visualize abstract concepts in a more concrete way, increase engagement, and help them understand and retain new learning in different ways.

One of the benefits of writing a local curriculum is having the ability to include elements that are important and relevant for your district. A key element of this is identifying student needs. This can be achieved by analyzing assessment data and gathering input from stakeholders to determine prevalent needs that can then be addressed within the curriculum.

Appreciative Inquiry is a technique that utilizes questions to guide learners in uncovering strengths and opportunities as a group. By recognizing these strengths, students are empowered to take on a sense of ownership in their learning environment, thereby creating a student-centered classroom with increased learner engagement working collaboratively toward a common goal.

Roses and thorns can be used as a student reflection strategy but also as a formative assessment tool. When needing to check in formatively with students, prompt them to write or tell about something they liked or understood about the topic (the rose). Then, ask them to share new information about the topic (the bud). Finally, ask students to share something they are still unsure about or have questions about in regard to the topic (the thorn).

As the school year starts to come to an end, educators and students often spend a lot of time reflecting. This week’s challenge is to reflect on your own growth this year! Share this post with how you have grown in your professional practice.

Cooperative Learning Structures provide a system for teachers to organize students so they can interact collaboratively in authentic ways. Structures range in size from pairs, teams, to whole group and can be used to introduce, review, or brainstorm content. They also speak to a variety of learning styles and encourage students to work together.