I imagine we may have a few differences when it comes to what we believe is appropriate communication with our students. For me, the goal is to increase communication and deepen relationships with students rather than increase distance between us and strengthen our negative assumptions about them. Lastly, and most importantly, we want students to love coming to our classes, to feel relaxed and comfortable in our presence, to feel safe enough to ask spontaneous questions, to take risks and to … [Read more...]
Teaching to Different Learning Styles When it Feels too Hard
Two years ago I talked about using Learning Styles in the Classroom. Since then, I have worked with many teachers who agree that teaching to varied styles is critical but wonder how to do it well when they don't have many resources, administrators don't think it is important, they worry the class will get out of control, and they have so many students they can't meet all their different needs. These are legitimate concerns that, if left unanswered, might prevent some teachers from promoting this … [Read more...]
Promoting Behavioral Change in Students
When I work with teachers and other professionals, they often ask me, "What are the best things to do to deal with a particularly difficult student who just won't respond to limits?" I tell them there isn't a simple answer. They say they know, but they still ask. I wish there were a magic intervention for each difficult child, something that works in this moment. But in my experience there is no one sentence you can say, or consequence you can set, that will solve a chronic behavioral problem … [Read more...]
Timeless Teaching Practices
In a recent book by Mike Schmoker, titled Focus: Elevating the Essentials To Radically Improve Student Learning (ASCD 2011), he talks about some basic, timeless teaching practices that tend to get overlooked in favor of more enticing strategies that have been the focus of late, like multimodal teaching, "hands-on" instruction, project-based learning, whole-body immersion, and field trip events. These are all important methods but there are some other more hidden practices that are just as … [Read more...]
Mindfulness in the Classroom: A Growing Trend
MINDFULNESS A recent article in the March 15, 2013 Huffington Post says "some schools have started incorporating mindfulness programs into their curriculums, teaching kids as young as five years old how to use body scans, mindful breathing and attention to their thoughts and emotions to become more focused." NEARI is one of those schools.More and more teachers are introducing contemplative or mindfulness-based practices into their classrooms. By using these approaches every day, they are … [Read more...]
Supporting Learner Differences
DIFFERENCES Every child's brain is wired and then rewired differently depending upon the child's experiences. What a child does in his/her life physically alters what his or her brain looks like.These statements or similar ones are heard and read everywhere today--on the radio, T.V. talk shows, the Internet, popular literature, national educational and science conferences, teacher workshops, and in the news media. Most of us would probably say we have both heard them and agree with what they … [Read more...]
