When setting up your classroom, remember to consider the needs of your students who may be on the autism spectrum along with your other students. Students on the spectrum (as well as many other students you may have, including those…
Teachers bemoan the almost constant battle to compete with students’ cell phones in the classroom. But students aren’t the only ones who struggle to beat the cell phone habit – most all of us do. So, why the struggle? It…
I have received several emails this month from teachers who are working on their Layered Curriculum units over the summer. Many of them have questions regarding pacing. It can be a challenge to learn how to determine the length of…
The transition between elementary or primary school and junior high school / middle school can be particularly stressful for adolescents. In addition to the biological changes associated with this age, academic motivation is also at a low point. In fact,…
Years of research and visits to thousands of schools have shown there are some very simple things that can be done in any high school, large or small, urban or suburban, public or independent – that can improve student and…
We have learned so much about the human brain over the last quarter century that it is at times mind-numbing (pun intended). What has emerged though are a few broad lifestyle categories that most affect how our brain functions, learns…
Visit any elementary classroom and you will find at least one child (usually more) who spends his or her day with a personal behavior clipboard. The clipboard is sitting atop the child’s desk and at either predictable or random intervals,…
If you’re like most teachers, when you sit down to design your next instructional unit, you begin by coming up with activities, projects, lessons and exciting game plans for the unit. You may pull activities used in previous years, or…
Teachers have the power to transform lives – for better or worse. It takes so little on our part to make a significant and positive difference in the lives of our students. Start the new year by practicing three very…
Despite the perceived obstacles, differentiation at the high school level is not difficult. Many of us have the mental model that differentiation belongs at the elementary level, with learning stations filled with colorful blocks and tiny chairs. But, break out…
