How to make the leap from teacher to author
What does it take to make the transition from educator to published author? As co-author of many books, I’ve developed an interest in how other educators have navigated the process from classroom to print. For Dr Janelle Wills, who penned Thinking...
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Boost Student Engagement by Remaking Our Literacy Practices
Based on Remaking Literacy: Innovative Instructional Strategies for Maker LearningAt the end of a hallway, one classroom is buzzing with excitement. More than 50 students are packed in the room, sitting on desks and the floor, with others perched on...
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The power of the New Art and Science of Teaching
In 2007, US educational researcher Dr Robert Marzano published the acclaimed book, The Art and Science of Teaching, a comprehensive framework for instruction that will be familiar to many Australasian educators. A decade later he released a...
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Six strategies to strengthening teacher instruction
If you want to continue honing your teaching practice, it’s worth taking a step back to pinpoint some specific areas where you could improve your instruction.Targeting these areas can make a huge difference to the way you approach your teaching...
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Nurturing resilience with positive psychology
Never has it been more important for teachers and parents to nurture students’ wellbeing and resilience. Students have lost out on so much due to lockdowns, school closures, decreased contact with friends and extended family, and even playgrounds being...
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Using a Four-Phase Instructional Model to Plan and Teach for Lifelong Learning
Based on Teaching for Lifelong Learning: How to Prepare Students for a Changing World One of the special joys in life is watching a child or grandchild play sports, like baseball, soccer, or football. It is especially interesting to watch progress over several years....
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Differentiating Mathematics Instruction
When I am in schools working with teachers of mathematics, the most common question I get is, “How do I use rich, higher-level-cognitive-demand tasks with each and every student? I know my students need access to more complex mathematical tasks, but how do I implement them well with all students?”
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Searching For My “Awe Family” Response!
I sense a paradox of competing emotions on the horizon.
On one hand I find joy in the capacity of our positive, generous, and courageous human response to the relentless stress, strain, and change we have faced each day for almost a year now. On the other hand, I feel queasy and uneasy as we close in on the anniversary of the most intense, unexpected and unwelcome change to our personal and professional lives as educators. March 2020 seems so long ago, and yet it sticks so close to, and lives inside of, our very being as teachers.
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Changing Our World for the Better
The recent release of the United Nations IPCC report on climate change has caused widespread anxiety, with headlines claiming a ‘code red for humanity’. While it is a much-needed wake-up call, the IPCC says, ‘The report also shows that human actions still have the...
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Gardens, Curiosity and Teaching Science
There is something special about the curiosity of children observing and interacting with the natural environment. That is why it is important our schools, classrooms and educators engage students in the wonder of science – and our own school grounds (or backyards)...
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