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When first implementing the station rotation model, many teachers express concern about designing offline student-led collaborative stations. Although they understand the benefits of these collaborative conversations in station rotation, including increased self-efficacy, relationship building, and constructing knowledge together, […]
Consider the last time you used a recipe to bake something, for example, a chocolate cake. Maybe it was a special occasion like a birthday, and you wanted to surprise someone with a homemade chocolate cake. The recipe […]
How can formative assessment data help students to develop their metacognitive skills? Formative assessments are ongoing assessments embedded throughout the learning process. These informal assessments provide information to the teacher about students’ understanding of the material being covered […]
Don’t let transitions steal class time! Some classes understand the expectations of the station rotation model almost immediately. The teacher explains the model, the students understand the expectations, and the class moves into stations smoothly. Other classes need […]
As teachers, we know that the physical environment of a classroom can have a significant impact on how students engage with the material and each other. From the color of the walls to the lighting and temperature, every […]
Do you want to design lessons that allow you to work with small groups but worry about keeping the rest of the class on task? Even the most experienced teachers find themselves teaching “that one class” that needs […]
I get this question all the time in coaching and training sessions! First, let’s be clear about the definition of blended learning. Blended learning is the combination of active, engaged learning online with active, engaged learning offline to […]
Last month, I delivered a keynote on the future of education. It’s a vast topic, so I focused on four trends likely to impact our work as educators. As school leaders prepare for the 2022-2023 school year, these […]
A retrospective, or “look back,” is a strategy that can be used by school leaders, professional learning communities (PLCs), and teachers to engage a group in a structured reflection and brainstorming session. A retrospective can happen any time […]
“Why do we have to read so much in here?” I have fielded this question from students several times over the years. By the time my students reached high school, many were disillusioned with reading. They found it […]
“What are students doing in the stations that are not the teacher-led station?” I field a lot of questions like this. Teachers want to know what types of activities I incorporate into station rotation lessons. Since my teaching […]
In the last two blogs, I have focused on strategies teachers can use to 1) assess prior knowledge before a lesson and 2) check for understanding during a lesson. I’ve suggested that teachers build mechanisms into their lessons […]
