Notice, Think, and Wonder: A "Close Reading" Upgrade
In the Fall of 2007, a close friend, Nancy Cook, and I wrote a piece for the New York State Middle School Association’s Journal, In Transition. The article, titled “Notice, Think, and Wonder: New...
View ArticleI Want To Be A Teacher
I follow a wonderful Facebook page called Humans of New York. It’s a page that photographer Brandon Stanton put together to curate the images of the incredible cross section of humanity that resides...
View ArticleClose Reading Toolbox
I recently uploaded a toolbox of information to LiveBinders around Close Reading. You can access the toolbox here: http://www.livebinders.com/play/play?id=1134950 I've shared several resources for...
View ArticleThe Problem is NOT the Standards
I wonder what our students would be like today if in the past we were as hypercritical of and scholarly around the standards then as we are now. I’m seeing some brilliant deconstructions of the...
View ArticleBlogtacular: A Sandy Hook Remembrance
Dear Colleagues and Bloggers, I'm writing today to ask for your help with idea to commemorate the children and teachers of Sandy Hook this December 14th on ASCD Edge. Over the last year, I've been...
View ArticleMary Sherlach
In the face of thunder Many folks just run away They seek out safer places Where they huddle and they pray. And then there are the angels That keep us safe and warm They shine a light in darkness...
View ArticleIn Memory of: Anne Marie Murphy
On the Facebook Remembrance page for Anne Marie Murphy, there is a picture that asks that we “Remember the Guardians.” Truly, Guardian is the best word to describe Anne Marie, as she was both a...
View ArticleRachel D'Avino
Guest post by a fellow colleague Linda Daniel, who teaches Foreign Language at Starpoint Middle School in Lockport, New York. One year ago today our hearts were filled with darkness and unanswerable...
View ArticleAna Marquez-Greene
It’s been a year. A year of suffering and pain, of inspiration and hope, of determination and resiliency. Our newest day of infamy has become an opportunity to celebrate heroism, to celebrate...
View ArticleIn Memory of: James Mattioli
Dear J., I’ve been reading a lot about you lately. I’ve discovered that you were a kid that liked sports, spiky hair, and hamburgers with lots of ketchup. I know you loved school and math and your...
View ArticleRemembering Sandy Hook Blogtacular
*Note that links will continue to be added this morning as the blog posts roll in! Last December, after the events at Sandy Hook Elementary, I stumbled upon the Facebook page that Ana Marquez-Greene’s...
View ArticleUpgrading our Recipes for Learning
Originally blogged at MiddleWeb: http://www.middleweb.com/10996/updated-recipe-learning/ Back in the early 90’s, my grandmother taught me how to bake biscotti in a traditional way. She was a baker by...
View ArticleFind JOY
A lot has happened this year across the country in education. Our profession is being decimated, teachers are being trampled, and no one is focusing on the real issues: equity, poverty, and access....
View ArticleThe Film Canon Project
I am so excited to finally be able to share the Film Canon Project from my colleagues Heidi Hayes Jacobs and Frank Baker. (Click the Hyperlink to visit) This website and the accompanying resources are...
View ArticleEphemerality: Digital Learning Strategies
Alas, poor xTraNormal, I knew you. A web tool of infinite jest, of most excellent fancy. Except you were finite. And now you’re gone. I wrote about how awesome xTraNormal was in my new book, Digital...
View ArticleThe 70/30 Delusion
This is the third in a series of blog posts dispelling some of the myths surrounding the Common Core Standards implementation. The first blog post in the series can be accessed here at ASCD EDge...
View ArticleMyths of the Common Core
In the last few weeks, I’ve published three blog posts dispelling some of the myths surrounding the Common Core Standards and their implementation around our country. My first thought this morning was...
View ArticleDigital Microstories
Collaborative Blog Post written with friend and colleague Danielle Hardt of Starpoint Middle School in Lockport, NY. Danielle is a literacy rock star, a highly effective teacher, and a secret practical...
View ArticleEduEarthQuake
[image] I’m sitting in the Detroit airport waiting for my final leg home. There’s so much to think about after an ASCD conference and so much that impacts my professional...
View ArticleHumus: A 1st Grade Close Reading Mini Moment
[image] “Soil is made of hummus,” my daughter read. She was reading one of the leveled reading books that her teacher sends home with her weekly. This one had to do with farming.“Let’s look at that...
View ArticleCurriculum Buffet
YES-- There are tons of new resources and products, each heralded as an “end to the madness.” There are new standardized assessments. There are new teacher evaluations. There are new roadblocks and...
View ArticleThe Heart of the Close Reading Standard
Collaborative blog post by Mike Fisher and Janet Hale. Despite the amount of publishing and vendor products that employ a contrary interpretation, close reading is really about HOW we engage reading...
View ArticleSkype School Visit with Thailand's Ministry of Education
I had the incredible privilege this past week of working with Thailand’s Ministry of Education in Washington, D.C. at ASCD’s headquarters. Our time was spent discussing modern classrooms and 21st...
View ArticleMinecraft: Research Product
Earlier this week, a member of my digital network, Brent Coley ( @brentcoley ), shared the following tweet where a student created a Minecraft video that represented a virtual tour of Mission San...
View Article#WordCrimes
If you haven’t seen the hilarious new video from Weird Al Yankovic, check it out below: It’s a play on Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” and paints a picture that all grammarians can relate to. I’m...
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