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Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance | Angela Duckworth | Talks at Google

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Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance | Angela Duckworth | Talks at Google

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Angela Duckworth: "Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance" | Talks at Google

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Author Angela Duckworth visited Google's office in NYC to discuss her book, "Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance" with Ben Fried, Google's CIO and Site Lead in NYC. In GRIT, Angela Duckworth explores the science of why some people succeed and others fail, and why talent alone doesn't guarantee success.

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How mindfulness changes the emotional life of our brains | Richard J. Davidson 

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How mindfulness changes the emotional life of our brains | Richard J. Davidson 

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#Neuroscience #Wellbeing #MentalHealth

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How mindfulness changes the emotional life of our brains | Richard J. Davidson | TEDxSanFrancisco

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The second level of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs addresses the importance of children needing to have a sense of safety and a sense of belonging.  Below, I have shared points that are helpful when nurturing your child's curiosity. And how you can keep your child motivated in the face of making mistakes.  

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The second level of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs addresses the importance of children needing to have a sense of safety and a sense of belonging.  Below, I have shared points that are helpful when nurturing your child's curiosity. And how you can keep your child motivated in the face of making mistakes.  

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We are still starved for data on what this all means. The earliest standardized test scores coming out show modest learning loss for students in math, but there are worries that the most at-risk students are not being tested at all.

For this story I talked to educators in six states, from California to South Carolina. For the most part they say things have improved since the spring. But they are close to burnout, with only a patchwork of support. They say the heart of the job right now is getting students connected with school and keeping them that way - both technologically and even more importantly, emotionally. Here are five lessons learned so far:

1. The digital divide is still big and complex.

Eight months after schools first shut down, how many students still can't sign on? We don't really know, and that's a problem, says Nicol Turner Lee, director of the Center for Technology Innovation at the Brookings Institution. "We've not done a really great job in aggregating the data as to how many kids are still disconnected," she adds. "It's very disappointing as well as concerning."

The National Education Association recently reported, based on pre-pandemic census data, that one quarter of households with children ages 5 to 17 lacked either high-speed Wi-Fi, a computer or both. For households near the poverty line, the number was closer to half.

That figure may have gotten better. Many districts have scrambled to distribute their classroom laptops to families, to buy portable hot spots, and call on private and corporate donations. But there are still gaps.

Partly, that's because there hasn't been any pandemic federal stimulus aid to public schools since April. State revenue is down, too. For example, Richard Carranza, chancellor of New York City public schools, said last month that 60,000 of the district's 1.1 million students are still missing devices - about 5.5%.

Lee at Brookings is working on a book about the digital divide, and she says it's multidimensional. There's housing: Lose your home and you lose your broadband connection. There are backlogs of items such as Chromebooks.

Then there's infrastructure.

"That rural Internet divide is real. I mean it's a real problem right now in America," says Caroline Weathers, who teaches in a small town in South Carolina. Her district gave out hot spots, but in some places they didn't work because there wasn't cell service from the major carriers.

And the digital divide is about more than equipment. Rosenthal's school in San Francisco, Buena Vista Horace Mann, is a community school, meaning there are wraparound services, including lots of help with technology.

Despite all that, she didn't make contact with one of her students until 2 1/2 months into the school year. That's so even though her mother had come to school to pick up a laptop and hot spot. "The little girl was going to a babysitter that was not literate," Rosenthal says. "And so nobody could help this child get onto a computer."

Another of her students has a single mother who works cleaning hotel rooms; the girl goes along and often joins the class from her mother's smartphone. Because of barriers such as these, although attendance on her daily Zooms is high, Rosenthal says no more than a fourth of her students have been accessing the written assignments.

2. Relationships are everything when it comes to keeping kids engaged remotely.

Successful schools are using every adult on the team and every form of communication possible. Theresa Rouse is the superintendent of Joliet Public Schools District 86 in Illinois, where a majority of the students are low-income and either Latino or Black. She says their focus has been on relationships.

The district spent the first three weeks of the school year focusing just on social and emotional learning. Educators communicate expectations to parents and teachers by email, calls, texts, over social media, YouTube videos and podcasts.

And, Rouse says, any adult at a school - from teachers, to the assistant principal, to a school counselor or social worker - might drop in during video class to show they care: "If they're seeing a student that looks distressed, they pull them aside into a breakout room, have a conversation."

In South Carolina, Weathers usually teaches science at St. George Middle School. This year she created a new role for herself, helping families - sometimes with an app that parents can download to track kids' grades, or with strategies to build kids' executive function skills so they can succeed in remote learning. She says she'd like to continue the role going forward, making parents more active partners in their kids' education and taking learning out into the community as well.

"We could take this as a learning moment," Weathers says. "Now we have the parents' attention. So maybe now is the time to really reach out and say, 'This is what we need you to do on your end, and we'll take care of this on our end.' And in 10 years, we might see something entirely different in education in the country if we did that."

3. Digital teaching can be good, even great with the right support for teachers. But that's far from the norm.

Districts such as Weathers' and Rouse's are working with the Digital Learning Collaborative, a nonprofit that is dedicated to best practices in digital learning.

Rouse, in Joliet, calls its training "pretty fabulous" and essential to her district's transition from teaching mainly through paper packets in the spring to full-on remote using Google Classroom this fall. The training "was more intense than [teachers] expected it would be, but that's OK because teaching online is more intense than people anticipate as well."

Another organization, Cadence, is also trying to improve digital teaching at scale. It pairs "mentor teachers" with "partner teachers" to deliver a standardized curriculum in reading, math and science. The teaching is a high-intensity blend of video lessons, active classroom instruction with breakout sessions, and software-based practice.

Olyvia Kozicki teaches fifth grade at Augustine Prep, a nondenominational private school in Milwaukee, and is a Cadence partner teacher for English language arts. She says she's overjoyed at the quality and quantity of work her students are producing. It's not only more than she expected from online teaching, "it's more just in general."

Twice a week, she meets with other Cadence teachers from around the country who are also teaching the exact same material on the same timetable. She says that makes it the most practical and actionable professional education she's ever had.

"When we switched to virtual, it was very overwhelming, and it seemed like such a daunting task," she says. And now "I am so happy with what the kids have been able to do."

Justin Reich says Kozicki's experience is unusual for teachers this year. Reich is an expert on educational technology at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the author of the new book Failure to Disrupt: Why Technology Alone Can't Transform Education.

He says that across the country this fall, "I've heard very little evidence of innovation." Even moves that might seem relatively simple, such as adopting a free, online university-level course for use by high school students, aren't happening often. Mostly, he adds, districts are trying to re-create classroom teaching routines online with varying levels of success.

"I don't think it's getting better because there are major approaches that people have figured out or there's a model that's sort of spreading around," he says. Nor is there a lot of leadership or direction on improving online learning coming from the federal Department of Education or anyone else.

Instead, Reich says, what improvement there has been since spring comes mainly from teachers such as Rosenthal - putting in long hours and learning as they go. "It's just kind of folks sanding down one little rough edge at a time."

4. Hybrid models are extremely challenging.

At last count, according to Burbio, 17.5% of districts were offering school in person just a few days a week, with students learning from home the rest of the time. The purpose was to maintain social distancing by reducing class sizes, but the model has created confusion and constant interruptions. Many students are struggling to adjust to classroom routines when they may attend only five days out of three weeks.

Depending on available staffing, teachers, meanwhile, may be yelling through a mask and face shield to be heard by students over Zoom. Jennifer Echols is the director of online and personalized learning for Mesa Public Schools, the largest school district in Arizona. She calls this model "one of the biggest challenges" in remote learning right now. Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, has called for this "hybrid" model to be phased out. "Hybrid doesn't work," Weingarten says flatly. "You can't livestream and teach in person at the same time."

5. Some kids are not learning much online. They'll be playing catch-up in years to come.

There are some anecdotes of children who are thriving with remote learning. "There's [approximately] 10% of people for whom it works better," Reich says. And for these students, "this is actually a better version of school."

Maybe they had school anxiety, he explains, or were victims of bullying or discrimination, or have sensory issues and enjoy having more control over their learning environment.

But districts including Houston, St. Paul, Minn., and Fairfax County, Va., have reported historically high failure rates this fall.

Echols, in Arizona, says both attendance and engagement in online learning is suffering. "Some kids have had difficulty just paying attention and keeping themselves focused." In other cases, she adds, "we have families where parents are working, and there's not the appropriate supervision for young learners, or children that need to be babysitting siblings during the school day."

What keeps Rosenthal up at night are the kids she just can't reach. Every year, she says, out of a class of 20 or 21, there are five or six students who show up unprepared for kindergarten.

"They're struggling, but at least they're with me all day long. And so I can support them six or seven hours a day."

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5 Things We've Learned About Virtual School During the Pandemic - MindShift

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We are still starved for data on what this all means. The earliest standardized test scores coming out show modest learning loss for students in math, but there are worries that the most at-risk students are not being tested at all. For this story I talked to educators in six states, from California to South Carolina.

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Be an active listener to nurture your child's curiosity. 

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Be an active listener to nurture your child's curiosity. 

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5 Strategies to Inspire Curiosity in Students

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"I think, at a child's birth, if a mother could ask a fairy godmother to endow it with the most useful gift, that gift should be curiosity." -Eleanor Roosevelt Think about the last time a book, movie, or conversation sparked your curiosity. When something ignites your curiosity, regions of your

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Why regulating screen time is crucial for your child's growth and development..  

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Why regulating screen time is crucial for your child's growth and development..  

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Did you know that a child's learning can easily be impacted by what they eat?

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Did you know that a child's learning can easily be impacted by what they eat?

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Without addressing our physiological need such as sleep, we are jeopardising student learning.  

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Without addressing our physiological need such as sleep, we are jeopardising student learning.  

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Why is getting the right amount of sleep so important for children and their learning?

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Why is getting the right amount of sleep so important for children and their learning?

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Maslow argued that the primary goal of education should be to move students towards self-actualization and not simply to indoctrinate them with a body of facts and skills without regards to ethics or values.  

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Maslow argued that the primary goal of education should be to move students towards self-actualization and not simply to indoctrinate them with a body of facts and skills without regards to ethics or values.  

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"As students engage by reflecting on their experiences, learning about our society, and both envisioning and working for social change, they learn that there is substance to their ideas and that they can inhabit multiple roles in the world."

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School matters to students when they are given opportunities to engage with the world around them and ask questions about issues that are often ignored or overlooked

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School matters to students when they are given opportunities to engage with the world around them and ask questions about issues that are often ignored or overlooked

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Excerpted from "Teaching for a Living Democracy: Project-Based Learning in the English and History Classroom" by Joshua Block. Published by Teachers College Press. Prioritizing Student Voices, Decentralizing the Classroom
In our society, it is widely believed that because young people lack experience, they aren't smart, capable, or insightful. These beliefs are often referred to as young people's oppression or adultism. In reality, young people see the world differently and are able to recognize injustice and question dominant paradigms, make intellectual connections, and take action in ways that adults often will not. Paolo Freire explained that learning to read the world and discovering the power of one's own voice are transformative experiences ( Freire, 1983). Designing learning that prioritizes student voices also benefits the teacher, who can leave the position of authority in the front of the room and be side by side with students as they transform themselves through their work.

School matters to students when they are given opportunities to engage with the world around them and ask questions about issues that are often ignored or overlooked. As students engage by reflecting on their experiences, learning about our society, and both envisioning and working for social change, they learn that there is substance to their ideas and that they can inhabit multiple roles in the world. When learning is designed in ways that prioritize student voices and thought, there is a clear pathway for students to invest themselves fully and genuinely in quality work that matters. Another way to think of this is to allow students to make meaning of content on their own terms.

In addition to regularly sharing both rough work and finished products out loud, students can generate questions and facilitate. When I prepare students well and successfully set them up to develop their own ideas, my students facilitate their own discussions by quoting sources, calling on each other, and questioning each other deeply. During these times I remind students to speak to each other and not solely to me. I position myself off to the side or behind other students, in order to make sure students speak to each other and shift away from a model where the teacher is always the center of the action.

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Designing Learning to Prioritize Student Voices - MindShift

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Excerpted from "Teaching for a Living Democracy: Project-Based Learning in the English and History Classroom" by Joshua Block. Published by Teachers College Press. Prioritizing Student Voices, Decentralizing the Classroom In our society, it is widely believed that because young people lack experience, they aren't smart, capable, or insightful.

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Try out some of these awesome math riddles. 

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Try out some of these awesome math riddles. 

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10 Math Riddles That'll Stump Most People (Even Math Nerds!)

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How to Make Sure Grades Are Meaningful and Useful to Students

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How to Make Sure Grades Are Meaningful and Useful to Students

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Our job as educators is not to identify the mistakes, our job is to identify the trends, analyze them to determine the learning need, and then point students in the right direction.

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Slowly but surely, I started to identify some crucial mindset shifts that I had to make if I really wanted assessments to be meaningful.

Assessments as Evidence of Learning

The assessment doesn't matter; the learning it reveals does. That was hard for me to grapple with. The key is in remembering that a single assessment is just part of a larger ecosystem of information that can be used to determine student progress. This helped me broaden my understanding of assessment. A conversation with a student? That's evidence! Listening in on some group work? Evidence!

How did I make the shift? It came down to asking two questions: What do I want my students to learn? And what are the ways that they can show me that they have learned it? An approach to assessment that uses a variety of techniques gives you a more complete picture of student learning than you would get from an isolated snapshot.

Multiple Attempts, Not Redoing Tasks

When students have multiple attempts to provide evidence of learning, we can start questioning the practice of having students redo tasks. There are absolutely times when students need to understand the value of creating a high-quality product through revisions, but doing something again for the sake of points is just painful.

Instead of making a student redo something, what if we asked, "How else can you show me you know it?" That takes the emphasis off the task and puts it back on the student and their learning.

How did I make the shift? Recognize that not all of the multitudes of standards deserve equal time and focus. This matters because you can't offer multiple attempts at a million standards. Limit multiple attempts to what is essential. Think deep, not wide, so that you can gather multiple pieces of evidence for a single concept or skill.

The Grade Book Can Be a Communication Log

I can remember the moment -walking down the hallway at the end of my first year of teaching to submit my final grades-when I thought, "What does this thing mean to anyone?" I knew who was good at quizzes, who turned things in, and honestly who hated my class, but that was about it. I had to ask, "What is my grade book communicating, and why?"

How did I make the shift? Step one is to identify the information you want to communicate. Think about what information would be helpful for all stakeholders, and then think about how you can clearly communicate that. From there, create space in your grade book for each of those individual elements. Make your grade book clear, make it meaningful, and make it accurate.

Using Comments to Point Students Toward Further Learning

When I started teaching, most of the feedback students got was a simple identification of an error, whether that was through a comment or a score. Slowly, I learned that my job wasn't to identify the mistakes; my job was to identify the trends, analyze them to determine the learning need, and then point students in the right direction.

How did I make the shift? Honestly, this one came down to finding new ways to leave feedback. A short, written comment often didn't do what I needed in terms of helping the student focus on the learning-too often my comments focused them on the mistakes. By leaving video feedback, using text expanders, leveraging one-on-one conferences, and making use of feedback portfolios, I was able to provide feedback that was more than just the sum of the mistakes.

I know these shifts seem small, but without them, our assessment practices will stay rooted in methods that don't align with how kids learn best. For too long, grading and assessment have been a threat for students as they go through the school system, kicking them into a fight, flight, or freeze response because the assessment process has not felt safe, positive, or helpful to them.

The problem was that grades were out of their control, a process they didn't feel part of. I still give grades, but with the changes I've made students know they are part of the process-they have a say in it and ownership over the results.

These shifts in thinking aren't everything, but I can tell you that they have changed the atmosphere in my classroom. My kids don't run from assessment anymore-they aren't afraid of it. They understand it, and they understand that it has value for them, not just for me.

That matters.

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How to Make Sure Grades Are Meaningful and Useful to Students

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Slowly but surely, I started to identify some crucial mindset shifts that I had to make if I really wanted assessments to be meaningful. The assessment doesn't matter; the learning it reveals does. That was hard for me to grapple with.

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Pictures Books can be a powerful way to teach Writing for any age. 

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Pictures Books can be a powerful way to teach Writing for any age. 

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Picture books are a good length for teaching lessons in a reasonable amount of time.

They make writing a narrative seem doable (not overwhelming.)

Their use of illustrations help new writers understand that good writing should invoke illustrations in the mind of the reader.

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If there's one subject that seems to befuddle homeschoolers more than any other, it's writing. I hear it during homeschool consultations and casually talking among homeschool friends, and I see questions about it all over the internet.

This post contains affiliate links.
People are often surprised when I tell them I don't formally teach writing until middle school. Really, I don't. And here's my reasoning...

Why We Wait For Formal Writing Lessons

In elementary school, children are physically working hard just to form letters. It takes a lot of effort to practice a few sentences of copywork. With so much effort to write words on the paper, I find it simply too frustrating for them to also focus on creating stories as well. And, really, when you think about the various stages of cognitive development, most children aren't really ready to pull together their own stories before 5th or 6th grade.

Does this mean there is no writing in our elementary homeschool besides copywork? Of course not. We work specifically on sentence formation and even paragraph writing in 3rd-5th grades. They also write as part of assignments during project-based learning or labbooking.

It's just that I don't teach formal writing until middle school - narratives, descriptive writing, persuasive essays and expository writing. In other words, the writing where a whole lot of thinking and processing has to occur in order to pull together a well-thought out, organized, creative piece.

I Use Picture Books with Middle School Students

When it is time to teach writing styles, I LOVE to use picture books (which have been written by master authors) as examples. Even better, I love to use books that my children have read many times over in their earlier years. In this case, they already know the stories and can see them with fresh eyes as they look from the perspective of a particular writing style.

Today, I'd like to share some of my favorite picture books to use when teaching middle school (or even high school) students narrative writing. Some people will think, "You're using picture books with middle school students??" Yes. Heck, I use picture books with people of all ages because so many of them are plain wonderful! More importantly, though:

Picture books are a good length for teaching lessons in a reasonable amount of time.

They make writing a narrative seem doable (not overwhelming.)

Their use of illustrations help new writers understand that good writing should invoke illustrations in the mind of the reader.

Picture Books to Teach Narrative Writing

Take a peek at my favorite books for teaching narrative writing, then I'll meet you at the bottom of the post to share how I use them in lessons.

The Relatives Came by Cynthia Rylant tells the story of a yearly family reunion. The perspective makes you feel like you're right there with the family enjoying food and festivities, and even sleeping uncomfortably amongst too many people. The book helps your writer think about using words to evoke feeling.

When I Was Young in the Mountains by Cynthia Rylant gives a first person account of growing up in coal country where life was simple, yet sweet. It will help your writer think of everyday things as powerful memories.

Owl Moon by Jane Yolen takes the reader on a wonderful father-daughter walk late one evening in search of an owl. This story can help your writer learn how to take a simple, even short event and turn it into a magical story.

The Rag Coat by Lauren Mills is written in first person and tells the sometimes sad, but heartwarming story of a young girl who found courage amidst tough situations. Young authors will learn how to write honest memories and find the positive endings from those memories.

Three Days on a River in a Red Canoe by Vera B. Williams is written in first person and recounts a fun camping and canoeing adventure. It will help your writers learn to recount family vacations in a way that people actually want to read.

Thunder Cake by Patricia Polacco tells the story of a grandmother who bakes a cake to help her grandchild get over her fear of a thunderstorm. It's an excellent example of how to craft a happy memory.

Mailing May by Michael Tunnell tells the story of a parent's ingenious plan to get their daughter to grandma's house. Your writers will learn how to build a narrative that doesn't spill all the beans too early in the story.

Aunt Flossie's Hats (and Crab Cakes Later) by Elizabeth Fitzgerald Howard shares the tales of two sisters who spend Sunday afternoons with their great aunt. It will encourage your writers to think about simple days as wonderful memories worth writing about.

Baseball Saved Us by Ken Mochizuki recounts a touching memoir of overcoming the confines of a Japanese-American internment camp after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. This book is especially good at showing writers how to convey emotion without being overly explicit.

Chicken Sunday by Patricia Polacco shares a tale about friendship, family and a misunderstanding. It's a good book to teach how weaving a tale of the actual events makes a story much more interesting than just citing the events in order.

The Babe & I by David Adler tells a story from the depression era from the perspective of a little boy who's father has lost his job. The main event of meeting Babe Ruth is actually only part of a much bigger story of perseverance. I love using this book to teach the importance of building background for your audience.

Roxaboxen by Barbara Cooney makes a simple summer childhood memory come to life. It's often hard for young writers to write more than a paragraph or two about simple memories. I use this book and its use of descriptive language to help remedy that problem.

Goin' Someplace Special by Jerry Pinckney is a precious story of a little girl's bravery during the time when segregation was normal in America. You can almost feel her fear and then her triumph as you read along. It's a great example for teaching students to share feelings.

Apples to Oregon: Being the (Slightly) True Narrative of How a Brave Pioneer Father Brought Apples, Peaches, Pears, Plums, Grapes, and Cherries (and Children) Across the Plains by Deborah Hopkinson takes a regular narrative about pioneer life and turns it into a tall tale. I not only use this book to teach tall tales, but the use of humor, too.

Picnic at Mudsock Meadow by Patricia Polacco recounts the happenings of a Halloween picnic and the bravery of one little boy who faces the ghost of Titus Dimworthy. (You may have noticed that I've included more than one book by Patricia Polacco on this list. Generally, all her picture books are amazing.) This book builds great characters, which is the mini-lesson I usually teach.

How to Use Picture Books to Teach Narrative Writing

There are several ways to use picture books to teach narratives, but essentially all of them follow the same general principles:

Read one picture book with your student(s).

Discuss the particular element(s) of writing you want to highlight.

Reread a few sections that demonstrate the element(s) well.

Discuss how young writers might use the element(s) in their own writing.

Do a bit of oral storytelling together using the element(s) so creative juices begin to flow.

Begin writing a narrative with a particular focus on the element(s). Remember that writing a good narrative, including revisions and editing, will take several days.

In the end, you have a narrative that has at least grown in the use of the elements you focused on during your mini-lesson. Next time, you can focus on a new elements and slowly, but surely, build a writer's toolbox that will last a lifetime!

Do you have any stellar picture books you've found for use in teaching narratives?

Need a little more direction in this method?

I taught a practical class that can help!

Be sure to check out my other posts about using picture books to teach various forms of writing!

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Picture Books That Demonstrate Narrative Writing

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If there's one subject that seems to befuddle homeschoolers more than any other, it's writing. I hear it during homeschool consultations and casually talking among homeschool friends, and I see questions about it all over the internet. This post contains affiliate links. People are often surprised when I tell them I don't formally teach writing...

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Inquiry-based learning is the foundation for all student-centered strategies. Students who are asking their own questions, discovering answers, and using their teachers as resources and guides are those who become actively involved in the construction of their understanding.

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Inquiry-based learning is the foundation for all student-centered strategies. Students who are asking their own questions, discovering answers, and using their teachers as resources and guides are those who become actively involved in the construction of their understanding.

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One powerful example of students taking on a different role in the classroom happens when teachers use the United Nations Global Goals for Sustainable Development as a framework for inquiry. Students explore their passions, interests, and curiosities based on the 17 U.N. goals, identifying learning objectives connected to a particular goal where they'd like to focus. Teachers then co-design standards with learners, standards with language such as gaining a deeper understanding of "x" or inspiring an audience to "do y."

Students achieve a more genuine ownership over their learning as they grapple with these authentic problems -- ones that have troubled global leaders for decades. In these spaces students take on more of the heavy lifting of learning as they are actively involved in the construction of understanding.
2. The teacher as guide and mentor
Just as the role of the learner has shifted in these classrooms, so too has the role of the teacher. Teachers in these spaces are constantly reflecting and making changes in order to foster a culture of learning. They are highly aware of what's happening around them; they take the time to stop and listen; and they pick up on the slightest clues and use these to shape next steps. They constantly ask questions of themselves that guide their practice and inform their decisions. Cumulatively they use these reflections to revise their path and better meet the needs of their students.

In all of these classrooms, teachers use a variety of strategies to support their students. It's a misperception that student-centered classrooms don't include any lecturing. At times it's essential the teacher share his or her expertise with the larger group. But teachers in these classrooms also make space for learner-centered discourse such as Socratic Seminars, in which students drive the discussion and the teacher guides and facilitates the collaboration. Or students might lead a lesson with the teacher observing and compiling formative feedback to support reflection, revision and growth.

In the inquiry classroom, students often interview experts in a specific field in order to gain a deeper understanding of their inquiry topic. Teachers support them with direct instruction that introduces the class to what a strong interview entails, and identifies the processes that should be adopted to ensure students will be successful in this task. During this time exemplars are shown and discussed, sample questions are collaboratively created and planning initial steps are accomplished.

Embarking in this learning together as a group, by way of a lecture, makes sense in that all students must gain this broader and more general understanding of interviewing. The teacher then facilitates smaller breakout groups where students can delve more deeply into their individual interviews and begin to personalize the task in a more meaningful and supportive manner. It is in this gradual release of control over learning that the inquiry classroom thrives.
3. The whole child is celebrated and nurtured
Whether it be social-emotional learning, personal awareness and social responsibility, grit and growth mindset, or empathy, the language around learning has shifted in these spaces to focus on nurturing the whole student. Dispositions are at the core of these classrooms where qualities such as creativity, collaboration and communication are explicitly discussed, reflected on and supported.

In all of these classrooms there's a joint emphasis on the product or summative piece to learning as well as the process of learning. It is in this process that students demonstrate meaningful growth in the characteristics and dispositions of a lifelong learner.

This is evident in inquiry spaces that utilize the design thinking method. This process calls on students to identify a challenge, gather information, generate potential solutions, refine ideas, and test solutions. High school students in one Vancouver classroom designed a solution to bring clean drinking water to rural areas that did not have access to this essential resource in their communities.

Some students prototyped an affordable handheld water purification system, other students designed a community sewage treatment facility, and a third group created a water use plan for the community. It's worth noting that many students didn't ultimately achieve a tangible or working solution by the end of the unit. But that wasn't the goal. More important was the empathy gained during the process. The design-thinking process provided rich opportunities for student reflection and allowed the teacher to see social and emotional skills at work.
4. Structures and frameworks exist but learning isn't overly prescribed or standardized
In these classrooms, standards do not solely drive the learning and content is not overly standardized. Students are often learning about different things that they have all individually chosen, but each student is operating within a common unified structure. Learner agency is a core component of being student-centered. Teachers can use strategies and routines to help students organize, reflect and revise as they go.

This is evident in high-quality project-based learning classrooms where projects are focused on student learning goals and include essential project design elements such as identifying key understandings, posing a challenging problem, partaking in sustained inquiry, reflection, revision and sharing learning with an authentic audience.

One example of this in action is a classroom where students were learning about positive impact on others. The provocation used by the teacher was an inspiring video titled Project Daniel.

After watching the video the teacher challenged students to "help one, help many" and identify a problem, plan a solution and put this plan into action in order to make a difference in someone else's life. One group of students 3D-printed fidget spinners for younger students dealing with anxiety. Another group designed a public service announcement campaign encouraging kindness and acceptance in their school community. And another group interviewed senior citizens at a local old-age home to document, archive and share their advice for youth in order to build empathy. Although each group was working on a uniquely personalized project, they all learned from one another throughout the process as they shared their work.

Inquiry is at the heart of many education buzzwords and can be a useful tool for framing ones approach to them. John Dewey, Lev Vygotsky, Paolo Freire and Jean Piaget planted the roots of inquiry long ago, but every educator can leverage their constructivist example to find a pedagogy that best fits their unique teaching style. Ultimately the goal should always be to empower students to continue wondering and seeking their own answers.

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Four Inquiry Qualities At The Heart of Student-Centered Teaching | KQED

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One powerful example of students taking on a different role in the classroom happens when teachers use the United Nations Global Goals for Sustainable Development as a framework for inquiry. Students explore their passions, interests, and curiosities based on the 17 U.N. goals, identifying learning objectives connected to a particular goal where they'd like to focus.

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How to Bring Math into Daily Life with Middle Schoolers

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How to Bring Math into Daily Life with Middle Schoolers

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Is a dump truck a vehicle? What about a skateboard? An elevator? A hamster wheel? These are some of the questions math educator Christopher Danielson has asked - or been asked - while playing a reasoning game he calls "Is It or Not?" The game began with between another math educator, Kassia Wedekind , and her six-year-old daughter, but Danielson has played it with children of all ages, including his own. "It was a dinner table conversation. Both kids really joined in on it and enjoyed thinking of interesting, additional cases," he said. His daughter, who was 12 at the time, raised the hamster wheel question and continued developing the list well after the meal ended.

Definitions are central to mathematics, but children's concept images - what they picture for a triangle, for example - does not always line up with the concept definition. "Is It or Not?" helps them strengthen their concept images. It's also a fun way to bring mathematical thinking into everyday conversation, a practice Danielson champions on his blog, Talking Math With Your Kids , and through an ongoing Twitter discussion .

"Our inclination is to think of math as a thing that happens in school," Danielson said. That leaves parents in the role of homework helper and can lead to anxiety when parents lack math confidence , especially as kids reach middle school and algebra enters the picture. Such stress may be particularly acute as parents try to keep their kids' education on track during distance learning . But watching over your middle schooler's shoulder as they complete worksheets is not the only or best way to help them. By asking open-ended questions, developing a shared math language and connecting math to young people's interests, parents can support pre-teens' mathematical development in a way that is more fun for everyone involved.

Ask Open-ended Questions

"I think for students and our own kids, we want to rescue them as they're working on math. We just want to tell them how to do it," said eighth grade math instructor and former Tennessee teacher of the year Cicely Woodard. She suggested a different starting point for parents: asking questions. That's a central practice in her inquiry-driven classroom , and she shared a few to try:

These questions can be applied to formal math problems but also during informal conversations, such as noticing patterns in nature. Listening to kids' answers, said Woodard, can "reveal important information about what they understand and don't understand."

Develop a Shared Language

Talking about math takes practice. To give students a structure for engaging in math conversations, Woodard presents sentence stems, such as:

"I agree/disagree with ____ because ..."

"My solution is like ____'s because ..."

"I don't understand ____ part of your reasoning, because ..."

In her classroom, Woodard's students use these phrases to compare ideas in small groups, then present different solution paths to the class. At home, young people can use sentence starters like these in family conversations about topics such as screen time or budgets. It's "amazing" to watch tweens articulate decisions about math when "given the tools and the opportunities to do it," Woodard said.

Make the Stakes Real

Identity development looms large in middle schoolers' lives. For this reason, Danielson said, math talk with tweens should focus on "helping them gain leverage or influence in the world." For example, when Danielson's son was 13, he hired him to help with the manufacturing process for the tesselating turtle sets he sells. The pair agreed to a per-pound rate, and when payment time arrived, Danielson asked his son to calculate the bill. Similarly, after his daughter and a friend provided leaf-raking services at a per-bag rate, Danielson asked how much he owed. The friend reacted with surprise. His daughter was accustomed to doing real-world math , but for her friend, "the idea that she would be responsible for producing a calculation was foreign," Danielson said.

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Talking Math With Tweens: How to Bring Math into Daily Life with Middle Schoolers - MindShift

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Is a dump truck a vehicle? What about a skateboard? An elevator? A hamster wheel? These are some of the questions math educator Christopher Danielson has asked - or been asked - while playing a reasoning game he calls "Is It or Not?"

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This separate Padlet will provide you with a wealth of resources all related to math.

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Young children need to enjoy the process of learning instead of focusing on performance.

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Young children need to enjoy the process of learning instead of focusing on performance.

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Why Ages 2-7 Matter So Much for Brain Development

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Rich experiences—from play to the arts and relationships—fundamentally shape a young child’s development.

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The fear of making mistakes is often paralyzing, but cognitive science suggests that errors are part of the fundamental machinery of learning.

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The fear of making mistakes is often paralyzing, but cognitive science suggests that errors are part of the fundamental machinery of learning.

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For Disney, creativity and mistakes went hand in hand. As the founder of a company that offered fantasy as its core product, he encouraged his team of engineers, designers, and mechanics-you may know them as Imagineers-to think expansively and be willing to break things. "I don't remember anyone getting fired for coming up with a dumb idea or making a mistake," recalls Van Arsdale France, one of Disney's earliest employees.

Yet all too often, students see mistakes as a source of embarrassment, stress, or even humiliation. The human brain is agnostic, however, and makes good use of the data-mistakes are crucial pieces of information that force a cognitive reckoning, pushing the brain to reconcile contradictory information and build more accurate, durable solutions.

Recent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies reveal the underlying neural machinery at work. In a 2018 study, neuroscientists at Caltech discovered that mistakes set off an almost instantaneous chain reaction of productive brain activity. Even before the conscious mind is aware of the error, the researchers found, one set of neurons-called "error neurons," the neural forerunners of mistakes-begin to fire. Fifty milliseconds later, a phalanx of "conflict neurons" respond, signaling the effort to resolve inconsistent pieces of information. In rapid-fire succession, the brain of a person making an error lights up with the kind of activity that encodes information more deeply.

While no one likes to commit mistakes, especially publicly, it's in the best interests of schools, teachers, and students to make peace with them-or even welcome them. As Carol Dweck, professor of psychology at Stanford University and the author of Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, explains succinctly: "Every time a student makes a mistake... they grow a synapse."

Creating a mistake-friendly classroom will not only help your students develop the skills necessary for future success, but it'll also encourage them to have a healthy mindset that accepts-and learns from-failure. Here are six classroom strategies to make that a reality.

Acknowledge That the Fear Is Real

The fear of failure is deep-seated. Researchers know that when students with math anxiety encounter numbers, for example, "a fear center in the brain is activated-the same fear center that lights up when people see snakes or spiders," writes Stanford professor Jo Boaler in her 2019 book, Limitless Mind: Learn, Lead, and Live Without Barriers.

The fear of being outed as incompetent can lead to a downward spiral of inadequacy, nervous fretting, and further mistakes. "As the fear center of the brain becomes activated, activity in the problem-solving centers of the brain is diminished," explains Boaler, describing a process that shuts down the very cognitive apparatus needed to demonstrate competency.

To overcome fear in our classrooms, we have to identify and actively replace the destructive thoughts. If we're anxious about making a public error, for example, then "we have to learn to replace the thought 'I'm stupid' with another thought, which is 'I'm learning,'" asserted the psychologist, researcher, and author Angela Duckworth in our recent interview.

Work in the Zone of Proximal Development

Getting answers right doesn't necessarily reflect authentic, long-term learning. In a 2008 study, professor of learning sciences Manu Kapur asked seventh-grade students to solve challenging math problems-ones that were more difficult than what they'd find on a typical exam but not so challenging that they gave up. A good problem, according to Kapur, is not one that has a single correct answer; it is open-ended so that students explore a multitude of possibilities, drawing on and making connections with prior knowledge. At the end of the school year, these students outperformed their peers in their math class, Kapur found.

When a problem is easy, Kapur says, students can immediately recall the correct answer. But when a problem is challenging, students are forced to evaluate several possible answers, helping them "better discern and understand those very concepts, representations, and methods." Flirting with failure, it turns out, helps students determine not only why certain answers are correct, but also how and why others are incorrect, deepening their grasp of the topic.

Tap Into Passion and Curiosity

Any exploration into the unknown, whether it's visiting a new country or sampling unfamiliar foods, primes the brain to accept uncertainty, and a 2019 study reveals a key reason why: The areas of the brain that are active when people confront new ideas or face creative challenges also light up when they take calculated risks. These findings follow a 2012 study showing that intrinsic curiosity-a good proxy for student passion-increases a person's tolerance for uncertainty.

So if you want students to have a positive attitude toward mistakes, consider conducting surveys or adopting other get-to-know-you activities that provide insights into student interests, and then integrate those interests into lesson planning. And be sure to give students a broader range of choices when you hand out new assignments. When students work on things they're passionate about, they are far more likely to tolerate, and work their way through, the unavoidable battery of mistakes and misfires.

Actively Model Mistakes

In a 2007 study, researchers studied how math teachers in China and the United States responded to mistakes in the classroom, and they discovered that U.S. teachers frequently corrected their students when they had an incorrect answer, an approach that "could lead students to become afraid to make mistakes for fear of being seen as stupid."

The Chinese teachers, on the other hand, "were more open with their students than the U.S. teachers about the freedom to make errors," which helped to create a mistake-friendly classroom environment. Promoting the idea that "errors are commonplace-and some are even good" led to students' more frequently correcting their own mistakes.

To create a culture of true openness to mistakes, teachers must not only embrace student error but actively model their own tolerance for it. Renowned writing teacher Kelly Gallagher, author of Readicide, believes that teachers should regularly write in front of their class. "The teacher is the best writer in the room; therefore, it is critical that the best writer in the room models the confusion, the messiness, the stopping and starting, the hesitation that comes with trying to compose," writes Gallagher. "I do not try to hide this; on the contrary, I want my students to see that I, too, wrestle with getting words down on paper."

Encourage 'Rough-Draft Thinking'

Telling students, "This is just your rough-draft thinking right now" gives them permission to ask questions, make mistakes, and then revise without the stifling prospect of failure, explains math professor Amanda Jensen and her colleagues in a 2017 article.

Explicitly labeling activities across the curriculum, from writing to drawing to science, as "rough-drafting thinking" fosters a culture of intellectual risk-taking and gives students an opportunity to sketch initial solutions without worrying about being right or wrong. To encourage "rough-draft talk," the verbalization of rough-draft thinking, teachers can highlight the idea that learning takes time and that it's beneficial to talk through ideas that aren't fully formed in small groups. "I like it even when I'm wrong, because I learn from my group and get better," says a middle school math student.

Grade Fewer Things

The expectation that all student work needs to be closely monitored or even graded by a teacher remains one of the largest obstacles to innovation and true productivity in classrooms.

"The time and energy spent on grading has been often pinpointed as a key barrier to instructors becoming more innovative in their teaching," write Jeffrey Schinske and Kimberly Tanner in a 2014 study, adding that "just because students generate work does not mean instructors need to grade that work for accuracy."

Correcting every mistake in the classroom can be stifling, not only for students but for the teacher as well. Giving yourself permission to grade fewer assignments or share feedback responsibilities with students-common strategies are the one-in-four rule and peer-to-peer grading using distributed rubrics -will not only free up hours each week for more teacher planning, but is also essential to the creation of a low-stress classroom environment where students are encouraged to experiment, take risks, and produce a greater volume of high-quality work.

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The Mistake Imperative-Why We Must Get Over Our Fear of Student Error

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For Disney, creativity and mistakes went hand in hand. As the founder of a company that offered fantasy as its core product, he encouraged his team of engineers, designers, and mechanics-you may know them as Imagineers-to think expansively and be willing to break things.

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Why do we give grades in school? Learning about the origins of grades may help us to think critically about whether this is something that is needed for our 21st learners. Are we measuring what really matters in our students, or are we merely pushing kids away from wanting to learn? 

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Why do we give grades in school? Learning about the origins of grades may help us to think critically about whether this is something that is needed for our 21st learners. Are we measuring what really matters in our students, or are we merely pushing kids away from wanting to learn? 

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According to Margaret Mead, "Connections between generations are essential for the mental health and stability of a nation."

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According to Margaret Mead, "Connections between generations are essential for the mental health and stability of a nation."

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In those at either end of the life course - the young and the old - you find striking similarities. We live in a society that values adulthood, and in turn doing - productivity and ongoing activity. The young and the old share a different rhythm. It's one that focuses not only on doing, but on the power of being. It's the simplicity of playing with blocks or tending to flowers. The young and the old are most closely connected with the essence of living. They can exist in a moment that's the grand sum of past, present, and future. Rather than time being the enemy - rushing time or stressing to fit as much into time as possible - time becomes a comfortable companion, a circle rather than a line.

We divide up our communities and our activities by age - young people in schools, older people in retirement communities or facilities. We talk a lot about all the ways we need to help older people. But, perhaps, the old can help us. It's the experience of life in a multigenerational, interdependent, richly complex community that, more than anything else, teaches us how to be human.

Better Community

If we can improve the standing of older adults in society, and nurture what they can bring through intergenerational connections, then we can achieve a better community with a better quality of life for all ages.

Historically, young and old connected naturally. Older people taught the young how to be and how to become. Close daily contact between the young and old was a matter of survival. Being with, watching after, and assisting in the care of young children, while demanding in many ways, does not require the full vigor of youth. The physical limitations that can come with getting older actually cement the relationship between old and young. An elder capable of working the land or building a house or strenuous cleaning would have less inclination to spend hours doting on grandchildren, telling them stories, and instructing them in the ways of their people. The physiological changes that accompany old age, which contemporary society looks upon with great disdain, can actually be useful preconditions for valuable intergenerational connections.

There is a back-and-forth reciprocity between all generations. Adults provide support to elders, most often to address health or physical limitations. Elders, in turn, assist adults through experience, emotional support, and participating in the care of children. Elders can help socialize children, teach them empathy and character, and give them an unconditional form of love they can't find elsewhere. Children, in turn, can be an endless source of joy for elders, share affection and play, and provide assistance with many simple tasks. Children can participate in the work of adults, and provide enjoyment and love. Adults, in turn, provide food, shelter, clothing, and nurturance to children. And so a strong, healthy, intergenerational web of community goes.

Many older adults today are better educated, healthier, and more able than elders of past generations. They can clearly be a tremendous resource. But what about the oldest, frailest of the old? They can be our greatest teachers. They can certainly instruct us with words and stories of times past, and share a lifetime of accumulated wisdom. But what they truly help us learn about is the world and ourselves as they teach us with their very selves, their being. Elders can also teach us about the end of life, which informs the whole of our lives.

I've seen it in my work with families, my community workshops, and in all the research: relationships between young and old make us feel connected. They make us feel connected not only to each other, but to something bigger, to the past and to the future, to the flow of life. This connection leads to tangible benefits for all generations.

Benefits to Children

Research shows children need four to six involved, caring adults in their lives to fully develop emotionally and socially. The problem today is that children often get too much peer socialization, too much mediated contact through computers and texting, and not enough one-on-one, personal time with mature adults.

The benefits to children of a close, long-term connection with older adults include:

Through grandparents, children have a better sense of who they are and where they've come from. They have roots, a history, and a sense of continuity and perspective.

Intergenerational bonds need not be traditional or biological. Older adult mentors can make a significant difference in a child's life. The involvement of a reliable, caring adult helps children develop life skills, and builds self-esteem and confidence. One study showed that when a child is mentored by an adult, they are: 46% less likely to begin using illegal drugs; 27% less likely to begin using alcohol; 52% less likely to skip school.

In general, children develop higher self-esteem, better emotional and social skills (including an ability to withstand peer pressure), and can even have better grades in school.

Children feel special. Especially with grandparents, children are "spoiled" a little. Research tells us that, in moderation, this can be a good thing. Children know that being with their grandparents is special. They don't expect the rest of the world to treat them the way their grandparents do, so it's really not "spoiling." They experience an unconditional type of love that's not easily found elsewhere.

Children can get undivided time and attention from an older adult that tired, busy parents often can't give them.

An older adult can give children someone safe to talk with and confide in. While children may want to be different from their parents, they often don't mind being like their grandparents or other older adults. This gives elders a lot of power and ability to influence a troubled or confused child.

Through sharing in an older adult's interests, skills, and hobbies, children are introduced to new activities and ideas. Through their life experience, older adults can often bring with them a tremendous amount of patience. Knowledge, skills, and attitudes children pick up from elders tend to stick with them through life more than those picked up from other sources.

By getting to know "real, live old people" children look beyond the ageist stereotypes. They become more comfortable with aging - which is really something we all do from the moment we're born. Children are also encouraged to look toward the whole of their lives. They have many models for adulthood, but far fewer for older adulthood. When they can see the whole of their lives, they are more motivated and see greater relevance between what they're learning in school and their future. Research shows that "planful competence" - the ability to understand the life course and work toward goals - is key to student success in school and in life.

Benefits to Older Adults

The benefits to older adults of a close connection with the young include:

Elders often feel a sense of "joyful freedom." As a grandparent, for example, they don't feel the pressure they felt as a parent. You get all the benefits and joys of parenthood without many of the drawbacks.

A relationship with a grandchild or young friend gives older adults a "second chance." Many people have regrets in their later years about time they didn't spend with their own children, or mistakes they made as a parent. A new grandchild or young friend is a fresh start.

Active, involved older adults with close intergenerational connections consistently report much less depression, better physical health, and higher degrees of life satisfaction. They tend to be happier with their present life and more hopeful for the future.

Young and old can fulfill the role of student and teacher for each other, and it's not always the older person who does the teaching. Children like to feel needed, and they can teach elders lots of things - like how to find some pretty cool stuff on the Internet! Children can also help older people, particularly those facing health challenges or other losses, see the world anew again, through a child's eyes.

Elders have an opportunity to leave a powerful legacy, to make a difference. They can send a message into the future through a grandchild or young friend. Relationships across generations can fulfill our desire for immortality.

Benefits to Young Parents

The benefits to parents when the "grand generation" is a part of their lives and their children's lives are also clear.

Today's parents are often stressed and overwhelmed. A loving, supportive grandparent or other older adult can give them someone to talk with - someone who's "been there" but now, with the benefit of hindsight, can help put issues into perspective.

It's also comforting for parents to know that there are other adults who love their children and are looking out for them. Grandparents take some of the pressure off parents.

Finally, there is the tangible support of reasonable physical or financial help when it's needed. Grandparents can be a safety net in the highwire act we call the modern family.

Many people say their relationship with their parents improves when children enter the picture. For example, an overly strict parent suddenly becomes a "softie" as a grandparent. Adult children see their parents in a new light, and this can help heal relationships.

Beyond Just Programs

The richest forms of human development are most available to those willing and able to interweave their needs and potential with the needs and potential of others, especially those younger or older.

The success of isolated intergenerational projects and programs across the country clearly demonstrates the significant benefits of intergenerational contact to both children and adults.

The challenge now lies in going beyond a project or program here or there to making a larger commitment to intergenerational connections so that they become a part of daily life and the social fabric.

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In those at either end of the life course - the young and the old - you find striking similarities. We live in a society that values adulthood, and in turn doing - productivity and ongoing activity. The young and the old share a different rhythm.

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The division of fractions is often a challenging concept for students.  Providing visual explanations and activities that include visuals helps them grasp the meaning of the division of fractions and gain a deep understanding of the concept and the algorithm

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The division of fractions is often a challenging concept for students.  Providing visual explanations and activities that include visuals helps them grasp the meaning of the division of fractions and gain a deep understanding of the concept and the algorithm

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The division of fractions is often a challenging concept for students. Providing visual explanations and activities that include visuals helps them grasp the meaning of the division of fractions and gain a deep understanding. Keep in mind that before starting with the division of fractions students must have a concrete understanding of fractions as part of a whole, improper fractions and mixed numbers, equivalent fractions, like and unlike fractions, addition, and subtraction of like and unlike fractions.

When dividing fractions as well as when dividing whole numbers we use two techniques/interpetations. The measurement and the partitive technique.

In the measurement technique, we try to see how many times the divisor fits into the dividend. For example for the question 18÷6 we will think "How many times 6 fits into 18, or how many groups of 6 fit into 18. We can add or take away a group of 6 at a time.

In the partitive technique, we solve for the one. For example, for the question 18÷6 we will think "If 18 is divided into 6 groups, how much will be in one group.

Similarly, when dividing fractions we can use these two techniques.

Here is an example of the measurement technique of dividing fractions. With this method both fractions are shown as part of the same whole.

Problem: I have 4/8 of a pizza left. If my friends and I take 1/8 each, how many friends can have pizza?

Different denominators
Students learn that to add or subtract fractions with different denominators they need to find the LCM and turn them into like fractions (with the same denominators) so that they show part of the same whole. Following the same method when dividing fractions with the measurement method helps them see both fractions as part of the same whole and figure out how many times the divisor fits in the dividend. Example below

Partitive technique
Below is an example of the partitive technique of dividing fractions. With this method, I only show the first fraction and divide it based on the divisor.

Problem: 1/4 of a pound of blueberries costs 2/3 of a dollar. How many blueberries can I buy with 1$?

1/4 pound of blueberries costs 2/3 of a dollar. The shape shows the 1/4 pound of blueberries divided by 2 since it costs 2/3 of a dollar. This means that each of the two parts of the 1/4 pound of blueberries costs 1/3 a dollar. Therefore, with 1$ I can buy 3 parts. 3/8

The partitive technique is responsible for the algorithm that we all use. To divide a fraction by another fraction, multiply the first one by the reciprocal of the second one.

The partitive technique can explain why the algorithm works. 1/4 was multiplied by 1/2 (when we divide it into two pieces) and it became 1/8. Then multiplied by 3 it became 3/8
1/4÷2/3 = 1/4÷3/2 = 3/8
An algorithm is a series of steps that we follow to get to the answer. However, when these steps are followed blindly and don't have any meaning for the students they tend to get confused and make mistakes. Mistakes such as "flipping" the first fraction or forget to "flip" the second fraction. Explaining visually why this algorithm works will help students understand and apply the algorithm correctly.
Dividing whole numbers by fractions and fractions by whole numbers visually also demonstrates how or why the algorithm works.
Below are some examples.
Dividing whole numbers by fractions.

One whole has 6 pieces of 1/6, therefore, 4 wholes will have 4×6=24 pieces of 1/6. 4 is multiplied by the reciprocal of 1/6 which is 6. 4 can be shown as an improper fraction 4/1. 4/1×6/1=24 We multiply the first fraction (in this case 4) by the denominator of the second and divide by the numerator. We are actually multiplying with the reciprocal of 1/6.

Here is another example

3 wholes have 3×3 1/3 so we have a total of 9/3. I am dividing by 2/3 which means that I need to put the thirds in groups of 2. 9/2=4 1/2 It is the same as multiplying 3×3/2 which is the reciprocal of 2/3.
Dividing fractions by whole numbers.

Dividing 1/4 by 3 is the same as finding 1/3 of 1/4 or multiplying 1/4×1/3 1/3 is the reciprocal of 3.

Once students solve many different problems, they will understand why and how the algorithm works and they will not make mistakes while applying it. Most importantly they will gain a deep understanding of the division of fractions.

I have created some activity cards (print and digital) that you can use to practice division of fractions. The activities are organized in the following order to help students gradually gain understanding of the algorithm.

Dividing whole numbers by fractions

Dividing fractions by whole numbe

Dividing unlike fractions

Reciprocals and the algorithm

I focused on providing visuals and word problems for deeper understanding. I hope you find them useful.
As always here is a free print and google slides version.
f ree google slides version

Find the premium version below

The premium version includes 52 print activity cards and 58 google slides to help practice division of fractions.

Dividing whole numbers by fractions

Dividing fractions by whole numbers

Dividing fractions with like denominators

Dividing fractions with different denominators

Reciprocals and the algorithm

Solving word problems

Check out more of our fractions activities
Fractions Activity Cards - equivalent fractions, complete one (+google slides version)

Fractions Card Games

Decimals, Decimal fractions, and Percentages - Visual Activity cards (google slides version included)

Check out these free fun games to practice fractions (complete 1 and equivalent fractions)
Fraction Four (equivalent Fractions) Fraction Four (Make one) Fraction Escape game -complete one whole, equivalent fractions (+google slides version) Fractions Escape (equivalent fractions)
Explore the rest of our free print to play games, task cards, worksheets, puzzles and more.
Check out our best selling games available at amazon.com and amazon.ca

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Dividing Fractions -Understanding the algorithm (Print and Digital Activities)

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The division of fractions is often a challenging concept for students. Providing visual explanations and activities that include visuals helps them grasp the meaning of the division of fractions and gain a deep understanding. Keep in mind that before starting with the division of fractions students

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Over half of elementary-aged students experience math anxiety. Being aware of how you can help your child can make all the difference.

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Over half of elementary-aged students experience math anxiety. Being aware of how you can help your child can make all the difference.

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Math anxiety affects almost half of elementary school students. Spot the symptoms and use these strategies to counteract it.

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Math anxiety affects almost half of elementary school students. Spot the symptoms and use these strategies to counteract it.

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In class, this may look like misbehaving, off-task behavior, or frequent visits to the nurse. But avoidance may be hard to recognize because some of our math-anxious students have perfected the skill of doing very little math without drawing too much attention to themselves.

Lack of response: Do you have students who seem to freeze when asked a question involving math? When students have math anxiety, any math-related question can make them feel extremely stressed. They lack full access to their working memory, making it nearly impossible for them to think clearly. They may even have this reaction when they know the answer-it's the fear that is standing in the way, not the math.

Tears or anger: Tears or anger might signal anxiety, especially if they appear only during math. Students with math anxiety tend to be very hard on themselves and work under the harmful and false assumption that being good at math means getting correct answers quickly. These beliefs and thoughts are quite crippling.

Negative self-talk: Students suffering from math anxiety have negative thoughts about the subject and their own abilities. Much of this talk may happen in their heads, making it difficult to catch, but some students may share these comments out loud with peers and teachers, saying things like, "I hate math. I'm not good at math. I'll never be able to do this."

Low achievement: Given that math-anxious students avoid math, it's not surprising that this also affects their achievement. With less exposure to math than their peers, these students tend to do poorly on assignments and assessments. And students begin to see low grades as labels that verify their belief that they just can't do math.

Strategies to Support Healthy Math Identities

Provide students with time to understand the why: It may seem like a good idea to help struggling students by focusing on procedures, but this may actually make things worse. Many math-anxious students tend to see math as a series of nonsensical steps that must be memorized.

For example, students are often taught to multiply decimals by moving the decimal out of the factors and back into the product. This makes little sense to students who haven't developed a conceptual understanding of place value and decimals-they're left asking procedural questions such as, "Which way do I move the decimal?"

All students deserve the time to truly understand the math they're being asked to do. Skipping this time shortchanges our students and gives them a joyless math-one requiring a lot of memory, repetitive steps, and anxiety.

Use healthy and accurate messages: One way to support math-anxious students is to have regular class conversations about negative beliefs. Reassuring students that there's no such thing as a math person, or special people born more capable in math, will reduce their anxiety and help them see themselves as mathematicians.

The words that teachers use when conferring with students are also important. Praising students for correct answers, speed, or good grades does little in the way of providing useful feedback. On the other hand, using specific comments about processes students use to solve problems, their decision to represent the math in multiple ways, or their use of particular sense-making strategies encourages all students and makes the math accessible to all.

Allow think time when asking questions: For a student with math anxiety, being asked a question in front of others can be an excruciating experience. On-the-spot questioning can also send the unintended message that mathematics is about quickly firing off answers.

Giving students appropriate think time supports them in developing conceptual understanding and communicates that being fast at math is not the same as being good at it.

Students do their best learning when they feel comfortable and safe. A fear that the teacher may call their name at any moment causes some students to focus on the fear instead of the math. If the worry of being singled out is removed, students will have the time and space to think deeply as mathematicians and, with time, may begin to volunteer their ideas.

Use mixed-ability grouping: Struggling students are often put together in math groups in order for the teacher to give targeted instruction. But students rarely exit from these groups and often receive very different math instruction than their high-performing peers. And such groups can confirm the negative opinions some students have about their abilities.

Heterogeneous grouping serves all students by giving everyone access to high-quality math and to different ideas and perspectives. And math tasks with multiple entry points are a great way to foster healthy problem solving that allows for students to share multiple methods and strategies.

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Recognizing and Alleviating Math Anxiety

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In class, this may look like misbehaving, off-task behavior, or frequent visits to the nurse. But avoidance may be hard to recognize because some of our math-anxious students have perfected the skill of doing very little math without drawing too much attention to themselves.

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Understanding how your student learns is perhaps one of the most important parts of homeschooling your child. Learning styles allow your child to get the most from their homeschool experience, and helps parents choose the best curriculum for their children.

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Understanding how your student learns is perhaps one of the most important parts of homeschooling your child. Learning styles allow your child to get the most from their homeschool experience, and helps parents choose the best curriculum for their children.

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The idea of different learning styles started to gain popularity in the mid-70's. Since then, the notion has influenced the way education and learning is perceived. Just like there are different teaching methods, many individuals also believe there are different ways to learn and understand new information.

Despite facing many challenges, many parents started looking into the different ways of learning and assessing their child's preferred learning method. Time4Learning has proudly served parents of struggling students who are looking into homeschooling as an educational alternative for the first time. We recommend learning more about the types of learning styles and how your child learns best. Then, discover How Time4Learning Works to see if we are a good fit for your family.

Jump to the sections below to understand a bit more about the different types of learners:

How do Children Learn?

Every child has different learning preferences. Some prefer to learn by seeing or hearing, others by doing, some by reading, and others by asking questions. One thing all students have in common is that they all learn best when they incorporate items and topics that interest them into their studies.

While your child may fit more than one learning style, you may notice patterns in their learning preferences. For example, a visual learner may also be a very social and verbal learner who prefers to learn especially difficult topics using their primary communication skills.

Understanding how your child learns is one of the best ways to gain the most from their homeschool experience and choose the best curriculum for your family. As new homeschoolers get started, we recommend going through what's called the deschooling process, a transitional period that allows you and your child to hit the 'reset' button and let go of any preconceived notions of what learning should look like. Additionally, you can take this time to understand your child's learning style.

What Are the Different Learning Styles?

There are seven main learning styles:

Time4Learning Works For Different Types of Learners

Time4Learning has developed a comprehensive, multi-modality learning curriculum that allows all students to reach successful levels of understanding no matter what their preferred learning style is. Time4Learning helps parents track student progress and helps children advance through individualized learning paths. Our lessons are designed to meet a vast array of learning needs. This ensures complete coverage of the needed skills and concepts to ensure success.

Here is a list of ways different types of learners benefit from our award-winning online curriculum.

Animated and interactive lessons keep different types of learners engaged.

Our curriculum offers a wide selection of written and spoken materials for those who learn best by listening, speaking, reading, and writing.

Numerous free printables are available for those who love learning hands-on.

Students can pause lessons to either take notes, draw representations or listen to verbal instructions again depending on their learning style.

Interactive activities help auditory and verbal learners understand concepts and ideas.

Flexible learning options mean kinesthetic learners don't have to sit at a desk all day. They can learn through field trips, science experiments, and offline activities.

Comprehensive math and language arts curriculum allow verbal and logical learners to excel with access to multiple grade levels.

A student-paced approach allows solitary and independent learners to work when and where is most convenient for them.

Connect with others in the homeschooling community on our Families Facebook Group to make social learning possible!

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Customize Your Child's Education to Their Learning Type

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Time4Learning's homeschool curriculum allows you to personalize your child's learning, no matter what type of learner they are!

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Strategies to help your kids stay Mentally Strong is crucial for their growth and development. Try out the survey and find out what your top character traits are and what you need to nurture.

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Strategies to help your kids stay Mentally Strong is crucial for their growth and development. Try out the survey and find out what your top character traits are and what you need to nurture.

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You are unique in the world and united in your strengths with all of humanity. Discover your Character Strengths Profile and begin living each day as the very best version of yourself.

Discover Your Strengths

Take the Free Strengths Survey to begin living your best life. Research shows that applying your strengths can increase confidence, happiness, positive relationships and reduces stress and anxiety. Discover your strengths today!

Take The Survey Now!

Help Others Build Their Strengths

The VIA Survey is trusted by researchers and professionals around the world to assess character strengths. Create your free VIA Pro Dashboard to distribute and manage the VIA Survey to your clients or students.

Learn More

Step 1

Discover Your Strengths

This short survey takes only 12 minutes - and 90% of survey takers look forward to applying their results.

Learn More

Step 2

Activate Your Strengths

Research shows that using your character strengths can boost your well-being. Get started with one of VIA's easy-to-use reports or on-demand courses. VIA's reports and courses are all designed to make it easy for you to bring your strengths to life and feel more energized and confident.

Why Strengths Matter More Than Ever

Across the globe, people are struggling to enjoy their lives due to an array of mental health challenges while the desire to feel good is rated as a priority for many. Globally, 79% of respondents rated wellness as a priority while 42% of those said it was a top priority in their lives. (McKinsey)

76%

of workers report a mental health symptom

70%

of chronic illnesses have a mental health component

61%

of U.S. adults struggle with anxiety and depression

Character Strengths Promote Flourishing

VIA Character Strengths are the only scientifically validated strengths assessment that helps people flourish across every aspect of their lives-and at each stage of life. People rely on their character strengths at age 22, 42, 62, and 82 to achieve goals, remain resilient, deepen relationships, and feel like their true selves.

At Work

People spend significant time at work - character strengths help people bounce back from difficulties while continuing to thrive and contribute to team morale.

At Home

Connections to the people we share our lives with are critical for thriving-character strengths help people appreciate each other and feel understood.

At School

The classroom is a place of growth and challenge. Character strengths give students, teachers, and professors an energizing source of confidence to draw from.

Begin Your Strengths Journey Today!

Get Started!

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VIA Character Strengths Survey & Character Reports | VIA Institute

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Do you know your character strengths? Once you do, you'll be empowered to face life's challenges, work toward goals and feel more fulfilled, personally and professionally. Take the free personality assessment test from the VIA Institute on Character so you can discover your strengths today.

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How Can Teachers Nurture Meaningful Student Agency?

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How Can Teachers Nurture Meaningful Student Agency?

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Let's have a look at these values in more detail in order to clarify what we mean when we talk about student agency.

Genuine decision making

Student agency is about having students take on some of the heavy lifting of learning. When students can have a genuine role in the decision-making process, this will create a classroom culture that values learning as an action. When I teach, I often ask myself, " Am I doing something my students could be doing themselves?" If the answer is yes, I de-centre myself so students can take on these responsibilities. The more I do this, the more comfortable and confident they become in taking on this agency over their learning. Learning becomes a partnership between the teacher and the student as we co-design and co-construct the learning experiences together in the classroom.

Knowing my strengths and stretches as a learner.

I often ask myself if my students know where they are at in their learning, where they need to go next, and if they can identify the steps they need to take to get there. Teachers can often answer these questions about each of our students, but can our students answer these questions for themselves? To help get these conversations started in class, I ask a series of guiding questions to help students reflect and begin to get to know themselves better as learners. For example, " Do you learn best alone, in a small group, or in a large class setting? Do you prefer to write, talk about or draw your learning for others to see? What is your focus threshold, as in, how long can you remain focused on something before you feel you need a change of pace, setting or action?" These questions all help students begin to take on more ownership over their learning.

Exploring my wonderings, curiosities and passions in school.

All students enter their schooling as curious and inquisitive beings. They are full of questions and wonder as they explore and discover the world around them. However, somewhere in their schooling, many become complacent, disengaged and uninterested in their learning and in school. What does our teaching do to support and honour the innate curiosity of all students? How do we lean into student wonderings to make rich connections to our curriculum? How can we make our curriculum come alive so students see it as something we explore rather than something we merely cover? These questions help honour the wonderings, curiosities and passions of all of our students so that they can see themselves as important stakeholders in their learning.

Having my questions shape my learning.

Questions are an invitation to learning. They call for us to be engaged, to be inquisitive and to research and problem-solve. In order to utilize this opportunity to create student agency, I often pose big, unGoogleable questions to frame our units of study in class that draw students in and will act as our overarching big idea for our learning. I make this question highly visible in class. I compose this question to be compelling, relevant and interesting with a hope that this one big unGoogleable question will spark wonder and curiosity in students to ask their own connected questions. We discuss the questions that students generate and begin to sort them into categories and themes before we post them in class under the larger unGoogleable question. They have a genuine voice in the design of the unit in that we will explore the questions they posed in our research and exploration together. Students begin to see how their questions shape their learning.

Having a genuine voice in assessment of my learning.

If we are talking about student agency in the classroom, we must ensure there is student voice in the assessment of learning as well. Students have a genuine voice in the assessment of their learning when they can confidently give accurate feedback to peers, take and apply feedback without worry of ridicule or embarrassment, and embark into learning through the lens of taking risks in order to grow, rather than for a grade, mark or percentage score. Students need to feel psychologically safe if we are to ask them to take on a more active and meaningful role in their learning, which is why as we nurture student agency in our classrooms, it's important that we also nurture relationships, trust and risk taking.

Showing and exploring my learning in different ways.

Whatever the big idea or content we are learning about, I often begin the school year with a new group of students by providing a choice board through which kids can explore content. A choice board is a digital slide that I have embedded resources into that allows students some options to select information in a means that they feel best supports their learning. I often introduce the exploratory nature of a choice board by asking students, "D o you enjoy taking in information by reading text, looking at images, infographics or charts, watching a short video, exploring a website, or listening to a podcast or someone talking about the information?" Once students have reflected on this prompt, they have a clearer understanding of what best supports their learning. When facing the options on a choice board, they make a decision based on their better understanding of their learning needs and strengths.

Further, I encourage students to document their learning-" evidencing," as we refer to it-in a manner that they decide. I always provide a few options in the form of thinking maps, thinking routines or templates to help anchor and organize their learning. After exploring these options and considering if any of them would support their learning, I encourage students to take ownership over this decision and select an evidencing method that works best for them. The power of this choice over showing and exploring their learning in different ways is seen in their success and engagement as well as the greater understanding of how I can best support each individual student that I gain. I observe and document their choices and pathways and then reflect on how I can help them with this agency and have them be continuously successful throughout the process.

Deciding how I want to share my learning.

I often ask my students, " If you could show me your learning in any way, how would you show me what you know?" My hope is to honour the diverse learners in the room whilst simultaneously leaning into student's strengths when it comes to agency. Inevitably students tell me the things they've always done in school. Similar to the list of items on a menu I referenced at the onset of this piece, I often observe that students don't reflect on this prompt with the depth, individuality or creativity I would hope the opportunity offers. That's why it's so important that I share with students any artifacts I have curated from other classes and previous years to help paint the picture of what is possible in their learning. I have these artifacts posted on my walls, on display on my shelves or saved as digital files so I can do a bit of a show-and-share and speak to how other students have shown their learning before them. The result is that students begin to see that in our classroom, they will have some voice and choice in how they show their learning and that they can really lean into their strengths and interests. This creates a start point in learning from a strength-based stance rather than a deficit-based position. Kids will choose things that they're good at, interested in exploring more meaningfully and are more genuinely engaged in. How cool is that?

Growing into the person I want to be.

What are the enduring skills, lasting values and habits of mind that will be the legacy of our time with children in our classrooms? How are we cultivating the conditions in today's classrooms that will nurture the empathy and equity we hope students embody as citizens of tomorrow's world? How do we view each and every one of our students as unique individuals with strengths, talents, characteristics and perspectives that we need to honour and help flourish during their time in school? It is within our active exploration of these questions and our validation of them in our interactions with students that will give space and support for them to grow in our classrooms. Student agency is not about pushing all kids down the same pathway or having all kids choose the same goal. Student agency is about empowering students to know themselves better, determine who they want to be and identifying steps we can take together to have this goal become a reality.

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How Can Teachers Nurture Meaningful Student Agency? - MindShift

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Student agency is about empowering students to know themselves better, determine who they want to be and identifying steps we can take together to have this goal become a reality.

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Caryl Rivers and Rosalind C. Barnett are widely acclaimed for their analyses of women, men, and society. In The Truth About Girls and Boys, they tackle a new, troubling trend in the theorizing of gender: that the learning styles, brain development, motivation, cognitive and spatial abilities, and "natural" inclinations of girls and boys are so fundamentally different, they require unique styles of parenting and education.

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Caryl Rivers and Rosalind C. Barnett are widely acclaimed for their analyses of women, men, and society. In The Truth About Girls and Boys, they tackle a new, troubling trend in the theorizing of gender: that the learning styles, brain development, motivation, cognitive and spatial abilities, and "natural" inclinations of girls and boys are so fundamentally different, they require unique styles of parenting and education.

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Caryl Rivers and Rosalind C. Barnett are widely acclaimed for their analyses of women, men, and society. In The Truth About Girls and Boys, they tackle a new, troubling trend in the theorizing of gender: that the learning styles, brain development, motivation, cognitive and spatial abilities, and "natural" inclinations of girls and boys are so fundamentally different, they require unique styles of parenting and education.

Ignoring the science that challenges these claims, those who promote such theories make millions while frightening parents and educators into enforcing old stereotypes and reviving unhealthy attitudes in the classroom. Rivers and Barnett unmake the pseudoscientific rationale for this argument, stressing the individuality of each child and the specialness of his or her talents and desires.

They recognize that in our culture, girls and boys encounter different stimuli and experiences, yet encouraging children to venture outside their comfort zones helps them realize a multifaceted character. Educating parents, teachers, and general readers in the true nature of the gender game, Rivers and Barnett enable future generations to transform if not transcend the parameters of sexual difference.

For more books for parents that explore gender stereotyping, visit our Gender Research section.

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The Truth About Girls And Boys: Challenging Toxic Stereotypes About Our Children

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Caryl Rivers and Rosalind C. Barnett are widely acclaimed for their analyses of women, men, and society. In The Truth About Girls and Boys, they tackle a new, troubling trend in the theorizing of gender: that the learning styles, brain development, motivation, cognitive and spatial abilities, and "natural" inclinations

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In partnership, we can work and learn together in helping to foster and raise empathetic, spiritually aware leaders.  

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In partnership, we can work and learn together in helping to foster and raise empathetic, spiritually aware leaders.  

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Covering topics from Life Skills, Parent-Child relationships, Physical and Emotional development.

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The world's largest collection of books, toys, and movies for parents, teachers, and others dedicated to raising smart, confident, and courageous girls.

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Looking for motivational books that will inspire young girls today.  Have a look at this collection of books, for smart, confident young girls who have made a difference in our world today.

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Looking for motivational books that will inspire young girls today.  Have a look at this collection of books, for smart, confident young girls who have made a difference in our world today.

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Role Models - Mighty Girls & Women - Books

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The world's largest collection of books, toys, and movies for parents, teachers, and others dedicated to raising smart, confident, and courageous girls.

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This engaging and wide-ranging collection of biographies highlights the actions, struggles, and accomplishments of more than fifty of the most influential leaders in American political history — leaders who have stood up, blazed trails, and led the way.

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This engaging and wide-ranging collection of biographies highlights the actions, struggles, and accomplishments of more than fifty of the most influential leaders in American political history — leaders who have stood up, blazed trails, and led the way.

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This charming picture book celebrates the power of cooperation and reminds kids that "No one could do everything. But everyone could do something."

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This charming picture book celebrates the power of cooperation and reminds kids that "No one could do everything. But everyone could do something."

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Want to make Writing fun.  Here is an app for you to try out with your child. Introduce the idea of making a story with only pictures and oral language! 

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Want to make Writing fun.  Here is an app for you to try out with your child. Introduce the idea of making a story with only pictures and oral language! 

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A lot or a little?

The parents' guide to what's in this app.

Kids can learn about the art of storytelling and theater as they create their own puppet shows. It walks kids through the basics of the story arc (setup, conflict, challenge, climax, and resolution), letting them choose their scenery and characters or draw their own from scratch and then record their own dialogue and choose appropriate music. With so many options for creativity, it allows kids to be creators instead of just consumers.

Though everything is user-friendly, it might take kids a bit of experimentation to learn all the ways to manipulate characters, props, and scenes.

What's it about?

TOONTASTIC 3D is a creative platform for storytelling. Choose from three story options: short story, classic story, and science report. Each comes with a basic story outline -- set, conflict, challenge, climax, and resolution -- and a brief overview of what each plot point means. For each plot point, kids can use the included sets and 3D characters or design their own with simple drawing tools. Tap record to start moving characters and props around, explore the set, and narrate the story. Last step: Add an appropriate musical score. Once finished, story pieces are put together in a single video.

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Skip to Content We're committed to diversity in media. We're updating our reviews to better highlight authentic stories and accurate, diverse representations. See something that needs to be addressed? Suggest an update to this review The parents' guide to what's in this app.

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Strategies to help your Kids Stay Mentally Strong.

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Strategies to help your Kids Stay Mentally Strong.

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By Paula Davis-Laack

How are your kids doing these days? We are in month five of an ongoing pandemic, many kids are facing an uncertain school year, sports are being cancelled, and many are still struggling to be able to see their friends with any regularity. As a result, more of the adults I teach have asked me for stress relief and resilience strategies for their kids. There are a variety of tools for kids of all ages, and it's never too soon to start building this skill set. My daughter Lucy is four, and we often talk about topics like emotions, problem solving and strengths, so she understands that learning to cope with stress and deal with challenges is part of life.

While I talk about these skills from the kids' perspective, know that these are ones that you, as parents and caretakers, can also learn in order to create a common language of resilience and mental strength for your entire family.

Identify Strengths

I talk about strengths with Lucy by calling them superpowers. Every person has strengths and values that become really important to know and rely on during times of stress and adversity. The problem is that we often don't have the language to speak about strengths in a specific way. The VIA (Values in Action) Character Strengths Survey is a great place for kids (and you) to start because it's easy, online and free. Here you can find a list of the 24 character strengths, a version of the survey for kids ages 10-17, and the survey for adults. Once you have the results, make sure to point out times when you see your kids using their character strengths. You can also create a strengths family tree as a way to talk about your collective strengths.

Minimize Worst-Case Scenario Thinking

Worst-case scenario thinking is also called catastrophizing, and it feels like a runaway train style of thinking that inhibits performance and purposeful action with tasks and goals. Your 17 year old might think her world is over when she breaks up with her boyfriend or you may think this way if you get an email from your boss that says nothing other than, "come see me now." In either scenario, here are three steps you can take it:

Write down your worst-case scenario thoughts. All of the what if's that are in your head need to be captured on paper as it diffuses the intensity of the thinking when the thoughts are transferred in writing. You may also notice that your "story" is a bit unrealistic. Think of this step as your "Horror Movie."

Create a best-case scenario where it all goes right. It's OK to be a little silly or even unrealistic in this step because the point is to give yourself a boost of positive emotion - that's all. Think of this step as your "Disney Movie."

With these left-right limits established, it's now easier for you to think in a more balanced way to identify what is most likely. Depending on the nature of the stress producing event, you may have to deal with some negative consequences, but at least you're seeing the situation accurately, which is key. Think of this step as your "Documentary."

Ask: Is It Helping or Harming?

Ask whether what you're thinking, how you're feeling, or how you're behaving when under stress is helping or harming? Are you getting closer to your goals and the types of outcomes or relationships you want to have? You might decide that it's helpful for your six year old to get angry and scream because it's letting out and processing emotion, but when he takes that a step further and hits his little brother on the head, that's harming. Your teen might decide that an extra 30 minutes of texting at night is helping because it makes her feel more connected to the friends she can't be with. The point is that you get to decide (or help your kids decide), which gives you a measure of control within the stressful event.

Think Like A Scientist

Last weekend, I made pancakes and chicken apple sausage for breakfast. Lucy usually likes to dip her sausage in syrup, but this time she decided that she wanted to put chocolate on her sausage bites. I asked her what her hypothesis was - how did she predict it would taste (good!). We added two small chocolate chips onto each bite, she ate one, then made a face. What did she learn? That it wasn't as good as she thought it might be, so we switched back to syrup. This wasn't a stressful situation, but that's the point. Practicing mental agility when you're not stressed makes it easier for your kids to do it when they are. It's important for kids to get curious about their thinking, emotions and reactions so they can look at challenges from multiple perspectives and build self-efficacy. You can think about the framework like this:

Accept a goal/challenge

Make an effort

Get feedback on that effort

Improve that skill/ability (or pivot/move to Plan B)

Keep trying

Succeed (and celebrate each success!)

Build An Emotions Vocabulary

You have an emotional warning system that gets activated when you're stressed, and kids are no different. Helping kids label their emotions gives them more ways to talk about stress, and it helps you understand how they express themselves in those situations. GoZen founder, Renee Jain, created a wonderful resource called, "7 Surprising Things Kids Say That Can Mean "I'm Anxious," which helps parents better understand the root source of their child's complaint. Just this morning, Lucy complained of a stomach ache. I immediately thought "COVID" (see catastrophizing above), but then I remembered this resource. Stomach aches can be kid code for anxiety. Sure enough, when we talked it through Lucy revealed that she was feeling nervous about her dentist appointment.

Breathe

There's breathing, then there's breathing to manage anxiety and stress. The latter takes practice. It's been one of my go-to strategies for years to calm my own anxiety and to better manage stress and prevent burnout. New studies show that focused breathing can help you feel less anxious and depressed and more resilient, even more so than meditation. I practice 4-7-8 breathing, but there are a variety of techniques you can use. 4-7-8 breathing means that you inhale for a count of four, hold for a count of seven, and exhale for a count of eight. Practice that sequence on most days for a few minutes. Again, practicing when you're not stressed primes your system to respond in an easier way when you are. The longer exhale is important because it activates your parasympathetic nervous system to help calm you. When Lucy is frustrated with a puzzle or her Legos, I ask her pause, count to four, and take a deep breath as a simple starter. Practicing some form of intentional breathing is powerful for kids of all ages (and you!).

The world is a pretty uncertain place right now and kids are feeling the stress too. They might not always know how to say it, but these tools can help you all build more mental strength and resilience. What would you add?

Article originally published at Forbes.com.

Paula Davis-Laack, JD, MAPP

Paula Davis-Laack, JD, MAPP, is a former practicing lawyer, speaker, consultant, media contributor, and a stress and resilience expert who has designed and taught burnout prevention and resilience workshops to thousands of professionals around the world.

Paula left her law practice after seven years and earned a master's degree in applied positive psychology from the University of Pennsylvania. As part of her post-graduate training, Paula was selected to be part of the University of Pennsylvania faculty teaching and training resilience skills to soldiers as part of the Army's Comprehensive Soldier and Family Fitness program. The Penn team trained resilience skills to more than 40,000 soldiers and their family members.

Paula will be publishing her first book with the Wharton School Press (University of Pennsylvania) in March 2021. It will be about burnout prevention using a teams-based approach. In addition, she will be co-teaching a new reading seminar about resilience and leadership at Harvard Law School starting with the Spring 2021 semester.

Her expertise has been featured in and on The New York Times, O, The Oprah Magazine, and The Washington Post among many others. Paula is also a contributor to Forbes, Fast Company and Psychology Today.

She is the Founder and CEO of the Stress & Resilience Institute, a training and consulting firm that partners with law firms, corporate legal departments, and organizations across industry to help them reduce burnout and build resilience at the team, leader, and organizational level ( www.stressandresilience.com). You can reach Paula at paula@stressandresilience.com.

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Strategies To Help Your Kids Stay Mentally Strong | VIA Institute

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By Paula Davis-Laack How are your kids doing these days? We are in month five of an ongoing pandemic, many kids are facing an uncertain school year, sports are being cancelled, and many are still struggling to be able to see their friends with any regularity.

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A Strategy for Boosting Student Engagement in Math

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A Strategy for Boosting Student Engagement in Math

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A Strategy for Boosting Student Engagement in Math

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A four-step approach to group work can get students talking and boost their mathematical and metacognitive thinking.

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Ways to Infuse Hope into your school's curriculum

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Ways to Infuse Hope into your school's curriculum

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Young people dealing with the effects of the pandemic can be encouraged through lessons that inspire resilience.

What is the purpose of school? Many might say it's to prepare students for their futures. But what happens if students feel hopeless about the future?

We know that many teens are currently feeling depressed, and what once was met with an eye roll is now met with collapse. In this crazy year, typical teenage stress is compounded with concern about Covid-19, election uncertainty, family strife, social isolation, and any number of legitimate challenges for our entire society. And since all generations are going through this simultaneously, teenagers have fewer adults around them to lean on because parents and teachers are sharing similar feelings of grief.

It really stinks right now to be a teen.

So I would argue that, at this time in history, the purpose of school is to help our students maintain hope. The purpose of our classrooms is to reach out our hands and pull our students up from the desolation that comes from feeling like there's nothing they can do to change things for the future.

Sue Arzola, the principal at South Pointe Middle School in Diamond Bar, California, wrote her dissertation on leading education with hope and discussed her research with me via email. Her work was based on Charles Snyder's hope theory, which she says examines hope as a "positive motivational state based on a sense of successful agency and the various pathways you take to make it happen."

In her dissertation, she stresses that, "especially during difficult times, as administrators and educators, we need to lead with optimism." She goes on to say, "Hope engages both grit and perseverance as we strive to make our hopes or goals a reality. But hope also engages optimism and self-efficacy, as it includes the belief that the future will be better than the present, and within each of us is the power to make it so."

So, in this time when so many of us out there-teachers, parents, and students- are feeling hopeless, how do we reverse it? Can it be done?

The answer, of course, is yes.

In fact, schools can play an active and intentional role in developing hope. Much like a smile, hope is contagious. So our classrooms, whether virtual or face-to-face, should be infused with it. Teachers can provide lessons and units to help students recognize their potential influence on the world around them.

Strategies to Inspire Hope

1. Use project-based learning: PBL is all about using what we are learning in school to make an impact on the world beyond school. It helps develop student agency by allowing teens to identify problems they most want to solve. It helps develop students who question by guiding teens to research multiple perspectives and come to their own conclusions. And PBL helps to develop communicators by honing skills like public speaking and persuasive writing.

2. Teach positive current events: True, hope is different than positivity, but committing to making students aware of positive current events can help create an environment more likely to make students feel hopeful. Help offset the smog of negative news by showing students that there's good out there, too. CNN's The Good Stuff newsletter is a great resource.

3. Study other kids who've made an impact: I'm not saying don't teach about Albert Einstein, but maybe students need to hear about the achievements of someone their own age. School should be all about meaningful learning. Show students that there are teens out there moving the needle in their own communities.

4. Teach history through the lens of improvement: History occurs in peaks and valleys, but teens haven't been on this planet long enough to experience or study these patterns with great depth. Focus on teaching moments in history when civilization was pulling itself out of darker eras. Help students see the bigger picture, and help them recognize that our darkest pits are mere moments in time.

5. Teach hopeful science: I am a California resident, and we're living through a season of devastating fires. But my science teacher friend reminds me that after fires, the soil can be richer for life to grow. Find those examples in science that support the beauty after the storm.

6. Promote student activism: Help teens find organizations that might be accepting student volunteers. Whatever their interests or strengths, students can be active in their communities. Doing good for others can help defeat hopelessness. From a local Humane Society to the New Voters Project, students can leave an immediate footprint that does a service for those around them.

7. Embed mindfulness training: It's difficult for students of any age to put hard times in perspective. They can't regulate when to worry. Tweens and teens in particular feel more deeply and more sensitively than people do at other ages. Empower them. Help them to understand what they are feeling, and help them to build strategies to calm the storm in their hearts and heads.

Hope is about the belief that you can make an impact. Hope is about allowing students agency in their own learning. Hope is about ensuring that students are looking ahead, identifying for themselves what needs to be improved, and giving them the skills and confidence to go out and do it.

When I look at kids these days, I feel hopeful. When kids go to school, I want them to feel the same.

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7 Ways to Infuse Your Curriculum With Hope

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Young people dealing with the effects of the pandemic can be encouraged through lessons that inspire resilience. What is the purpose of school? Many might say it's to prepare students for their futures. But what happens if students feel hopeless about the future?

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Why is teaching students to Stop and Think an important skill. 

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Why is teaching students to Stop and Think an important skill. 

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As educators, we all want to help our students develop valuable life-long skills, including the ability to think critically about their own work, truly know themselves and their learning styles, reflect on their individual strengths and challenges, and measure their progress toward goals. We want our students to become autonomous learners who take responsibility for their own learning. We want to help our students develop a growth mindset and build resilience. And we want this to happen with every lesson we teach!

How do we do this? Open-ended questions and structured reflection are strategies we can use to support our students' ability to reflect on academic and social-emotional growth.

Open-Ended Questions

Open-ended questions can stretch students' thinking and prompt reflective contemplation because, crucially, they have no one right or wrong answer; any reasoned and relevant response is acceptable. This key characteristic promotes engagement, encourages self-awareness, and nurtures a sense of community among classmates.

Open-ended questions also prompt students to build on what they already know as a way of exploring new content, which supports the natural way children learn. For this reason, they work well in many situations, such as when introducing a lesson, when coaching a student as they work, or when closing a lesson. They are a powerful way to help students synthesize new information, think critically about their work, and identify new directions in learning.
Tips for asking effective open-ended questions:

Genuinely open up your curiosity.

Clarify exactly what you are asking for.

Use words that encourage cooperation, not competition.

Watch out for pseudo-open-ended questions.

Help students focus on social-emotional learning

How were you a friend today/this week?

How did you follow the classroom rules today/this week?

How did a classmate help you today/this week?

What was a challenge you had today/this week? How did you try to overcome that challenge?

Did you have an opportunity to assert yourself respectfully this week? If so, how?

Help students become more aware of how they learn

What are some ways you figured that out?

How is this strategy helping you?

What class activities helped you learn the most?

What skills or strategies did you use to help you learn this content?

What help did you want from the teacher?

Help students take more responsibility for their learning

Is this what you expected or wanted your work to be?

What did you do to help your learning?

The next time you get to do this activity, what would you do to improve your performance?

Why might learning this skill/content be important?

Help students see growth in their learning

What did you learn today/this week?

What can you do now that you were not able to do last week/month/quarter/year?

How can you show that you met this learning objective?

Structures That Support Reflection

Another strategy we can embed into our lessons to support reflection is the use of specific structures that engage students in thinking about the learning that has occurred. For each structure chosen, we must be intentional in aligning the structure to the goal, developmental needs of students, and the current mood of the class. Through the skillful implementation of structures that support reflection, our students will develop speaking and listening skills, metacognition, and a deeper interaction with the content they learned.

Silent Reflection

Think to Yourself - Pose a focus question and provide a minute or two for students to silently think.

Thumb Gauge - Have students respond to a focus question such as "How well did you follow our class rules while you worked today?" with a thumbs-up, thumbs-sideways, or thumbs-down.

Fist to Five - Have students respond to a question such as "How well did you work independently today?" with a zero (a fist) all the way to a 5 (five fingers).

Journaling - Each student responds in writing to a focus question.

Partner and Small Group Reflection

Partner Chat - Here are some tips for teaching the skills that make for successful partner conversations.

Interactive Learning Structures - Check out this example of an interactive learning structure.

Whole Group Reflection

Around-the-Circle Sharing - For example "I did _______ because_______." Also, consider asking "Who remembers" questions to encourage careful listening.

Simultaneous Display - Sitting in a circle, students hold up or place work on the floor in front of them. Provide a focus, such as having classmates look for new ideas.

By adding in structured reflection and the use of open-ended questions, you'll see your students strengthen their ability to think critically about their learning. With time, these practices will be embedded into every lesson, and you'll see your students develop the abilities to examine their own work, know themselves as learners, and better set personal goals.

Written by Kerry O'Grady, Responsive Classroom Consulting Teacher, and Educational Consultant and Coach

Tags: Conversation Skills, Engaging Academics, Sharing

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Stop and Think: Teaching Students to Reflect

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As educators, we all want to help our students develop valuable life-long skills, including the ability to think critically about their own work, truly know themselves and their learning styles, Read More "

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When we provide students the time and place for reflection, we empower them as learners and thinkers. Reflection on a lesson or on their own progress also allows them to build skills in critical thinking that they can apply when they are problem-solving and learning on their own.

Here are some great ways to ensure that students have opportunities to engage in critical and reflective thinking in the classroom:
Thinking Routines
These simple yet powerful protocols can be used in any classroom. They help to make thinking visible while promoting deeper learning of curricular content. These routines are easy to incorporate into a lesson or activity, and putting thinking routines into practice does not require special materials or even too much extra time. They have been researched and classroom-tested over many years through programs led by Harvard Graduate School of Education such as Project Zero and Visible Thinking .

Students' responses can be shared in a variety of ways including verbally, written on post-it notes, or recorded in digital form. What matters most is the opportunity for students to engage in these critical thinking experiences on a regular basis-making them routine.

I have used thinking routines in many different learning situations, such as at the beginning of a new unit of study and after a lesson or activity. Here are two that I recommend for helping students reflect on their learning:

This thinking routine helps students reflect on their thinking about a topic has changed over time. To begin, ask students to consider their thoughts on a particular topic and use the sentence stem "I used to think..." to explain their initial opinions and/or beliefs. Then, after a lesson or unit, prompt students to share how their thinking has shifted, starting with "But now, I think..." Ask students to elaborate on why their thinking has changed.

This thinking routine encourages students to connect their initial thoughts on a topic to new learning. Students first share 3 thoughts, 2 questions, and 1 analogy about a topic of study. Then, after engaging in a learning experience (that may include additional learning content and/or new ideas), student share another "3, 2, 1."

Students explain how their prior understandings "bridge" with their new ways of thinking. It is important to communicate to students that there is nothing "wrong" with their first thoughts-they are just a starting point.
Learn more about Thinking Routines on the Visible Thinking Website . Two-sided notebooks
Sometimes referred to as "interactive notebooks" or "double-entry journals," this method values both the inputs and outputs of the students' learning experiences. Students record content/notes on one side (input) and process the content on the other side (output). Some teachers use the letters 'L" and "R" to represent the left side is for the learning content and the right side for responses, reactions, and reflections.

For example, on the left side students can copy down a chart from a class lesson and on the right side, the students may create a comic strip, poem, or other creative expressions of the information.

Implementing two-sided notebooks in the classroom requires some setup and modeling by the teacher. This can be done on chart paper, a whiteboard, or screen that can be seen by the whole class. Students need to understand the purpose of each side, what kinds of things can go in each section, and that there is not one "right" way to share their thinking. Although this approach will need an investment of time to getting started, it communicates that it is important to have a dedicated space to process and reflect on new ideas in your own unique way.
Learn about using Interactive Notebooks in Science Class. Student self-checks
Student self-reflection is found to be one of the top indicators positively impacting student achievement in educational researcher John Hattie's highly regarded study Visible Learning. According to his analysis, the effect of student-reported grades is one of the highest influencers in relation to student learning. Since students are very accurate at reporting and predicting their achievement, incorporating this practice more often into the learning process can be a helpful tool to encourage students to push themselves to higher levels of success.

Self-reported grades are just one form of learner self-assessment. Other ways that students may evaluate themselves can be through:

Student self-evaluations can be beneficial at various points in the learning process such as at the beginning of a new topic or lesson while working on a project, or at the end of a unit of study. It can help to provide valuable insights to help shape future efforts of both students and educators.

How do you promote student reflection and critical thinking? Please share your ideas on Twitter with @kscharaldi and @KIDS_DISCOVER.

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3 Ways to Promote Student Reflection - Kids Discover

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When we provide students the time and place for reflection, we empower them as learners and thinkers. Reflection on a lesson or on their own progress also allows them to build skills in critical thinking that they can apply when they are problem-solving and learning on their own.

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Strategies that will help engage your student in writing workshop.

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Strategies that will help engage your student in writing workshop.

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Wednesday Nov. 18 7:00-8:30 PM EST

Presented by Carl Anderson and Matt Glover

When students are highly engaged in writing workshop, they learn much more about writing, and will enjoy doing so. Creating the conditions for student engagement is the most important work we do as writing teachers, especially during these challenging times. We will be much more successful with the nuts and bolts of teaching writing-units of study, writing conferences, craft and process studies, and more-when our students are engaged.

Join Carl Anderson and Matt Glover to learn five strategies for increasing student engagement in writing workshop, online or onsite. During this webinar Carl and Matt will:

Discuss how to prioritize student choice of worthwhile topics, authentic genres, and real purposes so that students want to write;

Talk about how to establish mentor-mentee relationships in writing conferences that help students learn, develop, and grow, all of which foster engagement;

Discuss how to establish yourself as a writer who shows students what it means to have a writing life, and that writing is a meaningful, worthwhile thing to do;

Explain how to teach with mentor texts in a way that helps students develop identities as writers who are part of a larger community of writers;

Explain how to help students "work in their zone" so that they feel that writing is something they can be successful with, and enjoy.

Cost: $25

The webinar will take place using Zoom. When you register we will email you the Zoom link a few days before the webinar.

To register and pay with a credit card, please submit the information below. When you click submit, you will be taken to the Stripe portal for payment, so please only press submit if you would like to make your payment now. If you have any questions, please contact us using the contact link on this site.

Notice: JavaScript is required for this content.

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Five Strategies for Increasing Student Engagement in Writing Workshop, Online or Onsite, So That Your Students Find Writing Meaningful-and Fun - Author to Author

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Wednesday Nov. 18 7:00-8:30 PM EST Presented by Carl Anderson and Matt Glover When students are highly engaged in writing workshop, they learn much more about writing, and will enjoy doing so. Creating the conditions for student engagement is the most important work we do as writing teachers, especially during these challenging times.

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Parent Resources to help your child love to write.

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Parent Resources to help your child love to write.

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Hi Parents. Supporting your children is difficult at any time. We are creating some videos that we hope make things a bit easier during this challenging time. If you have topics you'd like to see addressed, please let us know. You can use the Contact link on this site.

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Hi Parents. Supporting your children is difficult at any time. We are creating some videos that we hope make things a bit easier during this challenging time. If you have topics you'd like to see addressed, please let us know. You can use the Contact link on this site.

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Creating the Conditions for Student Motivation

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Creating the Conditions for Student Motivation

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Some thoughts on what schools can do to instill a strong sense of motivation to learn in students.

"There are three things to remember about education. The first is motivation. The second one is motivation. The third one is motivation." -Former U.S. Secretary of Education Terrel Bell

When students feel more motivated to learn, they perform better academically (PDF, 253KB), improve classroom behavior, and gain a higher sense of self-esteem. Unfortunately, data-and the direct experience of many educators-shows that lack of motivation affects many of our students, and appears to increase each year from middle school through high school. Students can demonstrate this lack of engagement by withholding effort and by "voting with their feet" through rising chronic absenteeism as they get older (PDF, 1.4MB), and chronic absenteeism is among the highest predictors of dropping out of school.

How can we respond effectively to this motivation crisis?

Conditions for Growth

One way to is to double-down on the common belief in the power of extrinsic motivation-bonuses, points, stars, etc.-and its equivalents in the punishment arena.

I'd offer a different perspective, one best characterized by Sir Ken Robinson, author and speaker on education issues, who has said, "Farmers and gardeners know you cannot make a plant grow... the plant grows itself. What you can do is provide the conditions for growth."

One of the key ways to provide the conditions for growth or, as the National Research Council put it, "create a set of circumstances," is by emphasizing intrinsic motivation (choosing to do an activity in order to gain pleasure from or in order to help achieve an internalized goal) instead of extrinsic motivation (doing a specific behavior in order to gain an outside reward).

Before reviewing what those conditions for growth might be, let's quickly review some of the overwhelming research on reward undermining that demonstrates why a reliance on extrinsic motivation should not be on that list:

Extrinsic motivation can be effective over the short term in encouraging mechanical tasks and compliance, but tends to be destructive in advancing creative and higher-order thinking.

Extrinsic motivators, though possibly effective in the short term to gain compliance to do a task, tend to diminish intrinsic motivation for that same activity over the long term (PDF, 4.8MB).

A recent study of 200,000 employees found that that those who were more intrinsically motivated were three times more engaged in their work than those who focused more on external rewards.

These critiques, however, do not mean that extrinsic motivation has no role in the home, classroom, or workplace. Even Dr. Edward Deci, perhaps the world's foremost researcher on intrinsic motivation, recognizes that there are going to be times when carrots or sticks may be needed to encourage or stop a behavior because of the immediacy of a challenging situation, but he also stressed that they are not enough. After coping with a challenging situation via a carrot or stick, for example, "You need to sit down the next afternoon when everyone's calm, talk it through from both sides, then discuss ways so the behavior doesn't happen again.... Always use the blow-up as a learning moment the next day."

In addition, author Daniel Pink discusses the need for baseline rewards-the basic and fair compensation that we must all receive in order to have any motivation at all. In school, that might mean a caring teacher, a clean classroom, and engaging lessons.

In other words, extrinsic motivators have their place, but they must also be kept in their place.

So if extrinsic motivation is not one of those above-mentioned conditions for growth, what is on the list?

Intrinsic Motivation

Many, if not most, researchers suggest that four elements combine to nurture intrinsic motivation (PDF, 65KB):

1. Autonomy: having a degree of control over what needs to happen and how it can be done;

2. Competence: feeling that one has the ability to be successful in doing it;

3. Relatedness: doing the activity helps them feel more connected to others, and feel cared about by people whom they respect; and

4. Relevance: the work must be seen by students as interesting and valuable to them, and useful to their present lives and/or hopes and dreams for the future.

A challenge to us educators is to help our students motivate themselves through cultivating these four qualities and to counter what the National Research Council suggests-that these four elements become less and less visible as students move into secondary school.

Years ago, I lived in an elevated house at the bottom of a small hill. It had a storm drain on the street in front of it. During the summer, I would pour wood chips in the small dirt area between the sidewalk and the curb, and during heavy winter rainstorms, the drain would get clogged up with debris floating downhill. Water would go over the curb, and all the wood chips would float away, leaving a muddy area. Each year, my wife would strongly suggest I plant grass or bushes in that area so that it could withstand the water, and each year I instead chose the short-term solution of wood chips-it appeared easier to me and seemed to work most of the time, at least until the bad weather hit. I chose this solution even though planting grass and bushes would have saved me time and money over the long term, would have made the neighborhood look better, and, in fact, would have probably attacked the cause of the problem by reducing the amount of debris clogging the drain. I had other things on my to-do list that I felt were more important, and I was more comfortable with a familiar problem than with a solution that was new to me-having a green thumb was not on my resume.

We can't rid ourselves of the wood chips of extrinsic motivation until we know how to create the conditions in which nice grass and bushes will grow. In my next post, I'll share specific strategies on how we do just that in the classroom.

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Creating the Conditions for Student Motivation

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Some thoughts on what schools can do to instill a strong sense of motivation to learn in students. "There are three things to remember about education. The first is motivation. The second one is motivation. The third one is motivation." -Former U.S.

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Understanding how Children Develop Empathy

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Understanding how Children Develop Empathy

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This website is dedicated to helping parents support their children’s mathematical development. We know we need to read with our children every day, but what should we do for math? Answer: Talk about math with them as we and they encounter numbers and shapes in our everyday lives.

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Parents know that we need to read 20 minutes a day with our kids.

But teaching math to your kids doesn't have to be intimidating. It can be fun. Just as children say goodnight to the moon, they can say hello to numbers, shapes and measurement.

Talking Math with Your Kids provides ideas and products that get children and caregivers talking about math with creativity and joy.

Whether you're reading books on the couch, cooking dinner, running errands, or scheduling your day, opportunities for math talk abound.

This website collects research about, and examples of, math talk with children. Each post offers suggestions for adapting the examples for your own children, interests, and lives.

Enjoy and let me know how those conversations are going in your home. Use the contact form to ask questions, send feedback or to send along a conversation for highlighting on this site.
Thanks for reading. Read more about Christopher

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Parents know that we need to read 20 minutes a day with our kids. But teaching math to your kids doesn't have to be intimidating. It can be fun. Just as children say goodnight to the moon, they can say hello to numbers, shapes and measurement.

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Five ideas for your child to write about math!

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Five ideas for your child to write about math!

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Writing about math encourages creativity, exploration, and communicating one's thoughts and feelings. Students must organize their thinking, use key vocabulary terms and phrases, and communicate mathematically-which leads to deep and meaningful understanding.

And teachers can use students' writing to assess their learning. When you can read exactly what a student is thinking, you can easily pinpoint how they understand a topic and where their strengths and weaknesses are.

So, are you ready to give your students more opportunities to write about what they are learning in math class? Here are five ideas that are sure to get you started:

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5 Ideas for Writing in the Elementary Math Classroom - Mashup Math

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Writing about math encourages creativity, exploration, and communicating one's thoughts and feelings. Students must organize their thinking, use key vocabulary terms and phrases, and communicate mathematically-which leads to deep and meaningful understanding. And teachers can use students' writing to assess their learning.

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13 Fiction books your child will enjoy reading this summer!

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13 Fiction books your child will enjoy reading this summer!

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Are you looking to send your kids off on vacation with a list of awesome summer reading STEM fiction books?

The following list shares some fun and creative summer reading STEM books for the elementary, middle, and high school levels. The genres range from math science fiction to cooking to mystery, so you're kids will surely find something they'll enjoy reading!

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13 STEM Fiction Books Your Kids will Actually Enjoy Reading This Summer - Mashup Math

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Are you looking to send your kids off on vacation with a list of awesome summer reading STEM fiction books? The following list shares some fun and creative summer reading STEM books for the elementary, middle, and high school levels. The genres range from math science fiction to cooking t

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What does it mean to have a Growth Mindset?

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What does it mean to have a Growth Mindset?

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Competition Destroys Education | Hamid Tizhoosh | TEDxUW

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Ways that you can honor students identity. 1️⃣ Amplify student voice 2️⃣Display student work3️⃣ Give choice in reading, writing, products, etc.4️⃣ Build relationships 5️⃣Focus on students6️⃣ Put a spotlight on cultures

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Ways that you can honor students identity. 1️⃣ Amplify student voice 2️⃣Display student work3️⃣ Give choice in reading, writing, products, etc.4️⃣ Build relationships 5️⃣Focus on students6️⃣ Put a spotlight on cultures

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"If you imagine less, less will be what you undoubtedly deserve," Debbie Millman counseled in one of the best commencement speeches ever given, urging: "Do what you love, and don't stop until you get what you love. Work as hard as you can, imagine immensities..." Far from Pollyanna platitude, this advice actually reflects what modern psychology knows about how belief systems about our own abilities and potential fuel our behavior and predict our success. Much of that understanding stems from the work of Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck, synthesized in her remarkably insightful Mindset: The New Psychology of Success (public library) - an inquiry into the power of our beliefs, both conscious and unconscious, and how changing even the simplest of them can have profound impact on nearly every aspect of our lives.

One of the most basic beliefs we carry about ourselves, Dweck found in her research, has to do with how we view and inhabit what we consider to be our personality. A "fixed mindset" assumes that our character, intelligence, and creative ability are static givens which we can't change in any meaningful way, and success is the affirmation of that inherent intelligence, an assessment of how those givens measure up against an equally fixed standard; striving for success and avoiding failure at all costs become a way of maintaining the sense of being smart or skilled. A "growth mindset," on the other hand, thrives on challenge and sees failure not as evidence of unintelligence but as a heartening springboard for growth and for stretching our existing abilities. Out of these two mindsets, which we manifest from a very early age, springs a great deal of our behavior, our relationship with success and failure in both professional and personal contexts, and ultimately our capacity for happiness.

The consequences of believing that intelligence and personality can be developed rather than being immutably engrained traits, Dweck found in her two decades of research with both children and adults, are remarkable. She writes:

For twenty years, my research has shown that the view you adopt for yourself profoundly affects the way you lead your life. It can determine whether you become the person you want to be and whether you accomplish the things you value. How does this happen? How can a simple belief have the power to transform your psychology and, as a result, your life?

Believing that your qualities are carved in stone - the fixed mindset - creates an urgency to prove yourself over and over. If you have only a certain amount of intelligence, a certain personality, and a certain moral character - well, then you'd better prove that you have a healthy dose of them. It simply wouldn't do to look or feel deficient in these most basic characteristics.

[...]

I've seen so many people with this one consuming goal of proving themselves - in the classroom, in their careers, and in their relationships. Every situation calls for a confirmation of their intelligence, personality, or character. Every situation is evaluated: Will I succeed or fail? Will I look smart or dumb? Will I be accepted or rejected? Will I feel like a winner or a loser? . . .

There's another mindset in which these traits are not simply a hand you're dealt and have to live with, always trying to convince yourself and others that you have a royal flush when you're secretly worried it's a pair of tens. In this mindset, the hand you're dealt is just the starting point for development. This growth mindset is based on the belief that your basic qualities are things you can cultivate through your efforts. Although people may differ in every which way - in their initial talents and aptitudes, interests, or temperaments - everyone can change and grow through application and experience.

Do people with this mindset believe that anyone can be anything, that anyone with proper motivation or education can become Einstein or Beethoven? No, but they believe that a person's true potential is unknown (and unknowable); that it's impossible to foresee what can be accomplished with years of passion, toil, and training.

At the heart of what makes the "growth mindset" so winsome, Dweck found, is that it creates a passion for learning rather than a hunger for approval. Its hallmark is the conviction that human qualities like intelligence and creativity, and even relational capacities like love and friendship, can be cultivated through effort and deliberate practice. Not only are people with this mindset not discouraged by failure, but they don't actually see themselves as failing in those situations - they see themselves as learning. Dweck writes:

Why waste time proving over and over how great you are, when you could be getting better? Why hide deficiencies instead of overcoming them? Why look for friends or partners who will just shore up your self-esteem instead of ones who will also challenge you to grow? And why seek out the tried and true, instead of experiences that will stretch you? The passion for stretching yourself and sticking to it, even (or especially) when it's not going well, is the hallmark of the growth mindset. This is the mindset that allows people to thrive during some of the most challenging times in their lives.

This idea, of course, isn't new - if anything, it's the fodder of self-help books and vacant "You can do anything!" platitudes. What makes Dweck's work different, however, is that it is rooted in rigorous research on how the mind - especially the developing mind - works, identifying not only the core drivers of those mindsets but also how they can be reprogrammed.

Dweck and her team found that people with the fixed mindset see risk and effort as potential giveaways of their inadequacies, revealing that they come up short in some way. But the relationship between mindset and effort is a two-way street:

It's not just that some people happen to recognize the value of challenging themselves and the importance of effort. Our research has shown that this comes directly from the growth mindset. When we teach people the growth mindset, with its focus on development, these ideas about challenge and effort follow. . . .

As you begin to understand the fixed and growth mindsets, you will see exactly how one thing leads to another-how a belief that your qualities are carved in stone leads to a host of thoughts and actions, and how a belief that your qualities can be cultivated leads to a host of different thoughts and actions, taking you down an entirely different road.

[...]

The mindsets change what people strive for and what they see as success. . . they change the definition, significance, and impact of failure. . . they change the deepest meaning of effort.

Dweck cites a poll of 143 creativity researchers, who concurred that the number-one trait underpinning creative achievement is precisely the kind of resilience and fail-forward perseverance attributed to the growth mindset. She writes:

When you enter a mindset, you enter a new world. In one world - the world of fixed traits - success is about proving you're smart or talented. Validating yourself. In the other - the world of changing qualities - it's about stretching yourself to learn something new. Developing yourself.

In one world, failure is about having a setback. Getting a bad grade. Losing a tournament. Getting fired. Getting rejected. It means you're not smart or talented. In the other world, failure is about not growing. Not reaching for the things you value. It means you're not fulfilling your potential.

In one world, effort is a bad thing. It, like failure, means you're not smart or talented. If you were, you wouldn't need effort. In the other world, effort is what makes you smart or talented.

But her most remarkable research, which has informed present theories of why presence is more important than praise in teaching children to cultivate a healthy relationship with achievement, explores how these mindsets are born - they form, it turns out, very early in life. In one seminal study, Dweck and her colleagues offered four-year-olds a choice: They could either redo an easy jigsaw puzzle, or try a harder one. Even these young children conformed to the characteristics of one of the two mindsets - those with "fixed" mentality stayed on the safe side, choosing the easier puzzles that would affirm their existing ability, articulating to the researchers their belief that smart kids don't make mistakes; those with the "growth" mindset thought it an odd choice to begin with, perplexed why anyone would want to do the same puzzle over and over if they aren't learning anything new. In other words, the fixed-mindset kids wanted to make sure they succeeded in order to seem smart, whereas the growth-mindset ones wanted to stretch themselves, for their definition of success was about becoming smarter.

Dweck quotes one seventh-grade girl, who captured the difference beautifully:

I think intelligence is something you have to work for ... it isn't just given to you.... Most kids, if they're not sure of an answer, will not raise their hand to answer the question. But what I usually do is raise my hand, because if I'm wrong, then my mistake will be corrected. Or I will raise my hand and say, 'How would this be solved?' or 'I don't get this. Can you help me?' Just by doing that I'm increasing my intelligence.

Things got even more interesting when Dweck brought people into Columbia's brain-wave lab to study how their brains behaved as they answered difficult questions and received feedback. What she found was that those with a fixed mindset were only interested in hearing feedback that reflected directly on their present ability, but tuned out information that could help them learn and improve. They even showed no interest in hearing the right answer when they had gotten a question wrong, because they had already filed it away in the failure category. Those with a growth mindset, on the other hand, were keenly attentive to information that could help them expand their existing knowledge and skill, regardless of whether they'd gotten the question right or wrong - in other words, their priority was learning, not the binary trap of success and failure.

These findings are especially important in education and how we, as a culture, assess intelligence. In another study of hundreds of students, mostly adolescents, Dweck and her colleagues gave each ten fairly challenging problems from a nonverbal IQ test, then praised the student for his or her performance - most had done pretty well. But they offered two types of praise: Some students were told "Wow, you got [X many] right. That's a really good score. You must be smart at this," while others, "Wow, you got [X many] right. That's a really good score. You must have worked really hard." In other words, some were praised for ability and others for effort. The findings, at this point, are unsurprising yet jarring:

The ability praise pushed students right into the fixed mindset, and they showed all the signs of it, too: When we gave them a choice, they rejected a challenging new task that they could learn from. They didn't want to do anything that could expose their flaws and call into question their talent.

[...]

In contrast, when students were praised for effort, 90 percent of them wanted the challenging new task that they could learn from.

The most interesting part, however, is what happened next: Dweck and her colleagues gave the students a subsequent set of harder problems, on which the students didn't do so well. Suddenly, the ability-praised kids thought they weren't so smart or gifted after all. Dweck puts it poignantly:

If success had meant they were intelligent, then less-than-success meant they were deficient.

But for the effort-praised kids, the difficulty was simply an indication that they had to put in more effort, not a sign of failure or a reflection of their poor intellect. Perhaps most importantly, the two mindsets also impacted the kids' level of enjoyment - everyone enjoyed the first round of easier questions, which most kids got right, but as soon as the questions got more challenging, the ability-praised kids no longer had any fun, while the effort-praised ones not only still enjoyed the problems but even said that the more challenging, the more fun. The latter also had significant improvements in their performance as the problems got harder, while the former kept getting worse and worse, as if discouraged by their own success-or-failure mindset.

It gets better - or worse, depending on how we look at it: The most unsettling finding came after the IQ questions were completed, when the researchers asked the kids to write private letters to their peers relaying the experience, including a space for reporting their scores on the problems. To Dweck's devastation, the most toxic byproduct of the fixed mindset turned out to be dishonesty: Forty percent of the ability-praised kids lied about their scores, inflating them to look more successful. She laments:

In the fixed mindset, imperfections are shameful - especially if you're talented - so they lied them away. What's so alarming is that we took ordinary children and made them into liars, simply by telling them they were smart.

This illustrates the key difference between the two mindsets - for those with a growth one, "personal success is when you work your hardest to become your best," whereas for those with a fixed one, "success is about establishing their superiority, pure and simple. Being that somebody who is worthier than the nobodies." For the latter, setbacks are a sentence and a label. For the former, they're motivating, informative input - a wakeup call.

But one of the most profound applications of this insight has to do not with business or education but with love. Dweck found that people exhibited the same dichotomy of dispositions in their personal relationships: Those with a fixed mindset believed their ideal mate would put them on a pedestal and make them feel perfect, like "the god of a one-person religion," whereas those with the growth mindset preferred a partner who would recognize their faults and lovingly help improve them, someone who would encourage them to learn new things and become a better person. The fixed mindset, it turns out, is at the root of many of our most toxic cultural myths about "true love." Dweck writes:

The growth mindset says all of these things can be developed. All - you, your partner, and the relationship - are capable of growth and change.

In the fixed mindset, the ideal is instant, perfect, and perpetual compatibility. Like it was meant to be. Like riding off into the sunset. Like "they lived happily ever after."

[...]

One problem is that people with the fixed mindset expect everything good to happen automatically. It's not that the partners will work to help each other solve their problems or gain skills. It's that this will magically occur through their love, sort of the way it happened to Sleeping Beauty, whose coma was cured by her prince's kiss, or to Cinderella, whose miserable life was suddenly transformed by her prince.

This also applies to the myth of mind-reading, where the fixed mindset believes that an ideal couple should be able to read each other's minds and finish each other's sentences. She cites a study that invited people to talk about their relationships:

Those with the fixed mindset felt threatened and hostile after talking about even minor discrepancies in how they and their partner saw their relationship. Even a minor discrepancy threatened their belief that they shared all of each other's views.

But most destructive of all relationship myths is the belief that if it requires work, something is terribly wrong and that any discrepancy of opinions or preferences is indicative of character flaws on behalf of one's partner. Dweck offers a reality check:

Just as there are no great achievements without setbacks, there are no great relationships without conflicts and problems along the way.

When people with a fixed mindset talk about their conflicts, they assign blame. Sometimes they blame themselves, but often they blame their partner. And they assign blame to a trait - a character flaw.

But it doesn't end there. When people blame their partner's personality for the problem, they feel anger and disgust toward them.

And it barrels on: Since the problem comes from fixed traits, it can't be solved. So once people with the fixed mindset see flaws in their partners, they become contemptuous of them and dissatisfied with the whole relationship.

Those with the growth mindset, on the other hand, can acknowledge their partners' imperfections, without assigning blame, and still feel that they have a fulfilling relationship. They see conflicts as problems of communication, not of personality or character. This dynamic holds true as much in romantic partnerships as in friendship and even in people's relationships with their parents. Dweck summarizes her findings:

When people embark on a relationship, they encounter a partner who is different from them, and they haven't learned how to deal with the differences. In a good relationship, people develop these skills and, as they do, both partners grow and the relationship deepens. But for this to happen, people need to feel they're on the same side. . . . As an atmosphere of trust developed, they [become] vitally interested in each other's development.

What it all comes down to is that a mindset is an interpretative process that tells us what is going on around us. In the fixed mindset, that process is scored by an internal monologue of constant judging and evaluation, using every piece of information as evidence either for or against such assessments as whether you're a good person, whether your partner is selfish, or whether you are better than the person next to you. In a growth mindset, on the other hand, the internal monologue is not one of judgment but one of voracious appetite for learning, constantly seeking out the kind of input that you can metabolize into learning and constructive action.

In the rest of Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, Dweck goes on to explore how these fundamental mindsets form, what their defining characteristics are in different contexts of life, and how we can rewire our cognitive habits to adopt the much more fruitful and nourishing growth mindset.
Public domain photographs via Flickr Commons

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Fixed vs. Growth: The Two Basic Mindsets That Shape Our Lives

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"If you imagine less, less will be what you undoubtedly deserve," Debbie Millman counseled in one of the best commencement speeches ever given, urging: "Do what you love, and don't stop until you get what you love. Work as hard as you can, imagine immensities..."

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Homa Tavangar: Raising Children to Be At Home in The World

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Homa Tavangar: Raising Children to Be At Home in The World

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The Baha'i writings say that, "A child is like a young plant, it will grow in whatever way you train it." - Abdu'l-Baha, from a tablet translated from the Persian.

Homa Tavangar believes that a thoughtful, intentional approach to education predicated on equity and inclusiveness can raise children who see themselves as members of a diverse, expressive global community.

We can raise children as global citizens, Homa teaches, based on meaningful relationships and reverence for the human spirit.

A scholar, educator, writer, adviser to diverse organizations, and public speaker, Homa, together with Eric Dozier, founded the Oneness Lab (onenesslab.com), where they have innovated a new educational model that goes deeper than diversity through five elements of relationship building:

Her best-selling book Growing up Global: Raising Children to Be At Home in the World offers parents a "toolbox" of fun activities, conversation starters, geographical awareness and diverse cultural traditions, that can help to cultivate a global literacy within our youth.

Homa is Series Consultant for NBC's animated children's program Nina's World, starring Rita Moreno and Mandy Patinkin, which is based in part on Growing Up Global, and an advisor to the Disney Channel and Empatico.org,an initiative focused on deepening empathy by connecting classrooms around the world.

Homa's latest project is Global Kids, a deck of 50 cards with activities from around the world, intended to open minds and hearts while kids have fun. She serves on the board of the Tahirih Justice Center, assisting immigrant women and girls fleeing violence, and on the board of International School Services, the largest provider of support to international schools around the world. In addition to her diverse service-oriented work, she is a wife and mother of three daughters.

In this episode of America's Most Challenging Issue, I sit down with Homa Tavangar to discuss her advocacy for a unified humanity through equity, inclusiveness, relationship building and respect for the spiritual endowment of every human being.

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Homa Tavangar: Raising Children to Be At Home in The World

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The Baha'i writings say that, "A child is like a young plant, it will grow in whatever way you train it." - Abdu'l-Baha, from a tablet translated from the Persian. Homa Tavangar believes that a thoughtful, intentional approach to education predicated on equity and inclusiveness can raise children who see themselves as members of a diverse, expressive global community.

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Our destiny and success as a society rest largely upon the attitude we take toward the development and welfare of our children.

Raising children is potentially one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences in life. While many will say child rearing is extremely difficult, most will also quickly point out, as the Baha'i teachings do, that all of the associated challenges are well worth the effort, pain, frustration, and sacrifice they involve:

Among the greatest of all services that can possibly be rendered by man to Almighty God is the education and training of children ... - Abdu'l-Baha, Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 133.

This apparent contradiction suggests the depth and scope of the love present between parent and child-so let's explore the particular responsibilities parents face as they strive to raise their children spiritually.

Parents are responsible for creating an environment within which their children can thrive and grow. To fulfill even the basic requirements for ensuring a child's physical sustenance and comfort can be a daunting task in itself. Yet parents are also enjoined to create favorable conditions for healthy intellectual and emotional growth, so their children will have the best opportunity to reach their full potential as human beings.

But the most important and far-reaching responsibility that parents have is to foster their children's spiritual development. Empowered with the right tools to progress spiritually, children will flourish and become happy, capable, loving adults who understand their purpose in life-which means that raising children spiritually is among the greatest services we can render.

This involves teaching children love and reverence for God, spiritual discipline and obedience, and a sense of morality and virtue. It also involves accustoming them to hardship, and empowering them with the educational and spiritual tools they need to succeed in life. Neither parents nor communities can ignore these responsibilities without serious consequences.

These responsibilities toward children are not unique to the parent-child relationship. Though primary responsibility for raising children belongs to the parents, responsibility for the education and nurturance of children also extends to the community. Parents cannot succeed in their efforts to nurture their children if the community where they reside does not give them the tools and support they need, nor can they succeed if the community bombards their children with conflicting messages that undermine the parents' efforts.

Our children constantly watch and absorb our example and attitudes. After all, they spend virtually all of their waking hours observing and learning. What we do or fail to do as a community affects the future of our children and, as a result, the future of society:

Children are the most precious treasure a community can possess, for in them are the promise and guarantee of the future. They bear the seeds of the character of future society which is largely shaped by what the adults constituting the community do or fail to do with respect to children. They are a trust no community can neglect with impunity.

An all-embracing love of children, the manner of treating them, the quality of the attention shown them, the spirit of adult behavior toward them-these are all among the vital aspects of the requisite parental attitude. Love demands discipline, the courage to accustom children to hardship, not to indulge their whims or leave them entirely to their own devices. An atmosphere needs to be maintained in which children feel that they belong to the community and share in its purpose. - The Universal House of Justice, to the Baha'is of the World, April 2000.

The Baha'i teachings say that the first responsibility in raising children spiritually is to teach them love and reverence for God-the essential foundation for spiritual development. From the earliest age, children will benefit greatly from seeing their parents turning to God for spiritual sustenance and guidance. Teaching children to have a deep love and reverence for God ensures that they will want to act according to His will and not just their own. The earlier the idea of turning to God is nurtured in children, the deeper and more natural that connection will be.

The Baha'i writings repeatedly point out the value of teaching children at the earliest age to love God and to remember Him:

From the very beginning, the children must receive divine education and must continually be reminded to remember their God. Let the love of God pervade their inmost being, commingled with their mother's milk. - Abdu'l-Baha, Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 127.

The parents must exert every effort to rear their offspring to be religious, for should the children not attain this greatest of adornments, they will not obey their parents, which in a certain sense means that they will not obey God. Indeed, such children will show no consideration to anyone, and will do exactly as they please. - Baha'u'llah, from a tablet translated from the Persian.

Let them strive by day and by night to establish within their children faith and certitude, the fear of God ... and all good qualities and traits. - Abdu'l-Baha, Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 125.

Parents are in a critical position to shape the spiritual development of their children. They should not ever underestimate their capacity to mold their children's moral character. For they exercise indispensable influence through the home environment they consciously create. - The Universal House of Justice, to the Baha'is of the World, April 2000.

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Our destiny and success as a society rest largely upon the attitude we take toward the development and welfare of our children. Raising children is potentially one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences in life.

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Using concrete manipulatives

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Video: How to MODEL multiplication of decimals for understanding?

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Video: How to MODEL multiplication of decimals for understanding?

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5th grade

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Everything that happens between the question & answer

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Using concrete manipulatives

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4TH GRADE

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4th grade

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4th grade

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2 digit by 2 digit multiplication with base 10 blocks

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4TH GRADE

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Video: Multiplying whole numbers using place value chart

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Video: Multiplying whole numbers using place value chart

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4th grade

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Video: Progression of addition & subtraction

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Video: Progression of addition & subtraction

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Grade 4 Module 3 Lesson 27: "Division in Two Ways!"

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Video: Multiplying whole numbers using place value chart

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Video: Multiplying whole numbers using place value chart

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4th grade

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4TH GRADE

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4th grade

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4th grade

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2 digit by 2 digit multiplication with base 10 blocks

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by Jo Boaler

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by Miles Kimball and Noah Smith

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by Jo Boaler

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Speed and Time Pressure Blocks Working Memory

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Speed and Time Pressure Blocks Working Memory

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by Jo Boaler

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by Jo Boaler

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Practical Ideas for parents by Steve Leinwand

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by U.S. Department of Education

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With activities for children in preschool through grade 5
This booklet is made up of fun activities that parents can use with children from preschool age through grade 5 to strengthen their math skills and build strong positive attitudes toward math.
Table of Contents

Last Modified: 02/27/2009

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Helping Your Child Learn Mathematics -- TOC

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With activities for children in preschool through grade 5 This booklet is made up of fun activities that parents can use with children from preschool age through grade 5 to strengthen their math skills and build strong positive attitudes toward math. Table of Contents Last Modified: 02/27/2009

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by The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

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Which One Doesn't Belong?

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MULTIPLICATION area model concrete to pictorial

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MULTIPLICATION area model concrete to pictorial

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4th grade-5th grade KEYNOTE

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Learn More at mathantics.com
Visit http://www.mathantics.com for more FREE math videos and additional subscription based content!

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How Can Students Self-Assess When Teachers Do All the Grading and Work? 

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How Can Students Self-Assess When Teachers Do All the Grading and Work? 

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"It wasn't really moving the needle in terms of their skill set," said Tucker. "And I recognized that instead of putting 90 percent of my energy into assessing and giving feedback on a finished product, I need to put that 90 percent of my energy into giving them feedback as they work."

She found that when students get feedback as part of the process of completing an assignment, it gives kids the opportunity to revise their work. The feedback process mans that students must be in constant communication with Tucker about their work. This is in addition to keeping track of what they think they've learned through post-lesson reflection tools like learning logs and sketchnotes.

Grades Are a Journey in Tucker's Class

Tucker, who is an instructional coach and the author of several books on blended learning , applied these strategies to a program at Windsor High School when she was a teacher there. Several life changes - like a that burned down her home in 2017 and the ensuing 70-minute commute created by the disruption - mean she isn't teaching in the classroom anymore. Instead, she works as an instructional coach in Northern California, a role that has given her broader insight into what teachers of all grades are doing.

As she travels to different schools, she's been surprised and uncomfortable to see how much work teachers are marking. She's noticed a fear among teachers that if there's no grade attached to an assignment, then students won't do it.

She advises teachers to select the standards the class is supposed to zero in on for that unit and focus on improving those outcomes. That requires giving students opportunities to try, get feedback and revise. Along the way, students see their progress on the target skill. And, kids don't have to worry about something like sentence structure when they're supposed to be learning about argumentative claims. Having too much at once can do more harm than good.

She also encourages teachers to involve students in a meaningful way in the final grade. Some students might go their entire lives without contesting a grade. Fighting for every point is often the domain of overzealous parents who are worried about their child's chances of getting into the "right" college. But when teachers explain the grading rubric to students, it makes grading more transparent. When students know exactly what they're being graded on, they not only know where to focus their efforts, but they can also better advocate for themselves if they don't receive the mark they wanted.

"It puts them in the driver's seat and gives them agency in relation to their grades, which is a powerful, powerful motivator," Tucker said. "It also gets them comfortable advocating for themselves as learners. And if they have embraced meta cognitive routines, they can actually talk about their progress as learners in a dynamic way."

At Windsor High, Tucker gave students the rubric and an exemplar text. After they submitted the assignment, she graded the student as they were seated right next to her. The grading became a discussion instead of something the teacher took home with her after school. If the student wasn't satisfied with their grade, they could ask for a three-minute grading interview with Tucker. In the grading interview, students presented arguments and evidence for why they deserved a different grade. If Tucker disagreed, she would counter with evidence of her own. Students always got the chance to offer a rebuttal. The grades didn't always change, but no one could claim they hadn't been heard or didn't know why they had gotten the grade.

"If it's worth grading, it's worth doing with the kid right next to you," she said. "For a lot of kids, the grading process is very mysterious and opaque."

The Bigger Picture

Tucker acknowledges that changing assessment practices in her Windsor High classroom inevitably led to bigger changes to how she structured class. She transformed the time spent in class into a flipped, blended learning environment. Students did readings or viewed videos at home and then used class time for group work to sit with the teacher or do activities that are part of a station rotation model .

"To create that space and time to sit next to kids, to give them feedback and assess their work, we have to start thinking strategically about the way we design lessons," she said.

She recommends having a rotation design where students can move between online and offline activities. Students might also collaborate on activities while the teacher hosts conferences with individual students. Tucker used Google Docs to give feedback and keep track of revisions.

Practicing communication

In the process of helping students assess their own work and advocate for themselves, Tucker realized they also needed to take ownership of communication with their parents about schoolwork. She said it's unrealistic for one teacher to communicate effectively about learning with 150 families each semester. In that scenario, teachers often communicate only when something is wrong. Tucker decided students should share their progress , or lack thereof, with their families, so she created a template to guide students when emailing their parents.

Dear Mom and Dad,

In English we are working on (name of assignment). I'm supposed to be (target for class). Currently, I'm (state progress) and then my plan for catching up is (action plan, completion dates).

In her CUE talk, Tucker said parents write back to their child and often cc the teacher to keep her in the communication loop.

"Prioritize student agency in your lessons and in your grading process and see your students as true partners," Tucker said.

You can read about her work in her forthcoming book Balance With Blended Learning: Partner With Your Students to Reimagine Learning and Reclaim Your Life and watch her CUE presentation below.

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How Can Students Self-Assess When Teachers Do All the Grading and Work? | KQED

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Too often, feedback is given at the end of a project or test. But what if students had more opportunities to receive feedback while they're doing the work so they can improve their learning? Author and blended learning expert Catlin Tucker makes her case for putting more assessment tools into students' hands.

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The psychologist, researcher, and MacArthur Fellow Angela Duckworth believes that to make better decisions in our school systems, we need to rethink the way we measure student capabilities.

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The psychologist, researcher, and MacArthur Fellow Angela Duckworth believes that to make better decisions in our school systems, we need to rethink the way we measure student capabilities.

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In Schools, Are We Measuring What Matters?

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The psychologist, researcher, and MacArthur Fellow Angela Duckworth believes that to make better decisions in our school systems, we need to rethink the way we measure student capabilities.