MSM #28 Middle School Instructional Strategies

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News & Events:

Innovative Practices Across the Curriculum
Lakeville, Minnesota
June 24, 2008

Institute for Middle Level Leadership
Colorado Springs,
Colorado
July 13-16, 2008
Charleston,
South Carolina
July 20-23, 2008

Best Practices for Student Success
Baltimore, Maryland
July 28, 2008
Fargo, North Dakota
August 6, 2008

International Travel Grant for Teachers
Available to travel next April? Ever considered being an exchange teacher to Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Georgia, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, or Ukraine? Here’s your chance! The U.S. Department of Education is holding a competition for U.S. Educators to travel and see the world. Some of it anyway. There are some restrictions and a daily stipend is provided in country. This program takes professional development to new places. Give a click here to apply for the program.

Teacher Ambassador Program: Applications due April 7, 2008

Essential Qualities in Math Teaching Remain Unknown 

By Sean Cavanagh

It is one of most widely accepted axioms in math education: Good teachers matter.

But what are the qualities of an effective mathematics teacher? The answer, as a recent federal reportRequires Adobe Acrobat Reader suggests, remains frustratingly elusive.

Research does not show conclusively which professional credentials demonstrate whether math teachers are effective in the classroom, the report found. It does not show what college math content and coursework are most essential for teachers. Nor does it show what kinds of preservice, professional-development, or alternative education programs best prepare them to teach.


Read the rest of the story here.


Advisory Idea: NSTeens - Internet Safety for Teens sponsored by the Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Videos and printable cards for discussing internet safety and online behavior. Activity cards provide for educators to facilitate discussion and spread information.

Marzano - What works in schools:
School wide:

  1. Guaranteed & Viable Curriculum-
    1. Opportunity to Learn
    2. Time
  2. Challenging Goals & Effective Feedback -
    1. Monitoring
    2. Pressure to Achieve
  3. Parental & Community Involvement
  4. Safe & Orderly Environment
  5. Collegiality & Professionalism


Teacher Level:
* Note that individual teachers have a great impact on student achievement

  1. Instructional Strategies
    1. Identifying similarities & differences (resource, lesson planner, Venn Diagram and Comparison Matrix, Frayer Model, )
    2. Summarizing & Note taking (graphic organizer resource, note taking resource, SQ3R (not "leet speak"), Sticky Note Strategy, THIEVES+)
    3. Reinforcing and providing recognition (post card home, Weekly logs of learning, reflections, Grade tracking)
    4. Homework & practice (Podcast #5, Homework is your Friend ...)
    5. Nonlinguistic representation (alternative assessment pieces, Foldables, step-by-step to a Flip Book creation)
    6. Cooperative learning (resource,
    7. Setting Objectives & Providing Feedback (Timely and specific, Rubrics )
    8. Generating & testing hypothesis (simulations
    9. Questions, cues and advance organizers (Q Tasks, Graphic Organizers or Graphic Organizers )


To Be Continued........