Picture this: you’ve planned out the perfect unit, and today is when students really need to buckle down and get down to work. You disseminate the assignment, give the students directions, and send them off to learning land. While 30 sets of heads hover over their worksheet, you notice one looking out the window. Another […]
Teaching
Reflect, revise, and refresh after your first grading period
While some teachers are just embarking on their school year, my district just wrapped up its first grading period! For the past 16 years, I’ve taken the time to reflect on several areas of my teaching that are essential to my students’ success. Where am I at in my pacing in relation to where I’d […]
Digging into data: identifying the needs of struggling students
This is my final installment of my Digging into Data series, so I’m going to give an example of how this data has helped me identify struggling students, and how it helps me differentiate for all of students. If you haven’t already read the other posts in the series, I encourage you to do so, […]
Digging into data: two teachers’ perspectives on demographic data
In my previous post, I discussed the merits of administering a baseline assessment and how I interpret that data. Today, I’m looking at student demographic data as another way of creating a complete picture of who my students are. While it doesn’t sound like the most exciting way to spend an hour of planning time, […]
Digging into data: your pre-assessment data is the rudder to your ship
We are a month into the school year, and my data collection is coming along quite nicely. In fact, I’m elbow deep in it, a.k.a., grading my first pre-assessment. I usually take my time with the first one because I’m really trying to learn my students and their writing styles. It’s definitely a labor of […]
Digging into data: how Lexile scores can help to inform educational decisions
It’s time for a vlog post! This week I’ve taken to video format to show you how to use students’ Lexile scores and reading levels to inform educational decisions. I’ve included a breakdown of two of my classes’ Lexile scores and how I plan to use them for groups and seating charts. A quick note: […]
Digging into data: Analyzing IEPs to be an effective teacher for students with disabilities
In my previous post, I discussed the 5 types of data that every teacher needs to collect to move their students forward. Today, I’m going to focus on one type of data mentioned in that post – Individualized Education Plans (IEPs). All teachers – whether they teach accelerated or special education students – will come across […]
When ignoring data drives teachers down the wrong path
Data. Analyzing data. I remember that I would literally groan and face palm when I heard an administrator mutter those words. At my previous school, the discussion of data was always paired with bad news regarding test scores. Or targeted populations. Sometimes the doom of program improvement, and teaching to the standardized test. At the […]
