“Plato said, ‘What is honored in a country will be cultivated there.’ Teachers who honor literacy provide special spaces and material in their classrooms to promote literacy development as an integral part of the total school curriculum”Morrow, 1989
When a young student enters a classroom, are they expected to become a successful reader? I have seen and heard of many teachers that do not expect this of all of their students. I have been in classrooms where teachers will ask their “readers” to come to the front of the classroom and pick out a book to read to a classmate who is “not yet reading”. One may wonder whether that teacher would be struck by those words if he or she was able to look in from the outside? The teacher may have made this statement because their opinion of what a “reader” is not developmentally appropriate. In contrast, this teacher should be labeling all of his or her students as readers and be looking at where their students fall on a developmental continuum of reading.
The question again is, how many teachers have you met that question our students abilities to read? Many teachers believe that if a kindergartner does not leave their classroom reading book upon book then they are destined to live life as a struggling reader. This is not only a faulty assumption, but it damages the student’s future for becoming fluent readers. These expectations leave students feeling that they are not normal. Their teacher’s actions scream that they are not “readers” and this causing the student to feel that they will never catch up. Not only do a teacher’s expectations affect the student, but also the parent. Parents generally take on the teacher’s expectations of what their child should be accomplishing at a certain age. This leaves unreasonable expectations on the student at school and at home. Educators need to take into consideration that if a child‘s first exposure to reading is their kindergarten classroom, they will just be entering the emergent reading stage. This is unlike some students that will have already been exposed and are developed emergent readers. Teachers need to be equipped and ready to be able to help guide all of these students at each of their own paces. If a teacher expects all students to develop reading fluency during kindergarten they will be taking students that are not ‘reading ready’ and placing unreasonable expectations on them. The NAEYC and IRA warn against this.
“The readiness perspective implies that until children reach a certain stage of maturity all exposure to reading and writing, except perhaps being read stories, is a waste of time or even potentially harmful (1998).”
What types of expectations should teachers and parents have for our young readers that are appropriate, positive, and beneficial?


“What can a baby learn in a music class?” is a question I get asked quite often. The answer is really quite exciting.
Current research in music education and therapy is uncovering the wealth of learning to be gained through involvement in music and movement classes at an early age. In fact, musical aptitude, often what we call “talent,” is not something innate but something that is nurtured and developed through experiences early in childhood. Young children in Kindermusik experience:
1. Singing – While our goal is not singing babies, babies and young children can learn to audiate (hear music in their heads), which in turn leads to a strong musical ear and the ability to match pitches early in life. In fact, we have a few remarkable babies enrolled in class this spring who are already starting to sing, and they’re not even a year old!
2. Steady Beat – Even young babies can learn to keep a steady beat through rhythmic activities such as lap bounces and dancing to music. For all children, this skill aids not only in the foundations of building rhythm for later musical study, but also helps them walk, bounce a ball, and cut with scissors.
3. Language – Through exposure to songs and rhymes, children develop concepts, auditory memory, phonemic awareness, and other important language skills which later aid in learning to read and write numbers and letters as well as music!
4. Instruments – Exploring instruments and sharing in instrument playalongs provides important sensory input to develop the brain, builds a sense of steady beat, encourages creativity, and helps provides enjoyable early ensemble experiences.
5. Fun – Making music fun early, makes music fun for life!
Of course, in addition to these and the many other musical skills and experiences young children are given in an early childhood music class, they gain a host of other skills in the areas of social, emotional, cognitive and physical development. But those will have to wait for another day.
Come visit one of our classes and see for yourself what babies, toddlers, and preschoolers are learning every week in their Kindermusik classes.
Thanks, Joy for such a beautiful explanation!


Reading Recovery is a program that helps struggling first-graders improve their reading and writing skills. Students scoring low on assessments are pulled out of their regular classrooms to work one-on-one with a teacher who has been trained in the Reading Recovery program. The goal of this intense tutoring is to help the students catch up early in their school years before they get too far behind their classmates. This program is not available at every school, nor can individual teachers use Reading Recovery. Only schools that have received Reading Recovery training for teachers and administrators can implement the program.
Obtain a college degree or state certification in elementary education. To become a Reading Recovery teacher, you must first be a teacher (you cannot get a degree in Reading Recovery specifically). A college degree in elementary education gives you a good foundation in teaching young students, which is important because Reading Recovery is a program for first-graders.
Get a reading certification. This is not a requirement for the Reading Recovery program; however, it is recommended that you have a strong background in teaching children to read. Even if you do not pursue a degree, consider taking courses in reading education at a university.
Teach for at least two years. Before you can be accepted into Reading Recovery training, you must have taught for two years. Teachers successful in the classroom are more likely to be chosen to become Reading Recovery teachers since the program has high standards and requires a strong commitment to continual training.
Talk to your principal about receiving training. The principal decides which teachers are selected for the Reading Recovery program. If you are not employed at a Reading Recovery school, you can either try to get your school to adopt the program or seek employment at a Reading Recovery school.
Commit to the Reading Recovery training process. According to the Reading Recovery website, it takes more than one year to complete your initial training. After this, continual monitoring and professional development are required.
Once you've met all of the requirements, you will be a highly-trained reading teacher, ready to help first-graders learn to read.
- Each state sets its own standards for additional certifications. Some states allow you to pass a test in the area you wish to gain certification; other states require you to return to college for additional coursework. If this is the case, it often makes sense to add reading certification in with courses for a master's degree. The University of Kentucky has a website linking to each of the state's teacher certification requirements.
- Do not undertake Reading Recovery training unless you are certain it fits your interest and skills. Your school has to pay for your training, which can be expensive.
- little boy reading a book image by Renata Osinska from Fotolia.com


Unless you follow Latin jazz and/or jazz education pretty closely, you might not know Oscar Stagnaro by identify, however the veteran bassist has the information and the chops to rank with the best within the business. Clearly the commitment to developing excellence in schooling comes through the doc. Her publications embrace journal articles, e book chapter, and entries for The Groves Dictionary of Musical Instruments and The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. As an expert music trainer and performer/composer of 20+ years, I strongly disagree with the theories above (the overview of personality sorts and the way they match to a selected instrument), and take concern with these hypotheses being offered as truth. The teaching philosophy at Westminster Academy embraces Critical Theory, connecting music educating in the context of social change.
All artists participating within the NFO comply with share at least some of their music freely with the public. I wish faculties in my local area would see the connection between music and learning, my children frequently come residence from faculty saying this and that was boring. Definitely, music education in early childhood improves the child’s intelligence and numerous capabilities.
Music develops methods of thinking, it offers forms of significance that can take no different form, and it yields forms of expertise which are, at their finest, deeply treasured. Designed to offer youth, dad and mom and educators a web-based platform to share experiences, search advice, and collaborate on music advocacy methods. Many Toureg cultures have additionally assimilated electric instruments, together with guitars into their music.
Each pupil makes all of the preparations necessary to current his/her program out locally, with an emphasis on interacting with viewers, serving to them to understand and appreciate the music being shared. The Master of Music in Music Education degree is designed in a versatile format to fulfill the wants of practicing music training professionals. This course offers college students with an introduction to the instruments, supplies, methods, and issues of the study of music history. Give them an opportunity to point out what they will do. Keep emphasizing that music is fun.


- Friends Jeremy Rhett, Jennifer Rhett, and Carla Stanford, worry over reading proficiency in public school students.
- Carla takes a class in the Orton-Gillingham Approach to reading instruction and begins successfully implementing the strategies in her 1st grade public school classrooms.
- Jeremy, Jen, and Carla realize the best way to reach struggling readers is through their most valuable resource—their teachers.
- REAP is born!
- REAP will fund training for public school teachers in the foundations of reading instruction, specifically multisensory, systematic, and direct phonics instruction.
February – April 2013
- REAP receives 35 applications from public school teachers, and partners with the Decatur Education Foundation and IDA-GA to fund the training for 12 public school teachers.
- REAP partners with The Schenck School to provide the training using nationally recognized experts.
- REAP receives over 100 applications and raises over $95,000.
- REAP partners with The Swift School and GeorgiaETA to provide additional nationally recognized instructors for the training.
- 74 public school teachers enter the training program.
- REAP joins the national organization Coalition for Reading Excellence.
- REAP for Roswell, a committee developed to raise funds for training teachers in Roswell and throughout Fulton County, kicks off the year by hosting an awareness event and raising funds to train teachers in Roswell and Fulton County schools.
- Teachers are overwhelmingly thrilled with the training and the results they are seeing in the classroom with typical, advanced, and struggling readers.
- REAP receives 216 applications for training and accepts 94 teachers.
- REAP begins shoulder-to-shoulder coaching and modeling to further the development of teachers already trained.


August 22, 1932 – February 16, 2013
Raised in Atlanta, Georgia
“Annell Ponder, — who in my opinion was SNCC in essence except for the actual fact that she worked for SCLC. She was a SNCC-type woman except that she worked for SCLC,” recalled Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) activist Bruce Hartford.
Well before she started directing the Citizenship Education Program in Mississippi for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), Annell Ponder was a teacher committed to empowering those with whom she worked. Born in McDonough, Georgia, Ponder graduated from Clark College with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education in 1955 and spent two years teaching and working as a librarian before earning a master’s degree in social work from Atlanta University.
Ponder began working as a field supervisor for SCLC in 1962. She arrived in Greenwood, Mississippi in the spring of 1963 to help organize citizenship schools and quickly enlisted twelve volunteers to undergo teacher training. She was a regular in SNCC’s bustling Greenwood office, standing out as a woman who was tall, beautiful, and totally-committed.
Those who worked with Ponder recognized her deep commitment to developing leadership. She believed that for the Movement to be successful, SNCC and SCLC volunteers needed to foster these local leaders. “Let the people speak for and with you,” she wrote in a 1964 memo to volunteers working in community centers. “As you work you must somehow resist the temptation to do things for the people, but share the work, the planning and the decision-making with them, so they realize that if the center is to continue after summer, they will have to do it.”
Annell Ponder was also unwavering in her commitment to nonviolence as a way of life. On June 9, 1963, Ponder and SNCC activists, Mrs. Fannie Lou Hamer, Euvester Simpson, sixteen-year-old June Johnson, and others, were returning from a citizenship school training session in South Carolina when they tried to eat at the segregated Trailways bus station in Winona, Mississippi. After police harassed the group, Ponder began taking down their license plates. They were arrested, taken to jail, and severely beaten.
Mrs. Hamer described hearing Ponder being beaten from somewhere in the jail. The police demanded that Ponder respond by saying “yes sir” and asked if she knew how to say it. Mrs. Hamer heard her answer “‘Yes, I can say yessir.’” The officer responded, “‘Well, say it,’” and Ponder said, “‘I don’t know you well enough.’” Ponder “never would say yessir,” Hamer described, “and I could hear when she would hit the flo’ and then I could hear them licks just soundin’. That was somethin’…She kept screaming, and they kept beatin’ her, and finally she started prayin’ for ‘em, and she asked God to have mercy on ‘em, because they didn’t know what they was doin’.”
The group remained in jail for three days. Mrs. Hamer suffered permanent damage from the attack, and Ponder’s face was so swollen that she could barely speak. When a SNCC worker visited them in jail, Ponder managed to whisper one word: “Freedom.” She emerged from jail bruised nearly beyond recognition. When she walked by the sheriff and deputy sheriff, Andrew Young heard her say, “‘Well, so long. Hope I’ll see you again some time.’” Her deep belief in nonviolence led her to conclude that those who beat her were not evil; they need “training and rehabilitation.”
John Dittmer, Local People: The Struggle for Civil Rights in Mississippi (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1994).
Kay Mills, This Little Light of Mine: The Life of Fannie Lou Hamer (Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2007).
Charles Payne, I’ve Got the Light of Freedom: The Organizing Tradition and the Mississippi Freedom Struggle (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1995).
Howard Zinn, SNCC: The New Abolitionists (Boston: Beacon Press, 1964).
“Annell Ponder,” Reporters and Writers, Reporting Civil Rights 1941 – 1973, The Library of America Anthology.


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Journey in the Basic Education Curricula
Transcript of Journey in the Basic Education Curricula
The secondary school shall continue the unifying functions of elementary education by providing general education and shall seek to discover the varying abilities, interests and aptitudes of the youth, and offer courses in the different fields of productive endeavor according to the talents of the youths and in the light of community needs. It shall also initiate a program designed to develop community leadership.
Taking into consideration the economic needs of the country, the school must cultivate vocational efficiency which will help the students become effective members of their family and the community,For those who will continue in the colleges and universities the secondary school must offer courses to prepare the students for an effective study in the institutions of the higher education. 1946 - 1956 - General Education Curriculum Objectives of Elementary Education:
The elementary school should offer adequate education for our children to prepare them for democratic citizenship. It should give instruction in basic knowledge, develop basic skills and attitudes, and inculcate ideals necessary for the promotion of national solidarity, and for the development of the enlightened, patriotic, useful, and upright citizenry in a democracy. Giving emphasis to the culture, desirable traditions, and virtues of our people, it should prepare the child for effective participation in his community and for a better understanding of an expanding society. 1946-1988 Journey in Basic Education Curricula Reform Journey Timeline General
Curriculum 1957 Revised
Curriculum 2-2 Plan "57-72 1973 1946 College Preparation Curriculum
Vocational Curriculum Revised Secondary
Education Program Electives offered


Ideally the reading experience should begin from birth. Reading to children while they are still babies forms a parent/child bond - a calming experience. Reading is important for a child's literacy development and opens up a world of knowledge. Reading is a pleasurable pastime which leads one to new information about a particular subject being not only enjoyable but also a learning experience. It introduces a new and richer world, a world of enjoyment, learning, a world of fantasy about a variety of places, things, people, topics and a world of sharing. It increases one's vocabulary, communication skills, confidence, ability to concentrate and a variety of writing styles. Reading improves spelling when seeing the written word. The more people read the more informed they become and the more able to educate themselves further and research new topics.
The ability to read also improves one's comprehension skills necessary in the work force to understand contracts, instructions, manuals, directions, warning signs - the list goes on...
Today one can read books, magazines, journals, newspapers as well as books online, books in Braille and in a vast number of languages. Reading allows one to escape into another world. If I do not have a book to read I feel there is something missing. Reading gives me company, relaxation, entertainment and information. Reading matters for one's personal development.
People read for a variety of reasons as above and including filling in time at airports. The reading experience is very personal because you read according to your needs at the time. You read what interests you. Your tastes are not the same as other people's.
In conclusion reading is an enriching, rewarding experience, be it for pleasure, gaining information or improving one's life skills.


I am always cautious about math tricks. As a middle school teacher, I never liked to see my students still counting on their fingers or working out basic mental math using some kind of “trick.” Take the trick away, and those students have a difficult time processing mathematics and sometimes basic arithmetic.
Obviously, some people need alternative ways to learn, but math tricks seem to short change students of their numeracy skills. We have all probably had the experience of trying to get change from a cashier after the sale has been punched in and discovering we had the “correct” change in our pocket. Some cashiers can make the adjustment quickly, while others flounder and look helpless. I always leave those encounters thinking that we need more mental math in our classrooms.
It may sound like I am against math tricks, but I’m not. I think students learn differently and some of them need different strategies to arrive at answers. However, I am against math tricks when students don’t or aren’t able to progress into the basic math skills they need.


Twenty-six years ago, Jane Golden took to the streets of Philadelphia with paint, brushes, and a small contingent of helpers with the goal of wiping out the city’s ugly graffiti.
Today, 3,000 walls later, her work has become the nation’s largest public art program, a public-private mix of artmaking, art education, and art-as-therapy, with a staff of 50 -– many of whom are former graffiti artists themselves.
Jane reached out to graffiti writers to redirect their energies from destructive tagging to constructive mural painting. She was impressed by their raw artistic talent and their self-taught knowledge of art history. She recognized the amazing creative force they represented, and began to provide opportunities for them to channel their creative talent into mural-making. Mural painting also provided a support structure for these young men and women to refine their artistic skills, while empowering them to take an active role in beautifying their own neighborhoods.
“The results of the program were nothing less than magical,” says Golden from the website, muralarts.org. Mural-making not only changed lives but the murals themselves began to mend the aesthetic fabric of an industrial city struggling with decades of economic distress.
(READ more of the story in CS Monitor)


Over the last few years within the education system, especially public education, there have been many debates surrounding the value, necessary funding for, and attention focused on arts educations. New programs such as the Common Core Standards, which place a heavier emphasis on math and science learning, as well as a growing focus on high school athletes, have often caused arts programs to be neglected.
Arts programs, such as marching band, drama, 3D design, and musical theater, are commonly offered at most high schools and middle schools across the country. However, funding for these types of activities is often limited, especially at public schools that are constantly struggling with budget cuts and sparse resources.
“In a recent meeting, a theater teacher in the district stated that our football coaches receive a higher stipend than the theater or music teachers that are putting in equal if not more hours with school plays and Marching Band. Then, you have our art teachers within our district that put on our Annual Art Show at the end of the year; which requires many hours preparing for, setting up, and manning the weekend of, that receive no extra payment for their time,” said 2D Art teacher Kim Bartel.
According to the district’s Activity Pay Sheet 2015-2016, for example, a varsity football coach receives $3,931, whereas a choir-orchestra advisor receives only $2,305.
Many students involved in arts programs also feel that not enough attention is placed on art education.
“The arts teach students to be unique and have their own strengths and weaknesses; that makes them artists. Leigh does focus on arts but not as much as I believe they could be. Marching band and the rest of the arts work just as hard (as sports teams do) but do not get the same recognition because people don’t know about them,” said Junior Julie Williams, member of the Leigh High School Marching Band, Winter Guard, and Wind Ensemble.
Arts programs allow students to explore the depths of their own creativity and develop talents that can flourish into passions and inspiration for future careers. For instance, according to Education Week’s study, “Art Education Matters: We Know, We Measured It”, “Arts experiences boost critical thinking, teaching students to take the time to be more careful and thorough in how they observe the world.” In their study in which researchers observed a group of students before and after exposure to an art museum or theater performance, it was concluded that after arts experiences, students were “more tolerant and empathetic.”
Through learning different art forms, such as playing a musical instrument, students can challenge themselves in a variety of ways, develop critical thinking and observation skills, as well as push the boundaries of their minds. By letting out one’s feelings through vehicles of expression such as paintbrushes or microphones, students can not only share their talents through an imaginative outlet, but they can speak out about their views of the world and stand up for what they believe in.


At Red Apple School you will find hallways filled with the sounds of happy, busy children actively involved in learning new things in noisy classrooms. We use a hands-on developmentally appropriate curriculum that focuses on the whole child and educates young children in the way that they learn naturally – through exploration, experimentation and play. Our teachers provide intentional and purposeful activities daily that support the cognitive, social, emotional, spiritual and physical development of each child. Activities focus on multiple areas including:
- Frog Street Press as part of the curriculum that we use
- Language and literacy development
- Formulative math skills
- Fine and gross motor skills
- Artistic expression and exploration
Different educational resources are used within the curriculum including Core Knowledge, Handwriting Without Tears, and Math Their Way.
Each week all students take part in a Chapel Service, Music & Movement class, and Spanish class.


We sing another song about bubbles were we float around the room like a bubble until we pop and land back in the nest.
Music is such a powerful tool. I found some great information about the role music plays in learning. The Role of Music in Learning By Dr Roy J. Paget says in his research,
"Recent research has proven that music affects the body. It appears to massage
organs, entrain biorhythms alter hormone levels, reduce stress and increase
learning. Music carries with it more than just feelings; it can be a powerful
vehicle for information.
Music acts as a premium signal carrier whose rhythms, patterns, contrasts and
varying tonalities encode new information. The use of music as a partner can
be a powerful way to carry a large volume of content. In fact, music can do
60% of the teaching work in about 5% of the time! "
He also give a list of music that is suitable for creating an environment for learning.
Many articles have been written on the effects of music and stimulating the brain to get it ready to learn. I got 127,000,000 results when I searched "effects music learning children". No doubt about it music will always have power that touches our emotions and effects our brain. Music education as well as using music as a tool to teach should be present in every school and classroom around the world!


Family Literacy Bags
The Family Literacy Bags (FLB) have been developed to enhance home-school connections and to encourage parents to read with their children. Theme guides are available in English and Spanish for teachers to purchase, with which you can assemble your own bags for use in your own classrooms and schools.
Each guide features suggested questions and follow-up activities for each book in the bag along with lists of the supplies needed to complete different activities. We have enjoyed very positive feedback from both teachers and parents using the FLBs in our area local schools, and are confident that other teachers can enjoy the same success.
Did you know...
- Literacy development begins long before children enter school
- Many parents are unsure of how to support their child's literacy development
- Reading story books at home with young children is one of the most important activities for developing the knowledge required for success in reading
- Infrequent or limited reading of story books in the home is associated with low levels of literacy achievement
- High frequency of home story book reading is related to readiness to benefit from formal literacy instruction and increased motivation to interact with books and to learn to read
- When parents read with their children they:
- expose them to the sounds and rhythm of language
- acquaint them with the ways language is used in books
- introduce them to the conventions governing reading and print
- send a positive message to children about the value placed on literacy
- foster children's vocabulary growth
- Parents are often unaware of the many high quality books available for young children or how to most effectively use them
- Making Literacy Bags available to parents is a simple way to reach most families and to assist them in supporting their child's literacy development
- Literacy Bags:
- empower parents to teach their own children
- make it easier for busy parents to become involved in their child's learning
- can help parents understand the importance of reading and of interacting with their children


El día de los niños/El día de los libros (Children’s Day/Book Day), commonly known as Día, is a celebration every day of children, families, and reading that culminates yearly on April 30. The celebration emphasizes the importance of literacy for children of all linguistic and cultural backgrounds.
Día is a nationally recognized initiative that emphasizes the importance of literacy for all children from all backgrounds. It is a daily commitment to linking children and their families to diverse books, languages and cultures. The common goals of all Día programming are to:
- Celebrate children and connect them to the world of learning through books, stories and libraries.
- Nurture cognitive and literacy development in ways that honor and embrace a child’s home language and culture.
- Introduce families to community resources that provide opportunities for learning through multiple literacies.
- Recognize and respect culture, heritage and language as powerful tools for strengthening families and communities.
Celebrate 20 Years of Día – Sharing the gift of reading
Here are some titles to get you started:
One Family by George Shannon
Mixed Me by Taye Diggs
Niño Wrestles the World by Yoyi Morales
Building STEAM with Día –
STEAM = Science, Technology, Engineering, Art & Math
Here are more titles to get you started:
Blocks by Irene Dickson
Drum Dream Girl by Margarita Engle
The Lego Play Book by Daniel Lipkowitz
Secret Coders by Gene Luen Yang
Information about Día is from the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) which is the national home for Día; dia.ala.org


Trade Your Job For a Fulfilling Career as an Elementary Teacher
For people who love to see the spark of understanding in a young person’s eyes, a degree as an elementary teacher can lead to the perfect lifelong career. An online masters in education is a fast, flexible way to learn the skills necessary to assist young learners in the development process. You will learn tactics for supporting students emotionally, mentally, and physically in a school setting, as well as managing vital paperwork and eliciting help from parents and administrators.
Individuals who are most successful as elementary school teachers are patient, energetic, and organized. They have the ability to multitask and manage many different types of people at once. In addition, they have an inherent desire to learn and to teach, and continue to gain knowledge throughout their teaching career. Finally, they must be aware and accepting of differences in race, gender, culture, and socioeconomic status, as they will deal with a variety of students and parents. read more »
Browse schools that offer degrees in "Elementary Education."View Now
Browse schools that offer Teaching degrees - "Leadership"View Now
Browse schools that offer Teaching - "Curriculum/ Instruction"View Now
Elementary Teacher Roles and Responsibilities
Elementary teachers have the responsibility to teach and provide a safe environment for their students. This includes preparing lesson plans that allow students to learn in a variety of ways, such as visually, aurally, and kinesthetically. It also includes being aware of students’ individual personal and emotional needs in addition to educational ones. Elementary teachers are responsible for alerting authorities in the case of suspected abuse or neglect, and often must refer students for outside assistance from counselors, administrators, and behavior specialists. In addition, they must maintain grade and individualized education plan (IEP) records as required by state and federal laws.
Elementary Teacher Environment
Usually, elementary teachers work on school campuses between the hours of 8am and 3pm. They do a lot of walking, standing, and sitting, and often lead physical activities for their students. Although many elementary teachers have their own classroom that can reflect their personal style of teaching, co-teaching is becoming more popular. This means that teachers often share their space with assistants and Special Education providers. Sometimes, an elementary teacher works with students who are home-bound, and provide learning experiences outside of the school campus. In recent years, many elementary teachers have turned to online schools, which allow them to teach students from the comfort of their own homes.
Elementary Teacher Pay and Career Outlook
Elementary teachers are a vital part of the school system, and will likely maintain their current rate of employment over the next six years, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In 2012, there were over 1.5 million elementary school teachers employed, with an average salary of $53,000 per year. In the
In the teaching community, education is the key determinant of leadership opportunities and promotion. For teachers that gain only an early childhood education degree or elementary education degree at the undergraduate level, jobs are limited and can be very competitive. In order to have a better chance at the highest paying jobs, additional education may be required. For teachers who gain a masters degree in elementary education in an area of emphasis like administration, policy-making, or special education, wages can range between $60,000 and $83,000 per year.
Benefits of Earning an Elementary Education Degree Online
Online teaching degrees are an excellent choice for those who already have other work and personal responsibilities. Since the online degree allows you to work at your own pace, it is possible to continue working at your current job while you gain the necessary skills to move into your teaching career. In addition, online education programs are just as viable as on-campus degrees, and are offered by very reputable colleges. Many of these schools provide practicum experiences in collaboration with local cohorts, and prepare you to become licensed in your home state. Online elementary education degrees are one of the fastest, most flexible ways to attain your goal of becoming an elementary teacher.


Literacy Education for All, Results for the Nation Act or the LEARN Act – Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award grants to states for comprehensive planning to improve the literacy of children from birth through grade 12.
Directs the Secretary to award grants to states to implement their comprehensive literacy plans for such children through: (1) competitive subgrants to local educational agencies (LEAs) or early learning programs for specified activities that support early language and literacy development in children from birth through kindergarten entry; (2) competitive subgrants to LEAs that have the highest numbers or percentages of disadvantaged students and students reading or writing below grade level for specified activities to improve the literacy of students in kindergarten through grade 12, including the provision of family literacy services; and (3) additional state activities that include providing technical assistance to subgrantees, coordinating literacy programs and resources throughout the state, disseminating information on promising literacy programs, and enhancing the credentials of literacy instructors.
Allots implementation grants to states on the basis of each state’s share of disadvantaged students.
Requires the Secretary to: (1) perform a five-year national evaluation of the implementation and effect of the literacy initiatives supported by this Act; and (2) provide technical assistance and information on literacy instruction to educational entities.
Authorizes the Secretary to withhold this Act’s funding from states and subgrantees, and states to withhold funding from subgrantees, whose initiatives are not making significant progress in improving student literacy.


As data teams have grown in popularity in recent years, they have been increasingly looked to by educational researchers because of the tantalizing prospect of combining teachers’ on the job professional development with increased and effective data use to drive instruction. Data teams have been increasingly implemented within schools by educational leaders attempting to take advantage of what teachers learn from each other in the context of a data team. Many conceptual models of data team function have been proposed, but few empirical studies have examined how teachers learn from collaborating with each other in a data team. This paper explores the nature of teachers’ learning in data teams, uncovering key factors that impact the learning opportunities created by collaborating around student data.
Collaboration, Data Team, Teacher, Learning, Social Constructivism, Proximity, Transience, Community of Practice
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 License.
Recommended APA Citation
Michaud, R. (2016). The Nature of Teacher Learning in Collaborative Data Teams. The Qualitative Report, 21(3), 529-545. Retrieved from http://nsuworks.nova.edu/tqr/vol21/iss3/7
Curriculum and Social Inquiry Commons, Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons, Educational Leadership Commons, Education Policy Commons, Elementary and Middle and Secondary Education Administration Commons, Elementary Education and Teaching Commons, Junior High, Intermediate, Middle School Education and Teaching Commons, Other Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons, Quantitative, Qualitative, Comparative, and Historical Methodologies Commons, Social Statistics Commons


The Independent featured an interview this week with the acclaimed violinist, Nicola Benedetti who criticised music teaching in the UK. Now, I don’t doubt Ms Benedetti’s commitment to music education. She’s done a lot to inspire kids playing in Scotland’s El Sistema model, The Big Noise project in Raploch. I’m sure she’s sincere in her desire to bring classical music to more young people.
She’s just wrong, that’s all.
According to the Independent, ‘She said teachers should be encouraged to take children through symphonies from Beethoven and Sibelius to Dvorak and Mahler and explain the form in detail. “Every single young person in this country should be made – within the context of their school curriculum – to listen to the greatest classical works.”
Now, aside from the fact that this process sounds suspiciously like the miserable failure of ‘music appreciation’ classes that I and millions of other schoolkids were forced to endure in the 1960s, it raises to important questions. First, is forcing kids to listen to any form of music the best way to fire them up in their appreciation of it? Second, can anyone be successfully ‘forced’ to learn anything?
I work as part of the Musical Futures team that has probably done more to increase the numbers of students studying music at GCSE level in England, than any other pedagogical approach. Teachers who adopt Musical Futures approaches see a minimum of 40% increase in GCSE numbers (and usually much more). Those students are then usually required to learn and analyse classical music (depending upon the exam board requirements). How have we achieved this increase in the number of students appreciating classical music? By allowing students to choose their entry point – the music they love – and putting instruments in their hands all of the time. Ms Benedetti appears to dismiss anything other than ‘complex’ music as ‘fun’, and makes no reference to kids actually playing classical music, possibly because she knows that for the average, untrained, class of Year 7s, it would be beyond them.
Ms Benedetti joins a long and distinguished line of lobbyists of classical music, and it’s hard to see how these lobbyists would be given airtime in any other subject area. Can you imagine Prince Charles arguing that PE lessons should revolve, not just around polo, but on merely watching polo? Or francophile Tony Blair suggesting that all kids should compulsory study French by watching Gerard Depardieu movies – but not actually speak French?
Of course these are ludicrous examples, but so is the proposition that one genre of music is inherently superior to another. Jazz isn’t complex? The music of Brian Wilson or Stephen Sondheim isn’t complex? I don’t think so.
Rather than insist on absolutes, people who aren’t regularly in classrooms should perhaps trust teachers to find their own keys to unlock kids’ musical passions. Through Musical Futures, we’ve seen lots of students better understand classical music by trying to play it. But we don’t insist that they start with it. A good teacher’s job is, in the words of Sri Aurobindo, to start from the near, but work to the far.
The article, however, also raises the issue of compulsion in learning. Can anyone be made to deeply learn anything? Personally, I don’t think so. Sure, with enough repetition you could maybe drag even the most reluctant learner through a test – but would they have truly learned the subject matter? Doesn’t that require interest and motivation on the part of the learner? Forcing unwilling kids to listen to classical music is reminiscent of the ‘beatings will continue until morale improves’ psychology.
And one has to wonder what it is about classical music (which I love, by the way) that demands such forcefulness in the face of resistance? A hint is given by Nicola Benedetti: “(it gives us) a way to go as deep as you can into our history and our understanding of humanity; of our expression and growth as people.” Oh, not that one, Nicola! Classical music as a civilising influence…. tell that to classical buffs Adolph Hitler and Benito Mussolini.
Surely our job as educators in schools is to excite kids about learning, not force-feed them our own prejudices?


What You Can Teach
In order to teach a specific subject, you need to have an endorsement. Endorsements come with different levels, equivalent to the grade levels you can teach at.
To earn an endorsement to teach a specific subject, you must:
- Have completed coursework in your preferred endorsement area
- Take tests that demonstrate your content knowledge
- Complete curriculum planning, assessment and teaching methods work for your endorsement within MiT, and a field experience
All Level: P–12 endorsements cover a subject area that you can teach at any level, from birth (preschool) all the way through high school. Most P–12 endorsements require a second endorsement.
Elementary: K–8 is the state endorsement for teaching elementary school. You’ll be prepared to teach in schools where students stay in the same class all day long.
Middle: 4–9 endorsements specifically prepare you to teach in intermediate, middle school, or junior high schools.
Secondary: 5–12 endorsements prepare you to teach in any intermediate, middle school, junior high, or high school, where teachers teach specific subjects and students move from class to class.
Endorsements Offered at Evergreen
Evergreen offers endorsements in multiple areas, including some that are offered at only a few places in Washington state. Successful applicants to MiT will meet or exceed the minimum coursework expectations for one endorsement area, documented on the worksheet.
Download the worksheet for your selected endorsement to see what coursework and other things are required. The WEST-E Code tells you which tests you need to take for your endorsement in addition to the WEST-B. Find out more about required tests. View a sample worksheet.
|Endorsement||Level||2nd Endorsement||Prerequisites Worksheets||WEST-E Code|
|Biology||5–12||Encouraged||Prerequisites (MS Word)||NES 305|
|Chemistry||5–12||Required||Prerequisites (MS Word)||NES 306|
|Earth and Space Science||5–12|
another science or math preferred
|Prerequisites (MS Word)||NES 307|
|Elementary Education||K–8||Encouraged||Prerequisites (MS Word)||NES 102 & NES 103|
|English Language Arts||5–12||Encouraged||Prerequisites (MS Word)||NES 301|
|English Language Learners||P–12|
generally elementary or ELA
|Prerequisites (MS Word)||051|
|History||5–12||Encouraged||Prerequisites (MS Word)||027|
|Mathematics||5–12||Prerequisites (MS Word)||NES 304|
|Middle Level Humanities (English and Social Studies)||4–9||Encouraged||Prerequisites (MS Word)||052 & 053|
|Middle Level Math||4–9||Prerequisites (MS Word)||NES 203|
|Middle Level Science||4–9||Encouraged||Prerequisites (MS Word)||NES 204|
generally another science or math
|Prerequisites (MS Word)||NES 308|
|Social Studies||5–12||Encouraged||Prerequisites (MS Word)||028|
|Theatre Arts||P–12||Required||Prerequisites (MS Word)||055|
|Visual Arts||P–12||Encouraged||Prerequisites (MS Word)||503|
|World Languages: French, Japanese, or Spanish||P–12||Required||Prerequisites (MS Word)||100*|
Upon application, submit worksheet with courses completed, planned and in progress. List all worksheets in quarter credit hours, converting semester hours to equivalant quarter credits. Successful applicats will meet or exceede the minimum coursework expectations and have most of it done by the time of application.
* Foreign language endorsements also require the ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) or computerized interview (OPIC) and the Written Proficiency Test (WPT) from Language Testing International. These proficiencies must be passed at the advanced low level.


The Musiconomy Manifesto
The Musiconomy is an educational philosophy. It’s an applicable method that strives for greatness in academic, financial, and productive achievement.
The philosophy maintains that musical training, and all the bi-products of learning how to play a musical instrument, to read music, and to develop aural skills, accelerates the development of cognition.
Since musical training develops both the left and right hemispheres of the brain, there are bi-products or benefits to developing musical skills, such as improved abilities in math, science, and reading literacy. Other benefits include non-academic skills such as emotional and social intelligence, which are essential to success in developing and maintaining personal and business relationships. Personal and business relationships are certainly part of the economic prosperity equation.
Other skills that develop as a result of musical training are discipline, concentration, critical thinking, and desire for improvement. As the pace of society continues to accelerate technologically, these skills will be essential for education, development, and simply making sense out of a growing chaos.
The philosophy of The Musiconomy is that musical training, when applied as part of an educational curriculum, will not only improve academic achievements, but also improve the chance for future economic success.
Though there are always exceptions, education is a necessary driver for economic prosperity. Musical training as part of a curriculum during early education stages, elementary and high schools years, improves the absorption of benefits that an education provides.
It has been scientifically proven, with countless studies that musical training not only improves test scores for students, but that all developed countries with the highest scores overall, implement some form of music education into their curriculums.
The students with the highest capabilities in math, science, and reading literacy, are more likely to become productive contributors to society and advancing modernity.
This idea of contributing to society as active members implies that something new must be produced. The advancement of society, the expansion of knowledge of the world, has always been made possible by two synergistic elements: education and imagination. Or otherwise called learning and creativity.
This is where musical training becomes a unique element, in that it accelerates the cognitive ability to both learn and to create. There has always been a place in free societies for educated and creative people. There will always be a need for such people so long as society maintains personal freedom and prosperity.
If it is true that there will always be a need for the educated and the creative, then economic opportunities will be available. If there is no such need, the economy is dead.
As we move forward into the future, we are seeing a new world economy developing that is fiercely competitive. The best minds in the world are competing to develop the best products. Workers with the lowest compensation are manufacturing more and more goods in the world. The best jobs in the world are being given to the most skilled people. It is even likely that people will change careers more than twice in their lifetime due to the relentless shifting of demand in the world economy.
A diverse portfolio of skill sets will be necessary to cope and ultimately prosper in this new world economy. It is not sufficient to be excellent in only one skill. Therefore, the mind must develop several skill sets and with a flexibility to adapt to new environments that will require deliberate learning outside of what is already known. In this way, prosperity is likely.
The U.S Economy in particular, has been cutting spending in arts education for years and has placed less emphasis on the importance of it. This is because music is seen as an “extra-curricular” activity and that there is no relationship between “necessary skills” with math, science, and reading. This is wrong and irrational since there is strong evidence of the contrary.
The Musiconomy supports government funding in arts education, but does not rely on it. Instead, The Musiconomy calls for action and involvement of parents and teachers to deliberately seek musical training for their children and students outside of the school system.
In order to compete with the rest of the world in the new economy, we must develop and culture the most productive and creative minds in the world.
The Musiconomy is the bridge between mind and matter. This advocates the fact that musical training develops intelligent and adaptive minds that imagine, create, and produce “matter.” To produce “matter,” means to produce something that is tangible and useable for society. Without creation and production, an economy will stagnate and collapse. The Musiconomy is a way to develop intelligent minds, to compete for excellence, and to revive the vision of a prosperous future.


Page last updated at 03:18 Asia/Manila, Wednesday, 30 October 2013 PH
Relative to the income distribution, the benefit incidence of public spending on all levels of education was progressive (pro-poor) in both 2008 and 2010. This means that the share of the poorest groups in the benefits of public spending on education was greater than the share of the same groups in the distribution of income. The analysis of subsidy rates showed that public spending on elementary and secondary education was advantageous to the poor in 2008 and 2010. The most pro-poor spending on education is that for elementary education. This stands to reason because the majority of the children in the bottom 20 percent of the income ladder usually drop out before they reach Grade 6. If they get high-quality elementary education they would acquire a minimum of literacy to be able make a decent living.
Finally, public expenditures on water were analyzed. In absolute terms, the benefit incidence of total public spending on water was poorly targeted in 2008 and 2010. The poor did not receive a greater share of public spending on water in general. In 2008 and 2010, however, public spending on public tap and yard/plot was pro-poor in absolute terms. This was not the case for public spending on water in dwelling places, which was biased in favor of the higher-income groups. Relative to the income distribution, the benefit incidence of public spending on all types of water connection was progressive (pro-poor) in both years. Predictably, public spending on public tap water was the most advantageous to the poor.
The tools of analysis acquired by those who participated in this GDN research initiative can be very useful to local government units (LGUs) that are committing themselves to orient their expenditures on social services and infrastructures towards the bottom quarter of their population in the income ladder. Governors and mayors who are interested in engaging the CRC economists in helping them design pro-poor programs in education, health and water services may get in touch with Mr. Ernest Castillo at his email address email@example.com.
The CRC team can help LGU heads to partner with business firms or nongovernmental organizations, utilizing the Public Private Partnership (PPP) scheme, to put up infrastructures in their respective localities to improve the delivery of educational, health and water services that are directly targeted to the poorest segments. These projects can readily obtain financing from private commercial banks or the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP). These LGUs may also issue municipal bonds to finance these infrastructures. With many of the large PPPs at the national level at a standstill because of “paralysis by analysis,” especially at the Department of Transportation and Communication, our only hope for increasing infrastructure spending to desirable levels may be the PPPs that can be implemented by LGUs. For comments, my email address is firstname.lastname@example.org.


Henry Cavendis discovered hydrogen in 1766 in a chemical reaction when he was experimenting with acid and metal. Later in 1781, Cavendis also found that hydrogen produces water when burned. Many scientists came in contact with hydrogen before Cavendis recognized it, but never identified it as a unique element, says Science for Kids.Continue Reading
In 1671, Robert Boyle also produced hydrogen as a result of an experiment with acid and iron. It was later named by Antoine Lavoisier, a French chemist, according to Live Science.
Hydrogen is the first element listed on the periodic table and is represented by the symbol "H." The origins of the word "hydrogen" come from Greece, where "hydro" means water, and "genes" means "creator." It is the most commonly found element in the universe. It is used in hydrogen peroxide, as an element for welding and as a potential fuel source for vehicles. It was used as gas for air travel by zeppelins up until the Hindenburg disaster in 1937, says Science for Kids.
Hydrogen is present in almost all living molecules, yet hydrogen in its purest form in the atmosphere is very scarce. Most often Hhydrogen is found combined with another element, creating water and organic matter, says Live Science.Learn more about Chemistry


Click for enlarged covers
Your Life Radio Interview!
National Parenting Publications Awards Winner!
An Excerpt shared by pediatricians
written to help all parents and educators foster the skills that
children need to read and write. This involves providing the right
activities at each stage of a young child’s development. Readers will
learn how to do this as they learn about typical development.
groundbreaking guide describes the songs, games, toys, activities,
and adaptations that help children develop the visual-perceptual skills
needed to read and the eye-hand coordination to write.
for parents, this comprehensive, fun guide will help you
provide the right activities at each stage of your child’s development.
You will learn about typical development so you can introduce
activities at the right time and in the right sequence.
is passionate about designing activities that promote
learning and success. After working for nine years in the public
schools she recognized that some children demonstrated fine-motor
delays primarily due to lack of experience and set out to write this
guide to help parents and early childhood professionals provide the
sensory motor experience that leads to reading and writing.
"These pages are
packed with great activities and practical information you can use to
help the child you love or work with (or both) build developmental
from foreword by Lindsey Biel, M.A., OTR/L
co-author (with Nancy Peske) of Raising a Sensory Smart Child
Read full Foreword here....
A reviewer added the following:
"This wise and wonderful book helps parents
understand how children develop according to nature’s plan and why
rushing gets them nowhere fast. Barbara Smith’s fun sensory-perceptual
activities build foundational skills to prepare children for writing
and academic success-when the kids are good and ready. She is singing
By Carol Stock Kranowitz, MA
Author of The Out-of-Sync Child


Music Education in Erie's Public Schools
Our mission is to provide all students with comprehensive, standards based Music Education. We believe that music fosters artistic development, critical thinking, intellectual curiosity and pursuit of life-long learning.
The vision is for every student in Erie's Public Schools to have the opportunity to be involved in instrumental, vocal, theatrical and music technology throughout their K-12 urban education. Every student should have an opportunity to participate, experience, create, respond to and connect with music as informed consumers. This will be accomplished through quality music education programs that include:
- Instruction by certified Music Education teachers
- Standard-based, Sequential, K-12 comprehensive curriculum
- Data-driven instruction
- Differentiated instruction that included active participation, accommodates individual difference and utilizes a variety of learning resources, styles and models.
- Curriculum reviews to ensure consistency of implementation.
Our Vision and Mission will be supported by:
- Providing equitable access to quality music education
- Increasing involvement with families and local stakeholders
- Increasing engagement with Erie's Public Schools educational community
- Establishing a framework to ensure sustainability
It is our belief that sequential music study develops creativity, critical thinking, communications skills and fosters teamwork which enables achievement in society as life-long learners.


Toddlers born to obese parents may be more likely to experience developmental delays, a new study suggests.
Researchers from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development found that maternal obesity is often associated with a delay in fine motor skill development. Paternal obesity was also found to have a unique influence on kids' development.
Children of obese mothers were more likely to fail tests of fine motor skills by age 3, but whether the child’s mother, father, or both parents were obese affected which specific developmental problems that surfaced.
While mothers’ obesity was linked with a delay in achieving fine-motor skills, fathers’ obesity was associated with delays in achieving personal and social skills. When both parents were extremely obese, kids were more likely to fail tests of problem solving ability.
Dad’s weight matters
One in 5 pregnant women in the U.S. is overweight or obese. Previous studies have focused on the mothers’ pre- and post-pregnancy weight, but study author Edwina Yeung, Ph.D. says the new study suggests that dad’s weight also has an influence on child development.
A series of tests, beginning when kids were 4 months old, showed that kids with obese mothers were 70% more likely to fail tests of fine motor skill by age 3 compared to children of normal weight mothers.
Findings also revealed that children of obese fathers were 75% more likely to fail a test designed to gauge personal-social skills, such as how well they were able to relate to and interact with others. Kids with two obese parents were nearly three times more likely to fail the test’s problem solving section by age 3.
Possible reason for association
Dr. Yeung, an investigator in NICHD’s Division of Intramural Population Health Research, says it's not yet known why parental obesity may increase a child’s risk for developmental delay.
Animal studies could help to explain the link, at least in the case of maternal obesity. Yeung and her co-authors cite previous research indicating that an animal’s obesity during pregnancy may promote inflammation, which could affect the fetal brain.
The link between paternal obesity and child development is similarly hazy, however some studies suggest that obesity could affect the expression of genes in sperm.
More research needed
Yeung and her colleagues say more studies are needed to confirm the link between parental obesity and developmental delays. Once a link is confirmed, the authors say doctors could begin taking parental weight into account when screening young children for delays.
Obese parents shouldn’t necessarily be consumed with concern over this study, says Dr. Ian Miller, a pediatric neurologist and director of neuroinformatics at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital in Miami.
"Children of obese parents are not doomed to have developmental problems," Miller told HealthDay, noting that any medical condition that affects the brain can cause developmental problems. He believes that every child who may have a developmental problem should be screened and given help, regardless of his or her parents’ weight.
The study has been published online in the journal Pediatrics.


Please visit our grade level pages to learn more specific information. The following is an overview of Lower Dauphin’s K-5 curriculum.
A rigorous and integrated Language Arts program which includes reading, writing, speaking and listening is essential to ensure our students’ college and career readiness. All Lower Dauphin students in grades kindergarten through fifth grade receive daily English/Language Arts instruction which is aligned with the Pennsylvania Core Standards. Students are taught to successfully read and comprehend both Literature and Informational text and to use the traits of Focus, Content, Organization, Style and Conventions to strengthen their writing of those texts. Additionally, the skills and strategies of reading, writing, speaking and listening are consistently incorporated into all other curricular areas. Click here to view Pennsylvania's Pre K to Grade 5 Core State Standards for English Language Arts.
Our students learn science skills and concepts through an exciting hands-on curriculum that turns the classroom into a fun-filled science laboratory. Concepts are taught in the context of real life scenarios so that students are able to make the connection between science and their own lives.
In Social Studies, our youngest students study themselves and the people closest to them. In later years, study is expanded to cover the larger community which is beyond a student’s immediate surroundings. In fourth grade, the focus turns to Pennsylvania history followed by the study of the United States of America in fifth grade.
Our elementary math curriculum is fully aligned to the Pennsylvania Core Standards. Instruction is focused on mastery of grade level content as well as development of mathematical practices, including 1) making sense of problems and persevering at solving them, 2) constructing viable arguments, 3) reasoning abstractly and quantitatively, 4) using tools strategically, 5) looking for and making use of structure, 6) looking for and expressing regularity in repeated reasoning, and 7) attending to precision. Click here to view Pennsylvania's PreK to Grade 12 Core State Standards for Mathematics.
Please feel free to contact Douglas G. Winner, Director of Elementary Education, at firstname.lastname@example.org if you have any questions regarding our elementary core curriculum.


Date of Award
Master of Music Education (MME)
The individual who lacks the use of his voice as a musical instrument lacks the natural, fundamental medium of musical expression. Not only does he lack the means for the closest and most direct relationship with music, but also there is a serious danger that, as a result, his whole range of musical appreciation will be impaired and finally obliterated. This is likely to occur because he does not have at his command and under his control this power which he so definitely needs. Children who are thus handicapped are often designated by the use of the word monotone.
Knight, Lina Baldauf, "Experimental Studies in Junior High School Monotonism" (1941). Graduate Thesis Collection. 374.


Summer Camp ’17
Math, ELA, & STEM
07/03 – 08/03
Mon – Thurs: 10:30am – 4:30pm
Prevent Summer Brain Drain!
5-week summer camp
This summer camp will take place Mondays through Thursdays for a total of 114 hours.
Small class size
Camp classes will be capped at 5 students per instructor in order to maximize the delivery of educational material.
Math & ELA
Because so much learning is lost over the summer, Mondays through Wednesdays will be dedicated to strengthening a student’s ELA & Math skills to prepare for the new school year. Students will focus on improving their writing and reading comprehension abilities, as well as mastering mathematical concepts. Test-taking tips and strategies are integrated along the way!
Computer Science Workshops
In addition to Math & ELA, Thursdays will be devoted entirely to STEM workshops! Through computer building, coding, 3D printing, and biographical texts, students will dive deeper into the computer science world and into the life of a computer programmer and engineer, as well as become knowledgeable about leading innovators.
Each student takes a comprehensive, research-based diagnostic assessment, which has been statistically validated for reliability and is aligned with Common Core and State Standards. With this assessment, we are able to pinpoint strengths and weaknesses down to the sub-skill level in both ELA and Math. Based on the results, we create their individualized learning plan.
Individualized Learning plan
We create an individualized learning plan for teaching the concepts that are necessary for your child for the start of the new school year. This allows students who are in need of remediation, enhancement, or both to get to where they need to be and feel confident when going back to school in September! Summer is the perfect time to get ahead, not fall behind!
Reading & Writing
We understand that the Common Core demands that students learn to analyze fictional and non-fictional passages in ways beyond their years. Our Reading program provides students with insight on how to strategically read passages and answer multiple-choice questions.
Our writing program teaches students how to write coherent short- and extended-responses. Students learn to use an easily adaptable writing structure that can be used by writers of all levels.
We understand the high demands that have been imposed upon our students, and thus are motivated to help them overcome their obstacles when coming across such passages and writing assignments.
Our Math programs provide students with insight on how to strategically solve mathematical problems that they may find challenging when facing them alone.
Furthermore, we understand that the Common Core demands that students solve mathematical problems using different methods such as the “box method,” “window method,” “array,” etc.
This new way of learning poses a challenge to many students and parents alike. We understand the frustration, and thus are motivated to help students overcome their obstacles when coming across such problems.
Students apply learned skills in a fun & engaging way, through adventurous games and applications
Beginners begin to learn how to code character direction and make their own stories/games (e.g. walk, jump, kick, turn, repeat loops, spatial reasoning)
Intermediates build on foundational skills and learn to code more complex character movements and actions (e.g. repeat loops, determine strength of actions, build/mod obstacle courses, etc.)
Not only will students increase their Math and Reading & Writing skills to prepare for the new school year, but will also learn about what it takes to build a fully-functioning computer from the ground up. During Tip-Top Brain’s summer camp, students will work together in small groups and learn to put together a life-size computer, piece by piece. Guided by instructors who are computer experts, there is no doubt that your child will have an enriching summer!
3D-printing leads the way for young inventors to learn the principles of design, as well as help students think through how to enhance the way that humans interface with the world. Here at Tip-Top Brain, we always strive to bring the latest technology into our classrooms and give our students the academic advantage!
Students will be transformed from passive consumers of goods to actively-engaged inventors who are in control of their own learning! And when this happens, it is a wonderful learning experience that keeps them yearning for more.
Visualization in the Making
Since ideas can be created within a short period of time, students can see their work as real products. When students have access to 3D-printing, abstract concepts in science and math have the potential to be transformed into concrete (plastic) visuals.
Because students can apply the use of 3D-printing to everything one can imagine, the possibilities are endless! During our summer camp, students will have the opportunity to dive deep into a world of imagination and have their idea come to life!


The schools of Zurich city aim to ensure that the abilities of every child and every adolescent are encouraged. All pupils are to benefit from the best possible preconditions in order to become motivated and competent individuals in our society.
An overview of the school system
Elementary education is mandatory and accessible to all children - regardless of gender, religion or origin. Everyone will be given the same opportunities.
Allocations to schools and kindergartens
The city of Zurich is divided into seven school councils. Depending on the home address, it will be decided in which school or kindergarten the child will go. The allocation to the schools and kindergartens is determined by the respective school supervisory authority, schools and kindergartens cannot be chosen freely .
• 30 500 pupils and kindergarten children
• 3100 teaching staff
• 2000 nursery («Hort») employees
• 85 caretakers
• 99 school units
Daily routines and timetable
By offering various types of childcare programmes, the school contributes to support and relieve families in their everyday life.
- In the nurseries («Hort»), pupils can spend time with a small group of other children and receive healthy food. The «Hort» locations vary; sometimes they are located within the school facilities, sometimes outside.
- The day schools («Tagesschulen») are childcare facilities which combine both education and after-school activities. Children who attend the «Tagesschulen» usually join the programme in their first school year and stay throughout Primary School, however there are only five of its sort in Zurich.
- Pupil’s clubs («Schülerclubs») are an additional offer of the Primary School that combine education, meals and after-school activities.
In the morning: usually 8.20 a.m. - 11:55 a.m. (4 lessons of 45 minutes)
In the afternoon: usually 1:45 p.m. - 3:25 p.m. (2 lessons of 45 minutes)
For pupils attending Secondary School, classes may begin at 07.30 a.m. in the morning and end at 5.15 p.m.in the afternoon.
Teaching hours are based on so-called «block scheduling» which means that the children attend school every Monday to Friday morning for usually four lessons. In addition to this, the pupils also attend school between two and four afternoons a week, but never on Wednesdays.
Homework is a supplement to the in-class education. The pupils should learn how to trust in their own abilities, work independently and learn how to structure their time. The pupils should be able to do their homework without parental assistance.
Elementary education curriculum
The elementary education curriculum consists: «Mensch und Umwelt», languages, mathematics, arts and physical education.
- «Mensch und Umwelt» includes subjects such as history, geography, technology, science, philosophy and religion. These subjects are taught from the first year of Primary School.
- Language classes challenge and encourage the pupils within the areas of reading, writing, listening and speaking in German, French and English. English is taught from the second year of primary school, French from the fifth and Italian is offered as an elective subject as of Secondary School level.
- Mathematics and physical education are taught from the first year of Primary School.
- Handicraft is taught from the second year of Primary School.
- Swimming lessons are mandatory from the first until the fourth year of Primary School. Usually, swimming facilities, with professional swimming instructors, are accessible to the pupils.
In Secondary School, there is a distinction between mandatory subjects and electives.
Regulations for elementary education
The regulations for elementary education are set by the Office of Elementary Education, Canton of Zurich.
Upper secondary school
The Department of Education, Canton of Zurich, is responsible for administrating the upper Secondary School.
An overview of all private schools in Zurich as well as across Switzerland can be found on Privatschulverzeichnis.


What is the definition of a successful student?
Is it a student who always comes to class prepared, ready with her homework and materials for the day? A student who scores in the top percentile on a standardized test? A student who is eager to learn and grow in order to help her community? A student who is a leader and a collaborator?
There is no one way to quantify student success. And yet, we often assess student achievement based on their performance on standardized tests. While such tests do offer some insights into student learning and teacher practice, research has shown they may not be the best predictors of important long-term education outcomes.
Research by Mindset Scholar Matt Kraft, an assistant professor of education and economics at Brown University, examines how teachers influence a broad range of cognitive and other factors not captured on state standardized tests. In a new article forthcoming in the Journal of Human Resources, he explores whether teachers who improve students’ scores on standardized tests, which are often used to assess teacher quality, also help facilitate students’ growth in other domains, including complex reasoning, effort, and learning mindsets.
Matt’s research draws on data from the Measures of Effective Teaching Project. The dataset includes over 4,000 4th and 5th grade students and over 200 of their classroom teachers across six large school districts.
To measure students’ academic performance, Matt analyzed not only their standardized test scores, but also their performance on open-ended tasks. The tasks—the Balanced Assessment in Mathematics and the Stanford Achievement Test 9 Open-ended Reading Assessment—require students to respond to complex problems and to justify their reasoning. Matt also looked at students’ levels of effort, grit, and growth mindset (as self-reported in a student survey).
Here are Matt’s primary findings:
- Teachers have large effects on a wide range of students’ cognitive and social-emotional skills.
- Teachers who develop students’ basic numeracy skills are also likely to be developing their ability to solve more complex mathematical tasks.
- Teachers’ ability to raise students’ basic literacy skills is only weakly related to their ability to raise their ability to reason about and respond to complex text.
- Among teachers, there is little relationship between their effects on student achievement and their effects on students’ level of effort, grit, or growth mindset
- The performance measures used in current teacher evaluation systems do not capture the effects teachers have on students’ complex cognitive skills and social-emotional competencies.
These findings suggest that teachers who are relatively effective in improving students’ performance on standardized tests may not excel to the same extent at developing other predictors of student success, such as adoption of a growth mindset, or performance on complex academic tasks that require deep conceptual understanding, especially in English Language Arts.
Current teacher accountability, evaluation, and reporting systems vary in the extent to which they incentivize a focus on helping students develop complex problem-solving skills and a broader array of attitudes, beliefs, and competencies. This study reinforces earlier research by other scholars that demonstrated the complexity of measuring how teachers influence different types of student performance. Future research should deepen our understanding of how teachers affect a more comprehensive vision of student success and the ways in which teachers can be effectively trained to support student growth across a broad array of beliefs, skills, and competencies.


Starting at an appropriate reading level, SLC students are
taught explicit reading comprehension strategies. These include finding
the main idea, making inferences, drawing conclusions, finding facts, and detecting
the sequence. Students are also taught to be active readers and to use
strategies such as prediction, questioning, image construction, and
summarizing. Students learn to monitor their own comprehension when
reading, and to become aware when they are confused or the text does not make sense.
Knowledge of words is also critical for good reading comprehension.
Explicit vocabulary instruction at SLC is based on the Greek and Latin roots
that form the foundation of the English language. Students learn the "building
blocks" of words, as well as specific vocabulary derived from such roots.
Students learn word meanings and relationships and gain the skills to decipher
an unlimited number of new words. Vocabulary development is especially critical
for middle and high school students who will soon take the SAT.
As SLC students' reading ability and confidence grow, so do
the lengths of the passages and complexity of the reading material. Students
also learn how to approach different reading tasks such as literature and


Music is an awesome phenomenon. Virtually everybody likes music, and for many, it plays a huge role in their everyday lives. Consider the fact that music—merely a sequence of sounds received by our ears—can actually make us feel strong emotions that are otherwise reserved for real life experiences! No wonder it’s so captivating. The processes of making music are equally remarkable. Whether it’s composing an original song, singing with heart-felt expression, or playing a musical instrument, many complex skills are in play. It requires sensory perception, mental thought and planning, physical execution, and emotional sensitivity. And all at the same time. Yet, musicians are able to coordinate their own efforts with others to create amazing musical products.
With the right conditions and experiences, people can become so musical that their performance seems effortless. I think that just goes to show that, contrary to our culture’s general belief in innate talent, music making is a skill that is acquired (not inherited), much like speaking and reading your native language. And just like language learning, I believe human beings are hard-wired for becoming musical.
For these and other reasons, I am a strong advocate of music education in schools. Music teachers have a long history of providing young people with rewarding musical experiences, producing highly skilled performers, and generally being powerful positive influences in the lives of their students. Yet I often wonder if current educational practices in school music are just scratching the surface. I’d like to see a much higher percentage of students involved in school music. The curriculum could expand to offer, for example, more experiences with popular styles (like rock, R & B, country, rap), and computer-based composing and recording techniques. I believe this can be done while maintaining the quality of traditional school band, choir, and orchestra activities.
Thank you for checking out my stuff here. I hope you’ll find something useful and feel led to offer me some comments.


Fizzing Colours - A baking Soda and Vinegar Science Experiment for toddlers and preschoolers - Happy Hooligans
Cool science experiment for kids! Make a rainbow with just Skittles and water.
Dancing Raisins Experiment - ResearchParent.com This may be so intriguing, get ready to enjoy it too. See a lot more at http://www.thrivingparenthood.com/video-10-fantastic-breakfast-recipes-for-kids
FUN SCIENCE FOR KIDS: Oil & Water Experiment. Great for all ages!
Turn milk into plastic with vinegar! Such a cool science experiment for kids, preschoolers and adults too
Art and Science for Kids: Explore chromatography using coffee filters and markers! Fun STEM / STEAM activity for children. Turn the results into a butterfly craft- perfect for spring! ~ BuggyandBuddy.com
10 Simple Science Experiments for Year Olds - Love and Marriage.and a baby carriage
YOUTH This EPIC Bottle Rocket Flew Higher Than our Two Story House! Use a soda bottle, baking soda, and vinegar. Super fun science and backyard project! Demonstrate Newton's law of motion.
Simple Science Experiment for Kids - What Melts in the Sun? Perfect activity for a hot day!
Expérience couleurs et mousse à raser


Nurturing self-expression through art; Why Art, How Art: A Comprehensive Curriculum Guide, by Jane Cook Bryant. Seattle: Special Child Publications. 304 pp. $49.50.
Children often respond enthusiastically to good art instruction. For many youngsters, art is a natural and enjoyable means of self-expression. As an art teacher, gallery director, and professional artist, Jane Bryant sees art training as a way to reveal and cultivate a child's innate creative intelligence. Within the school curriculum, she believes art instruction can play a significant role in helping a child develop problem-solving skills that can be applied to other subject areas.
In this thorough curriculum guide, Bryant explores both the philosophical and practical aspects of teaching art. Her philosophy is based on the idea that all individuals possess innate creativity, which can be uncovered and expressed.
The book is rich in practical advice for teachers and includes clearly explained art lessons as the basis for planning a firm but flexible art curriculum.
The 21 lessons described in the book are planned sequentially and can be adapted to differing grade levels. The lessons teach the basic art principles of printmaking, paper design, contour drawing, painting, clay mobiles, collage, and other media. The guide also offers one-day lessons that can be used for variety, special projects for holidays, and suggestions for displaying and evaluating a child's work.
The art lessons described in the book are structured by clear steps leading to the completion of a particular project. Each is illustrated with examples of children's art. A theme, a technique, or limitations of color or materials may be set to define the art problem. Within this framework, students are free to experiment, make decisions, and arrive at their own answers to the lesson.
A particularly valuable section discusses how to recognize various stages in a child's art development. For most young children, drawing is a spontaneous activity and one of their earliest forms of communication. As children grow older, art education helps refine a child's artistic expression through increased knowlege and facility with various media. Properly taught, art can help develop self-confidence, aspiration, involvement, inner directedness, sensitivity, and originality.
The book also devotes substantial attention to teaching art to children with special needs. As well as uncovering the creativity inherent in each child, art instruction can help these children develop mental skills such as reasoning, the ability to make decisions, and an improvement in attitude. According to Bryant, teaching art to these students generally requires resourcefulness, patience, and good humor. In maintaining discipline, she advises, teachers should learn to reject negative behavior patterns rather than the child or his artwork.
Bryant emphasizes that a teacher does not need to be an artist in order to teach art. Talent in art may be reassuring and helpful, she says, but it is secondary to a talent for organizing and structuring lessons for maximum motivation. More important is the teacher's recognition of each child's limitless potential to create.


The Magic of Music in Early Childhood!
Studies show that young children with musical training are better, more focused students.
Active music making allows children to get their wiggles out and move their bodies while learning important foundational skills of music.
Studies show a direct link between language development and early music exposure. Finding rhythm and learning how to keep accurate beat can improve your child’s language skills!
Kids’ MusicRound and You
Our classes are created to excite and educate children while surrounding them with the joy and wonder of music. You don’t want your little one to miss out!
Work for yourself, but not by yourself. Flexible hours, reasonable start-up costs and unparalleled support. Opening a center is a rewarding career choice.
Create. Educate. Inspire. Share the joy of music in the classroom! Learn more about one of our training options that compliments your schedule.


Art education at the Lyceum Alpinum is an integral part of the curriculum, both in the Matura Section and in the Department of International Studies. Comparable to subjects such as Music, Art is aimed at promoting students’ emotional and creative development. There is a clear focus on encouraging the individual talents of the students. Building a solid basis of techniques and skills is essential for carrying out creative work, be it inspired by imagination and passion, a love of experimentation or observing nature. Not least, an important task of art education is to develop a critical approach towards the possibilities of modern media and an intense engagement with the visual arts and contemporary artistic production.
IB Visual Arts
The IB Visual Arts course is exciting, analytical and exploratory. It consists of two parts: research in the form of an A4 journal and finished studio pieces to be exhibited. Through self-directed research the students extend their knowledge and understanding of art and artists to further the development of their own studio pieces which are refined and modified to produce personally relevant and exciting art. The assessment criteria provide a means of evaluating the work. The freedom and flexibility of the course is thoroughly enjoyed by the students.


Chicka Chicka Boom Boom Themed First Grade Common Core “I can…” Checklists for Language Arts and Math
These checklists will serve as an easy, first grade friendly, way to track the common core standards you are responsible for. I love them because they help keep me focused on what I am teaching!! They are also INVALUABLE to have handy during parent-teacher conferences for talking points and documentation of each student’s progress! The popular Chicka Chicka Boom Boom style will keep everyone’s attention!! Included in this packet is a complete set of “I can…” statements for English Language Arts and Math Common Core Standards for First Grade.
The ELA standards/strands set include:
Foundational Skills - 17
Reading Literature – 15
Reading Informational Text – 13
Listening and Speaking – 8
Writing – 15
Language - 26
The Math standards/strands set include:
Numbers and Operations in Base Ten - 27
Operations and Algebraic Thinking - 24
Measurement and Data - 16
Geometry - 14
These Common Core Standards were developed and written by the NGA. © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved.
Check out my FREE Reader’s Theater as a Sample…
Hey, Little Ant
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Chicka Chicka Boom Boom Themed First Grade Common Core Poster Set for Language Arts and Math
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Thank you so much for taking a peek at my Chicka Chicka Boom Boom Themed First Grade Common Core Checklists for Language Arts and Math Set. If you follow me, you already know I love to leave you with a joke and a smile. I hope you enjoy this wacky school joke….
Teacher: How many seconds in a minute?
Teacher: How many minutes in an hour?
Teacher: Good, now for a hard one, how many seconds in a year?
Student: Yes, January 2nd, February 2nd, March 2nd…


Blue-eyed Marie Hammond of Edgefield, S.C., turned her face up to study the drawing of an 1837 Creek Indian hanging on the wall of the Augusta-Richmond County Museum.
"That's my relative," she told her husband, Charles.
Her grandmother, Mary Jane Hawkins, was a descendant. "She looked like an Indian," she said. Six of her children were dark; and six blond and blue-eyed like Mrs. Hammond.
Mrs. Hammond took advantage of Museum Day on Sunday in Augusta to introduce her husband to the chief and some of her family history.
The event, sponsored by the International Council of Museums, highlights the role historical institutions play in promoting community understanding. Visitors could take a trolley to any of eight sites participating downtown. Fort Gordon's Signal Museum also participated.
Jim McGaw of Thomson, dressed as a colonist from his white, loose-fitting shirt to his black, square-toed shoes, displayed a hammered dulcimer in the county museum's lobby.
The instrument had been used for about 1500 years before it was supplanted by the piano in the 1400s, said Mr. McGaw, a music education teacher at Dearing Elementary School. Its small size relative to a piano made it popular among the colonists -- rich ones, at least.
Only the rich could afford a waterproof box big enough to transport it across the Atlantic, he said.
The dulcimer familiar to fans of mountain and folk music evolved from a smaller version, called a scheitholt. Mountaineers in the Smokies added a sound box to the scheitholt when they needed a bigger sound to accompany cloggers, he said. They took the name from the King James Bible, he said as he played the instrument across his lap.
Dulcimers can run between $150 and $250. The hammered version, played with small mallets, costs between $700 and $2,500, he said.
Outside, Paul Perry, from near Harlem, smoked an eye-of-the-round over an open fire. Nearby were deer skins and a flintlock rifle, a style used by colonists, he said.
Mr. Perry, owner of Perry Dental Lab, hunts with his custom-made gun. A shooter measures black powder into the muzzle and then uses a hickory ramrod to shove a cloth-wrapped lead ball on top of the powder. With a touch more powder to the lock, the rifle is ready to fire. "If I'm in a hurry, I can do it in 20 seconds," he said.
Competition for the Indian trade gave Augusta its start. Traders swapped pots, utensils, edge weapons and cloth for green hides, then shipped them in 150-pound bundles to British tanners, he said. "Deer skins made excellent clothing."
After a while, the Indians became dependent on the settlers' trade, eroding their primitive way of life. Colonists then used the trade to control the Indians, he said. "If they acted up, (the colonists) would cut off trade," he said.
Besides the Signal and the county museums, other participants were the Cotton Exchange, Meadow Garden, Fort Discovery, Gertrude Herbert Institute, Lucy C. Laney Museum, Ezekiel Harris House and the Morris Museum of Art.
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The Mathematics department at HSCL is dedicated to helping students develop essential thinking and reasoning skills. Through the exploration of the principles of mathematics, students make real world connections and become confident in their ability to solve difficult mathematical problems, communicate through mathematical discourse, and integrate the use of technology to prepare students for a stronger future. Our students gain competency in Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II and Trigonometry. As a result, not only can they complete necessary requirements for the Advanced Regents Diploma, but they will become aware of the importance of understanding mathematics in the world.
Algebra I introduces students to the foundational skills needed to succeed in higher level mathematics. The course emphasizes the importance of problem solving, reasoning, and creating mathematical models. Students learn to construct mathematical arguments and use logic to defend them. Algebra I begins with the study of expressions, including how to interpret and write expressions, and continues by developing students’ knowledge of polynomials and rational expressions. The first part of the Algebra I course culminates with a comprehensive exploration of equations in which students learn to create and solve a variety of equations, use graphs to make predictions, apply linear equations to real relationships, and analyze the relationships between variables. During the second part of this course, students build on prior learning to engage in a comprehensive study of functions. Students interpret, analyze, and construct models of a variety of functions. Through their study of Algebra I, students develop a strong mathematical base necessary for taking and passing the New York State Regents Examination in Algebra.
Geometry continues many themes that students explored during Algebra I. An emphasis on problem solving, abstract reasoning, precise work, and clear communication connects geometry directly to earlier coursework. Through the introduction of new material, which includes the examination of statements and the construction of proofs, students develop their logic and reasoning skills as well as improve their ability to identify and evaluate valid arguments. During this course, students frequently visualize in two and three dimensions, thereby gaining a better understanding of measurement and units. The first part of the course focuses heavily on constructing figures and observing geometric relationships. Students also explore properties and theorems involving triangles as they begin to construct proofs. The first half of the course concludes with work on midpoint, distance, and the Pythagorean Theorem. The measurement strand continues in the second half of the course as students explore polygons and solids and create models for finding area, perimeter, surface area, lateral area, and volume in a variety of real-world situations. The course concludes with material involving angles, parallelism, perpendicularity, slope, special quadrilaterals and conic sections. During the course, students have repeated opportunities to connect their algebra skills with the geometric concepts as they work on performance tasks and solve meaningful application problems. Students that complete this course sit for the New York State Regents Examination in Geometry.
Algebra II and Trigonometry
Algebra II and Trigonometry merge skills learned in Geometry and Algebra I and extends them through an intensive curriculum that develops more advanced topics within both. Exploration, inquiry, discovery, reasoning, and problem solving are at the heart of the course. The first half of the course will expand upon previously learned algebraic techniques including functions and number systems in order to gain a more detailed view of the relationships between variables. At the root of our explorations of functions are rates of change. We will constantly ask: How does one thing change relative to another? The second half of the course will focus on probability, statistics and trigonometry. Probability will allow us to determine the likelihood of an event; it is the foundation of reasoned decision making in those cases where results are not certain. Trigonometry is the field of mathematics devoted to the study of the angles and sides of a triangle. We will explore trigonometry and uncover real world applications of trigonometric formulas. The course culminates in a New York State Regents Exam and is the last of the three Math Regents exams required to obtain a New York State Advanced Regents Diploma.