Using a Journal Article as a Professional Development Experience
Title: Enhancing Mathematical Learning in a Technology-Rich Environment
Authors: Jennifer M. Suh, Christopher J. Johnston, and Joshua Douds
Journal: Teaching Children Mathematics
Issue: November 2008, Volume 15, Issue 4, pp. 235 - 241
Rationale/Suggestions for Use:
This article describes a project used with teachers to help educators recognize and plan mathematics tasks that support a technology-rich environment. Teachers are also provided with a template for planning mathematics tasks that appropriately incorporate technology. This article provides teachers with an opportunity to: work collaboratively to plan mathematics lessons that support a technology-rich environment; to see examples of how technology tools amplify opportunities for extending mathematical thinking; and to discuss how technology can be used (appropriately) to enhance teaching and learning of mathematics. It is recommended that this professional development experience take place in a multi-day format with time in between sessions.
- Computers with internet access for participants
- Copy of the article for each participant
- Chart paper & markers
- Copies of the “Advancing Mathematics Thinking with the Use of Technology” planning sheet for participants
- A copy of the reflection questions (referenced in the Assignment portion) for each participant
During the initial session, teachers will engage in a grade-appropriate Illuminations activity. The facilitator will use this opportunity to facilitate a discussion on the influence of a technology-rich environment on five critical features of the classroom: the nature of classroom tasks, the mathematical tool as learning support, the role of the teacher, the social culture of the classroom, and equity and accessibility.
- Teachers read the article: Enhancing Mathematical Learning in a Technology-Rich Environment
- Divide teachers into grade-band specific groups (Pre-K-2 and 3 – 5) to explore the Illuminations Concentration activity. This activity can be found at: http://illuminations.nctm.org/ActivityDetail.aspx?ID=73
- After completing the activity, teachers will reconvene as a whole group. Using the Concentration activity as a model, teachers will discuss how teaching and learning mathematics can be enhanced appropriately by using this activity in their classrooms.
- Teachers will return to grade band specific groups to complete the task below:
Assignment: Upon going back to their classrooms, teachers will teach the lesson(s) in their respective classrooms and document their thinking through work samples and observation logs. Each participant should respond to the following reflection questions in an observation log:
- Teachers identify a mathematics area at their grade level that presents a teaching & learning challenge.
- Teachers will use the template from the article to plan a collaborative lesson in a technology –rich environment to address the identified mathematics task. These lessons should be shared with other participants and/or the whole group in order to give and receive feedback. Use these guidelines when considering how to integrate the technology into the lesson:
- Introducing technology in context
- Addressing worthwhile mathematics with appropriate pedagogy
- Taking advantage of technology
- Connecting mathematics topics
- Incorporating multiple representations
- Was technology integrated “appropriately” into the lesson?
- How did the lesson address the five process standards?
- What were the added benefits to students in using the technology?
- How did you challenge the high achievers?
- Was your lesson appropriately adapted for the diverse learner?
- Was your lesson developmentally appropriate? If not, what was inappropriate? What would you do to change it?
- How did your lesson address auditory, tactile and visual learning styles?
- How did the students demonstrate understanding of the materials presented?
Teachers will share and discuss their work with students using student work samples and teacher observation logs. A significant portion of the reflection time should be spent on addressing the observations documented in the observation logs. Allow time for teachers to revise and edit the technology-based mathematics tasks based on student work and teacher observations.
Teachers select and teach a technology-based mathematics lesson (using a resource such as Illuminations or The National Library of Virtual Manipulatives) in their respective classrooms and document their thinking through work samples and observation logs. Teachers should be encouraged to use the Advancing Mathematics Thinking with the Use of Technology planning sheet as well as the reflection questions to evaluate the experience with students.
Connections to Other NCTM Publications:
- Alejandre, S., & Moore, V. (2003, September). Technology as a tool in the primary classroom. Teaching Children Mathematics, 10, 16-19.
- Clements, D. H., & Sarama, J. (2002, February). The role of technology in early childhood learning. Teaching Children Mathematics, 8, 340-343.
- Sinclair, N., & Crespo, S. (2006, May). Learning mathematics in dynamic computer environments. Teaching Children Mathematics, 12, 436-444.


Grade Level: 5 through 8
Subject Area: Science
Estimated time of Completion: Activity and discussion can take up to 2 90-minute blocks depending on the amount of research
Food webs show the interaction of different producers and consumers in an ecosystem. They are a good visual organizer to show the different flows of energy among the organisms. They can also be used to demonstrate how each organism is important to the survival of the ecosystem.
The Living Edens: South Georgia Island shows examples of organisms that live on South Georgia Island and how they get their energy. After watching the video, students can construct a food web showing the interactions among the organisms on the island and in the ocean.
By the end of this activity, students will be able to:
National Science Standards:
This lesson addresses the following national science standards for grades 5 through 8 as established in the National Science Education Standards at http://www.nap.edu/readingroom/books/nses/html/:
Procedures and Activities:
Ask students to list several organisms found in the region. These should include animals and plants. (Students might begin by listing things they've eaten in the past 24 hours.) List these organisms in different places on a blackboard. Ask students to draw lines representing "who eats what" among the organisms listed. Afterwards, fill in any blanks or clear up any confusing relationships. Explain that organisms in every environment are part of a food web; students will be looking for such a web in the South Georgia Island video. (*The teacher may show the entire video so students can see the complete variety of organisms represented; however, teachers may want to screen the program first due to a few graphic scenes of seals fighting.)
Completed food webs could be used to measure the students understand of how energy flows in the ecosystem.
Student participation in discussion could be observed. Students could also individually answer the discussion questions on paper.
Have students research various ways Antarctica and surrounding islands have been affected by humans (egg harvesting, oil spills, hunting, over fishing, and loss of habitat). How have these actions changed the populations of organisms of the ecosystem/food web? What can be done to prevent humans from destroying the South Georgia ecosystem?
Students could examine an organism in the food web and determine how it is adapted to hunt and eat its food. They could also examine how they camouflage and protect themselves from predators.
Web Resources: (Note: these links will take you away from PBS Online.)
Pete and Barb's Penguin Page
Seal Conservation Society: Antarctic Fur Seal
Life in Antarctica: British Antarctic Survey
USA Today: Work and Daily Life in Antarctica
About the Author:
Kathleen Taylor is a 6th grade Science and Computer Science Teacher at George Mason Middle School in Falls Church, VA. She graduated from the University of Mississippi with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education.
Her current interest is developing curriculum that allows her to students to explore the earth sciences in creative ways. She has the most fun teaching oceanography, meteorology, and geology because she feels kids are naturally fascinated by understanding the physical world around them.


Undergraduate Secondary Education Program
Spring 2013 - Program Rating - Common Core Middle School Content - NA
Teacher candidates, even those who excel in math, generally require three semesters of coursework, complemented by adequate field practice in order to progress from a procedural to a conceptual understanding of the essential mathematics topics taught in the elementary grades.
The program does not meet the standard because it requires that teacher candidates take little or no coursework designed to develop their conceptual understanding of elementary mathematics topics. It thus fails to ensure that all essential topics are adequately covered, regardless of the design of the instruction.
REJOINDER to Spring 2013 Program Rating
The program ensures that teacher candidates have the content preparation necessary to successfully teach to the Common Core State Standards.
Common Core Middle School Content Requirements: Link to Undergraduate Catalog
Art Education pg. 88-94
Biology Education pg. 133-139
Biology/Chemistry Education pg. 133-142
English Education pg. 99-104
Mathematics Education pg. 146-149
Music Education pg. 159-171
Physical Education pg. 129-132
Social Studies Education pg. 95-98
Artifact: Degree Checklists


Here are some of the General Education Standards that Elementary Education majors are expected to meet:
Standard #1 for Professional Education reads:
"The educator demonstrates the ability to use the central concepts, tools of inquiry, and structures of each discipline he or she teaches and can create opportunities that make these aspects of subject matter meaningful for all students."
English 355 provides the basic knowledge of the "central concepts, tools of inquiry, and structures" of the discipline of English to prepare you to meet this standard for language arts.
Standard #1 for Early Childhood-Late Childhood (K-6th) reads:
"The kindergarten through sixth grade teacher demonstrates a high level of competence in use of the English language arts and knows, understands, and uses concepts from emerging literacy, reading, language, and child development to teach reading, writing, speaking, viewing, listening, and thinking skills, and to help all students successfully apply their developing literacy skills to many different situations, materials, and ideas."
English 355 helps you develop that "high level of competence" in language arts.


Yamaha Music Education System
A unique method of teaching music that allows everyone, from small children to adults, to learn music in a consistent education system
“Fostering musicality that everyone has by instinct, developing the ablitity, as well as encouraging to share joy, of making music of his own.”: the concept that Yamaha Music Education System is based on.
Introduction to the Yamaha Music Schools operated in more than forty countries/regions around the world
The courses for children from age 2 to primary-school age to develop their creative ability
The courses for adults who are genuine music lovers
Textbooks and teaching materials developed specifically to fit the content and characteristics of each course and the language


Emphasis Art: A Qualitative Art Program for Elementary and Middle Schools
"The authors has written a book that reflects the latest trends in art education and demonstrates how to motivate children to learn by integrating ... Show synopsis "The authors has written a book that reflects the latest trends in art education and demonstrates how to motivate children to learn by integrating art with other content areas. "Emphasis Art" promotes hands-on learning, through technical directions for art-studio experiences as well as helpful suggestions for classroom management, writing, lesson plans, and teaching are to gifted children and students with special needs. This book focuses on the intrinsic worth of art-studio experience and the process of implementing art education into classroom practice with a new emphasis on cultural understanding. In addition to a wealth of creative ideas and clear technical direction, this popular text promotes art appreciation and provides educators with lesson plans that incorporate instructional objectives. For teachers, future teachers, or educators.


13 pages matching lessons in this book
Results 1-3 of 13
What people are saying - Write a review
We haven't found any reviews in the usual places.
Developing Word Meanings 27
What Research Says About the Teaching of Phonics
ability accent alphabet approach assessing attack skills auditory discrimination basal reader basic beginning reading instruction Carden Method charts child classroom Cleland consonant sounds consonants context clues controlled vocabulary dictionary skills digraphs Dolch Edgar Dale Education Elementary School Journal English evaluation example experiences Gestalt psychology grade level initial intermediate grade introduced language lessons Listen MAE CARDEN materials mental age method oral phonetic phonics instruction phonics skill Pittsburgh Public Schools practice present primary grades procedure pronounce pronunciation pupils readiness tests reading program recognize rhyming words sentence sequence sight vocabulary sight words specific spelling story structural analysis suffixes syllables symbols synthetic phonics taught teacher teaching of phonics Teaching Phonics tion understanding University of Pittsburgh visual discrimination visual perception Vocabulary and Word-Attack vocabulary development vowel vowel sounds word analysis word recognition word-attack skills workbooks writing Yoakam youngsters


21 pages matching aesthetic education in this book
Results 1-3 of 21
What people are saying - Write a review
We haven't found any reviews in the usual places.
A Way of Knowing and Its Limits
Can Children Do Aesthetics? A Developmental Account
4 other sections not shown
activity adult aesthetic education aesthetic experience aesthetic response aesthetic theories aestheticians alphabet books Anita Silvers art criticism Art Education artistic artworks asked awareness Battin beauty challenge character Chartreuse child Chris Van Allsburg classroom cognitive color concepts consider context course culture curriculum DBAE developmental discipline discussion emotion engage essay example experience of art expression fact feel Getty Getty Center H. A. Rey Howard Gardner identify Ilongot images important innocent eye interpretation Journal of Aesthetic kids learning letter look Matthew Lipman means nature objects one's painting perception person philosophical philosophical aesthetics philosophical inquiry philosophical questions Philosophy for Children philosophy of art Pieta presented problems Puzzles about Art quilts R. G. Collingwood reasons reflect relevant role Ronald Moore sense social story Teaching Aesthetics theories of art thetic things tion tour understand University Press viewer visual words York young


consistent with eligibility for participation in federally funded adult literacy education programs. We considered research on learning and literacy that would be most relevant to those eligible or likely to attend formal literacy instruction in programs of four general types: adult basic education, adult secondary education, English as a second language programs offered in a wide range of settings (e.g., community-based programs, local education agencies, community colleges, workplace, prisons, etc.), and developmental education courses for academically underprepared students in college.
Ideally, conclusions and recommendations for adult literacy instruction would be grounded in clear research findings demonstrating the efficacy of the recommended approaches. When rigorous demonstrations of efficacy do not exist, the next best approach would be to recommend both instructional practices consistent with available evidence on adult literacy and rigorous efficacy studies to confirm these recommendations. Findings from research on cognition and learning with the target population would also be most useful.
The present situation is more complex. There is a surprising lack of research on the effectiveness of the various instructional practices for adults seeking to improve their literacy skills. The lack of relevant research is especially striking given the long history of both federal funding for adult education programs, albeit stretched thin, and reliance on developmental education courses to remediate college students’ skills. Few studies of adult literacy focus on the development of reading and writing skills. There is also inadequate knowledge about assessment and ongoing monitoring of adult students’ proficiencies, weaknesses, instructional environments, and progress, which might guide instructional planning.
Similarly, basic research on adult cognition and learning is constrained for our purposes. It relies on study samples of convenience (college students in introductory psychology courses) or elderly populations, and it does not usually include adults with relatively low education or literacy skills. In addition, it is well known that literacy research has focused mainly on young children first learning to read and decode text. Major research efforts launched by the U.S. Department of Education, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, and others on the development of literacy in adolescence and adulthood are too new to have produced numerous peer-reviewed publications. As discussed in Chapter 2, research is emerging with adolescents on topics that we think are important to pursue with the target population given their literacy development needs (e.g., academic or disciplinary literacy and discussion-based approaches). More research is needed with adolescent and adult populations to evaluate the effectiveness of instructional practices and specify learning trajectories and the interaction of factors—cognitive, social, linguistic, economic, neurobiological—that may affect literacy development in subpopulations


Thomas Hart Benton was born on April 15, 1889 in Neosho, Missouri, USA into an influential clan of politicians and powerbrokers. Benton's father was a lawyer and United States congressman and his great-uncle was Senator from Missouri.
Benton spent his childhood shuttling between Washington D.C. and Missouri. He rebelled against his grooming for a future political career, and preferred to develop his interest in art. As a teenager, he worked as a cartoonist for the Joplin American newspaper.
In 1907 Benton enrolled at the Art Institute of Chicago, but left for Paris, France in 1909 to continue his art education at the Académie Julian. In Paris, Benton met other North American artists among whom Diego Rivera and Stanton Macdonald-Wright. Wright's influence gave a strong Synchromist leaning to Benton's work.
Benton returned to New York City in 1913. His work as a draftsman in the United States Navy in 1919 changed his style significantly. His artwork during his navy stint concentrated on realistic sketches and drawings of shipyard work and life—a change of focus that would continue throughout his career.
On return to New York in the early 1920s, Benton declared himself an enemy of modernism and painted naturalistic and representational work today known as Regionalism. Benton taught at the Art Students League, and was active in leftist politics. He was heavily influenced by El Greco.
In 1932 Benton broke through to the mainstream. A relative unknown, he was chosen to produce the murals of Indiana life that would become that state's contribution to the 1933 Century of Progress Exhibition in Chicago, Illinois. The Indiana Murals stirred controversy; Benton painted everyday people in an unflattering light, including Ku Klux Klan members. The controversy landed Benton on the cover of Time magazine and made him a household name. The mural panels are currently displayed at Indiana University in Bloomington.
In 1935 Benton left New York, where artistic debates were heated, for a teaching job at the Kansas City Art Institute in Kansas City, Missouri. His works often show the melancholy, desperation and beauty of small-town life. Benton's sympathy was with the working class and the small farmer, unable to gain material advantage despite the Industrial Revolution.
Benton's students at the Art Institute included many of the future painters of the Midwest heartland. His most famous student, Jackson Pollock, whom he mentored in the Art Students League, would go on to found the Abstract Expressionist movement—wildly different from Benton's own style. Jackson Pollock often said that Benton's traditional teachings gave him something to rebel against. Pollock never gave up on the idea art needed impact on the audience, in this way he followed Benton.
In 1941, Benton was dismissed from the Art Institute after calling the typical art museum "a graveyard run by a pretty boy with delicate wrists and a swing in his gait" and similar homophobic remarks. Despite this, his work remained popular until the end of the decade, when it was eclipsed by the rise of Abstract Expressionism.
For the rest of his career Benton concentrated on murals in public buildings in the Midwest. Benton died on January 19, 1975 at work in his studio, with a brush in his hand.


Descriptor: All students have equitable access to highly effective curriculum and instruction.
Teachers have cross curricular meetings which incorporate grade level teachers with special areas, ESL, resource, and RTI teachers as well. These meeting allow us to collaborate regarding the content that is being covered in reading in math for the following two weeks.
Many student's with IEP's have objectives that are written to meet the student's needs, and most objectives correlate with the common core standards. When writing an IEP objective, the regular education teacher and special education teacher collaborate to find the foundational skills within the core standards that each student needs to master. Along with each child's evaluation results and objective mastery, the core standards are used as a basis for writing IEP objectives. Also, based upon the student's special needs, proper supports are put in place to attain the curriculum.
3rd Grade - Reading - Terri Downing 3/13/13
Warren Elementary purchased the Scott Foresman Reading Street Common Core research based reading program for grades 3-5 and plans to purchase materials for K-3 sometime this year. This program is research based, is aligned with the Common Core Standards and is vertically and horizontally aligned. It also includes specific pacing recommendations. Attachments indicate alignment and pacing recommendations.
3rd Grade - Amber Priest -3/13/13
Third Grade consistently plans together and we all utilize common lesson plans. We also develop common assessments to be used in our classroom so that we may analyze our testing data to adequately plan specific instruction for our students as well as to ensure that all students have access to the curriculum and any support that they need to help them succeed.


Global/Multicultural Perspectives Definition:
The actual history of art is by nature multicultural. Global Perspectives in Art education fosters inclusion of multicultural histories, promote equity in gender representation, embrace a variety of art forms and aesthetics and use resources consciously with the interconnected and pluralistic nature of life as foundational.
Multiple Art Histories: Multiple art histories are worthy of inclusion and study. Many may have oral traditions. Some may have been infused in the canon of Western art texts. Naming of cultural groups respectfully should replace labels connoting inferiority such as"primitive," "naive," etc. Social agendas have determined historic exclusion of and support fßor certain art in the past.
Inclusiveness of Artists and Art forms: Inclusiveness is the attitude of welcoming all sorts of artists and art forms into the world of art and art history. Artwork and texts reaffirming group pride and achievements enrich and rebalance the curriculum.
Women's Art and Gender Equity: Women artists have existed throughout time. "Herstories," are being acknowledged as important, reversing repression and exclusion of women's art. Feminist Art began to bring attention and change to inequities in art history, women's issues, artistic achievements of women, the art of crafts and the value of collaboration and multiple interpretations of art.
Using and Sustaining Resources: Art incorporating global perspectives attends to consideration for the earth's resources. Throughout time, artists have utilized natural and synthetic materials in many ways. Careful use of resources can affect their sustainability. Preservation of art objects and structures is also of concern.


Write Out of the Box!® supports the development of fine motor skills and writing readiness of children 3-6 years old. Many children are entering Kindergarten with inadequate fine motor skills, poor pencil grasps, and unorthodox letter formation habits because they are writing before they are developmentally ready. Children who develop appropriate fine motor skills will be more likely to write efficiently and effectively in future years. Write Out of the Box!® workshops and products promote the use of simple, fun, and developmentally appropriate fine motor skill activities to foster efficient handwriting skills and avoid potential handwriting problems.
Handwriting difficulties are on the rise. Research indicates that fine motor skill awareness and implementation of strategies can lead to improved fine motor skill development of young students and therefore influence the acquisition of efficient handwriting skills. Appropriate fine motor skill development contributes to increased legibility of handwriting, rate of written production, test scores, and overall level of confidence at school.
A passionate commitment to improving the lives of all children while having fun is the philosophical cornerstone of Gibbs Consulting, Incorporated. Our mission is to provide valuable developmental information and meaningful resources to educators and parents that will engage young children in purposeful play and assist them in reaching their fullest potential. Together, we can make a positive difference in the educational journey of children that will last a lifetime!
The Box is a great place for teachers and parents to start improving the fine motor skills of their students and children! The Box contains 20, fun activities comprised of approximately 30 different items to build tripod grasp, wrist stability, digit individuation, and more of the finger and hand skills required for efficient handwriting. Children simply love The Box! Watch hand skills improve while children “play” with the engaging activities. The Box also includes a reference manual to guide teachers and parents in the appropriate use of the activities.
Click here for a list of the items included in The Box
Click here to purchase The Box
Email Marketing by Constant Contact®


One-Stop Help for Urban Children, Parents A Number of States Are Creating `Child Opportunity Zones,' Which Are Central Places for Inner-City Children and Their Parents to Receive Such Services as Literacy Training, Health Care, Day Care
David Holmstrom, writer of The Christian Science Monitor, The Christian Science Monitor
AT William D'Abate Elementary School in Providence, look past the graffiti scrawled on the low, gray building. Look past the full-time guard in the parking lot. Put on hold the notion that the surrounding low-income, urban neighborhood is too overloaded with numbing social problems to fight back.
In reality, this school fought back to become a "child opportunity zone," a place where public education is shaped by a key precept: Optimal learning takes place when the related needs of children and parents, including social, education, and health services, are addressed together.
Rhode Island and other states, including Kentucky and Minnesota, are now committed to creating child-opportunity zones in many schools districts, with each school defining its own approach. Educators in Rhode Island call these zones the "wave of the future" for inner-city schools.
"Educational research has shown that children don't learn well if they and their families are in need of the most basic services," says Phil Zarlengo, director of integrated social services for elementary and secondary schools at the Rhode Island Department of Education.
"The focus now has to be on starting early with children, along with intervention programs," says Joseph Renzulli, assistant superintendent for elementary education in Providence public schools, "and trying to avoid continual remediation programs later on. And the key is to work with the parents and children simultaneously."
The "zone" concept takes an ideal form when a school like William D'Abate pools social, education, and health services under one roof by renovating and using a large, abandoned recreation hall connected to the school. An empty swimming pool will also be used again.
Advocates call the zone concept a "one-stop shopping" service to enable low-income parents to avoid the time-consuming effort of riding buses to visit social agencies in different places.
When Bernice Graser became principal at William D'Abate six years ago, she became the spark plug who created a decisionmaking team that pulled parents and volunteers into the school by meeting community needs in such areas as health care, adult education, literacy, family counseling, nutrition, day care, tutoring, and substance-abuse prevention.
"I remember going to the school for activity nights several years ago," Mr. Renzulli says, "and there might have been 10 or 15 parents. Now 200 or 300 parents will attend an activity." Community consensus
Even before funds were approved recently for child-opportunity zones in 20 Providence schools, Mrs. Graser and her school-management team, using a $300,000 federal grant, were changing William D'Abate by including parents and children in decisions. "We have 35 countries represented here," she says, "and when we asked the students what they wanted to have the most, the answer was a museum."
Items in the museum include clothing, art, books, and music from the countries of the children's ethnic roots. …


I’m presenting at the 2012 Professional Development Conference of the Ohio Music Educators Association. Two of my sessions fall under the heading of Research to Practice. This is obviously an interest of mine. I believe research is a worthwhile endeavor that can inform what musicians do in their performance and what music teachers do in their instruction. Below I’ll provide descriptions of a couple of sessions I’m doing, along with the handouts for each.
Research to Practice: Bring Vernacular Musicianship into Your Classroom
(Thursday, February 16, 5:15pm)
Recent research has promoted the merits of incorporating popular music—or “vernacular music”—into school music. Vernacular musicians tend to acquire a skill set that differs from that typically emphasized in formal education. A number of music researchers have provided evidence that the adoption of certain popular music practices could improve music education altogether. Although many music teachers are not philosophically opposed to using popular music in their teaching—after all, it is what’s on their iPods—they have little experience actually doing it. Their own musicianship may lack certain skills important in vernacular music making. These critical skills include playing by ear, improvising, composing original music, and creating music collaboratively with others.
This session will survey recent research on vernacular musicianship while simultaneously applying its findings to music instruction. Those in attendance will learn how to broaden their teaching approaches to make classroom activities and curricular offerings more inclusive and better representative of the musical world that today’s students live in. An underlying message of this session is this: An ultimate goal of music education is to equip children with the skills needed for participatory involvement with music for the rest of their lives. Developing the skills of vernacular musicianship may be an important step in realizing this.
* * *
Research to Practice: The Psychology of Music Performance
(Friday, February 17, 8:00am)
Ideally our students approach music making with the goal of performing heartfelt expression that will emotionally move their listeners. Truth be told, however, this probably happens too infrequently in our rehearsal rooms and school auditoriums. Sometimes the only emotion student musicians bring to a performance is fear, as stage fright takes hold. Can teachers do more to encourage expressive musicianship and stave off the onset of anxiety in performance situations?
Whether student performances are marked by moving expressivity or debilitating stage fright can be influenced by the way we teach music to them. This session will consider the interrelated nature of motivation, performance anxiety, and expressive performance. It will draw from the research in these areas and apply it in practical tips for teaching and learning. During this session, attendants will have a chance to clarify their own musical motivations, and receive recommendations for capitalizing on student motivational patterns. Also, the audience will learn the keys to managing stage fright and ways to structure music performance activities to help avoid anxiety altogether. This session will illustrate that a learning environment that taps students’ intrinsic motivation for music is crucial in efforts to teach toward expressive playing and singing, and away from the conditions of performance anxiety.
Handout for The Psychology of Music Performance


ReadWriteThink couldn't publish all of this great content without literacy experts to write and review for us. If you've got lessons plans, activities, or other ideas you'd like to contribute, we'd love to hear from you.
Find the latest in professional publications, learn new techniques and strategies, and find out how you can connect with other literacy professionals.
Teacher Resources by Grade
|1st - 2nd||3rd - 4th|
|5th - 6th||7th - 8th|
|9th - 10th||11th - 12th|
Hey Diddle, Diddle! Generating Rhymes for Analogy-Based Phonics Instruction
|Lesson Plan Type||Standard Lesson|
|Estimated Time||Three 30- to 75-minute sessions|
In this lesson, shared reading, guided reading, and small, cooperative-group instruction are used in a first-grade classroom to informally assess students' ability to demonstrate awareness of rhyme or other visual similarities in words. Students practice matching rhyming words using picture cards and apply phonological awareness—hearing rhyme—to analogy-based phonics (i.e., an ability to decode unknown words by identifying words with similar visual structure). Students use online resources to increase phonological awareness through rhyme.
Interactive Construct-a-Word: Students will use this interactive tool to create rhyming words by adding a beginning consonant to a word ending.
Murray, B.A., & Lesniak, T. (1999). The letterbox lesson: A hands-on approach for teaching decoding. The Reading Teacher, 52, 644–650.
- Identifying individual sounds of words, phonemes, in "sound boxes" and noticing that the visual similarity of an ending cluster of letters in known words may help students decode a new word. It may rhyme if the ending cluster is the same visually. Sound boxes will help increase students' visual sensitivity to clusters of phonemes, but they should also be used for more than just initial consonant manipulation in other lessons.
- Phonemic awareness is increased by helping students identify and manipulate phonemes.


The International Reading Association promotes
high levels of literacy for all. Learn to improve
the quality of reading instruction, catch up on
new research and explore to current issues in
Tutoring resources, games and word activities
abound at this Northwest Regional Educational
Laboratory site. Also, find issues of The Tutor,
an on-line newsletter containing practical tips
for working with young readers.
Learn more about Early Literacy Development and
reading strategies to use with your students.
Discover good ideas for games and literacy activities
to use in your tutoring sessions.
The America Reads Challenge calls on all Americans
to help ensure that every American child can read
well and independently by the end of 3rd grade.
You will find excellent literacy resources for
students, tutors, and families.
ROL, Reading On-Line, is a journal of K-12 literacy
and practice and research published by the International
Explore Pathways to learn more about literacy
and technology, emergent and early readers, as
well as culturally and linguistically diverse
ERIC--The US Department of Educations Clearing
House for Reading, English and Communication
A great interactive website to encourage early
literacy. At the literacycenter students interact
with colors, shapes, letters, numbers, phonemes,
words and writing. A great site for very young
Write a book on line with your students, play
fun, interactive games and solve reading puzzles.
You and your students will enjoy learning at the


Use recycled materials to create 4 homemade toys for babies and toddlers! They are simple to make, cost very little to put together and are great for promoting fine and gross motor skills, concentration, curiosity and cause and effect, amongst other benefits. 4 DIY Baby and Toddler Toys for Motor Skills
Create a beautiful garland and some unique Christmas cards by making some funky spin art Christmas trees!
Have you had a go at creating some simple, vibrant, open-ended art using a salad spinner yet?! It’s so easy that even a toddler can have a go, yet fun enough for adults
Continue reading Spin Art Christmas Trees
Use an old-fashioned coffee grinder to learn about simple machinery, observe a change of materials, smell a fantastic sensory aroma and practise some vital, gross-motor actions! The side bonus is that you get a great fresh cup of coffee too! Learning Links: Gross motor skill development Observing changes in
Continue reading Grinding Coffee Beans
A fabulous article about an outdoor playful literacy activity by Malia from Playdough to Plato. Enjoy! ___________________________________________ I love making learning entertaining and this outdoor word scavenger hunt definitely does just that. As children race around tracing labels for common backyard objects, they don’t even notice that they are practicing reading and writing. It’s brilliantly
Continue reading An Irresistible Word Scavenger Hunt
Create open-ended, heuristic play opportunities for toddlers and beyond using gorgeous, silky rainbow scarves and lots of imagination!
It’s been a while since we had a new Discovery Box to explore and enjoy! If you follow me on Facebook you will know that I’ve
Continue reading Discovery Box 14: Rainbow Scarves


A Primer on Phonics for Teachers
Phonics, in general, is instruction that helps children to learn the relationships between letters and sounds and to use that knowledge when sounding out or decoding words and in spelling words. First, children are taught to connect phonemes to consonants, then short vowels, digraphs and blends, and finally long vowels. Different phonics programs may teach the letter-sound correspondences in different orders. For example, some programs teach a few consonants and then introduce one or two short vowels so that children can begin blending and spelling words. Regardless of the order in which the letters are introduced, children are usually taught (at least in the beginning of phonics instruction) only one phoneme associated with one letter. This explains why consonants and short vowels are taught first—most consonants and short vowels are highly regular, with each letter generally representing one phoneme. Later, children are taught that some letters (a few consonants and many doublevowel spellings) are related to several different phonemes), and that one phoneme (such as the long a) can be related to several spellings (such as in the words wait, pay, weigh, cake, and break).
Effective teachers of phonics know what a phoneme is. Ehen asked what a phoneme is, teachers most often answer that a phoneme is a sound represented by a letter. However, phonemes have nothing to do with letters. Phonemes are actually the smallest units of sound that matter in a language. In other words, it is the combining and contrasting of phonemes that makes words possible. Consider, for example, the p-phoneme, the short-i phoneme, and the g phoneme. (We write about them this way to make clear we are discussing sounds and not letters). These three phonemes are combined to make the word pig, and the p-phoneme and the b-phoneme are contrasted when distinguishing the words pig and big. The difference in the pronunciations of the p sound and the b sound is slight. It is only that for the p sound we do not use our voice and for b sound we do; everything else—how we use our tongue and throat, how we shape our lips, how we part our teeth—is identical. Yet speakers and listeners rely on that very small difference, that contrast; it is all that signals two very different English meanings, an animal that says [oink] versus a dimension of size, the opposite of small.
Another linguistic fact about phonemes that teachers must know is that phonemes are not discrete entities, but rather are categories within which there is much variation. For example, even while it is important in spoken language to be able to perceive the slight difference between the p sound and the b sound in pig and big, it is equally important to ignore differences in pronunciations of the p sound, for example, in wrapped and rapid. We do ignore this difference when we teach children about the p phoneme as if there is only one,


Elementary Mandarin Immersion Program Ben Franklin Elementary School
5206 Franklin St.
Vancouver, WA 98663
See how much they have learned! September
Kindergarten students experience their first day in the Mandarin Immersion Program.
Ten months later, students perform a play, reciting their lines in Chinese.
The Mandarin Immersion Program The Mandarin Immersion Program is an academically challenging and enriching program for developing linguistic proficiency in Mandarin Chinese and English. Located at Ben Franklin Elementary School, the program is open to students throughout Vancouver Public Schools. See "Application Process" for details.
The 90/10 instructional model
At the kindergarten level, approximately 90 percent of instruction will be in Mandarin and 10 percent in English to facilitate early Mandarin Chinese language acquisition and literacy development.
As students transition to higher grades, more of the instruction shifts to English, so that in the upper grades, there will be 50/50 Mandarin/English instruction.
• Obtain high levels of achievement in all academic subjects
• Achieve true bi-lingualism and bi-literacy of participating students
• Foster and promote cultural diversity and respect among all students
Parent participation and commitment
To ensure achievement and success for students in the Mandarin Immersion Program, it is necessary for families to commit to the program for six years (kindergarten through fifth grade). Active parent support is extremely important to the long-term success the program.
Benefits of a Mandarin Immersion Program • Bilingual students generally demonstrate greater academic gains.
Research shows that students in language immersion programs typically develop strong academic skills in addition to becoming proficient in both languages.
• Students have the opportunity to achieve true bilingualism and biliteracy in Mandarin and English. Students learn languages more easily at an early age. Immersing and instructing students in a second language provides an effective vehicle for students to learn to speak, read and write fluently in both languages by fifth grade.
• Students develop cultural literacy as well as enhanced cognitive skills.
Language immersion students benefit from the ability to communicate with people from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds. They also typically experience academic achievement at or above their single-language peers. Research covering more than 40 years of language immersion instruction shows that students receive a variety of cognitive benefits such as mental flexibility, nonverbal problem-solving abilities, and enhanced critical thinking skills.
Application Process Interested families must complete and submit an application for their child. Applications for kindergarten for the 2014-15 school year will be available at Franklin Elementary and online starting April 14, 2014. Applications must be submitted to Franklin Elementary no later than 3:00 p.m. on May 9, 2014 to be entered into the lottery drawing. (If there are more applicants than spaces in the program, students will be selected through a lottery process.) Students residing within the school boundaries of Franklin Elementary will be placed in the first lottery drawing. The second lottery drawing will be for students outside of the school boundary, but within the Vancouver Public Schools' boundaries. The third lottery will be for students outside of Vancouver Public School District (Regulation 5115). The lottery drawing for Franklin's Mandarin Immersion full-day kindergarten will be at 3:30 p.m. on May 13, 2014. All applicants will be notified of the lottery drawing outcome.
Parents of students outside of school boundaries who are selected for this program will be required to provide their own transportation to and from school.
Once students are admitted to the program, they will have continued placement in the program each year without having to reapply. Annual renewal of boundary transfers for students living outside Franklin boundaries is required.
Parent Information Nights Additional information about the philosophy and design of the Mandarin Immersion Program is presented at Mandarin Immersion Parent Information Nights held at Franklin Elementary School.
Parents who wish to apply for their child to be in the Mandarin Immersion Program must attend one of the parent meetings in order for their child to be considered.
Parent Night Schedule All meetings will be held at Franklin Elementary School
February 27, 2014
March 27, 2014
May 1, 2014
Laura Dilley, Principal
Franklin Elementary School
Gilbert Luna Curriculum Specialist
"It is high time we begin to treat language skills as the asset they are, particularly in this global economy. Anything that encourages a person to know more than one language is positive and should be treated as such. Our nation can only grow stronger if all our children grow up learning two languages."
-Richard W. Riley, former U.S. Secretary of Education


By Dr. Bruce Fischman (Muhlenberg College)
One of the best resource texts to understand Flexible Grouping
was written by Michael Opitz for Scholastic Professional Books. He defines Flexible Grouping as "allowing students to work in differently mixed groups depending on the goal of the learning task at hand." This definition is a core belief for teachers in the LEADERS program, because it honors all kinds of learners, which helps to establish a community of learners necessary to promote literacy.
"Allowing students to work in differently mixed groups" gives students ownership in their classroom. Students can choose reading partners during independent reading time, while teachers select students for guided or guiding reading based upon running record data. The result is a wonderful atmosphere of trust, cooperation and support for readers at all stages of literacy development.
A Reading Workshop begins with a whole class mini-lesson that introduces a new reading strategy for everyone to try or a specific resource skill like using the dictionary for vocabulary development. Then, while the teacher is meeting with guided reading groups, students are choosing reading partners for independent reading time. The small guided reading group is the place where the teacher continues to model the specific skill or strategy shared in the mini-lesson.
The dictionary work is leveled for the students who need either a picture dictionary or intermediate dictionary or collegiate dictionary. The common link for all readers is their use of the dictionary as a resource tool to understand vocabulary. The flexible aspect is that different readers are using different dictionaries for vocabulary work.
Opitz lists nine reasons for using flexible grouping:
- To ensure that all learners feel part of the community.
- To help children better understand what they have read.
- To enable students to work cooperatively with a wide variety of peers.
- To help students feel more involved in their learning.
- To capitalize on the research that supports the use of grouping as a way to engage students with appropriate instruction and materials.
- To offset the effects of ability grouping.
- To help the majority of students by using time efficiently.
- To provide for individual differences using open-ended assignments.
- To accomplish the goals of a reading program and address national reading and language arts standards.
Using a flexible grouping plan makes sense, but it is not easy to put into place. Teachers must be willing to risk giving students real reading time, rather than quiet "seat work," while meeting with different small reading groups. Real reading time means that the classroom library has leveled books and that there is a system in place for students to select materials. Lucy Calkins suggests five levels. Your classroom library can be divided into easy, medium and harder text reading. Then sub-divide the easy and hard texts by adding a + for books needing closer reader attention. The five groups of books are color coded, and students are directed to select books "on their level."
Enter a LEADERS classroom with flexible grouping in place, and you will notice a community of readers doing real reading and thinking and writing. The standard that is upheld in those classrooms is the love for reading and writing and a lifelong commitment to literacy.
Submitted by: Bruce Fischman, EdD Regional Co-director, Muhlenberg College, and Third Grade Teacher


Biology | Biol Sci for Elem Teachers
Q201 | 1447 | --
Course format: Lecture: 9:30-10:45 A, TR, JH A100.
Laboratory: one session/week (3 hours).
Prerequisites: Enrolled in Elementary Education Program; Q200.
Course Description: This course is designed to give students
sufficient background in basic biology to provide a starting point -
ways of thinking, vocabulary, overview of various fields of biology -
from which they can operate in elementary school classes. Lecture,
lab, and discussion are integrated to give unified but varying
Required Texts: "Biology: Concepts and Connections", Fourth Edition,
by Campbell, Reece, Mitchell, and Taylor, and "Biological Science for
Elementary Teachers" (Lab Manual), by Bronwyn H. Bleakley and Pamela
Weekly Assignments: Readings from the text, some website work,
pre-lab readings and written assignments, weekly lab data sheets, and
a three-hour per week laboratory experience.
Exams/Papers: Three hourly exams covering lecture and lab material,
one lab report, one independent project, several quizzes in lecture
and inlab, Portfolio of Experiments for Kids, oral presentation in
lab, and a comprehensive final exam.


Parent/Caregiver Workshops and Resources
By sharing key skills and practices with at-risk parents and caregivers in your community, you will make a vital difference in the early literacy development of young children. The Every Child Ready to Read® @ Your Library® 2nd edition toolkit (ECRR2) provides talking points and customizable slideshows for workshops that allow you to educate parents and caregivers, library staff, and community partners on the importance of promoting reading readiness by reading, writing, talking, playing, and singing with young children. To facilitate your workshop planning:
- Use your ECRR1 and ECRR2 materials to develop your workshops.
- Schedule a Ready to Read training for your staff to teach them how to do workshops in the community.
- Borrow an Ohio Ready to Read kit to enhance your workshops.
- Download a Fun and Facts early literacy workshop presentation (Microsoft PowerPoint, 3.3MB), based on ECRR1. A version of the workshop presentation incorporating links to the Ohio Department of Education's Early Learning Content Standards (Microsoft PowerPoint, 3.8MB) is also available for download. Please note these are the 2011 standards and are being superceded by new Early Learning and Development Standards (ELDS), being implemented in the 2013-14 school year. The Ohio Early Literacy Crosswalk will also help you relate ECRR concepts to early learning standards. The Crosswalk references the new ELDS.
- This presentation script from Elaine Betting at Lorain Public Library System was used for a library program for parents of incoming kindergarten students. It describes the Five Practices and easy ways to use them to support early literacy skills development. Elaine originally presented it in spring 2012 for parents whose children would enter kindergarten that fall. Librarians are welcome to use or adapt this script for your own outreach efforts.
- Use the Ohio Early Literacy Crosswalk to relate ECRR concepts to Ohio's Early Learning and Development Standards and to the Head Start Child Development and Early Learning Framework Outcomes.
More Workshop Resources
The Ohio Departments of Education and Job and Family Services have recently revised Step Up To Quality, Ohio's quality rating and improvement system for licensed learning and
development programs. The Step Up To Quality program standards have been expanded from three to five levels, and have been revised to include family and community engagement and
health promotion standards. For more information regarding the new Step Up To Quality system, please visit the Early Childhood Ohio
If you provide (or would like to provide) staff trainings for early childhood learning programs, please review the Fall 2013 updates to the Training Approval Process for Step Up to Quality.
Also, if you are providing training to staff of child care centers or to Type A homes, you may use this form to document your attendees' participation:
Ohio Department of Job and Family Services Form 01307: Inservice Training for Child Care Employees. Your training description goes on page 2 (Child Development). The MLIS/MLS qualifies as a related field as long as the training is related to how early childhood professionals can use the library services in their role working with young children.
Consider offering a workshop in partnership with another community group. Find suggestions on the Partnerships section of this website.
Use this Tip Sheet (PDF) as a guide to reach out to families who do not come to the library.
Browse the Early Literacy Resources section of this website for more ideas
Saroj Ghoting has created a series of videos demonstrating early literacy asides. These video clips are useful for incorporating tips to adults on early literacy in the storytime setting. Saroj did these video clips at the request of Enid Costley, Youth Services Consultant at the Library of Virginia, to support an online class on early literacy storytimes.
For Parents and Caregivers
Many excellent resources exist to educate and encourage parents to thrive as their children's first and best teachers. Consider sharing these links in your workshops and in your outreach and in-library interactions with parents and caregivers of young children:
PBS Parents: Reading and Language
Learn how children become readers and writers and how parents can help them develop by talking, reading, and writing together every day.
Zero to Three
Resources for parents and others to learn about brain development, early language and literacy, and child development. The site includes special sections for Family, Friend, and Neighbor Care and School Readiness.
Get Ready to Read screening tool
This online, 20-question tool for 4-year-olds was designed to show where a child is on the path to developing pre-reading skills. It is free for parents and caregivers to use with children, and is available in English and Spanish.


Music Of Afghanistan Religious Music
A selection of articles related to music of afghanistan religious music.
Original articles from our library related to the Music Of Afghanistan Religious Music. See Table of Contents for further available material (downloadable resources) on Music Of Afghanistan Religious Music.
- An Overview of Gospel Music
- Gospels refer to the first four books of the Bible’s New Testament. These hymns became integral part of worship services of “Protestants”.
>> Poetry & Fable
- Black Gospel Music
- Black Gospel music is also known as Urban Contemporary Gospel music. Its roots were the Negro spiritual songs that were sang by the African slaves while tilling the rich cotton fields of their white Southern masters in the early 18th century.
>> Poetry & Fable
- Lynne, Carol
- Growing up surrounded by music, Carole Lynneâ€™s musical education has ranged from the informal training of her parents teaching her how to sing jazz to formal instruction at The Juilliard School of Music, University of Michigan Music School, and The American...
Real Interviews >> Authors
- Religious Tolerance In Springfield and the Greenleaf Coven
- Religious intolerance is alive and well in Springfield Missouri. The question is, to what degree, and in the terminology of "The Burning Times", how high are the flames? In 1999, the court case of Jean Webb vs. The City of Republic was a headliner...
Paganism & Wicca >> True Stories
- The Religious Experience: A Wiccan Viewpoint
- What is religion? Religion is a set of beliefs which allow us to understand and categorize our world and our place in it. A set of beliefs which define our culture, our expectations, our views of people and behaviors we expect. I have found several different...
Religion & Philosophy >> Religions
Music Of Afghanistan Religious Music is described in multiple online sources, as addition to our editors' articles, see section below for printable documents, Music Of Afghanistan Religious Music books and related discussion.
Suggested Pdf Resources
- The aime of my trip to Kabul, the capital of Afghanisdtan was to
- The revival of music and music education in Afghanistan should be viewed as one of the patriotic and religious songs by male singers were exempted.
- I. INTRODUCTION
- a strong religious fiavor, preserves a type of music distinct from that of its rural hinterland.
- College of Arts and Sciences Diversity in the U.S. (DUS) Courses
- ANTH-E 319 American Indian Religions FOLK-E 496 African American Religious Music .
- master termsII
- Religious texts. Religious topics. Religious music genres.
Suggested Web Resources
- Culture of Afghanistan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- 11.1 Religious; 11.2 Traditional and national; 11.
- Music Of Afghanistan Religious Music | RM.com ®
- Need more on Music Of Afghanistan Religious Music? We suggest these original texts: The Story of Music Of Afghanistan Religious Music roots.
- Afghan music | Facebook
- Afghan music - Description: The music of Afghanistan is similar to that of its neighboring As such, music in Afghanistan has been suppressed and recording for outsiders and thus unaccompanied religious singing is not considered music.
Great care has been taken to prepare the information on this page. Elements of the content come from factual and lexical knowledge databases, realmagick.com library and third-party sources. We appreciate your suggestions and comments on further improvements of the site.
Music Of Afghanistan Religious Music Topics
Related searchesfactor analysis advantages
benjamin rush controversial theories
dream meanings falling
disney channel latin america
r albert mohler jr quotes
david letterman his guests


This is an educational and interactive
Please feel free to download any information that may benefit a community arts program in your area.
We would love your input...
Music & Dance
Click on images to see a larger version.
Pages Created by:
Lesson Four: Reading and Art Making Activity
- The second part of Lesson Four is to read the book, Harriet and The Promised Land by Jacob Lawrence, in the "Circle of Power".
- The teacher facilitates discussion concerning the character traits of the heroine in the story. (The themes of the story are self-determination and courage.)
- The students will then be asked to "remember, reflect and respond" concerning someone they know or admire as a hero or heroine. This activity may occur over two different blocks of time.
- The participants will be encouraged to take note of some of the artist's techniques in presenting the emotion and character of the heroine.
- Some discussion may also occur concerning the Underground Railroad.
- Finally the children will be asked to create their own drawing using primary, prisma colored pencils on light blue or gray construction paper to create their hero or heroine in an action state.
- They will also be encouraged to talk about the artwork they created.
- These drawings will be displayed.
- The book by Jacob Lawrence, Harriet and the Promised Land.
- Light colored blue or gray construction paper
- Primary color, prisma colored pencils
Student Activities facilitated by the teacher:
- This activity can be guided by a homeroom teacher, art teacher or librarian. It fulfills the criteria for the Arizona Art Education Standards, listed in Lesson Three lesson plan.
- It may take two class periods to complete.
- First read the book to the children in the "Circle of Power" (a traditional storytelling circle) Use the rhyme to develop fluency with the children. This is both a book about a real person (Biography) and poetry.
- Introduce the artist, Jacob Lawrence, as also the writer (information on the back, inside book jacket).
- The "Introduction" by Jacob Lawrence will first be read to give background information about the story and Harriet Tubman.
- Have the children note the use of bright colors, like the traditional Yoruba art, they have already seen and experienced. Review the concept of the "Hot" colors and the "Cool" colors and their meaning, while reading the story.
- Have the children describe the images on each page. Are they realistic? Do the figures present emotion on their faces and in their expressions? Look at Harriet's hand size as she is pointing the way for the slaves to move to freedom. (Explain that artists communicate important ideas by what they show and how they show it.)
- Have the children review the story of Harriet and the reason why she is a heroine. (She was courageous, determined, honest, trustworthy. She persevered and challenged those ways of living that she did not believe were just.)
- Talk about what the word "hero" and "heroine" mean. Ask the children to list some of these persons they know, and why they are important people.
- Have the children "remember and reflect" to their choice of a hero or heroine and then using the prisma pencils "respond", creating their action scene drawing their character.
- Have the students, stand up and talk briefly about their hero or heroine.
- Exhibit the youths' artworks in a public space.
Ideas to discuss about what makes an individual a hero or heroine:
- Theses are usually people who have been very brave or courageous and acted in a manner that has helped people, with no regard for their own safety.
- This person can be a very important person or it can be a friend or family member that the participant thinks is very special.
- Depending upon the culture that the student comes from, it may be someone that other students do not know because this individual lives in a far off land.
- Heroes and heroines are often remembered after they have died and are honored after their death. Songs, movies, poems, books and plays may be created to remember them and their acts of bravery.
Go to the bibliography for this lesson to view the internet resources used to create this art making activity.


Primary music education: the misrepresentation of the ideals of curricula in research
Stakelum, M. (2008) Primary music education: the misrepresentation of the ideals of curricula in research. Irish Educational Studies, 27 (3). pp. 281-293. ISSN 0332-3315
Full text not archived in this repository.
To link to this article DOI: 10.1080/03323310802242229
The author starts from a historical viewpoint to suggest that, at primary level, we have tended to perpetuate a nineteenth-century notion of music education. This is evident in the selection and organisation of musical content in curriculum documents, the scope of the teacher-pupil transaction implicit in these and the assumptions about music education which underpin research on practice conducted at official policy level. In light of the introduction of the 1999 Revised Primary School Curriculum, with its change in emphasis, she notes that it is timely to reconsider the situation. Central to this is the need to challenge the notion of music as a set of delineated skills, to explore the relationship between the primary teacher and music, and to move towards a notion of research which acknowledges the richness of multiple interpretations teachers bring to the curriculum.


Sometimes the arts are the first area to take a hit when schools are facing budget cuts. But, in 2010, the House of Representatives passed a resolution that recognized the importance of art education in our schools. Part of the resolution read: ”Art education, comprising a rich array of disciplines including dance, music, theatre, media arts, literature, design, and visual arts, is a core academic subject and an essential element of a complete and balanced education to all students.”
Is your school celebrating National Arts in Education Week? How will you incorporate arts appreciation into your lessons this week? The National Education Association offers several ideas on how to celebrate the arts, as does Americans For the Arts. We’d love to hear your ideas! Share them here or on our Facebook page.
“I have come to believe that a great teacher is a great artist and that there are as few as there are any other great artists. Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit.”
– John Steinbeck


Big Ideas Monday: Maths
Can you see the beauty in a mathematical formula or do you struggle to complete a simple equation? Genevieve Jacobs devoted her Big Ideas Monday to maths and discovered that it's a fascinating craft.
Mathematics is a necessary evil for some but a beloved form of creativity for others and Genevieve Jacobs went in search of why people love or loathe this ancient craft and futurist endeavour.
Starting with ABC 702 Sydney presenter and maths geek Adam Spencer, Genevieve asked the question: is maths cool?
For him, Spencer said, maths simply made sense from an early age.
"I had this insatiable hunger for maths from when I was really, really young. I just loved it," Spencer said.
"You can't be sort of right, or partially right. You're right or you're wrong and that exactness and that certainty, at least at the early mathematics that you meet in your life, used to really excite me."
Professor Penny Sackett, former Australian Chief Scientist, believes that maths and science can enrich people's adult lives in the same way as music does and she said schools are key.
"This is something that we need to focus on in education. Of course people need to be trained deeply in a few areas, those are your tools, learning some mathematics is your tool, learning some chemistry is a tool, but what are you going to do with that tool? And in the future people will be doing things with those tools that we can't even imagine now," Sackett said.
Dr Marty Ross took Genevieve through the history of maths, including a Roman Empire in which maths was surprisingly poor.
"They knew enough to build a good arch, they knew enough to build a straight aqueduct, but they didn't have a highly developed mathematical culture."
There have been many achievements since then, Ross said, and yet mathematicians remain on a quest of discovery.
"The more we learn, the more we learn what we don't know. Every time you have a mathematical leap, a mathematical breakthrough, it opens up a whole new field of mathematics and there's a whole new world to discover. It's just an endless jungle and we're just kind of clearing the jungle and then we see how endless it is."
Professor Celia Hoyles, the former mathematics advisor to the UK government, said teachers can be the inspiration students need when it comes to maths.
"I think most young children really start being intrigued by mathematical ideas. What's zero? What's infinity? I think we have to work very hard so that we don't put them off and keep their interests engaged."
It's a sentiment Professor Peter Taylor, head of the Mathematics Trust at the University of Canberra, which runs the Australian National Mathematics Competition, agrees with, although he says maths does require dedication.
"A lot of hard work's needed. Basically, it's one thing to have an intuitive ability to develop your mathematics but you've got to actually do the work as well, and the teacher has to work with the student and work through that long slog."
According to the ANU's Professor Michael Barnsley, the system of "mathematic athleticism" can be to blame, which he describes as: "making it a competition in one direction, like a giant spelling bee but done with mathematics - mathematics problems and who can solve them fastest."
He said he could have lost enthusiasm many times but instead he fell in love with fractal geometry, a form of maths with "extraordinary beauty".
"I still get so excited just looking at, making a slight change to the formula and seeing this infinitely fine, detailed, intricate, magical pattern come out, and intuitively seeing how it works and then wanting to understand what's the theorem, why is this like this?"
Others to join the discussion included a member of the Questacon Maths Squad, Jamos McAlester, and former Wallaby and 2010 Australian Sudoku champion John Eales.
Search ABC Local
- Maths Education
- Art And Design Education
- Asian Education
- English Education
- English Literature Education
- Environment Education
- Geography Education
- History Education
- Languages Education
- Media Studies Education
- Music Education
- Physical Education
- Psychology Education
- Safety Education
- Science Education
- Technical Education


ERIC Number: EJ625644
Record Type: CIJE
Publication Date: 1999
Reference Count: 0
Assessment in Instrumental Music.
Goolsby, Thomas W.
Music Educators Journal, v86 n2 p31-35,50 Sep 1999
Describes four types of assessment (placement, summative, diagnostic, and formative) that can be used with the instrumental music classroom. Discusses various assessment tools for use with instrumental students: (1) ckeckpoints and checklists; (2) worksheets; (3) audiotape recordings; and (4) self-evaluation. Includes the Ensemble Performance Critique, a student self-evaluation form. (CMK)
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Note: Theme Issue: Assessment in Music Education.


Note: To protect the privacy of our members, e-mail addresses have been removed from the archived messages. As a result, some links may be broken.
For purposes of discussion regarding the importance of including realistic
drawing opportunities in the art curriculum, I would like to pose some
Developmentally, I find that adolescents find comfort and assurance in
being able to draw realistically, perhaps too much comfort. If we satisfy
this need, how can we simultaneously encourage them to be inventive,
expressive and open to the possibility that there may be equally valid ways
to perceive the world and to make art? Or, is it developmentally
impossible to help students see and understand the abstract expressionist
view or post-modern view, given their predisposition to realism that seems
to be inate? I am reminded that Piaget himself believed that some
individuals never arrive to the stage of formal operations and therefore
may be unable to understand or appreciate a more conceptual view of art.
Or, can experience with looking at abstract and expressive forms of art and
art making help them to begin to understand this perspective and to perhaps
experiment leaving realism behind as a need of adolescence? These are
questions I have had for a long time and I am hoping some of you may have
some thoughts in regards to them.
Thanks a bunch.
>I'm going to have to agree with Bunki, I am also a middle school art
>teacher. Teaching students to observe and render realistically gives them
>a sense of pride and most of them state that is the reason they take art.
>Best-Maugard states that you can draw from nature (realistically), but
>creativity occurs when you add your own sense and design. Just read that,
>thought it was interesting and pertinent.
>S. H. Evans
>Southeast Middle School
>Baton Rouge, LA 70815
Diane C. Gregory, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Art Education
Department of Art and Design
Southwest Texas State University
San Marcos, Texas 78666
dg09 (university e-mail in San Marcos)
dianegregory (home e-mail in Austin)


The Tuneables is an award-winning children's music education DVD and CD series designed to teach the key building blocks of music at a critical time in a child's development. Sponsored by the Music Intelligence Project, this fun, interactive program engages children in songs and activities that provide a foundation of music understanding and growth in intellectual development. Ages 3-8.
Buy your copy today at: www.thetuneables.com/the-music-shop/
Music learning, like language learning, must begin early in the child's life. The early years are the period of most rapid growth in brain development. This growth is "wiring" the brain to recognize, remember, and understand the sounds and patterns of music and speech. Individuals rarely develop musical capabilities later in life if their early years did not include learning that involves a rich mix of rhythmic, tonal, and performance skills.
Because music listening skills develop with those parts of the brain that also involve language learning, verbal competence increases along with music learning. Studies have also shown that music learning involving a substantive mix of rhythmic, tonal, and performance skills also enhances the development of those parts of the brain that provide memory, mathematical reasoning, and muscular control. In addition, music learning engages a large section of the brain that overlaps the parts that control general intelligence.
Young children who do not receive the many benefits of substantive music learning at this critical time suffer an irrevocable loss. Young children deprived of important early learning experiences have slowed or even halted intellectual development. This leaves the child with an unrecoverable and diminished capacity for learning important skills and concepts throughout life. This is similar to learning a second language when children, exposed early, have a much greater ability to quickly and easily use that language than those exposed to that language later in life.
For an extended discussion of early music learning, see:
Gordon, Edwin. Music Learning Theory for Newborn and Young Children, 2003 Edition. Chicago: GIA Publications, 2003.
active aural music learning beat accuracy benefits of music brain development children development developmental effect early music educations, early music learning instruction intelligence learning music skills listening to background music movement music activities music and language music education music for kids music for young children music instruction in brain development music intelligence music learning music playlist for kids playlist for kids research rhythm singing singing in tune smart song list for children stages of music learning stimulate brain development substantive music learning teaching young children music the tuneables tonality tonal patterns top children's songs top classical songs for kids voice flexibility young children


The San Francisco Symphony salutes educators! Here’s where you will find links to information and materials which teachers can use to keep symphonic music alive in the classroom.
Explore some of the masterworks of classical music, with SFS Music Director Michael Tilson Thomas as your guide. This website was created to accompany the Keeping Score television series broadcast on PBS. Teachers will find useful information and ideas to present to their students.
Teachers in California, Arizona, and Oklahoma have contributed interdisciplinary lesson plans which explore subjects such as reading, math, social studies, and science through the lens of classical music.
This is the premier online destination for kids to learn about music and the symphony orchestra. Geared for ages 8-13, SFSKids.org is suitable not only for kids, but also for parents, families, and schools.
SFS Resident Conductor Donato Cabrera talks about ways for children to listen to symphonic music, and the role the conductor plays.
Learn about the logistics of bringing your students to Davies Symphony Hall.
Available for the first time electronically, the Concerts for Kids Study Guide provides educators with the information they need to prepare students for their upcoming concert at Davies Symphony Hall. Inside, you will find information on the San Francisco Symphony and Davies Symphony Hall, drawings of instruments suitable for duplicating and distributing to the class, background on the music and composers being presented, and a list of suggested activities. Every ticket buyer will receive a paper copy of the Study Guide, along with a CD of the concert repertoire.
Music is a nationally mandated “core curriculum” subject. This document outlines nine broad areas of music learning which should be a part of every child’s education.
Music education goals for the state of California are summarized in this document.


Data show Raleigh County Schools’ students are reading better through individualized online learning programs.
Sandra Sheatsley, director of federal programs for the district, said kindergartners are working toward reading up to a second-grade level as they work their way through MimioSprout, a supplemental online reading program.
Rolled out in November in all kindergarten classrooms, the program consists of 80 20-minute episodes.
Sheatsley said that, according to studies on the program, students who complete three MimioSprout lessons a week, speak aloud when prompted to do so by the program and complete all 80 episodes across 12 benchmarks will be working at a second-grade level.
In January, Raleigh County kindergarten classrooms averaged 2.5 episodes a week. In February, classrooms were averaging 3.2 lessons.
As of Feb. 22, 3 percent of county kindergarten students were already past episode 61 of the program, 17 percent have surpassed episode 41 and 51 percent passed episode 21, Sheatsley said.
Sandra Trent, director of elementary education, said students in grades 1 through 8 across the county are also working to improve their reading skills through Lexia Learning.
Trent said Lexia conducted an analysis of Raleigh County Schools’ data. In a sampling of 4,000 students, 2,500 third-graders and 1,500 fourth- and fifth-graders, 74 percent of third-graders and 100 percent of fourth- and fifth-graders needed to review reading skills below their grade levels when the program first started.
“What is different about this program is that it forces some of our older children to back up and fill in the gaps. They may have trouble spelling because they hadn’t grasped some spelling patterns,” she said.
According to Lexia’s data review, students who use the program for 30 minutes per week master an average of 2.5 skills.
The number of skills learned quadrupled for those who use the program for 20 minutes three times per week.
“Students move through the level pretty fast, but the beauty is that it remedies itself. It takes the kids back to the basics and builds on that if needed,” Trent said.
Superintendent Jim Brown commented, “The rule of thumb is that if students are not reading fluently with comprehension skills by third grade, odds are, they are not going to. A lot of the skills start in kindergarten and first grade.”
Brown said the district is working to make it easy for teachers to implement these online programs. “We are trying our very best at removing some of the challenges teachers are facing. One example is that we know we need a minimum of six iPads in every classroom to create a station for MimioSprout. If we do that, time for this program is not a problem.”
Trent said data show teachers are using the program often, with 16,000 requests for program reports downloaded by teachers, and teachers have examined individual students’ lessons 3,000 times this semester.
Lexia is being used in grades 1 through 8 in the county.
— E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.org


Take curriculum control
Radical curriculum innovation is never easy. My only attempt as a teacher, in a bid to avoid post-national tests inertia, involved asking Year 6s to identify one new skill each would like to develop, and one weakness they would like to improve before secondary school. The most common weakness was fractions and the most popular skills were first-aid and self-defence. I then gave pupils the resources to focus on their choices, whilst worrying about what their choices told me about my classroom climate.
With literacy and numeracy standards perceived to have risen and the focus of government reforms switching to secondary education, now is the time for primary schools to take control of their destiny with some creative thinking about the curriculum. Rising standards mean that the primary sector has collectively earned its autonomy. However, earning autonomy, and having the will and skills to use it, are two different things. As the chief inspector of schools David Bell said in The TES recently, primary teachers "have to regain the initiative and not see themselves as helpless victims in the context of instructions from 'above' ".
The key challenge for primary schools is to ensure that the literacy and numeracy strategies, which have brought undoubted benefits, act as foundations for deeper learning, rather than barriers. As children who experienced literacy and numeracy hours from reception onwards begin to enter junior classes, the success of these strategies could create some genuine space for innovation.
For instance, could a group of primary schools use the power to innovate - granted in the new education Act - to slim down national curriculum requirements and do something more meaningful and motivating instead? A new project by the Institute for Public Policy Research and the Royal Society of Arts aims to find this out. The primary baccalaureate would be a qualification children could work towards throughout their primary years, but might lead to them dedicating much of Years 5 and 6 towards it. Its main purpose would be to allow every pupil, armed with good literacy and numeracy skills, to discover and pursue a few learning passions in much greater detail. In aspiring to offer breadth and balance, the current curriculum spreads itself far too thinly, especially at key stage 2. The primary bac would aim to substitute some of the breadth to promote deeper, applied knowledge and skills around specific, but not necessarily subject-based areas.
We are not promoting a return to what David Bell called "woolly-headedness about vaguely defined project work". Far too often, the "let a thousand flowers bloom" approach amounted to "random acts of kindness", with insufficient evidence and informed judgment. A well-designed qualification, making full use of new technologies, other "expert adults" and places of learning outside the school, could give a rigour and robustness that the child-centred vision of a generation ago often lacked.
At the moment, our plans are deliberately half-baked. We are looking for a group of pilot schools with the confidence not only to be guinea pigs, but also to devise their own experiments. Learning from the RSA's work with secondary schools in their Opening Minds project, we aim to create a network so that best practice is shared, and lessons are learned and disseminated.
At the same time, some ground rules are already set. First, any additional qualification should never be made compulsory; too many good ideas have suffered death by prescription. Second, the creation of a bac must involve parents and pupils as well as practitioners. Third, the assessment for any qualification would be formative, focusing on "assessment for learning". And finally, any qualification should never be used as a basis for selection to secondary school.
National tests, targets and league tables are not going to disappear, and any form of innovation must work within these realities. Even confident primary schools, celebrated in the recent Office for Standards in Education report, feel squeezed for time. Yet the best way to counter the pressures of targets may be to develop some alternative success criteria, so that, when faced with local education authority advisers giving a suggested target for a school, a headteacher can assert a different set of priorities, and express them through a robust qualification framework.
A primary bac may seem like a distraction, but if schools do not take the chance to change the curriculum for themselves, within the next decade somebody, yet again, will do it for them.
Joe Hallgarten is an education researcher at the IPPR. The first project seminar takes place on November 18. For further information, contact firstname.lastname@example.org


Network With Us
Join us on Facebook to get the latest news and updates.
"ReadWriteThink provides me with a wealth of inspiration and ideas to use in my classrooms. The thing I like most about the site is knowing that the knowledge shared, is provided by fellow professionals, also passionate about children’s education and the use of exemplary teaching strategies. "
Racheal Tighe's Story
Creative ideas for engaging students in real learning
In order to be able to do this I am constantly on the hunt for great teaching ideas and ReadWriteThink is one of my favorite places to search for inspiration. Last week I was planning to have my students write a haiku poem as a grammar lesson. After browsing through ReadWriteThink I found a good range of lessons on haiku poetry that were relevant to my task. I used pieces from two different lessons on ReadWriteThink to create my own lesson. Firstly, I discussed the features of haiku poetry and then showed some examples in a very simple powerPoint presentation that I put together. We discussed the use of syllable and descriptive language in the poems, before going out on a nature walk to collect autumn leaves and brainstorm autumn adjectives. Upon returning to class the students wrote down adjectives that they had thought of and then completed part of a worksheet from a ReadWriteThink lesson to plan their haiku poem. Finally, students presented their haiku poems in the center of a piece of autumn artwork, which they created from the leaves collected on their nature walk. The thing that I really love about Read Write Think is that you can find a wealth exemplary teaching ideas that you can than adapt and grow to suit your teaching needs. It is also really inspiring to see all of the amazing things happening in other classrooms.
Grades 6 – 8 | Lesson Plan | Minilesson
Students will be introduced to the term alliteration and create a headline poem consisting of 25 words that contain at least three examples of alliteration.
Grades 6 – 8 | Lesson Plan | Standard Lesson
Students learn components of think-alouds and type-of-text interactions through teacher modeling. In the process, students develop the ability to use think-alouds to aid in reading comprehension tasks.
Grades K – 2 | Professional Library | Journal
Support literacy development through playful and appealing activities that focus on the sound structure of language.
Grades K – 2 | Lesson Plan | Recurring Lesson
Students improve phonemic awareness through games and chants that help them isolate beginning and ending sounds and connect them with their written symbols (graphemes).


Tags: In This Issue, Kids
As the winter season approaches and the snow begins to fall, bring the beauty of fluffy white snow inside by making your own snowflakes. Each and every snowflake that falls from the sky is unique. Each one has intricate patterns and shapes.
Snowflake Bentley, by Jacqueline Briggs Martin, is a great book about a man named William Bentley. Snowflake Bentley, as he was called, studied snowflakes and discovered that each one was different and had its own shapes and patterns. He took hundreds of photographs of snowflakes and shared them with his family and friends. Check out the book from infoZone, a branch of The Indianapolis Public Library, located inside The Children's Museum of Indianapolis.
Make Your Own Snowflake
Gather your supplies – round, white coffee filters (the larger the coffee filter, the larger your snowflake), scissors, string or yarn, tape.
Take one coffee filter and flatten it out on the table.
Fold the coffee filter in half and then in half again. Repeat one more time.
Use scissors to cut small shapes out of the coffee filter. Be careful to not cut completely through the folded edges.
Once you have cut out all of your desired shapes, put down your scissors and carefully open up the coffee filter. You now have a one-of-a-kind snowflake, just like the ones Snowflake Bentley photographed! Use string or yarn to hang your snowflakes or tape them to a window.
This fun activity provides an opportunity to discuss the science behind snowflakes. Parents can explain to their children how water droplets fall from clouds and freeze on the way down - forming the crystals we call snowflakes. Scissor use also helps small children with fine motor skill development.
Visit www.childrensmuseum.org to discover unique programs offered at The Children's Museum of Indianapolis.


Curriculum & Instruction
On June 2, 2010, the NC State Board of Education adopted the Common Core State Standards which will be implemented during the 2012-2013 school year. The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) represent K-12 learning expectations in English-Language Arts/Literacy and Mathematics. The Standards reflect the knowledge and skills students need to be college and career ready by the end of high school.
North Carolina has also adopted Essential Standards in other content areas.
Orange County Schools are helping teachers transition to the new Common Core State Standards and NC Essential Standards.
Recently, OCS was asked to share our Common Core plans and ideas with other school systems at the NC Common Core State Standards Summit. Click HERE to see a letter of thanks we received from ASCD.
To learn more about the district's implementation plan, we encourage you to the visit the links in the menu on the right.
"To understand why the phrase “Common Core standards” is creeping into discussions outside the education community, it helps to appreciate what the Common Core effort could mean to your child..."
Click HERE to read the Wake Education Partnership Special Edition "IN CONTEXT" newsletter for a better understanding of Common Core Standards.
For more information on Common Core Standards in Orange County Schools, contact:
Dr. Lisa Napp, Director of Elementary Education
TBD , Director of Secondary Education


It's back-to-school week and many schools in Massachusetts, as well as around the country, are dealing with budget cuts by axing fine arts programs, including music, leaving parents struggling to bridge the gap on their own.
Some families are able to supplement with private classes, but most of our household budgets are feeling the crunch as well. If your school has done away with music classes for kids, how can you help them learn about music at home when you're as cash-strapped as the schools are? That's what we're talking about this week at Boston.com's Child Caring blog.
The benefits of music education are well studied. High school music students score higher on the SAT than their non-musical peers. Carolyn Phillips, former executive director of the Norwalk Youth Symphony in Connecticut, writes that playing an instrument can help the development of areas of the brain devoted to language and reasoning, and reading music can help children understand fractions and proportional math, both of which are necessary when it comes studying technology and science. Playing in a group teaches kids about teamwork, and performing in front of a crowd helps them learn how to evaluate risk and handle anxiety.
Practicing music underscores the ideas that mistakes can be fixed, instant gratification is rare, and perfection usually comes with dedication and hard work -- all ideas that apply to everyday adult life. And just listening to familiar tunes while you work can help boost productivity.
So why deny kids such a valuable educational tool? According to some experts, school districts commit resources to subjects that are on the MCAS test. Since the arts aren't tested, they're often the first courses to get cut, John W. Hooker, an art education teacher at Bridgewater State College, told Wicked Local. But even if programs aren't cut to save money, a February report by the Boston Foundation shows that while 70 percent of the students in Boston's 143 public schools get "some type of arts instruction during the school day," middle- and high-school students are "less likely to receive adequate amounts of arts instruction." The report also points out that while experts recommend twice-weekly, year-long arts education, only 5 percent of elementary-school students and 6 percent of middle-school students in Boston get that kind of instruction.
You don't have to be able to play an instrument yourself in order to help your kids learn about music. Playing games like Rock Band or Wii Music can teach rhythm, improve hand-eye coordination, and foster a love of music from The Beatles to Beethoven and everything in between.
If you had to cut out private lessons, but still want kids to practice at home, you can download sheet music for kids at Children's Music Workshop, or take advantage of their online music theory helper. A free 10-day trial at Lesson Planet gives you access to more than 600 classical music lesson plans for students in kindergarten on up.
Try using your computer to create your own compositions: Groovy Music City uses animation and voiceovers to teach kids about the fundamentals of composition and to guide them in making their own music. It offers kids a library of sounds to tweak and shape, the online tutorials are easy to follow, and the interface feels kind of like a video game. The software, which costs about $40, works on Macs and PCs, and is geared toward kids age 7 and older; kids can share their musical creations with their peers at Groovymusic.com.
Has music education been cut at your child's school? Do you think it's important for kids to study music, or should schools stay focused on adacemics and testing?


Reading and Writing
When children grow up in an environment that provides many encounters with written language, they frequently have an easier time learning how to read and write. Successful reading is a major factor in writing development, so major, in fact, that students who cannot read, or cannot read well, cannot write. Because students learn to read before they learn to write, understanding the mechanisms that underlie reading development is crucial to understanding writing performance.
Two views dominate the field of reading: One advocates that reading is a bottom-up process, the other that it is a top-down process. The first view usually finds application through phonics instruction, which focuses on teaching students decoding skills. Phonics approaches reading from the perspective that textual meaning is merely the sum of its visible parts: letters, syllables, and words. It emphasizes letter recognition, word accuracy, and attendance to form, with repeated error correction as the main pedagogical technique. The second view finds application through sight-vocabulary techniques that link whole-word recognition to context-dependent experiences. It argues that reading involves more than simply decoding letters into words and that reading is a complex activity in which readers use textual cues to generate a mental representation of meaning. Ultimately, however, reading development involves both bottom-up and top-down processes.
Schools teach students reading before writing, but over the last several years increasing numbers of teachers have recognized that reading and writing are reciprocal skills. In a growing number of elementary classrooms, teachers have given up the traditional sequence of instruction. Rather than beginning reading instruction with published texts, children write their own stories and use these as a source of reading materials. Learning how to read is thereby intimately linked with learning how to write, and the children's discourse becomes a vehicle for learning. The availability of microcomputers and printers has