Via Twitter, I'm seeing a lot of anxiety about the part of President Obama's new universal preschool proposal that calls for "comprehensive data and assessment systems" to track student progress and program quality. I know what you're thinking: Standardized tests for 4-year olds? And I agree, it is absurd to imagine toddlers filling in Scantron bubbles. But that isn't at all what the administration has ever meant when it talks about assessing pre-K quality. Instead, a big part of the Obama/Duncan vision is for statewide data systems that link students' early elementary school performance back to the preschool programs they attended, so those programs (not individual teachers or students) can be judged on whether they adequately prepare children for school.
As I reported for Slate in 2011, the potential best part of this Big Data for Little Kids push is that the accepted best practices for early childhood assessment include "testing" not only literacy and numeracy skills, but also the sorts of social, emotional, motor, and creativity skills that have gotten such short shrift since the onset of No Child Left Behind. For the youngest students, those skills include whether a child is confident asking questions, whether she can fasten her Velcro shoes and zip her jacket, whether she can hum a song and draw, and whether she plays cooperatively with peers. One widely-respected model for early-childhood assessment is the Work Sampling System, in which teachers observe students over the course of weeks or months, and then assign them a numeric rating in each of these categories. Again: Unlike assessment systems in use for older kids, these numbers are not meant to punish or reward individual teachers or students. Instead, the idea is to use the data to help teachers identify where students need to grow – and to help schools, districts, and states figure out how to improve teacher training and program management at the system level.
Testing for older students, I think, has a lot to learn from the best practices in early-childhood assessment. One lesson is that we have to look at the whole child over time, not just at his reading and math scores during a specific hour. Another lesson is that, as psychometricians have been warning us, the most accurate use of a test is as a diagnostic tool for the person who is taking it, not as a human resources tool to punish or reward the test-taker's teacher or principal.
Now. I don't want to be too optimistic, because early-childhood assessment can certainly get screwed up. In the Slate piece, I describe how Ohio managed to turn a good idea for longterm holistic assessment into a 10 to 15-minute, one-time, sit-down, scored literacy test for 5-year-olds. Most child development experts laugh at the idea that you can tell very much about any kindergarten student in a specific, short block of time like that, since 5-year olds don't typically have the self-control to put aside immediate concerns like hunger or boredom to focus on a Very Important Task.
A colleague of mine is working on a large paper about early-childhood assessment, so there will be much more to report in the coming weeks and months. Stay tuned.


Preparation to Visit an Art Museum
How do kids become engaged with works of art?
© Marvin Bartel, January 2011
- In my experience, museum visits go better for children who have had frequent practice in thoughtfully asking and answering questions and making discoveries in their own artwork and in the artwork of their friends in their studio art class.
- Children are more engaged if they have had frequent practice looking at and making discoveries in one or two examples from art history after they finished an artwork with some similar processes and/or concepts. Doing their own work first helps them identify with the ideas used to create the historical examples.
- Young children are more easily engaged in works of art in a museum if they have learned in their class to act out and make movements based directly on visual things, if they have learned create sounds to interpret visual things, and if they have learned to describe the tastes and feelings of visual things.
- Young children are more easily engaged in works of art in a museum if they have learned to use their imaginations to place themselves into the artwork that they learning about. "Look at these two paintings. How many would rather be in this painting, and how many would rather would rather be inside of this painting? Why?
WHAT I DO NOT EXPECT:
I do not expect children to copy museum work in their own artwork, but I want them to identify with the MOTIVATIONS and CREATIVE STRATEGIES of the artists.
My question are: "Why did the artist do this? How would it look DIFFERENT if you would have done it? Why would it look DIFFERENT if another artist made it? The other teachers in our schools are teaching nearly everything by showing kids examples to copy. As a result they do not realize that in art they may falsely assume that we also want them to imitate what we see instead of how we think and feel about what we see and experience.
BEHAVIOR PREPARATION I do not expect students to know and understand the museum expectations for behavior and empathy for other museum visitors. Therefore expectations are carefully explained, practiced, and reviewed in advance. This is again reviewed upon arrival with a series of questions.
WHAT DO I EXPECT ADVANCED ART STUDENTS TO GAIN from a MUSEUM VISIT? See this page on Reverse Engineering (backward planning). This page describes a webquest on art history.
Bartel HOME PAGE for Art Education
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Bartel Home Bartel
also see: Creativity Killers http://www.goshen.edu/art/ed/creativitykillers.html
All rights reserved. © Marvin Bartel. 2011
Updated: January, 2011 Author bio contact the author


ERIC Number: ED132548
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1976
Reference Count: N/A
Reading Strategies: Activities to Stimulate Slow and Reluctant Readers.
Tiedt, Iris M.
The activities included in this book are based on the assumption that good readers have excellent command of oral language, that they recognize signals and patterns in words and sentences and are able to guess unknown words based on this information, and that they learn to read by reading. Among the activities included in this collection are those using stories and story telling, drama, language experience, title cards, listening exercises, the cloze technique, high-frequency words, subject/predicate cards, word wheels, uninterrupted sustained silent reading, reader's theater, and poems. A reading list for teachers is also included. (LL)
Descriptors: Children, Class Activities, Decoding (Reading), Elementary Education, Oral Reading, Reading Difficulty, Reading Games, Reading Instruction, Teaching Methods, Vocabulary Development
Contemporary Press, Box 1524, San Jose, California 95109 ($3.50 paper)
Publication Type: Books
Education Level: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A


Breaking the Silences: Lesbian and Gay Parents and the Schools.Caspar, Virginia; And Others
Abstract: Examines responses of homosexual parents and their children's teachers and administrators concerning parent-school communication. The article discusses dynamics that encourage homosexual parents to disclose their homosexuality to the school and the value or risk placed on disclosure. It reports on issues of gender, offering parent and faculty narratives. (SM)
Title: Breaking the Silences: Lesbian and Gay Parents and the Schools.
Author: Caspar, Virginia; And Others
Journal Citation: Teachers College Record, v94 n1 p109-37 Fall 1992
Publication Year: 1992
Document Type: Journal Article (080); Project Description (141)
Target Audience: Teachers and Practitioners
ERIC Identifier: EJ456575
Clearinghouse Identifier: SP521740
Available from: UMI
This document is NOT available from the ERIC Document Reproduction Service (EDRS).
Descriptors: Child Development; Cultural Differences; * Educational Change; Elementary Education; * Homosexuality; * Parent School Relationship; Parent Teacher Cooperation; * School Attitudes; * Self Disclosure [Individuals]; Sex Stereotypes; Sexual Identity; Social Influences; Teacher Attitudes
Identifiers: Homophobia; Psychosocial Factors


10 Ways to Lead in Art Education
What do leaders in Art Education look like? In such a specific field, often art teachers can feel as though they do not have room, or a place, to grow. It’s very easy to get comfortable with your daily life and teaching. Some teachers thirst for leadership. They call it the “Leadership Itch.” Through personal and professional research, here are some things I recommend, and am working toward myself, to become a better leader and teacher in this field.
First, what do “Teacher Leaders” look like?
- Propel a program and their colleagues forward
- Make their program stand out
- Are courageous and confident
- Involvement in the community
- Help others around them grow
- Rally others to get involved
- Have a vision and have dreams
- Take action steps to get to those dreams
- Decide what is right for them and pursue it with passion
- Stay current with best practice in the field
10 Ways to Lead in Art Education:
- Become a member of a professional organization
- Present at state and national conferences
- Talk to your school board about the arts
- Submit an article to a professional publication
- Professional Development: Take classes or pursue higher degrees
- Social Networking: Make a presence on the web
- Teach classes at a local AEA or Community College
- Apply to coordinate your own district’s art department
- Mentor a new teacher
- Make art yourself!
Now don’t just sit there, go LEAD!
What are other ways you see yourself as a leader in the field of Art Education?


Carrots are packed with lots good healthy stuff and your child can transform them into something to enjoy for breakfast or after school. And, instead of shredding all those carrots, she can chop and steam, which makes them perfect for mashing and baking!
What You Do:
- Invite your child to start chopping the carrots by carefully using the paring knife. Using a knife is an important culinary skill, but does need adult supervision.
- Measure and add the 2 cups of carrots to a saucepan and cover with water and place over medium heat for about 10 minutes. Invite your child to keep checking the carrots by gently pressing the tip of the paring knife into a carrot chunk. Once they are tender, those carrots are ready to use!
- Carefully remove the carrots from heat and strain over the sink. Invite your child to place the carrots in a mixing bowl and use the masher to mash them up.
- Now your child can start adding the rest of the ingredients to the mixing bowl, starting with the butter, oil, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, salt, and sugar. She can give things a good mix using a spatula.
- Invite your child to preheat the oven to 375 F and then begin adding the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl. Once everything is mixed through, she can begin lining the muffin tin with liners and scooping the carrot muffin dough into the cups.
- Now she can place the muffins in the oven and bake for about 15-18 minutes. She’ll know they’re done by the amazing smell wafting from the oven!
Did You Know:
Carrots are the second most favorite vegetable after potatoes? They are also packed with vitamin B, potassium, and antioxidants.
Sarah Lipoff has a K-12 Art Education degree and enjoys working with kids of all ages.


To prepare for this workshop session, you will review the key terms, identify the strategies that you already use, and then read two articles on teaching English language learners.
What Do You Do?
Consider the strengths and needs of English language learners in your classroom. In what ways might their first language skills and culture support the development of background knowledge, vocabulary, comprehension, and writing? Think about how you plan instruction that acknowledges and promotes students' strengths, and addresses their needs.
Now, jot down your answers to these questions and, if you are taking this workshop for credit, save them for your Literacy Practices Portfolio:
- What specific strengths do your students demonstrate in reading and writing? How do you use and support those strengths in your instruction?
- What specific needs do your students demonstrate in reading and writing? How do you address those needs in your instruction?
- What have you done that has been most successful in teaching English language learners?
- What are your goals for improving the literacy development of your English language learners?
- Which of your colleagues teach English language learners? How can you collaborate with these colleagues to develop and discuss effective teaching strategies?
Examine the Literature
Print out two copies of the Examine the Literature Response Chart (PDF). Then read each article listed below, recording your ideas on the chart during and after reading. When you have finished, save your chart to submit as an assignment.
It's a Difference That Changes Us: An Alternative View of the Language and Literacy Learning Needs of Latina/o Students (PDF)
This article explores how teachers can discover the unique linguistic, cultural, and ethnic backgrounds of their English language learners, their literacy strengths and needs, and the ways in which reading and writing are important to them.
Jiménez, R. T. "It's a Difference That Changes Us: An Alternative View of the Language and Literacy Learning Needs of Latina/o Students." The Reading Teacher 54, no. 8 (May 2001): 736-742.
Making Content Instruction Accessible for English Language Learners (PDF)
This article examines the ways in which teachers combine language instruction with subject area material.
Hernandez, A. "Making Content Instruction Accessible for English Language Learners." In English Learners: Reaching the Highest Level of English Literacy, edited by G. G. Garcia, 125-149. Newark, DE: International Reading Association, 2003.
Next > Analyze the Video


Use consistent in a sentence
- I shall try to go through the rest of my description of our boarders with as little of digression as is consistent with my nature.
- Yet, I have neither adopted nor proposed any measure which is not consistent with even your view, provided you are for the Union.
- He will have it that they cannot be consistent else.
- And there are dreams that are rational, simple, consistent, and unfantastic?
This page helps answer: how do I use the word consistent in a sentence? How do you use consistent in a sentence? Can you give me a sentence for the word consistent? It may also be related to read, learn English exam, preschools, course, school district worksheet, school uniforms, elementary education, school, and teaching resource.
Example sentences with the word consistent, a sentence example for consistent, and consistent in sample sentence.


Go Green with a St. Patrick’s Day Garden
Guest post by Elizabeth Scholl
In Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day is the traditional day to plant peas and potatoes. The timing works for most climates in the United States, so why not celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with a really “green” activity: planting a garden!
Depending on where you live, you may find your garden bed is still covered with snow or the soil too frozen to work. Or your home may not have a backyard. Luckily, peas and potatoes can be planted in containers, and you can enjoy the harvest on a deck, balcony, or sunny windowsill. Then you can decorate it with a shamrock plant marker!
What You Need:
- good quality potting soil
- large flower pot with saucer (Note: Make sure the pot has drainage holes in the bottom and is at least 15 inches in diameter at the top.)
- pea seeds and seed potatoes (Note: Don’t plant potatoes from the supermarket. They may be sprayed with chemicals and won’t grow well. You can buy them at a local gardening store.)
- thin branches to use as support for vines
What You Do:
1. Fill your container two-thirds full with potting soil.
2. Press your pea seeds or seed potatoes into the dirt. Cover with an inch or two of soil.
3. Stick long, thin branches upright in the soil. As the vines grow, they will wrap themselves around the branches.
4. Put containers in a sunny indoor spot or outdoors in full or partial sunlight. If frost is forecast, bring containers indoors.
5. Water every two to three days, keeping moist. Be careful not to over-water.
6. For potato plants:
- As your potato plant grows, add more soil around the base of the plant, making a little hill. In fact, this is called hilling. Hilling should be done every time your plant grows about four inches.
- Continue to water the plant regularly as leaves and then flowers grow. When the leaves of the potato plants begin to turn yellow and die, stop watering.
- After two or three weeks, baby potatoes will be ready to harvest, or you can wait another four to six weeks to harvest larger potatoes.
7. For pea plants: Peas are ready to pick when the pods are full and heavy. Use scissors to cut the pods from the plant. Pulling them off by hand can result in pulling the entire plant up and damaging the roots.
- In areas of the United States that are too warm in March to plant cool-weather peas and potatoes, you can plant sweet potatoes, beans, and leafy greens such as spinach or swiss chard.
- Some gardeners sprout seed potatoes before planting, so they begin growing more quickly—a practice known as chitting. Put your seed potatoes on a shallow dish or tray, or in an open egg carton. Keep them in a warm place with a lot of sunlight or under a fluorescent light. When the potatoes have one-inch sprouts, they are ready to plant.
- When watering the pea plants, be careful not to get water on the leaves of the plant. Water can cause mildew to grow on the leaves.
Make a Shamrock Plant Marker
Make a festive shamrock plant marker to decorate your containers and to remind you what you have planted.
What You Need:
- popsicle stick, chopstick, or pencil
- green paper, or white paper and a green marker or crayon
- tape or glue
- black permanent marker
What You Do:
1. Trace and cut three small hearts from paper. If your paper is white, color your hearts green.
2. Tape or glue the three hearts together to form a shamrock.
3. Write “Peas” or “Potatoes” on your shamrock, depending on the container it will go into.
4. Tape or glue your shamrock to your stick or pencil.
5. Put the marker into the soil of the container.
Did you know? In just a few easy steps, you can turn your backyard, balcony or patch of grass into a habitat for wildlife. Create a Wildlife Garden!
Elizabeth Scholl is a New Jersey-based writer of children’s books and magazine articles, with a background in elementary education. Specializing in nature and environmental topics, her books includeOrganic Gardening for Kids, Grasshopper, Praying Mantis and Animals Attack: Wolves. When she isn’t writing, Elizabeth enjoys working in her garden, bicycling and and exploring nature in her neighborhood.


Overview of CAS Gen Ed Curriculum
The college’s General Education Curriculum has seven goals:
- Read, understand, and analyze texts
- Communicate effectively in speech and writing
- Understand and use quantitative reasoning to solve problems
- Locate, evaluate, and synthesize information in the construction of knowledge
- Explore and connect fields of knowledge in the liberal arts
- Develop facility for moral reasoning and examine the moral and religious dimensions of human experience
- Develop capacities for responsible citizenship and leadership in diverse communities
Purpose of the Curriculum
This curriculum teaches students the value of broad intellectual inquiry and fosters the resilience and inventiveness essential to success. At the same time, it helps students build foundational skills so that they can excel in advanced study and learn to become leaders.
Studies show that the first year of college is most critical for sustained success. Trinity’s First Year Experience sustains and nurtures students through their most vulnerable year, in the following ways:
- All first year students participate in assessment of their skills before classes begin. Students are then placed in courses that fit their abilities and needs.
- Each new student will join a “learning community” course with others who share her academic interests.
- The learning community professor will also be the student’s advisor for the whole first year.
- Learning communities link students’ classroom experiences with co-curricular programming, including visits to the theater and field trips relevant to students’ interests.
- Upon completing the First Year Experience, students will be ready to apply their foundational skills to any discipline.
Preparing for the Workplace
Trinity believes in preparing students for professional success as part of the undergraduate experience. The Gen Ed curriculum prepares students for reflective, responsible leadership through application of liberal learning to real-world experience, by helping students to engage in internships, peer mentoring, public service, and other experiential learning projects.


Our vision is successful families. Our mission is successful partnershps.
Resources for Parents
Online Resources for Parents and Caregivers Online Resources for Parents and Caregivers is the product of a year-long exploration of learning resources for parents and caregivers of young children. Compiled by members of the Massachusetts Family Literacy Consortium, this document provides descriptions of and links to quality websites for Language, Reading & Writing, Math & Science, Building Home/School Connections, General Education & Information for Parents, Massachusetts Authors & Illustrators, Places to Visit in Massachusetts, and other topics. It can help parents start finding treasures on the web, Great Websites for Kids and Best Websites for Kids at Common Sense Media provide additional recommendations - a virtual treasure chest! - to keep the learning going.
Family Math Fun This manual is a ready to use resource for parents and providers that work with children. It has rhymes, games, activities, and things to make to promote math thinking and learning. Patterns, recipes, and hand-outs are all included.
Get Ready to Read Get Ready to Read! is designed to support educators, parents, and young children in the development of early literacy skills in the years before kindergarten. Intended for use with all children, the resources and information provided on this site promote skill-building, communication between adults, and ways to address concerns.
Families Learn and Grow Together This resource guide helps parents understand the stages of child development from birth to 14 and provides suggestions for fun, low-cost family activities. Parents are encouraged to print the guide and discuss it with others. The guide is available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese.
One Tough Job This award winning website of The Children's Trust Fund provides parents with expert information, tips, and support they need to be the best parents they can be. The home page has a link to a Spanish version of the website.
Reading Rockets: Launching Young Readers Reading Rockets is a national multimedia project offering information and resources on how young children learn to read, why so many struggle, and how caring adults can help. The project includes online services and Public Broadcasting System (PBS) TV programs.
The Role of the Parent in Family Literacy This handout summarizes the roles parents play in their children's literacy development and provides five simple activities parents can do to build a solid foundation of family literacy at home.


Genesis: A Photographic Essay
Curator’s Statement by Emanuel Cooper, Jr.
Welcome to Euphrates first digital exhibition.
We celebrate our twelfth anniversary as an organization by premiering the electronic version of our first conventional exhibition, Genesis: A Photo Essay Of The Black Community In Kansas City, Missouri From 1885. Reflective of the team that has produced this online site, a small exhibition team was formed twelve years ago to develop the original free standing photographic essay. The team consisted of myself, Carol Cooper and Lonnie Powell, my former high school art instructor at Lincoln in Kansas City, Missouri. This small three person team later co-founded Euphrates Gallery Incorporated, in December 1984.
From all aspects of the original exhibition’s development, research, design and marketing, we learned valuable lessons. During the course of our search for original photographic documents, we encountered two images (above) which are central to the exhibition, circa nineteenth century. One of the photographs was that of an infant, Tecytle Gardner and a second of her neighbor, Mr. James Lobb. Tecytle and Lobb were second and third generation settlers of slaves who had walked from Kentucky to the Independence, Missouri settlement which preceded Kansas City, Missouri, located on the state’s western border.
In the late mid-1800’s this border was a dividing line of high tension. The land (Kansas) just across the Kaw and Missouri rivers represented freedom for many who had been born into slavery. At this time, Kansas was a free state and Missouri was a slave state. Keep in mind that the Kansas City area was a half day’s walk west of Independence. One half day’s walk to the edge of freedom. Just across the river in Kansas, John Brown operated one part of the famous Underground Railroad. On the Missouri side, the Bushwhackers ruled.
An alleged occasion in 1859 has John Brown leading a group of slaves north to Michigan. At some point during his journey, he stopped at the fruit market and home of William Webb in Detroit. At Webb’s Detroit home, John Brown secretly discussed with Frederick Douglass, George de Baptiste, William Lambert and other abolitionist leaders his plan to free slaves by raiding the armory at Harpers Ferry. The other abolitionist leaders did not care for Brown’s plan; too risky. John Brown followed through, however, and his actions shook the consciousness of the Union. (Please see the IPL’s history resource called POTUS for further details of John Brown at Harpers Ferry.)
Back to the core images of the exhibition. The original images and stories of Tecytle & Lobb’s lives had been preserved by individuals in two different families, both of Kansas City, Missouri. These individuals served as informal historians for their families. It is our hope that this electronic version of Genesis, A Photographic Essay will inspire you to research and care for your family’s old photographs, as well as to make proper archival storage plans for the images you are taking now. Our original interest in developing Genesis was based on the love of the beauty of the photographic image. That focus remains. However, as you can tell from the story about John Brown and the Underground Railroad, the original interest quickly evolved to include the crystallized historical information held within or loosely connected to the photographic image. Twelve years following the exhibition’s original development, the meaning and significance of the exhibition continues to evolve.
Interactive Exhibition Design
In the spring of 1994, I was fortunate to be provided the time to concentrate on the final details of my thesis Museum As Classroom: Art Education & Interactive Exhibition Design. At the time I did not realize that concepts which I was researching and discussing in my paper would be significantly developed and realized in less than two short years for use by such a large audience. The technical development of the Internet (which had been in place for 20 years) and the very important aspect of accessibility, made possible by graphical web browsing software, has changed our lives forever. These new tools make it possible to rethink the way we interact with exhibitions.
Thanks to Internet Public Library team member, Linda Jackson, to Exhibit Hall coordinator, Kendra Frost, and to Euphrates advisory board members and friends across the country and overseas, we are able to present the exhibition Genesis, in a new way to a larger audience. We invite you to study the images for their esthetic and archival meaning.
Emanuel Cooper, Jr., July 1996
Genesis: A Photographic Essay, Copyright Euphrates, Incorporated. All rights reserved. Hosted by the Internet Public Library.


MagniS Perceptual Trainer Short Description:
Educational, Game boosting Memory, Attention, concentration, maths, Logic
MagniS Perceptual Trainer Long Description:
What is MagniSmart?
MAGNISMART is a resourceful and stimulating activity for children and produces phenomenal results in enhancing the fundamental skills of reading, writing, spelling and mathematics. It is both fun and easy to use for teachers and students.
5 sections, 20 games
150+ Movable characters, Great graphics
Letters. Arrows, Shapes, Numbers
Large help menu
How can MagniSmart Help?
MAGNISMART uses a multi-sensory and logical approach with systematic exercises which are introduced in stages.
Academic skills such as reading and writing require a myriad of foundation skills which begin to structure themselves from birth. The Magnismart Activities and Games attempt to exercise the perceptual skills necessary for Literacy and Math. These neurological pathways, unfortunately only establish themselves if they are exercised or stimulated. It is essential that the foundational skills are established before the formal instruction of reading and writing to prevent learning difficulties.
The magnets used on the three tiered work board are appealing to young children and the skills are taught through exercises, which are perceived to be games, children are therefore learning through play.
The software programme Perceptual Trainer is very popular amongst students and is based on the same concept, the graphics and the three tiered grid are the same, but eliminates the kinesthetic or tactile aspect of using the magnets on the grid. Special Offer Available Now The best results are using an interactive approach between the two systems.
Coloured arrows are introduced before the abstract form of graphics (letters) to set the foundation and expectations upon which all other skills are built.
Unique to the MAGNISMART programme, is the work board with the three tiered grid. The vocabulary associated in using the spacing and positioning on this grid orientates and facilitates the pupil in conceptualizing the sizing, position and placing of letters, numbers and later words.
The trial sample produced excellent results.
It has therefore been decided to copyright this grid system to ensure protection.
When should the Magnismart Program be introduced?
Ideally the program should begin at the pre-school level where the fundamental or pre-reading/writing/arithmetic skills are introduced. The software programme may be used at any stage as it is designed to enhance and stimulate memory and vital perceptual skills.
It is accepted that pupils who are slow to make progress in reading and spelling and later develop learning problems can be attributed to the fact that they were not ready when formal instruction of reading and later spelling were first introduced.
MAGNISMART may also be used as a part of a support programme for students who encounter difficulties in learning to read, to spell or are slow to grasp number concepts. There is a manual available for parents to encourage parental involvement in their childrens education.


Guided reading is a method of teaching reading to children. The teacher provides support for small groups of readers as they learn to use various reading strategies. It is a preferred approach employed within primary schools.
Guided Reading Guide
Guided readings usually involves dividing the class into small groups based on academic ability, reading levels, or strategic/skill-based needs. The idea is that the teacher is not interrupted by the other children in the class whilst focusing on one group. The session would have a set of objectives to be taught. Whilst guided reading takes place with one group of children, the remaining children are engaged in independent or group literacy tasks. Although guided reading has been traditionally associated with primary grades it can be modified and used successfully in all grade levels
The key to the success of guided reading to the selection of reading materials. The reading must be purposeful and have the needs of the learners in mind. Texts should not be chosen to simply teach a specific strategy. Rather, the texts should be of such high quality that students can apply a wide range of reading comprehension strategies throughout the reading. When the proper books are selected, students are able to read without much difficulties. This enables the students to enjoy the story because there is not an overwhelming amount of "road blocks" that interfere with comprehension. Students focus on the meaning of the story and application of various reading strategies to problem solve when they do hit a road block in their knowledge or reading ability.
There are general process of guided readings. At beginning, A Teacher will introduce background knowledge and general information. then, The students will read independently within the group. As students read, the teacher will monitor student decoding and comprehension. The teacher may ask students if something makes sense, encourage students to try something again, or prompt them to use a strategy. After the students have finished up, the teacher will again check students' comprehension. The group will also discuss reading strategies they used during the reading.
Guided reading lesson plan template
A well designed guided reading lesson plan template will help your achieve your reading targets and save you time. There are no universal format for your template, however, it is important to include key elements in your lesson plan template: the reading goals and objectives, the reading material, the overall process and practices, the adaption and assessment part etc


Great Ideas in Science and Technology
This course explores the world of ideas and their relationship to the development of technology. The course covers early ideas in the relationships of the planets and the earth through the modern concepts of computers and atomic technology. The course provides an historical view of the world of science and technology and its role in the advancement of peoples. This course is designed to satisfy the requirements for Massachusetts teacher licensure in elementary education. Offered Selectively.
This course explores the subject of geography in multidimensional ways. The world is discussed in spatial terms—how to use maps to organize information regarding population and region. Physical systems are also discussed—the physical characteristics that affect population, migration, and economic interdependence. Places, regions, and their effect on the culture and experience of peoples are also explored. This course is designed to satisfy the requirements for Massachusetts teacher licensure in elementary education in its coverage of “basic geographical principles and concepts,” as well as related “economic principles and concepts.” Offered Selectively.


Education is always changing. Methods and technology has definitely changed since I have graduated from high school. As a teacher in the current educational system, we have to get our students to pass standardized tests in hopes of making AYP for our school. We are faced with “Do we, as educators, teach to the test or do we teach in hopes our students will get a full understanding of the content?” Now lets look at writing. There is an emphasis on reading rather than writing or literacy on standardized tests also associated with the No Child Left Behind Act. This pushes teachers into teaching formulaic writing.
Blogging presents a new approach for teachers to teach writing. The article The Influence of Classroom Blogging on Elementary Student Writing, a study was conducted in a fifth grade elementary classroom. Students that participated were of Hispanic, White, and Black. One was an English language learner and two were in the gifted program. The study was conducted over one academic school year. Most of the students were on grade level according to their teacher.
The purpose of the study was developed to address the question: “What happens when 5th graders blog and converse about literacies in class and beyond?” (Davis & McGrail, 2011) The researchers wanted to examine the influence of blogging in supporting writing and literacy development. “Young writers learn to write by writing, that young writers need to understand their own writing, and that writing development occurs over time.” (Davis & McGrail, 2011)
There were different people who served as the audience for the bloggers. A university professor provided informal feedback and conducted students interviews. Graduate students from the professor’s courses served as commenters and mentors. Other commenters were retired teachers.
“Prior to the project, the class curriculum focused on a review of 4th grade basics in sentence structure, nouns, and verbs, as well as fictional story writing” (Davis & McGrail, 2011) A total of 32 blogging sessions were conducted over the school year. To introduce the project, the teacher developed a webquest activity. She then created a wiki to familiarize different aspects of blogging: questioning, thinking, writing, collaborating, commenting, linking, and proof reading. The teacher also provided safety tips and guidelines.
In the beginning, the students wrote to their teacher. In a sense they wrote in the style a student would in a traditional writing assignment. Not really focusing that they are now writing to an audience. Over the coarse of the year, they became aware of their audience. The students developed a relationship with their readers. Their audience were real people, with whom they shared real interests. The students became empowered and motivated learners. They were willing to share with their readers with the help of confidence they started to gain. Some also made plans to improve their writing styles. In this study, blogging represented a new kind of space for learning.
The study suggests that the students grew as writers. They became aware of their audience and that it went beyond just their classroom teacher. I see this as a positive thing. This is another example of how technology and new methods both help the teacher and student. This is another way “hands-on” activities are not only engaging students but they are enjoying the learning process. They gained confidence within themselves during this study.
Davis, A. & McGrail, E. (2011). The Influence of Classroom Blogging on Elementary Student Writing. Journal of Research in Childhood Education. Issue 25, pg. 415-437.


|Google Scholar:||Look up in Google Scholar|
This article examines the records of four English 19th-century public libraries, demonstrating how a reading public might have been constructed in this period not only through the books on offer, but also in part through and by the policies which governed municipal public spaces, and the architecture of the library itself.
The Public Libraries Act (England and Wales) was passed in 1850 at a time when democracy was being hotly debated but only one person in forty was eligible to vote, and compulsory elementary education for all was still twenty years in the future. This essay explores how the public library came to act as a legitimating body for the performance of class and gender through reading practices. It argues that the social and political history surrounding the library movement in England is crucial to an understanding of how, though founded on the Arnoldian principle of culture as social panacea, it had come by the First World War to function on the principle of cultural capital as social signifier.
|Item Type:||Journal Article|
|Keywords:||history of reading; public libraries; nineteenth century; popular novels|
|Academic Unit/Department:||Arts > English
|Depositing User:||Mary Hammond|
|Date Deposited:||19 Jun 2006|
|Last Modified:||14 Jan 2016 12:04|
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ERIC Number: ED154634
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1978-Mar
Reference Count: 0
Evaluation of the Impact of ESEA Title VII Spanish/English Bilingual Education Program. Overview of Study and Findings.
Danoff, Malcolm N.
The fourth and final report on this study of the impact of bilingual education provides an overview of the design of the study and a summary of the findings, which were discussed in more detail in three previously released volumes. The goals of the study were to: (1) determine both the cognitive and the affective impact of bilingual education on students in Spanish/English bilingual education projects funded through ESEA Title VII, (2) describe the educational processes operating in these projects, (3) identify those educational practices which result in greater gains in student achievement, and (4) determine per-student costs associated with each project. Projects selected for the study were Title VII Spanish/English bilingual projects in either their fourth or fifth year of funding, as of fall 1975. The following topics are discussed: data collection strategy; data analysis strategy; types of students served by Title VII projects in the Study; educational goals; costs associated with Title VII Bilingual Project Schools and Non-Title VII Schools for 1975-76; characteristics of teachers and teacher aides, the impact of Title VII Programs on student achievement and attitudes; the relationship between gains in student achievement and attitudes and classroom procedures and environment and teaching staff characteristics. A list of the participating projects and school districts is included. (AMH)
Descriptors: Academic Achievement, Achievement Gains, Biculturalism, Bilingual Education, Bilingual Schools, Bilingual Students, Bilingual Teacher Aides, Bilingual Teachers, Classroom Techniques, Educational Objectives, Educational Policy, Elementary Education, Elementary School Students, English (Second Language), Federal Programs, Language Instruction, Language of Instruction, Language Programs, Language Research, Non English Speaking, Program Costs, Program Effectiveness, Program Evaluation, School Surveys, Second Language Learning, Spanish Speaking, Student Attitudes, Student Characteristics, Teacher Characteristics, Teaching Methods
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Sponsor: Office of Education (DHEW), Washington, DC. Office of Planning, Budgeting, and Evaluation.
Authoring Institution: American Institutes for Research in the Behavioral Sciences, Palo Alto, CA.
Identifiers: Elementary Secondary Education Act Title VII
Note: For related document, see FL 009 482


Mission Statement: The Hamilton School Garden creates an environment where our families and our community grow and learn.
Vision: Through hands on education we can teach healthy living while making practical connections to the core curriculum.
Theme: Grow and Learn!
Hamilton Elementary in the School District of Lancaster is a mid-sized urban elementary school with approximately 500 students in grades kindergarten through 5th grade. Approximately 75% of our families qualify for free or reduced lunch. Hamilton prides itself on the great diversity of our students and families. Hamilton students are fortunate to attend an urban school that has 13 acres of land. With such a unique setting for an urban school, it is exciting to use the grounds as an instructional environment.
About 4 years ago, Hamilton staff and families built 31 raised bed gardens. These gardens are intended for use by the school students and staff to create a better understanding of food sources, nutrition and healthy living. The goal is to educate students and families and to outreach to the community through gardening and outdoor education. There are many studies that suggest that school gardens and outdoor classrooms enhance student achievement, especially in elementary education.There is a strong link to improved performance in math, science, writing, social studies and attitudes toward learning. Students can make academic connections through working together in a garden setting. In addition, as we know, there has been a dramatic increase in childhood obesity. Children and families need a good knowledge base about nutrition and healthy lifestyles choices. School gardens provide experiences for students and families to improve their attitudes toward cooking and eating fresh fruits and vegetables. Our unique setting allows us to have enough vegetables and herbs to maintain a garden that will produce fruits and vegetables from spring through fall seasons. This produce can be used for nutrition and healthy eating lessons during the school day and for family events.
During the summer of 2013 we created a family co-op garden. The families agree to have their children attend a garden club 3 days per week after school and they also agree, as a family, to work a minimum of 6 hours per month in the garden during the summer. With those criteria met, they are able to share in the harvest of vegetables such as peas, beans, potatoes, tomatoes, squash, lettuce, cantaloupe, watermelon and many more!
We have the ability to influence the healthy choices of children and families in our community. We are excited to have received the Fresh Fruit and Veggie Grant through the PA Department of Education and Smart Partners. This grant has provided tasting samples of fresh fruits and veggies to all of our students 3 times per week for the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 school years! In addition, we are registered with Bill Scepansky as a partner in the Chefs Move to Schools program developed by First Lady Michele Obama. We have worked with such strong community partners such as Lancaster General Health, Lighten Up Lancaster, Community Action Program and Compass Mark. In addition, we have received generous monetary and material support from local and national companies such as Pennsy Supply, Landis Wood Works, Whole Foods, Inc. and ALCOA.
Through this initiative, we are setting the stage for healthy lifestyle choices!


Did you know that a child’s language skills are a strong predictor of later literacy skills? Children with strong language skills in the preschool and early elementary years tend to have stronger literacy skills later on. Literacy development is so much more than the ABC’s: Literacy starts with language! Today, I am over at I Can Teach My Child sharing 20 tips for creating a language rich environment for your toddler, which can help build that strong base he needs fore future literacy.
It is absolutely amazing watching children learn to talk. They start out with babbles that morph into single words that they soon learn to string together to form sentences. By age three, we can actually have conversations with these little people! And the more amazing thing is that these children are learning language in the everyday moments of life! I’m talking about meal times, diaper changes, dressing in the mornings, and in their everyday play. These sometimes boring and mundane activities for us adults are actually the ones that matter most.
Head over to read the post at I Can Teach My Child where I share 20 tips for making these everyday moments count!


ERIC Number: ED458621
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1999-Sep
Reference Count: N/A
The Literacy Debates: What Are the Issues in New Zealand?
The 1970 International Educational Achievement (IEA) survey placed New Zealand's nine and fourteen year olds first in reading achievement in comparison with all other participating countries. Literacy educators the world over have studied New Zealand's methods and classroom environments, and its approaches to reading/writing instruction have been adopted in many countries. Reading Recovery, developed by Marie Clay in the 1970s, has become a key intervention program in Britain, Australia, and the United States. But the IEA survey of 1990 showed that New Zealand has slipped in ranking, and their children had the greatest difference between high achievers and low achievers. A 1996 adult literacy survey was also disappointing. Several factors have probably contributed to the changing literacy profile of New Zealand: the number of multiethnic children from backgrounds other than English has greatly increased; socioeconomic factors have led to polarization of wealth and living conditions; and curriculum demands on schools have increased both in diversity and content. Some have recommended that New Zealand adopt phonics programs instead of the natural language philosophy of literacy instruction. A Literacy Taskforce identified several issues affecting literacy instruction but did not recommend a major change. Central to a number of the recommendations was ongoing professional development for educators, focusing on effective use of teaching approaches, monitoring and assessment, and use of running records. The government set as its goal the enhanced reading and achievement of children in the first four years of schooling. Reading Recovery and Resource Teachers of Reading provide literacy intervention, and funds have been allocated to a pool to which schools can apply to establish programs to support at-risk learners. (NKA)
Descriptors: Comparative Education, Elementary Education, Foreign Countries, Instructional Effectiveness, Literacy, Professional Development, Reading Achievement, Reading Instruction
For full text: http://brs.leeds.ac.uk/.
Publication Type: Reports - Descriptive; Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers: International Assn Evaluation Educ Achievement; New Zealand; Reading Recovery Projects
Note: Paper presented at the British Educational Research Association Annual Conference (University of Sussex at Brighton, September 2-5, 1999).


Alphabet Flower Garden
Make a beautiful flower garden while learning letters and letter sounds!
How We Did It
Prep the alphabet garden by drawing flower stems on a piece of large paper. Write a letter above each stem. Next, write letters on your flower stickers. If you don't have flower stickers you can draw a flower shape on the paper and use circle stickers with the letters written on them to stick inside the flower shape you drew.
With this activity your child can match capital letters to capital letters or capital letters to lowercase letters (which is what we are working on). When I told her we were going to fill this garden with colorful flowers she was thrilled and dove right in. Taking the back off of the sticker is great for fine motor skill development (look at her concentration!), but if it is frustrating for your child, do it for them this time so they can focus on matching the letters.
Your child can pick any flower and match it or work in alphabetical order to match them. When she picked a sticker I asked her what letter she picked. Then we said the letter sound together.
She was so proud that she made the flower garden all by herself and she still has it sitting on her shelf. What a fun spring learning activity!


This practical book examines research and theory about children from birth to age 18. The concepts are solidly based around the activities of schools, agencies, and other settings in which the day-to-day lives of children play out. A wealth of case studies, along with a new Observation CD-ROM with video clips for each chapter, provide understanding into how children develop. By using real-life case studies and genuine feedback from children of all ages, this book provides complete coverage of the following topics: methods of inquiry in child development; physical development; cognitive development; intelligence; language development; literacy development; personal and emotional development; social understanding and moral development; development of motivation and self-regulation; a study of the family; interpersonal relationships; and growing up. An excellent resource for caregivers, child care center directors and employees, social workers, teachers, and parents.
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Rent Child Development 2nd edition today, or search our site for other textbooks by Teresa M. McDevitt. Every textbook comes with a 21-day "Any Reason" guarantee. Published by Pearson Education.


Reading aloud is critical for literacy development. Study after study tells us that. Reading to our children at a young age is an important pre-reading activity for their young minds. It helps not only with language development, but also with overall brain and idea development. That doesn't stop when your child masters the ABCs. No matter the age of your children, reading to them is a wonderful family -- and learning -- activity.
Reading to your kids is not just for the preschool set -- and just because your child can read (and read) well on their own doesn't mean your job as a designated reader is done. Older kids -- fourth, fifth and sixth graders and older! -- still benefit from listening to a parent read aloud. Books with more complex language structure, rich vocabulary and serious subject matter are perfect for reading to and with an older child. Not only does it help further evolve a child's literacy, but it opens up paths for communication between you.
Reading at bedtime is a wonderful sleepy time ritual, but take the reading aloud out of the bedroom. Oh, keep reading at bedtime -- but read aloud at other times of the day, too. Try reading aloud to your kids at the breakfast table. They may be a little groggy (heck, maybe you are, too), but hearing the words of that classic book you are sharing with them helps awaken their minds so they are ready for the school day.
You know the reading guidelines say read to your child for 20 minutes a day -- but when was the last time you actually did? Chores and activities get in the way, and if you sat on your child's bed that long at the end of a busy day, you'd like be snoring before she is! But length of reading is important, so get a cup of tea and set a timer and make sure you read to your child for at least 20 minutes day, if not more. Or for significantly longer a few times a week. It will make a difference for both of you, both in terms of the books you will be reading together and in terms very high quality bonding time.
You don't have to get through a whole book in a sitting each time you read to your child. Introduce chapter books early for a continuity in your reading over many days or even weeks, and you'll both want to get back to reading together to see what happens next. This is a great way to introduce classic literature to your child! Moby Dick, here you come!
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Antoni Dobrowolski, a former Polish teacher arrested by the Gestapo in 1942 for teaching underground lessons to students, died on Sunday at the age of 108, according to a Polish official speaking with the Associated Press. He was the oldest known survivor of Germany's largest death camp.
Banning elementary education beyond four years was one of many tactics employed by Nazi Germany after its invasion of Poland in 1939—a strategy aimed at undermining Polish culture and wiping out its intelligentsia and leadership class. A spokesman at the Auschwitz-Birkenau state museum told the AP Dobrowolski died in the northwester town of Debno.
Apparently, he never lost his passion for teaching. According to the Polish newspaper Gazeta, after Dobrowolksi was liberated in 1945, he became head of a primary school in Debno and, a number of years later, directed a local high school. Prior to his arrest by the Germans, the newspaper says Dobrowolski was a member of the Secret Teaching Organization an underground organization formed in response to the mass closure of educational institutions and repression of teachers. In total, Germans are believed to have killed at least 1.1 million people at Auschwitz—most of the victims were Jewish but many were also Roma, non-Jewish Poles and other persecuted groups.


As far as science for kids goes, my favorite classic project is Floaters and Sinkers. It explores the idea of object density. Clay boats are a perfect companion science experiment demonstrating that not only density but shape effects whether or not an object floats. To brighten up this classic project a bit we used colorful Sculpey. And don’t miss the storytelling offshoot of this project, all invented by a 4 year old….I originally spotted clay boats in this go-to book Science Arts: Discovering Science Through Art Experiences by Mary Ann Kohl.
Sculpey Ships demonstrates the concept of displacement; if a shape/object can push away fluid equal to its weight it will float, no matter how heavy it is. So here is the challenge for your kids:
Can you make a floating clay boat?
Before building anything you will want to show your kids that a mound of clay will not float. Give them a handful and have them drop it in the tub full of water. It will sink. Now challenge them to sculpt the clay into a shape that floats!This post contains affiliate links to products I love and recommend to my readers, plus it keeps this little blog o’mine afloat (no pun intended with this project)! Thank you!
Science for Kids: Scupley Ships
- Step One Fill up your tub full of water. It should be fairy deep to really illustrate the floating and sinking concept.
- Step Two Have you child start molding the Sculpey into the shape of a hull or flat-bottomed boat. They can test out the shapes as they create their boats. Dry off any shapes that sink and continue molding.
- Step Three Keep working until you have some shapes that float. When you have a few winners, try adding details to the boats and see if they continue to float. My daughter added “people” to each of the boats!
- Step Four Once you have a few floaters start adding drops of water into the hull with eyedroppers until they reach the tipping point and sink.
If you have older kids allow you kids to try the experiment first without any hints. If they are younger, however, you might want to make a sample boat that floats to show your kids. My son’s first several attempts sank to the bottom of the bin and he was convinced that they would never float. When I molded a simple shape that floated he was amazed and encouraged to try again. My daughter immediately made about 10 boats as soon as she saw a winner and couldn’t wait to test them out.
The Titanic. When my oldest turned 5 he went through a major Titanic phase. As in MAJOR. He was really obsessed with the idea of this massive ship sinking. The funny thing was that unbeknownst to him my mother also had a huge fascination with the story of the Titanic, so we had plenty of Titanic paraphernalia to share. It truly is a captivating story on so many levels, for me the engineering failure is the most interesting part of the disaster. Use the Sculpey ships to illustrate what happens when too much water enters a floating boat.
As usual, no project ever goes as planned in our home. When I originally decided on this project I thought of it as strictly science and design, but my 4 year old completely surprised me by incorporating pretend play and storytelling into the fun. As soon as we had a few boats Clara started populating them with little clay “people” and told me exactly who they were and who was in what boat together. When a boat sank, she created a little story about it. It was an offshoot of this project I never would have dreamed of and I was completely impressed by her creativity. So maybe I should categorize this project as Science, Design, and Storytelling for kids!
Sculpey ships are simple engineering project for little ones. It may seem too simple to engage your kids but trust me, try it! They are a great way to explain the concept of displacement with a hands-on activity and your kids won’t even realize they were designing and exploring science at the same time.
Here are three more classic science experiments to try with your kids. They will not disappoint!
- Rainbow Flowers from Pink Stripey Socks
- Egg Geodes from Tinkerlab
- Red Cabbage Experiment from Blog Me Mom
Clay boats and other artsy science experiments can be found in Science Arts: Discovering Science Through Art Experiences by Mary Ann Kohl. It’s one of our go-to books for offbeat projects!
And don’t miss out on more science for kids here on Babble Dabble Do! Subscribe below or like us on FB.
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As a body of knowledge, South African Visual Arts curricula are largely Eurocentric. My frustrations are less about what is included the curriculum, as what is excluded. There is a definite absence of black scholars and Black Art Movements in the academic texts. I use the term “black” to describe a people of indigenous African descent as well as Africans in the Diaspora.
We can argue the question of Blackness and what that may mean, but what remains is that there is a certain point of view that is sprung from a Black experience shared by people within that cluster. The continued thrust of a Eurocentric approach to Learning is what propels the necessity of the exploration of Visual communication devised for n non-European audience.
How Learners define and articulate theories is based on their cultural identities as well as the socio-political spaces they occupy. If their socio-political spaces centre on a largely peri-urban Black existence, how do we dare require that they communicate to this audience via a foreign Visual Language? If indeed the pulse of their societies is felt in their veins, it is only reasonable to expect that they express this “vibe” to a ready audience.
Visual Arts curricula do not adequately highlight their cultural presence, heritage and history. At present, there is an apparent devaluing of African histories and knowledge in the curriculum. The creative works of the indigenous peoples of the world are grouped under the title “Africa, Americas and Oceania”, where only Traditional Arts are presented, though not explored in any great depth.
Inclusively does not mean the inclusion of Black Art; but rather to take an Afrocentric approach. Afrocentricity# is the study of phenomena grounded in perspectives and epistemological constructs of peoples of African descent. I am not implying that we remove all the other views of the Visual Arts, but rather to consider an Afrocentric view in order to provide a complete understanding of what it is to live in a pluralistic society. What we need is a “multi-centric” approach. Centricity locates Learners within their own cultural frame of reference so that they can connect socially, politically, ideologically, spiritually and emotionally to the learning process.
While Afrocentricity may well be criticized as being largely historical in nature, there is little in the way of the study of Afrocentric Visual works that are created in Post-Modern and Contemporary times that helps form the basis for a student of the visual arts for what might be her point of view. Within the Afrocentric approach, there are many other cultures that are specific to particular contexts, e.g. an Afrocentric approach to Pedagogy in Botswana would be vastly different to one that is instituted in South Africa. The South African perspective is not as easily homogenous as that of Botswana, and therefore requires the integration of other cultural influences such as the consideration of the IsiZulu, the English, the Afrikaans, and the IsiSwati cultural contributions amongst others.
The mission of Visual Art Education as a Teaching and Learning relationship therefore would be to construct learning conditions leading to full and equitable social participation. The aim is for a visual literacy that accommodates aspects of a multiplicity of discourses. In this way, the pedagogy takes into account our ethnolinguistically diverse cultural make-up.


Gretchen Owocki lets other teachers in on one of the best-kept secrets of early childhood education: play is a virtual goldmine for facilitating literacy learning. When children play in a purposefully designed, literacy-rich environment, teachers can discover and capitalize on some truly important, highly teachable moments. Literacy Through Play is a resource for preschool and primary teachers who are looking for proven methods for preparing young children to become confident and flexible readers and writers. Owocki begins the book by establishing the theoretical rationale for the importance of play in literacy development, then outlines what teachers can do to set up a developmentally appropriate environment. She takes us inside two classrooms that use play in smart ways, offering proven ideas for:developing the play environment teaching literacy through play assessing children's literacy knowledge as they play implementing developmentally appropriate practices collaborating with families. If the current political firestorm over reading, phonics, and spelling has caused you to question whether children can develop the foundation for conventional reading, writing, and spelling in a developmentally appropriate classroom, this book will assuage your concerns. If the "back to basics" movement has led you to disbelieve these classrooms are teaching the "basics," this book will not only confirm that they are, it will also give you useable ideas for teaching them in developmentally appropriate ways.
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Italian Diction for Singers 1 (VSAO1008)
UNIT OF STUDY
This unit is designed to introduce the student to the symbols of the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). The student will apply knowledge of the IPA to the pronunciation of all sounds in the Italian language. There will be an emphasis on the practice of drills, IPA transcriptions and performance of Italian songs in class. On completion of this unit students should be able to identify and pronounce all symbols in the IPA for Italian.
Our courses that offer this unit of study
- Bachelor of Engineering Honours and Bachelor of Music Studies
- Bachelor of Music (Composition)
- Bachelor of Music (Music Education)
- Bachelor of Music (Performance)
- Bachelor of Music Studies
- Bachelor of Music Studies and Bachelor of Arts
- Bachelor of Music Studies and Doctor of Medicine
- Diploma of Music
Further unit of study information
Continuous during semester (40%), oral and written exam (60%)
Faculty/department permission required?
Study this unit outside a degree
If you wish to undertake one or more units of study (subjects) for your own interest but not towards a degree, you may enrol in single units as a non-award student.
If you are from another Australian tertiary institution you may be permitted to underake cross-institutional study in one or more units of study at the University of Sydney.


NCEER-92-0018 | 8/10/1992 | 144 pages
TOC: The table of contents is provided.
Keywords: Elementary Education, Secondary Education, Curriculum Materials, Bibliographies, and Earthquake Education.
Abstract: Resources for teachers and administrators desiring to start an earthquake education program or teach a more detailed lesson on earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis, and plate tectonics are presented. Curricula, software, and supplemental informational material lists are provided with bibliographies of related books and articles for grades K-9 and parents and teachers. Bibliographic citations include reading levels and length of books whenever possible. On May 26, 1988, the National Center for Earthquake Engineering Research initiated an education project whose focus was on earthquake education in school programs for K-12. From the start of this project, copies of and information about earthquake education curricula, related software, and supplemental informational materials and books were collected and compiled. As this compilation progressed, it became clear that there was a great deal of interest in a publication listing such materials. The result was the NCEER Interim Bibliography of Earthquake Education Materials which was printed in March, 1989. Interest in this type of publication has continued, leading to this expanded, fourth edition.


Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is a systematic, one-on-one intervention, based on behavioral principles, that focuses on skill development. BTS of MN work with children and families to further develop skills in communication, socialization, and behavior regulation. Specifically, ABA therapy has been an effective intervention for teaching children to talk and to interact more effectively with peers and adults. Treatment objectives will be developed to help increase positive behaviors and skills, maintain and generalize behaviors, and reduce repetitive and restricted behaviors.
Treatment is individualized and is based on a comprehensive skills assessment. Services are provided in the child’s home, as well as in community and school settings to encourage generalization of skills. Early ABA researchers found that children with autism were not learning from their environment as effectively typically developing children. Therefore, it is up to ABA therapists, caregivers and teachers to develop a therapeutic environment in which children can learn most effectively. Our ultimate goal is to help each child develop skills that will enable him or her to be as independent and successful as possible.
In order to establish a consistent therapeutic environment for your child, we require on-going parent involvement, including weekly family skills session participation. Parents will learn how to facilitate the use of their child’s newly acquired skills at home and in the community.
ABA services are conducted within the home. Our program options include:
The Supervising Psychologist will work together with the family to determine which program will best suit each child’s individualized needs.
This program provides comprehensive one-to-one treatment for young children who have been diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. Intensive Early Intervention Behavior Therapy Services (IEIBTS) are strongly supported by research as being the most effective treatment currently available for children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Research strongly indicates that best outcomes are accomplished when a child’s program is intensive. Therefore, we require a commitment of at least 30 to 40 hours per week of therapy to help your child reach their fullest potential. The number of therapy hours recommended for each child is based on the results of a comprehensive assessment.
Early programming typically focuses on the development of foundational skills, including the following: Establishing a broader range of reinforcing items and activities, responding to basic instructions, imitation skills, matching and sorting, communication skills (e.g. requesting, receptive labeling, expressive labeling), social interaction skills (e.g. responding name, eye contact, physical play), play skills, and reduction of restricted and repetitive behaviors.
Intensive behavior therapy services are provided to school-aged children on the autism spectrum. This service typically focuses on treating children who attend school on a ½ day basis. The level of service intensity will depend on the needs of the child and family. As with IEIBTS, services are provided in home, community, and school settings. Programming often focuses on further developing communication and socialization skills, as well as the reduction of repetitive or other problematic behaviors. The skills to be targeted depend on the need areas of the child. Therapeutic needs are identified through the assessment process.
If you are interested in ABA services, please contact our office to schedule an assessment to determine if your child would benefit from one of our programs.
*Funding: We are CTSS providers and accept medical assistance and Medica. Other plans may pay for services as well.


Art is a medium through which a child expresses his/her thoughts, feelings and fantasies. A child's artwork depicts his/her perception of the world around him/her.
|Children who are encouraged to express through art, their thoughts, feelings and imaginations are broadened and enriched. Art promotes creativity and ability to think. Art is an integral part of early childhood education. Approximately 30 to 50 percent of children in preschool programs engage in art-related activities during each school day.
German Village by Ankush Bhatia
According to Enid and Laura Zimmerman, three views of art teaching have influenced art education for young children over the past fifty years. First view, a child's artwork is a reflection of natural inner processes of development. A second view, based upon a cognitive developmental approach, focuses on children's construction of general knowledge about the world. The third view, art education promotes self-development so that children can understand themselves in relation to the society in which they live.
Gardner (1980) suggests that children's natural art abilities unfold if adults provide equipment, materials and encouragement. There should be no direct intervention from adults, so children's natural abilities could unfold (Schaffer-Simmern 1947). For toddlers and preschoolers freely exploring colors, textures, characteristics of materials and expressing feelings, perceptions and ideas seem good goals. The process is more important than the product.
Once the child completes his/her artwork, instead of a word of praise, have a dialogue with the child. You will learn more about the artwork and the child's thoughts. Write brief notes and attach it to the artwork (of course with the child's permission). Always date the artwork. A child's artwork helps an adult track a child's development. Be an advocate of your child's artwork!


- Learn the procedure for energy audits and state guidelines for energy audits.
- Understand the basics of thermal imaging and applying it to energy audits.
- Describe the procedure for and purpose of conducting a Blower Door Test
- Explain the reasons for checking for duct leaks and the different diagnostic tests available.
- Determine how to create and what to include in the written report for the client
- Describe the testing procedure for oil burner furnaces, boiler systems, electric furnaces, and heat pumps
- And much more...
With energy costs on the rise, homeowners are looking for trained professionals to make their homes energy efficient. With the Energy Audit Diagnostic course, an inspector will learn to carry out energy audits and make these recommendations to homeowners. With lessons covering thermography, blower doors, furnace testing, combustion appliance tests and duct leakage, inspectors will have the foundational skills needed to begin performing energy audits on residential homes.
The energy auditing industry is expanding rapidly. Receive training now, and you will be ideally positioned to take advantage of these business opportunities. Take the course online & earn 20 credit hours towards your Florida Home Inspector License continuing education requirement!


Fun and interactive programs designed for parents and children. All programs are FREE. Offered throughout the year in Tofield, Ryley, Holden, Viking & Spilstead Hall.
Books for Babies
A program designed for parents and children, newborn to 3 years. Parents and children share and enjoy books with a trained facilitator. Participants receive a free book bag with two free books and tips on the importance of reading to children for oral language development.
Rhymes and Rhythm
A family program created for parents and children up to 5 years of age. Sing rhymes, tell stories and shake your shakers. Share information to support your child's early literacy development.
Junior Book Club for Toddlers. Come and take an in depth look at a book through the story and games.
Little People - Simple Snacks
Make snacks while learning essential skills with your child.
Introduction to basic numeracy for toddlers through books and activities. Activities encourage a love of reading and books and help to improve fine motor skills. How to help your child learn:
1. Talk about what you are doing 2. Look your child in the eyes 3. Listen as your child talks 4. Read to your child each day 5. Talk about the story 6. Praise your child 7. Share one new word, song, craft or activity every day
For upcoming dates & registration: www.beavercountycalc.ca


BRAINSTORM AND VISUALIZE IDEAS: Write down as many ideas that come to mind. You may decide to use them all or just a few. The more ideas you have the better. Start by thinking about your own special talents, interests, and experiences also think about other people and their special qualities. Think about certain movies, cartoons, or situations that have sparked your imagination. Visualize your ideas and utilize your five senses: seeing, hearing, smelling, touching, and tasting.
DEVELOP CHARACTERS: Think about the characters that you are going to be writing about. Who is the main character or characters? What are their names? How do they dress? What is their favorite food? Give them a personality. Make your characters interesting so people will be drawn to them. Characters make the story.
OUTLINE YOUR STORY: Always remember a good story has a beginning, middle and an end. Characters will interact and evolve throughout the story. The characters normally have conflicts or an obstacle that needs to be resolved. Here are some examples:
A. Introduce characters in your story by giving them a name, a physical appearance, and personality.
B. Create a conflict or obstacle that the main characters need to resolve.
C. The story needs a climax. This is a point of realization that the main characters come to. They will come in contact with the conflict or the obstacle.
D. The story needs to be resolved. How do the characters end up? What happens? Yes, it’s happily ever after!
When writing a story you need to have characters, a plot, and a setting. It is important to fill in the details about each of your story elements. Who are your characters? What is the plot? Where is the setting? Let’s start with the development of a character:
How many characters are there in your story?
Who is the main character?
Fill out the worksheet below for each character. Get to know your characters and have fun developing them.
GETTING TO KNOW YOUR CHARACTER IS AN IMPORTANT TASK!
Main Characters name:
Characters physical appearance:
Characters general mood:
What does the character enjoy doing most?
Characters family life
Other close relatives:
Does the character have children?
What are the characters goals?
How does the character react to problems?
How does the character react to good news?
Have fun developing your characters and remember to get to know them. Write with feeling and your story will come alive.
Michelle Rossi, (White) is a graduate from Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan. She has earned her Bachelor of Science Degree in Elementary Education and a Michigan Teaching Certificate. She is the founder/CEO of the All About Me Program that is being utilized throughout many communities. The program is geared to teach today's youth how to build self-esteem, positive thinking, understand the creative mind, communicate better, learn about personality, friendships and how to set goals. Michelle's workbook All About Me, is the instructional tool used in the program which has been reviewed by Mort Crim and other news media. Michelle's workbook and program is by far helping today's youth grow socially and academically stronger.
Michelle has been published in Chicken Soup for the Kid's Soul 2. Her story is called, "Start With The Truth." She has also been published in Chicken Soup for the Child's Soul. Her story is called, "Who's to Blame?" Chicken Soup for the American Idol Soul has published her story, "The Youngest Idol Fan."
All About Me Reviews:
Michelle's book is a winner by any standard--interesting, timely and on target for its young audience. Psychologists have long recognized that low self esteem is at the root of many social problems among our youth from promiscuity to violent crime. ALL ABOUT ME is a highly readable contribution to building self esteem and providing youngsters with a healthy perspective on their place in the world."
All the best ....
Mort Crim/ AUTHOR, BROADCASTER


4228.0 - Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies, Australia, 2011-2012 Quality Declaration
Previous ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 15/02/2013
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Older Australians have lower levels of literacy and numeracy
Older Australians have lower levels of literacy and numeracy than younger Australians, according to preliminary figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) today.
ABS Director of the National Centre for Education and Training Statistics, Andrew Webster, said the recent PIAAC survey assessed people's literacy and numeracy skills and their ability to solve problems in technology-rich environments.
"The survey measures participants on a scale of one to five, one being the lowest and five being the highest," he said.
"The survey found that 44 per cent of Australians aged 15 to 74 (7.3 million) had literacy skills at levels one or two, a further 39 per cent (6.4 million) at level three and 17 per cent (2.7 million) at levels four or five.
"For numeracy skills, 55 per cent of Australians (8.9 million) were assessed at level one or two, 32 per cent (5.3 million) at level three and 13 per cent (2.1 million) at levels four or five.
"By comparison, among people aged 60 to 74 years, 65 per cent were assessed as having literacy at levels one or two, and 71 per cent were in the lower levels of numeracy," Mr Webster said.
"There was little difference in the proportion of males and females at each level of literacy, however more males (17 per cent) than females (nine per cent) attained the highest numeracy levels.
"People out of the labour force were more likely than the employed or unemployed to be assessed at the lower levels of literacy (60 per cent) and numeracy (70 per cent)," he said.
Mr Webster announced that the ABS expects to release final results for PIAAC in October 2013, coinciding with the publication of an International Report on PIAAC by the OECD.
The Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) was coordinated by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), conducted in 24 countries around the world and sought to measure the skills needed for people to participate in society and for economies to prosper.
Further information can be found in Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (cat. no. 4228.0), available for free download from the ABS website www.abs.gov.au.
When reporting ABS data, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (or ABS) must be attributed as the source.
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The Right to an Education for Burmese children project provides primary/elementary education for Burmese immigrant children with families who have fled to Thailand to escape persecution and extreme poverty in Myanmar. During the last school year 640 children were served. The project is promoted by the United World Project (NGO) in collaboration with its local affiliate the Good Friend Centre in Thailand’s Mae Sot Province.
Since 2006 Good Friend Centre has been working in Mae Sot Province providing primary education to Burmese children who have immigrated with their families, to escape persecution and extreme poverty in their homeland.
Many of the families had to leave everything behind when they fled. Now they work as farmhands without the guarantee of regular salaries. The children often have to stay at home to help their parents in the fields. Their inability to pay tuition and school fees is a further discouragement that leads them to abandon early schooling.
With 8 schools on the Thailand, Myanmar border, the Good Friend Centre provides free schooling to hundreds of children who would otherwise not be able to receive and education. To help the school become economically independent, production activities have begun to pay for educational fees (salaries and professional development courses for teachers, a daily meal for the children, school uniforms and educational materials).
In 2011 the United World Association supported a project for raising chickens and pigs beside the New Blood School, a project which supports 450 children who are attending the school.
For several months, a 5-acre plot has been rented beside the school for the cultivation of beans and corn, providing further support for the project. This new school year began with 2 production projects (raising fish and pigs) which will support the Mae Wah Khee School and the Pa Lu Gyi School attended by 190 children.
This project requires an initial investment for the purchase of 3,000 fish and 10 pigs and a year’s salary for personnel. The pig farm should become self-supporting in 15 months; whereas, the fish farm should begin producing profit for the school in 5 months. These projects will help the schools to be independent of external support, and continue to provide free services to minors who otherwise would have no access to an education.


Handbook of child development and early education : research to practice
- edited by Oscar A. Barbarin, Barbara Hanna Wasik.
- New York : Guilford Press, c2009.
- Physical description
- xv, 624 p. : ill. ; 27 cm.
- Includes bibliographical references and indexes.
- Part 1: Development and Early Education. Developmental Science and Early Education: An Introduction. Rethinking Early Schooling: Using Developmental Science to Transform Children's Early School Experiences. Bridging Developmental Theory and Educational Practice: Lessons from the Vygotskian Project. Part 2.:Brain Functioning and Learning. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience and Education Practice. Neurodevelopmental Changes in Infancy and Beyond: Implications for Learning and Memory. Learning to Remember. The Mind of the Preschool Child: The Intelligence--School Interface. Part 3: Social and Emotional Development. Development of Self, Relationships, and Socioemotional Competence: Foundations for Early School Success. Taming the Terrible Twos: Self-Regulation and School Readiness. Teaching Hearts and Minds in Early Childhood Classrooms: Curriculum for Social and Emotional Development. Supporting Peer Relationships in Early Education. Promoting Social Acceptance and Respect for Cultural Diversity in Young Children: Learning from Developmental Research. Part 4: Language and Literacy. The Social Context of Language and Literacy Development. Teaching and Learning to Read. Changing Classroom Conversations: Narrowing the Gap between Potential and Reality. Young Latino Children's English Reading Development: Insight for Classroom Teachers. Supporting Parental Practices in the Language and Literacy Development of Young Children. Part 5: Mathematics and Science. Early Mathematics Education and How to Do It. Improving Preschoolers' Number Sense Using Information-Processing Theory. The Early Construction of Mathematical Meanings: Learning Positional Representation of Numbers. Applying Developmental Approaches to Learning Math. Construction and Representation of Space in 5-Year-Old Children. Enhancing Mathematical Problem Solving in Primary School Children. Science Education for Young Children: A Conceptual-change Point of View. Improving Science Teaching for Young Children. Part 6: Conclusion. Applying Lessons from Developmental Science to Early Education.
- (source: Nielsen Book Data)
- Publisher's Summary
- How and what should young children be taught? What emphasis should be given to emotional learning? How do we involve families? Addressing these and other critical questions, this book discusses what an integrated, developmentally appropriate curriculum might look like across the preschool and early elementary years.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)
- Publication date
- Title Variation
- Handbook of child development & early education
- Child development and early education
- 9781606233023 (hbk.)
- 1606233025 (hbk.)
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Why is elementary education important? Elementary education (K - 8) is where we solidify most of our relationships with learning. It is where we can take time to cultivate a sense of wonder, a motivating curiosity, and a thirst for understanding. It is where we discover how we are alike and how we are different from each other. It is a time of exploration, of building and gaining confidence, and of being nurtured.
This is a foundational time when each child deserves the best possible support ensuring future school success, and Westerly School is ideally suited to provide this support.
Why do families choose to send their children to Westerly?


3rd graders have done quite a few projects with Pablo Picasso, so instead of faces, the used instruments. They were instructed to draw their instruments huge filling up the space of the box. (This is something they still struggle with) Then they traced their lines with a permanent marker then paint with watercolor.
Here are the results!
Good job 3rd graders
5th grade’s chosen artist was Van Gogh. They learned about perspective, and it was a geometry heavy lesson. Very challenging for them to get away from their old way of thinking things looked! We ran out of time, so not many got to add color. But here’s one example.
This is Art Club’s second year, and I try to make sure we visit an art musuem every year. The Menil Collection is a great collection of art from antiquity to modern, and all for free. They don’t allow photography inside, but you can just see the joy on Art Club’s faces!
Every once in a while, some of the classes will finish a project ahead of some of the others. When that happens, the completed classes get to have Art Stations! It’s one of their favorite activities. The room is just completely a buzz with creation! Take a look!
Art Rocks Y’all!
Posted in 2-4 Art Lessons, 5 th Art Lessons, K-1 Art Lessons, Sculpture
Tags: Art, art class, Art classroom, Art Room, Art Teacher, Education, Elementary Art, elementary art education, elementary art teachers, Student, Visual Arts
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Spring is in full swing over here! Our sculpture project for 2nd grade was with paper! They made waves of paper for their ponds. Then they followed a teacher led drawing of a lily pad and frog for their finishing touches! This super creative fella forewent the white paper, and made his frogs from green … Continue reading
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After the completion of Youth Art Month, the grades were then given one of the three artists to focus in on. 2nd grade’s artist was Vincent Van Gogh, and we did our versions of Starry Night. Using a metallic crayon, they first drew the painting, using directional lines, just like the master painter himself. Then … Continue reading
Black History Month means focusing on a black artist, both 1st and 2nd grades learned about one of my favorite artist from the Harlem Renaissance, Romare Bearden! He looked at several examples of his work, and discussed what the word collage meant. Then they got to work! 1st grade had to build a person, they … Continue reading
Sometimes one can be struck with utter genius! I am so excited about these projects because they came out so well!!! After Youth Art Month, all of the classes are working on their final projects of the year, based upon one of the artists introduced. The 4th grade, focused on Andy Warhol. They first folded … Continue reading
5th grade used recycled magazines to create their bowls! After a quick lesson on how to fold the pages, they set off! Check them out! Awesome!


One of the foundational skills of a good guitarist is "Knowing what chords sound good together."
The most complete understanding of this skill comes from reading books on harmony. I recommend Harmony for Computer Musicians by Michael Hewitt. It's my favorite book on the subject, and it's a very practical modern approach to understanding chord progressions and harmony. Knowing how chord progressions work provides a solid guide for understanding what does and doesn't sound good.
Even when you know the rules, though, it still needs to be applied or it's useless. This means digging into music we know and figuring out how to play the things our favorite musicians have put into our heads.
Whether you know it or not, your own musical ideas in your head are imitations of songs you've already heard and like. That's why it's so important to learn how to cover your favorite songs, or at least pieces of them, because the musical ideas in those songs have pieces of what you want to play in your own music.
Today's example is the rising bass lines from the songs "Everlong" by the Foo Fighters.
So you can see the frets rising on the 5th string: frets 4-5-7-9-10-12.
Even though you can play this riff with two fingers, a lot of things are happening musically.
What's happening is that Everlong is in D major. So the D's on the 4th and 6th string are ringing in the background. On top of that, octaves are being played. An octave might be the simplest chord, and they sound good with distortion. Adding the complexity of playing them over the D's and it sounds awesome.
What octaves are being played certainly matters. On the 5th string, fret 4 is C#, which is degree 7 of a D major scale. On the same string, fret 5 is D again, which is degree 1 of the D major scale, obviously. Then it continues ascending. Fret 7 is E, fret 9 is F#, fret 10 is G, and 12 is A.
Looking at that sequence of notes, C# - D - E - F# - G - A, it's clear that it's just climbing the D major scale, which makes sense because the song is in D major.
The fact that the line ends on A is important, because A is the root of degree 5, which is the most dominant degree of the key. The strongest chord relationship in music is the relationship between the I chord, and the V chord of any key. The I chord feels like resting, and the V chord feels strong, or tense. In order to sound interesting, a song has to take us through these states of rest and tension.
These rising chord progressions have a very energetic feeling to them. It's like they're building us up. That's why they're used a lot in fast punk music where the goal is to get the crowd going. It's just how the music feels. Dave Grohl, of the Foo Fighters, has a long history of playing just that kind of music, and so naturally, these rising progressions show up a lot his music.
"My Hero" also has these rising octaves in the chorus. Coincidentally, it was also on the same album as Everlong.
Think of this as a songwriting tool. So if you're trying to develop a musical idea that's stuck in your head, and if it needs a powerful building sound, a rising chord progression is a place to start. Start at I and walk up to V. Now you know a song where you've heard it before, and how to do it.
Being a musician is about taking the music in your head and getting it to come out of the instrument just like you imagined it. A big part of being able to do that is knowing why music you already know sounds the way it does.