Chaffar, S., & Frasson, C. (2005). The emotional conditions of learning. Retrieved August 14, 2010
Chaffar and frasson argue that the theory of conditions of learning proposed by Gagne failed to incorporate the emotional factor as one of the conditions of learning. According to chaffar and frasson neurosciences and psychology have proven that emotions are related to the cognitive processes such as long term memory, problem solving and decision making. The relationship between the cognitive process and emotions affects learning therefore it is important to consider the role of emotions in the learning process. The learning process requires four cognitive phases: attention acquisition, retrieval and the response process. In the attention phase the learner receives stimuli which seem relevant to him. Some stimuli may receive more attention than others. Stimuli received are stored in the short term memory. In order for stimuli to be stored in the long term memory they must undergo the acquisition process. The retrieval processes assists the individual fetch and remember information which had been stored in the long term memory. The response process allows the learner respond after remembering information. This may be done through activities such as demonstrating and writing. Chaffar and frasson argue that emotions affect the learner’s ability of carrying out these learning phases effectively through several ways. Chaffar and frasson recommend that teachers and materials used for learning should use intelligent tutoring systems (ITS) which take advantage of the influence of emotions in learning in order to get the best results out of a learner.
Merriam, S., B. (2008). Adult learning theory for the twenty-first century. New directions for adult and continuing education. 2008(19), 93-98.
Merriam takes a different approach towards the traditional explanation of the adult learning theory. The according to the traditional understanding of the adult learning theory, learning takes place at an individual level. In this case the brain acquires facts and information and converts them into knowledge leading to behavior change. Merriam argues that this concept does not offer sufficient explanation regarding how adult learning goes on in the modern environment. Merriam notes that learning is a multidimensional process that is widely affected by the social cultural environment. Therefore teachers should recognize that adult learning is multidimensional and not just a cognitive process. Therefore instruction techniques and materials should be expanded and updated in order to foster adult learning in the modern environment. She further explains that adult learning should be linked with past experiences in order to optimize the learning process.
Sjoberg, S. (2007). Constructivism and learning. International encyclopedia of education. Retrieved August 15, 2010
Sjoberg notes that the term constructivism has been widely used and in some cases its definition has been altered inappropriately. This has attracted a lot of criticisms towards this theory because of the erroneous use and application. In this article Sjoberg explains the theory of constructivism based on education and teaching. Sjoberg notes that many people have taken constructivism to be a useless theory in today’s learning environment and view it as a fashion or orthodox. He notes that most of the available literature defines the theory of constructivism in shallow terms. Sjoberg explains the history of the constructivism theory and its current application In order to explore its application and the definition appropriately,. Sjoberg notes that over the years the theory of constructivism has been subdivided into various sub-theories such as social constructivism, individual constructivism, simple constructivism and social constructivism among others. In order to eliminate the dilemmas and misunderstanding created by these sub-theories of constructivism, Sjoberg explains the core ideas of the theory of constructivism theory. These core ideas enable one understand the constructivism theory and widen the scope of the theory in terms of application in today’s learning environment.
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Drumball ResearchRecently, research efforts to close the achievement gap have highlighted the importance of understanding children’s experiences in the early years, how they come to learn about literacy practices and about their identities and positions in the world, in order to identify and address the challenges they soon may be facing.
Using a design-based research approach, the Urban Griots Playground serves as a context to investigate the Drumball & Alphariddims systems as an embodied rhythmic-based learning system to stimulate children’s literacy development and multimodal meaning production through joint child-parent activity. Early findings indicate that this approach encourages the development of children’s multimodal literacy competencies/behaviors, emotional and symbolic understanding, as well key social participation dispositions, while expanding parents’ repertoires of literacy practice and identities as social partners and enablers of their child’s learning.
The significance of this project is that it provides parents and educators with a culturally-grounded approach to early literacy that combines rhythmic communication with new media technologies.
Current projects include:


In the pack, she gives each strategy an animal. You can see 'Retelling Rhino' above, and there are 6 more (Picturing Peacock - visualisation, Wondering Walrus - questioning, etc). The pack includes posters for each strategy, smaller versions of the posters (so you can put them on scrapbooking rings, to keep in your reading area, or for each child to have their own) and various structured worksheets that the children can use to help them get started using the different strategies.
In my class, we started with re-telling (so it is up on our wall), and I linked it last week to our writing, as the children retold their favourite day during the summer holidays. This week, I've followed up by having each reading group re-tell their own reading story as our 2nd day 'comprehension' task (I used my Story Maps - click if you need some for your own class).
In the past, my teaching of Reading Comprehension strategies hasn't been as structured as I would like. I really like this little pack, and the kids already remember 'Retelling Rhino' without any problem at all!
As we add more strategies, more posters will go up on the wall. I'm also planning to order scrapbooking rings, so every child can have their own set of Reading Comprehension strategy reminders.
Our Primary 2 (1st grade) teacher and I are both using the same pack. Hopefully, this continuity will boost reading comprehension in subsequent years as well. I love the way the animals are associated with each strategy - such a great way to help little ones remember them!
How do you teach reading comprehension strategies in your class? Are there any specific resources that you use? I'd love to hear new ideas, if you'd like to share!


Let me go ahead and get this out of the way.
There is no substitution for in-person music education.
These past several months have had their share of trials and tribulations. However, I have also seen a large number of unexpected benefits and positive effects among music students due to online music education.
- Students are learning more about audio and video technology. This is an important skill for students to develop in order for them to make recordings to use for auditions, festivals, and other events.
- Students are gaining virtual performance experience. Many students have organized livestreamed recitals, lectures, and events using social media and other platforms. This provides them with valuable performance experience and teaches them how to interact with audiences. Additionally, many of these virtual performances have a higher number of viewers than they would attract in a traditional concert setting.
- Students are making more recordings. Recordings are the greatest teachers, as they allow students to hear what they truly sound like instead of what they think they sound like. Having to record record for lessons, studio, or other classes also helps students to compile recordings which they might be able to use for future opportunities.
- Students are becoming savvy at digital networking. I’m truly inspired by the number of websites, YouTube channels, blogs, and social media accounts music students have created to promote their art and connect with others. This allows them to create a virtual portfolio and network with other musicians from around the world.
- Students are getting to meet musicians from around the world. Before this year, the idea of inviting an international guest artist for a studio class was often logistically unfeasible. Now, students can “meet” internationally renowned musicians via Zoom or other platforms.
- Students are broadening their career options. As technology continues to play a larger role in music education, many music students are expanding their job search. Students are combining their interests and creating new jobs for themselves in the music field, and the options are infinite.
- Students are expanding their musical horizons. With so many free Zoom webinars, online courses, and other opportunities for professional development, students can learn about a variety of new subjects from the comfort of their home.
- Students are saving money through free and reduced price concerts, programs, courses, and other opportunities. Many organizations have offered free virtual conferences, free access to premium content, free product trials, free livestreamed concerts, and several other ways for students to experience things they might not have otherwise.
- Students are learning the value of determination and perseverance. This has been a tough year for everyone, and the music students who work hard, stay motivated, and persevere throughout this ordeal will find success.


The children have been doing some exciting learning in Music at school. To continue with this learning at home, here are some websites that you and your children can explore together. Have fun!
The Inspire Works website gives access to a range of courses and online workshops which children can use to learn a range of instruments, or to just make music using their body or items around the home. There are online courses in African Drumming, Brazillian Samba Drumming, Indian Dhol Drumming and more!
MusicMark has collected together a range of online home and school resources which are free to access. These resources are aimed to help children with music from Reception to GCSE level.
The National Youth Choir of Scotland has daily singing activities and short songs which can help children learn about important musical features including pulse, pitch, tempo and dynamics. Learning the moves to go with the songs can also help your child with their coordination too! Check out the NYCOS YouTube channel to get started!
BBC Bring the Noise has a variety of games and songs to offer to students at home! Many of these incorporate other subject areas currently being explored by children via their online learning. There are also many articles about encouraging a love of music education within children, and how to bring music into the daily lives of young ones.


Using ideas with organization
Putting together a winning piece of writing—whether it’s exposition, analysis, or creative– uses diverse skills: a basketful of brainstorming, as well as a healthy spoonful of organization.
I teach writing to students of all ages, and have developed a curriculum that begins with foundational skills and builds on key words, phrases, sentences, paragraphs, and full essays.
Breaking down big assignments into small tasks
My high school and college (Yale) curriculum involved regular writing assignments. In addition, my approach to tutoring students in writing has been heavily informed by the Orton-Gillingham approach, which breaks down writing into mini-skills that are easy to understand and perform.
Without exception, my writing students have made impressive gains in writing skills, including pre-writing, organization, stating a strong main idea, expressing supporting ideas, and clinching with a forceful conclusion.


This month, let’s take a closer look at the Physical Development Domain, focusing on fine and gross motor skill development.
Physical development occurs most rapidly during the first two years of a child’s life. This period of a child’s life also sees the greatest brain development. In fact, during the first two years, the weight of the brain more than triples! During this time, children develop motor reflexes and will continue to develop fine and gross motor skills throughout childhood. Because of this, it is important to provide all children with activities that will promote development of these skills.
Here are some great ways for you to promote Physical Development at home:
- Engage your baby in tummy time. This helps to build neck and upper body strength.
- Give your infant a toy to grasp. Gently pull on the toy to promote grip strength.
- Roll a ball to your baby. This promotes eye-hand coordination.
- Provide your child with building and stacking materials such as blocks or cups. This promotes fine motor skills and eye-hand coordination.
- Give your child opportunities to practice riding, pedaling, and steering a tricycle or walking and balancing with a pedal-less balance bike.
- Model how to safely walk up and down stairs, using the handrail.
- Set up an obstacle course for your child to run around. Watch for how well they are able to move around the objects, stop running, and then start again.
- Draw and write with your child. Watch for correct grip, and show them the proper way if they are holding the pencil or crayon incorrectly. Shorter writing instruments are better for promoting the correct grip.
- Using tape, make a series of connected lines on the floor. Walk on this course like a balance beam with your child to promote balance development.
- Play a game of catch with your child to help them practice catching a ball and throwing a ball accurately.
- Play games such as ”Red Light, Green Light” where your child hops on one foot.
- Be creative and work with your child to collect challenging objects that can be stacked, such as pebbles, coins, or pinecones. Build a structure with your child and encourage them to see how tall they can build it.
Here’s more great resources about how to support Physical Development at home:
Next month we’ll focus on the health and safety portion of the Physical Development Domain.
Miss the most recent article in our series? Read it here.


Students in education degree applications may enter professions that, in the long run, are a very powerful to a profitable economic system. That is at least how President Barack Obama, interviewed by Matt Lauer for the In the present day Show in September, described teachers. Students who’re working toward education levels may additionally enter a discipline that is very different by the point they graduate.
President Barack Obama has reportedly demonstrated assist at no cost online programs. At a town corridor assembly in Georgia more lately, he introduced overseas language fluency to the general public’s consideration. “It is embarrassing when Europeans come over here, all of them communicate English, they speak French, they converse German,” Obama was quoted in a CBS Information weblog as saying. “After which we go over to Europe and all we are able to say is ‘merci beaucoup,’ proper?”
Put up-Graduates in any discipline.
Let’s take a look at particular courses with a view to achieve a greater understanding of what it would be wish to change into a student in an elementary education diploma program. Courses embody a wide range of matters like teaching methods, literacy, childhood improvement, and more. Many colleges current normal education programs like math, science, and English under method programs. Students may also take seminar programs that can emphasize practical application of information gained.
Straightforward Availability of Course Material: In a web based education program, the course materials is easily and readily accessible- 24 X 7 days every week. As a pupil, you may have the power to learn the lectures, explanations and feedback. If we examine it with on-campus applications or classes, usually the material in the classroom passes after number of distractions. Aside from this, once you research on-line, you have access to sources from all around the world. On-line educational institutions at all times emphasize and supply plenty of references that may be accessed online. This is usually not possible if you find yourself attending class in a traditional college setup.
four Programs after MBA Which You Can Pursue.
For all of those reasons and more, the best degree that’s accessible to you right now is a web-based diploma offered by some great and highly revered colleges and universities. It is an choice that was available for earlier generations, but you get to experience all of those great advantages and advantages. You do not have to forgo the remainder of your life to get ahead in your career, you can do every part with an easy degree program from an online college.
Teachers who educate on the elementary school stage and better want to complete a bachelor’s degree to be able to educate. College students who get a bachelor’s diploma in a selected subject equivalent to English or history can even want to finish an education certification with the state they are going to be teaching in before they will be allowed to teach. Different aspiring lecturers will work to obtain a bachelor’s degree in education, often with a specialized focus, like K – 5 education or science education. Your college will be able to help guide you in choosing your main and education specialty. One other good supply of information is your state’s division of education web site.
Students which might be all for how computers work and what specific technological components are used will be capable to discover diploma applications that match their professional goals and personal interests. The precise profession will rely on the extent of education the scholars obtains and the area of concentration. Doable careers can embody working as:


French Blocks are a great way to introduce the French Language to your classroom while encouraging open ended play and construction! This 28 piece set is embossed with fleur-de-lis filigree around two capital letters. Two more letters, a number, and an animal along with its French translation adorn the other sides.
Open-ended building tools such as blocks serve a variety of purposes in the classroom. Blocks encourage children to build, stack, and arrange in many ways. Kodo’s curated collections of Uncle Goose Blocks also support language and literacy development through letter shapes, illustrations, words, and symbols.
Appropriate for ages 2+


Our School App Stay connected on the go...
It is our intent for the music element of our school curriculum to engage, inspire, challenge and encourage pupils, equipping them with the knowledge and skills Music can offer.
Music is a universal language that embodies one of the highest forms of creativity. A high-quality music education should engage and inspire pupils to develop a love of music and their talent as musicians, and so increase their self-confidence, creativity and sense of achievement.
As pupils progress, they should develop a critical engagement with music, allowing them to compose, and to listen with discrimination to the best in the musical canon.
Teachers have access to a wide range of resources to enhance the pupil’s learning including Charanga (see login below) and BBC Ten Pieces.
Children have the opportunities to perform for a range of audiences and at a range of venues; learning to adapt themselves appropriately and sensitively to a range of social contexts. In Music we encourage collaborative working and sharing of experiences, expressing these through song and musical performances such as our Nativity, Easter Assembly, Year 6 Leavers Assembly and Class Assemblies. Each year group is given the opportunity to perform in our Christmas shows, combining music with drama and dance, which for many children and families provides a highly memorable experience accumulating in a love of the performing arts. Children are also given the opportunity to watch high quality performances throughout the year from visiting musical and theatrical companies. They also visit exciting theatres to watch professional pantomimes. Children are given the opportunity to use technology to support their musical composition skills using apps such as Making Music via Purple Mash.
As part of the wider curriculum, the Leybourne Chase Choir offers children and their families the opportunity to take part in various musical events within the community and further afield such as the Young Voices concert at The O2 and other singing events in the community.
Read our Music Policy


The Educational Resource Center, located in Campion Hall, is the best place on campus to locate books to share with your English Language Learners (ELLs). The ERC provides a rich collection of fiction and nonfiction English, bilingual, and World Language children's books including many award-winning titles. Enriching the collection are many multicultural titles.
Search the BC Libraries Catalog for materials.
The Academic Language in Read Alouds Project at Boston College: Academic Language in Early Childhood and Elementary Classrooms:
"Early Childhood and Elementary Education students in licensure programs conduct Read Aloud lessons in their pre-practicum site weekly. Boston College students are paired with an ELL in their classroom and get to know this child in a one-on-one situation. Through read alouds of fiction and informational texts, students learn to evaluate the linguistic demand of a lesson, and to embed teaching of vocabulary, language structure, and reading comprehension strategies." More on how the Read Aloud Project connects to linguistically responsive teaching...
The Academic Language in Read Alouds Project is created based on the following Boston College Teacher Education themes:
Theme 1: Advancing Equity and Justice
We conceptualize teaching as an activity with political dimensions. We acknowledge that there are significant historical and ongoing disparities in the educational and social opportunities, resources, achievements, and outcomes between historically marginalized students and their more privileged counterparts. We see the purpose of teaching as enhancing the learning and life chances of the diverse student population by working with others to challenge the inequities of school and society. Our programs require teacher candidates to recognize and challenge inequities in educational opportunities and work with others to advance equity and a more just society. A major challenge for us as teacher educators is to understand both the potential and the limitations of our programs even as we acknowledge that teachers alone cannot eradicate societal and school inequities but they can work with others in larger social movements to do so.
Theme 2: Promoting Knowledge Co-construction
We believe that teachers and learners are active agents in their own learning who draw on prior knowledge and their cultural, linguistic and experiential resources to co-construct knowledge as they interact with texts, media, materials, technologies, and others. Our programs foster the capacity of teacher candidates to create learning environments that promote knowledge co-construction.
Theme 3: Inquiring into Practice
We conceptualize teaching as a reflective and recursive process of inquiry that occurs within socially, culturally, and historically situated learning environments with the purpose of providing all students with deep and authentic learning. Our programs advance an inquiry stance that positions practitioners in the center of educational transformation
Theme 4: Embracing an Ethic of Care
Teaching is a reciprocal and relational activity that is grounded in respect for the dignity of all individuals. We are committed to cultivating a humanizing vision of teaching that recognizes the whole person, is inspired by an ethic of care and is committed to collective well-being. Our programs promote approaches that encourage all learners to build lives of meaning and purpose.


The early childhood education program focuses on childhood development and growth as well as adult-child relationships. It emphasizes appropriate environments and care for children as well as the physical, emotional, social, and cognitive areas of early childhood development. Childhood education courses are instructed in a variety of settings such as traditional classrooms, online classes, on-campus labs, and field experiences.
From on-campus labs to community learning opportunities, the early childhood education program gives students a chance to practice and analyze their emerging skills. Students take their skills to real early childhood education settings, earning real world experiences with children, community members, and current educators. This program includes various service learning experiences, providing students with a sense of community.
The ECED program is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). NAEYC standards focus on providing high-quality educational and developmental experiences for children, birth through 8 years old.
Associate of Science in Early Childhood Education graduates can seamlessly transfer to a four-year institution through our Transfer as a Junior program. To learn more about our Transfer as a Junior program, and how it can save you money, visit our TSAP page. Keep in mind, you will also need to be admitted to the four-year institution where you plan to transfer. Admission is not guaranteed just by enrolling in a Transfer as a Junior program.
If you want to continue your education after completing your degree, we have several four-year transfer partnership in place. Talk to your transfer advocate for more information about transfer opportunities and how you can earn a bachelor's degree in various fields such as elementary education.


November 8 is National Parents as Teachers Day
In 2001, the Parents as Teachers National Center in Missouri declared November 8 as National Parents as Teachers Day. The day holds new meaning under a global pandemic, which has left many parents in unfamiliar territory, teaching their children full or part times—sometimes while juggling their own need to work.
For parents who are noticing that their child may be struggling with learning, LearningRx, the world's largest personal brain training company, is offering 1-on-1 virtual brain training programs (in addition to its in-Center programs) to help students struggling with learning, reading and attention. For those choosing in-Center personal brain training, you can take comfort knowing our centers continue to follow CDC and state-mandated health guidelines to ensure the highest safety measures are in place for our clients. For those choosing virtual training, know that you'll still receive the same personalized brain training that you'd be receiving in person.
What exactly IS personal brain training?
The first thing you need to know is that many of the struggles tied to learning, reading, thinking, attention and memory are caused by weak cognitive skills. LearningRx uses fun but intense game-like mental exercises to target and train these weak skills, which makes learning easier no matter the subject. That's because, unlike tutoring, which focuses on academic content, personal brain training focuses on strengthening the foundational skills we need to succeed in school, at work on in life in general.
LearningRx's programs are based on 35 years of ongoing research, testing and development and we've changed the lives of more than 100,000 clients, including seniors, children, teens, soldiers and adults.
To get started, take our free brain quiz. In just 3 minutes, you'll get a better idea as to why you (or someone you love) is struggling—and which cognitive skills may need some training. You have nothing to lose and so much to gain!
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Interested in taking a more in-depth Brain Skills Assessment? Call 866-742-3888 today!


Category: Curriculum Studies
What are the benefits of an integrated curriculum, particularly when it combines the arts, including music, visual arts, theater, and dance/movement? In this session, we discuss how this type of integrated curriculum was designed and operated in the whole-school unit. Additional discussion is focused on its effectiveness as perceived by parents, students, and teachers in the school.
West Lafayette, Indiana
Hyeseong Lee is a doctoral student in Gifted, Creative, and Talented Studies with Dr. Marcia Gentry as her advisor. She is a graduate assistant at GERI, and works as a coordinator of Super Saturday and Super Summer camp. Her research interests include topics related to young gifted learners, mentoring, talent development, and underserved population in gifted education. Prior to her doctoral study, she worked as an elementary school teacher in Seoul, Korea, and also had experience with preschoolers in Michigan. Her prior education includes a Master's degree in gifted education at Teachers College, Columbia University and a Bachelor's degree in elementary education in Seoul National University of Education.
Gifted Coordinator - Saddle Campus
Las Vegas, Nevada
Amber Varricchio is a Gifted and Talented Education specialist who has been teaching for over twenty years in both private and public education settings. She works at Doral Academy in Las Vegas, Nevada. Doral Academy is a unique charter school that emphasizes arts integration to help students become confident decision makers, creative thinkers and successful scholars throughout life. Amber received a bachelor’s degree in philosophy as well as a master’s degree in teaching. She holds an additional endorsement in gifted and talented education. She is currently working on developing teaching strategies that involve integrating dance, theater, visual art, and music into lessons for gifted and talented students.


Teachers Acquiring Language Learner Knowledge
TALLK Project (6:57) | Sept 2013 | This video describes the Sonoma County TALLK Project and how it supports language learning for preschoolers who are English learners.
The TALLK project provides preschool teachers with training and coaching in specific strategies for interacting with English learner children to support language acquisition. TALLK is based on the research-demonstrated best practice of providing adult education through a combination of information sharing followed by coaching. The goal is to support language development among preschoolers in their home language and in English.
The project serves state-funded preschools and child development centers in Sonoma County’s identified school readiness zone. A large percentage of the children served in these programs are from families that speak Spanish at home. The project endeavors to build language skills in both English and the students’ home language, recognizing that skills learned in both languages will support the children’s literacy development.
Through the TALLK project, a bilingual coach works with participating preschool staff to positively impact the quality of conversation between adults and the children they serve. Responding to evidence-based research showing that language development is heightened through meaningful verbal interaction, the coach trains instructional staff to:
- Build on and extend what children are saying
- Engage children in talk about cognitively rich topics
- Use varied vocabulary
- Sustain conversations about individual topics
TALLK extends throughout the school year by providing one-on-one coaching, on-site training, and individualized support. It begins with a one-day orientation session that introduces participants to two resources that will be used throughout the year: Preschool English Learners: Principles and Practices to Promote Language, Literacy, and Learning from the California Department of Education and One Child, Two Languages: A Guide for Preschool Educators of Children Learning English as a Second Language by Patton O. Tabors.
Following the orientation, TALLK provides:
- One-on-one coaching sessions at least twice per week using technology that allows the coach to suggest specific language development strategies to the teacher while the teacher is actively involved with the children (i.e., the teacher wears a headset and the coach communicates via microphone in real time).
- On-site monthly staff trainings that introduce specific “best practice” strategies from the two resource books, promote discussion about using the strategies with children, and respond to the site’s unique training needs. These trainings are scheduled in collaboration with each site and take place when teaching staff are available, but not during instructional time.
- Pre- and post-meetings accompanying each coaching session to allow for further professional development and prepare for the next session.
- Stipends of $200 for each participant who completes the year-long program.
The TALLK project serves approximately 20-25 participants each year, thereby enhancing language acquisition for 250-300 preschoolers at 5-6 TALLK project sites annually. Participant feedback and an independent evaluation indicate that the program has positively impacted teacher effectiveness in working with English learners and that there is a high level of participant support for the program. Further evaluations are being conducted to assess the program’s long-term effect both on the quality of teaching and on student language development.
The TALLK coach also offers parent workshops at each project site, emphasizing school readiness and strategies for building a language-rich environment at home. These workshops have a dual purpose—educating parents and training preschool staff to provide parent trainings on their own. The bilingual coach provides the first workshop at each site, modeling strategies for delivering an effective parent presentation. Next, the coach and school staff co-present a workshop, thus preparing the school staff to organize and provide the workshops on their own. A total of 10 to 15 parent workshops are presented each year.
The parent workshops emphasize the same evidence-based language development concepts that preschool staff are learning through the TALLK program. Parents learn activities to do with their children that continue to promote language learning at home.
TALLK Review Group
After completing the year-long coaching and professional development program, participants are invited to join the TALLK Review Group. Here, program alumni from all sites come together three times per school year to review strategies learned, add to their knowledge, and share their experiences. Led by the TALLK coach, these meetings provide networking opportunities and give participants a chance to model best practices for each other. Teachers attending the review meetings are encouraged to share strategies learned with others at their site, thereby building leadership capacity and developing a more effective teaching staff.
—TALLK is an Upstream Investments Tier 2 Program—
Questions may be directed to:


Exemplary teaching in today’s educational climate can be broken down into three areas each of which dictates to some extent what teachers do and what students do. While these nine areas apply to teachers in all disciplines, they can be discussed at the application level within a single discipline such as music. Today I will discuss these nine areas and how to apply them to teaching music.
The first area is assessment of student learning and teacher instruction. Assessment is not about grades or report cards; it is about finding out how well students are doing the things we are asking them to do, and where their areas of strengths and weaknesses are so that instruction can be appropriately adjusted, targeting the strengthening of weaknesses and the further development of strengths. Teachers who collect data consistently and effectively can gain snapshots of students at the time of assessment, and pictures of growth as data points are compared over time. Areas of need are identified with each assessment, plans for future instruction can be made or revised, and lesson plans can be under continual adjustment as needed. I have just completed giving a solo singing assessment to each of the 2nd grade children I teach. The assessment measured accuracy of the starting pitch, maintaining the tonality, use of head voice, intonation, tempo, rhythm, and expression with both a teacher rating scale and a self-assessment rating scale for each child. All performances were recorded for assessment purposes, and are artifacts of student work. I have a data point for each of these assessed items on the assessment, and an overall rating that represents the child’s placement in comparison to an established standard. I know in which of these assessed areas each child needs more instruction, and I can easily set goals for each child to improve in their weakest areas on the assessment. Frequently, students can be given a choice of how to demonstrate learning. For example, rhythm assessment can be demonstrated with chanting, singing, or drumming.
The second area is group dynamics and interactions between individuals. Any classroom is a social structure, and the success of the class depends to a large degree on the frequency and quality of interactions between the individuals in the class. The functioning of these social qualities must be open to consistent analysis and evaluation in order to identify aspects of it that need improvement. Exemplary teachers intentionally meet the social and emotional needs of students, and are knowledgeable about individual needs and interest, using this information in planning and teaching. Examples include allowing students to learn musical concepts with culturally relevant music, and to teach each other within a protocol of productive small group work. They develop and maintain standards of conduct that are clear to all students and reflect student needs, include all students in classroom activities, and provide opportunities for meaningful student choice. Examples of student choice in music can include interpretive decisions including dynamics and tempo, choice of repertoire from a menu, or choice of learning styles by providing time for small group learning, including student-run sectionals in performance ensembles.
The third area is challenging work. Instruction should be meaningful, and it can only be meaningful if it fosters growth. Growth is a product of gaining proficiency where there was none or less before. Every learning experience that results in growth will include a degree of challenge. To put it another way, you cannot sharpen a metal blade on a plastic knife. The metal is not challenged by the plastic, and will in fact become dull instead of sharper. The same is true of learners. Lack of challenge will result in dullness and boredom, not growth and learning. Meaningful learning is in-depth, and engages students with significant concepts and high-order thinking. Levels of challenge can be designed into all areas of music education: performing, creating, responding, and connecting. For performance, the complexity of the literature, for creating the quantity of concepts incorporated, for responding in the depth to which an analysis or interpretation goes, and for connecting the creativeness and diversity of connections made and the broadness of knowledge upon which the student can draw to make those connections. Challenge is where learning goes beyond learning facts and vocabulary to where they become tools used to creative, expressive, and artistic affect. As teacher evaluations become more sophisticated and demanding, and more research based, teachers can be exemplary by including these three areas, assessment, group dynamics, and challenge, in their daily work.


Kindergarten-Knock Down a Wall
1st Grade-Camo Habitat
To continue our unit on animal adaptation, students chose an image of an animal that uses camouflage and designed a habitat using markers, crayons, and paper pieces.
2nd Grade-Describing Properties
3rd Grade-Rosie Revere (cont.)
We continued work on our Flying Machine designs and Google Doc. The students learned how to format the document and type a paragraph explaining the design.
4th Grade-Rock Cycle Presentation Review
Each of the groups' presentations were linked to Google Classroom. The students chose 2-3 of the presentations, watched them, and then commented about what the groups did well and a way the presentations could have been improved. Because this was our first presentation, some of the groups struggled to stay focused on the essential question and keeping the presentation serious. All of the students were reminded to keep these thoughts in mind for our next presentations.
5th Grade-Khan Academy
Each student joined Khan Academy and participated in “The Hour of Code” mission learning how to draw shapes using code. The students learned new concepts using a talk-through, a step-by-step challenges to practice newly learned concepts, and work on a project to get more practice and be more creative with the skills learned.
Welcome to the STEAM Studio Blog for Jamestown Upper & Lower Elementary Schools in Hudsonville, MI. Here you will find the latest projects and concepts we've been working on in class.
comes to Hudsonville with 17 years of teaching information and technology skills to elementary students. After earning a BA in Elementary Education at the University of Northern Iowa and a Master’s degree from the University of Iowa in 2000, she drew a circle on the map and chose Southwest Michigan.


LA 1.2 Considering a Learner's Assets
|Learning Outcome||Pedagogical Intent||Student Position|
Articulate issues of assessment as they affect learners’ development of English language skills, their access to the Utah core curriculum, and their placement in appropriate programs.
Assessment: 25 pts.
Teachers, having assessed themselves in the four areas,will be able to approach their students with an asset-based rather than a deficit-based mindset.
Students have learned about second language acquisition and legal issues related to English language learners. They will assess themselves regarding their linguistic, cultural, experiential, and social-emotional aspects.
1. Using the learner’s asset graphic organizer fill in your own social & emotional, cultural, linguistic and experiential assets:
a. Linguistic: reflect upon how your use of language shapes your personal identity.
b. Cultural: reflect upon how your cultural heritage, beliefs, values, and thinking influence others.
c. Experiential: do you feel your interests are portrayed in your teaching? How do these interests influence the learning in your classroom?
d. Social and Emotional: reflect on how your students might perceive you through the stories, pictures and/or background information that you share with them.
Click and download the Asset Graphic Organizer to fill it in.
2. Next, working with a partner and using the Inclusive Pedagogy Framework and the details from the Asset Graphic Organizer, consider yourselves as learners and fill in information in the framework.
3. In your group, what did you learn about yourself and partner through this exercise?
4. How might your education have been different if your teacher had fully considered your social, emotional, cultural and language and literacy assets and other talents and strengths, the policies and programs that could support you, taken different perspectives, held higher expectations, used all they knew about teaching and learning and considered each child as they planned for and enacted instruction and in their assessment of your learning? How might the language and literacy development of the ELs you teach be different if you attended to these issues in your teaching?
5.Think about your own educational experiences. How was your education different when teachers took an assets approach? How has your interaction with your students shifted when you intentionally took an asset rather than deficit approach? What are some assets your ELs bring to the classroom that you might be ignoring and how could you use them in developing ELs language and literacy development?


Allowing young people to create music that they enjoy in school – including grime, hip-hop and electronic – can help to improve the attendance of pupils most at risk of exclusion, research says.
A national charity has called for schools to swap Mozart for Stormzy after a study found that diversifying the music curriculum can help to keep disengaged students in school.
The number of students who performed better in maths and English also rose during the inclusive music programme, the research from Youth Music and Birmingham City University found.
Grime, electronic music and hip-hop are still absent from most classrooms, but the genres could help transform lessons with help from music industries, the charity says.
A four-year project, which invested in 10 partnerships between music organisations and schools, gave students the opportunity to learn and create music they are interested in.
It brought music genres, such as grime and hip-hop, into the classroom with the help of music industry professionals and local music-making projects.
The inclusive music-making programme also helped some young people, who had previously been excluded, to re-enter mainstream education.
Over the four years, there was also an increase in participants performing better than expected in maths: from 14 per cent to 21 per cent; and in English, from 15 per cent to 28 per cent.
The charity is now urging the Department for Education (DfE) to adopt a new model of music in schools that reflects the diverse musical interests of young people today.
These include the government issuing an “unequivocal” message about the value of music; schools ensuring music is for everyone; and partners collaborating on designing an inclusive curriculum.
Matt Griffiths, chief executive of Youth Music, said: “We’ve seen the benefits of students exchanging Mozart for Stormzy as part of a re-imagined music curriculum.”
He added: “But despite school being the one place where everyone should be able to access music, we’ve consistently heard how it doesn’t reflect their existing musical lives and passions. And their access is being restricted because school music departments are disappearing by the day.
“Music in schools has the power to help young people with some of the big issues facing them today – mental health, isolation, and social inequality. But only if it is reimagined to become more relevant and inclusive of all young people.”
Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said they welcomed input into making the curriculum “more relevant and engaging for young people.”
But he added: “Sadly, music courses are under great pressure because the level of government funding allocated to schools is totally inadequate. The result is that many schools have had to cut back on their music provision. Every pupil should have access to the creative arts, and it is essential that the government provides the level of funding that is necessary to deliver this entitlement.”
A DfE spokesperson said: “We are currently working with music groups and practitioners to refresh the national plan for music education and develop a high-quality model music curriculum.”
They added: “We want all pupils to have the opportunity to study music at school – that’s why it is compulsory in the National Curriculum from the age of five up to 14.”


What Happened to Jazz Music?
by Alain Abou Atmeh, Feb 20, 2017 . 3 min read
The world of music is growing every day. With so many genres out there, it’s kind of hard to keep track of everything. And one important genre that is really getting lost in the shuffle is jazz music. Is jazz still popular today? The chosen genre for the likes of Miles Davis, Wynton Marsalis, and Nina Simone, jazz is witnessing a decline in popularity across the globe.
We’re here to see why.
A brief history of jazz
Jazz arose in the vibrant culture of New Orleans around the beginning of the 20th century. From there, it spread to major cities such as New York and Chicago, exploding into the dance halls and speakeasies of the Roaring Twenties. Aided by the advancement of recording technology and radio broadcasting, big-band swing jazz became all the rage during the 1930s and ‘40s, until bebop (think Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie) began shifting jazz music away from its emphasis on danceable rhythms.
During the following decades, many new forms of jazz music arose, including free jazz, hard bop, smooth jazz, Latin jazz, and jazz fusion.
Why is jazz losing popularity?
Today, although jazz music continues to be played and enjoyed around the world, it has become, along with classical music, one of the least-popular genres in the United States, according to recent sales figures.
Is the rise of rock and pop music to blame? Did the Beatles kill jazz?
Different generations have different tastes in music
Youth culture, the dominant driver of music treads, is always looking for new modes of expression, new sounds, and new rhythms to dance to. At first, jazz was new, exciting, and engaging. Then along came rock-and-roll.
According to jazz trumpeter Digby Fairweather, as the Beatles were revolutionizing popular culture in the early 1960s, “jazz musicians by contrast — operating from another abstract culture where words counted for less and instrumental creativity for more — were easy victims in the making.”
As the music industry became big business, jazz struggled to compete. Jazz radio stations have all but disappeared from the airwaves. And with the advent of MTV as a major driver in music trends, jazz became a niche genre.
Schools cutting down on music classes
Because it is more challenging than other genres of popular music — for musicians and listeners alike — jazz has come to be known as “the musician’s music.” That’s why it is so important for students to have musical education, including learning how to create music and how to appreciate different kinds of music.
Unfortunately, governments have been cutting back on music education funding. This essential early exposure to jazz music is a major contributor to the genre’s drop to the bottom of the charts.


Phonemic Awareness and Recommended Reading
Adams, M.J. (1990). Beginning to read: Thinking and learning about print. Cambridge: MIT Press.
Bowen, C. (2011, November). Literacy and Children with Speech Sound Disorders.
Gillon, G.T. (2004). Phonological awareness: From research to practice. New York: Guilford Press.
Hempenstall, K. (2014). Phonemic awareness: Yea, Nay?
Hulme, C., Hatcher, P., Nation, K., Brown, A., Adams, J. & Stuart, G. (2002). Phoneme awareness is a better predictor of early reading skill than onset–rime awareness, Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 82, 2-28.
Melby-Lervag, M., Lyster, S.A. & Hulme, C. (2012). Phonological skills and their role in learning to read: A meta-analytic review. Psychology Bulletin, 138, 322-352.
Moats, L, & Tolman, C (2009). Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS): The Speech Sounds of English: Phonetics, Phonology, and Phoneme Awareness (Module 2). Boston: Sopris West.
Muter, V., Hulme, C., Snowling, M. J., & Stevenson, J. (2004). Phonemes, Rimes, Vocabulary, and Grammatical Skills as Foundations of Early Reading Development: Evidence From a Longitudinal Study. Developmental Psychology, 40, 665-681.
National Early Literacy Panel (2009). Developing Early Literacy: A scientific synthesis of early literacy development and implications for intervention. National Institute for Literacy and National Centre for Family Literacy.
Raitano, N. A., et al (2004). Pre-literacy skills of subgroups of children with speech sound disorders. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 45, 821-835.
Schuele & Murphy (2014) Intensive phonological awareness program. Baltimore: Brookes Publishing
Torgesen, J.K., & Mathes, P. (2000). A Basic Guide to Understanding, Assessing, and Teaching Phonological Awareness. Austin, TX: PRO-ED.


Many of the ties that used to bind the home and school are gone. The home and the school no longer have the feeling of intimacy that prevailed between them two hundred years ago. In the early American schools it was possible for the teacher to know the parents of nearly every child in the school room. Since this possibility no longer exists in the same degree, some link must be evolved to connect both the home and the school; some method to take the place of meetings on the street or conversations after prayer meeting must be organized to keep the school in touch with the home. The medium that is performing this duty in the schools today is the report card. It is the report card that must give a concise picture of what the children are doing in school, what the school is offering, and what progress the child is making.
It is the purpose of this study to make critical analysis of the report cards used in the State of New Mexico, from the best practices, to assemble material for a report card suitable for use throughout the entire state.
Report Cards, New Mexico Schools, Elementary Education
Teaching, Learning and Teacher Education
Level of Degree
Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy
First Committee Member (Chair)
Second Committee Member
Third Committee Member
Grove, John Robert. "A Critical Analysis of Report Cards Used in New Mexico." (1942). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/educ_teelp_etds/100


LatinaLista — Literacy. It’s a word that gauges the future success of our children in school. Children who have an appreciation of reading and learn the basics of sounding out words go on to have success in school. Children who aren’t exposed to books and don’t grasp those early lessons are doomed to feel self-conscious, ashamed and, eventually, give up on school and themselves.
Every child has great literacy potential, if given the chance. Raising a Reader makes that happen.
Raising A Reader’s vision is that one day all children will enter kindergarten in love with the printed page and ready to learn to read.
The California-based nonprofit, begun in 1999, accomplishes its goal by working with parents when their children are still babies and helping them establish “book cuddling” routines with their children until they reach the age of five.
Basing their techniques on early childhood learning research, Raising a Reader knows that “book cuddling” not only contributes to a strong parent-child bonding but also fosters healthy brain development and establishes early literacy skills critical for success in school.
Since it was founded, the nonprofit has reached 811,000 children. Its long term goal is to extend its reach as a leader in early literacy family engagement and reach one million children.
The program works by circulating over 100 high-quality children’s books into children’s homes through an average rotation cycle. As a result, children and families develop, practice, and maintain the habit of sharing those books (‘book cuddling’).
Through initial training and ongoing support, parents and caregivers, even those with limited English proficiency or low literacy skills, learn how to engage their child by sharing a book. The program also includes a strong connection to the public library, establishing a foundation for lifetime access to books and love of reading. A dozen independent evaluations have confirmed the model works
Donations are always needed to keep the supply of books current to families in the program. Also, any community can start their own program and bring the love of reading to children who otherwise may not develop that interest until much later, if ever.
Migrant families in Santa Cruz County, Calif. are experiencing the joys of reading to their children thanks to Raising A Reader’s Pajaro Valley Unified School District affiliate. Over the past four years, the school district has served over 6,000 children, including migrant families who don’t often have the resources to support their children’s early literacy development.
At one local Family Child Care Home, provider Ester Castillo has noticed a difference in the children’s behavior and interest in books. After just one migrant season with Raising A Reader, she is thrilled to report that “One four-year-old was not interested in books, now wants two or three read to him whenever I sit down. Another three-year-old learned the books by memory.”


Tags: Critical Thinking S For University StudentsProthesistes Dentaires MartiniqueDissertation FundingWriting Ph.D ThesisBowling Alone EssayWedding Business PlanStrategies Of Critical ThinkingLiterature Review On Reading Comprehension Strategies
Neurogenesis tells us that learning can continue into advanced ages.The relative costs and benefits to investments in older persons compared to younger persons differs.
Plato wrote: “If a man neglects education, he walks lame to the end of his life.” But it was really the Nobel winning economists that put the argument of education as investment. In a nutshell, the Human Capital Theory posits that investing in education has a payoff in terms of higher wages.
Moreover, the theory and empirical estimates are backed up by current science, as explained by James Heckman.
Technological change and global competition demand the mastery of competencies and the acquisition of new skills for many.
Countries can compete- and succeed To promote success in today’s labor market, one needs to invest early, and then invest in the relevant skills (see below).
Globally, we – governments, private sector, families, individuals – spend more than $5.6 trillion a year on education and training.
Countries spend 5 percent of GDP on education or 20 percent of their national budget.
Education employs about five percent of the labor force.
Moreover, private returns to schooling – what individuals receive in the labor market – have been increasing.
There must be better information for such student who don’t perform well and greater support networks to help them take on the challenges of completing their tertiary level education.
More information will also benefit students and families from disadvantaged backgrounds, who tend to overestimate benefits and underestimate costs.


The Gamification Strategy in Elementary School
Nowadays, it’s important to make school meaningful, but it should also be fun and motivating. The gamification strategy uses games so students can learn in a creative and fun way.
Elementary school is an educational stage that has six courses, usually between ages 6 and 12. It’s divided into levels, and has different subjects to teach lots of topics.
The goal of elementary school is to teach kids how to read, write, and express themselves. They also learn subjects such as math, history and art, as well as work on their social skills, creativity and imagination.
In this way, elementary education helps develop kids’ personalities. In addition, it prepares them for middle school and high school.
In elementary school, the gamification strategy is a very good tool to keep kids engaged so they’re interested in their education.
What is the gamification strategy?
Gamification refers to a learning technique. It uses games to facilitate learning. In fact, you can do this both offline and online, thanks to new technology in the classroom today.
It uses games for educational purposes, so there’s some kind of reward for reaching objectives. On the other hand, they motivate kids to keep reaching for new goals.
The objective of the gamification strategy is that kids can learn new things in different situations. In addition, they develop emotional and social intelligence, and improve skills.
Sometimes, schools use gamified classes, where the games are an integral part of class. In fact, lots of schools use games to teach different lessons.
Examples of the gamification strategy
As we mentioned earlier, games have always been used in the classroom. However, there are even more games available because of technology.
There are lots of platforms you can use in elementary school where kids can learn by playing. In fact, they can learn about school topics, as well as learning how to use new technology.
Here are some powerful digital tools to use the gamification strategy in the classroom:
It lets you learn new languages by playing, practicing grammar and translation. It starts with short and simple lessons. You also get points for answering correctly, and you can move up in levels.
This is a site that uses the imagination to enhance teamwork, leadership, empathy, student motivation and classroom management. Additionally, you can create characters, like warriors and magicians, who do missions, earn points and gold.
More examples of the gamification strategy
Through this platform, you learn fundamental chemistry concepts in a fun way. For example, you can learn elements, groups, types of chemical bonds, and more. It’s mainly for kids ages 10 to 14.
The World Peace Game
In this political simulation, kids have to face social, economic and environmental crises. It’s a great way for the whole class to interact and learn about how countries interact.
This is a very popular classroom management platform for elementary school. In it, kids get points for their behaviors. You can create profiles, use avatars, earn points and even medals.
ST Math is a great example of the gamification strategy to learn math. A penguin motivates the students when they face challenges. It’s great both for kids with learning difficulties, and kids with great skills.It might interest you...


If you’re a teacher who would like to move up to more demanding and rewarding positions in your career, earning your master’s degree in education is a logical step. You can choose from a variety of specializations, or concentrations.
Familiarize yourself with the most popular types of master’s degrees for educators to more easily select one that suits your long-term career objectives.
1. Curriculum and Instruction
With a master’s of education specializing in curriculum and instruction, you will be able to increase your curriculum development skills and advance your career. This type of program touches upon a variety of topics, including learning theories, instructional theories, curriculum design and evaluation and educational psychology. Upon completing the program, you will know how to perform and use educational research to develop, implement and evaluate learning, teaching and performance pursuits in educational settings. This credential will qualify you for a number of administration and leadership roles. Many who earn this degree go on to become instructional coordinators, which is a field that commands an average annual salary of $64,000 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
2. Early Childhood Education
Assume a more influential role in the lives and educations of young children with a master’s degree in education specializing in early childhood education. While completing this program, you will become well-versed regarding topics like early childhood learning environments, classroom management and child psychology. You will come away with the skills needed to develop age-appropriate curricula and will be qualified for many positions, including family education center director and facility licensor.
3. Higher Education
If you aspire to be a leader at a college or university, a master’s in education degree with a concentration in higher education should be right up your alley. This type of program prepares students for leadership roles in higher education and exposes them to the latest educational administration theories. By completing this program, you will enhance your leadership skills and learn about crucial administration topics like budget management and funding. Ultimately, this credential will make you eligible to assume a role as a higher education administrator. The typical salary for such a professional in 2014 was $88,390 per year.
4. Educational Leadership
Whether you teach in pre-K, K-12 or in a post-secondary setting, this specialization is suitable if you would like to eventually assume a leadership or administration role in your organization. This type of program teaches students how to manage resources, lead others and develop and promote positive learning environments. You’ll study topics ranging from research in education to school finance and will be qualified for roles as principal, director, instructional supervisor and many others. Elementary and secondary professionals with this degree earn around $92,000 per year while post-secondary professionals with this degree earn around $102,000 per year.
5. Adult Education
Enhance your career in adult ed with a master’s of education with a concentration in adult education. This specialization is ideal for those who work in remedial education, at community colleges and as human resources managers. Human resources managers are often required to obtain this degree in order to serve employees across all walks of life. Adult education teachers with this degree earn around $53,000 per year. Community college professors with this degree earn around $65,000 per year, and human resources managers with this degree earn around $114,000 per year.
To figure out which master’s degree for teachers is right for you, consider where you’d like to be 10 years from now. Chances are that one or more of the options highlighted above will help you get there.


Many other options, better suited to learning, are available for teaching spelling and sight-word recognition. Licking Letters is fun -- especially dressing up Hoppy -- so kids will want to play, and some learning will sink in. Teachers could use it as a station activity where kids will have fun practicing letters and sight words. To focus on sight words, teachers will want to change the settings to turn on Spelling in Order. The default is off and lets kids tap letters in any order, not the word's spelling order.Continue reading Show less
Licking Letters uses a cute and encouraging frog to help kids practice identifying letters and spelling short words. At the beginning of each round, a word is shown and read aloud, and each letter is introduced. The letters then float across the screen; when one of the target letters is above the frog, kids tap the screen to watch the frog lick the letter. This continues until all the letters in the word have been selected. Players can choose whether the letters appear randomly or only in the correct spelling order for the word. The first few rounds have three-letter words and only include target letters, but the game gradually becomes more challenging. Completing a round earns a coin that can be used to buy costume items for the frog. Coins can also be earned in frequent bonus rounds that involve quick response times and feature a grumpy alligator in games that aren't learning-based.
Kids will love Licking Letters for its large variety of mini-games and their ability to earn coins to dress up Hoppy, but the educational value doesn't run very deep. Kids are exposed to letters, but the game requires more fine motor skills than spelling skills. The option to choose whether or not the letters appear in word order does give some flexibility in the challenge level, however. Licking Letters is positive and fun, and kids will enjoy earning rewards and playing with the silly frog and alligator, and they may even pick up a few sight words. For each round, kids will see a short sight word, like bed, and hear the word pronounced and each letter spelled out. They'll then hear the letters again when they "lick" the correct letter. All letters are shown in uppercase with no option to change to lowercase.
Key Standards Supported
Reading Foundational Skills
Decode regularly spelled one-syllable words.
Recognize and read grade-appropriate irregularly spelled words.
Orally produce single-syllable words by blending sounds (phonemes), including consonant blends.
Isolate and pronounce initial, medial vowel, and final sounds (phonemes) in spoken single-syllable words.
Recognize and name all upper- and lowercase letters of the alphabet.


Phonics Learner’s Worksheet level 2 or phase 3 are reproducible worksheets aimed at children who are continuing their phonics development skills.
This set of worksheets contain sections that develop sound recognition, honing pencil skills, developing correct letter formation skills as well as encoding and decoding skills.
***With 2 extra pages focusing on 4 different aspects of reading, writing and comprehension development. Section 1 contains word recognition and spelling. Section 2 contains word comprehension that helps expand their vocabulary bank with pictures. Section 3 focuses on reading practice with easy to read simple sentences that are decodable. Section 4 focuses on real and nonsense words. Section 5 focuses on reading comprehension and answer questions accordingly.***
There are a total of 5 sheets per focus sound with very simple instructions on cleanly designed pages.
This product is a no prep phonics instruction or revision set. You do NOT need to prep beforehand and can be used with phonics resources from other sources.
About this product
This set contains a set of 4 x 5 focus sound sheets (20 sheets total). With a printable cover and instructions page.
This set includes the following sounds
ear air ure er
All sheets focus on only lowercase letter formation. Do NOT purchase if you want uppercase letter formation.
Direction for use:
To use, print the sheets after setting up your desired dimensions on your printer set up. Please note that these sheets are A4 in size and is best use with A4 dimensions in mind.
These sheets can be laminated and bound into a write and wipe book for multiple use and durability.
Best suited for children ages 3 and up.
Uses for this product
Phonics introduction worksheets
Phonics revision worksheets
Write and wipe sheets
Write and wipe book (after being bound)


TOP PICKS | 38 TOOLS
Apps and Websites for Special Education Programs
While some of these tools weren't designed specifically for kids with special needs and disabilities as well as learning and thinking differences, they've been recommended by educators and experts who work with these populations. You'll find apps that address foundational skills, boost social and emotional skills, and help kids with autism follow a schedule. There are also sites that help teachers differentiate learning and access resources for developing language and math literacy. Check them out. You might find them helpful for any student who needs more support.
Challenging games stress memory, logic, impulse control, flexibility
Robust app combines high-quality lessons with handy quantitative data
Simple, wearable calendar and task tool could be great for some
Ingenious, intuitive way for kids to learn and practice the basics


NCERT 2nd Class Solutions 2022 Pdf Download with Subject wise Exemplar Solutions for Elementary Education Hindi medium, English medium, and other Student Hindi, English, Urdu, Sanskrit, Mathematics, English, General Awareness, Environmental Science (EVS), Health & Physical Education, General Knowledge (GK), Art & Craft subject in evaluation wise at https://ncert.nic.in…
National Council of Educational Research and Training has published the NCERT STD-2 Solutions 2022 for all subjects of the course along with exemplar problems for both medium Government and Private School students of the country, and the class 2nd chapter wise solutions are suggested by subject experts of the Council for all Central and State level education boards of CBSE, CISCE, IB, IGCSE, KVS, JNV, and etc.
Every year the NCERT has announced subject wise answer solutions in subject wise both region student for Paper-1, Paper-2 exams in part wise for 1st language, 2nd language, 3rd language, and another subject’s of the primary education Class 2 course all evaluations conducted under board & school level exams 2022.
|About NCERT Class 2 Solutions & Exemplar 2022||Details|
|Name of the Class or Course||Second Class / STD-2 / 2nd Class|
|Subject||Subject wise Solutions & Exemplar Problems|
|Categories||Class-2, Exemplar, NCERT, Solutions|
|Name of the Organization||National Council of Educational Research and Training|
NCERT 2nd Class Solutions 2022 Subject wise Exemplar Problems (*Latest)
Teaching Staff of the Government and Private Schools and Subject experts of the country has designed the NCERT STD-2 Solutions 2022 with Exemplar Problems for all lessons in chapter wise to both medium student of the Country, every student or their parent can contact your responsible school principal to get Term-1, Term-2, Term-3, Term-4 exam solutions.
The NCERT has published those Elementary Education Primary School Solutions to practice as regular mock tests at the school end or homework using the learning material with study material to get a better score for Assessments of Summative Assessment (SA-1, SA-2, SA-3, SA-4) and Formative Assessment (FA-1, FA-2, FA-3, FA-4) and other Unit Tests, 3 Months (Quarterly), 6 Months (Half Yearly) Pre-final and annual final examinations of 2022.
NCERT STD-2 Solutions & Exemplar Problems 2022 Pdf Download Online
Right now the NCERT has published the Primary School Regional wise Solutions with Exemplar Problems in subject wise for Hindi, English, Urdu, Sanskrit, Mathematics, English, General Awareness, Environmental Science (EVS), Health & Physical Education, General Knowledge (GK), Art & Craft and another subject to all regional & central education boards.
Every STD-2 student or their parent can download the study material with teacher materials designed and published by NCERT from the direct link.


Stepping Forward to Independence
Stepping Forward to Independence is for young people with a permanent cognitive impairment or intellectual disability.
Participants will complete 22302VIC Certificate I in Work Education on Mondays and Wednesdays where the focus will be on:
- identifying work goals and testing these in practical placements
- exploring training and education pathways to jobs
- developing employability skills
- improving literacy and numeracy skills
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, participants focus on Life Skills and Health & Well-being Skills to support transition to a more independent, adult life.
Adult Reading & Writing for Everyday Use
Better Reading & Writing
A program for adult learners that focuses on basic literacy. It gives learners structure, direction and the development of reading, writing, numeracy and learning skills. Employment pathways will be specific according to individual choices. The course is delivered over 20 weeks – 6 hours per weeks.
Independence Building: Skills for Life as an Adult Learner
Balancing adulthood and study can be hard! Lucky this program is here to help you to learn how to budget, make the most of Centrelink and the NDIS and understand how to read bills and invoices. Build skills in time management for work and home life, travel training, and understanding the rental market.
Kitchen Operations for Life and Work
Let’s get cooking! This program will support you to understand how to budget, menu plan, shop, cook for yourself and prepare for work in the hospitality industry. You will learn basic OHS risks in the kitchen and how to manage them, how to follow basic recipes for healthy eating and cultural origins of meals.
Cooking in the Kitchen and Art
Cooking and art for people with a disability. This 2-part program gives participants a practical, sensory, hands-on opportunity to create scrumptious, healthy meals together. The second half of the session includes sketching, painting and visual arts.
Introduction to Computers
Learners will use Microsoft Office and internet explorer to learn basic skills in Word to create documents, and learn how to send emails.. Students will gain an understanding of the Health & Safety issues when using a computer and of the workplace. Students will complete tasks such as creating a to-do list, a flyer and some basic letters.
Introduction to Horticulture
Consider yourself to have a green thumb or do you just want to learn some tips and tricks of gardening? This program will help you to learn how to identify plants, plant seeds, treat weeds and harvest produce in a supported environment! Then explore employment opportunities in the horticulture industry and pathways to these opportunities!
Developing Work Skills – Short Course
Digital Literacy and Cyber Safety
Using a computer can be a little tricky sometimes! This program will help you learn how to use a computer and the internet to their full potential! You will get to learn how to use Microsoft word, email accounts and MyGov, learn how to protect yourself from online scams, and how to access social media safely.


Children at an increased risk of autism may have abnormal structures in the placenta that can be detected at birth, a new study finds.
The findings suggest behavioral interventions aimed at social and motor skill development in these children could be started right away, the researchers said. Studies have shown that such interventions are more effective in children with autism when they are started earlier.
It's much too early to say that an examination of the placenta could be used as a definitive test for autism at birth, said study researcher Dr. Harvey Kliman, director of Reproductive and Placental Research at the Yale University School of Medicine. Autism spectrum disorders are typically diagnosed when children are ages 3 or 4, or even older.
However, if these structures were found upon a child's birth and interventions were started, the child might benefit greatly if they did turn out to have autism, while there would be little downside if a child turned out not to have autism -- it's unlikely they would be harmed by the effort, Kliman said.
In the study, Kliman and his colleagues collected samples of placenta tissue from 117 children born to families who already had a child with autism, and compared them with placentas from 100 babies born into families in which no older children had autism. The researchers, who didn't know which placentas had come from each group of children, examined samples of the placentas under microscopes.
While one in 50 children in the general population have autism, according to the latest estimate from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the autism risk among children with an older sibling who has autism is 18.7 percent, the new study says.
The researchers found that structures called trophoblastic inclusions (TIs) — which are small, pitlike invaginations into the placental wall — were much more common in the placentas of the high-risk children.
Placentas from at-risk children were eight times more likely to have two or more trophoblastic inclusions compared with control samples, according to the study.
The presence of four or more TIs was linked strongly with being in the at-risk group, the study showed. None of the placentas from the control group had four or more TIs, while 19 percent of those in the at-risk group did.
That suggests that using a cutoff point of four TIs in the placenta could reveal with a 99 percent specificity that a child was in the high-risk group. In other words, it is extremely likely that a child with four placental TIs is at high-risk for autism, Kliman said.
However, using the four-TI cutoff point would have a low sensitivity for detecting children in the high-risk group: 81 percent of children in the high-risk group did not have four or more TIs.
Kliman said the researchers will continue to follow up with the children in the study to see which of them are ultimately diagnosed with autism. He noted that about one in five children in the high-risk group would be expected to develop autism. It will be interesting to see whether the 19 percent of children with four or more TIs line up with those who eventually are diagnosed with the condition, he told MyHealthNewsDaily.
The findings do not mean that the TIs cause autism, Kliman said. Rather, it is likely that whatever causes autism in a child also causes TIs to form in the placenta, he said. "The placenta is a reflection of what's happening in the brain."
Researchers have long-known that TIs are linked with chromosomal abnormalities. The fact that TIs are also found in children at high risk of autism provides more evidence that the condition has genetic roots, Kliman said.
The study is published online today (April 25) in the journal Biological Psychiatry.
Pass it on: Children with autism may be more likely to have placental abnormalities.
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Children with Down syndrome have reduced muscle tone, which can delay development of their motor skills. Children with delays may roll over, sit up, pull up, stand, and walk later than other children their age.
Encourage motor skill development through active play.
- Place toys just out of your child's reach and encourage him or her to get them. But do not frustrate your child by moving the toy when he or she almost reaches it.
- Play pat-a-cake with your baby.
- Place your baby's legs so that they are touching when you are carrying or holding him or her. This will encourage the normal leg positioning that is needed for sitting and walking.
- Ask other members of the family to play games with your child so that your child moves around. For example, play ball games or chasing games.
- Let your child bang pots and slap his or her hands on the table at times.
Guide your baby in playful exercises, which helps him or her learn to walk.
- Move your baby's arms and legs in swimming motions.
- Gently bounce your baby on your lap while holding him or her in a standing position.
- Help your baby roll over so that he or she can become stronger and more mobile.
- Support your baby in a sitting position, but let him or her lean forward for balance.
Current as of: December 9, 2019
Author: Healthwise Staff
Medical Review: John Pope, MD, MPH - Pediatrics
Donald Sproule, MDCM, CCFP - Family Medicine
Kathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine
Louis Pellegrino, MD - Developmental Pediatrics


‘Reading aloud’ means that adult read the exact wordings from the book to children. Children develop key understanding through the reading process and the relationship between printed word and meaning. It is the foundation of children’s literacy development, which also gives children the idea that the print tells a story or the message which is conveyed. Moreover, through the discussion between teacher and children in class, ‘reading aloud’ helps children connect books with their daily experience, so as to induce the creativity and problem solving skills of children; to develop their comprehension skills, moral value and the whole person development.
‘Promotion of Reading Grant’
In order to enhance children’s interest in reading, reading ability; and to cope with the reading aloud approach strategy from school, the school has successfully applied one year reading grant funded by the Educational Bureau. The program includes, book lending in every week, reading aloud picture book workshop for parents, parent-child creative writing for story ending. This aims to provide a strong reading atmosphere for children to immerse in, and achieves “love reading, knowing how to read”


Rather than focusing solely on what we learn, it also places importance on how and where we learn. These memorable experiences enable us to put our learning into context by understanding how it transfers to life beyond the classroom, and also appreciating how the skills acquired can be brought back to the classroom to support other areas of the curriculum. Learning in a variety of environments not only raises achievement, but also promotes independence, organisation, problem solving, communication and teamwork skills. We are giving children not only an education, but also the tools to become a well-rounded adult. In an age where global warming, environmental education and sustainability are becoming ever more critical, children must be able to learn from and understand their environment, as well as their responsibility to protect it. Ribbon also acknowledges and supports the fact that time spent in the outdoors and specifically playing in the outdoors, is a major factor in improving children’s well-being and mental health. Better play means happier children. Happier children mean a more positive attitude to school, more effective lessons, and core skills development.
The school grounds: Our innovative team are constantly striving to adapt and improve our school grounds. On each of the playgrounds we have two large loose parts sheds, a performance and role play area and wheeled carts. One of our artificial turfed areas houses an outdoor gym, while another provides a quiet space complete with games. Our MUGA and two large fields allow for team games, with climbing equipment around both. Ribbon Early Years have an outdoor space equipped with a wide range of apparatus and provocations, and our Key Stage 1 children have an outdoor classroom too. Forest Schools sessions take place in our wildlife garden, and the polytunnel houses a variety of fruit and vegetables. Other exciting developments are on their way, including sand boxes and digging areas.
The Early Years Curriculum makes great use of learning in the outdoors as a vehicle for learning. Much time is spent outdoors during “play to learn” time, during which the children have free flow access to a large outdoor space. They are given the opportunity to experience different seasons and weather conditions. All areas of the curriculum are taught to some extent in the outdoor classroom, and the children are encouraged to develop a sense of wonder and excitement about being outside. There are many opportunities to explore both the immediate locality, and further afield in the local area. During “Muddy Monday” and “Forest Friday” sessions in Reception and nursery respectively, the children are given time in the school’s wildlife garden, accessing forest schools activities and philosophies. Year 1 continue to have access to both the Early Years garden and Year 1 outdoor spaces during continuous provision. They also enjoy “Wild Wednesday” afternoons, where the classes take part in forest schools, sustainability and conservation lessons, largely based outside. In Years 2-6, outdoor lessons link specifically to the curriculum. However, much emphasis is also placed on personal growth by providing exciting experiences which promote teamwork, leadership, independence, communication and organisation.
At Ribbon we believe that play is essential for physical, emotional, social, spiritual and intellectual development. In a time where outdoor play environments and opportunities are on the decline, the school grounds provide a crucial place for children to experience self-initiated play. Ribbon is an OPAL school (Outdoor Play And Learning) and provides exciting play opportunities in accordance with The Charter for Children’s Play produced by Play England. These opportunities include loose parts, problem solving, gross and fine motor skill development, team games, risk taking, role play and performing.
Passports for Life
Giving young people the opportunity to try new things and develop new skills can be hugely beneficial. It can help children to grow in confidence, expand their understanding of the world around them, or introduce a hobby or passion that could last for years to come. This is why Ribbon have launched “Passports for Life” for our children in Reception to Year 6. Each child will be offered a menu of 15 exciting things they can complete each term, either at home or at school. These activities range from curriculum driven experiences, to fun life lessons.
Residential Experiences, Trips and Visits
All year groups take part in a minimum of two off site educational visits per term, all closely linked to curriculum topics and skills. This helps bring an element of “wow” to our curriculum, by giving children the opportunity to learn from experts in their field, learn in context, and see a rich array of places and meet a wider variety of people. In Reception children are encouraged to develop a sense of independence through extended school days and visits. A sleepover in the school hall takes place in Year 1, and an overnight stay in tents on the school field at the end of Year 2, which forms an important foundation for all future residential experiences throughout Key Stage 2. Residentials in Key Stage 2 take place further afield, and over a longer period, and with an increasingly demanding itinerary.


“A sense of security seemed to come from these mountains; it was like living in the hollow of the cupped hand of God.” –Jean Bedal Fish
Darrington, a small mountain town in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains, stands where two rivers once joined in a valley between the Sauk and the Stillaguamish rivers, and between Gold Hill to the east and Whitehorse Mountain to the west. Shifting sand and river rock formed a portage surrounded by towering Douglas fir and cedar trees. Over time a community took root, a town grew, and a history formed.
The Sauk-Suiattle tribe was first to settle the valley, traveling in canoes carved from cedar and fishing the rivers for salmon and steelhead. In the summer and fall, they journeyed into the mountains to gather berries and collect wool from mountain goats. The Sauk Prairie, well known for its fertile soils and multitude of edible roots, was their village site. Later, miners from the east arrived in search of gold in these same mountain rivers, followed by loggers who came to harvest the dense forests of fir and cedar. Many of the loggers came from the South and from Sweden. With them, they brought traditional ways, food, and music that is still evident today. You can still enjoy the music of the South at the Bluegrass Music Festival in mid-July.
Today, the town has about 1,405 residents and serves another 1,200 people in the surrounding areas. The primary economy is still the timber industry. The Town is home to a variety of small logging and lumber companies as well as Hampton Lumber’s state of the art mill. However, Darrington is also using its unique location near the Mt Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, Wild and Scenic Rivers, and Wilderness to promote recreation as a strong force in the local economy. At 550 feet above sea level, the town is in close proximity to three wilderness areas where mountaineers explore the rock and ice of the surrounding peaks, and rafters and haymakers brave the waters of the rivers. All can enjoy over 328 miles of hiking and horse trails, numerous picnic sites, scenic roads, waterfalls, alpine lakes, and old growth forests.
The U.S. Forest Service, Darrington Ranger District manages the area’s timber, recreation, fish and wildlife, air and water quality, wilderness, minerals, and energy resources. The Forest Service and its employees are active participants in community life in Darrington and have contributed by obtaining grants for diverse projects including a non-profit early childhood learning center, informational kiosks in the town park, and preserving some of our oldest buildings.
One of the largest employers is the Darrington School District, which educates approximately 570 children each year. With a single K-12 campus, the district is a close-knit community of students, teachers, and administrators. The community takes great pride in its schools and actively participates in the many school activities whether it is sporting events, the school play, or art exhibitions. Students in Darrington have achieved state and national recognition in academics, sports, and the arts. Many have continued on to top universities and the District continues to increase its percentage of college-bound students.
As economies shift and the population changes, the rivers, rocks, trees, and mountains persevere. Today, as before, people come to Darrington to dream, explore, form families, communities and find somewhere in between the past and the future that is today.


Accommodations and Resources for Special Education, 504 and ESL Students
We hope you are all well and are enjoying time with your family. As we all navigate home learning remember to visit our website for updates and resources. Meeting the needs of our special populations is very important to us here at Ponder Elementary. Along with providing you a packet of accommodation resources it is our goal to also provide you with additional resources available on our website to meet the special learning needs of your child. If you have any questions please feel free to email your child’s teacher. We are here to support you and your child during this unexpected time.
Below is a list of commonly used accommodations and resources.
Commonly Used Accommodations For Special Education, 504 and ESL Students
- Direct student attention to specific information (e.g., parts of a graphic, parts of an answer choice etc..)
- Remove distractions while studying (TV, Games, etc…)
- Encouragement to verbalize steps needed to complete assignment/task.
- Shortened instructions (reduce number of steps).
- Frequent breaks.
- Chunk assignments into smaller sections.
- Extra time for oral response.
- Feedback provided frequently.
- Pre-Teach Vocabulary
- Provide Visuals
- Math problem-solving read orally.
- Read questions and answer choices to student.
- Remind students they have access to the Read&Write tool for oral accommodations
- Positive encouragement.
- Increase font size
- More white space on paper
- Allow students to dictate an answer for you to scribe or type.
- Use of a calculator
- Multiplication Chart
- Place Value Chart
- 100’s Chart
- Graphic Organizer
- List of frequently misspelled words


What is Music? Music is a form of art; an expression of emotions through harmonic sound.
The word music comes from the Greek word (mousike), which means "(art) of the Muses". Music is a universal language and is one of the highest forms of creativity. A high quality music education should inspire pupils to develop a love of music and so increase their self confidence, creativity and sense of achievement.
What are you curious to know? Why does some music make me feel calm and relaxed and other music make me feel slightly scared? Why are there so few well known women composers?
Music matters because it can help to lift our mood, bring us together and help us to relive special moments in our lives.
Please click below to open our Music Curriculum and Music Policy
Our Music curriculum is delivered by a specialist music teacher from MAPAS, the Salford Performing Arts Service. If you woould like to know more about the service they provide to schools and for wider opportunities please click on these links.


The Ensemble seeks to connect and inform all people who are committed to ensemble music education for youth empowerment and social change.
News & Resources
Preserving Traditional Venezuelan Music
For many years, El Sistema in Venezuela has placed an emphasis on studying, teaching, and playing the rich folk musics of the country. Now a new article in Smithsonian Magazine highlights those folk traditions and describes the importance of preserving them. The article, “Venezuelan Music: A Light in the Darkness,” is by Patricia Abdelnour, who was Deputy Director of Internal Relations for Venezuela’s Fundacion Musical Simon Bolivar, and more recently, Executive Director for Acción Social por la Música, an El Sistema program in Spain. Readers will be interested in this vivid description of Venezuela’s intensive efforts to keep folk music alive. Readers will be interested to learn about this vivid description of Venezuela’s intensive efforts to keep folk music alive. And in our sorrow at the current suffering of the Venezuelan people, we can take heart in reading about this spark of hope and beauty in their country.