11.30.21 To support reading at home, turn up the sound I don’t know about your childhood TV viewing preferences, but for me, there was no greater pleasure than my local PBS lineup: Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, Reading Rainbow, Bob Ross’s The... Read more
9.30.21 To raise my hand or to nod along: 11 questions about MAP Growth answered We’ve all been there: We’re at an important event, like back-to-school night, and we’re nodding along, self-consciously avoiding asking the questions that are burning inside us. We think,... Read more
8.31.21 6 ways to use data with more focus and purpose We’ve all seen some of those marketing-worthy gems posted on a school website or back-to-school banner after a survey is sent to families: “90% of our parents strongly agree/agree that their... Read more
8.12.21 10 ways to create community in your kindergarten classroom As a kindergarten teacher, you get the amazing opportunity to create that first love of learning. Your impact can last a lifetime. I was a kindergarten teacher before joining NWEA, and I’ve... Read more
7.1.21 How to democratize your school improvement planning process In our last post, we talked about how it’s insufficient to rely solely on student outcome data like grades, graduation rates, and test scores to inform school improvement. Focusing too... Read more
6.24.21 Learn how to use ESSER funding to help students with disabilities As the pandemic continues to reverberate throughout our education system, schools find themselves with both unprecedented challenges and rare, potentially transformative opportunities for... Read more
6.17.21 Racism hurts kids. Here are 5 things you can do about it. The long bus ride home seemed much shorter than usual that day. The words I’d overheard my teacher say consumed me, and it was like I forgot I was on a bus at all. “They get that laziness... Read more
5.27.21 How to continue the fight for equity a year after George Floyd’s death Crystal Braswell is the kind of person who will call you “sweetie” just minutes into meeting you for the first time, but only in that rare way that makes you feel like you’ve known her... Read more
5.25.21 Before the national outrage: Why young kids need to be taught about racism My name is Nina Murphy, and I, too, was affected by the death of George Floyd. I’m a 16-year-old junior at Whitney Young High School in Chicago, and I live with my mother and older brother. I... Read more
5.19.21 4 ways COVID-19 made education better Student grit, educators have been told in recent years, is a credible predictor of academic success. Perhaps in no situation has that been truer than in the midst of a pandemic. But has it not... Read more
5.11.21 Valuing funds of knowledge and translanguaging in emergent bilingual students My parents came to the US from the Philippines in the late 1960s with just two suitcases each. Already fluent in English, they held a whole lot of hope for the opportunity ahead in their new... Read more
5.6.21 3 lessons on serving kids with disabilities from SXSW EDU Here’s a sentence I never thought I’d write: My colleague Stephanie Cawthon and I were selected to present on students with disabilities at SXSW EDU earlier this spring, and our names... Read more