Originally published as a special issue of the Middle School Journal, this book presents integrative curriculum as a foundational element of the middle school. By addressing the current gap in literature on curriculum integration in the middle grades, this text explores how learning can be organized around authentic concepts or questions which cut across disciplines and speak to young adolescents. Providing a current, nuanced, and comprehensive review of what it means to embrace and implement an interdisciplinary and integrative curriculum, the volume considers how educators can create and deliver a high-quality integrative curriculum which is enjoyable, challenging, and inclusive. Examples of implementation in teacher preparation programs and middle grade classrooms showcase integrative approaches and illustrate how curricula have been key in tackling social inequities, increasing engagement with STEM, and supporting collaboration. This text will be of great interest to graduate and postgraduate students, researchers, academics and libraries in the field of Middle School Education, Curriculum Studies, Teacher Education, Theories of Learning, and STEM Education.

Thoughtfully and thoroughly reviews the past, analyzes the separate subject approach, and outlines a proposal for a new general education program that would transform the middle level school.

This volume provides an up-to-date study of theory and practice on the importance of technology in teaching and learning. The contributions are carefully peer-reviewed from over 100 submissions to the International Conference on Teaching and Learning 2006, held in Hong Kong. Sample Chapter(s). Chapter 1: Faculty Perceptions of ICT Benefits (391 KB). Contents: Faculty Perceptions of ICT Benefits (R Fox et al.); Thinking about Thinking Online (K Downing et al.); Teacher''s Sharing Pedagogical Experiences in a Learning Environment that Supports Self-Regulated Learning (G Dettori et al.); Online Interaction: Trying to Get It Right (L Chow and R Sharman); Crossing Borders: How Cross-Cultural Videoconferencing can Satisfy Course Goals in Dissimilar Subjects (J S Wilkinson & A-L Wang); The Evaluation of Information and Communication Technology Use in Professional Schools (P Gabor & C Ing); Using Technology in Education: The Application of Data Mining (K H Chye et al.); A Comparison of WebCT, Blackboard and Moddle for the Teaching and Learning of Continuing Education Courses (K S Cheung); The Object-Oriented Database Application and the System Architecture of a National Learning Objects Repository for Cyprus (P Pouyioutas et al.); and other papers. Readership: Graduate students, researchers and practitioners involved in the development and education of e-learning.

This resource makes it easy for teachers and librarians working with middle-school children to infuse their curriculum with multicultural literature. Carefully vetted and annotated, it encompasses fiction and non-fiction published in the last decade, making it an ideal reference and collection development tool for schools and public libraries alike

So you've decided to homeschool but don't know where to start? Don't worry, Homeschooling 101 offers you a step by step practical guide that will help you get started and continue on in your homeschooling journey. Erica will walk you through all of the aspects of getting started, choosing and gathering curriculum, creating effective lesson plans, scheduling your day, organizing your home, staying the course and more! This book is a must read for new homeschoolers who need tangible advice for getting started! It also includes helpful homeschool forms, and a FREE planner! Erica is a Christian, wife, and a homeschooler. She is author of the top homschooling website: www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com

Educating Gifted Students in Middle School: A Practical Guide (3rd ed.) helps educators with the challenging task of understanding and meeting the needs of gifted students in middle school. This revised and updated third edition: Provides a rationale and framework that middle schools can use to fill the service gap for gifted and advanced learners. Addresses the needs of learners from diverse backgrounds. Shows how to implement effective program models. Identifies best practices for the classroom. Shares research-based curriculum models. Topics addressed include school organization, instructional strategies in the basic subject areas, cocurricular and summer programs, the missing link of executive function skills, and counseling at-risk gifted learners. Educating Gifted Students in Middle School focuses on creative, practical, and realistic school solutions that create a vital and responsive community for all students.

Offering fresh alternatives to common instructional practices that fail to get results, this accessible, highly practical guide highlights ways to motivate middle school students while enhancing content-area learning. Each chapter features an enlightening case study of a teacher whose current strategies are not supported by research; describes effective instructional alternatives, illustrated with concrete examples; and lists online resources and lesson examples. Emphasis is given to supporting critical engagement with texts and drawing on technology and new literacies. The book covers specific content areas?including science, social studies, math, and literature?as well as ways to teach oral literacy and writing across the curriculum. ?

TEACH YOUR STUDENTS TO READ WITH PRECISION AND INSIGHT The world we are preparing our students to succeed in is one bound together by words and phrases. Our students learn their literature, history, math, science, or art via a firm foundation of strong reading skills. When we teach students to read with precision, rigor, and insight, we are truly handing over the key to the kingdom. Of all the subjects we teach reading is first among equals. Grounded in advice from effective classrooms nationwide, enhanced with more than 40 video clips, Reading Reconsidered takes you into the trenches with actionable guidance from real-life educators and instructional champions. The authors address the anxiety-inducing world of Common Core State Standards, distilling from those standards four key ideas that help hone teaching practices both generally and in preparation for assessments. This 'Core of the Core' comprises the first half of the book and instructs educators on how to teach students to: read harder texts, 'closely read' texts rigorously and intentionally, read nonfiction more effectively, and write more effectively in direct response to texts. The second half of Reading Reconsidered reinforces these principles, coupling them with the 'fundamentals' of reading instruction—a host of techniques and subject specific tools to reconsider how teachers approach such essential topics as vocabulary, interactive reading, and student autonomy. Reading Reconsidered breaks an overly broad issue into clear, easy-to-implement approaches. Filled with practical tools, including: 44 video clips of exemplar teachers demonstrating the techniques and principles in their classrooms (note: for online access of this content, please visit my.teachlikeachampion.com) Recommended book lists Downloadable tips and templates on key topics like reading nonfiction, vocabulary instruction, and literary terms and definitions. Reading Reconsidered provides the framework necessary for teachers to ensure that students forge futures as lifelong readers.

For Elementary and Middle School Curriculum Development and Methods classes. Unlike texts that focus on either the "how" or "what" of teaching, Curriculum and Instructional Methods for the Elementary and Middle School explores both the "how" (instruction) and "what" (content), and provides an integrative approach to ensure teachers a broad knowledge base when they enter the classroom.