Kathie Nunley's Educator's Newsletter
---March 2006 Edition--- (current subscribers: 16,724)
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News and updates to http://brains.org and Kathie Nunley's
Layered Curriculum (tm) Site for Educators: http://help4teachers.com

~~The NO-MEMBERSHIP-REQUIRED website ~~
Newsletter subscription available at: http://help4teachers.com/newsletter.htm
Unsubscribe & email change information link at the bottom of this newsletter

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SECTION ONE: Teaching Tips -
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Teacher Tip # 1: I have a large, mock license plate poster on my wall
with the license # 3B4ME. When a student has a question, I point to it as
a reminder that they are to ask 3 peers the question before they ask the
teacher. This works well especially with group work. Kate Nakamura-Stein,
Nampa High School, Nampa, ID.

Teacher Tip #2: I have bins in my classroom. My students have a
classroom folder and workbook that never leaves my room. They toss
them in the bins on the way out the door. Since I started this all my students
had all their materials for class. M. Schoen, Nampa, ID.

Send your favorite teaching tip to me at Kathie@brains.org

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SECTION TWO: Hot Topics
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HOT TOPIC #1: If you are watching a classroom demonstration or
a video, your brain is receiving information from more than one sense
or modality (your eyes, your ears, etc.). Each of these sensory
signals is processed in a separate region of the cortex (a unimodal
area) and then, because they come from the same place and time, are
integrated in a multisensory brain region (a heteromodal region).
Neuroimaging studies are showing that this process is actually
a 2-way street. Not only do the unimodal areas affect the heteromodal
regions, but the interactions in the heteromodal areas can
affect the specific unimodal regions as well. This new view complicates
our traditional views of multisensory integration in the brain.
Macaluso, E. & Driver, J. (2005). Trends in Neurosciences,
Vol. 28(5), 264-271.

HOT TOPIC #2: The brain uses separate cortex regions to interpret
both the syntax and semantics of music. This discovery is showing
a large overlap between music and language in the human brain. When
listening to music, we process its syntax with the inferior frontolateral
cortex, ventrolateral premotor cortex and the superior temporal gyrus- the
same regions we use to process linguistic syntax. We process musical
semantics with the posterior temporal regions which also overlaps with
our interpretation of language. Koelsch, S. (2005). Current Opinion in
Neurobiology, Vol. 15(2), 207-212.

More Hot Topics at the websites!

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SECTION THREE:
Website updates
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***NEW at the Help4Teachers.com****:

NEW LAYERED CURRICULUM UNITS posted in February:
~Metals, Nonmetals, Metalloids (MS/HS) Bitsy Griffin, NC.
~WWI - (MS/HS) Pamela Martin, TX
~Gov't., Legislative Body (MS/HS) Pamela Martin, TX
~Career-Language Connection (MS/HS), Lisa Silletti & Debra Meltzer, NJ
~ The Outsiders (MS/HS), Michaela Mueller, NE
~ Reading (4/5), Lisa Durff, MD
You can view these and all our LC sample units at:
http://help4teachers.com/samples.htm

NEW Article: What is the most current research on the
causes (and "treatments") for struggling readers? Read
http://help4teachers.com/JohnnieCanRead.htm

Layered Curriculum text, workbook and video training materials
can be found at:
http://help4teachers.com/books.htm

http://help4teachers.com/video.htm

***NEW at the Brains.org SHOP: ***

*My new book "Differentiating the High School Classroom" is available.
*We now have new "book bundles" which offer additional discounts on
your favorite topics such as differentiated instruction and the brain.
*We have close-out pricing on some of our books.
http://brains.org/store

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SECTION FOUR: Kathie's Email
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So many teachers new to Layered Curriculum send their units to me
for review, suggestions, and critique. Most struggle with similar issues,
so I thought it might help to explain what I usually look for in evaluating
a workable Layered Curriculum unit sheet. You can ask yourself these
same 3 questions when self-checking your own units, whether you are
new to Layered Curriculum or a veteran.
FIRST: How many points are available in the C layer versus the maximum
points allowed? In other words, if the C layer says, "79 points max in this
layer" but only 85 points are offered, that raises a red flag. You want
excess in this layer. If you require 75 points here for a C, then offer
150 - 200 points worth of options. You want lots of choice and breathing
room for students. If they need 79 of the 85 possible points, that leaves very
little room for error or choice. But don't put too many choices in here
early on - as you may overwhelm your students, so don't be afraid to
include some large point assignments.

SECOND: Check the B layer for similar issues. Is there "breathing room" for
error? Are you asking students to connect NEW learning to PRIOR knowledge?

FINALLY: Check the A layer for the correct TYPE of thinking? Are you asking
a debatable, real world question? Are you asking questions where there is
research to support more than one answer? The key here is to have the student
mix hard fact/research with things like ethics, values, and personal opinion.
(eg: In what ways could FEMA have responded better to hurricane Katrina?
Is NCLB a good program or how could it be improved? Would other businesses
benefit from marketing fraction of a penny pricing like gasoline? How?)

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SECTION FIVE: Workshops/calendar schedule/misc
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It's March, it's March, it's March!!!!!! Anyone besides me get excited to see
that month on the calendar? I feel a bit like Punxsutawney Phil anxiously
awaiting to crawl out of my winter hole and into spring.

Actually I just returned from the Boise Idaho area where the teachers there
were kind enough to order spring-like weather for our 2 day Layered Curriculum
workshop. Thanks to Idaho teachers for the weather and all the great
teaching tips - 2 of which you see in this issue.
I also had an opportunity to meet many teachers in Toronto, Ontario
about a week ago at the Links to Learning Conference. Thank you to that
organization as well for their hospitality.

This month includes workshops and presentations for teachers in Howell,
Michigan and Lansing, Illinois. If you are looking to join us somewhere,
you'll find my calendar posted at: http://help4teachers.com/calendar.htm

If you need to check a date with me for your conference or district, please
email me. I am now booking through June 2007.

As always, my best to you and yours,
Kathie
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- posted by Kathie @ 9:27 PM