Kathie Nunley's Educator's Newsletter
Monday, October 04, 2010
Dr Kathie Nunley's Educator's Newsletter
---October '10 Edition--- (current subscribers: 21,420)
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News and updates to Kathie Nunley's Layered Curriculum® Sites for Educators:
http://Help4Teachers.com
http://brains.org
Do you have a NEW EMAIL address? You can unsubscribe your old one and
subscribe the new one using the link at the bottom of this newsletter.
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--------SECTION ONE: TEACHING TIPS ------
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Teacher Tip # 1: Help kids understand that when they can explain,
defend and critically think about what they have learned or read, then they can't
be bamboozled by others. They'll be part of the class of society who will be the
most successful. - Jane Bartlett, Parkers Prairie Elem.
Teacher Tip # 2: Start each morning with a catchy action song or tell 3 jokes.
No name, Lethbridge, AB.
Send your favorite teaching tip to me at Kathie@brains.org
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------SECTION TWO: HOT TOPICS in Neuro & Educational Psychology------
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HOT TOPIC # 1: Thus far, high stakes testing has not been shown to improve
achievement and has been found to be somewhat detrimental to student
motivation. But, does the testing actually harm students? While many teachers
report anecdotally that it does, we have no empirical evidence to support that.
Research is lacking. Researchers from Northern Illinois University attempted
to study the stress-effect on students of high stakes testing, but ran into design
problems in that no school would allow the team to come in sooner than one
month prior to testing. Until we get research to indicate otherwise, we can
continue to assume that while they may not do any good, high stakes testings
may also not be doing any harm.
Stephen M Tonks, PhD, Northern Illinois University. "Investigating High-Stakes
Testing, Motivation, Test Anxiety, and Engagement in Children". Presented
August 13, 2010. APA Annual Convention, San Diego, CA.
HOT TOPIC #2: Autism? Aspergers? PDD-NOS? Which does a child have?
It turns out that this varies wildly based on where the child was diagnosed. When
surveying clinics and diagnostics sites around the US, researchers have found
a very troubling variety in how lines are drawn between these 3 diagnoses.
Many clinics are in clear contrast with each other, and often times the ONLY
determining factor of a diagnosis is the diagnostic site itself. Because there is
no uniform criteria, this makes scientific validity for separation very poor.
Catherine Lord, PhD, University of Michigan. "Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum
Disorders: From research to practice". Presented August 13, 2010. APA Annual
Convention, San Diego, CA.
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---SECTION THREE: WEB UPDATES ---
BRAINS.ORG & HELP4TEACHERS.COM
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Our website and our bookshop have a variety of ways to help you learn
Layered Curriculum®?
1. Watch the 4-part video mini-lesson to get you started at the website:
http://help4teachers.com/
comes with the 90 minute training video).
http://help4teachers.com/
http://help4teachers.com/
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New BOOKS in the bookshop:
=> Strategies for Learning (grades 9 - 12) by Karen Rooney.
=> Rethinking Classroom Management by Patricia Sequeira Belvel.
=> Using Humor to Maximize Learning by Mary Kay Morrison
=> Beyond Differentiated Instruction by Jodi O'Meara.
=> Robert Sylwester's BRAND NEW "A Child's Brain"
http://brains.org/store
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-----SECTION FOUR: KATHIE'S EMAIL
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Kathie - I utilized your website to create Layered Curriculum last year and
I was wondering if you had a curriculum for high school world history on
Ancient Greece. I found the one on Rome but did not see anything for Greece.
I would appreciate any help you can give me and I will also submit the units I
have developed.
Thank you, Sally Henderson, Crestview High School, FL
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Sally,
All the units that I receive from teachers are posted on the samples
page - so "what you see is what I have". Maybe you could develop
an Ancient Greece unit for us. That would be great!
Kathie
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------SECTION FIVE: WORKSHOPS / SCHEDULE / MISC CHAT------
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Happy October. We had such an early fall here in New England. Our
colors are nearly over now. My huge oak tree is empty - almost a month early.
The garden is harvested, the wood is stacked and the cats have donned
their heavy coats and come in for the "long sleep". I hope you too are
enjoying the seasonal changes.
This is a busy month for me with workshops across North America. This week
I'll be heading to Idaho for the Idaho Science Teachers annual conference.
Other stops this month include, Oklahoma, Ohio and Alberta. I have several
new workshops, conferences and presentations in the works, including
Toronto, Lethbridge, St. Louis and New York. If you are looking to attend
a Layered Curriculum® presentation, information is posted online at:
http://help4teachers.com/
for late spring and summer 2011. Just send me an email.
As always, my best to yours,
Kathie
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