I previously shared 2018’s Most Popular Classroom Q&A Posts.
This column will share my personal favorites from the past 12 months. There may be a little overlap with the “most popular” list, but the two lists are quite different.
I’m listing my “top 13" (plus one video) following this quote from one of them, but they’re not in any particular order.
* ‘We Need to Face Our Own Discomfort’ About Discussing Racism
Marian Dingle, Sydney Chaffee, Raquel Rios, Rinard Pugh, and Dr. Kimberly N. Parker talk about mistakes that are often made when trying to tackle race and racism in the classroom, and they explore what we teachers can do, instead.
* Ways to Differentiate Instruction for ELLs
Valentina Gonzalez, Jenny Vo, Tonya Ward Singer, Carol Ann Tomlinson, and Nélida Rubio discuss ways to differentiate instruction for English-language learners.
* Strategies for Using Writing ‘Frames’ and ‘Structures’
Beth Rimer, Linda Denstaedt, Gretchen Bernabei, Nancy Boyles, Mary Shea, Nancy Roberts, and Eileen Depka contribute ideas on how to use writing frames and writing structures in the classroom.
* Author Interview With Matthew Kay: ‘Not Light, But Fire’
Matthew R. Kay agreed to answer a few questions about his new book, Not Light, But Fire: How to Lead Meaningful Race Conversations in the Classroom.
* Response: The Best Ways to Resolve Conflicts Between Students
Vickie Gomez, Danny Woo, Kevin Parr, Jessica Torres, Rosalind Wiseman, and Dr. Bryan Harris contribute their ideas on how to manage conflicts between students.
* Helping Students ‘Get Into History’
Diana Laufenberg, Sarah Cooper, Chris Hulleman, Suzie Boss, and Erin Brandvold discuss how we can make social studies lessons more exciting!
* The Best Ways to Use Video in Class
Jason Griffith, Ken Halla, Dr. Rebecca Alber, Jennie Farnell, Cheryl Mizerny, and Michele L. Haiken share their suggestions on how teachers can most effectively use video in the classroom.
* Ways to Support ‘Students With Diverse Learning Needs’
Jason Flom, Mandi White, Tara Dale, Dr. Wendy Murawski, Cheryl Mizerny, and Karen Baptiste share their thoughts.
* Do Professional Development ‘With’ Teachers, Not ‘to’ Them
Diana Laufenberg, Dina Strasser, Heather Wolpert-Gawron, Debbie Silver, Rita Platt, and Dr. Melissa C. Gilbert share their critiques of current professional-development practices.
* Ways to Avoid Teacher Burnout
Jenny Edwards, Ph.D., Wendi Pillars, Timothy Hilton, Mandi White, Tara Dale, and Owen Griffith share their suggestions on how teachers can avoid burning out on their jobs.
* Underused Teaching and Learning Strategies
Kathy Glass, Amber Chandler, Carol Salva, Jennifer Davis Bowman, and Janet Allen propose their “nominees” for underused—and effective—instructional strategies.
Dr. Barbara Blackburn, Meghan Everette, Rachael George, Jody Passanisi, and readers share their advice with textbook publishers about how they can improve their products.
* ‘A Powerful Purpose Propels Effective Student Collaboration’
This post features contributions from Michael Thornton, Robin Brandehoff, Ivannia Soto, and Nell K. Duke. They share recommendations for how teachers can encourage student collaborative learning.
Of course, I have to include this video that Katie Hull Sypnieski and I did with Education Week on differentiating instruction. Look for Parts Two and Three that will appear later in January.