Getting Started with Research

Now that most of us are well into the first quarter of the school year, many teachers have assigned students their first significant formal research assignment for the year. English teachers and school librarians love academic research or at least don’t dread it! Most teachers know they should be giving students an opportunity to work … read more »

Using Primary Sources to Teach Thanksgiving

There is one day that is ours. Thanksgiving Day is the one day that is purely American. O. Henry A recent TeachersFirst blog post by Paula Deal discussed the use of primary sources and suggested several resources for finding primary sources for all grade levels. What better time of year to include primary sources than … read more »

Batter Up! World Series Resources for All Subjects

October is the time of the year we look forward to many of our favorite events. Carving pumpkins, picking apples, and trick or treating are just a few things we look forward to. Other anticipated events each fall are the baseball playoffs and World Series. Take advantage of student enjoyment of baseball to motivate and … read more »

Are Digital Natives Digital Citizens, Too?

In this season of intense political activity, now might be a good time to think about digital citizenship. We cannot assume that our students who are digital natives have the skills to be good digital citizens of the virtual world in which they live every day. Many schools have some sort of cybersafety curriculum, perhaps … read more »