Free online writing and grammar resource

In the wake of this crisis, Quill.org is providing Free Quill Premium to all and has compiled remote learning resources for teachers and students.

What is Quill?

Quill.org is a non-profit that provides teachers and parents with a free, research-backed online learning platform that helps provide classical writing instruction.…Read More

Why lifelong learning matters for K-12 students

In an ever-changing global workforce, today’s students are developing skills to make them productive members of tomorrow’s workforce. Perhaps one of the most important skills they’ll learn is lifelong learning.

A new report highlights lifelong learning’s prominent part in higher ed and the workforce, but the report’s recommendations are also important for K-12 educators and learners.

Related content: 5 strategies to navigate the future of learning…Read More

5 tools to help with project-based learning

Educators know project-based learning (PBL) isn’t simply another teaching strategy. Project-based learning gives students deeper learning experiences, and as they apply their knowledge, they develop soft skills such as critical thinking and team work–skills they’ll carry through to college and the workforce.

But it’s often a great undertaking to locate and vet resources and tools for project-based learning, and educators don’t have an abundance of time.

Related content: Defining high-quality project-based learning…Read More

7 strategies to improve vocabulary instruction

Two-thirds of students in the U.S. are struggling with reading and the gap is widening, according to recent NAEP testing. Although insufficient decoding skills are typically thought to be the reason for weak comprehension skills among students, research has revealed that in many cases, an area of pronounced weakness for struggling readers is vocabulary. As a language arts teacher and learning specialist, I have been alarmed by the decline in vocabulary knowledge I’ve witnessed over the years.

Starting several years ago, my colleagues, speech-language pathologists Beth Lawrence and Deena Seifert, began questioning long-held assumptions about how students should be taught vocabulary. They wondered whether rote memorization of dictionary definitions, a hallmark of vocabulary instruction for decades, ought to be used at all, considering that these definitions often include even more unfamiliar terms, further taxing students, especially those with a language deficit.

Related content: Mindfulness instruction can make a big impact on learning…Read More

A strategy to help struggling adolescent readers

According to the Nation’s Report Card, about two-thirds of eighth-graders are not proficient readers. What’s even more alarming is the fact that the size of that cohort has remained steady for the last 25 years! This means, unless they have had intervening remedial instruction, the majority of ninth-to-12th-grade students are also non-proficient readers. And, as can be seen by the Report Card, those inadequate reading comprehension skills are producing below-grade-level performance across academic subjects.

Fortunately, research shows that adolescence is not too late to learn to read well. The challenge for teachers is that one class of students will contain a wide range of reading abilities and needs, from those who are virtual non-readers to ones who are at grade level or above grade level.

Related content: Improving reading skills through text-based discussions…Read More

5 reasons to integrate STEM into online learning

STEM fields—science, technology, engineering, and mathematics—are highly technical, which is one reason that the education system is changing to further incorporate these subjects into the curriculum.

As more and more fields require technical knowledge, it is a good idea to equip our young learners with basic STEM skills early on. With online schools, it is invaluable to start teaching these concepts at a young age, which is why STEM curriculum is now being introduced at the elementary level.

Related content: How STEM invigorates learning…Read More

5 real examples of coding and robotics in the classroom

Coding and robotics go hand-in-hand, and they’re becoming a more integral part of classrooms across the country.

Aside from the excitement students muster when they see a robotics kit morph into a controllable arm or a tiny programmable vehicle, coding and robotics offer a little bit more than a fun classroom experience.

When students participate in coding and robotics activities, they’re learning employability skills such as teamwork and collaboration, problem solving, the ability to fail and persevere, and more.…Read More

Here’s why robotics education will help students for life

Much of today’s impactful teaching focuses on the “why” behind the concept being taught. When it comes to STEM concepts such as robotics, educators and students alike may wonder why they should learn robotics if they don’t plan to pursue it in college or the workforce. The answer? Robotics education will help students for life.

Students are more engaged when they understand how classroom concepts apply in the real world. Learning how robotics, science, engineering, and other STEM concepts are used to solve complex problems speaks to the “why” behind robotics education.

Related Content:…Read More

Top trends: Student creativity, engagement, and reducing stress

Here are the most-read stories on creativity, engagement, and student well-being this month:

1. 3 great ways to supercharge student engagement

No matter what the subject, before students can learn new skills or absorb new material, they need to be paying attention. Here, three educators share the tech tools and best practices they use to improve student engagement and make sure students are energized, focused, and ready to learn.…Read More

30+ new tools and services we saw at ISTE 2019

Another ISTE has come and gone–were you in Philadelphia for ISTE 2019? If not, don’t worry–we’re highlighting some of the newest and most innovative edtech tools we saw at the show.

Coding and robotics (check out our ISTE 2019 robotics round-up), social and emotional learning, and building employability skills were at the top of the many trends and focus areas highlighted during the conference.

It was nearly impossible to see and attend everything the conference had to offer, and many educators who couldn’t attend followed keynotes with the #ISTE19 hashtag (they also threw in a #NotAtISTE tag for good measure).…Read More

The coolest K-12 robotics programs we saw at ISTE

Efforts to get kids coding have exploded in recent years, but sometimes kids need a push to discover the “why” behind learning how to code. At ISTE 2019, that push to learn coding was clear as new K-12 robotics solutions emerged.

Aside from the cool factor K-12 robotics offers, students who learn to program through robotics learn a number of skills they’ll take with them well into adulthood, including creativity, problem solving, and the ability to fail without quitting.

We’ve rounded up some of the best K-12 robotics solutions and programs we saw during the conference. Share your favorite K-12 robotics programs with us on Twitter @eschoolnews.…Read More