| Reminders Classroom Management, ways to inspire students, inspiring teachers. Return to TeachersTOTeachers.com HOME Study at www.newFCAT.com What kind of learning style do you have? www.studyguide.org/learning_styles.htm Learning Types (Introvert, Extravert, Intuitive...) www.ttuhsc.edu/SOM/Success/LSTIntro.htm One-Page Inventory of Multiple Intelligences pss.uvm.edu/pss162/learning_styles.html 44 questions -- an online test for MI http://www.crc4mse.org/ILS/ILS_ explained.html#Anchor-ACTIVE Learning Styles explained on META MATH site http://www.metamath.com/lsweb/dvclearn.htm More Books about Learning Styles www.learningchoices.com/learning_style.htm Online Survey from University of South Dakota http://www.usd.edu/trio/ tut/ts/stylest.html Learning style inventory from Marin County http://www.marin.cc.ca.us/ ~don/Study/13styles.html MiddlesSchool.net List of Surveys http://www.middleschool.net/Learning Stratagies/learning.htm Language Learning Tips http://www.askoxford.com/languages/culturevulture/ general/learning_tips/?view=uk Online Learning Style inventory from Learning Difficulties web site http://www.ldpride.net/learning_style.html http://www.ldpride.net/learningstyles.MI.htm What motivates middle school students? http://www.middleweb.com/StdntMotv.html Career Service page http://www.csp.msu.edu/pages /qg/questschool.cfm Classroom Management A Behavioral Approach http://chiron.valdosta.edu/whuitt/col/ manage/rules.html#Consequences http://chiron.valdosta.edu/whuitt/ col/manage/behmgt.html Reinforce Positive Behavior/ Redirect Inappropriate Behavior Anticipate occurrence of positive and inappropriate behavior Hold students accountable Provide specific feedback regarding behavior and expectations Focus on positive behavior; teacher attention to inappropriate behavior can be reinforcing Effective praise will: be contingent on display of positive behavior specify clearly the behaviors being reinforced be believable by the student Methods of coping with inappropriate behavior: Negative reinforcement focus on behaviors to be increased Satiation: have student(s) continue behavior until tired of it Punishment: deliver negative consequences when inappropriate behavior occurs; does not necessarily lead to positive behavior http://www.brains.org/index.htm Www.6seconds.org Emotional Quotient Multiple Intelligences Why type of learning styles do you have? brains.org/store/exceptional/pg1.htm For "Exceptional Brains" MI and assessment -- Patricia Bolanos http://www.glef.org/php/interview.php? id=Art_963&key=005 Theory into Practice MI http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_ m0NQM/is_4_43/ai_n8686065/pg_3 http://rvms.nbed.nb.ca/beauty.htm Middle school that is using MI Middle School project with online sites for research http://www.biopoint.com/msla/projects99 /learningstyles/curpage.htm http://www.familyeducation.com/quiz/0%2 C1399%2C3-2740%2C00.html Inventory on line from FAMILY EDUCATION site FIVE TIPS http://brains.org/articles.htm If this is true... why should teenagers drive? Certainly not at night...hmmm http://help4teachers.com/newsletter.htm How the Adolescent Brain Challenges the Adult Brain by Dr. Kathie F. Nunley What makes the adolescent brain so challenging to the adult brain? Anyone who has ever tried to parent, teach or mentor the adolescent brain knows it can create some frustrating moments. A lot of this frustration can be blamed on some of the biology unique to the adolescent brain. In any aged brain, the region responsible for basic survival needs (eat, flight/fight, sex) are handled by a region known as the hypothalamus. For obvious reason, the hypothalamus is powerful, influential and ready to function right from birth. Biologically speaking, if this area was not given top priority, the animal may not survive for long. One of the frustrations with adolescents is due to the fact that hormones, environment, and learning, make this survival region of the brain a "hot area" in adolescent brains. In addition, the basic survival drives of the hypothalamus don't always agree with the social structure, morals and safety of society. For the more "civilized" human behaviors we need to involve higher regions of the brain. Higher brain regions, in the cortex, can over-ride the hypothalamus. Although these regions are not given biological priority, they are the "logical" parts of the brain and are responsible for deciding when basic hypothalamus drives may not be in our best long-term interest. A region called the prefrontal cortex plays the role of arbitrator in making these critical decisions. It quickly sizes up the situation and makes a determination which then drives our behavior. It is the prefrontal cortex then that tells us when to act on our anger, or curtail it, eat that second piece of dessert, or go without, seek immediate gratification or hold off for the long term. Unfortunately some people have a poorly developed or poorly functioning prefrontal cortex. These people have a hard time controlling impulsive behaviors. Head trauma, alcohol and drug abuse as well as possible genetic predispositions can all lead to a dysfunctional prefrontal cortex. Maturity also plays a big role as this area takes about 20 years to fully develop. Hence, adolescents may have problems quickly sizing up risks and making good ong-term decisions. Other biological factors make adolescent brains even more hypothalamus driven. Children learn what to do with anger by watching other people in their sphere of influence and what they do when they are angry. Peer-influence peaks during the teen-age years which means that key role models for an adolescent are other adolescents. The hormone, oxytocin, found in the brain during romantic relationships, tends to settle and stimulate the hypothalamus during the beginning stages of the relationship. Anyone working with adolescents knows that they are always in the midst of "new love", which only further hampers logical decision making. So adolescents appear to have at least 3 strikes against them when it comes to using logic to weigh the risks in dangerous or sometimes even everyday types of decisions. The more primitive regions of their brains are strong and tend to drive behaviors. The immature region responsible for the logic of long-term benefits does not always override the impulsive, survival-oriented hypothalamus. Add any additional trauma to the mix such as abusive households or drug and alcohol use and the issue becomes even more severe. The biology of brain shows that adolescents still need strong adult guidance and help with decision making throughout the teen-age years . Time and good role models will fortunately allow the brain to eventually mature to match the body. Kathie F. Nunley is an educational psychologist, author, researcher and speaker living in southern New Hampshire. Developer of the Layered Curriculum™ method of instruction, Dr. Nunley has authored several books and articles on teaching in mixed-ability classrooms and other problems facing today's teachers. Full references and additional teaching and parental tips are available at: http://Help4Teachers.com Email her: Kathie (at) brains.org RUBRICS are helpful, according to this advisor... By Dr. Kathie F Nunley Advice to teachers: You cannot be too clear when it comes to expectations. Make sure your students (and their parents) are very clear on what your expectations are for every assignment. One of the biggest sources of frustration and fuel for argument is grade confusion. Students need to know, going in, what your expectations are. You as a teacher also need to know what your expectations are. We've all been in that position where we give an assignment only to be grossly disappointed with the product turned in. We may say to ourselves, "I don't know exactly what I wanted, but I do know this is not it" Never put yourself or your students in that position. Before you give an assignment, ask yourself, "what do I expect to see?" For example, I may offer an assignment for students to make a poster on the evolution of the plant kingdom and make that assignment worth 20 points. Does that mean that every poster turned in will be worth 20 points? Of course not. So, what does a 20 point poster look like? What does a 15 point poster look like? A 10 point poster? At what point would the child get no credit? Write down your answers. Try to be very specific. Avoid terms like "good" or "creative". These are terms interpreted differently by everyone. Creative may mean an original work not copied out of the textbook or using ideas from more than one source. Good may mean that it shows 7 different transitions or is in full color or makes good use of white space or took a great deal of time to design. Write down your criteria. Share it with the students ahead of time. I make criteria or "rubrics" for all the different types of assignments I offer. I post those rubrics on the wall around the room, color coded based on the assignment type. Students want to do well. Tell them what you want and give them a fair chance to do it. If they fall short, you have a much easier time defending your grade to both them and their parent. Return to HOME |
| These look like useful books... visit brain.org ofr more information IN THEIR OWN WAY: DISCOVERING AND ENCOURAGING YOUR CHILD'S MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES by Thomas Armstrong -- Does your child have a favorite subject, activity, or hobby? Children learn in multiple ways, and educator Thomas Armstrong has shown hundreds of thousands of parents and teachers how to locate those unique areas in each of our children where learning and creativity seem to flow with special vigor. 290 pages. http://brains.org/store/ general/pg1.htm A MIND at a TIME by Dr Mel Levine. Probably one of the best books written for parents and teachers on the practical application of learning styles. Dr Levine founded the "All Kinds of Minds Institute" and writes this dynamic book to help all of us understand the indiidual differences in children.. Hardcover. 350 pages. DIFFERENTIATION THROUGH LEARNING STYLES AND MEMORY by Marilee Sprenger -- Marilee Sprenger is one of the biggest authors and experts in the field. Every teacher's library should include one of her books. This book gives educators practical strategies and applications for accessing these 'sensory pathways' and connecting learned content to the real world. Corwin Press. 163 pages THE NEW DRAWING ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE BRAIN by Betty Edwards --This wildly popular and now classic book has a new edition. Edwards helps creative abilities by teaching the skills of drawing through unusual exercises designed to increase visual skills. 291 pages. |
| Gardner describes PORTFOLIOS and Observations (videotaped performances of understanding) as the new tools for assessing students.
Here's a book that looks at portfolios...
http://www.heinemann.com/shared/products/E00363.asp Multiple Intelligences and Portfolios A Window into the Learner’s Mind Evangeline Harris Stefanakis, Harvard Graduate School of Education Heinemann / 0-325-00363-7 / 2002 / 192 pp / paperback + cd-rom Availability: In Stock Grade Level: K-8 List Price: $22.00 Savings: $2.20 Online Only Price: $19.80 Table of contents Sample chapters Also available from Evangeline Harris Stefanakis People who bought this also bought... EMAIL this page to a friend Introduction by Bruce Torff, Foreword by Deborah Meier, Thomas Hehir Howard Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences suggests that culture, language, and environment all influence how an individual's intelligence is expressed. In this guide, Evangeline Stefanakis provides concrete suggestions for translating Gardner's theory into curriculum and assessment practices in the context of urban classrooms. By combining the collection and analysis of student work in comprehensive portfolios, she offers a framework for teachers to improve the assessment of diverse individuals. Stefanakis is especially well suited to the task of combining theory, philosophy, and practice on this topic. She has helped teachers, teacher educators, and school leaders understand both MI theory and how to use portfolios to personalize their teaching to better serve all students, including those who are bilingual and have disabilities. She worked with the Harvard Project Zero on the Massachusetts Schools Network on a three-year effort to implement schoolwide portfolio assessment in thirteen urban and rural schools. The contents of this book, which include principal and teacher stories from the Cambridgeport School, grew directly from this experience. In eight concise chapters, Stefanakis takes teachers through proven strategies for creating personal student profiles and portfolios as "windows into learners' minds." Her book provides: a positive focus on children's assets—what they do know, rather than what they don't a guide on applying the theory of multiple intelligences to personalize learning short, practical, classroom-based content on implementing portfolios (Grades K-8) proven ways for teachers to expand their practices for reaching an even wider, more diverse, and challenging range of learners by differentiating instruction a companion dual-platform CD-ROM featuring a range of student portfolios and reproducible assessment forms. Understanding what students bring to the learning environment and how to accommodate their needs has challenged educators for generations. Here is an important addition to the literature on multiple intelligences and on practices that recognize, honor, and embrace children's diversity. |