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We share evidence-based K-12 learning strategies that empower you to improve education.

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More School Time, Well Spent, Boosts Academic Achievement and Engagement at Edwards Middle School

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Five Keys to Successful Social and Emotional Learning

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A Parent's Guide to 21st-Century Learning

Blogs on Primary (K-2)

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Swipe, Tap, Flick and . . . Read? Research on Children and E-Books

Sarah VaalaFebruary 17, 2012

Tags Classroom Technology, Comprehensive Assessment, Literacy, Mobile Learning, Parental Involvement, Primary (K-2), Technology Integration, Upper Elementary (3-5), English Language Arts

The news media and blogosphere were abuzz last month with the news that Apple is "reinventing the textbook" through the introduction of digital textbooks available for the iPad. With the announcement has come a myriad of opinions and speculations regarding the possible repercussions of Apple's textbook reinvention for schools and for children's learning.

SEL and Whole Child Education: An Essential Partnership

Maurice EliasFebruary 17, 2012

Tags Primary (K-2), , Teacher Development, Upper Elementary (3-5), Middle (6-8), High (9-12), All Grades

The following is an interview with Molly McCloskey, Managing Director of the Whole Child Initiative for ASCD. There are some important, timely events related to children's SECD that are described below, so please read on.

Arts Education: A Right and Necessity

Elena AguilarFebruary 15, 2012

Tags Arts Education, Primary (K-2), Teacher Development, Upper Elementary (3-5), Middle (6-8), High (9-12), All Grades, California, Visual Arts

This one's for you, Alexandra.

I'm feeling compelled to add to the case for art in schools and make another plea that as budgets are slashed this spring, funding for the arts in schools is preserved.

New Teacher Academy: How to Work with Parents

Lisa Michelle DabbsFebruary 7, 2012

Tags Community Partnerships, Parental Involvement, Primary (K-2), Professional Development, Teacher Development, Upper Elementary (3-5), Middle (6-8)

Welcome to week four of Edutopia's New Teacher Academy blog series! I'm excited to be here with you sharing my passion to support and mentor new teachers. I hope that you will come back for the next and last post in the series as we continue to look at five key topics designed to provide resources for new teachers in five key areas. To collaborate in more detail on these and other topics, I invite you to join my weekly New Teacher chat on Twitter, and also to visit my blog Teaching with Soul.

Do You Write with Your Students?

Rebecca AlberFebruary 6, 2012

Tags Curriculum, Literacy, Primary (K-2), Teacher Development, Upper Elementary (3-5), Middle (6-8), High (9-12), All Grades, English Language Arts

"Books will soon be obsolete in the schools. Our school system will be completely changed in 10 years." -- Thomas Edison, 1913

Sound familiar? Ninety-nine years later, we are hearing nearly verbatim today. Educational technology is a wonderful addition to learning, and to our world, but it does not and will not replace the process of learning or the planning of teaching.

New Chat Encourages Best Practices for PBL

Suzie BossJanuary 30, 2012

Tags Primary (K-2), Project-Based Learning, Teacher Development, Upper Elementary (3-5), Middle (6-8), High (9-12), All Grades

This was bound to happen. Advocates of project-based learning are strong believers in collaboration. Many are also adept at using technology tools to communicate and connect. So it was only a matter of time before PBL educators would start their own regularly scheduled chat on Twitter.

International Comparisons in Digital Literacy: What Can We Learn?

Anne OBrienJanuary 25, 2012

Tags Digital Divide, Primary (K-2), Teacher Development, Technology Integration, Upper Elementary (3-5), Middle (6-8), High (9-12), All Grades

The importance of "digital literacy" for all citizens in the 21st century seems to be universally accepted. The Obama administration has launched DigitalLiteracy. Microsoft has launched a curriculum on digital literacy as well. Educators across the nation are incorporating it into their schools and their teaching.

10 Tips for Teaching English-Language Learners

Ayanna CooperJanuary 25, 2012

Tags English-Language Learners, Primary (K-2), Upper Elementary (3-5), Middle (6-8)

Classrooms across the United States are becoming increasingly diverse with increasing numbers of students whose primary home languages are not English. State-reported data in 2008-09 estimated 10 percent of the US school-aged population (PreK-twelfth grade) as students identified as limited English proficient. Terms more widely accepted and used are English-Language Learners or simply English Learners (ELs).

New Teacher Academy: Lesson Planning

Lisa Michelle DabbsJanuary 24, 2012

Tags Lesson Plans, New Teachers, Primary (K-2), Professional Development, Teacher Development, Upper Elementary (3-5), Middle (6-8), High (9-12)

Welcome to week two of Edutopia's New Teacher Academy blog series! I'm excited to be here with you sharing my passion to support and mentor new teachers. I hope that you will stay with us as we continue to look at five key topics designed to provide resources for new teachers in five key areas. To collaborate in more detail on these and other topics, I invite you to join my weekly New Teacher chat on Twitter, and also to visit my blog Teaching with Soul.

Young Writers Become Primary Sources

Suzie BossJanuary 20, 2012

Tags Primary (K-2), Project-Based Learning, Teacher Development, Upper Elementary (3-5), Middle (6-8), High (9-12), All Grades

Chinyere Ukaegbu used to hate her name. In Nigeria, where her family comes from, Chinyere means "God's gift." But among her classmates in Washington, DC, where she was born, her unusual name brought teasing and taunts. Chinyere eventually made peace with her name -- and began to embrace her culture -- when she traveled to Nigeria as a teenager.