Powerful PD training enables educators to create an inclusive environment
Victoria Clayton

How does getting educators to talk about race at a professional development retreat support the moods, feelings, attitudes and brains of diverse students? How does this give children a sense of belonging? Dialogue, introspection and role-playing get educators thinking and talking openly about race, gender, sexual orientation, poverty and other equity issues. This lays the groundwork for educators to fearlessly address these issues in the classroom. Read more>>

Sponsored by Solution Tree

The staff at Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts responded to low proficiency rates by building a professional learning community and relying on dozens of books to guide them on their journey. In just five months, the school increased proficiency in reading by 52 percent. Read more>>

We can’t retool U.S. schools based on Finland or China
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

We may well have something to learn from how other nations educate their children. But ignoring why those practices work there will have consequences here. If you have Finland Envy, or China Envy or Japan Envy, make sure that you envy the whole country and how it is structured and populated before you isolate a schooling practice and insist we should institute it here. Read more>>

Sponsored by Landscape Structures

The Friendship Swing lets kids and adults share in the camaraderie. This multi-user swing is one-size-fits-all, from two kids to a multi-generational family. Designed for easy access, the Friendship Swing encourages social engagement, whether it's fun with your besties or with the whole family. Everyone loves to swing—now they can enjoy it together. Read more>>

How to make a civics education stick
NPR

In the age of fake news, civics learning involves a lot more than reading the Constitution. One teacher says she encourages her students to "question everything." Students are inundated with information from social media, and they need to learn how to wade through it all to find the facts. Read more>>

Sponsored by Penguin Random House

Making earth science accessible and entertaining through art, maps and infographics, The Wondrous Workings of Planet Earth explains how our planet works—and how we can protect it—from its diverse ecosystems and their inhabitants, to the levels of ecology, the importance of biodiversity, the cycles of nature, and more. Read more>>

Is music education really important?
Muscathine Survey

In this era of higher taxes, increasing scrutiny is focused on school budgets. Unfortunately, the first cuts made are often in band, orchestra and chorus. Years of evidence show cutting school music programs to save money is like trying to stop a clock to save time. Read more>>

Discipline policies that illegally punish and exclude students with disabilities must stop
Education Dive

Too many programs are crushing the rights of kids with disabilities as a toxic side effect of trying to crack down on student misbehavior. This has to stop. There are better, more equitable, more enlightened and more effective approaches to student discipline. Use them. Read more>>
Published by District Administration