In this article, the author explores the Fountas & Pinnell Levelled Literacy Intervention efficacy as a tool to enhance both supplemental and whole-classroom instruction to support literacy gains for students. Exploring the efficacy of Levelled Literacy Intervention will also act as a vehicle to explore how school divisions can more…

There has never been a more pressing need for students to learn how to evaluate scientific information online than during the COVID-19 outbreak. Information, misinformation, and disinformation spread quickly across online news and social media platforms. This misleading or incorrect scientific information about infectious diseases could lead to…

The purpose of this article is meant to provide evidence and examples from an exemplary middle school science teacher's classroom with regard for using innovative approaches in STEM education. The author of the article suggests moving from a curriculum-centered paradigm to a student-centered paradigm. Strategies for integration in STEM education…

Niamh McQuillan, development and instructional coach at Windsor Mill Middle School in Baltimore County Public Schools, Maryland, writes here that, as a teacher, she always liked new learning, but more often than not, it was like a barnacle on her practice. She attended professional development sessions and took the handout back to the to-do tray…

When Okema Owens Simpson, the sixth-grade Multi-Classroom Leader (MCL) for English language arts (ELA) at Ranson IB Middle School in Charlotte, North Carolina, plans her schedule for the coming week, she provides what her teachers need most: daily, on-the-job coaching; lesson planning; practice in delivering lessons; co-teaching or modeling a…

This article describes how one teacher immersed her sixth graders in an intensive three-week thematic text set unit centered on courage. Her aim was to help students discover and take action on issues that mattered to them as they learned important literacy skills and strategies. Students engaged in significant reading, writing, and discussion as…

To help middle school students make better sense of decimals and fraction, the author and an eighth-grade math teacher worked on a 90-minute lesson that focused on representing repeating decimals as fractions. They embedded experimentations and explorations using technology and calculators to help promote students' intuitive and conceptual…

Teaching middle school mathematics, I have found that classroom dynamics have a profound impact on the quality of mathematical discussion. Wanting to improve classroom discussion in order to better facilitate both small-group and student-driven learning, I started the school year by randomly grouping students every week for their small groups. I…

Strategic grouping can transform reading instruction in the middle grades from a hit-or-miss learning experience to a targeted, responsive one. This book features a practical and field-tested model for small-group differentiated reading instruction in Grades 4-8. Jennifer Berne and Sophie C. Degener offer a clear, detailed discussion of how to…

Small-group discussions are one tool that teachers in linguistically diverse classes can use to promote all students' participation in mathematical discussions. Although many teachers in such classes express reservations about using group work, numerous examples from research and practice have explored teachers successfully using group discussions…

Guided reading is an instructional practice commonly used in primary and intermediate grades (Ford & Opitz, 2008; Fountas & Pinnell, 2001). It is used less in middle grades settings (Allen, 2000) where "one size-fits-all instruction" prevails (Allington, 2012). While teachers can read about the principles of guided reading in…

The widespread adoption of the Common Core State Standards (2010) has caused mathematics and special educators to reconsider instructional methods. The Common Core introduces eight Standards for Mathematical Practice that outlines the dispositions that should be fostered in students. Most notable are those that push students to analyze problems,…

On entering Mr. Wilson's seventh-grade classroom, the authors immediately noticed the students talking about mathematics and their teacher listening to them. To create an interactive learning environment that would stimulate and perpetuate discourse, Wilson discussed two main issues with his students: (1) What the students and teacher would do in…

The "Teaching Academic Content and Literacy to English Learners in Elementary and Middle School" practice guide was developed by the What Works Clearinghouse™ (WWC) in conjunction with an expert panel to support teachers in providing language instruction. The practice guide provides teachers with guidelines and examples of ways to…

The Text Feature Walk is a structure created and employed by the authors that guides students in the reading of text features in order to access prior knowledge, make connections, and set a purpose for reading expository text. Results from a pilot study are described in order to illustrate the benefits of using the Text Feature Walk over…