Activities and Resources for Teaching Main Idea Looking for main idea activities and resources?! Teaching the main idea can be a very tricky concept to get students to understand! It’s not about everything you learn while reading the paragraph, or the overall theme. It’s about teaching students to find key sentences, and using text features to tell them exactly what they will be reading about! I think before teaching any new skill, it’s really important to convey to students why it’s important that we work on the skills that we do. You could present them with an example such as, if someone asks you what your favorite movie is, and why it’s your favorite, they’re probably expecting to get a...
I get a lot of interest from high school teachers about teaching databases. These digital tools allow users to query vast amounts of information based on specific areas of interest. They are one of the most effective ways to apply higher order thinking to the world around us. There are simple ways to teach these in an introductory format for youngers, but by HS, kids should be learning methods that prepare them for college and career. One of those strategies is SQL. What is SQL, you ask? One of our Ask a Tech Teacher contributors explains… Is It Worth Teaching School Kids SQL? Today it is widely accepted that teaching kids to code is a great idea, even if they do...
HENRY AND MUDGE THE FIRST BOOKHenry and Mudge The First Book by Cynthia Rylant is a book that is also a Journeys reading program reader. It is the first Henry and Mudge story, and tells of how Mudge came into Henry's family. Henry was feeling lonely. He had no siblings and lived on a street with no other children. His parents said 'no' to a sibling, and 'no' to moving, but say 'yes' to his request for a dog. Henry wanted to get a big dog, and Mudge grows to be a BIG dog...180 pounds! This writing activity has students making text to self connections: What BIG pet would they like to have...and would they be allowed to keep it?...
Image source: teslontario On April 30, 2021 people in the TESL Ontario community discussed teaching the English language skills on Twitter. The guest moderator of the evening was Cecilia Aponte-de-Hanna (@capontedehanna). Cecilia is a full-time professor at Centennial College, where she teaches English communications courses to local and international students. With over 15 years of teaching experience, Cecilia has taught children as young as 3 years old to adults in their golden years. Cecilia’s background in education is grounded on her life-long journey to teaching and learning, starting with a Diploma in Education with specialization in second-language and reading and literary, which led to Ontario College of Teachers and TESL (OCELT) certifications, and continuing with an M.A. in Applied Linguistics...
Want to teach kids about understanding and thinking about others' perspectives? Then try these perspective taking activities and games.
Being able to understand - or at least consider - someone else's perspective is an important skill for a variety of things. It can help with communication skills, empathy, social skills, comprehension, social inferencing...just to name a few. Perspective taking
