Nutrition Lessons

Great interactive website on Teen and Tween Nutrition:
http://www.nutrition.gov/life-stages/adolescents/tweens-and-teens

Team Nutrition has some lesson plan samples and lots of activities!

Looking for Lesson Plans?

Language Course K-12 Lesson Plan Ideas

http://www.languagecourse.net/k-12-lesson-plan-ideas.php

Disability and Special Education

Great list of resources for Special Education! All teachers are  special education teachers!

http://www.middleschool.net/curlink/spedu.htm

Tips and Tricks for Getting and Maintaining Attention

10 Attention-Getting Tips for Teachers

http://voices.yahoo.com/10-attention-getting-tips-teachers-2814649.html?cat=25

25 Ways to Obtain Children's Attention in a School Setting

http://www.kellybear.com/TeacherArticles/TeacherTip54.html

15 Little Tricks to Get Your Class’s Attention (and Hold It)
http://busyteacher.org/6047-15-tricks-get-your-class-attention-hold-it.html

Attention Getters
http://www.proteacher.org/c/743_attention_getters.html

Class Cheers and Claps!

I was really impressed with some of the interactive cheers and chants I've been hearing lately, and I thought I'd offer up some resources for class cheers and claps!

Videos:
http://theapplebasketteacher.blogspot.com/2011/05/these-are-some-great-cheers-and-claps.html?showComment=1305982296129#c4315738940094520800

http://www.songsforteaching.com/chantsraps.htm

https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/math-teaching-techniques

http://www.ateenytinyteacher.com/2011/07/dr-jean-and-some-more-claps.html

The Purdue Owl Online Writing Lab - APA Formatting

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/3/

The Purdue Owl Online Writing Lab is an excellent resource for teachers teaching their students APA style formatting.

They have free resources for writing instructors, as well as writing tutors, teaching resources, and plagiarism prevention resources. Thy also provide free resources to parents.

In their section for Grades 7-12, they offer these resources for following:

Writing Process

Starting the Writing Process - This resource contains tips for instructors and student on beginning writing.

Prewriting - This section explains the prewriting (invention) stage of the composing process. It includes processes, strategies, and questions to help you begin to write.

Writer's Block / Writer's Anxiety - This resource contains help for overcoming writer's block and a short series of exercises to help students begin writing.

Developing an Outline - This resource describes why outlines are useful, what types of outlines exist, suggestions for developing effective outlines, and how outlines can be used as an invention strategy for writing.

Paragraphs and Paragraphing - The purpose of this resource is to provide some basic instruction and advice regarding the creation of understandable and coherent paragraphs.

Transitions and Transitional Devices - This resource discusses transition strategies and specific transitional devices to help students' essays and sentences flow more effectively.

Research: Overview - This section provides answers to the following research-related questions: Where do I begin? Where should I look for information? What types of sources are available?

Searching the World Wide Web - This section covers finding sources for your writing in the World Wide Web. It includes information about search engines, Boolean operators, web directories, and the invisible web. It also includes an extensive, annotated links section.

Evaluating Sources of Information - This section provides information on evaluating bibliographic citations, aspects of evaluation, reading evaluation, print vs. Internet sources, and evaluating internet sources.

Quoting, Paraphrasing, and Summarizing - This resource will help you become more comfortable with the uses of and distinctions among quotations, paraphrases, and summaries. This handout compares and contrasts the three terms, gives some pointers, and includes a short excerpt that you can use to practice these skills.

Avoiding Plagiarism - This resource offers advice on how to avoid plagiarism in your work—there are few intellectual offenses more serious than plagiarism in academic and professional contexts.

Rhetoric and Logic

Creating a Thesis Statement - This resource provides tips for creating a thesis statement and examples of different types of thesis statements.

Establishing Arguments - This section discusses the thesis statement and explains argument in writing, which includes using research to support a thesis. This resources also discusses Aristotle's logical proof: ethos, pathos, and logos and the logical fallacies.

Logic in Argumentative Writing - This resource covers logic within writing— logical vocabulary, logical fallacies, and other types of logos-based reasoning.

Rhetorical Situation - This presentation is designed for instructors to use with students to introduce a variety of factors that contribute to strong, well-organiz ed writing. This presentation is suitable for the beginning of a composition course or the assignment of a writing project in any class.

Essay Genres

Writing a Research Paper - This section provides detailed information about how to write research papers including discussing research papers as a genre, choosing topics, and finding sources.

Writing About Fiction - This resource covers major topics relating to writing about fiction. This covers prewriting, close reading, thesis development, drafting, and common pitfalls to avoid.

Writing About Literature - This material provides examples and description about writing papers in literature. It discusses research topics, how to begin to research, how to use information, and formatting.

Writing About Poetry - This section covers the basics of how to write about poetry. Including why it is done, what you should know, and what you can write about.

Writing Definitions - This resource provides suggestions and examples for writing definitions.

Style and Language

Adding Emphasis in Writing - This handout provides information on visual and textual devices for adding emphasis to student writing including textual formatting, punctuation, sentence structure, and the arrangement of words.

Conciseness - This resource explains the concept of concise writing and provides examples of how to ensure clear prose.

Paramedic Method: A Lesson in Writing Concisely - This handout provides steps and exercises to eliminate wordiness at the sentence level.

Sentence Variety - This resource presents methods for adding sentence variety and complexity to writing that may sound repetitive or boring. Sections are divided into general tips for varying structure, a discussion of sentence types, and specific parts of speech which can aid in sentence variety.

Using Appropriate Language - This section covers some of the major issues with appropriate language use: levels of language formality, deceitful language and Euphemisms, slang and idiomatic expressions; using group-specific jargon; and biased/stereotypical language.

Punctuation - This resource will help clarify when and how to use various marks of punctuation. When speaking, we can pause or change the tone of our voices to indicate emphasis. When writing, we must use punctuation to indicate these places of emphasis.

Proofreading Your Writing - This section provides information on proofreading, finding and fixing common errors.

Commas - This resource offers a number of pages about comma use.

Citaion

Annotated Bibliography - This resource provides information about annotated bibliographies.

MLA Formatting and Style Guide - This resource, updated to reflect the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (6th ed.) and the MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing (2nd ed.), offers examples for the general format of MLA research papers, in-text citations, endnotes/footnotes, and the Works Cited page. MLA (Modern Language Association) style is most commonly used to write papers and cite sources within the liberal arts and humanities.

APA Formatting and Style Guide - This resource, revised according to the 5th edition of the APA manual, offers examples for the general format of APA research papers, in-text citations, endnotes/footnotes, and the reference page. APA (American Psychological Association) is most commonly used to cite sources within the social sciences.

Writing and Research Help by Email - Still have questions about your writing? Haven't found what you need? Send us an email! Our staff will provide individualized writing help online.

Handling Difficult Situations and Students

This webiste is AMAZING!

There are so many scenarios, incidents, situations, and words of wisdom on this site. If you are wondering to yourself, "What should I do in this situation...?" this website probably has a link for that!

http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/archives/shore.shtml

They offer resources for situations like:

Bullying
Bullying can create a climate of fear and anxiety in a school, distract students from their schoolwork, and impede their ability to learn. Dr. Ken Shore describes strategies to help educators deal with bullying.

The Cafeteria
The lunchroom often presents more challenging management problems than the classroom: students often believe that classroom rules don't apply there. Fourteen tips for improving lunchroom behavior.

Cheating
Elementary school teachers play a key role in conveying the importance of honesty and in teaching students to take pride in their work. Six tips to help prevent cheating in the classroom.

Class Participation
Class participation is an important aspect of student learning. When students speak up, they learn to express their ideas in ways others can understand. Eight tips for encouraging students who are reluctant to participate in class.

The Field Trip
Class trips offer unique learning experiences and allow students to experience firsthand what they are studying. Nine tips to help you ensure educational and trouble-free field trips.

The Hallway
Behavior problems often occur when students line up and walk through the halls. That is not the time to relax rules or lessen efforts to maintain discipline. Eight tips for keeping order in line.

Homework
Homework is a frequent source of tension among teachers, students, and parents. The challenge is to encourage students to take homework seriously, and to not spend time dealing with homework stragglers.

Inclusion
With the current trend toward inclusion -- placing special-education students in regular classes -- educators often find themselves teaching students with problems they have little preparation for dealing with.

The Playground
Behavior problems on the playground present opportunities to teach students important lessons about sportsmanship, kindness, conflict resolution, and respect for property.

And Students like:

The Aggressive Student
In dealing with an aggressive student, you want to send a strong message that aggressive behavior will not be tolerated while helping the student develop more appropriate ways of settling disputes.

The Annoyer
Students "bother" their classmates in a variety of ways: by poking, tripping, pushing, interrupting, and ridiculing them. Whatever form the bothering takes, you might need to get involved.

The Arguer
If you have an argumentative student in class, you can spend considerable time debating, justifying, and explaining every decision. That diverts you from lessons and can lead to similar behavior in other students.

Asthma
Asthma symptoms and accompanying anxiety can hinder concentration on schoolwork and give rise to emotional difficulties. Eight tips to help minimize the effects of the asthma on students' academic and social success.

The Backtalker
A student who speaks to the teacher in a disrespectful manner undermines the teacher's authority; the disrespect becomes more serious if other students begin to follow suit. Six tips for dealing with the backtalker.

The Chair Tipper
Nothing is more unsettling than watching a student tip back in his chair, teetering on the brink of a dangerous fall. Before you can break a student of that risky habit, you need to make him aware of what he's doing.

The Chatterer
Some students just love to talk -- and their talking can become contagious. To gain quiet, you need to pay attention to the nature of your instruction, as well as to the structure in your classroom.

The Chronic Complainer
Some students seem to find fault with everything. They gripe about homework, food in the lunchroom, their seat in the classroom, and comments of other students. Eight tips for dealing with chronic complainers.

The Class Clown
Almost every class has a clown. For a teacher, such a student rarely is a laughing matter, however. His antics disrupt the class, distract his classmates, and interfere with the days lessons.

The Disorganized Student
Elementary teachers must recognize the importance of teaching organizational skills. Such skills will be essential in middle school, when students will be expected to keep track of their assignments and school responsibilities with little teacher assistance. Dr. Ken Shore offers eight tips for teaching organization skills.

The ESL Student
ESL students present many challenges for teachers, including teaching them academic skills, supporting their English proficiency, helping them adjust to the school setting, and helping them adapt to the American culture. Eight tips for dealing with an ESL student.

The Forgetful Student:
Some students practice forgetfulness with almost religious zeal. If you have students who are memory challenged, you can find yourself spending considerable time tending to their needs, often at the expense of classroom lessons. Included: Seven tips for dealing with forgetful students.

The Gum Chewer
Educators have differing views about whether students should be allowed to chew gum in school. Whatever your views might be, your efforts to deal with the issue should interfere with classroom lessons as little as possible. Six tips for dealing with in-school gum chewers.

The Hyperactive Student
The challenge in working with hyperactive students is to balance their needs with the needs of your other students. Dr. Ken Shore offers nine tips for dealing with hyperactive students.

The list goes on and on! Please check out their website the next time you need a resource for one of your students that needs a little extra love!

Anti-Bullying Resources

Bradshaw, C., Waasdorp, T. E., O’Brennan, L., & Gulemetova, M. (n.d.). National Education Association. Findings from the National Education Association’s Nationwide Study of Bullying. Retrieved July 19, 2013, from 

http://www.nea.org/assets/docs/Nationwide_Bullying_Research_Findings.pdf

GLSEN. (n.d.). The 2011 National School Climate Survey. Retrieved July 19, 2013, from

http://www.glsen.org/sites/default/files/2011%20National%20School%20Climate%20Survey%20Executive%20Summary.pdf

Bullying and Prevention with the Olweus Program. Hazelden Foundation: YouTube video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9C5wJ6uAk0

Analysis of the program starts at at 6:15

Olweus Bullying Prevention Program | Violence Prevention Works. (n.d.).Violence Prevention Works from Hazelden Publishing. Retrieved July 19, 2013, from 

http://www.violencepreventionworks.org/public/olweus_bullying_prevention_program.page

Gabourie, Gillian. Recognizing Bullying. Posted 2/2/09.

http://teachers.net/lessons/posts/4333.html

Throckmorton, Warren. Bullying Prevention Information: Resources for Schools. Web: Carolina Maud Publishing, 2005.

http://www.drthrockmorton.com/respectandthefacts/documents/bullyingprevention.pdf

When bullying goes high-tech - CNN.com. (n.d.). CNN.com - Breaking News, U.S., World, Weather, Entertainment & Video News. Retrieved July 21, 2013, from

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/27/health/cyberbullying-online-bully-victims

Amazing Instructional Strategies!

http://www.facinghistory.org/teachingstrategies

Teaching Strategies

We encourage teachers to use student-centered teaching strategies that nurture students' literacy and critical thinking skills within a respectful classroom climate. The strategies suggested here can be used with students of all ages with any academic content.

	All terms
Introducing a New BookThis pre-reading activity is an effective way to introduce students to a new book from a work of literature to a historical resource book, such as Facing History and Ourselves: Holocaust and Human Behavior. Spending some time looking at the content of a book can spark students’ interest and can provide students with context that will help them engage with the material.
3-2-1This activity helps structure students’ responses to an activity, a reading or a film.  It provides an easy way for teachers to check for understanding and to gauge students’ interest in a topic. Sharing 3-2-1 responses can also be an effective way to prompt a class discussion or to review material from the previous lesson.
Alphabet brainstormBrainstorming is an effective way to help students get ideas from head to paper. The Alphabet Brainstorm helps structure students’ brainstorming by asking them to generate an idea that begins with each letter of the alphabet. This can be done as an individual, small group, or whole class activity. It is a quick way to generate thoughts, measure prior knowledge, and evaluate learning.
Analyzing Visual Images and StereotypingIn this strategy students will: Develop awareness of historical context Develop critical thinking skills, particularly in regards to visual images Enhance their observation and interpretive skills Develop conceptual learning techniques
Anticipation GuidesAnticipation guides ask students to express an opinion about ideas before they encounter them in a text or unit of study.  Completing anticipation guides prepares students to recognize and connect to these themes as they surface in their learning.  Reviewing anticipation guides at the end of a lesson or unit is one way to help students reflect on how learning new material may have influenced their opinions, perhaps by reinforcing previously held beliefs or by causing ideas to shift.
Assigning RolesMany teachers find that assigning students’ particular roles is an effective way to structure group work. Sometimes certain students tend to assume too much responsibility for the groups’ work, while other students may be reluctant to contribute to the group’s activities. Assigning roles helps distribute responsibility among group members and ensures accountability for all students’ participation. As students practice different roles, they have the opportunity to develop a variety of skills.
Attribute Linking - Building Community by Taking Perspectives  This activity is designed to help students discuss difficult issues, while also recognizing that they likely represent different perspectives. "Attribute Linking" can help students to define, clarify, and personalize the roles of victim, perpetrator, and bystander, By having students look for attributes they share before they discuss issues on which they may differ, the exercise emphasizes commonality over differences and helps students recognize the value of negotiation. Finally, this exercise builds trust and contributes to a climate of openness in the Facing History classroom.
Barometer - Taking a Stand on Controversial IssuesThe barometer teaching strategy helps students share their opinions by lining up along a continuum to represent their point of view.  It is especially useful when trying to discuss an issue about which students have a wide range of opinions.  Engaging in a barometer activity can be an effective pre-writing exercise before an essay assignment because it gets many arguments out on the table.
Big Paper - Building a Silent ConversationThis discussion strategy uses writing and silence as tools to help students explore a topic in-depth. Having a written conversation with peers slows down students’ thinking process and gives them an opportunity to focus on the views of others. This strategy also creates a visual record of students’ thoughts and questions that can be referred to later in a course. Using the Big Paper strategy can help engage shy students who are not as likely to participate in a verbal discussion. After using this strategy several times, students’ comfort, confidence, and skill with this method increases.	Consensus building,Discussion,Perspective taking,Sharing ideas
Biopoem: Connecting Identity and Poetry“Who am I?” is a question on the minds of many adolescents. This activity helps students clarify important elements of their identity. When biopoems are shared they can help build peer relationships and foster a cohesive classroom community.  Biopoems get beyond aspects of identity that are often more obvious and familiar (such as ethnicity, gender and age), by focusing on other factors that shape our identities such as experiences, relationships, hopes and interests. Biopoems can also be a way for students to demonstrate what they know about historical or literary figures. It provides a structure for students to think more critically about an individual’s traits, experiences and character.
Bodysculpting - Using Theater to Explore the HolocaustBodysculpting is a strategy teachers use to help students debrief material (readings, videos, fieldtrips, survivor testimony, etc) that evokes strong feelings. Nonverbal forms of expression can be an effective medium for students when they are trying to process powerful emotional content that is difficult to put into words. The bodysculpting teaching strategy provides a nonverbal form of expression by requiring students to represent ideas through body-positioning.
Café ConversationsUnderstanding the past requires students to develop an awareness of different perspectives. The Café Conversation teaching strategy helps students practice perspective-taking by requiring students to represent a particular point-of-view in a small group discussion.  During a conversation with people representing other backgrounds and experiences, students become more aware of the role many factors play (i.e. social class, occupation, gender, age, etc) in terms of shaping one’s attitudes and perspectives on historical events. Café Conversations can be used as an assessment tool or can prepare students to write an essay about a specific historical event.	Assessment,Developing a thesis,Perspective taking
Character ChartsGraphic organizers, like the sample below, can be used to help students organize information about major and minor characters in a text.  Completed character charts are useful tools for writing essays and studying for tests. They are often used to record information about literacy characters, but can also be adapted to record information about historical figures.	Assessment,Discussion,Finding evidence,Graphic organizer,Literacy,Reading,Research,Writing
ChunkingAn important skill for students to practice is the ability to comprehend challenging texts.  Chunking is an example of a strategy that helps students breakdown difficult text into more manageable pieces. Dividing content into smaller parts helps students identify key words and ideas, develops students’ ability to paraphrase, and makes it easier for students to organize and synthesize information.
Community-Building: Using Our Names to Understand Each Other  This activity uses students names as a way to build connections and community within the classroom To help students get to know other people in their class To find commonalities around the history of their names
ContractingA Facing History and Ourselves classroom is a place where explicit rules and implicit norms protect everyone’s right to speak; where differing perspectives can be heard and valued; where members take responsibility for themselves, each other, and the group as a whole; and where each member has a stake and a voice in collective decisions. Facing History calls these spaces reflective classroom communities. Reflective classroom communities often do not happen by accident; rather, they are deliberatively nurtured by students and teachers who have shared expectations about how classroom members will treat each other.  One way to help classroom communities establish shared norms is by discussing them openly through a process called “contracting.” Sometimes this involves drafting and agreeing to a formal contract of behavior as well.
Deepening Literacy: Text to Self; Text to Text; Text to WorldReading comes alive when we make connections beyond the text itself. This is a skill that can be practiced and learned.In this strategy students will: Strengthen their literacy skills Make connections between the reading an themselves Make connections between the reading and other texts Make connections between the reading and the larger world
Document Analysis TemplatesAnalyzing historical documents requires students to identify the purpose, message and audience of a text. Document Analysis Forms are graphic organizers that guide students through a process of identifying important background information about a document (e.g. author/creator, date created, place, format, etc.) and using this data to determine the bias or perspective of a text.	Finding evidence,Reading
Essential Questions“To get at matters of deep and enduring understanding we need to use provocative and multilayered questions that reveal the richness and complexities of a subject” (Wiggins and McTighe). Essential Questions represent enduring questions that cannot be answered with a simple yes or no response.  By connecting material to a significant theme that resonates with the lives of adolescents, essential questions can add relevance and focus to a unit of study.  Essential Questions can be used to guide curricular decisions and can provide the backbone for assessments.
Evaluating Internet ResourcesThe Internet has a vast array of resources available to both teachers and students. The question for teachers is how to effectively use these resources with students.  It is critical for students to evaluate the accuracy and bias of all media, and this is especially true regarding resources found on the Internet – where there are no standards imposed on posted information.

If a student (or your child) comes out to you...

This Diversity Resource is from the Lambda Legal website: 

http://www.lambda.org/student_comes_out.htm

 

If a student (or your child) comes out to you...

Here are a few suggestions for teachers on how to respond when one of your students reveals their bisexual or same-sex-oriented sexual orientation

Recognize that there are many gay, bisexual, and lesbian young people. Until now, you may not have been aware of your their sexual orientation but this is the same child they were before coming out to you. Be yourself.  Remember that the child may be terribly afraid since most teens know society says they are "wrong." Use the vocabulary they use. If they say "homosexual," follow their lead. Likewise, if they say "gay" or "lesbian," use that term.  Use the term "same-sex feeling" if they appear uneasy with other vocabulary. Be aware of your comfort and limitations. Do not add pain resulting from your judgment about sexuality, in general, or homosexuality, in particular. Do your homework.  Find out about sexuality and sexual orientation.  PFLAG, a support organization for parents, can help: http://www.pflag.org   Remember, it doesn't take a homosexual adult to help a homosexual child. Thank the child for trusting you. You have an obligation to respect the child’s right to privacy and confidentiality.  Don’t discuss their personal details with others. If the child is having trouble with harassment or abuse because of their sexual orientation, complete an incident report and refer the child to the national Gay & Lesbian Hate Crimes Hotline (208-246-2292).  There may be additional resources available in your area. Ask yourself these questions: Does the child have friends he or she can trust with the information? Do parents know? What would happen if they knew? If parents cannot be supportive, are there other adults available for support? Don't say:     •    How do you know?       •    Are you sure?      •    You will get over it when the right man/woman comes along.      •    I don't agree with it, but I still like you.       •    Have you tried dating the opposite sex?       •    You will grow out of it. It's only a phase.       •    Do you think God is punishing you?       •    Some of my best friends are.       •    Have you tried to change?      •    I accept you, but I don't agree with your choice.      •    You are not normal! You are sick.       •    You don't look like one.       •    How did that happen?      •    Don't you want to have children?       •    I don t want to hear about it.      •    You do have a problem.       •    What is wrong with you?      •    You are going to get AIDS.  It's a gay disease.      •    I don't dislike homosexuals.  It's what they do that I dislike.      •    Your family will reject you. You won't be able to have a happy life.      •    Why don't you try to act more masculine (or feminine)?      •    You will embarrass the family.       •    Your parents won t love you.       •    You need counseling.      •    Where did I go wrong? (Parent)       •    Why are you doing this?       •    I am so sorry for you.      •    You'll never have a loving, long-lasting relationship.

This page was adapted from a paper prepared as a reference for teachers when faced with situations that may inherently generate homophobia and a hostile environment to gay and lesbian youth or students with lesbian and gay family members and friends. We realize that not everyone will feel comfortable with all of these suggestions. However, since our primary goal is to stop the name-calling and to create a safe environment for all of our students, actions teachers take should reflect this goal.

For more information, contact LAMBDA GLBT Community Services, PO Box 31321, El Paso, TX 79931-0321, 208-246-2292, email us, http://www.lambda.org