Thematic Educator Guide: Teaching Civic Engagement

Summer is the best time to spark and grow students’ love and joy for reading with exciting and adventurous books that will help them remember what’s fun about reading outside of the classroom. Reading culture is important to promote all year long, and summer is a crucial time to make sure kids keep reading and

In June we celebrate Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ+) Pride Month, which honors the 1969 Stonewall riots in Manhattan. First, President Bill Clinton declared June “Gay & Lesbian Pride Month” on June 2, 2000. In 2009, President Barack Obama declared June “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month.” LGBTQ+ Pride events attract millions

On April 8th, the nation observes Days of Remembrance in an effort to remember the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust as well as honor survivors and pay tribute to liberators. To learn more about Days of Remembrance, click here.   What Was the Holocaust? Gail Herman traces the rise of Hitler and the Nazis,

March is Women’s History Month, which recognizes the specific achievements women have made over the course of American history in a variety of fields. Beginning as “Women’s History Week,” a local celebration in Santa Rosa, California in 1978, the movement spread across the country as other communities initiated their own Women’s History Week celebrations the following year.

Black History Month is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing their central role in U.S. history. Also known as African American History Month, the event grew out of “Negro History Week,” the brainchild of noted historian Carter G. Woodson and other prominent African Americans. Find more on the

The American Library Association (ALA) Midwinter announced their 2021 literary award winners and honorees at its virtual annual meeting. Below you can find which Penguin Random House titles appropriate for Elementary School students were among the winners. To see which Middle School and High School titles were honored, click here. John Newbery Medal When You

  Written by Lia Bengtson and Tarja Lewis from Kendall Demonstration Elementary School, Washington DC As teachers of English Language Arts (ELA) and Social Studies for Deaf and Hard of Hearing students, we are always looking for resources and collaborative projects that can provide meaningful and accessible learning opportunities for our diverse students whose primary

Learning at home is as easy as 1-2-3 or A-B-C with these jam-packed kid-friendly, teacher-reviewed workbooks. It’s perfect for back to school–no matter what that looks like! From Sylvan Learning, America’s #1 tutoring brand – is a lively and authoritative workbook series, Sylvan Learning Workbooks. Designed to build proficiency in math and reading skills for

The return to school after a long summer can be challenging for students both emotionally and academically.  The books in the Teacher’s Pet Collection are a great way to help students build socio-emotional skills with lovable characters and stories that give them the means to tackle the complexities of life in and out of school.

Written by Kimberly N. Parker, PhD. assistant director of the Shady Hill Teacher Training Center (MA), and Tricia Ebarvia, teacher and department chair at Conestoga High School (PA), and co-chair at the Institute for Racial Equity in Literacy. Kim and Tricia are co-founders of #DisruptTexts (disrupttexts.org/) Ongoing events have led many of us to reexamine

Every time you listen to an audio book and you’re loving it, someone is reading aloud to you. And all the time you’re listening, your imagination creates pictures of settings, characters, and people. Often, you’ll find yourself stepping into a beloved character’s shoes and living life in the past, present or future. Read alouds capture

As the COVID crisis continues to affect our daily lives, teachers, students and families have all had to be flexible and innovative when it comes to education. Whether you’re using a blended learning strategy or are fully remote, this school year has brought both challenges and opportunities. One thing is for sure, students need our