The shifts being made in literature, specifically young adult literature, in the past few years have been fantastic. While there are still huge gaps and underrepresentation, the direction it is headed is hopeful. The fantasy and dystopian genres, in particular, are doing an incredible job of shedding new light on current happenings in our world.… Continue reading The Power of Fantasy Novels
Author: kngiordano
Sixth grade teacher. Wife. Cat mom. Coffee enthusiast.
Teachers: Twitter Can Change Your Life
At a conference today, Rae Hughart talked about the power of social media. It’s not the first time I’ve heard this message, and I know it won’t be the last. Educator use of social media is a popular topic right now, and it tends to be pretty polarizing. Teachers are either completely on board, usually… Continue reading Teachers: Twitter Can Change Your Life
On Gratitude
“What you seek is seeking you.” -Rumi I received this beautiful note at NCTE from a fellow slicer and educator. Since I first read it, it has filled me with such light. Sometimes it is amazing to me how well strangers can know you. Last week, I got on a plane to Baltimore to attend… Continue reading On Gratitude
The Smartest Person in the Room is the Room
Being at NCTE is a surreal experience. I have spent the last few days surrounded by passionate, dedicated professionals, incredibly talented authors, and nearly my entire professional library—live and in the flesh. I’ve sat it sessions with educators from all over the country and learned from their expertise on social justice, LGBTQ rights, literacy development,… Continue reading The Smartest Person in the Room is the Room
Supporting New Voices
“Sometimes the greatest PD is the teacher down the hall.” This quote has been circulating on social media for awhile now, and I personally could not agree more. We can learn a lot from our colleagues. It benefits us to build these collaborative relationships and get out of our classrooms to go see other teachers.… Continue reading Supporting New Voices
Learning from Student-Led Conferences
Last week, I had an interesting conference. For the past few years, our parent-teacher conferences have been student led. Our students spend time creating a presentation for their parents, complete with evidence of their learning, examples of work they’ve done, and rules they get to set for the 20 minutes they are in charge of… Continue reading Learning from Student-Led Conferences
Skill Specific Writing Conferences
In my writing classroom, conferences are the way I do most of my teaching. Sometimes they’re “formal” and more scheduled, but most often, they aren’t. Students are asking me questions, running drafts by me, and looking for clarification. These might be quick confirmations, but they can also turn in to full blown conversations or lessons.… Continue reading Skill Specific Writing Conferences
Teaching Text Evidence with Movie Trailers
Teachers all have lessons they create that they’re proud of. These lessons typically teach valuable skills in a new, innovative way. Many times, they are popular among students, too. For me, one of the lessons in my repertoire that I am most proud of (and love to teach) is on text evidence. In sixth grade,… Continue reading Teaching Text Evidence with Movie Trailers
Unconventional Teaching Practice: Grading Conferences
It’s no secret that I am a proponent of unconventional grading practices. In fact, I’ve written about the subject several times before. (Here, here, & here.) While I’ve been making the transition to a classroom that focuses less on points and percentages and hope to one day have a gradeless class, there’s been a returning… Continue reading Unconventional Teaching Practice: Grading Conferences
The Impact of Teachers Who Care
You hear a lot these days about the importance of building relationships with your students. It seems like a typical education ‘buzzword’, popping up in all the current blogs, Twitter chats, Instagram stories, and even research. While this concept is gaining popularity (or so it seems), I can tell you with 100% certainty that it… Continue reading The Impact of Teachers Who Care
