Penny A. Bishop & Susanna W. Pflaum 
Reaching and Teaching Middle School Learners [EPUB ebook] 
Asking Students to Show Us What Works

Enhance classroom practice by promoting an open and shared process with your students!



Middle school students have much to say about the quality of their schooling experiences and can provide rich insight into what works for them and what doesn′t. Educators Penny A. Bishop and Susanna W. Pflaum demonstrate how to enhance classroom practice by inviting students to offer feedback on pedagogy, learning styles, and their individual preferences and needs. Written for new and veteran teachers of grades 4-8, the unique framework of this book takes its cue from the students themselves by using their own words and drawings, combined with the authors′ action research, insightful analysis, and shared experiences.



Highlights of this powerful resource include:

• Instructional strategies and content-area learning


• Social interactions within the classroom that promote or inhibit learning


• Learner insights into their own engagement and disengagement in the classroom


• Student drawings, reflective questions for teachers, mini-lessons, and frequently asked questions about consulting students and honoring their insights

Reaching and Teaching Middle School Learners focuses on the learning needs of adolescents as identified by the students themselves. By promoting an open and shared process with your students, you can meet the unique challenges of working with middle school learners and create a positive schooling experience for all.

Table of Content

Foreword by Chris Stevenson

Preface

Acknowledgments

About the Authors

1. The Case for Consulting Students

2. The Social Lives of Schools and Classrooms

3. Choice, Action, and Relevance in Curriculum

4. Math Is the Measure

5. Reading in School

6. Inquiring and Communicating in Science and Social Studies

7. Consulting Your Students

References

Index

About the author

Susanna W. Pflaum began teaching in Newton, Massachusetts, in 1959 and has taught Grades 3, 4, and 6 as well as undergraduate- and graduate-level teacher education in various locations. She earned degrees at Radcliffe College (AB), the Harvard Graduate School of Education (MEd), and Florida State University (Ph D). She was a professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago; Professor and Dean of the School of Education at Queens College CUNY; Dean of the Graduate School, Bank Street School of Education; Fulbright Professor in Namibia, Africa; and full- and part-time faculty at Vermont College. She authored The Development of Language and Literacy in Young Children, edited Aspects of Reading Education, and coedited two Corwin books, Experiencing Diversity: Toward Educational Equity and Celebrating Diverse Voices: Progressive Education and Equity. She is the author and coauthor of thirty-five articles and chapters. She has led workshops and given many presen­tations over the past forty-five years. Recently, she cofounded a nonprofit organization that works to support African projects for vulnerable and AIDS-orphaned children, CHABHA: Children Affected by HIV/AIDS.