Peggy's blog

We cooked our green eggs and ham and walked around school in red and white striped hats, all in the name of the love of reading. Our students were able to hear different adults reading some of their favorite stories aloud. NEA’s Read Across America was a success, but let’s not let our focus on literacy, a core 21st century skill, waver just because Dr. Seuss’s birthday celebration is over. A firm grasp on reading and writing is essential for our students success in many other important 21st century skills.

In thinking about the importance of NEA’s Read Across America Day, I am reminded of The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins by Theador Seuss Geisel (Dr. Seuss). As teachers, we all wear many hats, and sometimes we don’t realize how many hats we are wearing and the sheer scope of what we are trying to teach to our students. No matter what “hat” we are wearing or what subject we are teaching at the time, reading is the fundamental skill for our students’ success in that subject. Reading is the most basic of the 21st century skills our students need today to excel in “The School of Life” after graduation. This March, let’s allow Dr. Seuss to inspire us all to bring the kind of fun and imagination into our classrooms that he brings into his stories.

While browsing through the resources Joann highlighted this week in her post, I was struck by two things. First, there is a huge amount of free technology available to educators who want to bring 21st century tools into their classrooms. Second, I will need to do some serious research to figure out some of the terminology associated with these great technologies. If you are already incorporating some web-based tools in your class, good for you! Bear with me as I dedicate this column to the tech-newbie’s among us who still have a little (or a lot) to learn to keep up with our students. The internet is quickly becoming a big part of our everyday lives. Our students are using it outside of school, and web-based technology can keep our daily classroom routines fresh and relevant.

One of my favorite aspects of teaching is seeing how creative my students can be. So often, I teach my students a specific process that they need to follow. If they stick to that process, they will come up with the answer I am looking for. This is a very important skill for them, since they need to understand the procedure for working through problems. I am always glad when they can do this, but there is an “aha!” moment as a teacher when they solve problems in new ways. To create the next generation of innovators and inventors, we are going to have to stress the importance of creative thinking and problem solving in our classrooms.

As educators, we have the responsibility of constantly adapting our teaching styles to best meet the needs of our ever-changing groups of students. As technology evolves, we need to modify the technology we bring into the classroom. If we are still only using pencils and paper in our classrooms, we are missing some very important tools that are available to our students. John Dewey said, “If we teach today as we taught yesterday, we rob our children of tomorrow.”

Teachers have the responsibility of giving students the skills they will need to thrive in the world after graduation. Historically, these skills revolved around reading, writing, and arithmetic. Organizations like The Partnership for 21st Century skills are urging educators to meld those important core competencies with the essential 4 C’s (critical thinking and problem solving, communication, collaboration, and creativity and innovation).

William Arthur Ward wrote, “The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.” As an educator, you want to do your best. You want to inspire your students, not just get them through the class period and send them on their way. As a person, it is not always possible to be inspirational every single day. We need all the help we can get!

It’s January and, for many of us, the weather outside is cold and dreary. Let’s keep that cold and dreary feeling out of your classroom, though! Why don’t you break the monotony this winter and try out some theme lessons or units to warm things up a little for your students? Take a look around you and try to think of things going on in the world that are interesting to your students.

You probably have a pretty good idea of what topics you need to cover for the next few weeks, months, or the rest of the year if you are really planning ahead! You know the standards you need to cover. You may even have lots of specific lessons and activities planned. Hopefully, you found some great resources on The Gateway to use this year.