Classroom Tips

Check Here Monthly for Tips, Hints, Observations and Thoughts on the
World of Teaching and Students.

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May 2025

Try Context
Before starting a new topic, link it to something in students’ daily lives as a problem to be solved.  For example, when introducing the use of context  to predict the meaning of unfamiliar words, display a small passage (from science, social studies, literature, etc.) that includes unfamiliar terms - - bolded. Say “Suppose we saw this passage on an important test. There is no time to look up the bold words, but we need to try to define them to unlock the meaning of the text.”   

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Dignify the Error
Student egos are very fragile - - especially in front of their peers. Good teachers are just as concerned about student dignity as they are academic correctness. Instead of labeling incorrect answers as “wrong” or responding to Q and A prompts with the usual “no-o-o-o; who else?” try one or more of these:

a.     “How did you arrive at that answer?  Tell us what you were thinking.”
b.     “Not quite right just yet! - - But you’re getting so close.”
c.      “Back up just a step or two, and try again.” 
d.     “Tell us more.” 

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On the Level
As teachers, we typically ask all the questions. Occasionally, flip it around. Say to students,

“In your notebooks - - so you save them for reference - - write three questions about the demonstration I just showed you. [ or the lecture I just gave, or the story I just read, or the math problems I just worked with you. ] 

It’s easiest if you write these on a piece of Chart Paper or display them on the SmartBoard

“Question 1: Write a question whose answer is found in the texts [ in your notes, etc. ]

“Question 2: Write a question whose answer must be inferred . . . . where we must look between the lines or behind the text.” 

“Question 3: Write a question whose answer is hypothetical or ‘what if.’ 

Then collect the questions; mix them up, and redistribute among the students - - each getting a set of questions written by someone else. The act of writing and answering will force students back into the material [ the demo, the text, the math problems, etc. ] twice - - the perfect way to help them internalize the content. 

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June 2025

INDEPENDENT READING.  The most successful 5-8 teachers have resurrected an old reliable. With so much emphasis on the “the quick-and-the-digital” and the instant i-pad to retrieve  information, requiring students to read independently lost traction for awhile.  But thankfully, enlightened teachers have rediscovered it. Students select a text from different genres, read it within the quarter, and submit a brief report, including a personal reflection.  Using College Board or NCTE college reading lists, teachers require a mix of contemporary and classical; fiction and non-fiction; prose, poetry, and drama. Some teachers require the selection to correspond to the “theme” of a Unit; other teachers not so much.  The idea is that students read on their own - - at home or in study hall - - and are held accountable for doing so. There are two keys: (1) avoid over-kill - - no need to begin with War and Peace or The illiad.  Begin in grade 5 with on-level work (or slightly-below-level for strugglers) of around 200 pages - - or less. (2) Have a template for students to complete. Again, don’t get carried away.

Here is a workable sample. Quick-check these at least once every ten days, a few students at a time. Leave a comment. The final submission is the final report. HINT for building capacity: Once you develop the habit in students, assign a writing partner to do the reviewing - - and leave a comment! 

[ NOTE: Two of these blanks will fit on one 8 ½ X 11 page. Place them in a Notebook; Submit on Request; Replace ]  

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July 2025

EXPLICIT DETAIL and VIABLE INFERENCES.  One of the demon standards in every state is the requirement that students make viable inferences supported by text detail.  Our careful examination of Ohio’s State Academic Test results between 2017 and 2024 has revealed that most students struggle identifying an inference that is supported by text detail. Naturally, this weakness spills into their writing, and they struggle drawing inferences from research detail. This difficulty worsens over the years as students are expected to comprehend text without the teacher coaching them through it. 

A great way to teach inferences is to begin with a student.  Ask students to identify five explicit details about him or her - - details that are observable to everyone (e.g., gender, clothing, glasses (or not), hair color, etc.). Then ask students to make inferences that are supported by text detail.  For example, if the student is wearing shorts, a reasonable inference is he or she thinks it’ll be warm today. If he or she is looking downward and shifting uncomfortably, a viable inference is he or she is embarrassed or shy. The key is to remind students that they cannot make inferences based on prior or private knowledge of the student (like, a really good soccer player). The inferences must be supported by the explicit detail actually there. 

Follow that up with a familiar object in the room - - say an old table or a piece of furniture with scratches. If you have an antique object you could bring in (say, a potato ricer, a cherry pitter, a butter mold, or an egg coddler), it makes a fun mystery.  Again, ask students to identify explicit details. Then, ask them to make inferences about the object - - supported by the explicit detail.

The transition to text begins with a few scenarios that are full of explicit detail.   Ask students to make viable inferences. Then - - in the lower rows of the able, do the reverse.  For each inference, make up a few sentences that have the explicit detail to support it.  

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August 2025