Teaching With Inquiry

If you simplify the work you give your students because it’s too hard, are you accommodating, or are you modifying?   Your students have been through a lot when it comes to learning during the pandemic, and of course, you want to support your students who have gaps in their learning, but it’s important that you’re not modifying the program that they need to be on now.    This episode is about how to make sure you’re not modifying and oversimplifying tasks to meet your students where they are but instead are accommodating to help them reach where they need to be.    There’s a fine line between accommodating and modifying and I want to help you identify that and stick to it. I believe in you and your students, and I know that you’re going to get exactly where you need to be by the end of the year. If you're feeling the urge to simplify your students’ work to make it easier for them, stop and listen to this episode first!    Show notes available at www.madlylearning.com/226   Resources Mentioned: Visit the

Are you juggling a lot of different levels of understanding and learning styles in your classroom after the pandemic?   There’s a fine line between accommodations and modifications for students, but both are important to understand and can help you keep all your kids on track.    In this episode, I’m focusing on accommodations in the classroom and talking about what they look like, how to implement them, and how they differ from modifications.    If you need some ideas on how to accommodate for gaps in understanding due to the pandemic, I’ve got you covered.    You can also come back to this episode anytime you’re struggling with accommodations in your classroom. It doesn’t have to be pandemic-related!  Show notes available at www.madlylearning.com/225   Resources Mentioned: Visit the Madly Learning Store: www.madlylearning.com/store I would love to connect on Facebook: http://facebook.com/MadlyLearning    I would love to connect on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/madlylearningTo find our highly effe

Do your kids work a little differently in the classroom these days?   With COVID restrictions lifting here in Ontario, teaching is finally starting to feel normal again, except for the fact that now we’re teaching pandemic kids.    Learning has looked pretty different for our students over the last two years. Many of them are used to working at home on a laptop or tablet with the freedom to walk around, go to the bathroom, and get snacks whenever they want. Others might not have had much access to technology at all and haven’t had as many opportunities to learn as their peers.    This episode is here to help you and your students settle back into your less-restricted classrooms. I’m going over what it’s like to teach kids who have experienced a different style of learning over the last two years and what we can do as teachers to help them move forward.    If you’re trying to figure things out as your classroom gets back to normal, this episode is for you.    Show notes available at www.madlylearning.com/224  

Are you constantly having to adapt to curriculum changes?   Sometimes a new curriculum comes at us with little to no warning and we feel like we’re expected to overhaul absolutely everything to do it the new way.    In this episode, I’m talking about how to handle curriculum changes and what you can do to reduce some of the stress that they cause.    It’s important to remember that changes are made for a reason. It doesn’t make sense to keep an outdated curriculum that doesn’t reflect the world we live in today, so changes can be a really good thing.    If you’re facing a curriculum change, I want you to know that often, it’s not as big of a deal as it seems. By the end of this episode, you’ll have the tools you need to handle it calmly and confidently.    Tune in to find out how to handle curriculum changes like they’re no big deal.    Show notes available at www.madlylearning.com/223   Resources Mentioned: The Madly Learning Teacher Store: www.madlylearning.com/store   I would love to connect on Facebook: h

Are there things you’ve tried in your classroom that you will absolutely never do again?   After 15 years of teaching, I’ve made my fair share of mistakes, but some stand out more than others and there are definitely some that I will never make again.    In this episode, I’m sharing the top three things I’ve done in my classroom that I don’t ever want to do again. Hopefully, this will help you avoid making the same mistakes that I made or give you some ideas about how you want to run your classroom.   You’ll hear why I tried each of these things, why I stopped doing them,  and why I don’t plan on ever doing them again.    I still make mistakes every day, but I do my best to learn from them and use them to make my classroom a better place for all my students.    If you want to know what things I would never do in my classroom again, tune in.    Show notes available at www.madlylearning.com/222   Resources Mentioned: Ignited Literacy and Ignited Math: www.ignitedteaching.ca I would love to connect on Facebook

Have your students ever complained that they can’t play video games in your classroom? Mine did, and it gave me an idea for a classroom activity that I knew they would love.    This is the story of how we ended up playing Minecraft in my classroom to learn about social studies.    My students were shocked when I said yes to letting them play video games in class, and because I listened to them and let them lead, they were engaged in the project right from the start.    Now, I didn’t just set my students loose on the computers and let them do whatever they wanted. We talked as a class about the curriculum expectations for their project on the global community, they created a plan for how to demonstrate the curriculum expectations in Minecraft, and then they did it!    I even learned a thing or two about Minecraft along the way.    If this sounds like something your students would love, tune in to find out how we made it work!    Show notes available at www.madlylearning.com/221   Resources Mentioned: Get the M

What do you do with the rest of your class when you want to do guided reading with a small group?   That’s the question I hope I can answer for you in this episode. We’re digging into a bunch of different activities that you can use to allow you to focus on guided instruction while the rest of your students work independently.    Independent learning might not always look the way you want it to. It’s important to remember that different students work in different ways, and it’s okay if they aren’t silent and still the whole time that you’re working with a small group. What’s more important is that your students stay engaged in what they’re doing until you get back.    We’re talking about how to teach your students to work independently, what independent learning tasks should look like, and how to hold students accountable for the work they are assigned.   What are you going to try next time you need to do guided instruction? Tune in to get some ideas.    Show notes available at www.madlylearning.com/220   Res

Do you hate marking? Yeah, me too.    Marking is a constant struggle. It’s so time-consuming that we feel like the only way to get it all done is to take it home, but when we take it home we either leave it in a bag and forget about it, or we ditch our time with friends and family and spend our time working unpaid. Does that sound familiar?      This episode is about how to strategically plan time for marking and set up conditions that allow you to get it done in a less time-consuming way.    I’m sharing 6 tried-and-true strategies that I use to reduce the amount of marking I take home.    If you want to spend more of your time at home with friends and family rather than buried under a pile of marking, this is for you.    Show notes available at www.madlylearning.com/219   Resources Mentioned: Learn more about Ignited Math: www.madlylearning.com/ignitedmath Learn more about Ignited Literacy: https://www.ignitedliteracy.com/IL2021SP   I would love to connect on Facebook: http://facebook.com/MadlyLearning    I

Do you consider yourself a lifelong learner? I feel like a lot of us get into teaching because we love to learn, and our guest on this episode is no exception.    Celeste Kirsh is researching how teachers can learn new genres of writing. In this episode, she’s sharing some of her findings so far that could shake up the way we learn as writing teachers and how that relates to teaching middle school writing.    Celeste understands the common obstacles that teachers face when it comes to teaching writing, and she believes in researching and finding better solutions. This episode is a great place for you to get inspired to learn more about your own teaching methods and new ways that you could approach teaching writing. If assessment is something that holds you back from trying new things in your writing classroom, she’s got you covered there too.     Celeste Kirsh is a PhD student at The Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto where she is studying critical literacies and writing i

Have you ever been questioned about how you teach math or why you teach certain strategies? Most of us have.    In this episode, I’m continuing the discussion about new math and why we teach so many different strategies to help kids solve number problems.    I’m specifically walking you through different ways to teach division because division is often the most challenging. We’re looking at different strategies, why we use them, and what order I would teach them in. I’m giving you examples of each strategy so that you can see exactly how I would teach them in my classroom.    To get the most out of this episode, you might want to check out the video that goes with it on the Madly Learning YouTube Channel. There you’ll be able to see the division problems that I’m explaining on the screen and follow along.    If you could use some help understanding all the ways we teach division in new math, this is for you.    Resources Mentioned: https://www.madlylearning.com/Ignitedmath   I would love to connect on Faceboo

Have you ever questioned why you’re teaching so many different ways to do division and multiplication or even addition and subtraction?   Math these days requires us to teach a lot of different strategies for solving problems, and this can cause a lot of frustration to parents and teachers alike. I want to use this episode to explain why new math teaches kids so many different strategies and why I think it’s a good thing.    The reality is that new math is not new. It teaches strategies that strong mathematicians have been using in their heads for a long time. However, it looks different from the way that we were taught math when we were younger. Most of us were taught that there’s one right way to solve each problem. Guess what? That’s why so many people think they're bad at math!    This episode will help you understand the reasoning behind new math and teach you how to communicate with parents so that they can understand too.    If you get frustrated by how many different math strategies you have to t

Have you ever wished that you could have your math program done for you so that you could spend more time with your students?   If so, Ignited Math is exactly what you need.   Ignited Math is a spiralled math program for those of you teaching grades 3-6 and following the Ontario math curriculum.    In this episode, I’m introducing you to Ignited Math and giving you a brief walkthrough of all the things included in it. I’m sharing what you can expect from every single week of the program.    If you’ve been thinking about signing up for Ignited Math but want to know more about it first, this is for you.    If you already know you want to be the first in the door to start using the program, stay tuned to the end of this episode.    Resources Mentioned: www.madlylearning.com/Ignitedmath   I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram!   Show notes available at www.madlylearning.com/215To find our highly effective, time-saving resources Checkout our Madly Learning Store at www.madlylearning.com/storeCheckout o

How do you assess your students in math?    Some of the traditional methods of assessing math don’t give us the most accurate idea of a student’s abilities. Answers are often seen as black and white and right or wrong, but that doesn't tell the whole story of how a student has interpreted and worked through a question.    In this episode, I’m talking about how to assess your students in math, use the four levels of the achievement chart with different math problems, do a summative assessment in math, and mark math in a way that accurately reflects your students’ abilities.    I’m also sharing different examples as I go along to demonstrate each suggestion so that you can see how they would work in your classroom.    If you’re looking for a better way to assess your students in math, this is for you.    Resources Mentioned: www.madlylearning.com/ignitedmath   I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram! Show notes available at www.madlylearning.com/214To find our highly effective, time-saving resour

What are the components that you always include in your math program that work for you?   In this episode, I’m sharing the components that I include in my math program to help me structure the program from beginning to end.    There are four main components to my math program that I’m walking you through and I’m explaining each one and how they all fit together as we go along.    Most of us are dealing with a mix of students who are confident in their math skills and those who feel like they aren’t good at math. With the right systems in place, your math program can work for all of them.    If you want to create your best math program yet, this episode is for you.    Resources Mentioned: Sign Up for the Ignited Math Waitlist: https://madlylearning.txfunnel.com/IMwaitlist   I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram!   Show notes available at www.madlylearning.com/213To find our highly effective, time-saving resources Checkout our Madly Learning Store at www.madlylearning.com/storeCheckout our Teachers

Did your school board switch to Microsoft products or restrict your access to Google resources when working with students?    In this episode, I’m walking you through how to use Microsoft products with some free online tools to help you create digital resources for your online or in-person classroom.    These days, a lot of us are being asked to create resources that work for students online, in person, or both. I want to share some tips and strategies to make sure that your resources work well when they are printed or viewed on a screen.    There are a lot of resources out there for using Google Drive, Docs, Slides, and Sheets, but what if you have to use Teams, PowerPoint, or OneNote? I’m here to help you figure it out.    If you’ve never used Microsoft before, or you need a refresher, this episode is a great place to start.    Resources Mentioned: QR Code Generator Chrome Extension: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/qr-code-generator/afpbjjgbdimpioenaedcjgkaigggcdpp?hl=en Canva: https://www.canva.c

You need to stop spending so much time writing your report cards. There, I said it.    Writing your report cards does not have to be this huge endeavor that takes hours and hours outside of your contracted time.    Trying to write personalized comments for each of your students while also meeting the requirements of your administrator can be a challenge, to say the least. This is what ends up taking teachers so much time.    I’m teaching you how to systematize and simplify report card writing so that you can complete them in far less time. There are three myths that are eating up your report card writing time, and we’re busting them in this episode.    If you’re ready to save yourself some time, you’re going to love this episode.    Resources Mentioned: www.madlylearning.com/assessment   I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram! Show notes available at www.madlylearning.com/211To find our highly effective, time-saving resources Checkout our Madly Learning Store at www.madlylearning.com/storeCheckout

I am constantly looking for ways that I can simplify my report card writing so that it takes less time. The last thing I have is an additional 40 hours a week to be writing my report cards, and I bet you feel the same way!   In this episode, I am telling you about how I simplify the process of writing report cards and how I systematize writing learning skills for each student.   I understand that learning skills should be personalized and tailored to each and every student, but that could take days. For a busy teacher and mom, that is not realistic!   I have found the perfect program to help me write learning skills that take half the time and are still personalized - it is called Student Evaluator.   Tune in to learn how and why I love to use this learning skills generator program to save myself time and energy and how you can get 10% off of Student Evaluator to use it for yourself!   Resources Mentioned: Student Evaluator: Get 10% off! Report Cards Made Simpler How a Comment Bank Can Help You Write Report C

We are all anticipating remote teaching sooner rather than later…   In this episode, I am discussing the 4 things that you absolutely should not be doing when pivoting to remote.   We can make the shift to remote teaching really easy and cost-effective by simply finding alternative ways of teaching or using what we already have. Remote learning is not ideal for any student, but we can do the best we can to make it as effective for our students as possible.   For example, we do not need to have everything digitized, we do not need to overcomplicate the technology we use, and we also do not need to feel like we have to be the band-aid for the inevitable problems that arise.   With that being said, listen in to hear the 4 things that I really recommend avoiding for this eventual shift, how to avoid them, and what to do instead.   Resources Mentioned: Schedules and Lists: Remote Learning   I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram! Show notes available at www.madlylearning.com/209To find our highly effect

Here’s my challenge for you as we approach the holidays: don’t take any work home with you on the last day of school. No marking, no schoolwork, and no planning. Do you think you can do it?   I don’t know if you need to hear this, but you deserve a break and that means you should be taking your two weeks over the holidays completely off. It’s not a chance for you to catch up on everything. It’s a chance for you to rest.    In this episode, I’m teaching you what you need to do over the next week to make sure that you’re not taking anything home over the holidays. It might sound impossible, but I promise it’s not.    If you want to take two weeks completely off, tune in to find out how to make it happen.    Resources Mentioned: www.madlylearning.com/ELAforholidays https://studentevaluator.com   I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram!   Show notes available at www.madlylearning.com/208To find our highly effective, time-saving resources Checkout our Madly Learning Store at www.madlylearning.com/storeCh

Let’s talk about holiday concerts.    They might look a little different during the pandemic, but I know a lot of you are still expected to get the whole school involved which means you’ve got a lot to think about!   Holiday concerts can be a fun opportunity to have students present things to their families and to engage families in the community of your school. However, it does take away from your instructional time, and I know you’re already pressed for time, so I want to make sure that your holiday concert can be tied to curriculum expectations.    In this episode, I’m sharing holiday concert ideas that will be fun for your students while also covering the curriculum. Your students get to enjoy the holiday spirit, and you don’t have to worry about fitting everything in in even less time!    This episode will help you if you’ve been struggling to come up with holiday concert ideas, so tune in!   Resources Mentioned: Holiday Concert Dance Ideas   I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram! Show notes