Teach First, Ask Questions Second

Somewhere along the way I developed the habit of using an unproductive questioning pattern called "guess what's in my head." This is when I ask questions that the students couldn't possibly respond to because they haven't yet learned the material required to answer the questions.

The Sad, Sad Story of the Hollow Curriculum

The Sad, Sad Story of the Hollow Curriculum

When I first started teaching 4th grade, I inherited a social studies unit on Ancient Egypt, a topic that is universally adored by students at this age level. Over the years of teaching this unit, the 4th grade teachers had developed a document - what we'd now call a knowledge organizer - of all of … Continue reading The Sad, Sad Story of the Hollow Curriculum

Beliefs, Evidence, and Educational Technology

Frequent readers of this blog will know that I am the Director of Educational Technology at a 6-12 independent school. My role is to design and implement the strategy around online learning and train teachers how to integrate various online tools into their lessons. This post is a reflection on whether my beliefs about teaching … Continue reading Beliefs, Evidence, and Educational Technology

PD Opportunity on Cognitive Load Theory

As readers of this blog will know, I've recently been writing a bit about cognitive load theory and how it's led to changes in my thinking and teaching. I debated some of its foundational ideas on a recent podcast, as well. After presenting on CLT in the fall, NWAIS asked me back as part of … Continue reading PD Opportunity on Cognitive Load Theory

How Cognitive Load Theory Changed My Teaching

Cognitive load theory is one of the lenses I use to design instruction. More than just an abstract idea, cognitive load theory recommends instructional procedures based on what we know about how the mind works. I wanted to share with you a few of the ways that my thinking, and by extension, my teaching, has … Continue reading How Cognitive Load Theory Changed My Teaching