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Eight Essentials for Empowered Teaching and Learning, K-8

Bringing Out the Best in Your Students

By: Steve Reifman

Embrace quality as the number one priority in your classroom!

The author offers an inspiring approach for meeting high expectations in an age of accountability. Reifman's eight teaching essentials—which include realistic goal setting, assessment-oriented instruction, parent involvement, and teacher leadership—draw upon the work of Stephen Covey, Howard Gardner, Ted Sizer, Alfie Kohn, Alan Blankstein, and others. This resource, filled with classroom applications, anecdotes, and reproducible pages, will help elementary and middle school teachers:

Promote student motivation, self-efficacy, and confidence
Create a classroom environment of trust and respect
Foster a classroom culture of continuous improvement and group cooperation

Full description

Product Details

Grade Level: K-8
ISBN: 9781412954426
Published By: Corwin
Year: 2008
Page Count: 192
Publication date: August 31, 2013

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Review copies may be requested by individuals planning to purchase 10 or more copies for a team or considering a book for adoption in a higher ed course. To request a review copy, contact sales@corwin.com.

Description

"Contains information that is vitally important for the success of any classroom."
—Julie Duford, Fifth-Grade Teacher
Polson Middle School, MT

"Gives teachers a format that we can develop into a philosophy or goal for our classrooms so our students become enthusiastic about learning."
—Debbie Halcomb, Fourth-Grade Teacher
Robert W. Combs Elementary, Cornettsville, KY

"Takes Gardner, Covey, Tomlinson, and wraps them all together in a very motivating approach."
—Karen Kersey, Second-Grade Teacher
Albans Elementary, St. Albans, WV

Embrace quality as the number one priority in your classroom!

Inspirational and practical, this book focuses on the quality of teaching and learning in elementary and middle school classrooms and helps teachers and students find more joy, satisfaction, and meaning in their work.

Experienced teacher Steve Reifman defines a quality classroom in reader-friendly terms, explains how to measure quality, and covers the conditions under which all students are empowered to reach their full potential. The author synthesizes key concepts from the fields of education, psychology, management, and personal growth to arrive at the eight essential elements of teaching, including realistic goal setting, assessment-oriented instruction, parent involvement, and teacher leadership. Written in a personal, engaging voice and drawing upon the work of experts such as Stephen Covey, Howard Gardner, Ted Sizer, William Glasser, Carol Ann Tomlinson, Alfie Kohn, and Alan Blankstein, this resource

Promotes student motivation and a classroom environment of trust and respect
Builds higher-level thinking and group problem solving into the curriculum
Presents classroom applications, examples, anecdotes, and reproducible pages
Features ideas from practicing teachers for putting these essential ideas to work in the classroom

Eight Essentials for Empowered Teaching and Learning, K–8 motivates student teachers, beginning teachers, and veteran educators to become the most effective instructors they can be and achieve the best learning outcomes possible for their students.

Key features

A comprehensive approach to organizing and managing elementary and middle school classrooms that will allow students to produce their best-quality work
Features Ideas from Teachers for putting the eight essential strategies to work in a classroom
Synthesizes key concepts from the work of Stephen Covey, Howard Gardner, Ted Sizer, William Glasser, Carol Ann Tomlinson, Alfie Kohn, and W. Edwards Deming
Appropriate for student teachers, beginning teachers, and veteran teachers
Emphasizes high expectations for learners and educators alike
Topics include building higher-level thinking and habits of mind into the curriculum; promoting student motivation and self-efficacy; exercising teacher leadership; conducting student-led conferences; building meaningful home-school relationships, and much more

Author(s)

Steve Reifman

Steve Reifman has been an elementary school teacher for more than 13 years. During that time, he has earned National Board Certification, traveled to Japan as a Fulbright Memorial Fund Scholar, and completed two master’s degrees. He has experience working with students in all of the elementary grades, and he has taught in both public and private schools. Currently, Reifman teaches third grade at Roosevelt Elementary School in Santa Monica, California.

Ever since reading William Glasser’s The Quality School at the beginning of his career, his primary interest has been in the field of quality control. Reifman has read extensively in this area, has created and led numerous professional development courses, and has attended many conferences and workshops. Specifically, the focus of his work in the classroom has involved defining quality in student-friendly terms, measuring it, and creating the conditions where all students are empowered to reach their full potential and appreciate the joy of learning.

Table of Contents

List of Figures

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Introduction

1. Essential 1: Establishing a Sense of Purpose

The Overall Aim

Class Mission Statement

The Seven Life Roles

Personal Mission Statements

Key Points From Essential 1

2. Essential 2: Determining Goals

What Is Quality?

Determining Student Goals

Key Points From Essential 2

Reflection Questions

3. Essential 3: Building Quality Into the Process

The Inspection Role Play

The Writing Process Example

Guiding Approaches

Disciplinary Understanding

The Funds of Knowledge Approach

Differentiated Instruction

Multiple Intelligences

Wrapping Up the Story Writing Example

Building Quality Into the Process: Other Examples

The Yearlong Perspective

A Single School Day

Individual Lessons

Key Points From Essential 3

Reflection Questions

4. Essential 4: Involving Parents

Nine Reasons to Make the Effort

Guiding Principles for Home-School Communication

Ways to Build and Maintain Relationships With Parents

Other Ways to Promote Working Together

Helping Parents Help Their Children

Back to School Night, Conferences, and Open House

Key Points From Essential 4

Reflection Questions

5. Essential 5: Improving Continuously

Improving Our Habits of Character

Academic Improvement at the Individual Level

Academic Improvement at the Team Level

Increasing Enthusiasm Throughout the Year

Continuous Process Improvement: The Personal Spelling List Example

Individual Improvement Projects

Our Development as Professional Educators

Key Points From Essential 5

Reflection Questions

6. Essential 6: Investing in Training

Key Points From Essential 6

Reflection Questions

7. Essential 7: Nurturing Intrinsic Motivation

Classroom Parallels

The Problems With Rewards

Coming to Grips With These Findings

A Different Approach

Nurturing Forces of Intrinsic Motivation

Intrinsic Motivation: A Summary

Key Points From Essential 7

Reflection Questions

8. Essential 8: Exercising Leadership

The Big Picture

Rounding Out the Leadership Skeleton

Conclusion

Key Points From Essential 8

Reflection Questions

Resource A: The Seven Life Roles

Resource B: Guiding Approaches

Resource C: Classroom Management Plan

Resource D: Using Student Handbooks

Notes

References

Index

Reviews

"The book has many fine qualities—chief among them is a very desirable structure for helping teachers organize and maintain classrooms in which students are likely to flourish. This book goes a long way toward helping teachers acquire that competence."

C.M. Charles, Professor Emeritus
San Diego State University

"Takes Gardner, Covey, Tomlinson, and wraps them all together in an approach that I find very motivating."

Karen Kersey, Second-Grade Teacher
Albans Elementary, St. Albans, WV

"Contains information that is vitally important for the success of any classroom."

Julie Duford, Fifth-Grade Teacher
Polson Middle School, MT

"Gives us a format that we can develop into a philosophy or goal for our classrooms so our students become enthusiastic about learning. I could barely put this book down until I finished it. In fact, I am recommending it to my principal."

Debbie Halcomb, Fourth-Grade Teacher
Robert W. Combs Elementary, Cornettsville, KY

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