“I freely confess: It was the objection of David Hume which first, many years ago, interrupted my dog-matic slumber” (Philosopher Immanuel Kant)”
_________________________________________________________________________
*** Star Wars offers the image of the Teacher: Think of the wise, respected, and mysterious martial arts Teacher, and the focused, eager, and respectful student/learner.
Dear Teachers:
One of the difficulties in teaching citizenship, multiculturalism, and pluralism is integrating into lessons resources that are effective at encouraging differentiated instruction and fostering creative and critical thinking while being truly cross curricular and engaging. I think you will find a springboard for all those things at this site as a whole. Our goal here is not simply to provide set units and lesson plans, but rather offer a springboard from which lessons and rubrics can be drafted with students, grade/division teams, etc.
There are a wealth of freely available creative and critical thinking resources from school boards and the web, so it is just a question of integrating them into lesson and unit building. If students are to be assessed on their creative and critical thinking skills, these need to be explicitly taught and modeled.
Darth Plagueis The Wise: Teacher of Darth Sidious
*** image fair Use Wiki: https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Darth_Plagueis?file=DarthPlagueisHS-SWI130.jpg
Here are some of my favorite Lesson Building Resources:
-
Combatting Plagiarism with The Writing Process
The writing process at the grade 4 level follows the standard recursive stages that proficient writers use: prewriting (planning), drafting, revising, editing, and publishing. This is emphasized in standards where students produce clear, coherent writing appropriate to task, purpose, and audience across opinion, informative/explanatory, and narrative pieces. Typical Steps for 4th Grade Teachers often teach…
-
Lego Robotics
Lego Robotics (such as LEGO Education SPIKE Prime) makes an excellent team project for 6th graders because it is hands-on, engaging, age-appropriate, and integrates multiple skills in a fun, collaborative way that feels more like play than traditional schoolwork. Why It’s a Strong Fit for 6th Grade Team Projects Types of Learning Involved Lego Robotics…
-
Socratic Questioning
Socratic questioning is a way of asking leading questions that was made popular by the Philosopher Socrates. You start with a big idea and lead the student to it with questioning steps rather than just saying the big idea outright. It is about active student thinking rather than passive rote learning. You often see this…
-
Think, Pair, Share
Think, Pair, Share is an excellent teaching strategy to expand student thinking and reduce anxiety. You ask a question and tell the class to reflect on it, pair them to discuss their ideas, then share their collaborative thinking with the class. Here’s an example with a fourth grade class: Ms. Rivera’s Fourth-Grade Class: Think, Pair,…
-
CoRT Thinking and Lateral Thinking
Edward de Bono created CoRT thinking! He’s the smart guy (a doctor from Malta) who invented it. He made the CoRT program (which stands for Cognitive Research Trust) to help people — especially kids in school — learn better ways to think. He also invented “lateral thinking” (thinking in creative, sideways ways instead of straight…
-
Multiple Intelligences
Hey kiddo! Imagine that being “smart” isn’t just one thing, like getting all the answers right on a spelling test or a math quiz. A smart guy named Howard Gardner says there are lots of different ways to be smart — like having different superpowers in your brain! Here’s how he explains it, super simple:…
-
Mind Maps and Concept Maps
I’ve been outlining some instructional strategies that effective teachers use to encourage student learning. Mind Maps and Concept Maps are good because we are mostly visual learners. Mind Maps are a fun, creative way to organize ideas around one main topic. They start with a central idea in the middle and branch out like a…
-
The 6+1 Traits of Writing
The 6+1 Traits of Writing is a popular framework used in schools (especially in the U.S. and Canada) to teach and assess good writing. It breaks writing down into seven key qualities. The 6+1 Traits: Grade 4 Example Writing Prompt: Write about your favorite season and why you like it. Strong Grade 4 Example (using…
-
Bloom’s Taxonomy
Bloom’s Taxonomy is a framework used by teachers to classify different levels of learning objectives and thinking skills. It helps educators design lessons, activities, and assessments that move students from basic knowledge to higher-order thinking. The most commonly used version today is the revised Bloom’s Taxonomy (2001): Fourth-Grade Example: Topic – “The Water Cycle” Imagine…
-
De Bono’s Six Thinking Hats
De Bono’s Six Thinking Hats is a simple method created by Edward de Bono to help people think more clearly and solve problems better. Instead of everyone arguing or thinking in a jumbled way, the group “puts on” a different colored hat one at a time. Each hat stands for a different kind of thinking.…