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Advance excellent
teaching with Annenberg Learner.
In
the Spotlight for December
New Year’s Resolutions for Teachers
Curriculum Focus:
Language Arts
Connecting Learning With Special Days
Spiritual Literacy Month
First Self-Sustaining
Nuclear Chain Reaction (December 2,
1942)
Longest Human-Led
Animal Migration (December 3, 2001)
National Pearl Harbor
Remembrance Day (December 7)
Bill of Rights
Enacted (December 15, 1791)
Notable December Birthdays
Otto
Dix (December 2, 1891)
Edvard Munch
(December 12, 1863)
Sandra Cisneros
(December 20, 1954)
Annenberg Learner Announcements
Exciting Changes to Learner.org
Annenberg Foundation
Update
The
Annenberg Space for Photography: No
Strangers Exhibit
Explore.org Animal
Cameras Focus on Polar Bears
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New
Year’s Resolutions for Teachers
You're quickly
approaching the 100th day of the school
year, and you've decided to refine and
refresh your teaching methods as you
enter the long stretch from January
through June. So far, many of your
students are coming along nicely, but
others are struggling. So you resolve to
make a few changes to get all of your
students excited and invested in
learning. What resolutions will you
make?
Can't think of any? Using our resources,
here are a few ideas you can try in your
classroom:
Grade writing papers more
efficiently.
 Grading
is often a tedious task. Resolve to make
it a faster and more useful exercise. In
Developing Writers: A Workshop for
High School Teachers, Dr. Robyn
Jackson outlines how to use color-coded
rubrics. This format is faster for
teachers because they spend less time
writing the same comments and grading
becomes more objective. Students can
also immediately see which components of
their writing need improvement.
Shuttle into 15:16 of the video program
to watch this rubric in action.
Differentiate instruction.
How do you meet the needs of diverse
students in your class? Literacy expert
Dorothy Strickland discusses key
elements of effective
instruction that build on student
diversity in session 7 of Teaching
Reading 3-5. In session 6, "Differentiating
Instruction," of Teaching
Reading K-2 Workshop, you will
learn how to apply research-based
principles in early
literacy. Studying multiple
writing genres? In workshop 5 of Write
in the Middle, Mary Cathryn Ricker
explains her philosophy on teaching multigenre
writing so that it engages
students: "I know that there are some
students at the middle level who are
very nervous about poetry, downright
scared of poetry, and I want to make
sure that they have a style of writing
or a form of writing they're going to be
comfortable with." Also, watch as
Jane Shuffelton customizes
a lesson for different levels of
learners in her high school Russian
class.
Incorporate standardized test
questions into routine assignments.
 With
more and more teacher performance
ratings tied to standardized testing,
it's no wonder that many teachers resort
to teaching to the test. But that
needn't be so. You can easily tie
standard test questions into your
regular class assignments. In workshop
4, "Research
and Discovery," of Teaching
Multicultural Literature: A Workshop
for the Middle Grades, Kathryn
Mitchell Pierce explains that when
students engage in critical reading
beyond just literal recall of what
happens in a book, they have skills
which give them confidence to correctly
complete a standardized test.
Communicate more often and
effectively with parents.
You can do this by setting up a parent
listserv for your class and by sending a
weekly newsletter about what's going on
in your class, including specific
projects, instructional practices, and
materials that your students are engaged
in throughout the year. There's a good template
for a parent newsletter in session 8 of
Teaching Reading K-2 Workshop.
In Teaching Multicultural
Literature: A Workshop for the Middle
Grades, workshop 7, "Social
Justice and Action," Laura Alvarez talks
about keeping parents informed
by involving them in the actual lesson.
We'd love to hear about your resolutions
for your classroom. We'll post them in
our February update message. Just make
sure to include the grade level,
discipline you teach, and the city and
state you're in. Can't wait to see all
of your wonderful ideas!
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Curriculum Focus:
Language Arts - Building Vocabulary
and Writing Skills
Those standardized tests
are right around the corner. What can
you do with your students now to prepare
them for the language arts portions of
these tests? Here are some ideas for
vocabulary building and writing
resources and activities from Annenberg
Learner. Whether your students are
taking the DC-CAS in Washington, DC, the
MAP in Missouri, or the STAR in
California, start preparing your
students for spring tests now.
All Levels
Spelling
Bee Interactive
Elementary School
 Two
interactives, Word
Tiers and Developing
Vocabulary, help teachers find
terms that are unfamiliar to students
and provide strategies for helping
students work through them in Teaching
Reading 3-5, session 2, “Fluency
and Word Study.”
Gage Reeves introduces earth science
vocabulary to his students in a novel
way in the classroom session of Teaching
Reading 3-5, “Reading
Across the Curriculum.”
Middle School and High School
The Learning Classroom: Theory into
Practice, session 9, “Thinking
About Thinking: Metacognition,”
shows teachers who emphasize student
reflection on their thinking and
learning habits. Middle and high school
students build skill in learning and
feel more confident of their knowledge
in test-taking situations.
Work with your students on developing
their writing skills beyond correcting
their grammar. Developing Writers
interactive tool The
Arbiter encourages teachers to
examine their approach to assessing
student writing.
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Connecting
Learning with Special Days
Spiritual Literacy Month
December, a time of holidays and
observances of different faiths and
cultural traditions, is also Spiritual
Literacy Month. Broadening our
understanding of religions and cultures
from around the world and throughout
history can give us a better
understanding of students’ diverse
backgrounds and help us promote respect
in our classrooms. The following
resources at Learner.org provide
background and lessons focusing on
holidays and traditions.
 In
program 8, "Celebrations
of Light," of the Social
Studies in Action K-12 Library,
watch as Eileen Mesmer teaches her young
students the traditions of St. Nicholas
Day, St. Lucia Day, Christmas, Hanukkah,
and Kwanzaa. Ms. Mesmer relates these
traditions to a Cherokee legend about
the winter solstice.
Compare early communities around the
world and their spiritual and moral
connections with nature and the
unworldly in Bridging World History,
unit 5, “Early
Belief Systems.” Shinto, Judaism,
Zoroastrianism, Hinduism, and the
ethical and philosophical codes of
Confucius and Greek thinkers are
discussed.
How do archaeologists interpret
religious meanings in ritual behavior
and sacred spaces and objects? Out of
the Past, program 7, "The
Spirit World," looks specifically
at the Maya.
More resources related to spirituality
and cultural practices around the world:
Teaching ‘The Children of Willesden
Lane,’ program 9, "A
First Impression of Judaism"
The Western Tradition, program
29, “Early
Christianity” (development of
European spirituality)
Art of the Western World, program
2, “A
White Garment of Churches—Romanesque
and Gothic”
Teaching Foreign Languages K-12: A
Library of Classroom Practices,
program 22, “Happy
New Year!”
Bridging World History, unit 7, “The Spread
of Religions” (Buddhism,
Christianity, and Islam)
Artifacts & Fiction, unit 8,
"Ceremonial
Artifacts" (Native American
culture)
First
Self-Sustaining Nuclear Chain Reaction
(December 2, 1942)
Enrico
Fermi, an Italian physicist,
postulated that a neutron decaying to a
proton emits an electron and a particle
which he called a "neutrino.” Fermi’s
Beta-decay theory led other physicists
to nuclear fission, and Fermi himself
saw the possibility that secondary
neutrons could cause a controlled chain
reaction. He realized that theory on
December 2, 1942 (recognized as the
birthday of the atomic age) in an
experiment that took place in an
underground squash court at the
University of Chicago. This chain
reaction of nuclear fission allowed for
the creation of the atomic bomb and also
nuclear reactors for power generation.
He received the Nobel Prize in 1938 for
his work on the artificial radioactivity
produced by neutrons, and for nuclear
reactions brought about by slow
neutrons.
 Physics
for the 21st Century,
unit 2, “The
Fundamental Interactions,”
explains the basics of neutron decay and
its relationship to the four principle
forces in physics. See chapter 6: The
Weak Force and Flavor Changes.
The Habitable Planet, unit 10, “Energy
Challenges,” section 6, explains
the production and negative effects of
nuclear power.
Longest
Human-Led Animal Migration (December
3, 2001)
 In
an effort to increase the diminished
whooping crane population in the United
States, pilots from Operation
Migration used an ultralight
aircraft to teach young whooping
cranes how to migrate, increasing
the chances for species survival.
Read about Operation Migration’s flock
in their daily journal.
With Journey North your students
can track the cranes’ course
from birthplace to nesting
grounds. Students build science
inquiry skills as they make observations
with Journey North photos and
video.
Find photos
of the ultralights leading their
charges.
National
Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day (December
7)
The United States officially entered
World War II December 8, 1941, just one
day after a Japanese air armada attacked
the American naval base at Pearl Harbor
in Hawaii. The war ended in August 1945
after the U.S. dropped two atomic bombs
(made possible by the work of Enrico
Fermi) on the Japanese cities of
Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
 Historians
discuss the Pearl Harbor attack and its
aftermath in A Biography of America,
program 22, "World
War II." This program also
asks you to consider whether or not the
wartime internment
of Japanese Americans was
appropriate.
The poetry of Lawson Fusao Inada,
featured in The Expanding Canon:
Teaching Multicultural Literature in
High School, session
8, provides a literary perspective
of the aftermath of Pearl Harbor.
Read an interview with Inada, who writes
about his experiences in an internment
camp. Listen
to the author read from “Drawing the
Line,” and find activities that elicit
your students’ critical thinking skills.
Bill
of Rights Enacted (December 15, 1791)
In 1791, three-fourths of the States
ratified the first ten amendments
(authored by James Madison) to the U.S.
Constitution that now make up the Bill
of Rights. President Franklin D.
Roosevelt proclaimed December 15 as
“Bill of Rights Day” in 1941, marking
the 150th anniversary of its
ratification.
Start by having your students read the
Bill of Rights, found in America’s
History in the Making, unit 6, “The
New Nation.”
 Try
the critical thinking activity in Democracy
in America, unit 4, "Civil
Liberties: Safeguarding the Individual,"
to learn about what happens when the
exercise of our rights infringes upon
the rights of others.
Watch as Wendy Ewbank and her students
engage in two simulations – a press
conference and a town hall meeting –
examining the role of the Supreme Court
in sustaining individual rights. Social
Studies in Action, Grades 6-8, “Landmark
Supreme Court Cases,” also
includes ideas to try in your own
classroom.
More resources for teaching about the
Bill of Rights:
Democracy in America, unit 5, “Civil
Rights: Demanding Equality”
Making
Civics Real: A Workshop for Teachers
For information on teaching about NAFTA,
the Wounded Knee Massacre, Tennessee
Williams, and more, see last year’s
December update.
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Notable December
Birthdays
Otto Dix (December 2,
1891)
 German
artist Otto Dix, painting in post World
War I Germany, portrayed social
suffering in the faces and postures of
prostitutes and war amputees. Lady
with Mink and Veil is a portrait
of an unknown woman making an effort to
look more attractive than her
circumstances allow. Start at 26:22 in
the video for program 9, “Portraits,” of
Art Through Time. Note: Preview
video before showing. Material may not
be suitable for all students.
Edvard Munch (December 12, 1863)
 The
Scream by Edvard Munch is an
internationally recognized painting. Art
Through Time, program 2 “Dreams
and Visions,” describes the
nightmarish qualities of painting, also
a reflection of human angst in Germany
at the turn of the 20th Century.
Sandra Cisneros (December 20, 1954)
Sandra Cisneros, author of The House
on Mango Street and Woman
Hollering Creek, comments on and
asks readers to examine their
understanding of what it means to be
American. She is featured in unit 16, “Search
for Identity,”
of American Passages. A
list of comprehension and critical
thinking questions
deepen students’ understanding of
Cisneros’ work.
Sandra Cisneros reads from and comments
on Gabriel García
Márquez’s novel One
Hundred Years of Solitude in
Invitation of World Literature.
Follow this
link to see resources for the
following birthdays:
Emily Dickinson (December 10, 1830)
Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856)
Rudyard Kipling (December 30, 1865)
Keep an eye on our Facebook
page for more December birthday
connections.
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Annenberg Learner
Announcements
Looking for an interactive to help a
struggling or advanced student?
Searching for some new lesson ideas? You
can find what you need in a snap with
our new browsing tools on learner.org.
Browse by subject, grade level, or key
word through more than 400
interactives and search our lesson
plan finder for over 100
lesson ideas. You can also view a
selection of discipline
specific resources in math,
science, social sciences, arts, and
literature with video
previews.
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Annenberg Foundation
Update
“No Strangers” Exhibit
at the Annenberg Space for Photography
and Learner.org Connections
See "No
Strangers: Ancient wisdom in a modern
world" at the Annenberg Space for
Photography in Los Angeles now through
February 24, 2013. This photo exhibit is
about world cultures and indigenous
people and a good fit for social
studies, photography, and art
instruction. The exhibit also features
an original short documentary with
additional photographs, interviews, and
behind the scenes footage with exhibit
photographers, indigenous people, and
experts. "No Strangers" is curated
by esteemed anthropologist, author, and
photographer Wade Davis.
©Hamid
Sardar–Afkhami
Deloun Highlands, Olgii Province,
Outer Mongolia
The Annenberg Space for Photography is
now offering school group visits and educational
materials for its exhibits,
including "No Strangers." Printed
curriculum
guides provide teachers with
background information and pre/post
visit activities related to the
exhibition including connections to
Annenberg Learner resources where
relevant.
One of the themes of the exhibit is
Circle of Life. Further explore this
theme using Bridging World History,
unit 13, “Family
and Household.” What does the
study of families and households tell us
about our global past? In this episode
examining West Asia, Europe, and China,
families and households become the focus
of historians, providing a window into
the private experiences in world
societies, and how they sometimes become
a model for ordering the outside
world. Out of the Past,
unit 2, “The
Hearth,” examines how
enculturation and economic cooperation
have shaped the homes and families of
people, past and present. Remains of
houses at archaeological sites and
footage of family life in traditional
cultures provide a glimpse into what
family life must have been like.
Explore.org Animal
Cameras Focus on Polar Bears
Watch live
coverage during polar bear
migration in Churchill, Manitoba on the
new Explore.org live
cam. The bears come to land when
the Arctic sea ice breaks up. Like a
walking hibernation, the bears fast
until they can access their prey again
when the ice refreezes. Warmer arctic
temperatures are affecting the bears'
feeding patterns. Less time on the ice
means less time to hunt. Students can
use this and other Explore.org animal
cams on the Journey North Web site to
discover how animals around the globe
respond to seasonal change.
Other Annenberg Foundation News
Keep up with news and
information about the Annenberg
Foundation by subscribing
to one or more of the Foundation
newsletters.
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