Catholic Teachers' Lounge

Testing for student progress can take many forms, but a great tool for assessing skill development over the course of the year is portfolio assessments. Learn how to make the transition.

Rocket science development is driven by failure — but our culture says perfection is a must. Science teacher Isaac Forquor exemplifies training students on the benefits of effort over perfection.

Fear of doing it wrong gets in the way of effective inclusion efforts for nuerodivergent students. How to embrace the beauty of belonging for all kids.

What is the academic impact of students’ choices and behavior? Is the class grade measuring knowledge or the students’ ability to follow directions, or both? If not in the grade, how do we measure behavior?

Discipline is a necessary part of every teacher’s classroom experience, but there are ways to ease the process — even when parents and administration need to get involved.

Replicate these memorable Saturday morning teaching tools through song in your classroom. Let it trigger memories, discussion and conversation across a variety of topics and ages.

Helping learners of all ages remember the key points of content across science, history and theology, can be enhanced with a fun and interesting experiment in poetry.

Academic leadership comes in many forms and from many different sources. How do the new realities of Catholic education impact the next generation of leadership?

Books and movies change lives by introducing new ideas, expanding knowledge and creating empathy for others. Hear more about how one teacher creates a fun book tasting event for her students.

Ideas flow on helping teachers help their students to hold themselves accountable through empowerment, accompanyment and the patience to let them learn through their mistakes.

Controversy and conversation revolves around the topic of teaching students cursive. Join the discussion as we explore the positives and negatives and what’s unique about Catholic school’s approach.

Ash Wednesday can be an overwhelming day for kids as well as adults when considering the full scope and meaning. Help ease students of all ages and backgrounds into the day by using social stories to set expectations and open their minds for real understanding and transformation.

Any change of season brings an opportunity for learning and growth and the beginning of Lent is no exception. Fat Tuesday can be a great day for celebration and preparation leveraging traditions from all backgrounds.

Danielle Iannelli brings out the funk and fun of grammar with an annual Adjective Fashion Show starring her 4th graders who create their own vivid description of their fashionista creations. Grammar doesn’t have to be dry and boring and language, activities and creative writing brings it to life.

Navigating best practices for helping kids concentrate in the classroom is a tough assignment. The development of new fidget tools often blur the lines of what is a toy and what is a tool. Hear more about the fidget rules that can guide the way.

Go beyond classroom learning with connections across generations as noted by principal Adrianne Van Norman and her Grandbuddy Pen pals for grades 4-6. This concept can extend from Kindergarten through high school as both styudents and grandparents enjoy the sharing of wisdom, time and experience.

Leaning on multiple intelligence research, Karl Sieglaff creates lesson plans to engage his students using visual, tactile, naturalist, interpersonal, and intrapersonal tactics — breaking the model of teaching to our own learning styles or teaching as we were taught.

Where does the love of reading come from and how is it impacted by technology and the lack of physical books in schools and classrooms? When reading to learn, how to balance simple Google searches with in-depth primary sources?

Exploring brain research in the area of consuming and retaining content digitally vs. in print. What is the best way to engage and connect with content while still embracing the reality and convenience of technology?

Ground zero of school culture is the teachers lounge. It is an opportunity to consciously support and connect with your peers in a positive and helpful way — and vice versa. Teaching can be hard and isolating, but Catholic schools have a special and unique enviornment to bring joy to others through faith.

Prayerful discernment is at the core of any vocation assessment process — religious or otherwise — as we embrace the fact each of us is uniquely unrepeatable in the eyes of God.

What happens in a classroom doesn’t have to stay in the classroom. Local, state and national funding, policy making, and research depends on awareness of teacher, student and classroom activity. Invite your representatives for a visit and conversation.

Classroom management tips are as much about maximizing learning time as it is about controlling behaviors, and purposeful call back techniques can reinforce your underlying goals.

Whether it’s Catholic Schools week or not, extend the reach of students and school with creative community service projects and the natural conversation connections that come with them.

It’s empowering to know when classroom experiences get replicated at home, especially when related to faith. Classroom prayer tables are a great example of an idea that finds its way to students’ homes — in bedrooms, living rooms or any special place for kids and parents to grow in faith together.