The Stenhouse Blog

By Amanda Jansen, author of Rough Draft Math, along with Megan Wickstrom and Derek Williams

Whenever we learn anything new, bringing a spirit of rough drafting to the process can open us up to be more free to try on new ideas. We can ask students to share their first drafts, then we can discuss the ideas as a class to provide new insights on the drafts. During these discussions, it’s helpful to maintain a stance of curiosity and seeking to understand rather than judgment while we help each other’s ideas evolve. Students can then revise their initial thinking and document how their thinking shifted.

In this episode of Teacher’s Corner we talk to educator, author, and parent, Whitney La Rocca about how she is adjusting to remote learning, social distancing, and homeschooling—all while trying to stay positive and connected, but also giving herself permission to lament her pre-COVID routine. Here she is talking to Faye LaCasse, Vice President of Marketing at Stenhouse.

The amount of information out there right now for educators can be a little overwhelming. Hopefully, by providing one place to find meaningful resources by trusted experts, it will make navigating these uncharted waters a little easier. 

Here is a list of resources from our dedicated authors who have been very busy creating all types of useful ways to provide educators with anything they might need. This list will be updated frequently, so bookmark it and keep checking in to see what's new!

Stories are told through mood. This means that being able to understand how characters feel and why they feel that way is essential to comprehending narratives. Understanding a character's mood helps put you directly into the heart of a story. 

It's more important than ever to give yourself time to practice self-care. Here's a chapter from Lisa Lucas's Practicing Presence that includes a Work Stress Self-Assessment and ideas on how to lower that stress. Click the image below.

Do you feel prepared to initiate and facilitate meaningful, productive dialogues about race in your classroom? Are you looking for practical strategies to engage with your students?

On its surface, Early Childhood Math Routines by Antonia Cameron is a resource made up of 5- to 10-minute, easy-to-use, play-based routines designed to develop young children’s reasoning skills in mathematics and communication. But at the heart of this book is a philosophy about teaching and learning. It's about developing people who can communicate their ideas clearly, who own their ideas and aren't afraid to express them—who know how to be part of a community of learners.

Gravity Goldberg and Renée Houser have both been teachers of students learning English. Some of these students had conversational English down and were learning to use academic language, some were apprehensive and needed more confidence to speak English even though they understood most of what was said, and some came to school with only a handful of words in English and would sit silently in class. No matter what stage of language acquisition students happened to be in, Gravity and Renée believed that they deserved to be fully included in the classroom culture, experiences, and learning. They view having a second or third language as a huge asset and one that could only help a child.

Whether you’re headed into the classroom for the first time, or you’re finishing up your first year—you might find yourself looking for some trusted guidance from time to time. These Stenhouse authors have been where you are now, and since they can't be there in-person to answer your questions, they have done the next best thing and created these practical resources for you to reference when you need it.

Imagine a math class where students feel confident enough to stand up in front of their peers and declare that they need help working through a problem.

What kind of message would it send to a student who only shares when they’re sure they have the right answer? Or what would it do for students who need help but are too afraid to admit it? Using research and her own experience, Amanda Jansen created, Rough Draft Math—a new professional learning resource to help math teachers create a classroom culture where in-progress thinking happens out loud and without hesitation. Where, instead of silently worrying over a problem they can’t work out, students stand up proudly and declare, “I need to Rough Draft Math!”