Heather Wolpert-Gawron

Viewing: Writers Project

PBL Secret Sauce #3: Aligning the Standards to Your PBL Unit

By on October 24, 2017

  Here’s my new screencast showing two ways I ensure that any unit I design or adapt is aligned to our required standards. In a nutshell: Plan around a particular standard and design with that standard(s) in mind from the

PBL Secret Sauce #2: Student-Generated Questions

PBL Secret Sauce #2: Student-Generated Questions

By on September 21, 2017

For Part II in my PBL video series, I thought I’d share how I integrate student-generated questions throughout the sequence of the unit.  In other words, the students generate the prompts that help propel them along the PBL journey. This

A Book Review From My Students: Mia Lee is Wheeling Through Middle School

A Book Review From My Students: Mia Lee is Wheeling Through Middle School

By on September 20, 2017

PBL is about meaningful learning, and sometimes that means keeping my antennae up to identify possible ways to bring that authenticity to my students. Sometimes, however, an opportunity falls into my lap. Such is the case with this book review

PBL Secret Sauce #1: The Entry Level Event

By on September 19, 2017

I know that when teachers learn about Project Based Learning, many times they walk away with the rationale, the research, and the overview of what a unit might look like.  But sometimes teachers still have questions about the day-to-day implementation.

Prepping for Open House Right From the Start: The Classroom as a Portfolio

Prepping for Open House Right From the Start: The Classroom as a Portfolio

By on September 9, 2017

So it’s the beginning of the year. You’ve probably spent a few out-of-contract days setting up your classroom to look ready for the masses. You’ve hung brightly colored bulletin boards and surrounded them with stapled up content-related borders. The same

Abstract Concept to Concrete Awareness: 3DPrinting to Teach Growth Mindset

Abstract Concept to Concrete Awareness: 3DPrinting to Teach Growth Mindset

By on February 16, 2017

One of the things I like about 3d Printing in middle school is that it makes the abstract more concrete. Middle schoolers need that because of where their brain is at developmentally. They straddle the threshold from concrete thinking to

The Internet Research Game & 3D Printing: No Whammies!

The Internet Research Game & 3D Printing: No Whammies!

By on October 25, 2016

So in an attempt to broaden the use of the 3D printers in my room, beyond that of my Maker-themed ELA class, I thought I’d leverage the curiosity for the devices as an incentive for my additional classes. That way,

7 Steps to Help Students Succeed on Assessments

By on October 9, 2016

This year, I was given a class of LTELs (long-term English Language Learners) and recently exited SPED students with the goal of focusing my lesson implementation on engagement and more social-emotional learning. So we’re leading up to our first grade-level

Lessons to Share: 3D Printing and Design to Learn Reading & Writing

By on June 17, 2016

So I just finished my first week with my Make Writing class.  This class, as I’ve written about in the past, is intended to help those long-term EL students who have become disengaged with school and with learning.  These kids

Pencils to 3D-Printers: A New Kind of Language Arts Class

By on February 7, 2016

  “The printers have been ordered.  Fingers crossed.  Here we go…..” This was the email I received two weeks ago from my principal who is working with me to develop a whole new kind of Language Arts class.  The plan

5 Nonfiction Articles + Novels Series: Middle School Edition (Jan.)

By on January 20, 2016

Mutually Beneficial Animal Relationships (Photos) Written by: Huffington Post Staff Published On: The Huffington Post “The ostrich isn’t very good at smelling, while the zebra can smell pretty well. The zebra though, doesn’t have good eyesight, but the ostrich does.

Making, Writing, & Leaving My Wheelhouse: How This Relates to ELD Students (UPDATED)

By on January 10, 2016

I first began blogging to reflect on what I was learning during my summer with the Writing Project. After each day, I returned home, head spinning, needing to simply process. Finally, my husband said, “Why don’t you try starting one

5 Nonfiction + Novels Series: The Middle School Edition for Dec. 2015

By on December 22, 2015

My newest post is the first in a series  in which I’m collaborating with Talks with Teachers podcaster and blogger, Brian Sztabnik. Brian not only moderates the #aplitchat on Twitter but also writes the 5 Nonfiction + Novels series for

Book Review: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

Book Review: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

By on June 29, 2009

You know the old commercial: “You got your chocolate in my peanut butter! Well, you got your peanut butter in my chocolate!” And just like a Peanut Butter cup, it seems that Jane Austin and Zombies go great together. Pride

How to Battle Epic Paragraphing

How to Battle Epic Paragraphing

By on May 12, 2009

Every year my nemesis rears its ugly head: the epic paragraph.  Epic paragraphs are those essays comprised entirely of one mega-paragraph with no indentations to indicate transition from thought thought. I bet you thought your kids were the only ones

San Gabriel Valley CUE Teacher of the Year!

San Gabriel Valley CUE Teacher of the Year!

By on May 5, 2009

I won the San Gabriel Valley CUE (Computer Using Educators) Outstanding Teacher Award. Hazzah! I’m not sure CUE realizes, however, that my enthusiasm for Ed Tech outweighs my knowledge.  My daily calls with questions to the computer teacher can attest

Students, Sexting, and the threat to Ed Tech

Students, Sexting, and the threat to Ed Tech

By on April 19, 2009

Thanks to Scott McLeod for Twittering the following article from The Washington Post.  It describes a terrible ordeal that an administrator went through battling charges of “failure to report suspected child abuse” and potential child pornography after students were caught sexting on

Twitter as Think Aloud

Twitter as Think Aloud

By on April 13, 2009

I was reading through my Digg headlines this weekend, and I happened on this article of the top 10 most extraordinary Twitter updates.  I also did some digging (no pun intended) and found articles that range in claiming that there

Fictional Crushes

Fictional Crushes

By on April 11, 2009

OK, don’t tell my husband, but I have a fictional crush.  That is, I have a crush based on a fictitious character.  I think I’ve always had one, but the object of my literary love has always changed with my

Obama’s “Race to the Top”

Obama’s “Race to the Top”

By on April 10, 2009

So US News is reporting that President Obama and the educator leaning out of the sidecar, Arne Duncan, have created  “a $5 billion ‘Race to the Top’ fund for states that have made progress on the following fronts: 1) improving