Posts by Gretchen Schultek Bridgers

Student interaction is just the beginning of student engagement. If we want students to truly be successful in the classroom, we cannot let it end there. What’s the Difference? Interaction means students are responding in a limited form to each other and yourself as the instructional leader of the classroom. Engagement means students are authentically…

Classroom management is not synonymous with behavior management. One is reactionary and one is preventive. Based on that fact alone, one is easily received and widely successful. Why is that so? When a student feels like they are under a microscope for every move they make (and don’t make), they put their guard up. This…

Teachers write lesson plans, but rarely do they actually DESIGN a learning experience. Why is this? Traditional teaching programs focus on the theory of teaching with a sprinkle of actual techniques for how to teach. Part of that how-to process is writing a lesson plan. The emphasis is on all of the components necessary to…

Standards-based grading is an approach used to evaluate classroom performance for students. Many schools are beginning to adopt this method because it provides a more accurate snapshot of how students are performing against expectations for their specific grade level. Before diving into how a teacher can be successful in the classroom when implementing a standards-based…

Are you wondering how to set up learning walks in your building? It is actually easier than you might think! The term “learning walk” refers to the act of walking through various classrooms within the same school building to learn about instructional best practices used by your peer.  It allows for colleagues to share what…