Teach Students How to Think, Regardless of Standards
Whether we talk about Common Core or College and Career Readiness Standards or 21st Century Skills, the message is the same: We in this most valuable of professions, we in education, must make some...
View ArticleEnd of Year Reflections
The end of a school year is a beautiful thing. It is a time to celebrate and reflect. We recommend that our Thinking Map schools take some time for teachers to think about the impact the Maps had on...
View ArticleTestimonial from a Teacher – Using Thinking Maps to Teach Georgia History
I used this Thinking Map in my Georgia History Class this year. I had the students use their text book to identify the Regional Parts of Georgia, label, and color code them. They then transitioned...
View ArticleUnfettered Minds
Being not only an educator, but a relatively new grandmother, I am quite interested in how young minds work. One of my favorite examples is from a TEDTalk by Alise Shafer Ivey. During her talk she...
View ArticleIf We Stopped Trying to Learn
As professionals, don’t educators try to instill the love of learning in their students? Don’t we want them to see the value in learning – to want to learn? Don’t we ask them to question, to seek...
View ArticleLessons for Teachers from a 2 Year Old
OK, I know you might be tired of hearing about my precious granddaughter, but I have re-learned some vital lessons from her this month that are important for teachers to remember as we move through...
View Article“Minds of Mississippi” Premieres
Thinkings Maps’ very own Dr. Marjann Ball hosted the debut viewing of The Minds of Mississippi film at the University of Southern Mississippi in Long Beach, MS. It was a wonderful night, and the...
View ArticleTeaching Without Testing is Like Bowling with a Curtain Covering the Pins
Teaching without testing is like bowling with a curtain covering up the pins. You wouldn’t know how many pins you knocked down. Without that feedback, you couldn’t gauge the accuracy of your approach...
View ArticleEffective Practices at Sawgrass Bay Elementary School
Dr. Julio Valle, Principal of Sawgrass Bay Elementary School, will be a featured presenter at the 2013 Florida Thinking Maps Conference. Find more information here and register to attend! The post...
View ArticleMu-SEE-uM: Mapping A Change in Thinking
Kindergarten students commenced their partnership with the Norton Museum of Art with unforgettable tours of the exhibit Block by Block and several galleries. This collaboration has been coined...
View ArticleFormer Principal Weighs in on Thinking Maps
Check out this editorial that was published in a Florida newspaper recently. It’s always refreshing and exciting to hear from our Thinking Maps educators! Read what this former principal and Thinking...
View ArticleTeacher Sheds Light on Value of Thinking Maps
We love hearing from teachers, the people who get to work with students everyday and see how Thinking Maps can help boost student achievement and transform schools. Here’s the latest letter we...
View ArticleThinking Maps in Preschool? YES!
Here’s a guest post from principal Connie Hamilton of Saranac Elementary School, which just so happens to be our Spotlight School! When Saranac Elementary first decided we would implement Thinking...
View ArticleThe Important Distinction Between Mid-range Tools and Programs
You have heard the expression, “You wouldn’t throw the baby out with the bathwater”, yet so often this is true in education. Recently I was speaking with a principal that indicated how much he loved...
View ArticleMapping Aprons
The Florida DOE just contracted with the non-profit organization American Institutes for Research, to design evaluations that will assess our students in thinking analytically. So… how do we get...
View ArticleLessons from the Classroom for Administrators
Over the last six months I have been working with the math departments of several North Carolina secondary schools in a variety of capacities. Generally all my work is focused on the implementation of...
View ArticleTo Each and Every Teacher
Every year, a few outstanding teachers are awarded “Teacher of the Year” honors for their hard work and exemplary contributions. They are recognized for the countless hours they spend designing lesson...
View ArticleDistinguishing Between Factors & Multiples
While reading through the new state standards, I was reminded of another frequent question I am asked by math educators: How to teach the difference between factors and multiples? The fourth grade...
View ArticleEducational Leadership: Best & Worst of Times
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” You probably recognize these lines as the opening of Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities. They are also lines borrowed by Dr. David Sousa to...
View ArticleIf We Stopped Trying to Learn
As professionals, don’t educators try to instill the love of learning in their students? Don’t we want them to see the value in learning – to want to learn? Don’t we ask them to question, to seek...
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