Conley's Chapter 3 - Pursuing High Expectations

There are several things a teacher can do in order to set high expectations for his or her learners. Perhaps one of the most important things a teacher should do in achieving this goal is to build a community of learners within the classroom. This will enable students to help, encourage, support, and learn from one another. Critical Literacy is a specific way of helping students read, write, and learn with a critical eye. An example would be to have students compare their life to a character's life in a story they have previously read. When teachers are planning a unit or series of lessons in order to remain organized and help students fully grasp the main idea and content being discussed they can establish a Big Idea which will be the main topic of the unit. Linking to the big idea are subtopics that relate to it, connected concepts. Using a variety of approaches and teaching strategies will help to reach all students. While using a variety of strategies it is also important to help students understand each learning strategy so that they can gain the skills needed to learn from each style.