Teaching and Learning   

Learn how to teach English as a foreign language and earn your TEFL Certificate.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 7 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.10 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

With an estimated 1.5 billion English language learners around the world, the demand for TEFL certified teachers is sky high. Earn your internationally recognized TEFL certificate in this online course, so you can teach English online, abroad or wherever the need arises. Once qualified, you will be able to confidently walk into a classroom and deliver a lesson to English language learners.

1. Grammar and Language Awareness
   1. Introduction
   2. Nouns
   3. Verbs
   4. Verbs that are not Verbs
   5. Adjectives and adverbs
   6. Other parts of speech
   7. Present, past, and future tenses
   8. Conditionals
2. TEFL Methodology
   1. Understanding student and teacher roles
   2. Teaching structures, strategies and methods
   3. Activities in the classroom
   4. Classroom management, correcting errors and giving feedback
   5. Teaching vocabulary and functions
   6. Teaching reading and listening
   7. Introduction to phonology
   8. Teaching young learners
   9. Teaching business English
   10. Teaching one-to-one
   11. A PPP Lesson
3. Video Observation
   1. A PPP Lesson
   2. Functional language
   3. Foreign Language
   4. Skills
   5. Dealing with difficult students
4. Telephone Teaching
   1. Introduction to telephone teaching
   2. Lesson types and needs analysis
   3. Structures and strategies
5. Teaching Large Classes
   1. Introduction to teaching large classes
   2. Classroom organization
   3. Activities and discipline

What you will learn

• How to prepare and deliver a dynamic and interesting lesson plan.
• Classroom management strategies.
• Language skills and how to teach them.
• How to find and design teaching resources.

How you will benefit

• Earn a certificate which allows you to teach English all over the world.
• Gives classroom confidence.
• Find better paid teaching work.
• Opportunity to work/travel.

Multiple tutors support this course.

ALEX- I have 22 years' experience in TEFL. After gaining my CELTA in Madrid after university (BA Business and Law), I taught in Barcelona for 6 years before returning to the UK. I have worked in various TEFL specialisms over the years, from general English in traditional language schools, to exam preparation, private lessons, online teaching, Business English, young learners, and TEFL publishing, in positions ranging from EFL teacher to DOS. I have been involved in EFL teacher training for the last 10 years, involving face to face and online tutoring as well as writing course materials, and most recently completed a course to become a Linguaskill speaking examiner.

I have worked for Tefl.org since very shortly after it began in 2008. I started as a classroom tutor doing the face-to-face 20 and 30-hour courses and have been an online tutor too for around 8 years now. I am also directly involved in writing online course materials for an accredited TEFL training organization.

THOMAS- I am currently the Online & Academic Manager at TEFL Org, where I have worked since 2008.

I have been teaching English for 32 years, and a teacher trainer for 25 years. I have taught in France & Portugal, but most of my teaching has been in Madrid, Spain, where I have been living now for 30 years.

I have taught from general English in traditional language schools, to exam preparation, private lessons, online teaching, Business English, young learners in positions ranging from EFL teacher to Director of Studies. I was also a Cambridge examiner at the British Council for several years. My experience as an online teacher trainer started in 2000.

Over the years, I have also written teaching materials for online and face to face learning.

My qualifications include a TEFL certificate, Trinity Diploma in Teaching English as a second/another language, and a master's degree in Education Leadership & Management.

DEE- My name is Denise. I have been involved in the TEFL world for almost 40 years. I started teaching English locally when I was a young adult to new immigrants. I went to university as a mature student at the ripe old age of 24, where I graduated with a BA (Hons).

In 1992, I completed my CELTA teacher training. In the wake of the Barcelona Olympics, I moved to Spain, where I worked as an English teacher, head of studies, and a school director before opening my language school. Throughout my time in Spain, I was involved in teacher training and professional development courses, as well as communication skills training for high-level business executives in English. I also worked as a coursebook writer and editor for an EFL publishing company. I started writing and working with blended learning courses when they were in their infancy, which led to the advent of 100% online learning in the early 2000s.

I am also an Internal Quality Assessor and have also written several TEFL training courses over the last 20 years.

ASIF- I started academic and professional life in the law; however, I often found myself in situations where I was having to decipher, learn, analyze, or teach aspects of language. As this took-up more and more of my time, the decision to make language my full-time occupation did not take long to make, and I became and remain a secondary-school teacher, the classroom being my favorite place. Knowing what you do needs a firm understanding of language, to which I credit my academic grounding in applied linguistics and many years in the classroom. Academically, my primary research interest lies in language testing, a field in which I have supervised several research candidates, some at the doctoral level. This affords me an in-depth understanding of the thinking behind the syllabuses and exams you will come across in different parts of the world. It allows me to take a step back and fit exams and the like into a fit-for-purpose context.

I have worked for an accredited TEFL training organization for 10 years as a classroom and online tutor. My qualifications include a master's degree in Applied Linguistics and a master's degree in TESOL. I may be preparing executives for a press conference one weekend; I may be teaching basic English to refugees another, delivering teacher-training courses the weekend after, and marking online assessments too.

Learn how to teach English as a foreign language and earn your TEFL Certificate.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 7 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.10 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

With an estimated 1.5 billion English language learners around the world, the demand for TEFL certified teachers is sky high. Earn your internationally recognized TEFL certificate in this online course, so you can teach English online, abroad or wherever the need arises. Once qualified, you will be able to confidently walk into a classroom and deliver a lesson to English language learners.

1. Grammar and Language Awareness
   1. Introduction
   2. Nouns
   3. Verbs
   4. Verbs that are not Verbs
   5. Adjectives and adverbs
   6. Other parts of speech
   7. Present, past, and future tenses
   8. Conditionals
2. TEFL Methodology
   1. Understanding student and teacher roles
   2. Teaching structures, strategies and methods
   3. Activities in the classroom
   4. Classroom management, correcting errors and giving feedback
   5. Teaching vocabulary and functions
   6. Teaching reading and listening
   7. Introduction to phonology
   8. Teaching young learners
   9. Teaching business English
   10. Teaching one-to-one
   11. A PPP Lesson
3. Video Observation
   1. A PPP Lesson
   2. Functional language
   3. Foreign Language
   4. Skills
   5. Dealing with difficult students
4. Telephone Teaching
   1. Introduction to telephone teaching
   2. Lesson types and needs analysis
   3. Structures and strategies
5. Teaching Large Classes
   1. Introduction to teaching large classes
   2. Classroom organization
   3. Activities and discipline

What you will learn

• How to prepare and deliver a dynamic and interesting lesson plan.
• Classroom management strategies.
• Language skills and how to teach them.
• How to find and design teaching resources.

How you will benefit

• Earn a certificate which allows you to teach English all over the world.
• Gives classroom confidence.
• Find better paid teaching work.
• Opportunity to work/travel.

Multiple tutors support this course.

ALEX- I have 22 years' experience in TEFL. After gaining my CELTA in Madrid after university (BA Business and Law), I taught in Barcelona for 6 years before returning to the UK. I have worked in various TEFL specialisms over the years, from general English in traditional language schools, to exam preparation, private lessons, online teaching, Business English, young learners, and TEFL publishing, in positions ranging from EFL teacher to DOS. I have been involved in EFL teacher training for the last 10 years, involving face to face and online tutoring as well as writing course materials, and most recently completed a course to become a Linguaskill speaking examiner.

I have worked for Tefl.org since very shortly after it began in 2008. I started as a classroom tutor doing the face-to-face 20 and 30-hour courses and have been an online tutor too for around 8 years now. I am also directly involved in writing online course materials for an accredited TEFL training organization.

THOMAS- I am currently the Online & Academic Manager at TEFL Org, where I have worked since 2008.

I have been teaching English for 32 years, and a teacher trainer for 25 years. I have taught in France & Portugal, but most of my teaching has been in Madrid, Spain, where I have been living now for 30 years.

I have taught from general English in traditional language schools, to exam preparation, private lessons, online teaching, Business English, young learners in positions ranging from EFL teacher to Director of Studies. I was also a Cambridge examiner at the British Council for several years. My experience as an online teacher trainer started in 2000.

Over the years, I have also written teaching materials for online and face to face learning.

My qualifications include a TEFL certificate, Trinity Diploma in Teaching English as a second/another language, and a master's degree in Education Leadership & Management.

DEE- My name is Denise. I have been involved in the TEFL world for almost 40 years. I started teaching English locally when I was a young adult to new immigrants. I went to university as a mature student at the ripe old age of 24, where I graduated with a BA (Hons).

In 1992, I completed my CELTA teacher training. In the wake of the Barcelona Olympics, I moved to Spain, where I worked as an English teacher, head of studies, and a school director before opening my language school. Throughout my time in Spain, I was involved in teacher training and professional development courses, as well as communication skills training for high-level business executives in English. I also worked as a coursebook writer and editor for an EFL publishing company. I started writing and working with blended learning courses when they were in their infancy, which led to the advent of 100% online learning in the early 2000s.

I am also an Internal Quality Assessor and have also written several TEFL training courses over the last 20 years.

ASIF- I started academic and professional life in the law; however, I often found myself in situations where I was having to decipher, learn, analyze, or teach aspects of language. As this took-up more and more of my time, the decision to make language my full-time occupation did not take long to make, and I became and remain a secondary-school teacher, the classroom being my favorite place. Knowing what you do needs a firm understanding of language, to which I credit my academic grounding in applied linguistics and many years in the classroom. Academically, my primary research interest lies in language testing, a field in which I have supervised several research candidates, some at the doctoral level. This affords me an in-depth understanding of the thinking behind the syllabuses and exams you will come across in different parts of the world. It allows me to take a step back and fit exams and the like into a fit-for-purpose context.

I have worked for an accredited TEFL training organization for 10 years as a classroom and online tutor. My qualifications include a master's degree in Applied Linguistics and a master's degree in TESOL. I may be preparing executives for a press conference one weekend; I may be teaching basic English to refugees another, delivering teacher-training courses the weekend after, and marking online assessments too.

Learn how to teach English as a foreign language (TEFL) and earn your TEFL Certificate.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 7 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.10 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Worldwide, millions of learners work with TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) instructors to learn and better understand the English language. Earn your internationally recognized TEFL certificate in this online course, so you can teach English online, abroad, or wherever the need arises. You will also learn how to teach English to different audiences, including Business English Users and Young Learners. Once you have completed this course, you will be eligible to apply for TEFL teaching posts.

1. TEFL
   1. Grammar and Language Awareness
      1. Introduction
      2. Nouns
      3. Verbs
      4. Verbs that are not Verbs
      5. Adjectives and adverbs
      6. Other parts of speech
      7. Present, past, and future tenses
      8. Conditionals
   2. TEFL Methodology
      1. Understanding student and teacher roles
      2. Teaching structures, strategies and methods
      3. Activities in the classroom
      4. Classroom management, correcting errors and giving feedback
      5. Teaching vocabulary and functions
      6. Teaching reading and listening
      7. Introduction to phonology
      8. Teaching young learners
      9. Teaching business English
      10. Teaching one-to-one
      11. A PPP Lesson
   3. Video Observation
      1. A PPP Lesson
      2. Functional language
      3. Foreign Language
      4. Skills
      5. Dealing with difficult students
   4. Telephone Teaching
      1. Introduction to telephone teaching
      2. Lesson types and needs analysis
      3. Structures and strategies
   5. Teaching Large Classes
      1. Introduction to teaching large classes
      2. Classroom organization
      3. Activities and discipline
2. Advanced TEFL Courses
   1. Teaching Young Learners
      1. Introduction to teaching young learners
      2. Child development and teaching young learners
      3. Practical activities to use with young learners
      4. Using the internet with young learners
      5. Teaching very young learners
   2. Teaching Business English
      1. The theory of Business English
      2. Preparing Business English lessons
      3. Delivering Business English
      4. Business communication skills
   3. How to Teach English Online
      1. Introduction to the course
      2. Using technology to teach
      3. Lesson Planning
   4. Set up and Promote your Online Lessons
      1. Building your own website
      2. Marketing your online services

What you will learn

• How to prepare and deliver a dynamic and interesting lesson plan
• Classroom management strategies
• Language skills and how to teach them
• How to find and design teaching resources
• Specialize in niche areas of English language teaching like Business English

How you will benefit

• Earn a certificate which allows you to teach English all over the world
• Gives classroom confidence
• Find better paid teaching work
• Opportunity to work/travel
• Specializes you in Teaching English Online, teaching Young Learners and Business English

Multiple tutors support this course.

ALEX- I have 22 years' experience in TEFL. After gaining my CELTA in Madrid after university (BA Business and Law), I taught in Barcelona for 6 years before returning to the UK. I have worked in various TEFL specialisms over the years, from general English in traditional language schools, to exam preparation, private lessons, online teaching, Business English, young learners, and TEFL publishing, in positions ranging from EFL teacher to DOS. I have been involved in EFL teacher training for the last 10 years, involving face to face and online tutoring as well as writing course materials, and most recently completed a course to become a Linguaskill speaking examiner.

I have worked for Tefl.org since very shortly after it began in 2008. I started as a classroom tutor doing the face-to-face 20 and 30-hour courses and have been an online tutor too for around 8 years now. I am also directly involved in writing online course materials for an accredited TEFL training organization.

THOMAS- I am currently the Online & Academic Manager at TEFL Org, where I have worked since 2008.

I have been teaching English for 32 years, and a teacher trainer for 25 years. I have taught in France & Portugal, but most of my teaching has been in Madrid, Spain, where I have been living now for 30 years.

I have taught from general English in traditional language schools, to exam preparation, private lessons, online teaching, Business English, young learners in positions ranging from EFL teacher to Director of Studies. I was also a Cambridge examiner at the British Council for several years. My experience as an online teacher trainer started in 2000.

Over the years, I have also written teaching materials for online and face to face learning.

My qualifications include a TEFL certificate, Trinity Diploma in Teaching English as a second/another language, and a master's degree in Education Leadership & Management.

DEE- My name is Denise. I have been involved in the TEFL world for almost 40 years. I started teaching English locally when I was a young adult to new immigrants. I went to university as a mature student at the ripe old age of 24, where I graduated with a BA (Hons).

In 1992, I completed my CELTA teacher training. In the wake of the Barcelona Olympics, I moved to Spain, where I worked as an English teacher, head of studies, and a school director before opening my language school. Throughout my time in Spain, I was involved in teacher training and professional development courses, as well as communication skills training for high-level business executives in English. I also worked as a coursebook writer and editor for an EFL publishing company. I started writing and working with blended learning courses when they were in their infancy, which led to the advent of 100% online learning in the early 2000s.

I am also an Internal Quality Assessor and have also written several TEFL training courses over the last 20 years.

ASIF- I started academic and professional life in the law; however, I often found myself in situations where I was having to decipher, learn, analyze, or teach aspects of language. As this took-up more and more of my time, the decision to make language my full-time occupation did not take long to make, and I became and remain a secondary-school teacher, the classroom being my favorite place. Knowing what you do needs a firm understanding of language, to which I credit my academic grounding in applied linguistics and many years in the classroom. Academically, my primary research interest lies in language testing, a field in which I have supervised several research candidates, some at the doctoral level. This affords me an in-depth understanding of the thinking behind the syllabuses and exams you will come across in different parts of the world. It allows me to take a step back and fit exams and the like into a fit-for-purpose context.

I have worked for an accredited TEFL training organization for 10 years as a classroom and online tutor. My qualifications include a master's degree in Applied Linguistics and a master's degree in TESOL. I may be preparing executives for a press conference one weekend; I may be teaching basic English to refugees another, delivering teacher-training courses the weekend after, and marking online assessments too.

Learn how to teach English as a foreign language (TEFL) and earn your TEFL Certificate.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 7 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.10 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Worldwide, millions of learners work with TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) instructors to learn and better understand the English language. Earn your internationally recognized TEFL certificate in this online course, so you can teach English online, abroad, or wherever the need arises. You will also learn how to teach English to different audiences, including Business English Users and Young Learners. Once you have completed this course, you will be eligible to apply for TEFL teaching posts.

1. TEFL
   1. Grammar and Language Awareness
      1. Introduction
      2. Nouns
      3. Verbs
      4. Verbs that are not Verbs
      5. Adjectives and adverbs
      6. Other parts of speech
      7. Present, past, and future tenses
      8. Conditionals
   2. TEFL Methodology
      1. Understanding student and teacher roles
      2. Teaching structures, strategies and methods
      3. Activities in the classroom
      4. Classroom management, correcting errors and giving feedback
      5. Teaching vocabulary and functions
      6. Teaching reading and listening
      7. Introduction to phonology
      8. Teaching young learners
      9. Teaching business English
      10. Teaching one-to-one
      11. A PPP Lesson
   3. Video Observation
      1. A PPP Lesson
      2. Functional language
      3. Foreign Language
      4. Skills
      5. Dealing with difficult students
   4. Telephone Teaching
      1. Introduction to telephone teaching
      2. Lesson types and needs analysis
      3. Structures and strategies
   5. Teaching Large Classes
      1. Introduction to teaching large classes
      2. Classroom organization
      3. Activities and discipline
2. Advanced TEFL Courses
   1. Teaching Young Learners
      1. Introduction to teaching young learners
      2. Child development and teaching young learners
      3. Practical activities to use with young learners
      4. Using the internet with young learners
      5. Teaching very young learners
   2. Teaching Business English
      1. The theory of Business English
      2. Preparing Business English lessons
      3. Delivering Business English
      4. Business communication skills
   3. How to Teach English Online
      1. Introduction to the course
      2. Using technology to teach
      3. Lesson Planning
   4. Set up and Promote your Online Lessons
      1. Building your own website
      2. Marketing your online services

What you will learn

• How to prepare and deliver a dynamic and interesting lesson plan
• Classroom management strategies
• Language skills and how to teach them
• How to find and design teaching resources
• Specialize in niche areas of English language teaching like Business English

How you will benefit

• Earn a certificate which allows you to teach English all over the world
• Gives classroom confidence
• Find better paid teaching work
• Opportunity to work/travel
• Specializes you in Teaching English Online, teaching Young Learners and Business English

Multiple tutors support this course.

ALEX- I have 22 years' experience in TEFL. After gaining my CELTA in Madrid after university (BA Business and Law), I taught in Barcelona for 6 years before returning to the UK. I have worked in various TEFL specialisms over the years, from general English in traditional language schools, to exam preparation, private lessons, online teaching, Business English, young learners, and TEFL publishing, in positions ranging from EFL teacher to DOS. I have been involved in EFL teacher training for the last 10 years, involving face to face and online tutoring as well as writing course materials, and most recently completed a course to become a Linguaskill speaking examiner.

I have worked for Tefl.org since very shortly after it began in 2008. I started as a classroom tutor doing the face-to-face 20 and 30-hour courses and have been an online tutor too for around 8 years now. I am also directly involved in writing online course materials for an accredited TEFL training organization.

THOMAS- I am currently the Online & Academic Manager at TEFL Org, where I have worked since 2008.

I have been teaching English for 32 years, and a teacher trainer for 25 years. I have taught in France & Portugal, but most of my teaching has been in Madrid, Spain, where I have been living now for 30 years.

I have taught from general English in traditional language schools, to exam preparation, private lessons, online teaching, Business English, young learners in positions ranging from EFL teacher to Director of Studies. I was also a Cambridge examiner at the British Council for several years. My experience as an online teacher trainer started in 2000.

Over the years, I have also written teaching materials for online and face to face learning.

My qualifications include a TEFL certificate, Trinity Diploma in Teaching English as a second/another language, and a master's degree in Education Leadership & Management.

DEE- My name is Denise. I have been involved in the TEFL world for almost 40 years. I started teaching English locally when I was a young adult to new immigrants. I went to university as a mature student at the ripe old age of 24, where I graduated with a BA (Hons).

In 1992, I completed my CELTA teacher training. In the wake of the Barcelona Olympics, I moved to Spain, where I worked as an English teacher, head of studies, and a school director before opening my language school. Throughout my time in Spain, I was involved in teacher training and professional development courses, as well as communication skills training for high-level business executives in English. I also worked as a coursebook writer and editor for an EFL publishing company. I started writing and working with blended learning courses when they were in their infancy, which led to the advent of 100% online learning in the early 2000s.

I am also an Internal Quality Assessor and have also written several TEFL training courses over the last 20 years.

ASIF- I started academic and professional life in the law; however, I often found myself in situations where I was having to decipher, learn, analyze, or teach aspects of language. As this took-up more and more of my time, the decision to make language my full-time occupation did not take long to make, and I became and remain a secondary-school teacher, the classroom being my favorite place. Knowing what you do needs a firm understanding of language, to which I credit my academic grounding in applied linguistics and many years in the classroom. Academically, my primary research interest lies in language testing, a field in which I have supervised several research candidates, some at the doctoral level. This affords me an in-depth understanding of the thinking behind the syllabuses and exams you will come across in different parts of the world. It allows me to take a step back and fit exams and the like into a fit-for-purpose context.

I have worked for an accredited TEFL training organization for 10 years as a classroom and online tutor. My qualifications include a master's degree in Applied Linguistics and a master's degree in TESOL. I may be preparing executives for a press conference one weekend; I may be teaching basic English to refugees another, delivering teacher-training courses the weekend after, and marking online assessments too.

Gain confidence in applying the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts (reading, writing, speaking and listening, and language) to the K-5 classroom.

Discover the Common Core State standards for English language arts, and gain confidence in applying them to the K-5 classroom. In this course you will explore the basic elements of the standards—strands, anchor standards, and grade articulations—and you will see how they relate to each other. You will be empowered to speak knowledgeably with parents, peers, and the community.

You will explore the four English language strands—reading, writing, speaking, and listening, and language. You will examine how teaching literature gives students the opportunity to explore language, and consider the impact of a school-wide literacy plan. You will look at the roles of technology, homework, curricula, and assessments in the classroom. You will be inspired by loads of easy-to-use, practical examples of Common Core State Standards-aligned lessons that you can use with your own students.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Gain confidence in applying Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts in K-5 classrooms. This course will provide you with easy-to-use, practical examples aligned with lessons that you can begin using immediately in your own classroom to teach Common Core Standards.

Don't Be Afraid of the Common Core State Standards

In this lesson, you'll examine some of the most common myths about the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). You'll learn the history of the standards and how they'll help you prepare students for the 21st century. You'll also learn the basic elements of the standards and discover how they relate to each other and get a handle on the terminology. By the time you finish this lesson, you'll understand the CCSS document and how to use it and be ready to start examining the standards in greater detail!

The Reading Strand

In this lesson, you'll look at the Common Core Standards for reading. First, you'll explore the 10 anchor standards and see how their broad goals are consistent throughout the grades (kindergarten through grade 12). Then, you'll see how those broad goals are articulated for each grade level in K-5. You'll spend some extra time with the 10th standard, discussing text complexity and how it's measured, and get a chance to explore the text exemplars from CCSS Appendix B. By the end of this lesson, you'll be ready to examine those Reading strand grade articulations that will be relevant to your own classroom.

Foundational Reading Skills

This lesson talks about foundational reading skills. You'll examine the Common Core Standards for foundational reading skills and learn how these standards address the most basic literacy skills. You'll discover ways to incorporate them into lesson plans that easily adapt for inclusive classrooms, and there will also be some time devoted to exploring CCSS Appendix A. By the end of this lesson, you'll be on your way to creating a personalized glossary and a focused collection of grade articulations for your own classroom!

Reading Informational Text

In this lesson, you'll look at how the CCSS focus on informational text prepares students for 21st-century life. You'll learn some tips to help you differentiate between literature and informational text, and take a quick look at the informational text exemplars from the CCSS Appendix B. You'll also discover how text exemplars can help you determine which informational texts satisfy the Common Core Standards. Finally, you'll review some guided reading and close reading techniques and discuss why these are integral to science, math, social studies, and arts classes.

Reading Literature

In this lesson, you'll discover how literature—stories, poetry, and drama—prepares students for their role in 21st-century society. You'll explore two more close reading strategies and look at how the tools and strategies that were covered in the discussion of the Reading strand align with the CCSS Anchor Standards for Reading.

The Writing Strand

In this lesson, you'll look at the Common Core Standards for writing. You'll explore the 10 anchor standards for writing and review how their broad goals are consistent throughout all grades—kindergarten through 12th grade. You'll look at how those broad goals are articulated for each specific K-5 grade level and also take a peek at the writing exemplars from the CCSS Appendix C. By the end of the lesson, you'll be prepared to study the Writing strand grade articulations that will be relevant to your own classroom!

The Speaking and Listening Strand

In this lesson, you'll look at the Common Core Standards for Speaking and Listening. You'll learn how the speaking and listening anchor standards relate to comprehension, collaboration, and presentation of ideas. You'll also examine how these broad goals are articulated for each specific K-5 grade level. Afterwards, you'll go over a few tried-and-true techniques for maintaining control in a conversational classroom!

The Language Strand

Here you'll explore the Common Core Standards for Language, the fourth and final ELA strand. You'll learn how these anchor standards relate to the conventions of standard English, how language functions in different contexts, and how young people acquire and use vocabulary. You'll also review how the broad goals of the anchor standards are articulated for each specific K-5 grade level. You'll look at some practical examples of classroom activities that encourage students to play with language and examine how "playing with language" helps students actually understand language!

Technology and Literacy Skills

In this lesson, you'll learn how each anchor standard and grade articulation is identified by a simple-to-understand abbreviation. You'll look at all four strands and discuss the many ways technology and literacy work together in the 21st-century classroom. You'll also be presented with lots of great web resources—for you, your students, and your students' families. Integrating technology into the classroom and curriculum can be a great way to reinforce literacy skills and improve learning!

Fitting It Together in a 21st-Century Classroom

In this lesson, you'll come to understand how integrated literacy, curricula, classroom lessons, and homework fit together to create a CCSS-aligned learning experience. The lesson will provide you with some strategies for integrating literacy across the curriculum, and then you'll look at some ways to bring homework back into the classroom! You'll also be given a tool for examining your school's curriculum to ensure that it's aligned with CCSS. By the end of this lesson, you'll have the tools and knowledge you need to create a 21st-century classroom.

Assessments: How Will You Know It's Working?

This lesson discusses assessments. These are a significant concern for many teachers—the changes to assessments aligned with CCSS, as well as the administration of the new assessment. This lesson will discuss summative assessments and the two new assessment consortia, PARCC and Smarter Balanced. It will also discuss formative assessment strategies that you can implement throughout your lessons and units. You'll be relieved to discover that you can still exercise a lot of control over the assessments you use in the classroom!

Making CCSS Come Alive in the Classroom

In the final lesson, you'll see how you can make CCSS come alive in the classroom. The lesson will talk about some strategies that will help you determine which lesson plans are already working well and align with the CCSS goals, and which you might consider replacing with new and improved lessons. It will also talk about ways you can differentiate your classroom instruction to meet CCSS goals and also meet the needs of your individual students. Finally, you'll look at some helpful resources for involving parents, family members, and the community in your 21st-century classroom!

What you will learn

• Learn the basic elements of the standards
• Learn terminology used in Common Core State Standards
• Explore the 10 anchor standers and how they are articulated for each grade level
• Become familiar with Appendix A, B, and C
• Learn ways to incorporate the standards into your lesson plans
• Learn strategies and tools for reading, writing, listening, and language strands into your classroom
• Discover web resources for you, your students and your students' families
• Learn ways to ensure that your school's curriculum is aligned with CCSS

How you will benefit

• You will be empowered to steak knowledgeably with parents, peers, and the community about the common Core State Standards
• Become confident in your ability to employ the CCS standards in your classroom and in your school

Dr. Katie McKnight is an author, educator, and consultant. She received her B.A. from George Washington University, her M.Ed. from Northeastern Illinois University, and her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Today, she serves as a professor at National Louis University and an onsite professional development consultant for the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). Dr. McKnight regularly publishes in professional journals and is the author of many books including The Elementary Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, and The Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, Grades 5-12 (recipient of the 2013 Teachers' Choice Award).

Gain confidence in applying the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts (reading, writing, speaking and listening, and language) to the K-5 classroom.

Discover the Common Core State standards for English language arts, and gain confidence in applying them to the K-5 classroom. In this course you will explore the basic elements of the standards—strands, anchor standards, and grade articulations—and you will see how they relate to each other. You will be empowered to speak knowledgeably with parents, peers, and the community.

You will explore the four English language strands—reading, writing, speaking, and listening, and language. You will examine how teaching literature gives students the opportunity to explore language, and consider the impact of a school-wide literacy plan. You will look at the roles of technology, homework, curricula, and assessments in the classroom. You will be inspired by loads of easy-to-use, practical examples of Common Core State Standards-aligned lessons that you can use with your own students.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Gain confidence in applying Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts in K-5 classrooms. This course will provide you with easy-to-use, practical examples aligned with lessons that you can begin using immediately in your own classroom to teach Common Core Standards.

Don't Be Afraid of the Common Core State Standards

In this lesson, you'll examine some of the most common myths about the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). You'll learn the history of the standards and how they'll help you prepare students for the 21st century. You'll also learn the basic elements of the standards and discover how they relate to each other and get a handle on the terminology. By the time you finish this lesson, you'll understand the CCSS document and how to use it and be ready to start examining the standards in greater detail!

The Reading Strand

In this lesson, you'll look at the Common Core Standards for reading. First, you'll explore the 10 anchor standards and see how their broad goals are consistent throughout the grades (kindergarten through grade 12). Then, you'll see how those broad goals are articulated for each grade level in K-5. You'll spend some extra time with the 10th standard, discussing text complexity and how it's measured, and get a chance to explore the text exemplars from CCSS Appendix B. By the end of this lesson, you'll be ready to examine those Reading strand grade articulations that will be relevant to your own classroom.

Foundational Reading Skills

This lesson talks about foundational reading skills. You'll examine the Common Core Standards for foundational reading skills and learn how these standards address the most basic literacy skills. You'll discover ways to incorporate them into lesson plans that easily adapt for inclusive classrooms, and there will also be some time devoted to exploring CCSS Appendix A. By the end of this lesson, you'll be on your way to creating a personalized glossary and a focused collection of grade articulations for your own classroom!

Reading Informational Text

In this lesson, you'll look at how the CCSS focus on informational text prepares students for 21st-century life. You'll learn some tips to help you differentiate between literature and informational text, and take a quick look at the informational text exemplars from the CCSS Appendix B. You'll also discover how text exemplars can help you determine which informational texts satisfy the Common Core Standards. Finally, you'll review some guided reading and close reading techniques and discuss why these are integral to science, math, social studies, and arts classes.

Reading Literature

In this lesson, you'll discover how literature—stories, poetry, and drama—prepares students for their role in 21st-century society. You'll explore two more close reading strategies and look at how the tools and strategies that were covered in the discussion of the Reading strand align with the CCSS Anchor Standards for Reading.

The Writing Strand

In this lesson, you'll look at the Common Core Standards for writing. You'll explore the 10 anchor standards for writing and review how their broad goals are consistent throughout all grades—kindergarten through 12th grade. You'll look at how those broad goals are articulated for each specific K-5 grade level and also take a peek at the writing exemplars from the CCSS Appendix C. By the end of the lesson, you'll be prepared to study the Writing strand grade articulations that will be relevant to your own classroom!

The Speaking and Listening Strand

In this lesson, you'll look at the Common Core Standards for Speaking and Listening. You'll learn how the speaking and listening anchor standards relate to comprehension, collaboration, and presentation of ideas. You'll also examine how these broad goals are articulated for each specific K-5 grade level. Afterwards, you'll go over a few tried-and-true techniques for maintaining control in a conversational classroom!

The Language Strand

Here you'll explore the Common Core Standards for Language, the fourth and final ELA strand. You'll learn how these anchor standards relate to the conventions of standard English, how language functions in different contexts, and how young people acquire and use vocabulary. You'll also review how the broad goals of the anchor standards are articulated for each specific K-5 grade level. You'll look at some practical examples of classroom activities that encourage students to play with language and examine how "playing with language" helps students actually understand language!

Technology and Literacy Skills

In this lesson, you'll learn how each anchor standard and grade articulation is identified by a simple-to-understand abbreviation. You'll look at all four strands and discuss the many ways technology and literacy work together in the 21st-century classroom. You'll also be presented with lots of great web resources—for you, your students, and your students' families. Integrating technology into the classroom and curriculum can be a great way to reinforce literacy skills and improve learning!

Fitting It Together in a 21st-Century Classroom

In this lesson, you'll come to understand how integrated literacy, curricula, classroom lessons, and homework fit together to create a CCSS-aligned learning experience. The lesson will provide you with some strategies for integrating literacy across the curriculum, and then you'll look at some ways to bring homework back into the classroom! You'll also be given a tool for examining your school's curriculum to ensure that it's aligned with CCSS. By the end of this lesson, you'll have the tools and knowledge you need to create a 21st-century classroom.

Assessments: How Will You Know It's Working?

This lesson discusses assessments. These are a significant concern for many teachers—the changes to assessments aligned with CCSS, as well as the administration of the new assessment. This lesson will discuss summative assessments and the two new assessment consortia, PARCC and Smarter Balanced. It will also discuss formative assessment strategies that you can implement throughout your lessons and units. You'll be relieved to discover that you can still exercise a lot of control over the assessments you use in the classroom!

Making CCSS Come Alive in the Classroom

In the final lesson, you'll see how you can make CCSS come alive in the classroom. The lesson will talk about some strategies that will help you determine which lesson plans are already working well and align with the CCSS goals, and which you might consider replacing with new and improved lessons. It will also talk about ways you can differentiate your classroom instruction to meet CCSS goals and also meet the needs of your individual students. Finally, you'll look at some helpful resources for involving parents, family members, and the community in your 21st-century classroom!

What you will learn

• Learn the basic elements of the standards
• Learn terminology used in Common Core State Standards
• Explore the 10 anchor standers and how they are articulated for each grade level
• Become familiar with Appendix A, B, and C
• Learn ways to incorporate the standards into your lesson plans
• Learn strategies and tools for reading, writing, listening, and language strands into your classroom
• Discover web resources for you, your students and your students' families
• Learn ways to ensure that your school's curriculum is aligned with CCSS

How you will benefit

• You will be empowered to steak knowledgeably with parents, peers, and the community about the common Core State Standards
• Become confident in your ability to employ the CCS standards in your classroom and in your school

Dr. Katie McKnight is an author, educator, and consultant. She received her B.A. from George Washington University, her M.Ed. from Northeastern Illinois University, and her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Today, she serves as a professor at National Louis University and an onsite professional development consultant for the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). Dr. McKnight regularly publishes in professional journals and is the author of many books including The Elementary Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, and The Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, Grades 5-12 (recipient of the 2013 Teachers' Choice Award).

Learn practical strategies for incorporating reading, writing, and the other literacy skills outlined in the Common Core State Standards into your content area for adolescent students.

In order to succeed, students must develop literacy skills in order to access, learn, and comprehend. With the adoption of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), teachers in all subject areas are finding themselves actively involved in their students' literacy development. In this course, you will discover literacy development strategies that make content come alive for each and every student!

You will see how new literacy standards relate to the content areas, and uncover the many ways adolescent development is connected to effective teaching. You'll explore differentiated education and see how easy it can be to deliver content to students at varying levels of literacy development. In addition, you'll analyze your current teaching practices to identify the effective literacy development that you're already doing. You'll adapt some of your favorite lessons to enhance reading, writing, speaking, listening, and language development. By the end of the course, you'll be confident in your ability to utilize the best of what's new, keep the best of what you've already got, and enjoy being a great 21st-century teacher!

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Help your students succeed in school with well-developed literacy skills. This course will provide practical strategies for incorporating reading, writing, and the other literacy skills outlined in the Common Core State Standards into your content area for differentiated adolescent education.

Fundamentals of Adolescent Literacy

In the first lesson, you'll examine the difference between literacy and literature and look closely at the adolescent brain to find out how learning during that life stage is different than learning as a baby, child, or adult. You'll get a quick refresher on the concept of learning styles and discover how you can accommodate a diverse group of learners in a classroom. By the time the lesson is over, you'll be ready to explore the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and see how they address the need for grades 6-12 interdisciplinary literacy.

CCSS and Interdisciplinary Literacy

In this lesson you'll explore the history and goals of the CCSS. You'll find out how the developers of the CCSS structured the standards to help prepare students for the 21st century workplace and see how interdisciplinary literacy fits into the standards. You'll then walk through the document and examine its parts. Finally, you'll discover how you might use it when you prepare classroom activities.

Text Complexity

Everyone knows that students need to read more, and they need to read more complex texts. How would you explain what text complexity is? This lesson will discuss the three aspects of text complexity as described in the CCSS. By the end of the lesson, you'll see how you can use text complexity analysis in your content area classroom to help students develop their reading skills and more readily master your academic material.

Reading Strategies That Build Comprehension in the Content Areas

In this lesson, you'll take an in-depth look at the CCSS reading standards. First, you'll examine the reading anchor standards and see how they're articulated for different grade levels as students read both literature and informational texts. Then, you'll examine practical examples of reading strategies that you can use in your own content area classroom. By the end of this lesson, you'll have a clear picture of how to use reading strategies to build comprehension in your content area.

Writing Strategies That Build Comprehension in the Content Areas

In this lesson you'll explore the writing standards and see how the CCSS articulates them for different grade levels. You'll look at some practical writing strategies that are ideally suited for the content area classroom, and then you'll see one of those strategies in practice. You'll also examine some of the most common tricks of the trade among English Language Arts teachers and how you can apply them to your classroom. After seeing what writing strategies look like in practice, you'll be inspired to try them yourself!

Speaking and Listening in the Content Areas

Don't assume that your students have mastered their speaking and listening skills. In this lesson, you'll explore the Common Core State Standards for speaking and listening. You'll examine how the broad goals of the anchor standards are articulated for the 6-12 grade levels and then take a close look at some speaking and listening activities that are ideally suited for the content area classroom. Along the way, the lesson will go over a few techniques for maintaining control in a conversational classroom.

Argumentation as Literacy Development

Most teenagers enjoy a good debate. There's nothing inherently wrong with this; a well-argued debate can lead to some pretty exciting outcomes. In this lesson, you'll take a close look at how argumentation is related to literacy and learn ways to reinforce and encourage the value of debate in your content area classroom.

Developing Academic Language in the Content Areas

Language is the basic building block of any society; it's how people communicate and record events. In this lesson, you'll examine the CCSS goals for language development and learn how to help students achieve these goals in your own classroom.

Technology and Literacy

Technology has significantly changed the way that teachers teach. This lesson is all about integrating the CCSS technology standards into the content area classroom. You'll discover how content learning, classroom technology, and literacy development complement each other and can occur simultaneously. Worried you're not an IT person and don't have the technological skills to succeed? Don't be. The lesson will address that, too, and by the end of it, you'll be ready to roll up your sleeves and dive headfirst into the technology deep end!

Student Learning Centers

Student learning centers are a valuable, real-world model of how content learning and literacy skill development can happen simultaneously in every classroom. In this lesson, you'll learn how to repurpose existing lesson activities as learning center activities, and you'll find out why this approach to working with students in the upper grades is a practical way to integrate literacy development and content learning.

Assessment: How Will I Know It's Working?

In this lesson, you'll find out how content literacy affects formative assessments and summative assessments. You'll learn what formative assessment is and isn't and then learn the three steps to a well-implemented formative assessment. You'll also look at how you can incorporate this type of assessment into your instruction. The lesson will discuss the five building blocks of formative assessment, and you'll learn some simple strategies you can use in your classroom. You'll also take a close look at summative assessments and find out about the two new assessment consortia that will administer standardized tests: Smarter Balanced and PARCC.

Literacy Evolution in the Classroom

In the final lesson for this course, you'll make a plan to use the best of what's new, keep the best of what you've already got, and enjoy being a great 21st century teacher. This lesson will wrap up everything you've learned throughout this course, and you'll examine tools you can use to integrate the CCSS with your existing lesson plans and your school's curriculum.

What you will learn

• Discover how to integrate literacy development with the content area knowledge you teach
• Learn to utilize new ideas while augmenting the skills and lesson plans you have already developed
• Discover literacy development strategies that make content come alive for each and every student
• Learn how literacy is connected to adolescent development, and discover how to accommodate a diverse group of learners in a classroom

How you will benefit

• Learn to utilize new ideas while augmenting the skills and lesson plans you have already developed
• Gain confidence in your ability to adapt to the CCSS and be a successful 21st century teacher
• See how easy it can be to deliver content to students at varying levels of literacy development

Dr. Katie McKnight is an author, educator, and consultant. She received her B.A. from George Washington University, her M.Ed. from Northeastern Illinois University, and her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Today, she serves as a professor at National Louis University and an onsite professional development consultant for the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). Dr. McKnight regularly publishes in professional journals and is the author of many books including The Elementary Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, and The Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, Grades 5-12 (recipient of the 2013 Teachers' Choice Award).

Learn practical strategies for incorporating reading, writing, and the other literacy skills outlined in the Common Core State Standards into your content area for adolescent students.

In order to succeed, students must develop literacy skills in order to access, learn, and comprehend. With the adoption of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), teachers in all subject areas are finding themselves actively involved in their students' literacy development. In this course, you will discover literacy development strategies that make content come alive for each and every student!

You will see how new literacy standards relate to the content areas, and uncover the many ways adolescent development is connected to effective teaching. You'll explore differentiated education and see how easy it can be to deliver content to students at varying levels of literacy development. In addition, you'll analyze your current teaching practices to identify the effective literacy development that you're already doing. You'll adapt some of your favorite lessons to enhance reading, writing, speaking, listening, and language development. By the end of the course, you'll be confident in your ability to utilize the best of what's new, keep the best of what you've already got, and enjoy being a great 21st-century teacher!

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Help your students succeed in school with well-developed literacy skills. This course will provide practical strategies for incorporating reading, writing, and the other literacy skills outlined in the Common Core State Standards into your content area for differentiated adolescent education.

Fundamentals of Adolescent Literacy

In the first lesson, you'll examine the difference between literacy and literature and look closely at the adolescent brain to find out how learning during that life stage is different than learning as a baby, child, or adult. You'll get a quick refresher on the concept of learning styles and discover how you can accommodate a diverse group of learners in a classroom. By the time the lesson is over, you'll be ready to explore the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and see how they address the need for grades 6-12 interdisciplinary literacy.

CCSS and Interdisciplinary Literacy

In this lesson you'll explore the history and goals of the CCSS. You'll find out how the developers of the CCSS structured the standards to help prepare students for the 21st century workplace and see how interdisciplinary literacy fits into the standards. You'll then walk through the document and examine its parts. Finally, you'll discover how you might use it when you prepare classroom activities.

Text Complexity

Everyone knows that students need to read more, and they need to read more complex texts. How would you explain what text complexity is? This lesson will discuss the three aspects of text complexity as described in the CCSS. By the end of the lesson, you'll see how you can use text complexity analysis in your content area classroom to help students develop their reading skills and more readily master your academic material.

Reading Strategies That Build Comprehension in the Content Areas

In this lesson, you'll take an in-depth look at the CCSS reading standards. First, you'll examine the reading anchor standards and see how they're articulated for different grade levels as students read both literature and informational texts. Then, you'll examine practical examples of reading strategies that you can use in your own content area classroom. By the end of this lesson, you'll have a clear picture of how to use reading strategies to build comprehension in your content area.

Writing Strategies That Build Comprehension in the Content Areas

In this lesson you'll explore the writing standards and see how the CCSS articulates them for different grade levels. You'll look at some practical writing strategies that are ideally suited for the content area classroom, and then you'll see one of those strategies in practice. You'll also examine some of the most common tricks of the trade among English Language Arts teachers and how you can apply them to your classroom. After seeing what writing strategies look like in practice, you'll be inspired to try them yourself!

Speaking and Listening in the Content Areas

Don't assume that your students have mastered their speaking and listening skills. In this lesson, you'll explore the Common Core State Standards for speaking and listening. You'll examine how the broad goals of the anchor standards are articulated for the 6-12 grade levels and then take a close look at some speaking and listening activities that are ideally suited for the content area classroom. Along the way, the lesson will go over a few techniques for maintaining control in a conversational classroom.

Argumentation as Literacy Development

Most teenagers enjoy a good debate. There's nothing inherently wrong with this; a well-argued debate can lead to some pretty exciting outcomes. In this lesson, you'll take a close look at how argumentation is related to literacy and learn ways to reinforce and encourage the value of debate in your content area classroom.

Developing Academic Language in the Content Areas

Language is the basic building block of any society; it's how people communicate and record events. In this lesson, you'll examine the CCSS goals for language development and learn how to help students achieve these goals in your own classroom.

Technology and Literacy

Technology has significantly changed the way that teachers teach. This lesson is all about integrating the CCSS technology standards into the content area classroom. You'll discover how content learning, classroom technology, and literacy development complement each other and can occur simultaneously. Worried you're not an IT person and don't have the technological skills to succeed? Don't be. The lesson will address that, too, and by the end of it, you'll be ready to roll up your sleeves and dive headfirst into the technology deep end!

Student Learning Centers

Student learning centers are a valuable, real-world model of how content learning and literacy skill development can happen simultaneously in every classroom. In this lesson, you'll learn how to repurpose existing lesson activities as learning center activities, and you'll find out why this approach to working with students in the upper grades is a practical way to integrate literacy development and content learning.

Assessment: How Will I Know It's Working?

In this lesson, you'll find out how content literacy affects formative assessments and summative assessments. You'll learn what formative assessment is and isn't and then learn the three steps to a well-implemented formative assessment. You'll also look at how you can incorporate this type of assessment into your instruction. The lesson will discuss the five building blocks of formative assessment, and you'll learn some simple strategies you can use in your classroom. You'll also take a close look at summative assessments and find out about the two new assessment consortia that will administer standardized tests: Smarter Balanced and PARCC.

Literacy Evolution in the Classroom

In the final lesson for this course, you'll make a plan to use the best of what's new, keep the best of what you've already got, and enjoy being a great 21st century teacher. This lesson will wrap up everything you've learned throughout this course, and you'll examine tools you can use to integrate the CCSS with your existing lesson plans and your school's curriculum.

What you will learn

• Discover how to integrate literacy development with the content area knowledge you teach
• Learn to utilize new ideas while augmenting the skills and lesson plans you have already developed
• Discover literacy development strategies that make content come alive for each and every student
• Learn how literacy is connected to adolescent development, and discover how to accommodate a diverse group of learners in a classroom

How you will benefit

• Learn to utilize new ideas while augmenting the skills and lesson plans you have already developed
• Gain confidence in your ability to adapt to the CCSS and be a successful 21st century teacher
• See how easy it can be to deliver content to students at varying levels of literacy development

Dr. Katie McKnight is an author, educator, and consultant. She received her B.A. from George Washington University, her M.Ed. from Northeastern Illinois University, and her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Today, she serves as a professor at National Louis University and an onsite professional development consultant for the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). Dr. McKnight regularly publishes in professional journals and is the author of many books including The Elementary Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, and The Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, Grades 5-12 (recipient of the 2013 Teachers' Choice Award).

Counseling for College Prep is an insightful course for high school counselors and professionals looking for ways to help students of all backgrounds graduate. It goes beyond graduation to post-secondary planning and tools and resources to support student success.

The Counseling for College Prep course will explore various aspects of supporting your students in their post-graduation aspirations. While students' backgrounds, situations, and dreams are all different, this online guidance counselor course will discuss how your role is similar for each. You will explore how becoming a student's host can help them see that life can be different and what it takes to support them to succeed.

You will also explore building a toolbox of resources to use as college counselor to support students' discovery and planning processes—no matter their background. You will learn to assemble a network of other professionals that can help, including at a national and local community level. 

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook device.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 10 or later operating systems.
• Mac: OS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox is preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Microsoft Word Online
• Adobe Acrobat Reader
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

While the college-going experience may evolve, it is not going away. In this online course, you will prepare for a vital role where you support students’ post-secondary aspirations as we also explore how critical your role is to the evolution of our communities.

Current Trends in College Decisions

In this lesson, you will discuss the culturally driven, overarching concept of the college-going culture. You will explore ongoing trends that help manifest the college-going culture. You will consider fiscally responsible paths for many students and the need for early intervention in this substantial decision-making process. Finally, you will look at current trends in business and industry that may drive different decisions from those our generations made for these young, soon-to-be graduates as they move on into college and other educational paths.

Your Role in Preparing Students for College

Now you will clarify your role as a professional in helping students prepare for selection and admissions processes for post-secondary school. You will solicit community engagement and outreach networks for resources to support your students. You will consider ethical and legal considerations for your role in this process. Finally, you will summarize the key aspects of your role in understanding and explaining financial aid and funding sources to help your students achieve their post-secondary school vision.

The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Model

This lesson delves into the American School Counselor Association’s position on the role of a school counselor and a model for school counselor programs in schools. It will help you better understand the ASCA model and the role of a school counselor. You will review insights, information, and best practices for establishing a graduation and career-preparation culture. You will discuss the model and create a plan for assessing your school’s current graduation and career-preparation culture and identifying gaps between that and the desired future vision. You will finally discuss how to engage internal and external resources to support improvement in graduation and career preparation advocacy.

Supporting Special Student Populations in the College-Going Culture

This lesson expands on the need to build a network and a toolbox to support your students’ college aspirations. This process includes connecting with professionals in local educational institutions. In this lesson, we will dig a bit deeper into best practices for navigating a college-going culture. This will include adding to your toolbox with real examples of what your peers are doing to build a college-going culture. You will discuss supporting students from different demographic populations and special populations. Finally, you will learn about military options and resources for your students.

Community Colleges as an Alternative

This lesson will help you understand the origin of the community college. It will also explore reasons for current-day community colleges. It will help you understand what they currently offer for your students so you can have more efficient college-going decision conversations with your students. Finally, it will discuss and help you discuss the financial investment and return of a community college. The goal of this lesson is to help you add to your network and toolbox to help students for whom a community college is a great option.

Exploring College and Alternative Choices

In this lesson, you will learn about college visits and fairs. You likely have some experience or knowledge of these events. However, this lesson will look a bit deeper at the logistics of setting up your fairs and coordinating with local institutions. You will also explore how to use these events to set up financial workshops to help your students and families understand and plan for the economic requirements of college. You will consider how to also partner with local U.S. military recruiters to set up similar events for your students who are interested in that path. Finally, you will assess your toolbox for coordinating these events and add to it as you work through the lesson and assignment.

Connecting Students to School and Community Resources

In this lesson, you will learn about connecting your students with community resources that can help them prepare for college. You will learn about national and local community resources that can help them and you in the process. You will discuss the barriers your students will face in connecting with and gaining support from community resources. You will consider how parent engagement strengthens these connections. Finally, you will explore ways to help your students bridge the gap between where they are now and where they want to be post-graduation.

Post-Secondary Preparation for Students with Developmental Disabilities or Social-Emotional Challenges

In this lesson, you will learn about helping students with disabilities prepare for and transition to post-secondary aspirations. These considerations include life skills, college, and careers. You will look at how the law changes when they leave high school. We will discuss case management and the transition to college or other post-secondary goals. You will consider the student’s desired plan and discuss how to help them achieve it. Finally, we will discuss students who are challenged with social-emotional obstacles during high school. Specifically, we will look at those kids that were possibly underrepresented during high school.

Preparing Students for Post-Secondary Success

In this lesson, you will learn to examine the study habits of students who were successful in college or post-secondary education. You will distinguish study techniques used by students preparing to attend trade and apprenticeships that may be similar to or different from those attending a four-year college. Finally, you will consider the academic habits and study methods used by students who successfully navigated a proprietary or licensing institution.

Early Exposure to College and Post-Secondary Programs

In this lesson, you will learn about the early and ongoing exposure of elementary, middle, and high school students to post-secondary planning. We will discuss experiential processes and models to help younger students consider career and college conversations throughout their entire educational experience. Finally, we will explore strategies to help parents or guardians with resources to help with the college-going and career conversations and planning.

Planning for College and Alternative Educational Expenses

In this lesson, you will learn about investment conversations and strategies when determining how to finance a college or post-secondary educational experience. You will consider the financial implications of financial instruments intended to support the college-going experience. You will look at the world of scholarships and ways to help students achieve a college degree without decades of debt. You will compile lists of resources that will help your students and their families when making these often life-changing decisions. This is a time that students and their families need a host—they need you and other professionals to support this journey.

Advocating for Special Populations

In this lesson, you will learn about assessing your post-secondary education planning programs, toolboxes, and networks. You will consider how your current process supports diverse populations of students who will face inclusion and equity issues in the college selection and admissions processes. You will explore how your current programming and toolbox are prepared to support diverse student populations including commuters, in-resident, and distance-learning post-secondary college-going situations. You will look at how effectively your program is set up to support students with disabilities, adult learners, and student-athletes. Finally, you will consider the unique needs of international and transfer students as well as first-generation and dually enrolled students. This lesson will ask you to analyze your current program and commit to improving it in areas that may be deficient.

What you will learn

• Apply the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) model to advocate for college readiness for every student in a school setting.
• Analyze current best practices for promoting college readiness.
• Demonstrate how to plan, organize, and deliver college and alternative options to all students.
• Demonstrate advocacy for younger students, in early and ongoing exposure to comprehensive K-12 college and post-secondary program experiences.
• Demonstrate the basics of financial planning counseling for college and alternative post-secondary educational experiences.

How you will benefit

• You will walk away with resources and plans for supporting graduation advocacy for every student.
• This course will provide tools and guidance for improving your school's current graduation and post-secondary planning efforts for every student.
• The assignments will help you carry out improvement initiatives and to build your toolbox for supporting your students and their families, as you complete them.

Terry Farris has over 20 years of experience working in career-based and liberal arts education. He has worked in the areas of financial aid, compliance, academics, enrollment management, and career placement over the course of his career.  

Currently, Terry works as the Director of Virtual Career Days at Everytale, Inc. Prior to this role, he spent many years assisting team members and graduates with becoming skilled individuals from a career perspective. He also has taught college mathematics, communications, and professional development to a wide range of students.  

Terry holds a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in both Marketing and Management from Fairmont State University, his Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Business Administration from Colorado Technical University, and his Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Education from Walden University.  

Counseling for College Prep is an insightful course for high school counselors and professionals looking for ways to help students of all backgrounds graduate. It goes beyond graduation to post-secondary planning and tools and resources to support student success.

The Counseling for College Prep course will explore various aspects of supporting your students in their post-graduation aspirations. While students' backgrounds, situations, and dreams are all different, this online guidance counselor course will discuss how your role is similar for each. You will explore how becoming a student's host can help them see that life can be different and what it takes to support them to succeed.

You will also explore building a toolbox of resources to use as college counselor to support students' discovery and planning processes—no matter their background. You will learn to assemble a network of other professionals that can help, including at a national and local community level. 

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook device.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 10 or later operating systems.
• Mac: OS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox is preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Microsoft Word Online
• Adobe Acrobat Reader
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

While the college-going experience may evolve, it is not going away. In this online course, you will prepare for a vital role where you support students’ post-secondary aspirations as we also explore how critical your role is to the evolution of our communities.

Current Trends in College Decisions

In this lesson, you will discuss the culturally driven, overarching concept of the college-going culture. You will explore ongoing trends that help manifest the college-going culture. You will consider fiscally responsible paths for many students and the need for early intervention in this substantial decision-making process. Finally, you will look at current trends in business and industry that may drive different decisions from those our generations made for these young, soon-to-be graduates as they move on into college and other educational paths.

Your Role in Preparing Students for College

Now you will clarify your role as a professional in helping students prepare for selection and admissions processes for post-secondary school. You will solicit community engagement and outreach networks for resources to support your students. You will consider ethical and legal considerations for your role in this process. Finally, you will summarize the key aspects of your role in understanding and explaining financial aid and funding sources to help your students achieve their post-secondary school vision.

The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Model

This lesson delves into the American School Counselor Association’s position on the role of a school counselor and a model for school counselor programs in schools. It will help you better understand the ASCA model and the role of a school counselor. You will review insights, information, and best practices for establishing a graduation and career-preparation culture. You will discuss the model and create a plan for assessing your school’s current graduation and career-preparation culture and identifying gaps between that and the desired future vision. You will finally discuss how to engage internal and external resources to support improvement in graduation and career preparation advocacy.

Supporting Special Student Populations in the College-Going Culture

This lesson expands on the need to build a network and a toolbox to support your students’ college aspirations. This process includes connecting with professionals in local educational institutions. In this lesson, we will dig a bit deeper into best practices for navigating a college-going culture. This will include adding to your toolbox with real examples of what your peers are doing to build a college-going culture. You will discuss supporting students from different demographic populations and special populations. Finally, you will learn about military options and resources for your students.

Community Colleges as an Alternative

This lesson will help you understand the origin of the community college. It will also explore reasons for current-day community colleges. It will help you understand what they currently offer for your students so you can have more efficient college-going decision conversations with your students. Finally, it will discuss and help you discuss the financial investment and return of a community college. The goal of this lesson is to help you add to your network and toolbox to help students for whom a community college is a great option.

Exploring College and Alternative Choices

In this lesson, you will learn about college visits and fairs. You likely have some experience or knowledge of these events. However, this lesson will look a bit deeper at the logistics of setting up your fairs and coordinating with local institutions. You will also explore how to use these events to set up financial workshops to help your students and families understand and plan for the economic requirements of college. You will consider how to also partner with local U.S. military recruiters to set up similar events for your students who are interested in that path. Finally, you will assess your toolbox for coordinating these events and add to it as you work through the lesson and assignment.

Connecting Students to School and Community Resources

In this lesson, you will learn about connecting your students with community resources that can help them prepare for college. You will learn about national and local community resources that can help them and you in the process. You will discuss the barriers your students will face in connecting with and gaining support from community resources. You will consider how parent engagement strengthens these connections. Finally, you will explore ways to help your students bridge the gap between where they are now and where they want to be post-graduation.

Post-Secondary Preparation for Students with Developmental Disabilities or Social-Emotional Challenges

In this lesson, you will learn about helping students with disabilities prepare for and transition to post-secondary aspirations. These considerations include life skills, college, and careers. You will look at how the law changes when they leave high school. We will discuss case management and the transition to college or other post-secondary goals. You will consider the student’s desired plan and discuss how to help them achieve it. Finally, we will discuss students who are challenged with social-emotional obstacles during high school. Specifically, we will look at those kids that were possibly underrepresented during high school.

Preparing Students for Post-Secondary Success

In this lesson, you will learn to examine the study habits of students who were successful in college or post-secondary education. You will distinguish study techniques used by students preparing to attend trade and apprenticeships that may be similar to or different from those attending a four-year college. Finally, you will consider the academic habits and study methods used by students who successfully navigated a proprietary or licensing institution.

Early Exposure to College and Post-Secondary Programs

In this lesson, you will learn about the early and ongoing exposure of elementary, middle, and high school students to post-secondary planning. We will discuss experiential processes and models to help younger students consider career and college conversations throughout their entire educational experience. Finally, we will explore strategies to help parents or guardians with resources to help with the college-going and career conversations and planning.

Planning for College and Alternative Educational Expenses

In this lesson, you will learn about investment conversations and strategies when determining how to finance a college or post-secondary educational experience. You will consider the financial implications of financial instruments intended to support the college-going experience. You will look at the world of scholarships and ways to help students achieve a college degree without decades of debt. You will compile lists of resources that will help your students and their families when making these often life-changing decisions. This is a time that students and their families need a host—they need you and other professionals to support this journey.

Advocating for Special Populations

In this lesson, you will learn about assessing your post-secondary education planning programs, toolboxes, and networks. You will consider how your current process supports diverse populations of students who will face inclusion and equity issues in the college selection and admissions processes. You will explore how your current programming and toolbox are prepared to support diverse student populations including commuters, in-resident, and distance-learning post-secondary college-going situations. You will look at how effectively your program is set up to support students with disabilities, adult learners, and student-athletes. Finally, you will consider the unique needs of international and transfer students as well as first-generation and dually enrolled students. This lesson will ask you to analyze your current program and commit to improving it in areas that may be deficient.

What you will learn

• Apply the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) model to advocate for college readiness for every student in a school setting.
• Analyze current best practices for promoting college readiness.
• Demonstrate how to plan, organize, and deliver college and alternative options to all students.
• Demonstrate advocacy for younger students, in early and ongoing exposure to comprehensive K-12 college and post-secondary program experiences.
• Demonstrate the basics of financial planning counseling for college and alternative post-secondary educational experiences.

How you will benefit

• You will walk away with resources and plans for supporting graduation advocacy for every student.
• This course will provide tools and guidance for improving your school's current graduation and post-secondary planning efforts for every student.
• The assignments will help you carry out improvement initiatives and to build your toolbox for supporting your students and their families, as you complete them.

Terry Farris has over 20 years of experience working in career-based and liberal arts education. He has worked in the areas of financial aid, compliance, academics, enrollment management, and career placement over the course of his career.  

Currently, Terry works as the Director of Virtual Career Days at Everytale, Inc. Prior to this role, he spent many years assisting team members and graduates with becoming skilled individuals from a career perspective. He also has taught college mathematics, communications, and professional development to a wide range of students.  

Terry holds a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in both Marketing and Management from Fairmont State University, his Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Business Administration from Colorado Technical University, and his Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Education from Walden University.  

Counseling for College Prep is an insightful course for high school counselors and professionals looking for ways to help students of all backgrounds graduate. It goes beyond graduation to post-secondary planning and tools and resources to support student success.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook device.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 10 or later operating systems.
• Mac: OS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox is preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Microsoft Word Online
• Adobe Acrobat Reader
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

While the college-going experience may evolve, it is not going away. In this online course, you will prepare for a vital role where you support students’ post-secondary aspirations as we also explore how critical your role is to the evolution of our communities.

Lesson 1: Current Trends in College Decisions

In this lesson, you will discuss the culturally driven, overarching concept of the college-going culture. You will explore ongoing trends that help manifest the college-going culture. You will consider fiscally responsible paths for many students and the need for early intervention in this substantial decision-making process. Finally, you will look at current trends in business and industry that may drive different decisions from those our generations made for these young, soon-to-be graduates as they move on into college and other educational paths.

Lesson 2: Your Role in Preparing Students for College

Now you will clarify your role as a professional in helping students prepare for selection and admissions processes for post-secondary school. You will solicit community engagement and outreach networks for resources to support your students. You will consider ethical and legal considerations for your role in this process. Finally, you will summarize the key aspects of your role in understanding and explaining financial aid and funding sources to help your students achieve their post-secondary school vision.

Lesson 3: The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Model

This lesson delves into the American School Counselor Association’s position on the role of a school counselor and a model for school counselor programs in schools. It will help you better understand the ASCA model and the role of a school counselor. You will review insights, information, and best practices for establishing a graduation and career-preparation culture. You will discuss the model and create a plan for assessing your school’s current graduation and career-preparation culture and identifying gaps between that and the desired future vision. You will finally discuss how to engage internal and external resources to support improvement in graduation and career preparation advocacy.

Lesson 4: Supporting Special Student Populations in the College-Going Culture

This lesson expands on the need to build a network and a toolbox to support your students’ college aspirations. This process includes connecting with professionals in local educational institutions. In this lesson, we will dig a bit deeper into best practices for navigating a college-going culture. This will include adding to your toolbox with real examples of what your peers are doing to build a college-going culture. You will discuss supporting students from different demographic populations and special populations. Finally, you will learn about military options and resources for your students.

Lesson 5: Community Colleges as an Alternative

This lesson will help you understand the origin of the community college. It will also explore reasons for current-day community colleges. It will help you understand what they currently offer for your students so you can have more efficient college-going decision conversations with your students. Finally, it will discuss and help you discuss the financial investment and return of a community college. The goal of this lesson is to help you add to your network and toolbox to help students for whom a community college is a great option.

Lesson 6: Exploring College and Alternative Choices

In this lesson, you will learn about college visits and fairs. You likely have some experience or knowledge of these events. However, this lesson will look a bit deeper at the logistics of setting up your fairs and coordinating with local institutions. You will also explore how to use these events to set up financial workshops to help your students and families understand and plan for the economic requirements of college. You will consider how to also partner with local U.S. military recruiters to set up similar events for your students who are interested in that path. Finally, you will assess your toolbox for coordinating these events and add to it as you work through the lesson and assignment.

Lesson 7: Connecting Students to School and Community Resources

In this lesson, you will learn about connecting your students with community resources that can help them prepare for college. You will learn about national and local community resources that can help them and you in the process. You will discuss the barriers your students will face in connecting with and gaining support from community resources. You will consider how parent engagement strengthens these connections. Finally, you will explore ways to help your students bridge the gap between where they are now and where they want to be post-graduation.

Lesson 8: Post-Secondary Preparation for Students with Developmental Disabilities or Social-Emotional Challenges

In this lesson, you will learn about helping students with disabilities prepare for and transition to post-secondary aspirations. These considerations include life skills, college, and careers. You will look at how the law changes when they leave high school. We will discuss case management and the transition to college or other post-secondary goals. You will consider the student’s desired plan and discuss how to help them achieve it. Finally, we will discuss students who are challenged with social-emotional obstacles during high school. Specifically, we will look at those kids that were possibly underrepresented during high school.

Lesson 9: Preparing Students for Post-Secondary Success

In this lesson, you will learn to examine the study habits of students who were successful in college or post-secondary education. You will distinguish study techniques used by students preparing to attend trade and apprenticeships that may be similar to or different from those attending a four-year college. Finally, you will consider the academic habits and study methods used by students who successfully navigated a proprietary or licensing institution.

Lesson 10: Early Exposure to College and Post-Secondary Programs

In this lesson, you will learn about the early and ongoing exposure of elementary, middle, and high school students to post-secondary planning. We will discuss experiential processes and models to help younger students consider career and college conversations throughout their entire educational experience. Finally, we will explore strategies to help parents or guardians with resources to help with the college-going and career conversations and planning.

Lesson 11: Planning for College and Alternative Educational Expenses

In this lesson, you will learn about investment conversations and strategies when determining how to finance a college or post-secondary educational experience. You will consider the financial implications of financial instruments intended to support the college-going experience. You will look at the world of scholarships and ways to help students achieve a college degree without decades of debt. You will compile lists of resources that will help your students and their families when making these often life-changing decisions. This is a time that students and their families need a host—they need you and other professionals to support this journey.

Lesson 12: Advocating for Special Populations

In this lesson, you will learn about assessing your post-secondary education planning programs, toolboxes, and networks. You will consider how your current process supports diverse populations of students who will face inclusion and equity issues in the college selection and admissions processes. You will explore how your current programming and toolbox are prepared to support diverse student populations including commuters, in-resident, and distance-learning post-secondary college-going situations. You will look at how effectively your program is set up to support students with disabilities, adult learners, and student-athletes. Finally, you will consider the unique needs of international and transfer students as well as first-generation and dually enrolled students. This lesson will ask you to analyze your current program and commit to improving it in areas that may be deficient.

What you will learn

• Apply the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) model to advocate for college readiness for every student in a school setting.
• Analyze current best practices for promoting college readiness.
• Demonstrate how to plan, organize, and deliver college and alternative options to all students.
• Demonstrate advocacy for younger students, in early and ongoing exposure to comprehensive K-12 college and post-secondary program experiences.
• Demonstrate the basics of financial planning counseling for college and alternative post-secondary educational experiences.

How you will benefit

• You will walk away with resources and plans for supporting graduation advocacy for every student.
• This course will provide tools and guidance for improving your school's current graduation and post-secondary planning efforts for every student.
• The assignments will help you carry out improvement initiatives and to build your toolbox for supporting your students and their families, as you complete them.

Self-Study

Counseling for College Prep is an insightful course for high school counselors and professionals looking for ways to help students of all backgrounds graduate. It goes beyond graduation to post-secondary planning and tools and resources to support student success.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook device.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 10 or later operating systems.
• Mac: OS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox is preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Microsoft Word Online
• Adobe Acrobat Reader
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

While the college-going experience may evolve, it is not going away. In this online course, you will prepare for a vital role where you support students’ post-secondary aspirations as we also explore how critical your role is to the evolution of our communities.

Lesson 1: Current Trends in College Decisions

In this lesson, you will discuss the culturally driven, overarching concept of the college-going culture. You will explore ongoing trends that help manifest the college-going culture. You will consider fiscally responsible paths for many students and the need for early intervention in this substantial decision-making process. Finally, you will look at current trends in business and industry that may drive different decisions from those our generations made for these young, soon-to-be graduates as they move on into college and other educational paths.

Lesson 2: Your Role in Preparing Students for College

Now you will clarify your role as a professional in helping students prepare for selection and admissions processes for post-secondary school. You will solicit community engagement and outreach networks for resources to support your students. You will consider ethical and legal considerations for your role in this process. Finally, you will summarize the key aspects of your role in understanding and explaining financial aid and funding sources to help your students achieve their post-secondary school vision.

Lesson 3: The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Model

This lesson delves into the American School Counselor Association’s position on the role of a school counselor and a model for school counselor programs in schools. It will help you better understand the ASCA model and the role of a school counselor. You will review insights, information, and best practices for establishing a graduation and career-preparation culture. You will discuss the model and create a plan for assessing your school’s current graduation and career-preparation culture and identifying gaps between that and the desired future vision. You will finally discuss how to engage internal and external resources to support improvement in graduation and career preparation advocacy.

Lesson 4: Supporting Special Student Populations in the College-Going Culture

This lesson expands on the need to build a network and a toolbox to support your students’ college aspirations. This process includes connecting with professionals in local educational institutions. In this lesson, we will dig a bit deeper into best practices for navigating a college-going culture. This will include adding to your toolbox with real examples of what your peers are doing to build a college-going culture. You will discuss supporting students from different demographic populations and special populations. Finally, you will learn about military options and resources for your students.

Lesson 5: Community Colleges as an Alternative

This lesson will help you understand the origin of the community college. It will also explore reasons for current-day community colleges. It will help you understand what they currently offer for your students so you can have more efficient college-going decision conversations with your students. Finally, it will discuss and help you discuss the financial investment and return of a community college. The goal of this lesson is to help you add to your network and toolbox to help students for whom a community college is a great option.

Lesson 6: Exploring College and Alternative Choices

In this lesson, you will learn about college visits and fairs. You likely have some experience or knowledge of these events. However, this lesson will look a bit deeper at the logistics of setting up your fairs and coordinating with local institutions. You will also explore how to use these events to set up financial workshops to help your students and families understand and plan for the economic requirements of college. You will consider how to also partner with local U.S. military recruiters to set up similar events for your students who are interested in that path. Finally, you will assess your toolbox for coordinating these events and add to it as you work through the lesson and assignment.

Lesson 7: Connecting Students to School and Community Resources

In this lesson, you will learn about connecting your students with community resources that can help them prepare for college. You will learn about national and local community resources that can help them and you in the process. You will discuss the barriers your students will face in connecting with and gaining support from community resources. You will consider how parent engagement strengthens these connections. Finally, you will explore ways to help your students bridge the gap between where they are now and where they want to be post-graduation.

Lesson 8: Post-Secondary Preparation for Students with Developmental Disabilities or Social-Emotional Challenges

In this lesson, you will learn about helping students with disabilities prepare for and transition to post-secondary aspirations. These considerations include life skills, college, and careers. You will look at how the law changes when they leave high school. We will discuss case management and the transition to college or other post-secondary goals. You will consider the student’s desired plan and discuss how to help them achieve it. Finally, we will discuss students who are challenged with social-emotional obstacles during high school. Specifically, we will look at those kids that were possibly underrepresented during high school.

Lesson 9: Preparing Students for Post-Secondary Success

In this lesson, you will learn to examine the study habits of students who were successful in college or post-secondary education. You will distinguish study techniques used by students preparing to attend trade and apprenticeships that may be similar to or different from those attending a four-year college. Finally, you will consider the academic habits and study methods used by students who successfully navigated a proprietary or licensing institution.

Lesson 10: Early Exposure to College and Post-Secondary Programs

In this lesson, you will learn about the early and ongoing exposure of elementary, middle, and high school students to post-secondary planning. We will discuss experiential processes and models to help younger students consider career and college conversations throughout their entire educational experience. Finally, we will explore strategies to help parents or guardians with resources to help with the college-going and career conversations and planning.

Lesson 11: Planning for College and Alternative Educational Expenses

In this lesson, you will learn about investment conversations and strategies when determining how to finance a college or post-secondary educational experience. You will consider the financial implications of financial instruments intended to support the college-going experience. You will look at the world of scholarships and ways to help students achieve a college degree without decades of debt. You will compile lists of resources that will help your students and their families when making these often life-changing decisions. This is a time that students and their families need a host—they need you and other professionals to support this journey.

Lesson 12: Advocating for Special Populations

In this lesson, you will learn about assessing your post-secondary education planning programs, toolboxes, and networks. You will consider how your current process supports diverse populations of students who will face inclusion and equity issues in the college selection and admissions processes. You will explore how your current programming and toolbox are prepared to support diverse student populations including commuters, in-resident, and distance-learning post-secondary college-going situations. You will look at how effectively your program is set up to support students with disabilities, adult learners, and student-athletes. Finally, you will consider the unique needs of international and transfer students as well as first-generation and dually enrolled students. This lesson will ask you to analyze your current program and commit to improving it in areas that may be deficient.

What you will learn

• Apply the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) model to advocate for college readiness for every student in a school setting.
• Analyze current best practices for promoting college readiness.
• Demonstrate how to plan, organize, and deliver college and alternative options to all students.
• Demonstrate advocacy for younger students, in early and ongoing exposure to comprehensive K-12 college and post-secondary program experiences.
• Demonstrate the basics of financial planning counseling for college and alternative post-secondary educational experiences.

How you will benefit

• You will walk away with resources and plans for supporting graduation advocacy for every student.
• This course will provide tools and guidance for improving your school's current graduation and post-secondary planning efforts for every student.
• The assignments will help you carry out improvement initiatives and to build your toolbox for supporting your students and their families, as you complete them.

Self-Study

Explore common disabilities you'll encounter in the classroom and master techniques for promoting academic, behavioral, and social skills in students with special needs.

Teaching students with disabilities is a rewarding challenge, and this course gives you the tools you will need to succeed. No matter what grade you teach—from preschool through high school—you will learn powerful strategies you can put to work immediately in your classroom. In addition, you will gain the knowledge you need to understand and cope with the most common disabilities you will encounter.

You will start by putting yourself in the shoes of students with special needs as you explore a wide variety of disabilities ranging from autism spectrum disorder to cerebral palsy. Simulations and real-life stories will give you a firsthand look at what it's like to be a learner with special needs, and you will see how common disabilities affect classroom behavior and learning.

Then comes the best part: solutions! In each lesson, you will find dozens of tips for fostering the reading, writing, and math skills of students with special needs. In addition, you will master techniques for helping these learners behave appropriately and make friends in your classroom. You will also get the inside story on Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and transition plans, and you will learn the most effective ways to collaborate with parents and professionals.

By the end of this course, you will feel confident in your ability to help any student who comes through your door. You will also discover that while the challenges can be big when you're teaching students with disabilities, the victories are big as well.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Discover the tools you need to help any student who comes through your door. This course provides tips for fostering the reading, writing, and math skills of students with special needs and techniques for helping these learners behave appropriately and make friends in your classroom.

What Are Special Needs?

Danny has a seeing-eye dog. Carmela needs extra help with math. Yoshi has autism. And they're all in your class this year! This first lesson will look at the growing numbers of children with special needs and talk about how you can welcome them to your classroom and set the stage for successful learning.

The Special Education Process and the IEP

How do children get placed in special education? As you will discover, it's not a snap decision. This lesson will trace a student's path through every stage of the placement process and look at the role a teacher plays from start to finish.

Meet Your Support Team

It takes a whole team to help a child with special needs succeed. This lesson will address the roles of the support team, with a focus on collaboration between special education teachers and support staff. You will explore the roles of paraprofessionals, guidance counselors, nurses, social workers, and the specialists who support you.

Learning Disabilities

This lesson addresses reading, writing, and math disabilities—the most common learning disabilities (LDs) you will see in the classroom. First, you will get a chance to see how it feels to have an LD. Then, you will learn about how memory problems affect students with LDs in the classroom.

Speech and Language Disorders

Imagine how frustrating it would be if you couldn't speak clearly, understand other people, or express your thoughts and feelings well. This is what life is like for children with speech or language disorders, the subject of this lesson.

ADHD and the Other Health Impaired Category

This lesson addresses conditions categorized as "Other Health Impaired" (OHI), with a special focus on ADHD. First, you will learn what daily life is like for children with ADHD. Then, you will explore ways to address the attention and organizational problems that these children struggle with.

Intellectual Disabilities

Students can shine in many ways, and this lesson will examine how students with intellectual disabilities can be stars in your classroom. You will learn what life is like for students with intellectual disabilities and discover ways to help these students focus on both academic and adaptive skills.

Behavior Disorders

Children with behavior disorders often present the biggest challenge to teachers. This lesson will examine the roots of behavioral problems. You will also learn three essential tools for handling behavior problems: behavior contracts, functional behavioral assessments, and behavior intervention plans.

Autism

Children with autism will give your teaching skills a workout with their unique combination of strengths and impairments. This lesson explores three areas in which these children need help: communication skills, social skills, and the ability to handle transitions.

Other Disabilities

This lesson will introduce you to children with cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, hearing or vision impairments, developmental delays, and a host of other challenges. Then, you will take a closer look at the assistive technology—both high-tech and low-tech—that can help kids with these disabilities triumph academically.

Best Teaching Practices

This lesson addresses "best practices" for teaching children with special needs. And here's good news: Many of these ideas will work for your entire class! First, you will explore how to balance students' IEP requirements with your curriculum standards and investigate a great technique for helping students grasp difficult material: directed instruction.

Dealing With Transitions

While transitions can be scary for anybody, they're especially intimidating for students with disabilities. In this lesson you will look at ways to smooth three big transitions that students make: the moves from elementary to middle school, from middle school to high school, and from high school to real life.

What you will learn

• Explore and plan for a wide variety of learning disabilities you may encounter in your classroom
• Understand the variety of challenges involved in successfully teaching every student
• Learn how common disabilities affect classroom behavior and learning
• Discover how IEPs, transition plans, and collaborative planning can greatly increase your success as a professional educator

How you will benefit

• Gain confidence in your ability to help any student who comes through your door
• Gain the insight you need to understand and cope with the most common disabilities you'll encounter
• Increase your ability to collaborate effectively with both parents, teachers, and administrators

Sara Hardin is an educator with a focus on special education and language studies. She has taught special education at the elementary level for over a decade. Sara holds a BA in French, and lived in France to study at the university level. In 2000, she earned her master's degree in special education.

Explore common disabilities you'll encounter in the classroom and master techniques for promoting academic, behavioral, and social skills in students with special needs.

Teaching students with disabilities is a rewarding challenge, and this course gives you the tools you will need to succeed. No matter what grade you teach—from preschool through high school—you will learn powerful strategies you can put to work immediately in your classroom. In addition, you will gain the knowledge you need to understand and cope with the most common disabilities you will encounter.

You will start by putting yourself in the shoes of students with special needs as you explore a wide variety of disabilities ranging from autism spectrum disorder to cerebral palsy. Simulations and real-life stories will give you a firsthand look at what it's like to be a learner with special needs, and you will see how common disabilities affect classroom behavior and learning.

Then comes the best part: solutions! In each lesson, you will find dozens of tips for fostering the reading, writing, and math skills of students with special needs. In addition, you will master techniques for helping these learners behave appropriately and make friends in your classroom. You will also get the inside story on Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and transition plans, and you will learn the most effective ways to collaborate with parents and professionals.

By the end of this course, you will feel confident in your ability to help any student who comes through your door. You will also discover that while the challenges can be big when you're teaching students with disabilities, the victories are big as well.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Discover the tools you need to help any student who comes through your door. This course provides tips for fostering the reading, writing, and math skills of students with special needs and techniques for helping these learners behave appropriately and make friends in your classroom.

What Are Special Needs?

Danny has a seeing-eye dog. Carmela needs extra help with math. Yoshi has autism. And they're all in your class this year! This first lesson will look at the growing numbers of children with special needs and talk about how you can welcome them to your classroom and set the stage for successful learning.

The Special Education Process and the IEP

How do children get placed in special education? As you will discover, it's not a snap decision. This lesson will trace a student's path through every stage of the placement process and look at the role a teacher plays from start to finish.

Meet Your Support Team

It takes a whole team to help a child with special needs succeed. This lesson will address the roles of the support team, with a focus on collaboration between special education teachers and support staff. You will explore the roles of paraprofessionals, guidance counselors, nurses, social workers, and the specialists who support you.

Learning Disabilities

This lesson addresses reading, writing, and math disabilities—the most common learning disabilities (LDs) you will see in the classroom. First, you will get a chance to see how it feels to have an LD. Then, you will learn about how memory problems affect students with LDs in the classroom.

Speech and Language Disorders

Imagine how frustrating it would be if you couldn't speak clearly, understand other people, or express your thoughts and feelings well. This is what life is like for children with speech or language disorders, the subject of this lesson.

ADHD and the Other Health Impaired Category

This lesson addresses conditions categorized as "Other Health Impaired" (OHI), with a special focus on ADHD. First, you will learn what daily life is like for children with ADHD. Then, you will explore ways to address the attention and organizational problems that these children struggle with.

Intellectual Disabilities

Students can shine in many ways, and this lesson will examine how students with intellectual disabilities can be stars in your classroom. You will learn what life is like for students with intellectual disabilities and discover ways to help these students focus on both academic and adaptive skills.

Behavior Disorders

Children with behavior disorders often present the biggest challenge to teachers. This lesson will examine the roots of behavioral problems. You will also learn three essential tools for handling behavior problems: behavior contracts, functional behavioral assessments, and behavior intervention plans.

Autism

Children with autism will give your teaching skills a workout with their unique combination of strengths and impairments. This lesson explores three areas in which these children need help: communication skills, social skills, and the ability to handle transitions.

Other Disabilities

This lesson will introduce you to children with cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, hearing or vision impairments, developmental delays, and a host of other challenges. Then, you will take a closer look at the assistive technology—both high-tech and low-tech—that can help kids with these disabilities triumph academically.

Best Teaching Practices

This lesson addresses "best practices" for teaching children with special needs. And here's good news: Many of these ideas will work for your entire class! First, you will explore how to balance students' IEP requirements with your curriculum standards and investigate a great technique for helping students grasp difficult material: directed instruction.

Dealing With Transitions

While transitions can be scary for anybody, they're especially intimidating for students with disabilities. In this lesson you will look at ways to smooth three big transitions that students make: the moves from elementary to middle school, from middle school to high school, and from high school to real life.

What you will learn

• Explore and plan for a wide variety of learning disabilities you may encounter in your classroom
• Understand the variety of challenges involved in successfully teaching every student
• Learn how common disabilities affect classroom behavior and learning
• Discover how IEPs, transition plans, and collaborative planning can greatly increase your success as a professional educator

How you will benefit

• Gain confidence in your ability to help any student who comes through your door
• Gain the insight you need to understand and cope with the most common disabilities you'll encounter
• Increase your ability to collaborate effectively with both parents, teachers, and administrators

Sara Hardin is an educator with a focus on special education and language studies. She has taught special education at the elementary level for over a decade. Sara holds a BA in French, and lived in France to study at the university level. In 2000, she earned her master's degree in special education.

Get the professional development training you need to improve student literacy.

Around 30% of students in sixth grade already have trouble with basic reading and writing. These literacy problems affect performance across subject areas, and they often leave teachers wondering how to help. In this course, you will examine the reasons reading and writing are so difficult for students. Then you will encounter the total literacy framework and see what it does to mitigate literacy problems. Since this framework is based on guided reading lessons that flow naturally into writing challenges, you will learn to successfully transition from guided readings to writing lessons.

Once you have encountered the basic framework, you will investigate a number of ways to modify this basic recipe for a variety of K-12 circumstances, wrapping up with a look at good writing habits and the traits of a productive writing conference. If you're looking for the right way to get students excited about the power of literacy, this is the course for you!

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Gain a classroom full of students who can negotiate increasingly challenging texts with unprecedented fluency. This class provides differentiated instruction tactics to better understand how your students learn and how to apply those tactics within the guided reading framework.

Why Is It So Hard to Read and Write?

Have you ever wondered why so many of your students struggle to read and write? You're not alone! This introductory lesson will discuss why these two subjects are so hard for students and how you can make their lives a little easier.

The Total Literacy Framework

To really help struggling readers and writers, you need a framework. The total literacy framework is just the thing: Guided reading, writing, engagement, and assessment are the components that make it so effective. This lesson will discuss guided reading, writing, and engagement.

Where Does Assessment Fit In?

Assessment is the part of the total literacy framework that drives instruction. After all, you need to know where students are academically and where they need to go before you can effectively teach them. In this lesson you will look at fun and simple ways to assess students' reading and writing skills.

Recipe for a Guided Reading and Writing Lesson

The recipe you will learn about in this lesson is one that you can easily modify for any K-12 setting, and it's dotted with examples from real classrooms where guided reading and writing are changing lives.

Writing Stories

Have you ever read a great story only to think, "I could write something better than that"? Well, guess what? Your students think the exact same thing. This lesson will teach you the basics of leading a successful story writing activity.

Composing Nonfiction

Nonfiction is often less popular in the classroom. However, with a little imagination, you can make nonfiction come alive for your students. In this lesson, you will learn how you can make nonfiction more appealing to students.

Writing Poetry

Some students absolutely hate reading and writing poetry, but they won't after you introduce the techniques taught in this lesson! Additionally, you will take a tour of the different kinds of poetry that inspire students.

Developing Papers

Writing papers is never going to be the most exciting part of school, but it's always going to be necessary. This lesson will discuss how to teach students to read research material and use it as a launch pad for papers that are clear and thought-provoking the first time around.

Crafting Ideas Across the Content Areas

One of the neat things about employing the total literacy framework is that you can extend it across the content areas. In This lesson, you will learn how to use guided reading and writing to your advantage whether you're teaching math, social studies, or science.

Reinforcing Good Writing Habits

Have you ever written something that was a little hard to understand? This lesson will cover ways to teach students to craft their own style, hone their organization, and check for proper mechanics before they turn in any assignments.

Holding Writing Conferences

Writing conferences are a great chance to make sure students are successful as they turn reading into writing and writing into ideas. This lesson will discuss the power of conferences and how to make the most of them.

Turning Small Successes Into Big Rewards

It's important to take time to encourage and inspire students by turning their small successes into big rewards. If you're looking for new strategies to motivate students and make reading and writing fun, you won't want to miss all the tips and tricks in this final lesson!

What you will learn

• Learn how to make reading and writing compelling and fun for your students
• Acquire the basic recipe for successful lesson plans through the total literacy framework
• Discover how to renew the confidence of your students and build their literacy skills
• Learn how to adapt literacy lesson plans to any subject and grade level

How you will benefit

• Renew your confidence in teaching literacy skills to struggling students
• Discover how to use guided reading and writing experiences no matter what subject you teach
• Acquire tangible reading and writing lesson plans that really work
• Increase your enthusiasm for reading and writing and learn to motivate your students

Cheryl Dick has more than 25 years of teaching experience and is currently a classroom teacher. She's taught 2nd, 4th, and 5th grade and has previously worked as an instructional coach. She graduated from Missouri State University with a Bachelor of Science in elementary education, with a focus on early childhood education. Cheryl also holds a master's degree in elementary education from Texas-Wesleyan University and a second master's degree in educational administration from Lindenwood University.

Get the professional development training you need to improve student literacy.

Around 30% of students in sixth grade already have trouble with basic reading and writing. These literacy problems affect performance across subject areas, and they often leave teachers wondering how to help. In this course, you will examine the reasons reading and writing are so difficult for students. Then you will encounter the total literacy framework and see what it does to mitigate literacy problems. Since this framework is based on guided reading lessons that flow naturally into writing challenges, you will learn to successfully transition from guided readings to writing lessons.

Once you have encountered the basic framework, you will investigate a number of ways to modify this basic recipe for a variety of K-12 circumstances, wrapping up with a look at good writing habits and the traits of a productive writing conference. If you're looking for the right way to get students excited about the power of literacy, this is the course for you!

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Gain a classroom full of students who can negotiate increasingly challenging texts with unprecedented fluency. This class provides differentiated instruction tactics to better understand how your students learn and how to apply those tactics within the guided reading framework.

Why Is It So Hard to Read and Write?

Have you ever wondered why so many of your students struggle to read and write? You're not alone! This introductory lesson will discuss why these two subjects are so hard for students and how you can make their lives a little easier.

The Total Literacy Framework

To really help struggling readers and writers, you need a framework. The total literacy framework is just the thing: Guided reading, writing, engagement, and assessment are the components that make it so effective. This lesson will discuss guided reading, writing, and engagement.

Where Does Assessment Fit In?

Assessment is the part of the total literacy framework that drives instruction. After all, you need to know where students are academically and where they need to go before you can effectively teach them. In this lesson you will look at fun and simple ways to assess students' reading and writing skills.

Recipe for a Guided Reading and Writing Lesson

The recipe you will learn about in this lesson is one that you can easily modify for any K-12 setting, and it's dotted with examples from real classrooms where guided reading and writing are changing lives.

Writing Stories

Have you ever read a great story only to think, "I could write something better than that"? Well, guess what? Your students think the exact same thing. This lesson will teach you the basics of leading a successful story writing activity.

Composing Nonfiction

Nonfiction is often less popular in the classroom. However, with a little imagination, you can make nonfiction come alive for your students. In this lesson, you will learn how you can make nonfiction more appealing to students.

Writing Poetry

Some students absolutely hate reading and writing poetry, but they won't after you introduce the techniques taught in this lesson! Additionally, you will take a tour of the different kinds of poetry that inspire students.

Developing Papers

Writing papers is never going to be the most exciting part of school, but it's always going to be necessary. This lesson will discuss how to teach students to read research material and use it as a launch pad for papers that are clear and thought-provoking the first time around.

Crafting Ideas Across the Content Areas

One of the neat things about employing the total literacy framework is that you can extend it across the content areas. In This lesson, you will learn how to use guided reading and writing to your advantage whether you're teaching math, social studies, or science.

Reinforcing Good Writing Habits

Have you ever written something that was a little hard to understand? This lesson will cover ways to teach students to craft their own style, hone their organization, and check for proper mechanics before they turn in any assignments.

Holding Writing Conferences

Writing conferences are a great chance to make sure students are successful as they turn reading into writing and writing into ideas. This lesson will discuss the power of conferences and how to make the most of them.

Turning Small Successes Into Big Rewards

It's important to take time to encourage and inspire students by turning their small successes into big rewards. If you're looking for new strategies to motivate students and make reading and writing fun, you won't want to miss all the tips and tricks in this final lesson!

What you will learn

• Learn how to make reading and writing compelling and fun for your students
• Acquire the basic recipe for successful lesson plans through the total literacy framework
• Discover how to renew the confidence of your students and build their literacy skills
• Learn how to adapt literacy lesson plans to any subject and grade level

How you will benefit

• Renew your confidence in teaching literacy skills to struggling students
• Discover how to use guided reading and writing experiences no matter what subject you teach
• Acquire tangible reading and writing lesson plans that really work
• Increase your enthusiasm for reading and writing and learn to motivate your students

Cheryl Dick has more than 25 years of teaching experience and is currently a classroom teacher. She's taught 2nd, 4th, and 5th grade and has previously worked as an instructional coach. She graduated from Missouri State University with a Bachelor of Science in elementary education, with a focus on early childhood education. Cheryl also holds a master's degree in elementary education from Texas-Wesleyan University and a second master's degree in educational administration from Lindenwood University.

Gain confidence in your basic math skills and start using math to your advantage.

Math isn't about plugging numbers into formulas. It's about knowing enough to make the numbers and formulas work for you. Math can be incredibly useful - but only if you understand how and when to apply it in your everyday life.

This course will show you how to use math to your advantage. You won't find any theory or memorization here. The lessons that make up this course are filled with practical exercises and information that you can put to immediate use. You will find out some very interesting things about how calculators work, and then you will discover how best to get a handle on your income and expenses. You will be able to check your paystub, invoices, and bank statements for errors and overcharges and become more skilled at handling money and comparing investment opportunities.

You will learn how to calculate percentages, including the proper amount to pay in tips, commissions, taxes, and discounts. You will find out how to calculate interest rates and you will develop a better understanding of mortgages, credit cards, and other types of loans. You will discover a handy method for converting one type of measurement to another, and you will be able to calculate areas correctly, so you don't overspend on your next home improvement project. You will become adept at interpreting graphs, calculating the probability that something will (or won't) happen, and understanding the statistics embedded in test results, polls, and even news stories.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.
• A basic calculator with the ability to add, subtract, multiply, divide, and calculate square roots.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Learn how to use math to your advantage in everyday life. The lessons in this course are filled with practical exercises and information that you can put to immediate use.

Integers and Other Mathematic Equations

This lesson will recall childhood memories about math by reviewing some basic number properties. You will learn about integers, exponents, roots, and multiple-step problems. Doing these types of problems just for practice can be tedious, but you're going to take what you learn and put it to use in every other lesson in this course.

Percentages in Retail

Whether it's discounts, taxes, or a tip, most people deal with percentages every day. This lesson focuses on the percentages found in retail from both a consumer and a managerial perspective. You will learn about prices, discounts, and sales tax. And last but not least, this lesson covers about tipping, markup, and handling money in the retail work environment.

Income, Deductions, and Expenses

This lesson is all about income. Are you paid hourly, are you a salaried employee, do you receive a commission, or some combination of these? In this lesson, you will learn how to calculate your paycheck and create a budget plan. In the last part of the lesson, you will learn how to find out where your money goes once you have it.

Opening and Balancing a Checking Account

Now that you have your paycheck, you need somewhere to put it. It's time to talk about financial institutions; banks, credit unions, and savings and loans. In this lesson, you will discover what to look for in an institution and what questions to ask about checking, savings, and other accounts.

Earning Interest

Investing is an ominous word for most people. Financial professionals can sound like they're speaking a foreign language. This lesson will unravel some of this terminology and the math that goes with it. You will learn the basics of earning interest and find out what questions to ask the professionals, like types of interest earning investments; bonds, certificates of deposit, and money market accounts.

Paying Interest

As you know, you can't just earn interest—you also have to pay interest. Credit cards and loans cost you money in interest and fees. In this lesson, you will study what happens when you pay only the minimum balance on a credit card each month. And then you will see what happens when you pay as little as $10 or $20 extra each month.

Mortgage Math

Interested in buying a home, but not sure where to start? There are realtors, attorneys, and loan officers to get you through this process. In this lesson, you will explore the different aspects of a mortgage payment (principle, interest, taxes, and insurance or PITI) and the amount of money you will need up front.

Ratios

In this lesson, you will find out that you can solve most problems with some sort of ratio and learn to set up ratios and proportions step-by-step. After this lesson, you will be able to convert even the most complicated measurements.

Measurement

In this lesson, you will learn how to calculate area in different units of measurement and how to convert between them. This will let you figure out how much carpet, paint, or tile you need for those home projects. You should be able to check your measurements and calculations. You will also learn a little about metrics and a very simple conversion method.

Probability

You will learn all about probability in this lesson. It's used in the gaming industry, in forecasting weather, and in determining insurance rates. How does the insurance industry know there's a 10% chance you will be in an accident? Or how does a casino predict a 3% chance you will win at blackjack? You have to know which numbers to divide and how to find them.

Statistics

Society is bombarded with information and statistics all day, every day. This lesson is about statistical data and how it's chosen. You will also learn about the four most commonly used statistical measures: mean, median, mode, and range.

Statistical Graphs

A great way to understand all those statistics you just learned about is to put them on a graph. Graphs can help you look at the big picture by summarizing information. Just as there are different types of information and relationships, there are different types of graphs. Each one is best suited for displaying a particular type of information or relationship.

What you will learn

• Learn how best to use math to your advantage
• Learn to check your pay stub, invoices, and bank statements for errors and overcharges
• Learn to calculate percentages for paying tips, commissions, taxes, etc.
• Discover how calculators work and use them to get a handle on your income and expenses
• Learn to convert one type of measurement to another and calculate areas
• Learn to use math for all your financial, household, business, and educational transactions

How you will benefit

• Learn to use a calculator to assist you with the types of math you encounter everyday
• Put what you have learned to immediate use from balancing a checkbook to deciding how much tip to leave
• Develop a better understanding of mortgages, credit cards, and other types of loans
• Be able to understand the terminology used by financial professionals and know what questions to ask

Ivy Bishop has been teaching math for eight years. She has worked with a wide range of students at different academic levels. She holds a bachelor's degree in math education, which has allowed her to combine the logic of math with her love of teaching.

Gain confidence in your basic math skills and start using math to your advantage.

Math isn't about plugging numbers into formulas. It's about knowing enough to make the numbers and formulas work for you. Math can be incredibly useful - but only if you understand how and when to apply it in your everyday life.

This course will show you how to use math to your advantage. You won't find any theory or memorization here. The lessons that make up this course are filled with practical exercises and information that you can put to immediate use. You will find out some very interesting things about how calculators work, and then you will discover how best to get a handle on your income and expenses. You will be able to check your paystub, invoices, and bank statements for errors and overcharges and become more skilled at handling money and comparing investment opportunities.

You will learn how to calculate percentages, including the proper amount to pay in tips, commissions, taxes, and discounts. You will find out how to calculate interest rates and you will develop a better understanding of mortgages, credit cards, and other types of loans. You will discover a handy method for converting one type of measurement to another, and you will be able to calculate areas correctly, so you don't overspend on your next home improvement project. You will become adept at interpreting graphs, calculating the probability that something will (or won't) happen, and understanding the statistics embedded in test results, polls, and even news stories.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.
• A basic calculator with the ability to add, subtract, multiply, divide, and calculate square roots.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Learn how to use math to your advantage in everyday life. The lessons in this course are filled with practical exercises and information that you can put to immediate use.

Integers and Other Mathematic Equations

This lesson will recall childhood memories about math by reviewing some basic number properties. You will learn about integers, exponents, roots, and multiple-step problems. Doing these types of problems just for practice can be tedious, but you're going to take what you learn and put it to use in every other lesson in this course.

Percentages in Retail

Whether it's discounts, taxes, or a tip, most people deal with percentages every day. This lesson focuses on the percentages found in retail from both a consumer and a managerial perspective. You will learn about prices, discounts, and sales tax. And last but not least, this lesson covers about tipping, markup, and handling money in the retail work environment.

Income, Deductions, and Expenses

This lesson is all about income. Are you paid hourly, are you a salaried employee, do you receive a commission, or some combination of these? In this lesson, you will learn how to calculate your paycheck and create a budget plan. In the last part of the lesson, you will learn how to find out where your money goes once you have it.

Opening and Balancing a Checking Account

Now that you have your paycheck, you need somewhere to put it. It's time to talk about financial institutions; banks, credit unions, and savings and loans. In this lesson, you will discover what to look for in an institution and what questions to ask about checking, savings, and other accounts.

Earning Interest

Investing is an ominous word for most people. Financial professionals can sound like they're speaking a foreign language. This lesson will unravel some of this terminology and the math that goes with it. You will learn the basics of earning interest and find out what questions to ask the professionals, like types of interest earning investments; bonds, certificates of deposit, and money market accounts.

Paying Interest

As you know, you can't just earn interest—you also have to pay interest. Credit cards and loans cost you money in interest and fees. In this lesson, you will study what happens when you pay only the minimum balance on a credit card each month. And then you will see what happens when you pay as little as $10 or $20 extra each month.

Mortgage Math

Interested in buying a home, but not sure where to start? There are realtors, attorneys, and loan officers to get you through this process. In this lesson, you will explore the different aspects of a mortgage payment (principle, interest, taxes, and insurance or PITI) and the amount of money you will need up front.

Ratios

In this lesson, you will find out that you can solve most problems with some sort of ratio and learn to set up ratios and proportions step-by-step. After this lesson, you will be able to convert even the most complicated measurements.

Measurement

In this lesson, you will learn how to calculate area in different units of measurement and how to convert between them. This will let you figure out how much carpet, paint, or tile you need for those home projects. You should be able to check your measurements and calculations. You will also learn a little about metrics and a very simple conversion method.

Probability

You will learn all about probability in this lesson. It's used in the gaming industry, in forecasting weather, and in determining insurance rates. How does the insurance industry know there's a 10% chance you will be in an accident? Or how does a casino predict a 3% chance you will win at blackjack? You have to know which numbers to divide and how to find them.

Statistics

Society is bombarded with information and statistics all day, every day. This lesson is about statistical data and how it's chosen. You will also learn about the four most commonly used statistical measures: mean, median, mode, and range.

Statistical Graphs

A great way to understand all those statistics you just learned about is to put them on a graph. Graphs can help you look at the big picture by summarizing information. Just as there are different types of information and relationships, there are different types of graphs. Each one is best suited for displaying a particular type of information or relationship.

What you will learn

• Learn how best to use math to your advantage
• Learn to check your pay stub, invoices, and bank statements for errors and overcharges
• Learn to calculate percentages for paying tips, commissions, taxes, etc.
• Discover how calculators work and use them to get a handle on your income and expenses
• Learn to convert one type of measurement to another and calculate areas
• Learn to use math for all your financial, household, business, and educational transactions

How you will benefit

• Learn to use a calculator to assist you with the types of math you encounter everyday
• Put what you have learned to immediate use from balancing a checkbook to deciding how much tip to leave
• Develop a better understanding of mortgages, credit cards, and other types of loans
• Be able to understand the terminology used by financial professionals and know what questions to ask

Ivy Bishop has been teaching math for eight years. She has worked with a wide range of students at different academic levels. She holds a bachelor's degree in math education, which has allowed her to combine the logic of math with her love of teaching.

This course will teach you how to save time by reading faster and with better comprehension.

Are you struggling to keep up with a flood of email, articles, reports, and books? Save yourself hours of time and increase your productivity by learning to read faster and with better comprehension. This course is a complete speed-reading experience. Topics are presented in a logical progression with plenty of time to help you master the skills and techniques you will need for lasting proficiency as a speed-reader.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

This course will teach you how to save time by reading faster and with better comprehension.

Introduction

On this first day of class, you'll read a story to evaluate your present reading rate. You'll learn how many words per minute you read now, and then you'll compare that number to what percent of the reading material you're really comprehending. You'll also get an opportunity to check out some speed reading accomplishments. Then, you'll complete an eye-span exercise to start you on the path toward becoming a speed reader!

Reading Against Time

In this lesson, you'll practice some basic reading eye movements and learn how they're important to the speed reading process. Then, you'll take a reading rate and comprehension test. Your results will give you a baseline that you can use to chart your speed reading progress in this course, lesson-by-lesson. From there, you can set goals to increase your reading rate while maintaining a good reading comprehension.

Speed Reading Activities

By now, you might feel that the activities you're using to master your speed reading skills are becoming routine and repetitive. For that reason, this lesson will talk about how and why you should continue doing the Regulated Reading, Timed Reading, and Assignment exercises to gain increased reading rates with good reading comprehension. Finally, you'll read some stories that are formatted to help you improve your speed.

Setting Goals

In this lesson, you'll examine the retinal image phenomena and how it relates to a speed reader's eye movements. Speed reading is a skill that's best achieved by doing repetitive practice, so you'll continue working on those exercises that are helping you to improve your speed.

Overcoming Poor Reading Habits

You'll probably find it helpful to work on lesson activities in the same comfortable and familiar surroundings. This lesson will talk about eight bad reading habits that contribute to slow reading, then you'll explore how to overcome them. Finally, you'll review some terminology that's unique to speed reading.

Sixteen Good Speed Reading Practices

In this lesson, you'll look at 16 good speed reading practices you can apply to the course exercises and any other reading you do outside of class. You're at the midpoint in the course, so this is also a good time to compare your reading rate and comprehension scores with those of the former students you read about earlier. From there, you'll set goals for you to meet in the remaining lessons.

Skimming Techniques

You'll probably be reading pretty quickly by the time you reach this lesson, but how can you make sure your comprehension scores are keeping up? In this lesson, you'll look at the skills you'll need to work on to improve your comprehension. You'll find out what keys and identified parts are unique to all stories, and knowing those will help you to improve your comprehension. You'll be glad to learn that you already know a few speed reading skills and techniques as you continue to apply them to the course activities.

Measuring Reading Rates

In this lesson, you'll practice speed reading skills and techniques in real-world reading materials outside of class. You'll learn a method you can use to measure your speed reading rates when you're reading such materials. At this point, you'll be eager to read outside materials, not just for their content, but to further develop your speed reading skills and techniques.

Speed Reading Styles

You're now ready to analyze your personal speed reading style. You'll once again compare your speed reading rate and comprehension scores with those of former students to see how you stack up against others. You'll also compare your current scores with the scores you recorded at the beginning of the course to see how far you've come!

Vocabulary and Comprehension Skills

In this lesson, you'll look at eight word recognition vocabulary skills that you can work into your personal speed reading style. You'll learn how context clues and literal and inferential meanings in stories influence comprehension. All are part of the English language and fit right in with speed reading.

Assessing Your Progress

In this lesson, you'll see if you can figure out which of your behavior patterns are most useful in your own speed reading style. First and foremost, you need flexibility to focus on improving your reading speed, then you need an experimental attitude to get rid of poor reading habits. You'll study how the time you put in and the effort you expend affect your speed reading progress.

Wrapping Up

In the last lesson, you'll look at your personal speed reading accomplishments, as well as your speed reading future. From here on out, you're in the real world of reading, but you'll go into it with a lifelong speed reading skill. You'll learn how to adjust your personal speed reading style to any materials you read, because now you are a speed reader!

What you will learn

• Learn and practice some basic eye movements important to the speed-reading process
• Learn about Regulated Reading, Timed Reading, and Assignment exercises to gain increased reading rates with good comprehension
• Examine the retinal image phenomena and how it relates to a speed-reader's eye movements
• Discover bad reading habits that contribute to slow reading and learn to overcome them
• Learn 16 good speed reading practices you can apply to any reading you do
• Learn skills to improve comprehension
• Learn methods to measure your speed reading rates
• Discover vocabulary skills that you can work into your personal speed-reading style

How you will benefit

• Discover what bad habits you have developed that may contribute to slow reading
• Keep up with the flood of emails, articles, reports, and books that you want and need to read
• Save yourself hours of time and increase your productivity by learning to read faster and with better comprehension

Merrill L. Ream, Ph.D. (Course Author)

Curt Simmons, B.A., M.Ed, is a best-selling author, trainer, and multi-media expert. He holds degrees in English and communication studies and has more than 10 years of experience teaching English and writing in the classroom. Additionally, Simmons has authored numerous books on a wide variety of technology topics and has been a technical editor for numerous other titles.

This course will teach you how to save time by reading faster and with better comprehension.

Are you struggling to keep up with a flood of email, articles, reports, and books? Save yourself hours of time and increase your productivity by learning to read faster and with better comprehension. This course is a complete speed-reading experience. Topics are presented in a logical progression with plenty of time to help you master the skills and techniques you will need for lasting proficiency as a speed-reader.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

This course will teach you how to save time by reading faster and with better comprehension.

Introduction

On this first day of class, you'll read a story to evaluate your present reading rate. You'll learn how many words per minute you read now, and then you'll compare that number to what percent of the reading material you're really comprehending. You'll also get an opportunity to check out some speed reading accomplishments. Then, you'll complete an eye-span exercise to start you on the path toward becoming a speed reader!

Reading Against Time

In this lesson, you'll practice some basic reading eye movements and learn how they're important to the speed reading process. Then, you'll take a reading rate and comprehension test. Your results will give you a baseline that you can use to chart your speed reading progress in this course, lesson-by-lesson. From there, you can set goals to increase your reading rate while maintaining a good reading comprehension.

Speed Reading Activities

By now, you might feel that the activities you're using to master your speed reading skills are becoming routine and repetitive. For that reason, this lesson will talk about how and why you should continue doing the Regulated Reading, Timed Reading, and Assignment exercises to gain increased reading rates with good reading comprehension. Finally, you'll read some stories that are formatted to help you improve your speed.

Setting Goals

In this lesson, you'll examine the retinal image phenomena and how it relates to a speed reader's eye movements. Speed reading is a skill that's best achieved by doing repetitive practice, so you'll continue working on those exercises that are helping you to improve your speed.

Overcoming Poor Reading Habits

You'll probably find it helpful to work on lesson activities in the same comfortable and familiar surroundings. This lesson will talk about eight bad reading habits that contribute to slow reading, then you'll explore how to overcome them. Finally, you'll review some terminology that's unique to speed reading.

Sixteen Good Speed Reading Practices

In this lesson, you'll look at 16 good speed reading practices you can apply to the course exercises and any other reading you do outside of class. You're at the midpoint in the course, so this is also a good time to compare your reading rate and comprehension scores with those of the former students you read about earlier. From there, you'll set goals for you to meet in the remaining lessons.

Skimming Techniques

You'll probably be reading pretty quickly by the time you reach this lesson, but how can you make sure your comprehension scores are keeping up? In this lesson, you'll look at the skills you'll need to work on to improve your comprehension. You'll find out what keys and identified parts are unique to all stories, and knowing those will help you to improve your comprehension. You'll be glad to learn that you already know a few speed reading skills and techniques as you continue to apply them to the course activities.

Measuring Reading Rates

In this lesson, you'll practice speed reading skills and techniques in real-world reading materials outside of class. You'll learn a method you can use to measure your speed reading rates when you're reading such materials. At this point, you'll be eager to read outside materials, not just for their content, but to further develop your speed reading skills and techniques.

Speed Reading Styles

You're now ready to analyze your personal speed reading style. You'll once again compare your speed reading rate and comprehension scores with those of former students to see how you stack up against others. You'll also compare your current scores with the scores you recorded at the beginning of the course to see how far you've come!

Vocabulary and Comprehension Skills

In this lesson, you'll look at eight word recognition vocabulary skills that you can work into your personal speed reading style. You'll learn how context clues and literal and inferential meanings in stories influence comprehension. All are part of the English language and fit right in with speed reading.

Assessing Your Progress

In this lesson, you'll see if you can figure out which of your behavior patterns are most useful in your own speed reading style. First and foremost, you need flexibility to focus on improving your reading speed, then you need an experimental attitude to get rid of poor reading habits. You'll study how the time you put in and the effort you expend affect your speed reading progress.

Wrapping Up

In the last lesson, you'll look at your personal speed reading accomplishments, as well as your speed reading future. From here on out, you're in the real world of reading, but you'll go into it with a lifelong speed reading skill. You'll learn how to adjust your personal speed reading style to any materials you read, because now you are a speed reader!

What you will learn

• Learn and practice some basic eye movements important to the speed-reading process
• Learn about Regulated Reading, Timed Reading, and Assignment exercises to gain increased reading rates with good comprehension
• Examine the retinal image phenomena and how it relates to a speed-reader's eye movements
• Discover bad reading habits that contribute to slow reading and learn to overcome them
• Learn 16 good speed reading practices you can apply to any reading you do
• Learn skills to improve comprehension
• Learn methods to measure your speed reading rates
• Discover vocabulary skills that you can work into your personal speed-reading style

How you will benefit

• Discover what bad habits you have developed that may contribute to slow reading
• Keep up with the flood of emails, articles, reports, and books that you want and need to read
• Save yourself hours of time and increase your productivity by learning to read faster and with better comprehension

Merrill L. Ream, Ph.D. (Course Author)

Curt Simmons, B.A., M.Ed, is a best-selling author, trainer, and multi-media expert. He holds degrees in English and communication studies and has more than 10 years of experience teaching English and writing in the classroom. Additionally, Simmons has authored numerous books on a wide variety of technology topics and has been a technical editor for numerous other titles.

Learn the secrets for success in your first years of teaching.

Feel a little trepidation before entering your classroom? You're not alone! Whether you're already teaching, a newly credentialed graduate, or a substitute looking to transition to full-time, this course will provide you with proven tools, tips, and tricks to make your early years in the classroom a breeze.

Teaching is a balancing act, and it requires a blend of subject expertise and classroom skills to reach all of your diverse learners. In this informational and interactive course, you'll learn how to run a motivational classroom that will feel like home to your students. You will discover how to write winning lesson plans, reach diverse learners through differentiated instruction, communicate clearly, plan memorable events, and keep stress at bay so you can feel good about going to work every morning. You will reap the benefits gained through many years of firsthand classroom experience!

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Learn the keys to success from an experienced educator so you can thrive as a classroom teacher. This course is designed to help teachers build motivational classrooms, reach diverse learners, write engaging lesson plans, communicate clearly, and keep stress at bay.

Welcome to Your Classroom

Do you ever stop to think about what inspired you to teach? Whether you're a brand new teacher looking for your first job, or a teacher with a year or two behind you, you'll take a look at the inspiration behind teachers of excellence. In the first lesson, you'll learn to draw on your inspiration as you face the academic (and not so academic) challenges ahead.

Plan Your Dream Classroom

Preparing your first classroom can be daunting if you don't have an action plan. From color theory to desk arrangement and bulletin boards, do you know how you want to stimulate your students visually? In this lesson, you'll find out the best ways to bring that touch of home and warmth to your classroom.

Make Your Lesson Plans

If you've ever wondered exactly how to fill those six hours you'll spend teaching, look no further than creative, engaging lesson plans. In this lesson, you'll discover the differences between full and condensed sets of lesson plans and learn how to build student excitement with a strong anticipatory set.

Differentiate Instruction

You may not know it yet, but differentiated instruction is probably second nature to you. It's all about modifying your curricular objectives to meet diverse student needs. In this lesson, you'll find out how to use interest centers, cubing, and tiering as easy methods of differentiating instruction in your class.

Reach Special Needs Students

Not so long ago, special needs students were relegated to different classrooms with their own teachers. These days, it's becoming more and more popular to include them in the regular classroom. This brings a host of new learning challenges and opportunities. In this lesson, you'll explore common special needs, IEPs, and smart ways to incorporate diverse learning objectives into your teaching routine.

Get Organized

Did you know that you shouldn't have more than five classroom rules? Are you prepared in the event of a fire drill? If you've been searching for the right rules, routines, and organization tips to make your classroom flow smoothly, look no further. This lesson will show you a bunch of time-saving tips that will help you add order to your classroom.

Build Lasting Relationships at School

The key to teaching is building strong relationships between school and home. This starts with your students and ideally extends across the campus, into the home, and out to the community. In this lesson, you'll learn tactics to win students, engage parents, and impress the school as you set an example as a strong communicator.

Negotiate Discipline and Rewards

One of the biggest classroom dilemmas is how to handle discipline and rewards—striking that balance between overreaction and fair play can be tricky. Luckily, you can use your communication skills to bridge conflict and turn classroom problems into teaching opportunities. In this lesson, you'll learn how to do just that.

Write Effective Assignments and Tests

Writing assignments and tests is never a thrill, even when you know exactly what learning you want to measure and how you want to do it. In this lesson, you'll discover the power of rubrics, tests that account for a wide range of student diversity, and creative assignments that bring out the best in all your learners.

Plan Exciting Classroom Events

Does the thought of public speaking make you cringe? It's natural for new teachers to be nervous about milestone events like Back to School Night, parent-teacher conferences, and field trips into the community. However, with planning, organization, and a little bit of homework on your part, you'll be able to pull off smooth events that look like they were planned by a pro.

Manage Stress

It's common for teachers to reach a burn-out point some time in those first few years. In this lesson, you'll learn to build balance in your life so that the job will never overwhelm you too much. From classroom strategies to make your life less hectic to after-hours relaxation tips that help veteran teachers let loose, you'll learn the best ways to keep stress at bay.

Nail Interviews to Advance Your Career

When you're ready to advance your career to the next level, you'll need to showcase not just what you've done, but what you're ready to do in a new classroom. It has to do with how you package your skills. In the final lesson, you'll discover what administrators are looking for and how to wow them with your creativity.

What you will learn

• Learn the fundamentals of surviving and thriving in your career as a professional educator
• Examine the subject expertise and classroom skills you will need to reach all of the diverse learners in your classroom
• Discover how to use your communication skills to bridge conflict and turn classroom problems into teaching opportunities
• Learn a variety of time-saving tips on rules, routines, and organization that will help you add order to your classroom

How you will benefit

• Reap the benefits gained through many years of firsthand classroom experience
• Gain confidence in your ability to build and maintain relationships with students, parents, staff, and administrators
• Learn useful strategies for managing stress and avoiding burn-out so you can enjoy a rewarding and fulfilling career

Cheryl Dick has more than 25 years of teaching experience and is currently a classroom teacher. She's taught 2nd, 4th, and 5th grade and has previously worked as an instructional coach. She graduated from Missouri State University with a Bachelor of Science in elementary education, with a focus on early childhood education. Cheryl also holds a master's degree in elementary education from Texas-Wesleyan University and a second master's degree in educational administration from Lindenwood University.

Learn the secrets for success in your first years of teaching.

Feel a little trepidation before entering your classroom? You're not alone! Whether you're already teaching, a newly credentialed graduate, or a substitute looking to transition to full-time, this course will provide you with proven tools, tips, and tricks to make your early years in the classroom a breeze.

Teaching is a balancing act, and it requires a blend of subject expertise and classroom skills to reach all of your diverse learners. In this informational and interactive course, you'll learn how to run a motivational classroom that will feel like home to your students. You will discover how to write winning lesson plans, reach diverse learners through differentiated instruction, communicate clearly, plan memorable events, and keep stress at bay so you can feel good about going to work every morning. You will reap the benefits gained through many years of firsthand classroom experience!

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Learn the keys to success from an experienced educator so you can thrive as a classroom teacher. This course is designed to help teachers build motivational classrooms, reach diverse learners, write engaging lesson plans, communicate clearly, and keep stress at bay.

Welcome to Your Classroom

Do you ever stop to think about what inspired you to teach? Whether you're a brand new teacher looking for your first job, or a teacher with a year or two behind you, you'll take a look at the inspiration behind teachers of excellence. In the first lesson, you'll learn to draw on your inspiration as you face the academic (and not so academic) challenges ahead.

Plan Your Dream Classroom

Preparing your first classroom can be daunting if you don't have an action plan. From color theory to desk arrangement and bulletin boards, do you know how you want to stimulate your students visually? In this lesson, you'll find out the best ways to bring that touch of home and warmth to your classroom.

Make Your Lesson Plans

If you've ever wondered exactly how to fill those six hours you'll spend teaching, look no further than creative, engaging lesson plans. In this lesson, you'll discover the differences between full and condensed sets of lesson plans and learn how to build student excitement with a strong anticipatory set.

Differentiate Instruction

You may not know it yet, but differentiated instruction is probably second nature to you. It's all about modifying your curricular objectives to meet diverse student needs. In this lesson, you'll find out how to use interest centers, cubing, and tiering as easy methods of differentiating instruction in your class.

Reach Special Needs Students

Not so long ago, special needs students were relegated to different classrooms with their own teachers. These days, it's becoming more and more popular to include them in the regular classroom. This brings a host of new learning challenges and opportunities. In this lesson, you'll explore common special needs, IEPs, and smart ways to incorporate diverse learning objectives into your teaching routine.

Get Organized

Did you know that you shouldn't have more than five classroom rules? Are you prepared in the event of a fire drill? If you've been searching for the right rules, routines, and organization tips to make your classroom flow smoothly, look no further. This lesson will show you a bunch of time-saving tips that will help you add order to your classroom.

Build Lasting Relationships at School

The key to teaching is building strong relationships between school and home. This starts with your students and ideally extends across the campus, into the home, and out to the community. In this lesson, you'll learn tactics to win students, engage parents, and impress the school as you set an example as a strong communicator.

Negotiate Discipline and Rewards

One of the biggest classroom dilemmas is how to handle discipline and rewards—striking that balance between overreaction and fair play can be tricky. Luckily, you can use your communication skills to bridge conflict and turn classroom problems into teaching opportunities. In this lesson, you'll learn how to do just that.

Write Effective Assignments and Tests

Writing assignments and tests is never a thrill, even when you know exactly what learning you want to measure and how you want to do it. In this lesson, you'll discover the power of rubrics, tests that account for a wide range of student diversity, and creative assignments that bring out the best in all your learners.

Plan Exciting Classroom Events

Does the thought of public speaking make you cringe? It's natural for new teachers to be nervous about milestone events like Back to School Night, parent-teacher conferences, and field trips into the community. However, with planning, organization, and a little bit of homework on your part, you'll be able to pull off smooth events that look like they were planned by a pro.

Manage Stress

It's common for teachers to reach a burn-out point some time in those first few years. In this lesson, you'll learn to build balance in your life so that the job will never overwhelm you too much. From classroom strategies to make your life less hectic to after-hours relaxation tips that help veteran teachers let loose, you'll learn the best ways to keep stress at bay.

Nail Interviews to Advance Your Career

When you're ready to advance your career to the next level, you'll need to showcase not just what you've done, but what you're ready to do in a new classroom. It has to do with how you package your skills. In the final lesson, you'll discover what administrators are looking for and how to wow them with your creativity.

What you will learn

• Learn the fundamentals of surviving and thriving in your career as a professional educator
• Examine the subject expertise and classroom skills you will need to reach all of the diverse learners in your classroom
• Discover how to use your communication skills to bridge conflict and turn classroom problems into teaching opportunities
• Learn a variety of time-saving tips on rules, routines, and organization that will help you add order to your classroom

How you will benefit

• Reap the benefits gained through many years of firsthand classroom experience
• Gain confidence in your ability to build and maintain relationships with students, parents, staff, and administrators
• Learn useful strategies for managing stress and avoiding burn-out so you can enjoy a rewarding and fulfilling career

Cheryl Dick has more than 25 years of teaching experience and is currently a classroom teacher. She's taught 2nd, 4th, and 5th grade and has previously worked as an instructional coach. She graduated from Missouri State University with a Bachelor of Science in elementary education, with a focus on early childhood education. Cheryl also holds a master's degree in elementary education from Texas-Wesleyan University and a second master's degree in educational administration from Lindenwood University.

This course will introduce numerous ways to motivate and teach adult students. You'll learn dozens of powerful teaching techniques that will keep your adult learners excited and help them absorb your material effortlessly. By the end of the course, you'll know all the tricks and techniques for winning over this fun, exciting, and very demanding group of students.

If you're excited about the challenge of reaching and teaching adult learners, then you're in the right place! In this course, you will discover how to use the newest educational methods to create a student-centered classroom that's perfectly suited for adult learners.

First, you will be introduced to the unique needs and motivations of adult students and find out just what they expect from your class. After that, you will examine your students' different learning styles and multiple intelligences and look at how you can teach to each learner's strengths.

Next, you will delve into a host of innovative teaching techniques that will turn your students into active learners and set them up for success. You will discover high-tech, low-tech, and no-tech educational tools you can use to capture and hold your students' attention.

Following that is a challenging topic: how to organize your material effectively and design strong lesson plans. In addition, you will learn how to create effective tests and how to teach your students good study skills. You will also explore a wide range of assessments and how to grade them. Finally, you will learn how to make your classroom accessible and enjoyable for students with disabilities.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Learn the most powerful techniques for reaching and motivating adult learners. This course will teach you the latest and greatest educational methods to create the perfect student-centered classroom.

Keys to Success in Your Teaching Career

A great classroom starts with a great teacher—and that's you! This lesson introduces how you can grow in your job as an adult educator by enhancing your professionalism and managing your time effectively. In addition, you will learn how to boost your confidence and establish your authority in the classroom.

Creating a Positive Learning Environment

Adult students are different than kids and understanding those differences can help you reach and teach them. This lesson explores what makes adult learners tick and how you can best meet their needs. In addition, you will learn about preparing for that big first day by getting your paperwork in order.

Understanding Learning Styles

Jill loves testing the rules. Germaine is a shy bookworm. Claire is an artist. All of these adults have different learning styles and intelligences. This lesson explores two different models of learning styles and introduces eight intelligences you will want to factor into your lesson plans.

Managing, Supervising, and Counseling Your Students

"Zzzzzzz" This is the sound of Darren snoozing in the corner as you're trying to lecture. Meanwhile, Emily and Sherelle are busy gossiping about their weekend. Does this sound like your classroom? If so, you will enjoy this lesson, which introduces many techniques to get misbehaving students back on track.

Basic Teaching Methods

Remember the old days, when teachers lectured for hours while students took notes or dozed? Those days are gone! This lesson introduces a host of innovative techniques, from window paning and role-playing to mnemonics and visualization, that work like magic in a student-centered classroom.

Planning Your Course

"Proper prior planning" may be a cliché, but it's also an excellent idea. This lesson looks at the upfront work that can set you up for success in the classroom. To do so, you will discover the 12 steps for creating a dynamite course outline.

Educational Aids and Classroom Technology

Just as an interior decorator accents a room with bright colors and great fabrics, you can accent your classroom presentations with the right audiovisual aids. This lesson looks at high-tech, low-tech, and no-tech educational aids and technology you can use to capture and keep your students' attention.

Creating Effective Presentations

What motivates your students to learn? This lesson introduces 10 needs and desires that bring learners to your classroom—and you will discover how to tap into those motivators during your presentations. You will also learn how to create powerful presentation openings, content, and closings.

Grading and Advising Your Students

This lesson explores the A-B-C's of grading and the ways to write top-notch test questions. In addition, you will discover great tools for assessing any type of skill, from cake-baking to hairdressing. You will also find out how to avoid the most common mistakes teachers make when they assess students.

Teaching Students Who Have Special Needs

This lesson focus on making your class accessible and enjoyable for students with disabilities. You will learn about the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), how to comply with this law, and common learning disabilities—dyslexia and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in particular.

Teaching Study Skills and Test-Taking Techniques

Even if you create great lessons, your students will succeed only if they have great study habits and efficient test-taking skills. This lesson explores ways to beef up your students' study skills and look at strategies for test-taking.

Starting a Career as an Adult Educator

Enough about your students—this lesson is all about you! Whether you're a brand-new teacher or an experienced educator looking for new classroom opportunities, you will find tips here on how to power up your job search.

What you will learn

• Explore the unique needs and motivations of adult students and find out just what they're expecting from your class
• Examine your students' different learning styles and multiple intelligences and look at how you can teach to each learner's strengths
• Learn ways to get misbehaving or under-achieving students back on track
• Delve into a host of innovative teaching techniques that will turn your students into active learners and set them up for success
• Understand high-tech, low-tech, and no-tech educational tools you can use to capture and hold your students' attention
• Learn how to organize your material effectively and design strong lesson plans
• Learn how to create effective tests and how to teach your students good study skills
• Understand how to make your classroom accessible and enjoyable for students with disabilities

How you will benefit

• Gain tricks and techniques for winning over this fun, exciting, and very demanding group of students
• Gain the confidence you need to succeed in teaching adults with the information and hands-on activities in this course
• Discover how to create a student-centered classroom that's perfectly suited for adult learners

Annemarie Thompson is an award winning learning designer with over 15 years of experience in the distance learning industry. She produces courses on key teacher development topics including Differentiated Instruction, Classroom Discipline, and Classroom Management. Her courses have been offered by more than 100 colleges and universities and were the basis of an accredited online master's program.

This course will introduce numerous ways to motivate and teach adult students. You'll learn dozens of powerful teaching techniques that will keep your adult learners excited and help them absorb your material effortlessly. By the end of the course, you'll know all the tricks and techniques for winning over this fun, exciting, and very demanding group of students.

If you're excited about the challenge of reaching and teaching adult learners, then you're in the right place! In this course, you will discover how to use the newest educational methods to create a student-centered classroom that's perfectly suited for adult learners.

First, you will be introduced to the unique needs and motivations of adult students and find out just what they expect from your class. After that, you will examine your students' different learning styles and multiple intelligences and look at how you can teach to each learner's strengths.

Next, you will delve into a host of innovative teaching techniques that will turn your students into active learners and set them up for success. You will discover high-tech, low-tech, and no-tech educational tools you can use to capture and hold your students' attention.

Following that is a challenging topic: how to organize your material effectively and design strong lesson plans. In addition, you will learn how to create effective tests and how to teach your students good study skills. You will also explore a wide range of assessments and how to grade them. Finally, you will learn how to make your classroom accessible and enjoyable for students with disabilities.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Learn the most powerful techniques for reaching and motivating adult learners. This course will teach you the latest and greatest educational methods to create the perfect student-centered classroom.

Keys to Success in Your Teaching Career

A great classroom starts with a great teacher—and that's you! This lesson introduces how you can grow in your job as an adult educator by enhancing your professionalism and managing your time effectively. In addition, you will learn how to boost your confidence and establish your authority in the classroom.

Creating a Positive Learning Environment

Adult students are different than kids and understanding those differences can help you reach and teach them. This lesson explores what makes adult learners tick and how you can best meet their needs. In addition, you will learn about preparing for that big first day by getting your paperwork in order.

Understanding Learning Styles

Jill loves testing the rules. Germaine is a shy bookworm. Claire is an artist. All of these adults have different learning styles and intelligences. This lesson explores two different models of learning styles and introduces eight intelligences you will want to factor into your lesson plans.

Managing, Supervising, and Counseling Your Students

"Zzzzzzz" This is the sound of Darren snoozing in the corner as you're trying to lecture. Meanwhile, Emily and Sherelle are busy gossiping about their weekend. Does this sound like your classroom? If so, you will enjoy this lesson, which introduces many techniques to get misbehaving students back on track.

Basic Teaching Methods

Remember the old days, when teachers lectured for hours while students took notes or dozed? Those days are gone! This lesson introduces a host of innovative techniques, from window paning and role-playing to mnemonics and visualization, that work like magic in a student-centered classroom.

Planning Your Course

"Proper prior planning" may be a cliché, but it's also an excellent idea. This lesson looks at the upfront work that can set you up for success in the classroom. To do so, you will discover the 12 steps for creating a dynamite course outline.

Educational Aids and Classroom Technology

Just as an interior decorator accents a room with bright colors and great fabrics, you can accent your classroom presentations with the right audiovisual aids. This lesson looks at high-tech, low-tech, and no-tech educational aids and technology you can use to capture and keep your students' attention.

Creating Effective Presentations

What motivates your students to learn? This lesson introduces 10 needs and desires that bring learners to your classroom—and you will discover how to tap into those motivators during your presentations. You will also learn how to create powerful presentation openings, content, and closings.

Grading and Advising Your Students

This lesson explores the A-B-C's of grading and the ways to write top-notch test questions. In addition, you will discover great tools for assessing any type of skill, from cake-baking to hairdressing. You will also find out how to avoid the most common mistakes teachers make when they assess students.

Teaching Students Who Have Special Needs

This lesson focus on making your class accessible and enjoyable for students with disabilities. You will learn about the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), how to comply with this law, and common learning disabilities—dyslexia and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in particular.

Teaching Study Skills and Test-Taking Techniques

Even if you create great lessons, your students will succeed only if they have great study habits and efficient test-taking skills. This lesson explores ways to beef up your students' study skills and look at strategies for test-taking.

Starting a Career as an Adult Educator

Enough about your students—this lesson is all about you! Whether you're a brand-new teacher or an experienced educator looking for new classroom opportunities, you will find tips here on how to power up your job search.

What you will learn

• Explore the unique needs and motivations of adult students and find out just what they're expecting from your class
• Examine your students' different learning styles and multiple intelligences and look at how you can teach to each learner's strengths
• Learn ways to get misbehaving or under-achieving students back on track
• Delve into a host of innovative teaching techniques that will turn your students into active learners and set them up for success
• Understand high-tech, low-tech, and no-tech educational tools you can use to capture and hold your students' attention
• Learn how to organize your material effectively and design strong lesson plans
• Learn how to create effective tests and how to teach your students good study skills
• Understand how to make your classroom accessible and enjoyable for students with disabilities

How you will benefit

• Gain tricks and techniques for winning over this fun, exciting, and very demanding group of students
• Gain the confidence you need to succeed in teaching adults with the information and hands-on activities in this course
• Discover how to create a student-centered classroom that's perfectly suited for adult learners

Annemarie Thompson is an award winning learning designer with over 15 years of experience in the distance learning industry. She produces courses on key teacher development topics including Differentiated Instruction, Classroom Discipline, and Classroom Management. Her courses have been offered by more than 100 colleges and universities and were the basis of an accredited online master's program.

Gain confidence in applying the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts (reading, writing, speaking and listening, and language) to the K-5 classroom.

Discover the Common Core State standards for English language arts, and gain confidence in applying them to the K-5 classroom. In this course you will explore the basic elements of the standards—strands, anchor standards, and grade articulations—and you will see how they relate to each other. You will be empowered to speak knowledgeably with parents, peers, and the community.

You will explore the four English language strands—reading, writing, speaking, and listening, and language. You will examine how teaching literature gives students the opportunity to explore language, and consider the impact of a school-wide literacy plan. You will look at the roles of technology, homework, curricula, and assessments in the classroom. You will be inspired by loads of easy-to-use, practical examples of Common Core State Standards-aligned lessons that you can use with your own students.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Gain confidence in applying Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts in K-5 classrooms. This course will provide you with easy-to-use, practical examples aligned with lessons that you can begin using immediately in your own classroom to teach Common Core Standards.

Don't Be Afraid of the Common Core State Standards

In this lesson, you'll examine some of the most common myths about the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). You'll learn the history of the standards and how they'll help you prepare students for the 21st century. You'll also learn the basic elements of the standards and discover how they relate to each other and get a handle on the terminology. By the time you finish this lesson, you'll understand the CCSS document and how to use it and be ready to start examining the standards in greater detail!

The Reading Strand

In this lesson, you'll look at the Common Core Standards for reading. First, you'll explore the 10 anchor standards and see how their broad goals are consistent throughout the grades (kindergarten through grade 12). Then, you'll see how those broad goals are articulated for each grade level in K-5. You'll spend some extra time with the 10th standard, discussing text complexity and how it's measured, and get a chance to explore the text exemplars from CCSS Appendix B. By the end of this lesson, you'll be ready to examine those Reading strand grade articulations that will be relevant to your own classroom.

Foundational Reading Skills

This lesson talks about foundational reading skills. You'll examine the Common Core Standards for foundational reading skills and learn how these standards address the most basic literacy skills. You'll discover ways to incorporate them into lesson plans that easily adapt for inclusive classrooms, and there will also be some time devoted to exploring CCSS Appendix A. By the end of this lesson, you'll be on your way to creating a personalized glossary and a focused collection of grade articulations for your own classroom!

Reading Informational Text

In this lesson, you'll look at how the CCSS focus on informational text prepares students for 21st-century life. You'll learn some tips to help you differentiate between literature and informational text, and take a quick look at the informational text exemplars from the CCSS Appendix B. You'll also discover how text exemplars can help you determine which informational texts satisfy the Common Core Standards. Finally, you'll review some guided reading and close reading techniques and discuss why these are integral to science, math, social studies, and arts classes.

Reading Literature

In this lesson, you'll discover how literature—stories, poetry, and drama—prepares students for their role in 21st-century society. You'll explore two more close reading strategies and look at how the tools and strategies that were covered in the discussion of the Reading strand align with the CCSS Anchor Standards for Reading.

The Writing Strand

In this lesson, you'll look at the Common Core Standards for writing. You'll explore the 10 anchor standards for writing and review how their broad goals are consistent throughout all grades—kindergarten through 12th grade. You'll look at how those broad goals are articulated for each specific K-5 grade level and also take a peek at the writing exemplars from the CCSS Appendix C. By the end of the lesson, you'll be prepared to study the Writing strand grade articulations that will be relevant to your own classroom!

The Speaking and Listening Strand

In this lesson, you'll look at the Common Core Standards for Speaking and Listening. You'll learn how the speaking and listening anchor standards relate to comprehension, collaboration, and presentation of ideas. You'll also examine how these broad goals are articulated for each specific K-5 grade level. Afterwards, you'll go over a few tried-and-true techniques for maintaining control in a conversational classroom!

The Language Strand

Here you'll explore the Common Core Standards for Language, the fourth and final ELA strand. You'll learn how these anchor standards relate to the conventions of standard English, how language functions in different contexts, and how young people acquire and use vocabulary. You'll also review how the broad goals of the anchor standards are articulated for each specific K-5 grade level. You'll look at some practical examples of classroom activities that encourage students to play with language and examine how "playing with language" helps students actually understand language!

Technology and Literacy Skills

In this lesson, you'll learn how each anchor standard and grade articulation is identified by a simple-to-understand abbreviation. You'll look at all four strands and discuss the many ways technology and literacy work together in the 21st-century classroom. You'll also be presented with lots of great web resources—for you, your students, and your students' families. Integrating technology into the classroom and curriculum can be a great way to reinforce literacy skills and improve learning!

Fitting It Together in a 21st-Century Classroom

In this lesson, you'll come to understand how integrated literacy, curricula, classroom lessons, and homework fit together to create a CCSS-aligned learning experience. The lesson will provide you with some strategies for integrating literacy across the curriculum, and then you'll look at some ways to bring homework back into the classroom! You'll also be given a tool for examining your school's curriculum to ensure that it's aligned with CCSS. By the end of this lesson, you'll have the tools and knowledge you need to create a 21st-century classroom.

Assessments: How Will You Know It's Working?

This lesson discusses assessments. These are a significant concern for many teachers—the changes to assessments aligned with CCSS, as well as the administration of the new assessment. This lesson will discuss summative assessments and the two new assessment consortia, PARCC and Smarter Balanced. It will also discuss formative assessment strategies that you can implement throughout your lessons and units. You'll be relieved to discover that you can still exercise a lot of control over the assessments you use in the classroom!

Making CCSS Come Alive in the Classroom

In the final lesson, you'll see how you can make CCSS come alive in the classroom. The lesson will talk about some strategies that will help you determine which lesson plans are already working well and align with the CCSS goals, and which you might consider replacing with new and improved lessons. It will also talk about ways you can differentiate your classroom instruction to meet CCSS goals and also meet the needs of your individual students. Finally, you'll look at some helpful resources for involving parents, family members, and the community in your 21st-century classroom!

What you will learn

• Learn the basic elements of the standards
• Learn terminology used in Common Core State Standards
• Explore the 10 anchor standers and how they are articulated for each grade level
• Become familiar with Appendix A, B, and C
• Learn ways to incorporate the standards into your lesson plans
• Learn strategies and tools for reading, writing, listening, and language strands into your classroom
• Discover web resources for you, your students and your students' families
• Learn ways to ensure that your school's curriculum is aligned with CCSS

How you will benefit

• You will be empowered to steak knowledgeably with parents, peers, and the community about the common Core State Standards
• Become confident in your ability to employ the CCS standards in your classroom and in your school

Dr. Katie McKnight is an author, educator, and consultant. She received her B.A. from George Washington University, her M.Ed. from Northeastern Illinois University, and her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Today, she serves as a professor at National Louis University and an onsite professional development consultant for the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). Dr. McKnight regularly publishes in professional journals and is the author of many books including The Elementary Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, and The Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, Grades 5-12 (recipient of the 2013 Teachers' Choice Award).

Gain confidence in applying the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts (reading, writing, speaking and listening, and language) to the K-5 classroom.

Discover the Common Core State standards for English language arts, and gain confidence in applying them to the K-5 classroom. In this course you will explore the basic elements of the standards—strands, anchor standards, and grade articulations—and you will see how they relate to each other. You will be empowered to speak knowledgeably with parents, peers, and the community.

You will explore the four English language strands—reading, writing, speaking, and listening, and language. You will examine how teaching literature gives students the opportunity to explore language, and consider the impact of a school-wide literacy plan. You will look at the roles of technology, homework, curricula, and assessments in the classroom. You will be inspired by loads of easy-to-use, practical examples of Common Core State Standards-aligned lessons that you can use with your own students.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Gain confidence in applying Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts in K-5 classrooms. This course will provide you with easy-to-use, practical examples aligned with lessons that you can begin using immediately in your own classroom to teach Common Core Standards.

Don't Be Afraid of the Common Core State Standards

In this lesson, you'll examine some of the most common myths about the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). You'll learn the history of the standards and how they'll help you prepare students for the 21st century. You'll also learn the basic elements of the standards and discover how they relate to each other and get a handle on the terminology. By the time you finish this lesson, you'll understand the CCSS document and how to use it and be ready to start examining the standards in greater detail!

The Reading Strand

In this lesson, you'll look at the Common Core Standards for reading. First, you'll explore the 10 anchor standards and see how their broad goals are consistent throughout the grades (kindergarten through grade 12). Then, you'll see how those broad goals are articulated for each grade level in K-5. You'll spend some extra time with the 10th standard, discussing text complexity and how it's measured, and get a chance to explore the text exemplars from CCSS Appendix B. By the end of this lesson, you'll be ready to examine those Reading strand grade articulations that will be relevant to your own classroom.

Foundational Reading Skills

This lesson talks about foundational reading skills. You'll examine the Common Core Standards for foundational reading skills and learn how these standards address the most basic literacy skills. You'll discover ways to incorporate them into lesson plans that easily adapt for inclusive classrooms, and there will also be some time devoted to exploring CCSS Appendix A. By the end of this lesson, you'll be on your way to creating a personalized glossary and a focused collection of grade articulations for your own classroom!

Reading Informational Text

In this lesson, you'll look at how the CCSS focus on informational text prepares students for 21st-century life. You'll learn some tips to help you differentiate between literature and informational text, and take a quick look at the informational text exemplars from the CCSS Appendix B. You'll also discover how text exemplars can help you determine which informational texts satisfy the Common Core Standards. Finally, you'll review some guided reading and close reading techniques and discuss why these are integral to science, math, social studies, and arts classes.

Reading Literature

In this lesson, you'll discover how literature—stories, poetry, and drama—prepares students for their role in 21st-century society. You'll explore two more close reading strategies and look at how the tools and strategies that were covered in the discussion of the Reading strand align with the CCSS Anchor Standards for Reading.

The Writing Strand

In this lesson, you'll look at the Common Core Standards for writing. You'll explore the 10 anchor standards for writing and review how their broad goals are consistent throughout all grades—kindergarten through 12th grade. You'll look at how those broad goals are articulated for each specific K-5 grade level and also take a peek at the writing exemplars from the CCSS Appendix C. By the end of the lesson, you'll be prepared to study the Writing strand grade articulations that will be relevant to your own classroom!

The Speaking and Listening Strand

In this lesson, you'll look at the Common Core Standards for Speaking and Listening. You'll learn how the speaking and listening anchor standards relate to comprehension, collaboration, and presentation of ideas. You'll also examine how these broad goals are articulated for each specific K-5 grade level. Afterwards, you'll go over a few tried-and-true techniques for maintaining control in a conversational classroom!

The Language Strand

Here you'll explore the Common Core Standards for Language, the fourth and final ELA strand. You'll learn how these anchor standards relate to the conventions of standard English, how language functions in different contexts, and how young people acquire and use vocabulary. You'll also review how the broad goals of the anchor standards are articulated for each specific K-5 grade level. You'll look at some practical examples of classroom activities that encourage students to play with language and examine how "playing with language" helps students actually understand language!

Technology and Literacy Skills

In this lesson, you'll learn how each anchor standard and grade articulation is identified by a simple-to-understand abbreviation. You'll look at all four strands and discuss the many ways technology and literacy work together in the 21st-century classroom. You'll also be presented with lots of great web resources—for you, your students, and your students' families. Integrating technology into the classroom and curriculum can be a great way to reinforce literacy skills and improve learning!

Fitting It Together in a 21st-Century Classroom

In this lesson, you'll come to understand how integrated literacy, curricula, classroom lessons, and homework fit together to create a CCSS-aligned learning experience. The lesson will provide you with some strategies for integrating literacy across the curriculum, and then you'll look at some ways to bring homework back into the classroom! You'll also be given a tool for examining your school's curriculum to ensure that it's aligned with CCSS. By the end of this lesson, you'll have the tools and knowledge you need to create a 21st-century classroom.

Assessments: How Will You Know It's Working?

This lesson discusses assessments. These are a significant concern for many teachers—the changes to assessments aligned with CCSS, as well as the administration of the new assessment. This lesson will discuss summative assessments and the two new assessment consortia, PARCC and Smarter Balanced. It will also discuss formative assessment strategies that you can implement throughout your lessons and units. You'll be relieved to discover that you can still exercise a lot of control over the assessments you use in the classroom!

Making CCSS Come Alive in the Classroom

In the final lesson, you'll see how you can make CCSS come alive in the classroom. The lesson will talk about some strategies that will help you determine which lesson plans are already working well and align with the CCSS goals, and which you might consider replacing with new and improved lessons. It will also talk about ways you can differentiate your classroom instruction to meet CCSS goals and also meet the needs of your individual students. Finally, you'll look at some helpful resources for involving parents, family members, and the community in your 21st-century classroom!

What you will learn

• Learn the basic elements of the standards
• Learn terminology used in Common Core State Standards
• Explore the 10 anchor standers and how they are articulated for each grade level
• Become familiar with Appendix A, B, and C
• Learn ways to incorporate the standards into your lesson plans
• Learn strategies and tools for reading, writing, listening, and language strands into your classroom
• Discover web resources for you, your students and your students' families
• Learn ways to ensure that your school's curriculum is aligned with CCSS

How you will benefit

• You will be empowered to steak knowledgeably with parents, peers, and the community about the common Core State Standards
• Become confident in your ability to employ the CCS standards in your classroom and in your school

Dr. Katie McKnight is an author, educator, and consultant. She received her B.A. from George Washington University, her M.Ed. from Northeastern Illinois University, and her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Today, she serves as a professor at National Louis University and an onsite professional development consultant for the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). Dr. McKnight regularly publishes in professional journals and is the author of many books including The Elementary Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, and The Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, Grades 5-12 (recipient of the 2013 Teachers' Choice Award).

Learn practical strategies for incorporating reading, writing, and the other literacy skills outlined in the Common Core State Standards into your content area for adolescent students.

In order to succeed, students must develop literacy skills in order to access, learn, and comprehend. With the adoption of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), teachers in all subject areas are finding themselves actively involved in their students' literacy development. In this course, you will discover literacy development strategies that make content come alive for each and every student!

You will see how new literacy standards relate to the content areas, and uncover the many ways adolescent development is connected to effective teaching. You'll explore differentiated education and see how easy it can be to deliver content to students at varying levels of literacy development. In addition, you'll analyze your current teaching practices to identify the effective literacy development that you're already doing. You'll adapt some of your favorite lessons to enhance reading, writing, speaking, listening, and language development. By the end of the course, you'll be confident in your ability to utilize the best of what's new, keep the best of what you've already got, and enjoy being a great 21st-century teacher!

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Help your students succeed in school with well-developed literacy skills. This course will provide practical strategies for incorporating reading, writing, and the other literacy skills outlined in the Common Core State Standards into your content area for differentiated adolescent education.

Fundamentals of Adolescent Literacy

In the first lesson, you'll examine the difference between literacy and literature and look closely at the adolescent brain to find out how learning during that life stage is different than learning as a baby, child, or adult. You'll get a quick refresher on the concept of learning styles and discover how you can accommodate a diverse group of learners in a classroom. By the time the lesson is over, you'll be ready to explore the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and see how they address the need for grades 6-12 interdisciplinary literacy.

CCSS and Interdisciplinary Literacy

In this lesson you'll explore the history and goals of the CCSS. You'll find out how the developers of the CCSS structured the standards to help prepare students for the 21st century workplace and see how interdisciplinary literacy fits into the standards. You'll then walk through the document and examine its parts. Finally, you'll discover how you might use it when you prepare classroom activities.

Text Complexity

Everyone knows that students need to read more, and they need to read more complex texts. How would you explain what text complexity is? This lesson will discuss the three aspects of text complexity as described in the CCSS. By the end of the lesson, you'll see how you can use text complexity analysis in your content area classroom to help students develop their reading skills and more readily master your academic material.

Reading Strategies That Build Comprehension in the Content Areas

In this lesson, you'll take an in-depth look at the CCSS reading standards. First, you'll examine the reading anchor standards and see how they're articulated for different grade levels as students read both literature and informational texts. Then, you'll examine practical examples of reading strategies that you can use in your own content area classroom. By the end of this lesson, you'll have a clear picture of how to use reading strategies to build comprehension in your content area.

Writing Strategies That Build Comprehension in the Content Areas

In this lesson you'll explore the writing standards and see how the CCSS articulates them for different grade levels. You'll look at some practical writing strategies that are ideally suited for the content area classroom, and then you'll see one of those strategies in practice. You'll also examine some of the most common tricks of the trade among English Language Arts teachers and how you can apply them to your classroom. After seeing what writing strategies look like in practice, you'll be inspired to try them yourself!

Speaking and Listening in the Content Areas

Don't assume that your students have mastered their speaking and listening skills. In this lesson, you'll explore the Common Core State Standards for speaking and listening. You'll examine how the broad goals of the anchor standards are articulated for the 6-12 grade levels and then take a close look at some speaking and listening activities that are ideally suited for the content area classroom. Along the way, the lesson will go over a few techniques for maintaining control in a conversational classroom.

Argumentation as Literacy Development

Most teenagers enjoy a good debate. There's nothing inherently wrong with this; a well-argued debate can lead to some pretty exciting outcomes. In this lesson, you'll take a close look at how argumentation is related to literacy and learn ways to reinforce and encourage the value of debate in your content area classroom.

Developing Academic Language in the Content Areas

Language is the basic building block of any society; it's how people communicate and record events. In this lesson, you'll examine the CCSS goals for language development and learn how to help students achieve these goals in your own classroom.

Technology and Literacy

Technology has significantly changed the way that teachers teach. This lesson is all about integrating the CCSS technology standards into the content area classroom. You'll discover how content learning, classroom technology, and literacy development complement each other and can occur simultaneously. Worried you're not an IT person and don't have the technological skills to succeed? Don't be. The lesson will address that, too, and by the end of it, you'll be ready to roll up your sleeves and dive headfirst into the technology deep end!

Student Learning Centers

Student learning centers are a valuable, real-world model of how content learning and literacy skill development can happen simultaneously in every classroom. In this lesson, you'll learn how to repurpose existing lesson activities as learning center activities, and you'll find out why this approach to working with students in the upper grades is a practical way to integrate literacy development and content learning.

Assessment: How Will I Know It's Working?

In this lesson, you'll find out how content literacy affects formative assessments and summative assessments. You'll learn what formative assessment is and isn't and then learn the three steps to a well-implemented formative assessment. You'll also look at how you can incorporate this type of assessment into your instruction. The lesson will discuss the five building blocks of formative assessment, and you'll learn some simple strategies you can use in your classroom. You'll also take a close look at summative assessments and find out about the two new assessment consortia that will administer standardized tests: Smarter Balanced and PARCC.

Literacy Evolution in the Classroom

In the final lesson for this course, you'll make a plan to use the best of what's new, keep the best of what you've already got, and enjoy being a great 21st century teacher. This lesson will wrap up everything you've learned throughout this course, and you'll examine tools you can use to integrate the CCSS with your existing lesson plans and your school's curriculum.

What you will learn

• Discover how to integrate literacy development with the content area knowledge you teach
• Learn to utilize new ideas while augmenting the skills and lesson plans you have already developed
• Discover literacy development strategies that make content come alive for each and every student
• Learn how literacy is connected to adolescent development, and discover how to accommodate a diverse group of learners in a classroom

How you will benefit

• Learn to utilize new ideas while augmenting the skills and lesson plans you have already developed
• Gain confidence in your ability to adapt to the CCSS and be a successful 21st century teacher
• See how easy it can be to deliver content to students at varying levels of literacy development

Dr. Katie McKnight is an author, educator, and consultant. She received her B.A. from George Washington University, her M.Ed. from Northeastern Illinois University, and her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Today, she serves as a professor at National Louis University and an onsite professional development consultant for the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). Dr. McKnight regularly publishes in professional journals and is the author of many books including The Elementary Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, and The Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, Grades 5-12 (recipient of the 2013 Teachers' Choice Award).

Learn practical strategies for incorporating reading, writing, and the other literacy skills outlined in the Common Core State Standards into your content area for adolescent students.

In order to succeed, students must develop literacy skills in order to access, learn, and comprehend. With the adoption of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), teachers in all subject areas are finding themselves actively involved in their students' literacy development. In this course, you will discover literacy development strategies that make content come alive for each and every student!

You will see how new literacy standards relate to the content areas, and uncover the many ways adolescent development is connected to effective teaching. You'll explore differentiated education and see how easy it can be to deliver content to students at varying levels of literacy development. In addition, you'll analyze your current teaching practices to identify the effective literacy development that you're already doing. You'll adapt some of your favorite lessons to enhance reading, writing, speaking, listening, and language development. By the end of the course, you'll be confident in your ability to utilize the best of what's new, keep the best of what you've already got, and enjoy being a great 21st-century teacher!

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Help your students succeed in school with well-developed literacy skills. This course will provide practical strategies for incorporating reading, writing, and the other literacy skills outlined in the Common Core State Standards into your content area for differentiated adolescent education.

Fundamentals of Adolescent Literacy

In the first lesson, you'll examine the difference between literacy and literature and look closely at the adolescent brain to find out how learning during that life stage is different than learning as a baby, child, or adult. You'll get a quick refresher on the concept of learning styles and discover how you can accommodate a diverse group of learners in a classroom. By the time the lesson is over, you'll be ready to explore the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and see how they address the need for grades 6-12 interdisciplinary literacy.

CCSS and Interdisciplinary Literacy

In this lesson you'll explore the history and goals of the CCSS. You'll find out how the developers of the CCSS structured the standards to help prepare students for the 21st century workplace and see how interdisciplinary literacy fits into the standards. You'll then walk through the document and examine its parts. Finally, you'll discover how you might use it when you prepare classroom activities.

Text Complexity

Everyone knows that students need to read more, and they need to read more complex texts. How would you explain what text complexity is? This lesson will discuss the three aspects of text complexity as described in the CCSS. By the end of the lesson, you'll see how you can use text complexity analysis in your content area classroom to help students develop their reading skills and more readily master your academic material.

Reading Strategies That Build Comprehension in the Content Areas

In this lesson, you'll take an in-depth look at the CCSS reading standards. First, you'll examine the reading anchor standards and see how they're articulated for different grade levels as students read both literature and informational texts. Then, you'll examine practical examples of reading strategies that you can use in your own content area classroom. By the end of this lesson, you'll have a clear picture of how to use reading strategies to build comprehension in your content area.

Writing Strategies That Build Comprehension in the Content Areas

In this lesson you'll explore the writing standards and see how the CCSS articulates them for different grade levels. You'll look at some practical writing strategies that are ideally suited for the content area classroom, and then you'll see one of those strategies in practice. You'll also examine some of the most common tricks of the trade among English Language Arts teachers and how you can apply them to your classroom. After seeing what writing strategies look like in practice, you'll be inspired to try them yourself!

Speaking and Listening in the Content Areas

Don't assume that your students have mastered their speaking and listening skills. In this lesson, you'll explore the Common Core State Standards for speaking and listening. You'll examine how the broad goals of the anchor standards are articulated for the 6-12 grade levels and then take a close look at some speaking and listening activities that are ideally suited for the content area classroom. Along the way, the lesson will go over a few techniques for maintaining control in a conversational classroom.

Argumentation as Literacy Development

Most teenagers enjoy a good debate. There's nothing inherently wrong with this; a well-argued debate can lead to some pretty exciting outcomes. In this lesson, you'll take a close look at how argumentation is related to literacy and learn ways to reinforce and encourage the value of debate in your content area classroom.

Developing Academic Language in the Content Areas

Language is the basic building block of any society; it's how people communicate and record events. In this lesson, you'll examine the CCSS goals for language development and learn how to help students achieve these goals in your own classroom.

Technology and Literacy

Technology has significantly changed the way that teachers teach. This lesson is all about integrating the CCSS technology standards into the content area classroom. You'll discover how content learning, classroom technology, and literacy development complement each other and can occur simultaneously. Worried you're not an IT person and don't have the technological skills to succeed? Don't be. The lesson will address that, too, and by the end of it, you'll be ready to roll up your sleeves and dive headfirst into the technology deep end!

Student Learning Centers

Student learning centers are a valuable, real-world model of how content learning and literacy skill development can happen simultaneously in every classroom. In this lesson, you'll learn how to repurpose existing lesson activities as learning center activities, and you'll find out why this approach to working with students in the upper grades is a practical way to integrate literacy development and content learning.

Assessment: How Will I Know It's Working?

In this lesson, you'll find out how content literacy affects formative assessments and summative assessments. You'll learn what formative assessment is and isn't and then learn the three steps to a well-implemented formative assessment. You'll also look at how you can incorporate this type of assessment into your instruction. The lesson will discuss the five building blocks of formative assessment, and you'll learn some simple strategies you can use in your classroom. You'll also take a close look at summative assessments and find out about the two new assessment consortia that will administer standardized tests: Smarter Balanced and PARCC.

Literacy Evolution in the Classroom

In the final lesson for this course, you'll make a plan to use the best of what's new, keep the best of what you've already got, and enjoy being a great 21st century teacher. This lesson will wrap up everything you've learned throughout this course, and you'll examine tools you can use to integrate the CCSS with your existing lesson plans and your school's curriculum.

What you will learn

• Discover how to integrate literacy development with the content area knowledge you teach
• Learn to utilize new ideas while augmenting the skills and lesson plans you have already developed
• Discover literacy development strategies that make content come alive for each and every student
• Learn how literacy is connected to adolescent development, and discover how to accommodate a diverse group of learners in a classroom

How you will benefit

• Learn to utilize new ideas while augmenting the skills and lesson plans you have already developed
• Gain confidence in your ability to adapt to the CCSS and be a successful 21st century teacher
• See how easy it can be to deliver content to students at varying levels of literacy development

Dr. Katie McKnight is an author, educator, and consultant. She received her B.A. from George Washington University, her M.Ed. from Northeastern Illinois University, and her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Today, she serves as a professor at National Louis University and an onsite professional development consultant for the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). Dr. McKnight regularly publishes in professional journals and is the author of many books including The Elementary Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, and The Teacher's Big Book of Graphic Organizers, Grades 5-12 (recipient of the 2013 Teachers' Choice Award).

Counseling for College Prep is an insightful course for high school counselors and professionals looking for ways to help students of all backgrounds graduate. It goes beyond graduation to post-secondary planning and tools and resources to support student success.

The Counseling for College Prep course will explore various aspects of supporting your students in their post-graduation aspirations. While students' backgrounds, situations, and dreams are all different, this online guidance counselor course will discuss how your role is similar for each. You will explore how becoming a student's host can help them see that life can be different and what it takes to support them to succeed.

You will also explore building a toolbox of resources to use as college counselor to support students' discovery and planning processes—no matter their background. You will learn to assemble a network of other professionals that can help, including at a national and local community level. 

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook device.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 10 or later operating systems.
• Mac: OS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox is preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Microsoft Word Online
• Adobe Acrobat Reader
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

While the college-going experience may evolve, it is not going away. In this online course, you will prepare for a vital role where you support students’ post-secondary aspirations as we also explore how critical your role is to the evolution of our communities.

Current Trends in College Decisions

In this lesson, you will discuss the culturally driven, overarching concept of the college-going culture. You will explore ongoing trends that help manifest the college-going culture. You will consider fiscally responsible paths for many students and the need for early intervention in this substantial decision-making process. Finally, you will look at current trends in business and industry that may drive different decisions from those our generations made for these young, soon-to-be graduates as they move on into college and other educational paths.

Your Role in Preparing Students for College

Now you will clarify your role as a professional in helping students prepare for selection and admissions processes for post-secondary school. You will solicit community engagement and outreach networks for resources to support your students. You will consider ethical and legal considerations for your role in this process. Finally, you will summarize the key aspects of your role in understanding and explaining financial aid and funding sources to help your students achieve their post-secondary school vision.

The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Model

This lesson delves into the American School Counselor Association’s position on the role of a school counselor and a model for school counselor programs in schools. It will help you better understand the ASCA model and the role of a school counselor. You will review insights, information, and best practices for establishing a graduation and career-preparation culture. You will discuss the model and create a plan for assessing your school’s current graduation and career-preparation culture and identifying gaps between that and the desired future vision. You will finally discuss how to engage internal and external resources to support improvement in graduation and career preparation advocacy.

Supporting Special Student Populations in the College-Going Culture

This lesson expands on the need to build a network and a toolbox to support your students’ college aspirations. This process includes connecting with professionals in local educational institutions. In this lesson, we will dig a bit deeper into best practices for navigating a college-going culture. This will include adding to your toolbox with real examples of what your peers are doing to build a college-going culture. You will discuss supporting students from different demographic populations and special populations. Finally, you will learn about military options and resources for your students.

Community Colleges as an Alternative

This lesson will help you understand the origin of the community college. It will also explore reasons for current-day community colleges. It will help you understand what they currently offer for your students so you can have more efficient college-going decision conversations with your students. Finally, it will discuss and help you discuss the financial investment and return of a community college. The goal of this lesson is to help you add to your network and toolbox to help students for whom a community college is a great option.

Exploring College and Alternative Choices

In this lesson, you will learn about college visits and fairs. You likely have some experience or knowledge of these events. However, this lesson will look a bit deeper at the logistics of setting up your fairs and coordinating with local institutions. You will also explore how to use these events to set up financial workshops to help your students and families understand and plan for the economic requirements of college. You will consider how to also partner with local U.S. military recruiters to set up similar events for your students who are interested in that path. Finally, you will assess your toolbox for coordinating these events and add to it as you work through the lesson and assignment.

Connecting Students to School and Community Resources

In this lesson, you will learn about connecting your students with community resources that can help them prepare for college. You will learn about national and local community resources that can help them and you in the process. You will discuss the barriers your students will face in connecting with and gaining support from community resources. You will consider how parent engagement strengthens these connections. Finally, you will explore ways to help your students bridge the gap between where they are now and where they want to be post-graduation.

Post-Secondary Preparation for Students with Developmental Disabilities or Social-Emotional Challenges

In this lesson, you will learn about helping students with disabilities prepare for and transition to post-secondary aspirations. These considerations include life skills, college, and careers. You will look at how the law changes when they leave high school. We will discuss case management and the transition to college or other post-secondary goals. You will consider the student’s desired plan and discuss how to help them achieve it. Finally, we will discuss students who are challenged with social-emotional obstacles during high school. Specifically, we will look at those kids that were possibly underrepresented during high school.

Preparing Students for Post-Secondary Success

In this lesson, you will learn to examine the study habits of students who were successful in college or post-secondary education. You will distinguish study techniques used by students preparing to attend trade and apprenticeships that may be similar to or different from those attending a four-year college. Finally, you will consider the academic habits and study methods used by students who successfully navigated a proprietary or licensing institution.

Early Exposure to College and Post-Secondary Programs

In this lesson, you will learn about the early and ongoing exposure of elementary, middle, and high school students to post-secondary planning. We will discuss experiential processes and models to help younger students consider career and college conversations throughout their entire educational experience. Finally, we will explore strategies to help parents or guardians with resources to help with the college-going and career conversations and planning.

Planning for College and Alternative Educational Expenses

In this lesson, you will learn about investment conversations and strategies when determining how to finance a college or post-secondary educational experience. You will consider the financial implications of financial instruments intended to support the college-going experience. You will look at the world of scholarships and ways to help students achieve a college degree without decades of debt. You will compile lists of resources that will help your students and their families when making these often life-changing decisions. This is a time that students and their families need a host—they need you and other professionals to support this journey.

Advocating for Special Populations

In this lesson, you will learn about assessing your post-secondary education planning programs, toolboxes, and networks. You will consider how your current process supports diverse populations of students who will face inclusion and equity issues in the college selection and admissions processes. You will explore how your current programming and toolbox are prepared to support diverse student populations including commuters, in-resident, and distance-learning post-secondary college-going situations. You will look at how effectively your program is set up to support students with disabilities, adult learners, and student-athletes. Finally, you will consider the unique needs of international and transfer students as well as first-generation and dually enrolled students. This lesson will ask you to analyze your current program and commit to improving it in areas that may be deficient.

What you will learn

• Apply the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) model to advocate for college readiness for every student in a school setting.
• Analyze current best practices for promoting college readiness.
• Demonstrate how to plan, organize, and deliver college and alternative options to all students.
• Demonstrate advocacy for younger students, in early and ongoing exposure to comprehensive K-12 college and post-secondary program experiences.
• Demonstrate the basics of financial planning counseling for college and alternative post-secondary educational experiences.

How you will benefit

• You will walk away with resources and plans for supporting graduation advocacy for every student.
• This course will provide tools and guidance for improving your school's current graduation and post-secondary planning efforts for every student.
• The assignments will help you carry out improvement initiatives and to build your toolbox for supporting your students and their families, as you complete them.

Terry Farris has over 20 years of experience working in career-based and liberal arts education. He has worked in the areas of financial aid, compliance, academics, enrollment management, and career placement over the course of his career.  

Currently, Terry works as the Director of Virtual Career Days at Everytale, Inc. Prior to this role, he spent many years assisting team members and graduates with becoming skilled individuals from a career perspective. He also has taught college mathematics, communications, and professional development to a wide range of students.  

Terry holds a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in both Marketing and Management from Fairmont State University, his Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Business Administration from Colorado Technical University, and his Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Education from Walden University.  

Counseling for College Prep is an insightful course for high school counselors and professionals looking for ways to help students of all backgrounds graduate. It goes beyond graduation to post-secondary planning and tools and resources to support student success.

The Counseling for College Prep course will explore various aspects of supporting your students in their post-graduation aspirations. While students' backgrounds, situations, and dreams are all different, this online guidance counselor course will discuss how your role is similar for each. You will explore how becoming a student's host can help them see that life can be different and what it takes to support them to succeed.

You will also explore building a toolbox of resources to use as college counselor to support students' discovery and planning processes—no matter their background. You will learn to assemble a network of other professionals that can help, including at a national and local community level. 

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook device.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 10 or later operating systems.
• Mac: OS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox is preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Microsoft Word Online
• Adobe Acrobat Reader
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

While the college-going experience may evolve, it is not going away. In this online course, you will prepare for a vital role where you support students’ post-secondary aspirations as we also explore how critical your role is to the evolution of our communities.

Current Trends in College Decisions

In this lesson, you will discuss the culturally driven, overarching concept of the college-going culture. You will explore ongoing trends that help manifest the college-going culture. You will consider fiscally responsible paths for many students and the need for early intervention in this substantial decision-making process. Finally, you will look at current trends in business and industry that may drive different decisions from those our generations made for these young, soon-to-be graduates as they move on into college and other educational paths.

Your Role in Preparing Students for College

Now you will clarify your role as a professional in helping students prepare for selection and admissions processes for post-secondary school. You will solicit community engagement and outreach networks for resources to support your students. You will consider ethical and legal considerations for your role in this process. Finally, you will summarize the key aspects of your role in understanding and explaining financial aid and funding sources to help your students achieve their post-secondary school vision.

The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Model

This lesson delves into the American School Counselor Association’s position on the role of a school counselor and a model for school counselor programs in schools. It will help you better understand the ASCA model and the role of a school counselor. You will review insights, information, and best practices for establishing a graduation and career-preparation culture. You will discuss the model and create a plan for assessing your school’s current graduation and career-preparation culture and identifying gaps between that and the desired future vision. You will finally discuss how to engage internal and external resources to support improvement in graduation and career preparation advocacy.

Supporting Special Student Populations in the College-Going Culture

This lesson expands on the need to build a network and a toolbox to support your students’ college aspirations. This process includes connecting with professionals in local educational institutions. In this lesson, we will dig a bit deeper into best practices for navigating a college-going culture. This will include adding to your toolbox with real examples of what your peers are doing to build a college-going culture. You will discuss supporting students from different demographic populations and special populations. Finally, you will learn about military options and resources for your students.

Community Colleges as an Alternative

This lesson will help you understand the origin of the community college. It will also explore reasons for current-day community colleges. It will help you understand what they currently offer for your students so you can have more efficient college-going decision conversations with your students. Finally, it will discuss and help you discuss the financial investment and return of a community college. The goal of this lesson is to help you add to your network and toolbox to help students for whom a community college is a great option.

Exploring College and Alternative Choices

In this lesson, you will learn about college visits and fairs. You likely have some experience or knowledge of these events. However, this lesson will look a bit deeper at the logistics of setting up your fairs and coordinating with local institutions. You will also explore how to use these events to set up financial workshops to help your students and families understand and plan for the economic requirements of college. You will consider how to also partner with local U.S. military recruiters to set up similar events for your students who are interested in that path. Finally, you will assess your toolbox for coordinating these events and add to it as you work through the lesson and assignment.

Connecting Students to School and Community Resources

In this lesson, you will learn about connecting your students with community resources that can help them prepare for college. You will learn about national and local community resources that can help them and you in the process. You will discuss the barriers your students will face in connecting with and gaining support from community resources. You will consider how parent engagement strengthens these connections. Finally, you will explore ways to help your students bridge the gap between where they are now and where they want to be post-graduation.

Post-Secondary Preparation for Students with Developmental Disabilities or Social-Emotional Challenges

In this lesson, you will learn about helping students with disabilities prepare for and transition to post-secondary aspirations. These considerations include life skills, college, and careers. You will look at how the law changes when they leave high school. We will discuss case management and the transition to college or other post-secondary goals. You will consider the student’s desired plan and discuss how to help them achieve it. Finally, we will discuss students who are challenged with social-emotional obstacles during high school. Specifically, we will look at those kids that were possibly underrepresented during high school.

Preparing Students for Post-Secondary Success

In this lesson, you will learn to examine the study habits of students who were successful in college or post-secondary education. You will distinguish study techniques used by students preparing to attend trade and apprenticeships that may be similar to or different from those attending a four-year college. Finally, you will consider the academic habits and study methods used by students who successfully navigated a proprietary or licensing institution.

Early Exposure to College and Post-Secondary Programs

In this lesson, you will learn about the early and ongoing exposure of elementary, middle, and high school students to post-secondary planning. We will discuss experiential processes and models to help younger students consider career and college conversations throughout their entire educational experience. Finally, we will explore strategies to help parents or guardians with resources to help with the college-going and career conversations and planning.

Planning for College and Alternative Educational Expenses

In this lesson, you will learn about investment conversations and strategies when determining how to finance a college or post-secondary educational experience. You will consider the financial implications of financial instruments intended to support the college-going experience. You will look at the world of scholarships and ways to help students achieve a college degree without decades of debt. You will compile lists of resources that will help your students and their families when making these often life-changing decisions. This is a time that students and their families need a host—they need you and other professionals to support this journey.

Advocating for Special Populations

In this lesson, you will learn about assessing your post-secondary education planning programs, toolboxes, and networks. You will consider how your current process supports diverse populations of students who will face inclusion and equity issues in the college selection and admissions processes. You will explore how your current programming and toolbox are prepared to support diverse student populations including commuters, in-resident, and distance-learning post-secondary college-going situations. You will look at how effectively your program is set up to support students with disabilities, adult learners, and student-athletes. Finally, you will consider the unique needs of international and transfer students as well as first-generation and dually enrolled students. This lesson will ask you to analyze your current program and commit to improving it in areas that may be deficient.

What you will learn

• Apply the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) model to advocate for college readiness for every student in a school setting.
• Analyze current best practices for promoting college readiness.
• Demonstrate how to plan, organize, and deliver college and alternative options to all students.
• Demonstrate advocacy for younger students, in early and ongoing exposure to comprehensive K-12 college and post-secondary program experiences.
• Demonstrate the basics of financial planning counseling for college and alternative post-secondary educational experiences.

How you will benefit

• You will walk away with resources and plans for supporting graduation advocacy for every student.
• This course will provide tools and guidance for improving your school's current graduation and post-secondary planning efforts for every student.
• The assignments will help you carry out improvement initiatives and to build your toolbox for supporting your students and their families, as you complete them.

Terry Farris has over 20 years of experience working in career-based and liberal arts education. He has worked in the areas of financial aid, compliance, academics, enrollment management, and career placement over the course of his career.  

Currently, Terry works as the Director of Virtual Career Days at Everytale, Inc. Prior to this role, he spent many years assisting team members and graduates with becoming skilled individuals from a career perspective. He also has taught college mathematics, communications, and professional development to a wide range of students.  

Terry holds a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in both Marketing and Management from Fairmont State University, his Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Business Administration from Colorado Technical University, and his Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Education from Walden University.  

Explore common disabilities you'll encounter in the classroom and master techniques for promoting academic, behavioral, and social skills in students with special needs.

Teaching students with disabilities is a rewarding challenge, and this course gives you the tools you will need to succeed. No matter what grade you teach—from preschool through high school—you will learn powerful strategies you can put to work immediately in your classroom. In addition, you will gain the knowledge you need to understand and cope with the most common disabilities you will encounter.

You will start by putting yourself in the shoes of students with special needs as you explore a wide variety of disabilities ranging from autism spectrum disorder to cerebral palsy. Simulations and real-life stories will give you a firsthand look at what it's like to be a learner with special needs, and you will see how common disabilities affect classroom behavior and learning.

Then comes the best part: solutions! In each lesson, you will find dozens of tips for fostering the reading, writing, and math skills of students with special needs. In addition, you will master techniques for helping these learners behave appropriately and make friends in your classroom. You will also get the inside story on Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and transition plans, and you will learn the most effective ways to collaborate with parents and professionals.

By the end of this course, you will feel confident in your ability to help any student who comes through your door. You will also discover that while the challenges can be big when you're teaching students with disabilities, the victories are big as well.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Discover the tools you need to help any student who comes through your door. This course provides tips for fostering the reading, writing, and math skills of students with special needs and techniques for helping these learners behave appropriately and make friends in your classroom.

What Are Special Needs?

Danny has a seeing-eye dog. Carmela needs extra help with math. Yoshi has autism. And they're all in your class this year! This first lesson will look at the growing numbers of children with special needs and talk about how you can welcome them to your classroom and set the stage for successful learning.

The Special Education Process and the IEP

How do children get placed in special education? As you will discover, it's not a snap decision. This lesson will trace a student's path through every stage of the placement process and look at the role a teacher plays from start to finish.

Meet Your Support Team

It takes a whole team to help a child with special needs succeed. This lesson will address the roles of the support team, with a focus on collaboration between special education teachers and support staff. You will explore the roles of paraprofessionals, guidance counselors, nurses, social workers, and the specialists who support you.

Learning Disabilities

This lesson addresses reading, writing, and math disabilities—the most common learning disabilities (LDs) you will see in the classroom. First, you will get a chance to see how it feels to have an LD. Then, you will learn about how memory problems affect students with LDs in the classroom.

Speech and Language Disorders

Imagine how frustrating it would be if you couldn't speak clearly, understand other people, or express your thoughts and feelings well. This is what life is like for children with speech or language disorders, the subject of this lesson.

ADHD and the Other Health Impaired Category

This lesson addresses conditions categorized as "Other Health Impaired" (OHI), with a special focus on ADHD. First, you will learn what daily life is like for children with ADHD. Then, you will explore ways to address the attention and organizational problems that these children struggle with.

Intellectual Disabilities

Students can shine in many ways, and this lesson will examine how students with intellectual disabilities can be stars in your classroom. You will learn what life is like for students with intellectual disabilities and discover ways to help these students focus on both academic and adaptive skills.

Behavior Disorders

Children with behavior disorders often present the biggest challenge to teachers. This lesson will examine the roots of behavioral problems. You will also learn three essential tools for handling behavior problems: behavior contracts, functional behavioral assessments, and behavior intervention plans.

Autism

Children with autism will give your teaching skills a workout with their unique combination of strengths and impairments. This lesson explores three areas in which these children need help: communication skills, social skills, and the ability to handle transitions.

Other Disabilities

This lesson will introduce you to children with cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, hearing or vision impairments, developmental delays, and a host of other challenges. Then, you will take a closer look at the assistive technology—both high-tech and low-tech—that can help kids with these disabilities triumph academically.

Best Teaching Practices

This lesson addresses "best practices" for teaching children with special needs. And here's good news: Many of these ideas will work for your entire class! First, you will explore how to balance students' IEP requirements with your curriculum standards and investigate a great technique for helping students grasp difficult material: directed instruction.

Dealing With Transitions

While transitions can be scary for anybody, they're especially intimidating for students with disabilities. In this lesson you will look at ways to smooth three big transitions that students make: the moves from elementary to middle school, from middle school to high school, and from high school to real life.

What you will learn

• Explore and plan for a wide variety of learning disabilities you may encounter in your classroom
• Understand the variety of challenges involved in successfully teaching every student
• Learn how common disabilities affect classroom behavior and learning
• Discover how IEPs, transition plans, and collaborative planning can greatly increase your success as a professional educator

How you will benefit

• Gain confidence in your ability to help any student who comes through your door
• Gain the insight you need to understand and cope with the most common disabilities you'll encounter
• Increase your ability to collaborate effectively with both parents, teachers, and administrators

Sara Hardin is an educator with a focus on special education and language studies. She has taught special education at the elementary level for over a decade. Sara holds a BA in French, and lived in France to study at the university level. In 2000, she earned her master's degree in special education.

Explore common disabilities you'll encounter in the classroom and master techniques for promoting academic, behavioral, and social skills in students with special needs.

Teaching students with disabilities is a rewarding challenge, and this course gives you the tools you will need to succeed. No matter what grade you teach—from preschool through high school—you will learn powerful strategies you can put to work immediately in your classroom. In addition, you will gain the knowledge you need to understand and cope with the most common disabilities you will encounter.

You will start by putting yourself in the shoes of students with special needs as you explore a wide variety of disabilities ranging from autism spectrum disorder to cerebral palsy. Simulations and real-life stories will give you a firsthand look at what it's like to be a learner with special needs, and you will see how common disabilities affect classroom behavior and learning.

Then comes the best part: solutions! In each lesson, you will find dozens of tips for fostering the reading, writing, and math skills of students with special needs. In addition, you will master techniques for helping these learners behave appropriately and make friends in your classroom. You will also get the inside story on Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and transition plans, and you will learn the most effective ways to collaborate with parents and professionals.

By the end of this course, you will feel confident in your ability to help any student who comes through your door. You will also discover that while the challenges can be big when you're teaching students with disabilities, the victories are big as well.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Discover the tools you need to help any student who comes through your door. This course provides tips for fostering the reading, writing, and math skills of students with special needs and techniques for helping these learners behave appropriately and make friends in your classroom.

What Are Special Needs?

Danny has a seeing-eye dog. Carmela needs extra help with math. Yoshi has autism. And they're all in your class this year! This first lesson will look at the growing numbers of children with special needs and talk about how you can welcome them to your classroom and set the stage for successful learning.

The Special Education Process and the IEP

How do children get placed in special education? As you will discover, it's not a snap decision. This lesson will trace a student's path through every stage of the placement process and look at the role a teacher plays from start to finish.

Meet Your Support Team

It takes a whole team to help a child with special needs succeed. This lesson will address the roles of the support team, with a focus on collaboration between special education teachers and support staff. You will explore the roles of paraprofessionals, guidance counselors, nurses, social workers, and the specialists who support you.

Learning Disabilities

This lesson addresses reading, writing, and math disabilities—the most common learning disabilities (LDs) you will see in the classroom. First, you will get a chance to see how it feels to have an LD. Then, you will learn about how memory problems affect students with LDs in the classroom.

Speech and Language Disorders

Imagine how frustrating it would be if you couldn't speak clearly, understand other people, or express your thoughts and feelings well. This is what life is like for children with speech or language disorders, the subject of this lesson.

ADHD and the Other Health Impaired Category

This lesson addresses conditions categorized as "Other Health Impaired" (OHI), with a special focus on ADHD. First, you will learn what daily life is like for children with ADHD. Then, you will explore ways to address the attention and organizational problems that these children struggle with.

Intellectual Disabilities

Students can shine in many ways, and this lesson will examine how students with intellectual disabilities can be stars in your classroom. You will learn what life is like for students with intellectual disabilities and discover ways to help these students focus on both academic and adaptive skills.

Behavior Disorders

Children with behavior disorders often present the biggest challenge to teachers. This lesson will examine the roots of behavioral problems. You will also learn three essential tools for handling behavior problems: behavior contracts, functional behavioral assessments, and behavior intervention plans.

Autism

Children with autism will give your teaching skills a workout with their unique combination of strengths and impairments. This lesson explores three areas in which these children need help: communication skills, social skills, and the ability to handle transitions.

Other Disabilities

This lesson will introduce you to children with cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, hearing or vision impairments, developmental delays, and a host of other challenges. Then, you will take a closer look at the assistive technology—both high-tech and low-tech—that can help kids with these disabilities triumph academically.

Best Teaching Practices

This lesson addresses "best practices" for teaching children with special needs. And here's good news: Many of these ideas will work for your entire class! First, you will explore how to balance students' IEP requirements with your curriculum standards and investigate a great technique for helping students grasp difficult material: directed instruction.

Dealing With Transitions

While transitions can be scary for anybody, they're especially intimidating for students with disabilities. In this lesson you will look at ways to smooth three big transitions that students make: the moves from elementary to middle school, from middle school to high school, and from high school to real life.

What you will learn

• Explore and plan for a wide variety of learning disabilities you may encounter in your classroom
• Understand the variety of challenges involved in successfully teaching every student
• Learn how common disabilities affect classroom behavior and learning
• Discover how IEPs, transition plans, and collaborative planning can greatly increase your success as a professional educator

How you will benefit

• Gain confidence in your ability to help any student who comes through your door
• Gain the insight you need to understand and cope with the most common disabilities you'll encounter
• Increase your ability to collaborate effectively with both parents, teachers, and administrators

Sara Hardin is an educator with a focus on special education and language studies. She has taught special education at the elementary level for over a decade. Sara holds a BA in French, and lived in France to study at the university level. In 2000, she earned her master's degree in special education.

Get the professional development training you need to improve student literacy.

Around 30% of students in sixth grade already have trouble with basic reading and writing. These literacy problems affect performance across subject areas, and they often leave teachers wondering how to help. In this course, you will examine the reasons reading and writing are so difficult for students. Then you will encounter the total literacy framework and see what it does to mitigate literacy problems. Since this framework is based on guided reading lessons that flow naturally into writing challenges, you will learn to successfully transition from guided readings to writing lessons.

Once you have encountered the basic framework, you will investigate a number of ways to modify this basic recipe for a variety of K-12 circumstances, wrapping up with a look at good writing habits and the traits of a productive writing conference. If you're looking for the right way to get students excited about the power of literacy, this is the course for you!

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Gain a classroom full of students who can negotiate increasingly challenging texts with unprecedented fluency. This class provides differentiated instruction tactics to better understand how your students learn and how to apply those tactics within the guided reading framework.

Why Is It So Hard to Read and Write?

Have you ever wondered why so many of your students struggle to read and write? You're not alone! This introductory lesson will discuss why these two subjects are so hard for students and how you can make their lives a little easier.

The Total Literacy Framework

To really help struggling readers and writers, you need a framework. The total literacy framework is just the thing: Guided reading, writing, engagement, and assessment are the components that make it so effective. This lesson will discuss guided reading, writing, and engagement.

Where Does Assessment Fit In?

Assessment is the part of the total literacy framework that drives instruction. After all, you need to know where students are academically and where they need to go before you can effectively teach them. In this lesson you will look at fun and simple ways to assess students' reading and writing skills.

Recipe for a Guided Reading and Writing Lesson

The recipe you will learn about in this lesson is one that you can easily modify for any K-12 setting, and it's dotted with examples from real classrooms where guided reading and writing are changing lives.

Writing Stories

Have you ever read a great story only to think, "I could write something better than that"? Well, guess what? Your students think the exact same thing. This lesson will teach you the basics of leading a successful story writing activity.

Composing Nonfiction

Nonfiction is often less popular in the classroom. However, with a little imagination, you can make nonfiction come alive for your students. In this lesson, you will learn how you can make nonfiction more appealing to students.

Writing Poetry

Some students absolutely hate reading and writing poetry, but they won't after you introduce the techniques taught in this lesson! Additionally, you will take a tour of the different kinds of poetry that inspire students.

Developing Papers

Writing papers is never going to be the most exciting part of school, but it's always going to be necessary. This lesson will discuss how to teach students to read research material and use it as a launch pad for papers that are clear and thought-provoking the first time around.

Crafting Ideas Across the Content Areas

One of the neat things about employing the total literacy framework is that you can extend it across the content areas. In This lesson, you will learn how to use guided reading and writing to your advantage whether you're teaching math, social studies, or science.

Reinforcing Good Writing Habits

Have you ever written something that was a little hard to understand? This lesson will cover ways to teach students to craft their own style, hone their organization, and check for proper mechanics before they turn in any assignments.

Holding Writing Conferences

Writing conferences are a great chance to make sure students are successful as they turn reading into writing and writing into ideas. This lesson will discuss the power of conferences and how to make the most of them.

Turning Small Successes Into Big Rewards

It's important to take time to encourage and inspire students by turning their small successes into big rewards. If you're looking for new strategies to motivate students and make reading and writing fun, you won't want to miss all the tips and tricks in this final lesson!

What you will learn

• Learn how to make reading and writing compelling and fun for your students
• Acquire the basic recipe for successful lesson plans through the total literacy framework
• Discover how to renew the confidence of your students and build their literacy skills
• Learn how to adapt literacy lesson plans to any subject and grade level

How you will benefit

• Renew your confidence in teaching literacy skills to struggling students
• Discover how to use guided reading and writing experiences no matter what subject you teach
• Acquire tangible reading and writing lesson plans that really work
• Increase your enthusiasm for reading and writing and learn to motivate your students

Cheryl Dick has more than 25 years of teaching experience and is currently a classroom teacher. She's taught 2nd, 4th, and 5th grade and has previously worked as an instructional coach. She graduated from Missouri State University with a Bachelor of Science in elementary education, with a focus on early childhood education. Cheryl also holds a master's degree in elementary education from Texas-Wesleyan University and a second master's degree in educational administration from Lindenwood University.

Get the professional development training you need to improve student literacy.

Around 30% of students in sixth grade already have trouble with basic reading and writing. These literacy problems affect performance across subject areas, and they often leave teachers wondering how to help. In this course, you will examine the reasons reading and writing are so difficult for students. Then you will encounter the total literacy framework and see what it does to mitigate literacy problems. Since this framework is based on guided reading lessons that flow naturally into writing challenges, you will learn to successfully transition from guided readings to writing lessons.

Once you have encountered the basic framework, you will investigate a number of ways to modify this basic recipe for a variety of K-12 circumstances, wrapping up with a look at good writing habits and the traits of a productive writing conference. If you're looking for the right way to get students excited about the power of literacy, this is the course for you!

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Gain a classroom full of students who can negotiate increasingly challenging texts with unprecedented fluency. This class provides differentiated instruction tactics to better understand how your students learn and how to apply those tactics within the guided reading framework.

Why Is It So Hard to Read and Write?

Have you ever wondered why so many of your students struggle to read and write? You're not alone! This introductory lesson will discuss why these two subjects are so hard for students and how you can make their lives a little easier.

The Total Literacy Framework

To really help struggling readers and writers, you need a framework. The total literacy framework is just the thing: Guided reading, writing, engagement, and assessment are the components that make it so effective. This lesson will discuss guided reading, writing, and engagement.

Where Does Assessment Fit In?

Assessment is the part of the total literacy framework that drives instruction. After all, you need to know where students are academically and where they need to go before you can effectively teach them. In this lesson you will look at fun and simple ways to assess students' reading and writing skills.

Recipe for a Guided Reading and Writing Lesson

The recipe you will learn about in this lesson is one that you can easily modify for any K-12 setting, and it's dotted with examples from real classrooms where guided reading and writing are changing lives.

Writing Stories

Have you ever read a great story only to think, "I could write something better than that"? Well, guess what? Your students think the exact same thing. This lesson will teach you the basics of leading a successful story writing activity.

Composing Nonfiction

Nonfiction is often less popular in the classroom. However, with a little imagination, you can make nonfiction come alive for your students. In this lesson, you will learn how you can make nonfiction more appealing to students.

Writing Poetry

Some students absolutely hate reading and writing poetry, but they won't after you introduce the techniques taught in this lesson! Additionally, you will take a tour of the different kinds of poetry that inspire students.

Developing Papers

Writing papers is never going to be the most exciting part of school, but it's always going to be necessary. This lesson will discuss how to teach students to read research material and use it as a launch pad for papers that are clear and thought-provoking the first time around.

Crafting Ideas Across the Content Areas

One of the neat things about employing the total literacy framework is that you can extend it across the content areas. In This lesson, you will learn how to use guided reading and writing to your advantage whether you're teaching math, social studies, or science.

Reinforcing Good Writing Habits

Have you ever written something that was a little hard to understand? This lesson will cover ways to teach students to craft their own style, hone their organization, and check for proper mechanics before they turn in any assignments.

Holding Writing Conferences

Writing conferences are a great chance to make sure students are successful as they turn reading into writing and writing into ideas. This lesson will discuss the power of conferences and how to make the most of them.

Turning Small Successes Into Big Rewards

It's important to take time to encourage and inspire students by turning their small successes into big rewards. If you're looking for new strategies to motivate students and make reading and writing fun, you won't want to miss all the tips and tricks in this final lesson!

What you will learn

• Learn how to make reading and writing compelling and fun for your students
• Acquire the basic recipe for successful lesson plans through the total literacy framework
• Discover how to renew the confidence of your students and build their literacy skills
• Learn how to adapt literacy lesson plans to any subject and grade level

How you will benefit

• Renew your confidence in teaching literacy skills to struggling students
• Discover how to use guided reading and writing experiences no matter what subject you teach
• Acquire tangible reading and writing lesson plans that really work
• Increase your enthusiasm for reading and writing and learn to motivate your students

Cheryl Dick has more than 25 years of teaching experience and is currently a classroom teacher. She's taught 2nd, 4th, and 5th grade and has previously worked as an instructional coach. She graduated from Missouri State University with a Bachelor of Science in elementary education, with a focus on early childhood education. Cheryl also holds a master's degree in elementary education from Texas-Wesleyan University and a second master's degree in educational administration from Lindenwood University.

Gain confidence in your basic math skills and start using math to your advantage.

Math isn't about plugging numbers into formulas. It's about knowing enough to make the numbers and formulas work for you. Math can be incredibly useful - but only if you understand how and when to apply it in your everyday life.

This course will show you how to use math to your advantage. You won't find any theory or memorization here. The lessons that make up this course are filled with practical exercises and information that you can put to immediate use. You will find out some very interesting things about how calculators work, and then you will discover how best to get a handle on your income and expenses. You will be able to check your paystub, invoices, and bank statements for errors and overcharges and become more skilled at handling money and comparing investment opportunities.

You will learn how to calculate percentages, including the proper amount to pay in tips, commissions, taxes, and discounts. You will find out how to calculate interest rates and you will develop a better understanding of mortgages, credit cards, and other types of loans. You will discover a handy method for converting one type of measurement to another, and you will be able to calculate areas correctly, so you don't overspend on your next home improvement project. You will become adept at interpreting graphs, calculating the probability that something will (or won't) happen, and understanding the statistics embedded in test results, polls, and even news stories.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.
• A basic calculator with the ability to add, subtract, multiply, divide, and calculate square roots.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Learn how to use math to your advantage in everyday life. The lessons in this course are filled with practical exercises and information that you can put to immediate use.

Integers and Other Mathematic Equations

This lesson will recall childhood memories about math by reviewing some basic number properties. You will learn about integers, exponents, roots, and multiple-step problems. Doing these types of problems just for practice can be tedious, but you're going to take what you learn and put it to use in every other lesson in this course.

Percentages in Retail

Whether it's discounts, taxes, or a tip, most people deal with percentages every day. This lesson focuses on the percentages found in retail from both a consumer and a managerial perspective. You will learn about prices, discounts, and sales tax. And last but not least, this lesson covers about tipping, markup, and handling money in the retail work environment.

Income, Deductions, and Expenses

This lesson is all about income. Are you paid hourly, are you a salaried employee, do you receive a commission, or some combination of these? In this lesson, you will learn how to calculate your paycheck and create a budget plan. In the last part of the lesson, you will learn how to find out where your money goes once you have it.

Opening and Balancing a Checking Account

Now that you have your paycheck, you need somewhere to put it. It's time to talk about financial institutions; banks, credit unions, and savings and loans. In this lesson, you will discover what to look for in an institution and what questions to ask about checking, savings, and other accounts.

Earning Interest

Investing is an ominous word for most people. Financial professionals can sound like they're speaking a foreign language. This lesson will unravel some of this terminology and the math that goes with it. You will learn the basics of earning interest and find out what questions to ask the professionals, like types of interest earning investments; bonds, certificates of deposit, and money market accounts.

Paying Interest

As you know, you can't just earn interest—you also have to pay interest. Credit cards and loans cost you money in interest and fees. In this lesson, you will study what happens when you pay only the minimum balance on a credit card each month. And then you will see what happens when you pay as little as $10 or $20 extra each month.

Mortgage Math

Interested in buying a home, but not sure where to start? There are realtors, attorneys, and loan officers to get you through this process. In this lesson, you will explore the different aspects of a mortgage payment (principle, interest, taxes, and insurance or PITI) and the amount of money you will need up front.

Ratios

In this lesson, you will find out that you can solve most problems with some sort of ratio and learn to set up ratios and proportions step-by-step. After this lesson, you will be able to convert even the most complicated measurements.

Measurement

In this lesson, you will learn how to calculate area in different units of measurement and how to convert between them. This will let you figure out how much carpet, paint, or tile you need for those home projects. You should be able to check your measurements and calculations. You will also learn a little about metrics and a very simple conversion method.

Probability

You will learn all about probability in this lesson. It's used in the gaming industry, in forecasting weather, and in determining insurance rates. How does the insurance industry know there's a 10% chance you will be in an accident? Or how does a casino predict a 3% chance you will win at blackjack? You have to know which numbers to divide and how to find them.

Statistics

Society is bombarded with information and statistics all day, every day. This lesson is about statistical data and how it's chosen. You will also learn about the four most commonly used statistical measures: mean, median, mode, and range.

Statistical Graphs

A great way to understand all those statistics you just learned about is to put them on a graph. Graphs can help you look at the big picture by summarizing information. Just as there are different types of information and relationships, there are different types of graphs. Each one is best suited for displaying a particular type of information or relationship.

What you will learn

• Learn how best to use math to your advantage
• Learn to check your pay stub, invoices, and bank statements for errors and overcharges
• Learn to calculate percentages for paying tips, commissions, taxes, etc.
• Discover how calculators work and use them to get a handle on your income and expenses
• Learn to convert one type of measurement to another and calculate areas
• Learn to use math for all your financial, household, business, and educational transactions

How you will benefit

• Learn to use a calculator to assist you with the types of math you encounter everyday
• Put what you have learned to immediate use from balancing a checkbook to deciding how much tip to leave
• Develop a better understanding of mortgages, credit cards, and other types of loans
• Be able to understand the terminology used by financial professionals and know what questions to ask

Ivy Bishop has been teaching math for eight years. She has worked with a wide range of students at different academic levels. She holds a bachelor's degree in math education, which has allowed her to combine the logic of math with her love of teaching.

Gain confidence in your basic math skills and start using math to your advantage.

Math isn't about plugging numbers into formulas. It's about knowing enough to make the numbers and formulas work for you. Math can be incredibly useful - but only if you understand how and when to apply it in your everyday life.

This course will show you how to use math to your advantage. You won't find any theory or memorization here. The lessons that make up this course are filled with practical exercises and information that you can put to immediate use. You will find out some very interesting things about how calculators work, and then you will discover how best to get a handle on your income and expenses. You will be able to check your paystub, invoices, and bank statements for errors and overcharges and become more skilled at handling money and comparing investment opportunities.

You will learn how to calculate percentages, including the proper amount to pay in tips, commissions, taxes, and discounts. You will find out how to calculate interest rates and you will develop a better understanding of mortgages, credit cards, and other types of loans. You will discover a handy method for converting one type of measurement to another, and you will be able to calculate areas correctly, so you don't overspend on your next home improvement project. You will become adept at interpreting graphs, calculating the probability that something will (or won't) happen, and understanding the statistics embedded in test results, polls, and even news stories.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.
• A basic calculator with the ability to add, subtract, multiply, divide, and calculate square roots.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Learn how to use math to your advantage in everyday life. The lessons in this course are filled with practical exercises and information that you can put to immediate use.

Integers and Other Mathematic Equations

This lesson will recall childhood memories about math by reviewing some basic number properties. You will learn about integers, exponents, roots, and multiple-step problems. Doing these types of problems just for practice can be tedious, but you're going to take what you learn and put it to use in every other lesson in this course.

Percentages in Retail

Whether it's discounts, taxes, or a tip, most people deal with percentages every day. This lesson focuses on the percentages found in retail from both a consumer and a managerial perspective. You will learn about prices, discounts, and sales tax. And last but not least, this lesson covers about tipping, markup, and handling money in the retail work environment.

Income, Deductions, and Expenses

This lesson is all about income. Are you paid hourly, are you a salaried employee, do you receive a commission, or some combination of these? In this lesson, you will learn how to calculate your paycheck and create a budget plan. In the last part of the lesson, you will learn how to find out where your money goes once you have it.

Opening and Balancing a Checking Account

Now that you have your paycheck, you need somewhere to put it. It's time to talk about financial institutions; banks, credit unions, and savings and loans. In this lesson, you will discover what to look for in an institution and what questions to ask about checking, savings, and other accounts.

Earning Interest

Investing is an ominous word for most people. Financial professionals can sound like they're speaking a foreign language. This lesson will unravel some of this terminology and the math that goes with it. You will learn the basics of earning interest and find out what questions to ask the professionals, like types of interest earning investments; bonds, certificates of deposit, and money market accounts.

Paying Interest

As you know, you can't just earn interest—you also have to pay interest. Credit cards and loans cost you money in interest and fees. In this lesson, you will study what happens when you pay only the minimum balance on a credit card each month. And then you will see what happens when you pay as little as $10 or $20 extra each month.

Mortgage Math

Interested in buying a home, but not sure where to start? There are realtors, attorneys, and loan officers to get you through this process. In this lesson, you will explore the different aspects of a mortgage payment (principle, interest, taxes, and insurance or PITI) and the amount of money you will need up front.

Ratios

In this lesson, you will find out that you can solve most problems with some sort of ratio and learn to set up ratios and proportions step-by-step. After this lesson, you will be able to convert even the most complicated measurements.

Measurement

In this lesson, you will learn how to calculate area in different units of measurement and how to convert between them. This will let you figure out how much carpet, paint, or tile you need for those home projects. You should be able to check your measurements and calculations. You will also learn a little about metrics and a very simple conversion method.

Probability

You will learn all about probability in this lesson. It's used in the gaming industry, in forecasting weather, and in determining insurance rates. How does the insurance industry know there's a 10% chance you will be in an accident? Or how does a casino predict a 3% chance you will win at blackjack? You have to know which numbers to divide and how to find them.

Statistics

Society is bombarded with information and statistics all day, every day. This lesson is about statistical data and how it's chosen. You will also learn about the four most commonly used statistical measures: mean, median, mode, and range.

Statistical Graphs

A great way to understand all those statistics you just learned about is to put them on a graph. Graphs can help you look at the big picture by summarizing information. Just as there are different types of information and relationships, there are different types of graphs. Each one is best suited for displaying a particular type of information or relationship.

What you will learn

• Learn how best to use math to your advantage
• Learn to check your pay stub, invoices, and bank statements for errors and overcharges
• Learn to calculate percentages for paying tips, commissions, taxes, etc.
• Discover how calculators work and use them to get a handle on your income and expenses
• Learn to convert one type of measurement to another and calculate areas
• Learn to use math for all your financial, household, business, and educational transactions

How you will benefit

• Learn to use a calculator to assist you with the types of math you encounter everyday
• Put what you have learned to immediate use from balancing a checkbook to deciding how much tip to leave
• Develop a better understanding of mortgages, credit cards, and other types of loans
• Be able to understand the terminology used by financial professionals and know what questions to ask

Ivy Bishop has been teaching math for eight years. She has worked with a wide range of students at different academic levels. She holds a bachelor's degree in math education, which has allowed her to combine the logic of math with her love of teaching.

This course will teach you how to save time by reading faster and with better comprehension.

Are you struggling to keep up with a flood of email, articles, reports, and books? Save yourself hours of time and increase your productivity by learning to read faster and with better comprehension. This course is a complete speed-reading experience. Topics are presented in a logical progression with plenty of time to help you master the skills and techniques you will need for lasting proficiency as a speed-reader.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

This course will teach you how to save time by reading faster and with better comprehension.

Introduction

On this first day of class, you'll read a story to evaluate your present reading rate. You'll learn how many words per minute you read now, and then you'll compare that number to what percent of the reading material you're really comprehending. You'll also get an opportunity to check out some speed reading accomplishments. Then, you'll complete an eye-span exercise to start you on the path toward becoming a speed reader!

Reading Against Time

In this lesson, you'll practice some basic reading eye movements and learn how they're important to the speed reading process. Then, you'll take a reading rate and comprehension test. Your results will give you a baseline that you can use to chart your speed reading progress in this course, lesson-by-lesson. From there, you can set goals to increase your reading rate while maintaining a good reading comprehension.

Speed Reading Activities

By now, you might feel that the activities you're using to master your speed reading skills are becoming routine and repetitive. For that reason, this lesson will talk about how and why you should continue doing the Regulated Reading, Timed Reading, and Assignment exercises to gain increased reading rates with good reading comprehension. Finally, you'll read some stories that are formatted to help you improve your speed.

Setting Goals

In this lesson, you'll examine the retinal image phenomena and how it relates to a speed reader's eye movements. Speed reading is a skill that's best achieved by doing repetitive practice, so you'll continue working on those exercises that are helping you to improve your speed.

Overcoming Poor Reading Habits

You'll probably find it helpful to work on lesson activities in the same comfortable and familiar surroundings. This lesson will talk about eight bad reading habits that contribute to slow reading, then you'll explore how to overcome them. Finally, you'll review some terminology that's unique to speed reading.

Sixteen Good Speed Reading Practices

In this lesson, you'll look at 16 good speed reading practices you can apply to the course exercises and any other reading you do outside of class. You're at the midpoint in the course, so this is also a good time to compare your reading rate and comprehension scores with those of the former students you read about earlier. From there, you'll set goals for you to meet in the remaining lessons.

Skimming Techniques

You'll probably be reading pretty quickly by the time you reach this lesson, but how can you make sure your comprehension scores are keeping up? In this lesson, you'll look at the skills you'll need to work on to improve your comprehension. You'll find out what keys and identified parts are unique to all stories, and knowing those will help you to improve your comprehension. You'll be glad to learn that you already know a few speed reading skills and techniques as you continue to apply them to the course activities.

Measuring Reading Rates

In this lesson, you'll practice speed reading skills and techniques in real-world reading materials outside of class. You'll learn a method you can use to measure your speed reading rates when you're reading such materials. At this point, you'll be eager to read outside materials, not just for their content, but to further develop your speed reading skills and techniques.

Speed Reading Styles

You're now ready to analyze your personal speed reading style. You'll once again compare your speed reading rate and comprehension scores with those of former students to see how you stack up against others. You'll also compare your current scores with the scores you recorded at the beginning of the course to see how far you've come!

Vocabulary and Comprehension Skills

In this lesson, you'll look at eight word recognition vocabulary skills that you can work into your personal speed reading style. You'll learn how context clues and literal and inferential meanings in stories influence comprehension. All are part of the English language and fit right in with speed reading.

Assessing Your Progress

In this lesson, you'll see if you can figure out which of your behavior patterns are most useful in your own speed reading style. First and foremost, you need flexibility to focus on improving your reading speed, then you need an experimental attitude to get rid of poor reading habits. You'll study how the time you put in and the effort you expend affect your speed reading progress.

Wrapping Up

In the last lesson, you'll look at your personal speed reading accomplishments, as well as your speed reading future. From here on out, you're in the real world of reading, but you'll go into it with a lifelong speed reading skill. You'll learn how to adjust your personal speed reading style to any materials you read, because now you are a speed reader!

What you will learn

• Learn and practice some basic eye movements important to the speed-reading process
• Learn about Regulated Reading, Timed Reading, and Assignment exercises to gain increased reading rates with good comprehension
• Examine the retinal image phenomena and how it relates to a speed-reader's eye movements
• Discover bad reading habits that contribute to slow reading and learn to overcome them
• Learn 16 good speed reading practices you can apply to any reading you do
• Learn skills to improve comprehension
• Learn methods to measure your speed reading rates
• Discover vocabulary skills that you can work into your personal speed-reading style

How you will benefit

• Discover what bad habits you have developed that may contribute to slow reading
• Keep up with the flood of emails, articles, reports, and books that you want and need to read
• Save yourself hours of time and increase your productivity by learning to read faster and with better comprehension

Merrill L. Ream, Ph.D. (Course Author)

Curt Simmons, B.A., M.Ed, is a best-selling author, trainer, and multi-media expert. He holds degrees in English and communication studies and has more than 10 years of experience teaching English and writing in the classroom. Additionally, Simmons has authored numerous books on a wide variety of technology topics and has been a technical editor for numerous other titles.

This course will teach you how to save time by reading faster and with better comprehension.

Are you struggling to keep up with a flood of email, articles, reports, and books? Save yourself hours of time and increase your productivity by learning to read faster and with better comprehension. This course is a complete speed-reading experience. Topics are presented in a logical progression with plenty of time to help you master the skills and techniques you will need for lasting proficiency as a speed-reader.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

This course will teach you how to save time by reading faster and with better comprehension.

Introduction

On this first day of class, you'll read a story to evaluate your present reading rate. You'll learn how many words per minute you read now, and then you'll compare that number to what percent of the reading material you're really comprehending. You'll also get an opportunity to check out some speed reading accomplishments. Then, you'll complete an eye-span exercise to start you on the path toward becoming a speed reader!

Reading Against Time

In this lesson, you'll practice some basic reading eye movements and learn how they're important to the speed reading process. Then, you'll take a reading rate and comprehension test. Your results will give you a baseline that you can use to chart your speed reading progress in this course, lesson-by-lesson. From there, you can set goals to increase your reading rate while maintaining a good reading comprehension.

Speed Reading Activities

By now, you might feel that the activities you're using to master your speed reading skills are becoming routine and repetitive. For that reason, this lesson will talk about how and why you should continue doing the Regulated Reading, Timed Reading, and Assignment exercises to gain increased reading rates with good reading comprehension. Finally, you'll read some stories that are formatted to help you improve your speed.

Setting Goals

In this lesson, you'll examine the retinal image phenomena and how it relates to a speed reader's eye movements. Speed reading is a skill that's best achieved by doing repetitive practice, so you'll continue working on those exercises that are helping you to improve your speed.

Overcoming Poor Reading Habits

You'll probably find it helpful to work on lesson activities in the same comfortable and familiar surroundings. This lesson will talk about eight bad reading habits that contribute to slow reading, then you'll explore how to overcome them. Finally, you'll review some terminology that's unique to speed reading.

Sixteen Good Speed Reading Practices

In this lesson, you'll look at 16 good speed reading practices you can apply to the course exercises and any other reading you do outside of class. You're at the midpoint in the course, so this is also a good time to compare your reading rate and comprehension scores with those of the former students you read about earlier. From there, you'll set goals for you to meet in the remaining lessons.

Skimming Techniques

You'll probably be reading pretty quickly by the time you reach this lesson, but how can you make sure your comprehension scores are keeping up? In this lesson, you'll look at the skills you'll need to work on to improve your comprehension. You'll find out what keys and identified parts are unique to all stories, and knowing those will help you to improve your comprehension. You'll be glad to learn that you already know a few speed reading skills and techniques as you continue to apply them to the course activities.

Measuring Reading Rates

In this lesson, you'll practice speed reading skills and techniques in real-world reading materials outside of class. You'll learn a method you can use to measure your speed reading rates when you're reading such materials. At this point, you'll be eager to read outside materials, not just for their content, but to further develop your speed reading skills and techniques.

Speed Reading Styles

You're now ready to analyze your personal speed reading style. You'll once again compare your speed reading rate and comprehension scores with those of former students to see how you stack up against others. You'll also compare your current scores with the scores you recorded at the beginning of the course to see how far you've come!

Vocabulary and Comprehension Skills

In this lesson, you'll look at eight word recognition vocabulary skills that you can work into your personal speed reading style. You'll learn how context clues and literal and inferential meanings in stories influence comprehension. All are part of the English language and fit right in with speed reading.

Assessing Your Progress

In this lesson, you'll see if you can figure out which of your behavior patterns are most useful in your own speed reading style. First and foremost, you need flexibility to focus on improving your reading speed, then you need an experimental attitude to get rid of poor reading habits. You'll study how the time you put in and the effort you expend affect your speed reading progress.

Wrapping Up

In the last lesson, you'll look at your personal speed reading accomplishments, as well as your speed reading future. From here on out, you're in the real world of reading, but you'll go into it with a lifelong speed reading skill. You'll learn how to adjust your personal speed reading style to any materials you read, because now you are a speed reader!

What you will learn

• Learn and practice some basic eye movements important to the speed-reading process
• Learn about Regulated Reading, Timed Reading, and Assignment exercises to gain increased reading rates with good comprehension
• Examine the retinal image phenomena and how it relates to a speed-reader's eye movements
• Discover bad reading habits that contribute to slow reading and learn to overcome them
• Learn 16 good speed reading practices you can apply to any reading you do
• Learn skills to improve comprehension
• Learn methods to measure your speed reading rates
• Discover vocabulary skills that you can work into your personal speed-reading style

How you will benefit

• Discover what bad habits you have developed that may contribute to slow reading
• Keep up with the flood of emails, articles, reports, and books that you want and need to read
• Save yourself hours of time and increase your productivity by learning to read faster and with better comprehension

Merrill L. Ream, Ph.D. (Course Author)

Curt Simmons, B.A., M.Ed, is a best-selling author, trainer, and multi-media expert. He holds degrees in English and communication studies and has more than 10 years of experience teaching English and writing in the classroom. Additionally, Simmons has authored numerous books on a wide variety of technology topics and has been a technical editor for numerous other titles.

Learn the secrets for success in your first years of teaching.

Feel a little trepidation before entering your classroom? You're not alone! Whether you're already teaching, a newly credentialed graduate, or a substitute looking to transition to full-time, this course will provide you with proven tools, tips, and tricks to make your early years in the classroom a breeze.

Teaching is a balancing act, and it requires a blend of subject expertise and classroom skills to reach all of your diverse learners. In this informational and interactive course, you'll learn how to run a motivational classroom that will feel like home to your students. You will discover how to write winning lesson plans, reach diverse learners through differentiated instruction, communicate clearly, plan memorable events, and keep stress at bay so you can feel good about going to work every morning. You will reap the benefits gained through many years of firsthand classroom experience!

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Learn the keys to success from an experienced educator so you can thrive as a classroom teacher. This course is designed to help teachers build motivational classrooms, reach diverse learners, write engaging lesson plans, communicate clearly, and keep stress at bay.

Welcome to Your Classroom

Do you ever stop to think about what inspired you to teach? Whether you're a brand new teacher looking for your first job, or a teacher with a year or two behind you, you'll take a look at the inspiration behind teachers of excellence. In the first lesson, you'll learn to draw on your inspiration as you face the academic (and not so academic) challenges ahead.

Plan Your Dream Classroom

Preparing your first classroom can be daunting if you don't have an action plan. From color theory to desk arrangement and bulletin boards, do you know how you want to stimulate your students visually? In this lesson, you'll find out the best ways to bring that touch of home and warmth to your classroom.

Make Your Lesson Plans

If you've ever wondered exactly how to fill those six hours you'll spend teaching, look no further than creative, engaging lesson plans. In this lesson, you'll discover the differences between full and condensed sets of lesson plans and learn how to build student excitement with a strong anticipatory set.

Differentiate Instruction

You may not know it yet, but differentiated instruction is probably second nature to you. It's all about modifying your curricular objectives to meet diverse student needs. In this lesson, you'll find out how to use interest centers, cubing, and tiering as easy methods of differentiating instruction in your class.

Reach Special Needs Students

Not so long ago, special needs students were relegated to different classrooms with their own teachers. These days, it's becoming more and more popular to include them in the regular classroom. This brings a host of new learning challenges and opportunities. In this lesson, you'll explore common special needs, IEPs, and smart ways to incorporate diverse learning objectives into your teaching routine.

Get Organized

Did you know that you shouldn't have more than five classroom rules? Are you prepared in the event of a fire drill? If you've been searching for the right rules, routines, and organization tips to make your classroom flow smoothly, look no further. This lesson will show you a bunch of time-saving tips that will help you add order to your classroom.

Build Lasting Relationships at School

The key to teaching is building strong relationships between school and home. This starts with your students and ideally extends across the campus, into the home, and out to the community. In this lesson, you'll learn tactics to win students, engage parents, and impress the school as you set an example as a strong communicator.

Negotiate Discipline and Rewards

One of the biggest classroom dilemmas is how to handle discipline and rewards—striking that balance between overreaction and fair play can be tricky. Luckily, you can use your communication skills to bridge conflict and turn classroom problems into teaching opportunities. In this lesson, you'll learn how to do just that.

Write Effective Assignments and Tests

Writing assignments and tests is never a thrill, even when you know exactly what learning you want to measure and how you want to do it. In this lesson, you'll discover the power of rubrics, tests that account for a wide range of student diversity, and creative assignments that bring out the best in all your learners.

Plan Exciting Classroom Events

Does the thought of public speaking make you cringe? It's natural for new teachers to be nervous about milestone events like Back to School Night, parent-teacher conferences, and field trips into the community. However, with planning, organization, and a little bit of homework on your part, you'll be able to pull off smooth events that look like they were planned by a pro.

Manage Stress

It's common for teachers to reach a burn-out point some time in those first few years. In this lesson, you'll learn to build balance in your life so that the job will never overwhelm you too much. From classroom strategies to make your life less hectic to after-hours relaxation tips that help veteran teachers let loose, you'll learn the best ways to keep stress at bay.

Nail Interviews to Advance Your Career

When you're ready to advance your career to the next level, you'll need to showcase not just what you've done, but what you're ready to do in a new classroom. It has to do with how you package your skills. In the final lesson, you'll discover what administrators are looking for and how to wow them with your creativity.

What you will learn

• Learn the fundamentals of surviving and thriving in your career as a professional educator
• Examine the subject expertise and classroom skills you will need to reach all of the diverse learners in your classroom
• Discover how to use your communication skills to bridge conflict and turn classroom problems into teaching opportunities
• Learn a variety of time-saving tips on rules, routines, and organization that will help you add order to your classroom

How you will benefit

• Reap the benefits gained through many years of firsthand classroom experience
• Gain confidence in your ability to build and maintain relationships with students, parents, staff, and administrators
• Learn useful strategies for managing stress and avoiding burn-out so you can enjoy a rewarding and fulfilling career

Cheryl Dick has more than 25 years of teaching experience and is currently a classroom teacher. She's taught 2nd, 4th, and 5th grade and has previously worked as an instructional coach. She graduated from Missouri State University with a Bachelor of Science in elementary education, with a focus on early childhood education. Cheryl also holds a master's degree in elementary education from Texas-Wesleyan University and a second master's degree in educational administration from Lindenwood University.

Learn the secrets for success in your first years of teaching.

Feel a little trepidation before entering your classroom? You're not alone! Whether you're already teaching, a newly credentialed graduate, or a substitute looking to transition to full-time, this course will provide you with proven tools, tips, and tricks to make your early years in the classroom a breeze.

Teaching is a balancing act, and it requires a blend of subject expertise and classroom skills to reach all of your diverse learners. In this informational and interactive course, you'll learn how to run a motivational classroom that will feel like home to your students. You will discover how to write winning lesson plans, reach diverse learners through differentiated instruction, communicate clearly, plan memorable events, and keep stress at bay so you can feel good about going to work every morning. You will reap the benefits gained through many years of firsthand classroom experience!

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Learn the keys to success from an experienced educator so you can thrive as a classroom teacher. This course is designed to help teachers build motivational classrooms, reach diverse learners, write engaging lesson plans, communicate clearly, and keep stress at bay.

Welcome to Your Classroom

Do you ever stop to think about what inspired you to teach? Whether you're a brand new teacher looking for your first job, or a teacher with a year or two behind you, you'll take a look at the inspiration behind teachers of excellence. In the first lesson, you'll learn to draw on your inspiration as you face the academic (and not so academic) challenges ahead.

Plan Your Dream Classroom

Preparing your first classroom can be daunting if you don't have an action plan. From color theory to desk arrangement and bulletin boards, do you know how you want to stimulate your students visually? In this lesson, you'll find out the best ways to bring that touch of home and warmth to your classroom.

Make Your Lesson Plans

If you've ever wondered exactly how to fill those six hours you'll spend teaching, look no further than creative, engaging lesson plans. In this lesson, you'll discover the differences between full and condensed sets of lesson plans and learn how to build student excitement with a strong anticipatory set.

Differentiate Instruction

You may not know it yet, but differentiated instruction is probably second nature to you. It's all about modifying your curricular objectives to meet diverse student needs. In this lesson, you'll find out how to use interest centers, cubing, and tiering as easy methods of differentiating instruction in your class.

Reach Special Needs Students

Not so long ago, special needs students were relegated to different classrooms with their own teachers. These days, it's becoming more and more popular to include them in the regular classroom. This brings a host of new learning challenges and opportunities. In this lesson, you'll explore common special needs, IEPs, and smart ways to incorporate diverse learning objectives into your teaching routine.

Get Organized

Did you know that you shouldn't have more than five classroom rules? Are you prepared in the event of a fire drill? If you've been searching for the right rules, routines, and organization tips to make your classroom flow smoothly, look no further. This lesson will show you a bunch of time-saving tips that will help you add order to your classroom.

Build Lasting Relationships at School

The key to teaching is building strong relationships between school and home. This starts with your students and ideally extends across the campus, into the home, and out to the community. In this lesson, you'll learn tactics to win students, engage parents, and impress the school as you set an example as a strong communicator.

Negotiate Discipline and Rewards

One of the biggest classroom dilemmas is how to handle discipline and rewards—striking that balance between overreaction and fair play can be tricky. Luckily, you can use your communication skills to bridge conflict and turn classroom problems into teaching opportunities. In this lesson, you'll learn how to do just that.

Write Effective Assignments and Tests

Writing assignments and tests is never a thrill, even when you know exactly what learning you want to measure and how you want to do it. In this lesson, you'll discover the power of rubrics, tests that account for a wide range of student diversity, and creative assignments that bring out the best in all your learners.

Plan Exciting Classroom Events

Does the thought of public speaking make you cringe? It's natural for new teachers to be nervous about milestone events like Back to School Night, parent-teacher conferences, and field trips into the community. However, with planning, organization, and a little bit of homework on your part, you'll be able to pull off smooth events that look like they were planned by a pro.

Manage Stress

It's common for teachers to reach a burn-out point some time in those first few years. In this lesson, you'll learn to build balance in your life so that the job will never overwhelm you too much. From classroom strategies to make your life less hectic to after-hours relaxation tips that help veteran teachers let loose, you'll learn the best ways to keep stress at bay.

Nail Interviews to Advance Your Career

When you're ready to advance your career to the next level, you'll need to showcase not just what you've done, but what you're ready to do in a new classroom. It has to do with how you package your skills. In the final lesson, you'll discover what administrators are looking for and how to wow them with your creativity.

What you will learn

• Learn the fundamentals of surviving and thriving in your career as a professional educator
• Examine the subject expertise and classroom skills you will need to reach all of the diverse learners in your classroom
• Discover how to use your communication skills to bridge conflict and turn classroom problems into teaching opportunities
• Learn a variety of time-saving tips on rules, routines, and organization that will help you add order to your classroom

How you will benefit

• Reap the benefits gained through many years of firsthand classroom experience
• Gain confidence in your ability to build and maintain relationships with students, parents, staff, and administrators
• Learn useful strategies for managing stress and avoiding burn-out so you can enjoy a rewarding and fulfilling career

Cheryl Dick has more than 25 years of teaching experience and is currently a classroom teacher. She's taught 2nd, 4th, and 5th grade and has previously worked as an instructional coach. She graduated from Missouri State University with a Bachelor of Science in elementary education, with a focus on early childhood education. Cheryl also holds a master's degree in elementary education from Texas-Wesleyan University and a second master's degree in educational administration from Lindenwood University.

This course will introduce numerous ways to motivate and teach adult students. You'll learn dozens of powerful teaching techniques that will keep your adult learners excited and help them absorb your material effortlessly. By the end of the course, you'll know all the tricks and techniques for winning over this fun, exciting, and very demanding group of students.

If you're excited about the challenge of reaching and teaching adult learners, then you're in the right place! In this course, you will discover how to use the newest educational methods to create a student-centered classroom that's perfectly suited for adult learners.

First, you will be introduced to the unique needs and motivations of adult students and find out just what they expect from your class. After that, you will examine your students' different learning styles and multiple intelligences and look at how you can teach to each learner's strengths.

Next, you will delve into a host of innovative teaching techniques that will turn your students into active learners and set them up for success. You will discover high-tech, low-tech, and no-tech educational tools you can use to capture and hold your students' attention.

Following that is a challenging topic: how to organize your material effectively and design strong lesson plans. In addition, you will learn how to create effective tests and how to teach your students good study skills. You will also explore a wide range of assessments and how to grade them. Finally, you will learn how to make your classroom accessible and enjoyable for students with disabilities.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Learn the most powerful techniques for reaching and motivating adult learners. This course will teach you the latest and greatest educational methods to create the perfect student-centered classroom.

Keys to Success in Your Teaching Career

A great classroom starts with a great teacher—and that's you! This lesson introduces how you can grow in your job as an adult educator by enhancing your professionalism and managing your time effectively. In addition, you will learn how to boost your confidence and establish your authority in the classroom.

Creating a Positive Learning Environment

Adult students are different than kids and understanding those differences can help you reach and teach them. This lesson explores what makes adult learners tick and how you can best meet their needs. In addition, you will learn about preparing for that big first day by getting your paperwork in order.

Understanding Learning Styles

Jill loves testing the rules. Germaine is a shy bookworm. Claire is an artist. All of these adults have different learning styles and intelligences. This lesson explores two different models of learning styles and introduces eight intelligences you will want to factor into your lesson plans.

Managing, Supervising, and Counseling Your Students

"Zzzzzzz" This is the sound of Darren snoozing in the corner as you're trying to lecture. Meanwhile, Emily and Sherelle are busy gossiping about their weekend. Does this sound like your classroom? If so, you will enjoy this lesson, which introduces many techniques to get misbehaving students back on track.

Basic Teaching Methods

Remember the old days, when teachers lectured for hours while students took notes or dozed? Those days are gone! This lesson introduces a host of innovative techniques, from window paning and role-playing to mnemonics and visualization, that work like magic in a student-centered classroom.

Planning Your Course

"Proper prior planning" may be a cliché, but it's also an excellent idea. This lesson looks at the upfront work that can set you up for success in the classroom. To do so, you will discover the 12 steps for creating a dynamite course outline.

Educational Aids and Classroom Technology

Just as an interior decorator accents a room with bright colors and great fabrics, you can accent your classroom presentations with the right audiovisual aids. This lesson looks at high-tech, low-tech, and no-tech educational aids and technology you can use to capture and keep your students' attention.

Creating Effective Presentations

What motivates your students to learn? This lesson introduces 10 needs and desires that bring learners to your classroom—and you will discover how to tap into those motivators during your presentations. You will also learn how to create powerful presentation openings, content, and closings.

Grading and Advising Your Students

This lesson explores the A-B-C's of grading and the ways to write top-notch test questions. In addition, you will discover great tools for assessing any type of skill, from cake-baking to hairdressing. You will also find out how to avoid the most common mistakes teachers make when they assess students.

Teaching Students Who Have Special Needs

This lesson focus on making your class accessible and enjoyable for students with disabilities. You will learn about the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), how to comply with this law, and common learning disabilities—dyslexia and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in particular.

Teaching Study Skills and Test-Taking Techniques

Even if you create great lessons, your students will succeed only if they have great study habits and efficient test-taking skills. This lesson explores ways to beef up your students' study skills and look at strategies for test-taking.

Starting a Career as an Adult Educator

Enough about your students—this lesson is all about you! Whether you're a brand-new teacher or an experienced educator looking for new classroom opportunities, you will find tips here on how to power up your job search.

What you will learn

• Explore the unique needs and motivations of adult students and find out just what they're expecting from your class
• Examine your students' different learning styles and multiple intelligences and look at how you can teach to each learner's strengths
• Learn ways to get misbehaving or under-achieving students back on track
• Delve into a host of innovative teaching techniques that will turn your students into active learners and set them up for success
• Understand high-tech, low-tech, and no-tech educational tools you can use to capture and hold your students' attention
• Learn how to organize your material effectively and design strong lesson plans
• Learn how to create effective tests and how to teach your students good study skills
• Understand how to make your classroom accessible and enjoyable for students with disabilities

How you will benefit

• Gain tricks and techniques for winning over this fun, exciting, and very demanding group of students
• Gain the confidence you need to succeed in teaching adults with the information and hands-on activities in this course
• Discover how to create a student-centered classroom that's perfectly suited for adult learners

Annemarie Thompson is an award winning learning designer with over 15 years of experience in the distance learning industry. She produces courses on key teacher development topics including Differentiated Instruction, Classroom Discipline, and Classroom Management. Her courses have been offered by more than 100 colleges and universities and were the basis of an accredited online master's program.

This course will introduce numerous ways to motivate and teach adult students. You'll learn dozens of powerful teaching techniques that will keep your adult learners excited and help them absorb your material effortlessly. By the end of the course, you'll know all the tricks and techniques for winning over this fun, exciting, and very demanding group of students.

If you're excited about the challenge of reaching and teaching adult learners, then you're in the right place! In this course, you will discover how to use the newest educational methods to create a student-centered classroom that's perfectly suited for adult learners.

First, you will be introduced to the unique needs and motivations of adult students and find out just what they expect from your class. After that, you will examine your students' different learning styles and multiple intelligences and look at how you can teach to each learner's strengths.

Next, you will delve into a host of innovative teaching techniques that will turn your students into active learners and set them up for success. You will discover high-tech, low-tech, and no-tech educational tools you can use to capture and hold your students' attention.

Following that is a challenging topic: how to organize your material effectively and design strong lesson plans. In addition, you will learn how to create effective tests and how to teach your students good study skills. You will also explore a wide range of assessments and how to grade them. Finally, you will learn how to make your classroom accessible and enjoyable for students with disabilities.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC or Mac.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader.
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Learn the most powerful techniques for reaching and motivating adult learners. This course will teach you the latest and greatest educational methods to create the perfect student-centered classroom.

Keys to Success in Your Teaching Career

A great classroom starts with a great teacher—and that's you! This lesson introduces how you can grow in your job as an adult educator by enhancing your professionalism and managing your time effectively. In addition, you will learn how to boost your confidence and establish your authority in the classroom.

Creating a Positive Learning Environment

Adult students are different than kids and understanding those differences can help you reach and teach them. This lesson explores what makes adult learners tick and how you can best meet their needs. In addition, you will learn about preparing for that big first day by getting your paperwork in order.

Understanding Learning Styles

Jill loves testing the rules. Germaine is a shy bookworm. Claire is an artist. All of these adults have different learning styles and intelligences. This lesson explores two different models of learning styles and introduces eight intelligences you will want to factor into your lesson plans.

Managing, Supervising, and Counseling Your Students

"Zzzzzzz" This is the sound of Darren snoozing in the corner as you're trying to lecture. Meanwhile, Emily and Sherelle are busy gossiping about their weekend. Does this sound like your classroom? If so, you will enjoy this lesson, which introduces many techniques to get misbehaving students back on track.

Basic Teaching Methods

Remember the old days, when teachers lectured for hours while students took notes or dozed? Those days are gone! This lesson introduces a host of innovative techniques, from window paning and role-playing to mnemonics and visualization, that work like magic in a student-centered classroom.

Planning Your Course

"Proper prior planning" may be a cliché, but it's also an excellent idea. This lesson looks at the upfront work that can set you up for success in the classroom. To do so, you will discover the 12 steps for creating a dynamite course outline.

Educational Aids and Classroom Technology

Just as an interior decorator accents a room with bright colors and great fabrics, you can accent your classroom presentations with the right audiovisual aids. This lesson looks at high-tech, low-tech, and no-tech educational aids and technology you can use to capture and keep your students' attention.

Creating Effective Presentations

What motivates your students to learn? This lesson introduces 10 needs and desires that bring learners to your classroom—and you will discover how to tap into those motivators during your presentations. You will also learn how to create powerful presentation openings, content, and closings.

Grading and Advising Your Students

This lesson explores the A-B-C's of grading and the ways to write top-notch test questions. In addition, you will discover great tools for assessing any type of skill, from cake-baking to hairdressing. You will also find out how to avoid the most common mistakes teachers make when they assess students.

Teaching Students Who Have Special Needs

This lesson focus on making your class accessible and enjoyable for students with disabilities. You will learn about the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), how to comply with this law, and common learning disabilities—dyslexia and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in particular.

Teaching Study Skills and Test-Taking Techniques

Even if you create great lessons, your students will succeed only if they have great study habits and efficient test-taking skills. This lesson explores ways to beef up your students' study skills and look at strategies for test-taking.

Starting a Career as an Adult Educator

Enough about your students—this lesson is all about you! Whether you're a brand-new teacher or an experienced educator looking for new classroom opportunities, you will find tips here on how to power up your job search.

What you will learn

• Explore the unique needs and motivations of adult students and find out just what they're expecting from your class
• Examine your students' different learning styles and multiple intelligences and look at how you can teach to each learner's strengths
• Learn ways to get misbehaving or under-achieving students back on track
• Delve into a host of innovative teaching techniques that will turn your students into active learners and set them up for success
• Understand high-tech, low-tech, and no-tech educational tools you can use to capture and hold your students' attention
• Learn how to organize your material effectively and design strong lesson plans
• Learn how to create effective tests and how to teach your students good study skills
• Understand how to make your classroom accessible and enjoyable for students with disabilities

How you will benefit

• Gain tricks and techniques for winning over this fun, exciting, and very demanding group of students
• Gain the confidence you need to succeed in teaching adults with the information and hands-on activities in this course
• Discover how to create a student-centered classroom that's perfectly suited for adult learners

Annemarie Thompson is an award winning learning designer with over 15 years of experience in the distance learning industry. She produces courses on key teacher development topics including Differentiated Instruction, Classroom Discipline, and Classroom Management. Her courses have been offered by more than 100 colleges and universities and were the basis of an accredited online master's program.