Categories
Subjects
Sort By
November 1, 2023 When students are successful in school, they are able to manage the academic demands inherent in a classroom. Specifically, this management requires a set of overlapping and interdependent skill sets that include language and literacy skills, study skills, self-efficacy, and intact executive function skills. The graphic below provides a visual representation of
Read More
Updated September 18, 2023 There are three types of memory. Working memory can be defined as “a limited capacity system allowing for the temporary storage and manipulation of information necessary for such complex cognitive tasks as comprehension, learning and reasoning” (Baddeley, 2000, p. 418). Put more simply, working memory refers to the ability to hold
Learn Strategy
Updated February 27, 2024 The fifth principle of Landmark’s Six Teaching Principles is to provide models. The use of models helps us learn efficiently and effectively. From infancy onward, we all need models to learn new skills. Infants’ babbling mimics the sounds of caregivers and lays the foundation that enables them to develop spoken language.
Learn Strategy
Updated August 31, 2023 A commonly used reading comprehension strategy is to teach students how to find the main idea. But why does this strategy work? To support students’ understanding and to help lessen students’ cognitive demands, the research recommends that educators explicitly teach students about text structure. What Works Clearinghouse offers recommendations for improving
Learn Strategy
March 1, 2023 The Institute of Education Sciences (IES) report titled Teaching Secondary Students to Write Effectively asserts that “Effective writing is a vital component of students’ literacy achievement, and writing is a critical communication tool for students to convey thoughts and opinions, describe ideas and events, and analyze information” (Graham et al, 2016, p.1).
Read More
Updated February 13, 2023 Why do students with LD struggle with the research and writing process? In their review of recent research into writing interventions for students with learning disabilities, Amy Gillespie Rouse and Ashley Sandoval (2018) make the following observation: “Compared to their peers without learning disabilities, these students spend less time planning for
Learn Strategy
December 12, 2022 Writing is a complex, high-level task that incorporates and synthesizes many language skills from phonemic awareness to handwriting to critical thinking and analysis. In their research to confirm the efficacy of Self-Regulated Strategy Development, Steve Graham and Karen Harris asserted that “skilled writing was a highly demanding process that was self-directed, requiring
Read More
May 1, 2023 Writing a cohesive research paper requires an extensive amount of self-talk, self questioning, and self-monitoring. This internal language or metacognitive process can be under-developed in students with LBLD as they often allocate so much cognitive energy understanding and reading sources, as well as composing their thoughts based on this information, that they
Read More
March 21, 2022 The act of reading requires the coordination of many cognitive skills. Students must understand that words in a given language are made up of distinct, separate sounds, and that when we read and write, these sounds are represented by letters. Not only is understanding this letter/sound code important, but the rate at
Read More
December 21, 2022 The language skills that students are asked to use in a classroom fall into two distinct categories: language processing, or receptive language skills, and language production, or expressive language skills. The columns in the Language Box™ show these categories. Receptive Language Skills refer to how we process either spoken or written word.
Read More
October 3, 2022 Decades of research in the fields of literacy and neuroscience have helped to articulate what happens in the brain when we read. A crucial takeaway from this body of research is that the human brain is not hardwired for reading, meaning that for most people to learn to read they need to
Learn Strategy
September 6, 2022 The Reading League, a national education nonprofit led by educators and reading experts, defines the science of reading as: A vast, interdisciplinary body of scientifically-based research about reading and issues related to reading and writing. This research has been conducted over the last five decades across the world, and it is derived
Explore
November 15, 2022 The executive functions are at the core of learning and are crucial for success in school and beyond. These cognitive processes allow us to approach a task or goal, whether it is academic or non-academic, manage our attention, plan each step, and regulate our emotions to achieve the desired outcome. Specifically in
Learn Strategy
At their core, assessment measures, whether they are formal or informal, work to give a snapshot of a student’s ability level and skill development. The results of these measures can provide educators with insight and understanding of a students’ academic proficiency and can present educators with a road map to assist in strengthening any necessary
Learn Strategy
October 14, 2022 Developed by Hollis Scarborough in 2001 and explained in her paper titled “Connecting Early Language to Later Reading (Dis)Abilities, this helpful infographic, often called Scarborough’s Rope or the Reading Rope, explains how essential language skills work together to develop skilled reading. Similar to the equation in the Simple View of Reading R
Learn Strategy
March 21, 2022 The act of reading requires the coordination of many cognitive skills. Students must understand that words in a given language are made up of distinct, separate sounds, and that when we read and write, these sounds are represented by letters. Not only is understanding this letter/sound code important, but the rate at
Read More
February 2, 2022 Students who are English language learners (ELL) are a valuable asset to school culture. Multilingualism is something to be celebrated, as fluency in more than one language is a valuable skill and can support other essential academic skills. Studies have shown that some students who are proficient in two languages may possess
Read More
December 20, 2018 Defining Terms Phonemic Awareness is the ability to hear, identify, and manipulate phonemes (smallest unit of sound) in spoken words. For instance, there are three phonemes in the word tree (/t/ /r/ /e/). Phonics is a method of instruction that requires the ability to connect sounds to letters and letter combinations in order
Learn Strategy
May 23, 2019 How is Reading Progress Measured? Reading is a complex process that involves a variety of skills and components. Before determining a way to measure reading progress, the specific reading skill being measured must first be identified. Please note that phonemic awareness is not included here as that particular skill generally requires more
Learn Strategy
October 8, 2021 Dyslexia is a widely researched and discussed learning disability. The official definition, written and compiled by Reid Lyon and Sally and Bennett Shaywitz, reads as follows: “Dyslexia is a specific learning disability that is neurobiological in origin. It is characterized by difficulties with accurate and or fluent word recognition and by poor
Learn Strategy
April 14, 2021 Students with language-based learning disabilities benefit from strategies to assist in the management of language demands across all subjects. Typically, study skills, the management of time, materials, and language, is a skill set assumed to be reserved for subjects like literature and social science. Language arts and history teachers regularly use interactive
Read More
November 15, 2018 Reading and writing skills are the cornerstones of academic proficiency, and there are many cognitive processes that must coordinate in order for students to access content and demonstrate mastery. Literacy experts believe that reading is developed through a series of skills that help us connect our speech sounds to letters, those letters
Learn Strategy
November 29, 2021 Developed by Phillip Gough and colleagues (Gough & Tumner, 1986; Hoover and Gough,1990; Juel, Griffith, & Gough,1986) in 1986, the Simple View of Reading was one of the first models of reading development that explored the process of reading acquisition. Their research asserted that the endgame of reading is comprehension, and they
Learn Strategy
October 28, 2021 In the digital age, many people consider handwriting to be an antiquated form of communication. The emphasis on handwriting decreases as students get older, and many places do not require direct instruction in letter formation past the first grade, instead shifting the focus to keyboarding. Although typing skills are also critical to
Learn Strategy
October 25, 2018 Reading is a complex process that requires the development and interaction of a variety of skills. Although reading is a crucial part of navigating the modern world, it is important to understand that the ability to read is a recent human invention and is not an inherent, genetic trait that all people
Learn Strategy
March 21, 2019 In order for students to comprehend the information that they read, a variety of factors must be intact. First, students must understand the structure of the language they are reading, including grammar, syntax, and figures of speech. Students also need to be able to quickly decode words in order to read the
Learn Strategy
September 1, 2016 What is Executive Function? The idea that there is a system of functions within our brain that helps us coordinate our actions, direct our behavior, and manage our emotional response is a long-standing concept. The term “executive functions” was created by Karl Pribram in the 1970s through his research that attempted to
Learn Strategy
At the most basic level, our brains perceive stimuli through the five senses—seeing, hearing, touching, tasting, and smelling. Studies show that most people learn best and retain the most information when ideas are presented in a multisensory fashion. Novice teachers are often advised to let the wisdom of Confucius guide their planning: “I hear and
Learn Strategy
January 19, 2017 The term “study skills” refers to the management and organization of time, materials, and information. Study skills topics range from time management and organization to utilizing specific strategies for comprehending material. Instruction in study skills can incorporate the physical organization of materials, as well as the organization of information through note-taking templates.
Learn Strategy
Students are not passive receptacles to fill with information. They come to class with their own frames of reference. Their unique experiences and knowledge affect them as learners and should be taken into account. Therefore, during every exercise, teachers should accept student input as much as possible. They should justify assignments, accept suggestions, solicit ideas,
Learn Strategy
Updated February 26, 2023 Academic proficiency requires students to manage the many language demands inherent in school. As students move from learning to read to reading to learn, systems to help students organize the information that they encounter are not only essential for students with specific learning disabilities, but can be beneficial for all students.
Learn Strategy
Children with learning disabilities are not necessarily deficient in mathematics due to an inability to grasp spatial tasks or estimate quantity. Their difficulties often lie in language dysfunction. When teaching mathematics, treat their difficulty as a manifestation of a language-based learning disability. Students may have poor decoding (reading) skills or expressive or receptive language difficulties.
Learn Strategy
October 27, 2020 Study skills are defined as the management of time, materials, and information and/or language. Study skills are often equated with the organization of physical materials like binders, desks, lockers etc. They are also frequently associated with a student’s ability to study for and perform on tests or other assessments. Although these skills
Learn Strategy
October 27, 2020 As online learning takes center stage this year, it is important to create digital spaces that support all learners. Taking the main ideas from one of our past, most popular Free Teaching Strategies, Language-Based Classroom Environment, we have reimagined these best practices for the hybrid classroom. A cornerstone of language-based instruction is
Learn Strategy
September 28, 2020 There are so many factors to consider when deciding what technology to utilize, especially in the context of supporting students with language-based learning disabilities (LBLDs) and those who have weaknesses in executive function. Students with LBLDs may benefit from the multimodal and interactive format that many of these tools offer. However, the
Learn Strategy
April 15, 2020 Promote accessibility to your online classroom by incorporating the Landmark Six Teaching Principles™ into your content. The Landmark Six Teaching Principles™ were developed to guide teachers in approaching the presentation of both content and skills across the curriculum and can be adapted to work in a remote learning environment. Provide opportunities for students to
Read Article
November 12, 2020 The thinking phase of writing refers to a student’s opportunity to think about what they know about a topic and put that understanding in writing. This phase is much more complex than it appears on the surface, as successful writing incorporates many academic and metacognitive skills. When students are asked to write,
Learn Strategy
May 1, 2020 No matter where instruction takes place, incorporating social-emotional learning activities is important. Research conducted by both the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) outline that understanding and honoring student emotions are essential to not only creating a supportive and inclusive learning environment, but are
Read Article
“By the time a child is in late elementary school, expository writing demands are almost everywhere, in every subject.” – Jean Gudaitis Tarricone Expository writing begins early and exists in every subject from history to math class. Producing sequential, enumerative, compare/contrast, cause/effect, opinion, and descriptive writing is an everyday occurrence in the curriculum from late
Learn Strategy
June 6, 2020 This reading list was inspired by the work of and conversations with Landmark’s Diversity and Inclusion Advocates, a group of faculty that strives to recognize racial and cultural inequality and to help make sure that the school community embraces diversity and is a welcoming and safe place for all. Reading stories that
Read More
December 19th, 2019 The National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD) defines dyscalculia as, “a specific learning disability in math. Children with dyscalculia may have difficulty understanding number-related concepts or using symbols or functions needed for success in mathematics” (Horowitz, Rawe, & Whittaker, 2017, ch. 1). The ability to acquire arithmetic skills without being explicitly taught
Read More
In order for students to become independent and competent learners, they need to possess strong study skills. In other words, they need to understand and use strategies to help them manage their time, materials, and language. Many students diagnosed with a specific learning disability (SLD) benefit greatly from direct instruction in study skills, including methods
Learn Strategy
December 19, 2019 The National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD) defines dyscalculia as, “a specific learning disability in math. Children with dyscalculia may have difficulty understanding number-related concepts or using symbols or functions needed for success in mathematics” (Horowitz, Rawe, & Whittaker, 2017, ch. 1). The ability to acquire arithmetic skills without being explicitly taught
Read More
September 22, 2019 Vocabulary words are most useful to students when they recognize them in their reading and can use them in their writing. Therefore, it is important to introduce students to unfamiliar words before they are exposed to them in a text. If students come across an unfamiliar word while reading, they are more
Learn Strategy
What is it? Diagnostic prescriptive teaching is an educational approach that has existed for decades. To implement this type of instruction in a classroom, teachers first diagnose their students’ academic abilities and limitations, then prescribe an appropriate course of action to address areas of weakness. Like a doctor trying to decide the correct pill dosage
Learn Strategy
The Relationship Between Reading and Spelling What are the most effective methods for reading instruction? Much of the scientific research and data points to the importance of using a systematic approach to teaching reading. In other words, instruction must start with the origin of reading: recognizing, understanding, and manipulating the sounds we hear in our
Learn Strategy
Children are not explicitly taught to listen or speak because these skills develop naturally as we are exposed to language. However, students with a specific learning disability (SLD) such as dyslexia often experience difficulty with these critical language skills that are essential to classroom success. The skills of listening and speaking in the classroom falls
Learn Strategy
Updated March 6th, 2024 Landmark’s Sixth Teaching Principle encourages teachers to create opportunities to include students in the learning process, and this allows students to become aware of how they learn and why certain skills benefit them. As a result, students are more motivated and more likely to apply those skills when working independently. In
Learn Strategy
September 23, 2019 Finding the main idea or understanding what you read is one link in a chain of reading skills, and each skill relies on and supports one another. To comprehend text, students must first be able to understand the phonological components of language (that sounds are represented by letters), then they must be
Learn Strategy
September 23, 2019 Jo Boaler, a British education author and a professor of mathematics education at Stanford Graduate School of Education, has completed extensive research on how we learn math from early infancy through adulthood. By studying parts of our brain where math facts are held and manipulated, she concludes that many of the methodologies
Learn Strategy
April 23, 2019 The Importance of Interest and Motivation Recent research about brain functions demonstrates the value of interest and motivation in the development of academic skills, specifically for secondary students. FMRIs have allowed researchers to study the activation of different areas of the brain during specific tasks. This research suggests that students need to
Learn Strategy
February 28, 2019 Why is Vocabulary Instruction Important? Researchers know that vocabulary knowledge is strongly linked to academic success. Understanding vocabulary is the cornerstone of accessing background knowledge, communicating effectively, and understanding and learning new ideas. Students with strong word knowledge and vocabularies are able to understand new concepts and ideas more quickly than students
Learn Strategy
October 19, 2016 What is Universal Design for Learning? Universal Design for Learning (UDL) encompasses three brain networks, providing insight and strategies to allow all students the opportunity to access academic curriculum. The three brain networks are as follows: Recognition Network: The WHAT of learning. This relates to the need to present material in multiple formats.
Learn Strategy
January 24, 2019 What is Oral Reading Fluency? While the definition of oral reading fluency typically focuses on the rate and the correct pronunciation of words, tone and expression need to also be considered when evaluating, discussing, and addressing oral reading fluency. Expression (Intonation) and Volume should be varied and conversational. Students should be able to
Learn Strategy
February 8, 2017 The foundation of all instruction at Landmark School is made up of six important teaching principles. These principles guide how teachers approach the presentation of both content and skills across the curriculum. Teaching Principle #1: Provide Opportunities for Success Providing students with opportunities for success is key. Failure and poor self-esteem often result
Learn Strategy
Special education teachers place a particular emphasis on effective strategies for teaching reading and vocabulary development, an area where most students with language-based learning disabilities (90%) have significant difficulties (Vaughn, Moody, and Schumm 1998). Rupley, Logan, and Nichols (1998) note that vocabulary development is a crucial aspect of successful reading, primarily, because a highly evolved
Learn Strategy
What is working memory? Working memory requires the brain to learn and manipulate new information in such a way that it can be translated into long-term memory and referenced again. It is essentially the work station of the brain: learning and filtering new information, working with that information, and then storing it for future use.
Learn Strategy
August 29, 2017 Students with language-based learning disabilities often have difficulty processing and expressing oral and written language. As a result, these students may experience difficulties with the academic tasks of decoding, reading fluency, reading comprehension, spelling, and written composition. Commonly, students with a language-based learning disability also have difficulty with executive function skills, working
Learn Strategy
Students with language-based learning disabilities often experience difficulty with written and oral expression. Using diamante poems, which follow a specific, structured format, students utilize different parts of speech to create a poem on any given topic or opposing topics. When students have completed their poems, they can share them with the class. What is a
Learn Strategy
Research can be a tedious and difficult process. When it comes to taking meaningful notes and organizing them effectively, many students get overwhelmed. Some get stuck on this stage, while others skip it all together, making the research process even more frustrating. Use this method to help your students take notes for research projects in
Learn Strategy
Students often embark on writing assignments without enough background knowledge to produce more than a cursory summary of basic information. The four Cs are an easy-to-remember strategy for the thinking phase of writing. They are to collect sources, comprehend arguments and points of view, critically think, and craft a response. Excerpted from: Teaching Independent Minds: A Landmark
Learn Strategy
An important component of the writing process, one that often challenges students with language-based learning disabilities, is proofreading. Proofreading is an element of editing focused on the concrete skills of spelling, capitalization, punctuation, and sentence structure. “Critical proofreading, or critical thought, relies on a fairly well-developed metacognitive ability which many students with language-based learning disabilities lack. The language demands involved in applying
Learn Strategy
May 17, 2018 Why Teach Social Emotional Learning Skills? Research suggests that Social Emotional Learning skills (self-awareness, self-management, relationship skills, social awareness, and responsible decision making) are a core component of student success. Learning is a social process, and schools are often the hub of students’ social interactions. If student progress is hampered by emotions,
Learn Strategy
For the Secondary School Teacher Students who can write different types of expository paragraphs on concrete topics are ready to write an expanded paragraph or brief essay. The expanded paragraph/brief essayfocuses on less concrete topics and requires students to think about what they can less easily observe. The framework for an expanded paragraph/brief essay is three
Learn Strategy
What is anxiety? Anxiety is a sense of fear and worry, and it is not uncommon among students with language-based learning disabilities. According to understood.org, this anxiety stems from a fear of not being able to keep up with peers, as well as feeling different and worrying about the future. These issues can oftentimes interfere with
Learn Strategy
September 2016 Process writing is a way of breaking down the task of writing into its smaller component parts. By completing each step sequentially, writing becomes a less threatening and less daunting task. Students learn that writing doesn’t just happen; it is planned and it evolves, taking shape as it develops. The steps in process
Learn Strategy
April 24, 2018 What is Responsible Decision Making? Responsible decision making is defined by the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) as “the ability to make constructive choices about personal behavior and social interactions based on ethical standards, safety concerns, and social norms.” Essentially, all aspects of a potential decision and its consequences
Learn Strategy
April 19, 2018 Brigid Houlihan and Maura O’Riordan, both Landmark High School math teachers, presented about their class “Algebra 1 with Number Sense” at the 2018 Learning Disabilities Association (LDA) of America conference. Number sense is a student’s ability to be flexible with numbers, understand their relationship to one another, and apply them in real-world situations.
Learn Strategy
March 22, 2018 What is Social Awareness? Social awareness is defined by the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) as, “the ability to take the perspective of and empathize with others, including those from diverse backgrounds and cultures. [It is] the ability to understand social and ethical norms for behavior and to recognize
Learn Strategy
February 13, 2018 What are Relationship Skills? Relationship skills are an important component of Social Emotional Learning. According to the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL), relationship skills pertain to “the ability to establish and maintain healthy and rewarding relationships with diverse individuals and groups.” To demonstrate appropriate relationship skills, students must learn
Learn Strategy
With the completion of Collaborative Strategic Reading, this resource focuses on improving vocabulary across the curriculum to improve student comprehension of the material. Why Vocabulary? Words are the essential foundation for everything we do to learn- every aspect of learning is tied to vocabulary and the ability to understand. Therefore, it is imperative that teachers expose students
Learn Strategy
January 25, 2018 What is Mindfulness? Mindfulness is an ancient Buddhist practice meaning, “to live fully in the present moment with intention and without judgment” (Kriyonich, 2017). It’s the act of paying attention to what you are doing while you are doing it (Buck, 2017) or being present in the moment. Why Teach Mindfulness? Study
Learn Strategy
December 12, 2017 What is Self-Management? Self-management is an essential component of social emotional learning. Building from the foundation of self-awareness, the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) defines self-management as, “the ability to successfully regulate one’s emotions, thoughts, and behaviors in different situations.” This regulation is achieved by effectively managing stress, controlling impulses,
Learn Strategy
Providing models or templates for students does not mean doing an assignment for them. Models allow students to see what the teacher’s standards and requirements look like in a finished product, and offer them a point of comparison for their own work. Models can come in many forms: oral examples of participating in a discussion;
Learn Strategy
November 16, 2017 What is Self-Awareness? The first main skill associated with Social Emotional Learning is self-awareness. According to the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL), self-awareness is the ability to accurately recognize one’s own emotions, thoughts, and values, and how they influence behavior. It is the ability to accurately assess one’s strengths
Learn Strategy
October 19, 2017 What is Social Emotional Learning? Social Emotional Learning (SEL) is “generally defined as the capacity to identify and manage emotions, resolve problems effectively, and establish healthy personal relationships” (Berman, 2016). When referring to SEL, there are five main skills included: Self-awareness Self-management Relationship skills Social awareness Responsible decision-making Why Social Emotional Skills?
Learn Strategy
Phonology is the study of the sound systems of a language. Children with a phonological impairment, or a lack of phonological awareness, appear to have disorder in the organization of the sound system. Although their hearing is normal, they do not accurately perceive speech. Among other factors, it could be that an average speaking rate
Learn Strategy
The Essential Role of Writing in School Academic competence rests on three complex skill sets. One is literacy skills; students’ fluency in reading, writing, and speaking have an enormous influence on their success in school. Written expression is a literacy skill. The other two skill sets that lead to academic competence are study skills and self-regulation and self-efficacy skills.
Learn Strategy
Being able to tell clock time is different from understanding the concept of time. Many students can read the clock perfectly well, but when asked to estimate how long an assignment will take, they can seldom provide an accurate answer. While some grossly underestimate the time required and set themselves up for disappointment and frustration,
Learn Strategy
Materials Management The best way to teach materials management is for a school, or a team of teachers, to settle upon a system by which students will organize their school materials — books, papers, pencils, equipment, etc. The system should be designed to account for everything students need to participate in the school day and do
Learn Strategy
Several Outreach resources are related to six aspects of executive function: activation, focus, effort, emotion, memory, and action.1 In addition, we’ll continue to organize the resources in relation to Landmark’s Six Teaching Principles™. This resource focuses on strategies to activate students toward successful task completion by exploring reference tools, working on time management, and cueing students to empower them
Learn Strategy
June 16, 2017 The development of fluent language skills is rooted in complex cognitive processes that include attention, auditory and visual perception and processing, memory, and executive function. Students who have difficulty in any of these areas may also have difficulty acquiring the facility with language that school requires. To understand a reading selection, for
Learn Strategy
May 18, 2017 Technology Review While there are a variety of technological tools that can be used to aid students as they access curriculum, technology should never replace skill instruction. Teachers should be intentional about which programs and apps they choose to incorporate, as well as how they plan to utilize them within their lessons. Technology
Learn Strategy
April 13, 2017 How to Choose Technology With a variety of technology options available for classroom use, it can be difficult to know what to choose and when to incorporate it. Joy Zabala’s SETT Frameworks provide helpful documents to aid teachers in determining if a technology is appropriate, as well as help them to consider
Learn Strategy
March 14, 2017 Written Expression Overview Students with language-based learning disabilities (LBLD) can experience a multitude of receptive and/or expressive language difficulties. Receptive language skills are associated with listening and reading because the brain is receiving and processing language. On the other hand, expressive language skills are related to writing and speaking, as these tasks
Learn Strategy
February 7, 2017 Reading Remediation Overview Reading remediation is often at the center of instruction for students with language-based learning disabilities. While prescriptive in nature, reading instruction can take many forms and follow a variety of programs. At the core of this remediation is the need for structured practice that includes specific and immediate feedback
Learn Strategy
This resource explored the second tenet of Collaborative Strategic Reading (CSR) – click & clunk – and its connection to Landmark’s 5th Teaching Principle, “Provide Models.” For the full text of the Landmark Teaching Principles™, including “Provide Models,” click here. Click & Clunk is a strategy used during reading that allows students to monitor their
Learn Strategy
Practice and review help students develop automaticity. Automaticity enables students to focus their attention on applying knowledge and skills in complex situations. While worksheets and drills provide practice, another activity that students enjoy is categorizing cards. This multisensory strategy for review and practice is flexible enough to use across the curriculum. Students can practice with
Learn Strategy
Continuing with Collaborative Strategic Reading (CSR), this resource will examine the third step in the process: get the gist. While preview occurs before reading, both click & clunk and get the gist occur during reading. Essentially, get the gist refers to understanding the material and being able to identify who or what the reading is about (the topic) as well as
Learn Strategy
“When teachers instruct the language in a given science unit, students can more easily understand the concepts. Language-based exercises and hands-on activities used in conjunction to teach science concepts offers students with language-based learning disabilities opportunities for success in science class.” -Sophie Wilson, Landmark Elementary-Middle School Science Department Head Students with language-based learning disabilities often categorize
Learn Strategy
December 13, 2016 What is Executive Function? Executive Function encompasses a variety of specific skills and abilities, including activation, focus, effort, emotion, memory, and action. Previous Free Landmark Teaching Strategies have further explained each of these categories with connections to how to implement specific approaches in class instruction. Hill, Skill, and Will by Gardner &
Learn Strategy
What is Cognitive Load Theory? CognitiveLoadTheory (CLT) supports the idea that students can learn only if their mental capacity is not overloaded. In relation to this theory, it is important to be aware of the amount of information a student is asked to learn. When an overload occurs, there is often an increase in errors, poor
Learn Strategy
Collaborative Strategic Reading is a method to appropriately engage students in meaningful lessons and discussions.1 CSR breaks down learning into four main parts (preview, click & clunk, get the gist, and wrap up). This ensures student understanding especially for students with LBLD who have difficulty processing language (listening, speaking, reading, and writing). Throughout the year, the
Learn Strategy
After completing instruction in the Collaborative Strategic Reading (CSR) methods of preview, click & clunk, get the gist, and wrap-up, the teacher can implement this process through small group work, which is the focus of this resource. Small Group Work Oftentimes, the teacher can utilize or adapt this concept of CSR to meet the needs of small group collaboration. By
Learn Strategy
The final stage of Collaborative Strategic Reading (CSR) is wrap-up, which centers on reviewing. This is typically the stage where the class summarizes the points of the lesson, and the teacher forms assessments of the students’ understanding. In order to do this, the teacher must have determined what information the students are required to remember and
Learn Strategy
Automatization is exactly what it sounds like—the ability to perform a task without conscious effort. From tying our shoes to scanning the headlines, we depend on automatic skills to get us through our days efficiently. Imagine what mornings would be like if we could not automatically shower, dress, eat, make coffee, and get to work. We’d
Learn Strategy
Motivating students can be challenging. Strategies such as “recognize and celebrate success” or “provide students with opportunities to make decisions and choices” are vital to teaching.1 Landmark’s Six Teaching Principles™ lie at the heart of our instructional strategies. When they guide instruction, these principles help motivate students because they foster engagement with schoolwork and provide students
Learn Strategy
There are many aspects of executive function—from activation to focus, to effort, emotion, and memory. The final component is action, which Thomas E. Brown notes in his article “Executive Functions by Thomas Brown,” incorporates both monitoring and self-regulating. However, without knowing what a teacher expects, students will have more difficulty determining if they are on
Learn Strategy
We can enliven students’ effort by making sure they are “ready to learn.” We need to help students define a clear purpose for the activity, give specific directions, provide references (such as agendas or steps for a process), and offer cues to begin or transition to the next step. Furthermore, requiring students to brainstorm their
Learn Strategy
Sustaining focus (and effort) for long enough to complete a task, and shifting focus to a new task when appropriate are vital executive skills. Students who have difficulty sustaining and shifting focus benefit from being taught how to (and practicing) analyzing and breaking a task into sub-tasks or steps to follow. First, students need to
Learn Strategy
The ability to access and utilize memory is an important part of executive function. Thomas E. Brown, of Yale University, highlights memory as one of six clusters of executive function. He writes: “Chronic difficulties with memory appear to be a core problem… but the impairments are not generally with long-term storage memory; instead they involve
Learn Strategy
Students’ emotional responses to challenging situations can influence their concentration, perseverance, application of learned skills, and interactions with others. Abraham Maslow’s expanded hierarchy of needs explains how physical and emotional safety must be satisfied in order to allow people to address cognitive and higher levels of human needs. In order to better create space for
Learn Strategy
Where Phrases For the Elementary/Middle School Teacher To start the lesson, the teacher writes an expanded kernel sentence framework across the blackboard: article plus noun plus action verb plus –ed plus where phrase. Note that the verb is in the past tense to teach inflection. The teacher hands out the expanded kernel sentence framework. A sample of
Learn Strategy
What is the Topic? One way to find the topic in a reading selection is to see whether one word is repeated in the paragraph. As you count, it is important to consider whether the author is using any synonyms for a word that might be the topic. A synonym is a word that has
Learn Strategy
November 22, 2016 In a different resource, research into technology and its role in the Universal Design for Learning classroom is reviewed. This new strategy will look at how technology can alleviate time demands, particularly for students with slow processing speed and impaired working memory. In order to fully understand the impact of technology, it is
Learn Strategy
Have your students ever had difficulty coming up with descriptive words when writing? To make words more accessible, try the ‘personal adjective bank’ below. This template provides boxes for students to “bank” the various categories of adjectives they encounter during class when reading about or discussing a topic in preparation for writing. With a sample adjective in
Learn Strategy
Including students in the learning process, whether through explaining the purpose of an assignment, asking for ideas, or having students assess their own learning, helps them to become more engaged in their education. This resource shares ideas for how to guide students in evaluating and reflecting on their work. These self-assessments help them set goals for
Learn Strategy
As the spring arrives and we begin to prepare for the conclusion of the year, we should continue to think about ways in which we can include our students in the learning process. Can they help determine ways to review material? What about having them make a portfolio of their best work from the year?
Learn Strategy
A bumper sticker that appears occasionally reads, “Assume Nothing.” While we don’t need to buy into its cynical view of the world, it does remind us that we often assume a lot about what our students know and what they can do. Poor work quality from students with learning disabilities most often reflects their lack
Learn Strategy
Students often have difficulty managing language, connecting concepts, and staying focused on the goals of a content unit. As a first step toward increasing student success, teachers can break units or chapters into manageable language and concepts and teach each piece step-by-step, further micro-uniting these components as needed throughout the instructional process. Sharing the unit
Learn Strategy
Class lessons that engage students’ visual, auditory, and tactile/kinesthetic modes contribute to effective learning. What about homework? Planning multisensory homework assignments provides increased chances of success for students with different learning styles. This resource shares ideas for creating multisensory homework. For the full text of the Landmark Teaching Principles™, including “Use Multisensory Approaches,” click here.
Learn Strategy
Processing speed is simply the speed at which someone does something. For our students, it involves the ability to perceive information (auditory or visual), understand that information, and then formulate a response, whether oral, written, or physical. For students with slow processing speed, this process can be cumbersome, as it takes larger amounts of time
Learn Strategy
It’s December. Class work has progressed from review to new material. Homework is getting harder. Some of your students may be struggling. Our mission is to empower students through their teachers. Landmark Outreach shares thinking and strategies that support all students’ efforts to become independent learners and develop a strong sense of self-efficacy. At the
Learn Strategy
We often talk about students’ success in relation to assessments and assignments, but their success in classroom discussions is equally important. This resource shares classroom discussion strategies related to the first of Landmark’s Six Teaching Principles™, “Provide Opportunities for Success.” When teaching lessons, begin by clearly explaining to students the goal and the plan of action.
Learn Strategy
On Overview of Resources Many of our resources have focused on working memory and processing speed under the umbrella of Executive Function. Within those two topics, the role of anxiety and the fundamentals of Cognitive Load Theory have also been introduced. • Executive Function: Dr. Thomas E. Brown’s article explores the 6 clusters of executive function
Learn Strategy
What is processing speed? Processing Speed refers to the pace at which you are able to perceive information (visual or auditory), make sense of that information, and then respond. In a manner of speaking, processing speed is simply the amount of time it takes to get something done. According to the coauthors of Bright Kids Who
Learn Strategy