Nivedita Mukerjee
Education consultancy for parents and schools
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue #193, 19th March 2024
What is Emotional Intelligence (EI) and why is it important?
How can one assess and develop their Emotional Intelligence?
What are the practical implications of Emotional Intelligence in everyday life?
If you have wondered about these questions as a student, teacher, or parent – then this issue is for you. Like it? you can subscribe to this kind of content.
This is a free-to-subscribe newsletter. So, if you like my content, please subscribe to it by putting in your email ID here.
Three images of the week
Two Thoughts of the Week
“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart”
― Helen Keller
“One ought to hold on to one’s heart; for if one lets it go, one soon loses control of the head too.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche
One Video of the Week
Sometimes emotions don’t make sense, and sometimes being emotional doesn’t mean you’re emotionally intelligent. Growing up, rationality often came before emotions for Ramona, but as she grew older and realized that she had never actively learned how to deal with her emotions and that she wasn’t the only one who lacked this skill, she knew she had to change something.
In her talk, Ramona guides us through her experiences and shows us 6 steps to become more emotionally intelligent.
Through several personal experiences as well as her volunteer experience at a local soccer club and for the student organization AIESEC, she started thinking about the topic of emotional intelligence and how it affects everyone’s lives and the way we deal with our problems.
Guest Expert of the Week
Reading with Ms. Meenu
Vocabulary Enhancement through read-aloud:
If you compare our past generations, you may notice that children’s vocabulary knowledge is not as rich as it was in the past. Their bank of known words seems to be shrinking. In my opinion it is because adults are not always taking the time to talk, discuss and expand their children’s vocabularies. In the grocery store, everyone is on their own electric devices. So, children aren’t hearing a conversation like the following that I used to have with my son in the grocery store, “Hey look! That’s an apple. Apples grow on trees. People use apples to make the apple sauce you like for breakfast. What colors of apples do you see? And so on.
Effective instructional sequence for teaching vocabulary:
· Read the text.
· Review the story context for the word.
· Provide a kid-friendly definition of the word.
· Have your kid say the word.
· Provide examples of the word used in contexts different from the story context.
· Engage your children in activities to get them to interact with the words.
Happy Reading!
Meenu Gera
Consulting home and school librarian and reading guide.
Dear reader,
I have been a research scientist, a journalist, and an educator for over 3 decades. I read and, I write. With this weekly newsletter, I share what I read, learn, and, experience. At the same time, I engage with students, parents, and teams of teachers across K-12 schools, higher education institutions, and ed-tech organizations.
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms. Niv is a newsletter you can subscribe to and enjoy your learning journey with me.
And Finally…
This newsletter is supported by:
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue #192, 12th March 2024
- How can design thinking be integrated into the educational curriculum to foster creative problem-solving skills among students?
- What specific strategies can educators employ to cultivate empathy and human-centered design principles within the classroom environment?
- How might design thinking methodologies be adapted to accommodate diverse learning styles and abilities in the classroom setting?
- What role can prototyping and iteration play in the educational context, and how can they be effectively incorporated into lesson plans to enhance student engagement and learning outcomes?
- In what ways can design thinking be utilized to address systemic challenges within the education system itself, such as curriculum development, resource allocation, and educational equity?
If you are new to design thinking or are wondering how you can bring design thinking to education as a teacher or parent, here are some ideas to get you started.
This is a free-to-subscribe newsletter. So, if you like my content, please subscribe to it by putting in your email ID here.
Three images of the week
Two Thoughts of the Week
“We must design for the way people behave,
not for how we would wish them to behave.”
― Donald A. Norman, Living With Complexity
“If you show somebody a piece of your work and you ask them ‘What do you think?’, they will probably say it’s okay because they don’t want to offend you.
Next time, instead of asking if it’s right, ask them what’s wrong.
They may not say what you want to hear, but the chances are they will give you a truthful criticism.”
― Paul Arden
One Video of the Week
A school in India founded on design thinking principles encourages students to be active agents in their own learning.
Riverside School GRADES PK-12 | AHMEDABAD, India
Guest Expert of the Week
Reading with Ms. Meenu
Today’s topic is clearly for STEAM OR STEM educators.
What is Design thinking?
Design thinking isn’t a subject, topic, or class. It’s more a way of solving problems that encourages positive risk-taking and creativity. And when you start looking for examples of design thinking, you’ll see it all over the place.
In the nonprofit world, program designers use design thinking to develop solutions for the populations they serve. Engineers use design thinking to create tangible products, meanwhile, authors have a more abstract approach as they work through the publishing cycle (which mirrors the design thinking cycle almost identically).
To understand design thinking, it helps to imagine it as the foundation and frame of a building. What type of building you create, what materials you use, how you decorate, and where you build it is all tied to your unique personality. Want to build a house and decorate it with gold-colored macaroni art? Go for it. It’s yours.
The same works for the experiment launching in class. Throw away all the ideas of where, what, and how you will create your model; it should be self-sufficient.
Meenu Gera
Consulting home and school librarian and reading guide.
Dear reader,
I have been a research scientist, a journalist, and an educator for over 3 decades. I read and, I write. With this weekly newsletter, I share what I read, learn, and, experience. At the same time, I engage with students, parents, and teams of teachers across K-12 schools, higher education institutions, and ed-tech organizations.
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms. Niv is a newsletter you can subscribe to and enjoy your learning journey with me.
And Finally…
This newsletter is supported by:
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue #191, 5th March 2024
When demand exceeds supply, we experience stress. Right? March is exam time, March is school budget time, March is tax filing time…Ides of March. Best known as the time when Julius Caesar was assassinated. But in school term, as an educator, I have experienced the Ides of March when students and teachers fall sick. When exam stress reigns high over both students and teachers. When parents are stressed because their children are stressed out for the final exam term prep and/or it is the time when transfer orders come for parents who are in transferable jobs. So here are some ways to identify, align, and deal with your stress and stressors.
This is a free-to-subscribe newsletter. So, if you like my content, please subscribe to it by putting in your email ID here.
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Two Thoughts of the Week
“No need to hurry. No need to sparkle. No need to be anybody but oneself.” —Virginia Woolf
“Stress is an ignorant state. It believes that everything is an emergency. Nothing is that important.” —Natalie Goldberg
One Video of the Week
Guest Expert of the Week
Reading with Ms. Meenu
Building a Foundation for Future Learning:
Picture books and reading routines are the foundation of Literacy. Unfortunately, some of our students come to us unlucky in literacy. In other words, they have not been raised by able adults, for one reason or another, to provide the literacy-rich environment essential for future school success. We know that “parents who frequently engage in shared reading experiences and frequently teach about alphabetic knowledge have children with the most reading success after a few years of elementary school. Consequently, we need to fill future learning as children accumulate familiar books, stories, songs, and poems to draw when reading, writing, thinking, and talking about texts.
When read-aloud becomes a priority, you gain endless opportunities to forge connections among all the learning your children experience throughout their day, week, and year. Read-aloud experiences provide children with a shared frame of reference – a path for taking their understanding forward in company with each other. So reading aloud should be a vital part of every child’s life while growing up.
Happy Reading!
Meenu Gera
Consulting home and school librarian and reading guide.
Dear reader,
I have been a research scientist, a journalist, and an educator for over 3 decades. I read and, I write. With this weekly newsletter, I share what I read, learn, and, experience. At the same time, I engage with students, parents, and teams of teachers across K-12 schools, higher education institutions, and ed-tech organizations.
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms. Niv is a newsletter you can subscribe to and enjoy your learning journey with me.
And Finally…
This newsletter is supported by:
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue #190, 27th February 2024
Empathy. Problem Solving. Courage. How does one discuss these without getting mired in complex philosophical and emotional conundrums? Well, picture books, illustrations, and children’s read-aloud are some very accessible ways of bringing these into conversations with children and adults alike. Have you tried it? These skills are required now and most definitely for the future of work. Shall we rediscover the picture books together, with our students and children, our families and colleagues?
This is a free-to-subscribe newsletter. So, if you like my content, please subscribe to it by putting in your email ID here.
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Two Thoughts of the Week
“A picture book is a small door to the enormous world of the visual arts, and they’re often the first art a young person sees.” Tomie dePaola
“Telling stories with visuals is an ancient art. We’ve been drawing pictures on cave walls for centuries. It’s like what they say about the perfect picture book. The art and the text stand alone, but together, they create something even better. Kids who need to can grab those graphic elements and find their way into the story. ” Deborah Wiles
One Video of the Week
Priyanka makes the case that we can make the world a better place if we remove the unspoken age restriction on children’s books. She believes that since the values and skills we are teaching through children’s picture books, like empathy, communication, and problem-solving, are essential for a successful and happy life, we should use them to guide adults too.
This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. Priyanka is a writer, entrepreneur, and mother. She is the founder of ‘Sam and Mi’, a publishing house for children’s books focused on skills of empathy, problem-solving, and communication. She is also the founder of an agritech app that helps farmers in India minimize their risk.
She previously founded the UK-based education network ‘Connect2Teach’. She is a Northwestern University and University of Cambridge alumni. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, in recognition of her contribution to the education sector.
She has previously worked with corporates such as Tata Group, KPMG Boxwood, and Towers Perrin in India, the UK, and the US. She is well-networked within Government machinery for her work in the education and entrepreneurial fields. She currently lives in India with her husband, two daughters, and their four dogs.
Guest Expert of the Week
Reading with Ms. Meenu
Celebrates the Written (and illustrated) word:
Think about the activities that make you happy. Surely, we focus more time and expend increased energy on preferred activities than on those we dread. Therefore, if we elevate the written word by enthusiastically celebrating all text-related events, whether smaller or larger, we can catch some of those readers who are vulnerable or disengaged. For example, in any classroom, we should not only celebrate the kid’s birthday, but we should also applaud book birthdays. This is just one simple way to elevate the written word.
To draw readers into the joyful read-aloud experience you want to begin with books that are fun, humorous, and engaging. Every teacher has a go-to series to launch our read aloud for example Mo Williams’s Elephant and Piggie series.
Making the author and illustrator come alive for your students is another way to honor the hard work and dedication that goes into writing and/or illustrating a picture book. Fun picture books always raise joyful, engaged, and interested readers.
Happy Reading!
Meenu Gera
Consulting home and school librarian and reading guide.
Dear reader,
I have been a research scientist, a journalist, and an educator for over 3 decades. I read and, I write. With this weekly newsletter, I share what I read, learn, and, experience. At the same time, I engage with students, parents, and teams of teachers across K-12 schools, higher education institutions, and ed-tech organizations.
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms. Niv is a newsletter you can subscribe to and enjoy your learning journey with me.
This newsletter is supported by:
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue #189, 20th February 2024
How well does your recall work? How much time does it take to commit a new learning to memory? What are your ‘go-to’ methods for learning something new? Do you know what works for you, your student, or your child? Here are a few study methods and tips for continuing to learn lifelong. While brain development is maximum until age 5 the 21st century demands new skills to be learned every so often right? To learn faster and retain more has become a life skill.
This is a free-to-subscribe newsletter. So, if you like my content, please subscribe to it by putting in your email ID here.
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Two Thoughts of the Week
“Take care of all your memories. For you cannot relive them. ” Bob Dylan
“I think the brain is essentially a computer and consciousness is like a computer program. It will cease to run when the computer is turned off. Theoretically, it could be re-created on a neural network, but that would be very difficult, as it would require all one’s memories.” Stephen Hawking
One Video of the Week
Sharing the secrets to productive learning, backed by neuroscience. Dr Lila Landowski explains the methods that can be used to allow us to learn faster. Dr Lila Landowski is a multi-award-winning neuroscientist and lecturer who expertly arms people with an understanding of how their brain works to help them make better life choices. She is also a Director of the Australian Society for Medical Research, a Director of Epilepsy Tasmania, and a regular guest expert science communicator for the ABC.
Guest Expert of the Week
Reading with Ms. Meenu
Reading to Comprehension:
Teaching students to generate and answer their questions about the text encourages them to process it more actively. Questions can range from literal to inferential. We should start with literal questions, writing who, what, where, when, why, and how on the board. Then, after reading a page or two of the text ask questions like “Who can think of a when question? Generating questions takes lots of practice. If students struggle with it, take things to the sentence level by showing them how to flip a statement into a question.
For example: “Frog live at the pond.”
Then model how to flip that statement into a question “Where do frogs live”.
By generating further comprehension tasks allows them to think beyond.
Here is an example of a title “Frog and Toad, A Lost Button.”
Who: Frog and Toad,
Where: meadow, woods
When: Afternoon,
What: Toad lost his button,
How: The Frog helps him find it.
It is recommended to practice these tools while reading.
These strategies have been suggested in the professional resource “7 Mighty Moves” by Lindsay Kemeny.
Happy Reading!
Meenu Gera
Consulting home and school librarian and reading guide.
And Finally…
Dear reader,
I have been a research scientist, a journalist, and an educator for over 3 decades. I read and, I write. With this weekly newsletter, I share what I read, learn, and, experience. At the same time, I engage with students, parents, and teams of teachers across K-12 schools, higher education institutions, and ed-tech organizations.
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms. Niv is a newsletter you can subscribe to and enjoy your learning journey with me.
This newsletter is supported by:
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue #188, 11th February 2024
Can we hack learning and motivation for our students and ourselves as algorithms and AI do in social media? Which aspects of social media can we use in classrooms to motivate our students and make it sticky and ‘addictive’? Streaks, passive-aggressive notifications, fun? bolstering the last bit of internal motivation perhaps…Screen time will not be a bad thing if this is learned on a phone or a tablet right?
This is a free-to-subscribe newsletter. So, if you like my content, please subscribe to it by putting in your email ID here.
Three images of the week
Two Thoughts of the Week
“A wise man can learn more from a foolish question than a fool can learn from a wise answer.” – Bruce Lee
“The more I learn, the more I realize how much I don’t know. And when I think I know something, I learn something else and realize I was wrong.” – Unknown
One Video of the Week
When technologist Luis von Ahn was building the popular language-learning platform Duolingo, he faced a big problem: Could an app designed to teach you something ever compete with addictive platforms like Instagram and TikTok? He explains how Duolingo harnesses the psychological techniques of social media and mobile games to get you excited to learn — all while spreading access to education across the world.
Guest Expert of the Week
Reading with Ms. Meenu
Read Aloud = JOY!
When you love books as much as I do, you must share them with anyone who will listen. Over the years, I’ve observed the positive effects of read-aloud experiences on children’s attitudes and achievements. Before we go any further, I want to make sure that you clearly understand my stance on the read-aloud experience. First and foremost a read-aloud should be a joyful celebration for all. For you, for your students, and indirectly for the author and illustrator who toiled over each word and every image on and between the book’s covers.
A picture book is a piece of art created to be cherished and applauded. Right from the start, you should simply READ ALOUD – no questions, no stopping, no after-reading conversations. When your students are having a bad day – read aloud. If you need a break from a tough topic in Math – read aloud. When you just want to have fun with your kids – read aloud. Enjoy the book and the experience!
Happy Reading!
Meenu Gera, Consulting home and school librarian and reading guide.
And Finally…
Dear reader,
I have been a research scientist, a journalist, and an educator for over 3 decades. I read and, I write. With this weekly newsletter, I share what I read, learn, and, experience. At the same time, I engage with students, parents, and teams of teachers across K-12 schools, higher education institutions, and ed-tech organizations.
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms. Niv is a newsletter you can subscribe to and enjoy your learning journey with me.
This newsletter is supported by:
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue #187, 6th February 2024
Luck is defined as success or failure apparently caused by chance. So what role does it play in our lives? why do we say best of luck before exams? why do we wish good luck before travel? how does luck come into play in getting through a college placement or a job interview?
What is your point of view on the role of luck? how do you use the word ‘lucky’ or ‘unlucky’ in your own context, in the context of your students, in conversation with your children and family members?
This is a free-to-subscribe newsletter. So, if you like my content, please subscribe to it by putting in your email ID here.
Three images of the week
Two Thoughts of the Week
“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
“It’s not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves.” – Sir Edmund Hillary
One Video of the Week
Luck is rarely a lightning strike, isolated and dramatic — it’s much more like the wind, blowing constantly. Catching more of it is easy but not obvious.
In this insightful talk, Stanford engineering school professor Tina Seelig shares three unexpected ways to increase your luck — and your ability to see and seize opportunities.
Guest Expert of the Week
Reading with Ms. Meenu
Strategies for Developing Vocabulary
Implement an Instructional Routine for Vocabulary:
It is one of the greatest tools to improve literacy skills. It has to be consistent, time-framed, and effective. We all know that vocabulary can be increased by reading various texts, topics, and genres.
1. Introducing a new word every day.
2. Introducing the word’s pronunciation.
3. Introduce the word’s meaning.
4. Illustrate the word with examples (and non-examples, when helpful).
5. At the end check the student’s understanding.
1. Pronunciation:
· Display the word and have the students repeat it.
· Have students tap, clap, or pound the syllables of the word. OR
· Have students put their hands under the chin and say the word.
· Learning syllables of the word is FUN!
2. Present a student-friendly definition:
· Tell students the definition or have them read it with you.
3. Illustrate the word with examples:
· Concrete examples (act it out or use an object)
· Visual examples
· Verbal examples
4. Check students understanding, using one of these options:
· Ask deep-processing questions.
· Have students discern between non-examples and examples.
· Have students compare the word to other words.
Happy Reading!
Meenu Gera, Consulting home and school librarian and reading guide.
And Finally…
Dear reader,
I have been a research scientist, a journalist, and an educator for over 3 decades. I read and, I write. With this weekly newsletter, I share what I read, learn, and, experience. At the same time, I engage with students, parents, and teams of teachers across K-12 schools, higher education institutions, and ed-tech organizations.
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms. Niv is a newsletter you can subscribe to and enjoy your learning journey with me.
This newsletter is supported by:
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue #186, 30th January 2024
Play is hard work, and so is learning. Why is it so difficult to understand for parents and students that learning to play and learning to learn are both hard. Play is not a party, and neither is learning. The only party is the party. So if you are teaching in a school that has play-based pedagogy, or you are sending your child to a school with play-based pedagogy, it is still hard work. Not rote, not chalk and talk would mean teachers are putting in so much more effort to make it fun and engaging for students, ensuring that concepts are well entrenched, checking whether each individual child is learning at their pace, and more.
National Education Policy, National Curriculum Framework, Cambridge curriculum, International Baccalaureate, CBSE, ICSE, and State boards, all provide syllabus content and guidelines while the school works on a curriculum based on that along with a pedagogy that is best suited to their school vision, teacher training, and student needs. Many roads lead to being a successful student, hard work being an essential element of this journey.
Sure, go ahead and use Generative AI for smart work but continue alongside real efforts and hard work to build the life skill of persevering through the challenges of life and learning.
This is a free-to-subscribe newsletter. So, if you like my content, please subscribe to it by putting in your email ID here.
Three images of the week
Two Thoughts of the Week
“Successful people are not gifted; they just work hard, then succeed on purpose.” —G.K. Nielson
“Success is no accident. It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice, and most of all, love of what you are doing or learning to do.” —Pelé
One Video of the Week
Jerry Lee’s TEDx talk, “The Luckiest Man,” tells the story of his journey from growing up in a low-income household to earning $200,000 per year at age 24. Jerry discusses three moments in his life that he considers to be his luckiest and explains that his success was not achieved through shortcuts. He emphasizes the importance of investing time and effort into one’s goals.
The talk includes anecdotes about Jerry’s experiences in college, including applying for work-study jobs and internships. Jerry is the COO & Co-Founder of Wonsulting and an ex-Senior Strategy & Operations Manager at Google & used to lead Product Strategy at Lucid. After graduating from Babson, Jerry was hired as the youngest analyst in his organization by being promoted multiple times in his first 2 years. After he left Google, he was the youngest person to lead a strategy team at Lucid.
Jerry started Wonsulting to help millions around the world land their dream jobs. Through his work, he’s spoken at 250+ events & amassed 1.3+ Million followers across LinkedIn, TikTok & Instagram and has reached 200M+ jobseekers globally. In addition, his work has been featured on Forbes, Newsweek, Business Insider, Yahoo! News, LinkedIn & elected as the 2020 LinkedIn Top Voice for Tech & Forbes 30 under 30.
Guest Expert of the Week
Reading with Ms. Meenu
Wide Range of Reading Opportunities:
The more students read the more they learn. They learn about our world, consider new perspectives, and gain insights. We want our proficient readers to spend time reading a variety of texts independently, we can provide learning opportunities through read-aloud, shared reading, and audiobooks. Technology, such as audiobooks, allows older students who continue to struggle to access grade-level content and sophisticated vocabulary.
We can scaffold complex text for students by using structured shared reading strategies such as echo reading, choral reading, and buddy reading, allowing them to examine texts more closely and joyfully with teacher support. They allow students to practice decoding and fluency skills read for meaning, connect background knowledge and new information, and improve their vocabulary.
Happy Reading!
Meenu Gera, Consulting home and school librarian and reading guide.
And Finally…
Dear reader,
I have been a research scientist, a journalist, and an educator for over 3 decades. I read and, I write. With this weekly newsletter, I share what I read, learn, and, experience. At the same time, I engage with students, parents, and teams of teachers across K-12 schools, higher education institutions, and ed-tech organizations.
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms. Niv is a newsletter you can subscribe to and enjoy your learning journey with me.
This newsletter is supported by:
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue #185, 23rd January 2024
This year, India marks the 75th Republic Day on 26th January 2024. How do you think we have done so far? What do you think of our education system dear teachers, students, and parents? How do you see us going forward? What do our students need? What does the future of India need? What do you understand by Democracy – at home, in school, and in the country? Is there a place for conflict, struggle, and change? after all, we are one of the largest democracies and democracy is a verb, not a noun.
It does not exist unless we participate, discuss, and do. Let us enjoy our democracy and never take it for granted. Happy Republic Day.
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Three images of the week
Two Thoughts of the Week
“A government of laws, and not of men.”
—John Adams
“Prosperity or egalitarianism—you have to choose. I favor freedom—you never achieve real equality anyway: you simply sacrifice prosperity for an illusion.”
—Mario Vargas Llosa
One Video of the Week
Today, Hungary is in the gray zone between a dictatorship and a democracy,” says activist Tessza Udvarhelyi. “This did not happen overnight.” In a rousing talk, she reminds us just how close any country can come to authoritarianism — and offers on-the-ground lessons for how to keep democracy alive through focus, determination and imagination.
Guest Expert of the Week
Reading with Ms. Meenu
Give Rich Read-Alouds
Rich read-alouds are essential in building comprehension. Select complex texts above a student’s current grade level to build oral language skills, as well as their knowledge and vocabulary introduce them to new books, favorite books, classic literature, and high-quality informational texts in a variety of genres and by a variety of authors. Students need to experience different genres of books that represent a variety of subject backgrounds. Choosing texts with rich ideas and sophisticated themes can help students build world and word knowledge to support future reading.
Reading at home: Tips for Parents
1. Find a consistent time to read.
2. Sit next to your child and give your undivided attention.
3. Use a pencil to point to the words. You can point above the words while the child uses a finger to point below them.
4. If your child struggles to read a word, point to the part she or he misses the sound. Then have your child re-blend the word.
Happy Reading!
Meenu Gera, Consulting home and school librarian and reading guide.
And Finally…
Dear reader,
I have been a research scientist, a journalist, and an educator for over 3 decades. I read and, I write. With this weekly newsletter, I share what I read, learn, and, experience. At the same time, I engage with students, parents, and teams of teachers across K-12 schools, higher education institutions, and ed-tech organizations.
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms. Niv is a newsletter you can subscribe to and enjoy your learning journey with me.
This newsletter is supported by:
3-2-1 TUESDAYS WITH MS NIV
Issue #184, 16th January 2024
We have been having holidays, festivals, celebrations, and thus rituals. The start of the new year has brought my thoughts to – What is a ritual? Do you recognize the rituals you have in your classroom? in your school? in your family? or in the society you live in? Are they elevating your energy and bringing together the people you are practicing your ritual with and leading to a positive outcome? or are these rituals taking away from your intended outcome? How does having a ritual in a group help in psychological anchoring in a changing world? Do rituals unite or divide?
What is the benefit of routine and ritual in individual, family, community, and nation’s journey? Do we need to create some, review others, reject some, respect others’ rituals, or judge them? What are your thoughts about rituals? Perhaps time to think, and discuss with your friends/family/fellow educators and your classroom students. Here are some ideas to get you started.
This is a free-to-subscribe newsletter. So, if you like my content, please subscribe to it by putting in your email ID here.
Three images of the week
Two Thoughts of the Week
One Video of the Week
What is a ritual, and what is its impact in today’s society? “What isn’t a ritual?” asks Michael Norton in this fascinating talk about the role that ritual continues to play in our lives.
Guest Expert of the Week
Reading with Ms. Meenu
Neurological Impress Method to enhance the reading levels:
This method was introduced by Heckelman in 1969 and research has found it to be effective in developing fluency. Don’t be alarmed by the technical name. The Neurological Impress Method is simply alarmed by the technical name. The Neurological Impress Method is simply a form of paired reading where the teacher and student read the text aloud at the same time. The teacher should read slightly faster and louder than the student typically reads, while student and teacher track the text with a finger. During small group time, as I listen to individual students read, I might say, “Now let’s read this next page together. Try to keep your voice with mine.” It is very useful for students who need a little boost in their reading rate and prosody.
Advantage of Whole-Group Reading:
· There are many ways to address fluency in your whole-group instruction.
· You can:
· Read aloud a text, modeling appropriate pacing and prosody, while students follow along with a finger on their own copy.
· Do close reading, where you pause at words you want students to read and they read the word.
· Do choral reading, where you and students read aloud in unison.
· Do echo reading, where you read a short section of the text first (a phrase or sentence) and students repeat it. I find that beginning readers, especially, benefit from this.
All of these techniques are great ways to scaffold instruction, which is necessary when we read more complex text.
Happy Reading!
Meenu Gera, Consulting home and school librarian and reading guide.
And Finally…
Dear reader,
I have been a research scientist, a journalist, and an educator for over 3 decades. I read and, I write. With this weekly newsletter, I share what I read, learn, and, experience. At the same time, I engage with students, parents, and teams of teachers across K-12 schools, higher education institutions, and ed-tech organizations.
3-2-1 Tuesdays with Ms. Niv is a newsletter you can subscribe to and enjoy your learning journey with me.
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