I have spent the past ten months working in three schools with many great teachers who care deeply about doing their jobs well. I also noticed educational publishing trends that show publishers do listen to what teachers want. In honor of Teacher Appreciation Week I thought I'd pass along these observations to my fellow education freelance writers. Here are the top things I noticed this year:
-Teachers wanting MORE, MORE (!) science and social studies content related texts because they have less and less time to teach those two subjects. The teachers use language arts time to squeeze in some science and social studies content by reading related text whenever possible. (although everyone admits this isn't actually "teaching" science and social studies - but feel it's better than nothing)
-NF book purchases for the classroom and library aligned to state standards (including math which even the upper grade teachers want more of)
-Need for more NF materials that can be used for differentiated instruction (ELL, hi/low, etc)
-Questions about instructional materials being "research-based"
Have you noticed these or any other trends since last year? How has any of this affected your career?
Cheers,
Heidi
ps visit my post about my little Louella - a student who inspired me - Teacher Appreciation Week
