Classroom Q and A

What is the current role of a 21st century school counselor and how can teachers best work with counselors for the benefit of students. . Follow: @larryferlazzo @mindywillard17 @bamradionetwork Leticia Gallardo has been a counselor for Luther Burbank High School for six years and has worked with a very broad range of students. Mindy Willard is a Professional School Counselor at a K-8 school in Glendale, Arizona. She is the President-Elect of the Arizona School Counselor's Association and 2013 American School Counselor of the Year.

Having an administrator who supports teachers and engaging curriculum and instructional strategies can make all of the difference in the world to students. What does this support look like in practice? Follow: @larryferlazzo @bamradionetwork Anne Reeves is Associate Professor of Education at Susquehanna University in Pennsylvania. She is the author of two books, Adolescents Talk about Reading (2004) and Where Great Teaching Begins (2011). Kelly Young is executive director of Pebble Creek Laboratories, a school improvement consulting company. A past teacher, principal, staff developer and superintendent, Kelly consults, trains and conducts research on instructional improvement, staff development and school renewal.

We're all inundated with things and things to do in our classrooms. In this segment our guests share their best tips for keeping our classrooms organized. Follow: @larryferlazzo @bamradionetwork Julia Thompson is the author of several books for teachers, including The First-Year Teacher's Survival Guide. She is also a classroom teacher, workshop leader, and consultant .Ariel Sacks teaches 8th grade English Language Arts in Brooklyn, NY. She is proud to say this is her tenth year of full time classroom teaching.Whole Novels for the Whole Class: A Student Centered Approach is Ariel's first book. @TeacherAdvice @arielsacks

Our guest believes that we need to rethink grading. Though he acknowledges that changing our thinking about grading is hard, he argues that once we get past the initial resistance, we can construct a better system. Follow: @rickwormeli @larryferlazzo @bamradionetwork Rick Wormeli, a long time classroom veteran, now award-winning author and teacher trainer, was one of the first Nationally Board Certified Teachers in America as well as Disney’s Outstanding English Teacher of the Nation in 1996. Today, he train teachers and principals in all 50 states and eight countries, writes for education journals and magazines, and is working on his 12th book. His latest book, The Collected Writings (So Far) of Rick Wormeli: Crazy Good Stuff I Learned about Teaching Along the Way, was released last year.

Sadly, during the course of a career almost every teacher will have to help students handle loss and grief. In this segment our guests offer guidance along with some basic dos and don'ts. Follow: @mtedrow @SLazarOTC @larryferlazzo @bamradionetwork Mary Tedrow has been teaching since 1978 and is a National Board Certified instructor of English Language Arts as well as the English Department Chair at John Handley High School in Winchester VA. She blogs at "Walking to School." Stephen Lazar a NBPTS Certified Social Studies and English Teacher in NYC, where helped start Harvest Collegiate High School. He is featured in the book Teacherpreneurs: Innovative Teachers who Lead but Don't Leave.

In this segment we explore best practices and misguided approaches to differentiating instruction. Follow: @cat3y @larryferlazzo @bamradionetwork Carol Tomlinson is William Clay Parrish, Jr. Professor and Chair of Educational Leadership, Foundations, and Policy at the University of Virginia’s Curry School of Education. Her work on differentiation has been translated into 13 languages. She works with teachers in the U.S. and internationally who want to create more academically responsive classrooms.

In this segment we explore the many benefits of providing every student with a portable computing device and some of the biggest potential pitfalls of setting up a 1:1 program. Follow: @alicebarr @hickstro @larryferlazzo @bamradionetwork Alice Barr is the Instructional Technology Integrator at Yarmouth High School in Yarmouth, Maine. She is also a Google Certified Teacher. Dr. Troy Hicks is an associate professor of English at Central Michigan University and focuses his work on the teaching of writing, literacy and technology, and teacher education and professional development. A former middle school teacher, he collaborates with K12 colleagues and explorres how they implement newer literacies in their classrooms.

The goal of most teachers is to achieve full participation, from all students, all the time. But is this possible? If so, how? Our guests share their best strategies and insights. Follow: @WilliamHimmele @PersidaHimmele @larryferlazzo @bamradionetwork Husband and wife team, Bill and Pérsida Himmele are associate professors at Millersville University. They are the authors of 3 ASCD books: Total Participation Techniques, The Language-Rich Classroom, and Total Literacy Techniques, which is due out in July 2014. Jim Peterson is in his 20th year at Luther Burbank High School in South Sacramento, where he taught Spanish for 10 years and have been an assistant principal since 2004.

In this segment we ask two teachers to identify what they believe are the five most effective things any teacher can do to promote better learning. Follow: @dlaufenberg @JeffCharbonneau @larryferlazzo @bamradionetwork Diana Laufenberg is a Nationally Board certified Social Studies teacher currently teaching 7th graders in Flagstaff, AZ. Her work focuses on inquiry-driven, project based teaching and learning that uses the modern tools of the day. Jeff Charbonneau is a Chemistry, Physics, and Engineering teacher at Zillah High School in Zillah, WA. He was named as the 2013 National Teacher of the Year.

The number of English language learners is on the rise. In the segment we look at the different standard ways in which we approach these learners in pursuit of the best strategies. Follow: @KarenNemethEdM @judiehaynes @larryferlazzo @bamradionetwork Karen Nemeth, Ed.M. is an author, consultant, and advocate for high quality early learning for dual language learners. She is co-host of the weekly #ELLChat on Twitter. Judie Haynes is co-moderator (with Karen Nemeth) of #ELLCHAT on Twitter. She taught ESL for 28 years and is the author of, "The Essential Guide for Educating Beginning English Learners " with Debbie Zacarian.

In this segment we speak with two teachers who work at high poverty schools about how we might reduce teacher attrition in high-poverty schools. Follow: @BarnettCTQ @IlanaGaron @larryferlazzo @bamradionetwork Barnett Berry is founder, CEO, and partner at the Center for Teaching Quality in Carrboro, NC. He is the lead author of Teacherpreneurs: Innovative Teachers Who Lead But Don’t Leave. Ilana Garon teaches high school English at a public school in the Bronx. She is also the author of "Why Do Only White People Get Abducted by Aliens?": Teaching Lessons from the Bronx.

In this segment we speak with two teachers who work at high poverty schools in pursuit of understanding exactly why some teachers leave while others stay. Follow:@MrPABruno, @angelcintronjr @larryferlazzo @bamradionetwork Angel L. Cintron Jr., is a 7th grade social studies teacher at Charles Hart Middle School in Washington, D.C. He is also a 2014 CityBridge Foundation Education Innovation Fellow. Paul Bruno teaches middle school science in Los Angeles, having relocated from Oakland. He also blogs about education on his personal site and at This Week in Education.

In this segment we look at the various types of reading and seek answers to the questions what are the habits of lifelong reading and how do we develop these habits in our students? Donalyn Miller has worked with a variety of upper elementary and middle school students and currently teaches fifth grade in Forth Worth, Texas. She is the author of The Book Whisperer and Reading in the Wild. Her advice has appeared in publications such as Education Week and The Washington Post. @donalynbooks

The Maker Movement is part of a fundamental rethinking about instruction and its place in the process of life-long learning. In this segment we cover the basics every teacher needs to know about it. Follow:@tbakernwp @smartinez@larryferlazzo @bamradionetwork Sylvia Martinez is co-author of "Invent to Learn: Making, Tinkering, and Engineering in the Classroom." She works with schools worldwide to introduce Maker tools, technology. Tanya Baker Ed., has been the director of National Programs atthe National Writing Project (NWP) since 2007.

There's a lot of talk in education circles these days about character, grit and perseverance. To what extent can these qualities address some of the apparently intractable challenges we face in education? Follow:@JasonFlom @larryferlazzo @bamradionetwork Dr. Debbie Silver is a 30-year veteran teacher. She is the author of the bestselling book, Fall Down 7 Times, Get Up 8: Teaching Kids to Succeed. Jason Flom taught upper elementary teacher for 11 years and is now the Learning and Communications Director at Cornerstone Learning Community.