Susan Ohanian reports what she describes as possibly the best lesson ever.
Read it for the sheer pleasure of watching a master teacher inspire his students.
Hey, Mike Petrilli and Robert Pondiscio, this is great teaching, great curriculum, and great student engagement.
The teacher is not snapping his fingers, the students are not waving their fingers, and no one is expected to do that SLANT thing about total attention. The teacher has authority because he is teaching a great lesson.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
It looks like a wonderful lesson. The best lesson ever? No way. Many teachers give superb lessons, with a range of characteristics. Some have that “magical” feel to them; some do not.
Also, it’s a special sort of lesson; it came out of a student’s question. Teachers should have room to follow students’ curiosity;, but they must also have the courage to lead students into topics despite initial student resistance. Certain kinds of interest are not immediate; they build over time.
My former high school classmates speak fondly of the courses they initially hated, because it was in these courses that they learned something they wouldn’t otherwise have learned. I don’t mean that it’s a good sign when students hat e the material! I just mean that it’s part of the process.
Most of us have had lessons wher something unusual and beautiful happened. This cannot happen every time, or it wouldn’t be unusual or beautiful. With full acknowledgment of the importance of such lessons, I would avoid raising them to the status of “best lesson ever.”
Also, in defense of Robert Pondiscio, I have not seen or heard him praise the finger-wiggling, finger-snapping stuff. I think he has been arguing that “filling the pail” and “lighting the fire” ar not opposed. And I would agree.
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Also, ironically, this lesson would probably receive a fairly high rating on the Danielson sees the good teacher as one whose students initiate the learning. If you look at the attributes of a “distinguished” teacher (the highest rating), it’s a teacher with a class that more or less runs itself–where students choose what to learn (at least some of the time), adjust their groupings, initiate projects, and so forth. I wrote about this here:
http://www.joannejacobs.com/2012/05/the-danielson-framework-what-is-engagement/
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I wanted to be in that class. Definitely a great example of what can and should be done in a classroom. More engagement than teaching to pass a test.
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Reblogged this on Abelardo Garcia Jr's Blog and commented:
I read it and I LIKE it!! And I agree no finger wiggling and sending energy could make this any better.
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