Effective Communications Month

Resources from Annenburg Media & Learning.org

In "Teaching Persuasive Writing," http://www.learner.org/workshops/middlewriting/prog4.html Program 4 of Write in the Middle: A Workshop for Middle School Teachers, teachers Jenny Beasley and Jack Wilde present their lessons on writing editorials and persuasive writing. Find lesson plans and samples of real student work in PDF format.

An understanding of one's audience is absolutely essential to successful communication. In the program "Different Audiences," http://www.learner.org/workshops/hswriting/workshops/workshop3/ high school teachers, educators, authors, and students discuss the importance of the writing process, how to identify the audience, different audiences and how to address them, and related topics. From Developing Writers: A Workshop for High School Teachers.

Fifth-grade teacher Laura Alvarez guides her students through techniques of debate and persuasion, plus research and organizational strategies, in "Social Justice and Action," http://www.learner.org/workshops/tml/workshop7/ Workshop 7 of Teaching Multicultural Literature: A Workshop for the Middle Grades.

Effective rhetorical strategy depends on a sound understanding of psychology. Learn more about how the human mind works with Discovering Psychology: Updated Edition. http://www.learner.org/discoveringpsychology/ In particular, see Program 6, which looks at language development and social communication, and Program 8, which explains factors affecting motivation and emotions.

See how communication fosters an understanding of mathematical ideas and the language of mathematics in the "Communication" programs of Teaching Math: A Video Library, K-4 http://www.learner.org/resources/series32.html and Teaching Math: A Video Library, 9-12. http://www.learner.org/resources/series34.html

The programs of News Writing http://www.learner.org/resources/series44.html cover public relations writing, feature writing styles, and column and editorial writing among other topics. Read the related News Writing Interviews, http://www.learner.org/catalog/extras/interviews/ in which celebrated columnists give their views on writing, news, humor, and more.

Learn ways to help your students communicate more effectively in a foreign language. Watch "Delivering the Message," http://www.learner.org/workshops/tfl/session_03/ Workshop 3 of Teaching Foreign Languages K-12 Workshop, which looks at elements of an effective oral or written presentation.

Teachers encourage high school students to communicate genuinely and creatively through dance and visual media in "Fostering Genuine Communication," http://www.learner.org/workshops/hsarts/program6/ Workshop 6 of The Art of Teaching the Arts.