Personalized Learning in the Middle Grades A Guide for Classroom Teachers and School Leaders

Personalized Learning in the Middle Grades shows how teachers can leverage the use of personalized learning plans (PLPs) to increase student agency and engagement, helping youth to establish learning goals aligned with their interests and assess their own learning--particularly around essential skills that cut across disciplines. The authors show how personalized learning aligns with effective middle grades practice and provide in-depth examples of how educators have implemented PLPs in a wide range of schools representing different demographics and grade configurations. Full of engaging examples, artifacts, and tools, the book connects the emerging field of personalized learning with the developmental needs of middle schoolers to provide a unique and valuable resource for teachers, school leaders, and teacher‐educators. "This book blends theory with practice, weaves what we know about young adolescents and best practices in middle grades, and gives specific, detailed descriptions of every aspect needed to implement personalized learning. Personalized Learning in the Middle Grades provides theory, tools, examples, and insights to develop an exemplary middle school. As a middle grades advocate, I love how this book details how we can meet the needs of young adolescents using this practice." --Nancy Ruppert, professor and chair, Department of Education, University of North Carolina, Asheville, and past president, Association for Middle Level Education "Personalized Learning in the Middle Grades is a must-have guide for anyone wishing to implement or improve personalized learning in the school or classroom. It is chock-full of vignettes, research-based rationales, and practical how-tos that give middle level educators a clear picture of personalized learning as well as the tools and strategies needed to create a student-centered culture that fosters academic learning and personal growth in the best way possible." --Patti Kinney, National Middle Level Principal of the Year, and past president, Association for Middle Level Education Penny A. Bishop is a professor of middle level education at the University of Vermont, where she conducts research on schooling for young adolescents and teaches future middle grades educators. John M. Downes is a director of the Tarrant Institute for Innovative Education at the University of Vermont. Katy Farber is a professional development coordinator at the University of Vermont's Tarrant Institute for Innovative Education.