C50: ATL Thinking Skills for Specialist/Support

Hello to my friends who work with learners in the entire school. You have such a special role in touching many, if not all, of the students in your school.  With that, comes a unique challenge to get learners to better understand the learning in your classes and give them the tools to become more independent thinkers.  

Welcome to this episode my friends that has been crafted just for our specialist and supporting teachers.  Ever since the transdisciplinary challenge, I’ve been seeking ways to include you more in the process. In the past, we have been talking about a lot of topics that can be applied to any grade level and situation.  As we get into the approaches to learning and teaching, we need to start to diversify to meet your needs.  

When I think of the ATLs, you naturally come to mind.  You can easily apply the ATLs to your discipline or role, because your aim is to grow the level of independence within your learners.  For specialists, you need to start thinking of how to wrap the skill development with your content focus.  For supporting teachers, you need to start thinking about the learning objectives you have for your learners and how to pair them with the ATLs. 

In this episode, we are going to examine the ATL thinking skills from your viewpoint.  We will refer to PYP From Principles into Practice:  Learning and Teaching from pages 26-38, since these are the more advanced learning situations you will encounter. 

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