Testimonials

• “I am so impressed with the Discussions4Learning program! Our students are incredibly engaged during the lessons, and they always look forward to them. The images are quite unique and easily spark thoughtful and reflective discoveries and discussions. Students enjoy a boost of self-confidence when I tell them that I did not learn most of these words until much later in life! During this transition into Common Core, we really do not have any programs to use as a guide; Discussions4Learning helps assuage the weight of the transition as we have the opportunity to implement a well-written program that gives students frequent practice in speaking and listening through meaningful interactions with visuals, words, and their peers!”

  — Laura Cano, Grades 4/5 Combination Teacher, Fremont Elementary School, Montebello U.S.D, Montebello, CA

  
  
  

• “I am currently using Discussions4Learning with my high school ELD 1 course which is comprised of newcomers and beginning students. This program has definitely helped improve my students' academic verbal skills! The immediate connection between a fine art visual and the academic language has helped my students easily comprehend the new terms introduced. What I find even more powerful, is that my students can then turn around and actually use the academic vocabulary correctly during our class discussions. Overall, as an English Language Arts educator, this curriculum has been of great benefit to my daily instruction. Thanks!”

  — Enid Santos, English Language Arts, Glen A. Wilson High School, Hacienda Heights, CA

  
  
  

• “The Discussions4Learning program is an innovative and impressive approach to fostering vocabulary development and supporting language development.
  
  Thanks for allowing me to observe Discussions4Learning in a first-grade classroom. The Discussions4Learning lesson was inspiring and very impressive. The language that children were using in the discussion was very rich and sophisticated, and the climate in the classroom to facilitate children's thinking and language use was like nothing I have ever seen in a first-grade classroom. The program clearly has extremely high expectations for the types of thinking that children can do and the discussions the children can have, and the children are definitely meeting those expectations. The classroom that I observed is truly a model of the type of language environment that is possible in an early childhood classroom.”

  — Julie Dwyer, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Early Childhood Education, Boston University

  
  
  

• “The academically productive discussion skills that teachers develop through Discussions4Learning are at the core of the Common Core State Standards as well as The Next Generation Science Standards. You get a big bang for the buck with Discussions4Learning. Working with the program is great for kids, and it will help teachers become better facilitators of student reasoning and evidence-based discussion across the curriculum — in math, English language arts, social studies, and science.”

  — Sarah Michaels, Ph.D., Clark University, Worcester, MA

  
  
  

• “One of my shyest students has come out of his shell thanks to your program. He raised his hand to share with the class for the first time during one of your lessons, then he began raising his hand every day during Discussions4Learning. Now he is also raising his hand in other content areas and sharing his ideas with the class - I LOVE IT!!! Thank you for this amazing program.”
  
  “It surprises me to find how much my ‘active’ boys are pulled into the program. My students beg me to see the picture for the next day at the end of each lesson so they can start thinking about it ahead of time — how awesome is that!!!”

  — Raquel Caldwell, Kindergarten and first grade teacher, Dundee Elementary School, Omaha, Nebraska

  
  
  

• “Discussions4Learning has really changed things in my classroom. The kids eagerly anticipate the images, and we have some incredible conversations about what they notice in the wide variety of artwork included in this program. The kids surprise me every day with the depth of the discussions they have. The program gives them a great opportunity to share what they know. As a teacher, it has given me a new way to assess and build my students’ background knowledge.”
  
  “Building vocabulary is an essential skill for language learners. The program has provided a fun and interesting way for my first-graders to learn new vocabulary in a non-threatening and fun way. The words are reviewed and revisited within lessons, and the way the kids remember the vocabulary has really been amazing.”
  
  “The ease of using Discussions4Learning makes it a seamless addition to my first-grade classroom. The lessons are simple to follow, and provide multiple opportunities for connections to both Social Studies and Science. The best part is the way every child has equal opportunities to participate. Every day, kids who don’t typically talk much, are repeatedly raising their hands.”
  
  “Discussions4Learning has given me the chance to take my kids to an Art Gallery every day. They experience artwork in its many forms, and learn about the many ways that artists represent the world around them. Best of all, they have meaningful conversations about their interpretations of sculptures, paintings, and photographs, while building their oral language skills. All of this without even leaving the classroom!”

  — Cindy Bourgelas, first grade teacher, Woodland Academy, Worcester, Massachusetts

  
  
  

Videos:

Classroom Teacher Interview

Instructional Coach Interview

Support for the Common Core Standards

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