68. Way More Than TPR with Matt Russoniello
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Matt Russoniello loves TPR. He also loves SATs, NUTs, and TCOL. He's a sucker for a good role-play scenario and has lots of ways to get students excited and engaged and thinking with a growth mindset. Find out how he teaches language, creates community, and has fun while doing it.
Bio
Matt began teaching 4th-8th grade in Fair Haven New Jersey in 2004 under the tutelage of Greg Duncan, Dr. Joe Goebel of TCNJ, and supervisor Ellen Spears, experts in Communicative teaching. His district was awarded Model School status for New Jersey from 2005-2014. In addition, Matt was honored to receive the 2014 FLENJ Teacher Award and the 2014 New Jersey Cooperating Teacher Award. Matt currently teaches Spanish I- In Class Resource at Manalapan High School and after school at the RAISE Academy, his district's alternative high school for students temporarily expelled. His school honored him as Teacher of the Year in 2020.
Matt believes student-centered learning and giving students agency in their understanding will motivate them to love languages, understand the perspectives of other cultures, and be proud of who they are as learners and people. He absolutely LOVES collaborating and sharing ideas with educators, talking about bringing out the best in students, and using the power of their personalities. Input, TPR, putting students in the driver's seat, spontaneous speech, building a sense of belonging in the classroom, and finding the most efficient ways to understand and reach students are big pieces of his approach to instruction.
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Produced by Wayside Publishing
Mentions
Ellen Spears Director of Curriculum and Instruction, Fair Haven School District, NJ
Dr. James Asher Total Physical Response
Pablo Muirhead, PH.D (line 159) German teacher
SAT = Students as Teachers
NUTs: Now You Try
TCOL: Take Control of Learning