You Have Two Seconds

John VanDusenBlog, Classroom Management, Innovation, Lesson Planning, Reflect Better, Student Engagement

TL;DR: You have two seconds to grab and hold your students’ attention. They have conditioned their brains to consume content they wish to consume for short periods of time. Students lacking attention, focus, and respect for elders is not something new so how do we become better teachers tomorrow than we are today? Three principles that help us be better … Read More

Spice Up Your Writing Block

Becky SchnekserBlog, Differentiation, Innovation, Lesson Planning, Student Engagement

TL;DR: Here is an inspirational, engaging writing activity to spice up your literacy program. Provide images for students to write creative captions. Provide an image for students to craft a news story or article for the newspaper. Compose captions for short stories with photos for students to match. Provide a photo and ask your learners to compose a conversation that … Read More

Student Voice: The Power of the Experienced Curriculum

Steven WeberBlog, Innovation, Lesson Planning, Reflect Better, Student Engagement

TL;DR: The written curriculum and taught curriculum are different from the experienced curriculum. Teachers should find ways to obtain feedback from students on their experienced curriculum. Hundreds of books and articles have been written addressing the curriculum in schools. Teachers and administrators have read books describing the written, taught, assessed, enriched, prioritized, or guaranteed curricula. In addition to these common … Read More

Ooch Your Way to PBL

Teach Better TeamBlog, Classroom Management, Differentiation, Innovation, Leadership, Lesson Planning, Student Engagement

TL;DR: An ooch is when we conduct a small experiment to teach us more. Instead of jumping head-first into something new, take one small step first. Small steps to project-based learning can include connecting with community partners, giving students voice and choice, and utilizing structured grouping. Ooch Your Way to PBL Should you ooch?!?! The Heath Brothers say, “Yes!”’ In … Read More

The ChatGPT Debate

Teach Better TeamBlog, Classroom Management, Differentiation, Edtech, Grading & Assessment, Innovation, Lesson Planning, Student Engagement

TL;DR: AI has been around for a while. The use of ChatGPT is just another evolution in the classroom. Takeaways from the Teach Better Ambassador Voxer group are shared. Learn how ChatGPT answered this question: How can we use this tool to help us with teaching and learning? The ChatGPT Debate: How can we embrace AI without feeling like we … Read More