TL;DR: Grab students’ attention, interest, and curiosity to increase engagement. As you start planning your next lesson, think of ways to preheat your grill and hook students into your lessons. Give students a reason to look forward to coming back to class the next day. ‘Preheat your grill’ by using different virtual backgrounds, implementing scavenger hunts, and getting students moving. … Read More
Rethinking Class Participation
TL;DR: Remote and hybrid learning environments demand that we reconsider our understanding and perspective of class participation. There are many different ways students can participate, a number of which that don’t involve verbal interactions. Participation is shown through volunteering answers, asking questions, following the teacher’s instructions, completing work in a timely manner, helping others, actively listening, coming to class with … Read More
What IS Engagement?
TL;DR: When we engage students in the curriculum, we need to consider whether we are creating excitement, curiosity, and interest to want to learn more. Behavioral, physical, social, emotional, and cognitive are all types of engagement to consider in an educational setting. Engagement is another word that became overused in 2020. As schools transitioned to remote learning this spring, districts … Read More
Tired of Teaching to a Blank Screen? Start Teaching with Empathy
TL;DR: The decrease in interaction and participation rate with students in a virtual setting has been an issue but when we plan with empathy, it may make a difference. Make lessons more interesting or entertaining by adding music in the beginning or during your lesson, turning students into active participants by giving them a role, providing breaks or sending students … Read More
An Optimistic Outlook on Your Classroom
TL;DR: The tenets of an optimistic outlook on your classroom include having a positive climate and culture. Reflect on the level of morale, productivity, and student satisfaction in your classroom. Develop actions to optimistically impact students’ views on teaching and learning in your classroom. Climate and culture are often referred to as the “feel” of the school. Essentially, this feel … Read More