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GO Guardian PD Slides

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How HyperDocs Can Transform Your Teaching 

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How HyperDocs Can Transform Your Teaching 

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Cult of Pedagogy

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Listen to my interview with Lisa Highfill, Kelly Hilton, and Sarah Landis, authors of The HyperDoc Handbook ( transcript):

In many classrooms, a learning cycle looks something like this: First, we write plans for a series of lessons and a final assessment. We gather materials-handouts, websites, rubrics, video clips. Then we teach the lessons one at a time, to the whole class, at the same pace, distributing materials as needed. Finally, we end with a project, test, or other assessment.

It's a very teacher-directed model, which can limit learning in a number of ways:

Students don't feel much ownership for their own learning. Instead, they depend on the teacher to tell them when and how to learn the material.

Because so much of the teacher's time is spent in direct instruction, there's little opportunity to work one-on-one with students.

Because it's up to the teacher to adjust instruction for students with varied needs and levels of readiness, differentiation becomes one more thing to do.

ENTER THE HYPERDOC

A HyperDoc is a digital document-such as a Google Doc-where all components of a learning cycle have been pulled together into one central hub. Within a single document, students are provided with hyperlinks to all of the resources they need to complete that learning cycle. Here's an example.

In the above HyperDoc, all of the bolded words are linked to outside resources. The right-hand column is set aside for students to take notes and do other kinds of thinking and planning as they work through the lesson.

One of the earliest iterations of the this type of "hub" was the WebQuest, which guided students through a lesson using all online resources. Now that Google tools like Docs and Slides have become so prevalent, teachers are using these tools to create similar lessons, choosing and mixing resources that go well beyond simple web pages. Last year, we looked at something called a playlist, which teacher Tracy Enos used to organize her language arts lessons and differentiate instruction for her students.

This post contains Amazon Affiliate links; if you purchase from Amazon after going through these links, Cult of Pedagogy receives a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Meanwhile, teachers Lisa Highfill, Kelly Hilton, and Sarah Landis were doing similar work in their own classrooms. They coined the term "HyperDoc" to describe their version of this, and in 2016, they published The HyperDoc Handbook to teach others their method for creating these lessons.

The book explains how HyperDocs work, why they have such an impact on instruction, and their model for how teachers can design HyperDocs for high-quality instruction. In the podcast episode above, I interviewed all three about their work. Here I will blend their expertise with some of my own thoughts about this exciting format.

BENEFITS OF HYPERDOCS

Fewer lectures. Teachers have been told for decades that we need to do less lecturing, to step away from being the sage on the stage and become more of a guide on the side. "I feel so bad for teachers when they hear that," Highfill says, "because they're like, 'Well, what am I supposed to do? I need to get information into their heads.'" A HyperDoc offers a solution by taking care of the direct instruction part of a lesson and offering a lot more as well.

More face-to-face interaction. A good HyperDoc runs itself, allowing students to work through it without needing you to guide them through each step. "Although it seems odd that you're putting a student in front of a device," Landis notes, "really what it's doing is freeing you up to move around and have increased face time with the students."

Flexibility. If one part of your lesson isn't working, you can just change it in the HyperDoc and the change takes effect immediately; no need to re-copy all your materials. Similarly, if each student gets their own copy of a HyperDoc, the elements can be changed on each to meet individual students' needs.

Multimodal opportunities. Because it is digital, a HyperDoc allows us to include all kinds of multimedia. "Living in this digital age, we're able to expose kids to different types of media that allows each child to access the learning or the content or the information in a way that's visually or auditorily appealing to them," Landis says. "I might be visual, and I might first study an image, then watch a video, and then I'm finally ready to tackle that article my teacher really wants me to read."

They don't know that maybe their text ... is at a different reading level," says Hilton. "Or they're able to use Privacy. If students' HyperDocs have been customized for them, no one else needs to know. "Read&Write for Google and just put headphones in, and that's just a little agreement between you and that student."

MODELS FOR BUILDING HYPERDOCS

Because HyperDocs are such adaptable tools, teachers structure them in many different ways, and you should experiment until you find a structure that works for you. Here are some options to consider:

Playlist: This model, explained in this article, follows a step-by-step sequence of activities that consist of learning activities as well as check-ins with the teacher and housekeeping tasks like setting up accounts on websites.

Self-Paced Learning: Explored in this post by math teacher Natalie McCutchen, this system lays out a path of lessons for a whole unit, along with links to review materials, pre-tests, and practice questions. Students decide how much practice they need and determine when to take the assessment for each learning goal. If they grasp the material quickly, they can test and move on.

5E Model: This first stage of this model is to Engage student interest. Next, students Explore the topic, Explain what they have learned, and Extend their learning by applying it in new situations. The last stage Evaluates student learning.

HyperDoc Model: The HyperDoc Handbook authors have developed a model that has some components of the 5Es above, but with some additions and adjustments. This template explains all 7 stages. One important component of this model is the first step, Explore. Highfill explains the value of this stage: "Kids are exploring and coming up with ideas and answers about a concept on their own, and it's engaging them from the beginning, instead of passively listening to a teacher explain something." During this time, while students explore, the teacher is actively gathering information: "I listen to my students," Highfill says, "I'm studying them and hearing to what level are they understanding a concept. I have the ability to pull a small group. I can work with my language learners during that time. The whole time I'm doing formative assessment in the classroom, which will then really be my basis for the next part of the lesson."

Agenda: This model, borrowed from the kind of planning done at a typical Montessori school, provides each student with a planner listing out their assignments for the week. Students decide how they want to use their class time each day, but are expected to complete all goals by the end of the week. Although these are traditionally done on paper, they could easily be converted to a HyperDoc format.

OTHER USES FOR HYPERDOCS

Building an extended lesson or unit is one of the most instructionally robust ways to use HyperDocs, but they can also be used for:

substitute teacher plans

video or podcast playlists

learning centers or stations

student-made HyperDocs

parent resources

departmental-, team-or grade-level HyperDocs to gather and share resources among teachers

TIPS FOR SUCCESS

Start with a template.
Rather than build your first HyperDoc from scratch, you might find more success by starting with a pre-made template, like the ones available for free on HyperDocs.co. You could also start with a completely finished HyperDoc that someone else created for their own classroom and modify it for your own use.

Build in participation, collaboration, and multimedia.
One risk inherent in HyperDocs is that they could simply become online worksheets, replicating the kind of work students could just as easily do on paper. Take advantage of this medium by including ways for students to participate actively, collaborate with others, and learn from a variety of media: video, interactive posters like ThingLinks, podcasts, online flashcards, and so on.

Offer choice...
HyperDocs are designed to allow students to work at different speeds and navigate learning in a way that works best for them. So when you can, offer choices: Give students options for the kind and quantity of materials they need to learn the material, how they will practice and apply it, and how they will demonstrate their learning.

...but don't "kitchen sink" it.
If you stuff your HyperDoc with every possible resource on a topic ("everything but the kitchen sink"), you'll overwhelm students. Choose resources thoughtfully.

Give students HyperDocs training.
Even if your students have used HyperDocs in other classes, your design probably has its own unique qualities, so take the time to demonstrate how it should be used. And within the HyperDoc itself, provide clear directions for its use.

So if you create a HyperDoc," says Hilton, "in the header or footer, say Collaborate with other teachers.
You do not need to do this alone! Thousands of teachers are sharing and collaborating on the HyperDocs.co site and using the #hyperdocs hashtag on Twitter. And be sure to give credit to the person who created the original: " Created by, and maybe link to your Twitter handle or your email, for yourself, and then if you make a copy of someone's, we encourage you to give that person credit by saying Inspired by or Remixed HyperDoc originally created by, just because we want an inclusive, appreciative sharing community."

Don't feel like you have to create a HyperDoc for every lesson.
"That's not something that any teacher should feel pressured to do," says Landis, "and it's not really realistic. We don't want teachers doing any one thing all the time, because then it becomes redundant for our kids."

HyperDocs Resources: How to Learn More

Book: The HyperDocs Handbook

Website: HyperDocs.co: The online hub for Landis, Hilton, and Highfill's work on HyperDocs. It contains helpful blog posts and the Teachers Give Teachers system where participants share their own HyperDocs with one another. To browse and borrow other teachers' HyperDocs, all you need to do is register.
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How HyperDocs Can Transform Your Teaching

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HyperDocs make room for more interactive, personalized, and student-directed learning. Let's look at how they work.

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Thank you to Kaitlynn Heinrichs from BCHS Click here to make a copy.

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This week, we're proud to release a new set of Pear Deck templates designed for school counselors. These templates were contributed by counselor (and Pear Deck blog guest author!) Michael Creekmore. We asked Michael to share a few words about why he developed this pack:

Feelings can be so complex, maybe even more so now than in years past. Acknowledging emotions often seems simple-until we experience difficulty recognizing those of others. This Deck was designed to help us identify and process how we can better care for our classmates, teachers, families, schools, and communities. Let the discussions begin. Enjoy!

Let's take a look at some of these new templates, and explore how you can use them with your own class; whether or not you're a counselor, social-emotional learning can have a place in your lessons.

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New Pear Deck Templates for School Counseling: Understanding Feelings - Pear Deck

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This week, we're proud to release a new set of Pear Deck templates designed for school counselors. These templates were contributed by counselor (and Pear Deck blog guest author!) Michael Creekmore. We asked Michael to share a few words about why he developed this pack.

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Slides on HyperDocs

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Eliminate distractions, connect with students, and save time with K-12's leading classroom management software.

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Create a new document and edit with others at the same time -- from your computer, phone or tablet. Get stuff done with or without an internet connection. Use Docs to edit Word files. Free from Google.

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Construction Trades Career Cluster Hyperdoc

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Construction Trades Career Cluster Hyperdoc

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Everything You Need to Know About Building a Great Screencast Video

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Everything You Need to Know About Building a Great Screencast Video

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Cult of Pedagogy

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Sponsored by World101 and ViewSonic

This post contains Amazon Affiliate links. When you make a purchase through these links, Cult of Pedagogy gets a small percentage of the sale at no extra cost to you.

Early in March, the COVID-19 pandemic led to a domino effect of school closures. Overnight, educators were forced to rethink their instruction as they moved online. Thankfully, most aren't comfortable simply replacing themselves with cookie-cutter, ready-made content built without the unique needs of their students in mind. They miss their students, and their students miss them, so they are willing to put in the hard work to ensure that their authentic teaching styles remain intact. This should not be a surprise to anyone who understands the art of teaching; technology simply cannot replace teachers.

One of the most effective ways to move instruction online is to build screencast videos. Screencast videos are unique because they are actual recordings of your computer screen or tablet as opposed to a video of an in-person lecture. They are a powerful way to deliver instruction, but they do require a fair amount of time and planning, which I have learned through a lot of trial and error. Building effective screencasts continues to be the barrier that stops educators from making a smooth transition to distance learning, so I have put together the following tips to help guide you through the process.

My Own Screencast Journey

As an educator myself, I spent several years developing screencasts and making mistakes along the way. I was fed up with lecturing and was determined to find a better way to tailor my instruction to students' needs. I knew technology could be a powerful tool to amplify my impact, but I wasn't willing to replace my lectures with a disembodied voice on a screen who didn't know my students. So five years ago, I made the commitment to eliminate lectures from my classroom and replace them with instructional videos I created myself. This allowed me to facilitate a blended, self-paced, mastery-based classroom built on the backbone of high quality feedback and differentiated instruction:

Years later, I left the classroom to launch The Modern Classrooms Project, a nonprofit that equips and empowers educators to create blended, self-paced, mastery-based classrooms of their own. Through our in-person trainings and our Modern Classroom Essentials* course, we have supported teachers as they learn how to:

Plan and record their own instructional videos

Build student-friendly websites for instructional content

Design effective self-paced learning experiences for students at all levels

The following tips align with what we teach participants about creating their own instructional videos.

Start with the Research

When launching distance learning and meeting students' needs, it can be tempting to dive head first into instructional video creation without actually understanding what works. But before you start investing countless hours of time and energy constructing videos, it's important to understand what the research says about cultivating engagement.

Video Length

The research on how long instructional videos should be is incredibly clear and tells a simple narrative: Keep it short. The ideal length should be under 6 minutes. Between 6 and 9 minutes, engagement drops slightly.

Image from Brame, 2015.

After 9 minutes, engagement drops considerably, and if your video is over 12 minutes, you have a real problem on your hands. It is important to note that the majority of these studies have been conducted on young adults, so for younger students try to keep it 6 minutes or under (Brame, 2015).

These time recommendations can make educators anxious. It can be hard to imagine how to synthesize concepts or skills in such a short span of time. One of the beauties of instructional video creation is it forces you to think about delivering content in a lean way. What is essential? What is not? And where can students discover the content for themselves without you walking them through the process?

A simple way to make videos short is by chunking more frequently. Educators are used to thinking about lessons in 45-, 60-, or 90-minute blocks of time. When you use instructional videos, those constraints disappear. A 10-minute lecture that is designed as part of a 60-minute lesson can be chunked into two 5-minute videos, each of which then becomes part of a 30-minute lesson (Ibrahim et al., 2012).

It also helps to speak quickly and enthusiastically. Teachers are used to speaking slowly and enunciating very clearly, but that is not necessary in a screencast; in fact, it can be quite boring. Instead, speak fast and use conversational language to bring your authentic self into the picture (Guo et al., 2014). Don't worry that students won't be able to follow if you speak too quickly; they can always rewind the video and watch sections again. And don't be afraid to make mistakes-a few of these will make your video sound more genuine.

Video Design

Next let's talk about design principles. First off, minimize text (Guo et al., 2014). Nothing is less engaging than an instructional video with a whole bunch of typed up text. It is especially redundant when you simply read the text during the recording. You might as well just send them a document and have them read it over instead. When possible, always accompany what you say with visuals (Brame, 2015).

Second, instructional videos do not need to be pretty; they need to be personal. Your students want to hear from you; otherwise you could just send them existing videos from YouTube. Research has shown that engagement increases when students know their own teacher is behind the screen delivering the instruction (Li et al., 2016).

Lastly, interactivity is engaging. Embedding pop-up questions into your videos provides great checks for understanding. Moreover, accompanying videos with guided notes helps kids stay focused and ensures that the information travels with them to their next task or assignment (Lawson et al., 2006; Vural, 2013; Zhang et al., 2006).

Don't Forget to Plan First

As with any lesson, good advance planning is essential. Don't just find a software, fire it up and start screencasting. This usually leads to long, dry videos that generally disregard the research. When we train educators to build instructional videos, we tell them that the large bulk of the work will be equal parts planning and recording. The rest of the time is devoted to enhancing your videos and sharing them out with your students.

In most cases, planning your video means putting together the visuals. We find the easiest tools for this are PowerPoint or Google Slides: You'd design the slideshow, then present that as the visual component of your screencast while narrating with your voice. Depending on the content area, these slide decks can look quite different from one another, but the best ones are highly visual and include a nice balance of new information and examples, with as little text as possible.

Other educators will use guided notes instead of slides. If you have already built a nice series of guided notes that would accompany your in-person lectures, those can work really well as the background of your instructional video. Whether you use a slideshow or guided notes, about 40 percent of the time you spend building your screencast should be spent preparing this part.

Finding the Right Recording Tool

If you haven't noticed already, there seems to be an endless stream of edtech products that all allow you to accomplish very similar tasks. This is especially the case for screencasting, so to keep things simple, I'll just recommend a few tools I know are good. Once you've learned those, it's pretty easy to transfer those skills to other tools you might want to try.

The big distinction in screencasting tools depends on whether you have a touchscreen device. While not required, touchscreen devices with styluses (tablets and 2-in-1 laptops) unleash a whole new frontier of functionality. Here is how you should think about the two options:

Interactive Whiteboards

(for touchscreen devices only)

If you have a touchscreen device, we encourage educators to use screencasting tools that serve as interactive whiteboards. Our favorite is Explain Everything. The beauty of a tool like Explain Everything is it acts like a highly interactive digital whiteboard with a built-in recorder and editing tool. More importantly, you get to control the background of your whiteboard. Instead of writing on a blank canvas, you're able to upload visuals-slide decks or guided notes-to become the background of your interactive whiteboard.

Here is an example of one of my Explain Everything videos: Independent vs. Dependent Variables.

For educators looking to learn how to use Explain Everything and all of its tools, you can access our comprehensive tutorial on our online course* or by clicking directly here: Explain Everything Tutorial. If you do go this route, make sure you have a stylus to annotate. We recommend the Meko Universal Stylus because it is affordable but allows for really clean and clear annotations with a high level of precision.

Traditional Screencasters

If you do not have a touchscreen device (most people don't) then do not worry! Traditional screencasters will still get the job done. With the right planning in place, you can create really high-quality, engaging videos. When picking an effective screencaster, you want to look for one that gives you a high level of flexibility, strong editing tools, annotation capabilities, and a webcam function. The most important editing function is the capacity to "truncate." This allows you to scroll to a specific point in a video and re-record when you make an inexcusable mistake without having to redo the whole thing.

Our favorite screencaster is Screencast-O-Matic. It is really easy to use and has all the functionality you need. The free version is ok, but the paid version is worth the upgrade for the added features. Here is our full Screencast-O-Matic Tutorial which can also be found on our online course*. There are many other screencasters out there with similar functionality. The product does not really matter much if it covers all the key components; in the end, it will come down to how you use it.

Since it is difficult to annotate or write using a traditional screencaster, you have to make up for that lack of functionality with animations; these allow you to show lines of text or bullet points one at a time, as you're speaking, rather than all at once. This minimizes the stress that students feel to write down everything immediately, and keeps them focused on each point of your video as you discuss it. Slide decks that are animated to slow-release information lead to far more engaging videos for students. But make sure the animations are simple and have a purpose. Avoid flashy animations and unnecessary sound effects; they prove to be more distracting than beneficial.

Recording: The Most Relaxing Part

Once you have selected your screencasting program and completed the planning process, it's time to start recording. For some educators, this is anxiety producing. Do your best to relax; the more authentic you are, the better.

Before you start, make sure you are in a quiet room and try to get headphones with a mic. For years I have used simple apple headphones with a mic. If you are looking for a more advanced option, consider a headset with an adjustable mic. When you are recording, you should have one goal in mind: Never speak without doing something on the screen.

Interactive Whiteboard (only if you have a touchscreen device): When using an interactive whiteboard, this is a relatively easy task. When possible, write on the screen. If you are reading text or images, constantly annotate.

Traditional Screencasters: When using a traditional screencaster, this can be a little more challenging. As you read text or discuss images on the screen, consider using your on-screen pen or cursor-just as you might use a finger in person-to follow along with the text. When possible, underline and circle key information. This is when animations will make your life a lot easier (Ibrahim et al., 2012).

Remember not to get bogged down in little mistakes. When they do happen, use the truncate function as opposed to re-recording. If you're feeling nervous, consider writing out a script for yourself. Speak quickly and genuinely and before you know it, you will have a solid and engaging video.

Making it Interactive

Once you are done recording your video, consider how you can make it interactive. You can build a fantastic video that follows all the right research, but without tools designed to ensure students are following along, there is a good chance they will inevitably check out.

Research shows that two simple strategies can increase student engagement with instructional videos:

Embedded Questions

One of the most important features of in-person lectures or discussions is the check for understanding. It is both an opportunity for teachers to get a temperature check on student learning and a chance for students to identify their own misconceptions. The problem with most checks for understanding is that they only engage a small percentage of students. That is not the case with instructional videos. When you upload your videos to a platform like Edpuzzle, you can embed questions and comments at key points in the video that EVERY student has to engage with. We recommend that you use closed-response (multiple-choice) questions so that students get immediate feedback on their responses. If you want to track responses, you can build classes on Edpuzzle to track the data. Here's our tutorial on how to use Edpuzzle.

Guided Notes

An easy way to ensure kids are paying attention during an instructional video is to require the completion of guided notes. The challenge is making sure that your notes support learning as opposed to being an unnecessary and tedious barrier. (For an overview of how to put guided notes together, click here.) As your students watch your videos, they should take notes on key content. If you require students to take freehand notes, you will find that some will flourish, but the large bulk will struggle. It will also extend the video watching experience and in turn take away from the rest of the lesson which is likely more engaging. Instead, consider simply providing students with copies of your slides-on paper or digitally-and allowing them to annotate these slides with you as they follow along. If you are not comfortable with that, provide an explicit note-taking model for students, such as Cornell notes, to provide them with a clear structure.

The enhancing phase of building instructional videos is easy to overlook. But it should only take 10-20 minutes per video and can have a major impact on engagement.

Next Steps on Your Screencasting Journey

Like any new skill worth learning, screencasts require planning and practice. But with time they can become an essential teaching tool - whether you're physically in the classroom or not. Research on our Modern Classroom Fellows has shown that when you use screencasts to allow for self-paced learning and mastery-based grading, it substantially improves your capacity to effectively differentiate instruction.

If you are looking for more resources and support through this process, we can help. For educators who are looking to dig deeper into our resources, see exemplar units, or learn how to incorporate videos into a fully self-paced, mastery-based classroom, our free online course can be accessed here, which includes unlimited access to our content and tutorials.

Finally, for any teachers who want help creating videos and running a self-paced, mastery-based class, we offer our Modern Classrooms Mentorship Program*. Every participant in this program is matched with an expert mentor from our Modern Classrooms team, who provides:

1. Feedback on every assignment you submit, from instructional videos to progress trackers to mastery checks

2. On-demand, 1-1 personalized virtual coaching

3. Three Continuing Education Units (CEUs) from George Mason University upon completion

Our mentors have experience creating instructional videos for students across a wide range of grade levels and subject areas, and they stand ready to share their expertise. If you're interested in enrolling, you can save $50 at any time with the coupon code CULTOFPEDAGOGY.

Whether you take our free course, pay for additional support, or simply read this article, we hope you'll join us in using instructional videos to create better learning experiences for all students.

* Cult of Pedagogy has an affiliate relationship with the Building Modern Classrooms Project. Although the Modern Classroom Essentials course is free, if you purchase one of their paid offerings through the links on this post, Cult of Pedagogy will receive a percentage of the sale at no extra cost to you.
References:
Brame, C. (2015). Effective educational videos. Retrieved April 19, 2020, from https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/effective-educational-videos/

Guo, P. J., Kim, J., & Rubin, R. (2014, March). How video production affects student engagement: An empirical study of MOOC videos. In Proceedings of the first ACM conference on Learning@ scale conference (pp. 41-50). Retrieved from https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/2556325.2566239

Ibrahim, M., Antonenko, P. D., Greenwood, C. M., & Wheeler, D. (2012). Effects of segmenting, signalling, and weeding on learning from educational video. Learning, Media and Technology, 37(3), 220-235. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ980817

Li, J., Kizilcec, R., Bailenson, J., & Ju, W. (2016). Social robots and virtual agents as lecturers for video instruction. Computers in Human Behavior, 55, 1222-1230. Retrieved from https://rene.kizilcec.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/li2015social.pdf

Lawson, T. J., Bodle, J. H., Houlette, M. A., & Haubner, R. R. (2006). Guiding questions enhance student learning from educational videos. Teaching of Psychology, 33(1), 31-33. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1207/s15328023top3301_7

Vural, O. F. (2013). The Impact of a Question-Embedded Video-based Learning Tool on E-learning. Educational Sciences: Theory and Practice, 13(2), 1315-1323. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1017292

Zhang, D., Zhou, L., Briggs, R. O., & Nunamaker Jr, J. F. (2006). Instructional video in e-learning: Assessing the impact of interactive video on learning effectiveness. Information & management, 43(1), 15-27. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378720605000170

Come back for more.
Join our mailing list and get weekly tips, tools, and inspiration that will make your teaching more effective and fun. You'll get access to our members-only library of free downloads, including 20 Ways to Cut Your Grading Time in Half, the e-booklet that has helped thousands of teachers save time on grading. Over 50,000 teachers have already joined-come on in.

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Everything You Need to Know About Building a Great Screencast Video

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Moving some of your instruction to video? Learn how to plan, record, and enhance screencast videos students will actually watch.

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https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1HBmVbSs52PfczRlUe8XpovWy4i2hH1QYG7tq-QJdBxk/edit?usp=sharing

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Thank you, Ms. Hunter at YHS

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3- Roles and Responsibilities in a free enterprise economy

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High School Social Emotional Distance Learning Activities

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High School Social Emotional Distance Learning Activities

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Social-emotional learning (SEL) is a critical part of every child's education and can be nurtured even when students are not in school. SEL is a framework for helping students develop critical skills for how they interact with others, manage their own emotions and behaviors, and develop into confident, productive, and empathetic individuals. The activities here are organized around CASEL's five core SEL standards: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision making.

These activities are designed to support secondary school students. High school students are at the juncture between being kids and being independent adults. Therefore, SEL is crucial in helping them consider who they are, who they want to be, what relationships they want to be in, and how they make decisions to position themselves for successful lives.

Self-Awareness

Provide opportunities for students to find ways to share more about themselves.

About Me, By Me
Many high school students are still trying to "find themselves" and define who they are in this world. Have students create an autobiography about themselves by answering these questions:

What are five words I would use to describe myself?

Who are the most important people in my life and why?

What are my strengths and challenges?

What has been a defining moment in my life and why was it so transformative?

There are many ways to present an autobiography. Invite students to try:

Writing, by hand or electronically

Making a video

Creating a podcast or audio recording

Giving an oral presentation

Expressing Emotions
The COVID-19 pandemic is a stressful time and we are all feeling many emotions. To assist young adults in coping with this situation, it is important that they have opportunities to identify and share the emotions they are feeling in a given moment. Sometimes sharing feelings verbally can be difficult, so talk with students proactively to discuss a range of strategies they can use to help them process emotions, such as:

Using an app (e.g., Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok) to share their emotions with a trusted adult

Texting emoji with a trusted adult to share their feelings

Writing in a private journal in a stream-of-consciousness format to process feelings

Learning American Sign Language signs for emotions

Creating quick drawings or sketches to convey emotions

Self-Management

Provide opportunities for students to reflect on how they manage their behaviors and emotions in challenging situations

Let's Get Organized
Many students are struggling with the transition from physically being in school to engaging in distance learning. To support student success, help your teen(s) get organized and create a system for goal setting. Collaborate with your student(s) to create their systems; the more ownership they feel, the more likely they will be to use their systems successfully. Here are some strategies to try:

Create Goal Lists: These can be done on paper, a computer, a whiteboard, an app, etc. To-do lists can be divided into two types: daily tasks and longer term goals. For example, at the beginning of each week, when teachers have communicated all assignments, students can create a list for the week. Then, they can start each day by writing a daily task list to help them meet their broader goals. This two-fold approach helps students focus on daily work without losing track of longer term projects.

Pick a spot in your home for students to set up a workspace. Give them time to assess the pros and cons of different areas, such as natural light, noise level, distractions, and comfort. Then, provide them with time to make the space their own by hanging pictures or posters or arranging furniture.

There's More to Life Than Schoolwork
Students may be feeling anxious, stressed, and overwhelmed about the school work they need to accomplish at home. Plus, they may be feeling frustrated, sad, angry, and disappointed that activities they love are on hold indefinitely. To motivate students to use this time productively, encourage them to pick 1-3 non-school-related goals they would like to accomplish during this time, such as:

Exercising every day, practicing a sport, improving specific skills

Building something

Learning a new language

Trying an instrument

Learning to cook some favorite dishes

Exploring new/different art media

What Works for You?
Dealing with many emotions all the time can be exhausting and make impulse control a struggle. For high school students who are generally focused on their social world, which has now changed dramatically, it is understandable that students are feeling more isolated and stressed than ever before.

The best thing caregivers and educators can do is to talk proactively with our young people about strategies they can use to help them avoid becoming overwhelmed or to help them reset if they do:

Exercise: taking a walk or run, shooting hoops, working out (e.g., pushups, sit ups, pull ups, squats), yoga, using a treadmill or elliptical, dancing.

Music: listening to a calming playlist with songs and/or artists that help them relax and deescalate, listening to an upbeat playlist that gets them dancing or singing along to blow off steam.

Pets: brushing your dog, petting your cat, snuggling up with a furry friend; talking to your pet birds, watching your fish, riding your horse, singing to your chameleon.

Mindfulness and breathing: downloading exercises/apps (e.g., meditation, mindfulness, breathing, guided imagery) to use when feeling overwhelmed and/or at night to relax into restful sleep.

Alone time: asking for or taking time alone to process what is going on in their lives and in the world; work with your teenager to come up with a verbal cue or physical sign they can use to indicate that they need some undisturbed time.

Social Awareness

Provide opportunities for students to gain social awareness of others and how they are dealing with the current changes in our lives.

Empathy & Perspective Taking
Empathy and perspective taking are critical skills in building our social awareness, but these two concepts are quite difficult for the average, egocentric teenager to develop. Especially in these times of physical distancing, it is important that we work on our skills for understanding and respecting others' perspectives.

Empathy: Here are a few videos that can help students develop their understanding of empathy:

"Empathy Can Change the World" - YouTube video from middle school educator, Noah Couser (2:23)

"The Power of Empathy: Audrey Moore" - YouTube video from [email protected] (9:19)

"A Wise Lesson on Empathy" - YouTube from positivity YouTuber, Meir Kay (1:51)

Perspective Taking: During this pandemic, we have all been inundated with loads of differing perspectives. It can be hard to really hear through all the noise. To help your teen(s) practice active listening and perspective taking:

Ask students to write a set of 4-5 interview questions and interview a variety of people they know by phone or video chat. It's important for students to interview subjects directly rather than create a survey so they can ask follow up questions and share their own views.

Then, have students put together a report of their findings, highlighting differences and similarities in the responses they got and reflecting on if and how their own ideas changed as a result of their conversations.

Relationship Skills

Provide opportunities for students to gain greater relationship skills.

Healthy Relationship Reflection
During this time of staying at home, teenagers are having to engage more consistently with other members of their households as well as maintain relationships through the use of technology.

Ask students to think about the question: "How do you define a healthy relationship?"

Then, have students answer this question in a creative way, such as by creating artwork, recording a podcast, making a video, writing a song/rap, choreographing a dance, etc.

Responsible Decision Making

Provide opportunities for students to gain greater skills in responsible decision making.

Good Decisions
Teens are put in situations every day where they are given the chance to make decisions. This time at home is a unique opportunity for them to reflect on the ramifications (positive and negative) of past decisions and think about how they can continue developing skills for making positive decisions in the future.

Have students write a short response to the following prompts:

What is the hardest decision you have had to make in your life? What made it challenging? What factors ultimately led to the choice you made?

What is the easiest decision you have had to make in your life? What made it such an obvious choice?

Physical Distancing PSA
Physical distancing is hard, but it can help to hear from peers about why staying apart physically is so important and how we can all stay in touch socially to support one another and keep connected.

Have students create a PSA about physical distancing as an example of responsible decision making.

Encourage students to do some research, write a script, and create a video or audio recording to post to social media or a digital classroom.

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High School Social Emotional Distance Learning Activities

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Social-emotional learning (SEL) is a critical part of every child's education and can be nurtured even when students are not in school. SEL is a framework for helping students develop critical skills for how they interact with others, manage their own emotions and behaviors, and develop into confident, productive, and empathetic individuals.

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GoGuardian & Google Classroom Integration

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GoGuardian & Google Classroom Integration

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GoGuardian Teacher: Google Classroom Integration

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The Concurrent Classroom: Using Blended Learning Models to Teach Students In-person and Online Simultaneously

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The Concurrent Classroom: Using Blended Learning Models to Teach Students In-person and Online Simultaneously

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The Concurrent Classroom: Using Blended Learning Models to Teach Students In-person and Online Simultaneously - Dr. Catlin Tucker

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Teachers all over the country are being asked to teach "concurrent classrooms" in which some students attend class in person and others attend virtually. The teacher in a concurrent classroom attempts to meet the needs of the students in class and online simultaneously. This is the most challenging scenario I can imagine in our current [...]

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Thank you, Mr. Thao at YHS

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Social Emotional Learning Activity Calendar

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Social Emotional Learning Activity Calendar

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GoGuardian Teacher: Best Practices and New Features 2020

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Thank you, Mrs. Sanchez at YHS

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8 Key Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Skills to Develop

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8 Key Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Skills to Develop

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8 Key Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Skills to Develop | Kickboard

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Kickboard is the leading EdTech software & training provider for PBIS, RTI & classroom behavior management programs. Read our blogs to learn more.

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Pear Deck How-To Get Started Guide for Teachers

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Pear Deck How-To Get Started Guide for Teachers

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Social & Emotional Learning (SEL)

Build social and emotional skills into any class.

Summit students rip up their stress.

Summit Preparatory Charter High School in Redwood City, California, uses a variety of activities in the weekly, 90-minute Habits, Community, and Culture (HCC) class, where students learn Habits of Success and develop social and emotional learning (SEL) skills. The school has developed an HCC curriculum for grades nine through 12 and hired two full-time teachers for HCC, but Summit's academic teachers also use some of these activities to build SEL skills and deepen their relationships with their students. Cady Ching, a biology and AP environmental science teacher at Summit, incorporates opening activities into all of her classes: "In my freshman classes, we do them every class period."

Visualization to release stress: Have your students imagine what stress looks and feels like inside their body, and then ask them to release it. "The mindfulness practice makes you think the stress is coming off your body," says Geoffrey, a 12th-grade student.

Noise isolation: There are a variety of sounds that your students hear when they're in your classroom, from students walking in the hallway to outdoor construction noise. Have your students focus on one noise and describe it to themselves and recall the last time they interacted with it.

Here are some of the opening, group sharing, and closing activities that teachers use at Summit:

Opening Activities

Summit students practice mindfulness.

2. Name the emotion you're bringing to class: Have each student call out the emotion they're feeling. This helps each student know how they and other students are feeling, what different emotions look like, and how to better interact with their peers based on how they're feeling.

3. Write down, rip up, and throw away your stress: Have your students write down their expectations and insecurities, rip them up, and throw them away. This emotional check-in takes about three minutes. By acknowledging how your students are feeling at the start of each class, you'll acknowledge their barriers to learning and create a safe space for your students to overcome them.

5. Quote of the day: Introduce a quote relevant to what your students are learning or to a shared experience-for example, an act of violence in the community. You can facilitate a whole-class discussion, group students into pairs, or have each student share a one-word response to the quote. This gives students the space to reflect on their beliefs and experiences and whether they agree or disagree with the quote and other students' opinions, and it gives them insight into their peers' perspectives and feelings.

6. Where we came from: Collect baby pictures from your students. Project one baby picture at the start of class, have your students guess who it is, and then have the featured student share something about their childhood.

7. Starting positive: Have each student tape a sheet of paper to their back and then walk around and write positive qualities about their peers on their backs.

8. Motivational moment: Have two students start the class with a three- to five-minute presentation-and come up with two or three discussion questions-based on their interests. The presentation must be related to the course content in a real-world context. "Many students include a video for visuals and increased engagement, but it's optional," says Ching. Have the rest of the class partner up to discuss their questions for one minute and then give them the opportunity to share out to the whole class. This exercise gives your students insight into their peers' interests.

Grades 9-12 | Redwood City, CA

Enrollment

388 | Charter, Suburban

Per Pupil Expenditures

Free / Reduced Lunch

47%

Data is from the 2014-2015 academic year.

Group Sharing

9. Circle sharing: To encourage active listening, create small groups. Have your students position their chairs in a circle so everyone can make eye contact. To strengthen empathy, you can facilitate deeper discussion around what a student shares by asking, "Why did that student share what they did?" or "What perspective is that student coming from?"

When discussing emotionally charged topics, it's important to have guidelines to foster a safe space. Summit uses the Courageous Conversation protocol created by Glenn E. Singleton when discussing race. The protocol is guided by four agreements-stay engaged, experience discomfort, speak your truth, and expect and accept nonclosure. Here is an example of elementary school discussion guidelines from School 21.

Summit students sit in a circle for a whole-class discussion.

10. Write a poem from someone else's perspective. Have your students choose someone they don't know. This helps them to understand that they don't "need to be best friends with someone to empathize with them," explains Ballard.

11. Have a conversation with someone you don't know. Have your students pair up with a student they don't know and provide the pairs with five questions to ask each other. Each student introduces their partner to the class, speaking as if they were their partner, while the rest of the class looks at the student being introduced. "We don't see people sometimes," says Ballard, "and this exercise helps students to see each other more deeply."

12. Play interest and identity-related bingo. Instead of squares filled with numbers or vocabulary words, create cards with information relating to your students. Summit's Bingo cards have things like "'I like to read' or 'I was born in a different country,'" says Armando, a ninth-grade student.

I would like to appreciate Brenda for facilitating the conversation in our small group.

I would like to thank everyone for taking this class seriously.

I apologize to everyone for having my headphones in for half of the time.

Closing Activity

13. Appreciation, apology, aha: Have your students get in a circle and share an appreciation, apology, or realization with the group. Students in Ballard's class have shared things like:

Encourage authentic and timely apologies. Apologizing for something that happened a long time ago has less impact than apologizing for something that happened that day or week. Let your students know that they don't have to name who they're apologizing to when they apologize for what they did.

Help students share helpful, not harmful words. "I often say, 'Appreciations, apologies, and ahas should be something that you genuinely think will be useful for people to hear,'" says Ballard.

Have your students snap, clap, or shake both hands when they hear something that resonates with them. "We snap to let people know that we hear them without exerting our own voice in their narrative," explains Ballard. Students shake their hands when peers share things that are emotionally charged. Ballard often gets this started by saying, "Let's shake it up for that."

"When you pay attention to each other, not only does it build a sense of community, but we're more able to understand other people," says Janet, a 12th-grade student. "If you're able to understand people at a younger age, you could work better with them as adults. That changes how the future generations will be. People can be more accepting, more helpful towards each other."

What makes this a SCHOOL THAT WORKS

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Build social and emotional skills into any class.

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Explore different scenarios that might work best for your teaching style

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Sponsored by Teaching Channel and UL Xplorlabs

Let's go back for a moment to a simpler time, back to 2019 when you may have "struggled to differentiate." When you tried to meet the needs of all students who came to you with different levels of readiness, who had different physical, emotional, and cognitive profiles, and who learned best under different scenarios.

2020 laughs at 2019.

Teaching is much more complicated now, and you are most likely in a situation where your students are scattered in some way. It may be one or a combination of these:

Half of your class is at home while the other half is in-person, then this switches the next day.

Some of your students are all-virtual, all the time.

Even the kids you do have face-to-face (F2F) have to be socially distanced and therefore can't collaborate and interact the way they once could.

Before, a teacher only had to worry about meeting students where they were academically, socially, and emotionally. Now you literally have to figure out a way to meet them where they are.

Depending on who's running your school, you may be expected to do any number of instructional gymnastics to keep all of these students engaged and on track. While I'm not going to get into the "shoulds" here (I address some best practices in this post, and I ranted about one specific remote teaching problem in this Facebook live broadcast), what I'd like to do in this post is curate some of the ways teachers have solved the problem of teaching students who are literally all over the place.

I pulled these ideas from responses to two separate tweets: In the first one, I asked what was working when teaching some students in person and others at home. The second tweet came a few weeks later, where I was asking specifically for strategies to build community among all the scattered groups. I got hundreds of responses, some of which I was still trying to digest an hour ago, so this list is just a sampling of some of the ideas I saw repeated several times and a few that I thought were really noteworthy. If you want to see all of the ideas, follow those links and enjoy! I'll warn you though, it's a lot. With so many people working on the same problem at the same time, there are a lot of ideas in many different iterations. My goal here is to pare it down to just a few that I think you can use.

(One more thing: For efficiency, I'm going to refer to all videoconferencing software as Zoom. So when I say "Zoom," just know that this means Google Meet, Microsoft Teams video, Skype, or whatever you're using. It's just faster this way.)

1. Create Student Cohorts

This was the most frequently mentioned piece of advice from teachers doing this work, so I'm putting it first and separating it from everything else.

The idea is to put students into groups that span different populations-some virtual, some F2F, some from different days in an A/B schedule-so they can help each other through your course. Doing this allows students to ask each other questions and support each other at times when you're not available. It's also a way to create connections between your in-class students and those who are learning from home.

In some classes, these cohorts are simply contact groups, so that when students get stuck, they can get clarification or help from each other.

In other cases, cohorts actually work on projects or assignments together.

In classrooms where F2F and at-home students are participating at the same time, teachers are putting students into pairs made up of one F2F and one at-home learner. This arrangement gives each at-home student a designated partner to connect them to what's happening in class.

For best results, give students a getting-to-know-you activity to do with their cohort or partner so they can form a connection and feel more comfortable with one another.

2. Limit the Synchronous

Many teachers are finding that synchronous instruction-where all students in class and at home are plugged in and participating in real time-needs to be very limited and used intentionally, as opposed to just recording an entire class session and expecting everyone to sit through that. (Again, I explored the ridiculousness of this idea here.).

Here are some ways this principle is playing out:

Brief and debrief. Some teachers are only using synchronous instruction to do a quick overview at the beginning of the class session and a quick debrief at the end, leaving the middle for independent work, group work, or small-group instruction with the teacher.

Make synchronous time special. Several teachers reported using synchronous time for things like read-alouds, reader's theater, and Shakespeare reading, where parts are given to both the at-home and in-person students.

Use virtual bell-ringers. Sort of. Some teachers are starting their synchronous time with a short pre-recorded video that gives everyone a task and reviews the day's agenda. Like a bell-ringer, doing this frees up the teacher to handle administrative tasks, lets kids trickle into the Zoom, and gives everyone something to do until it's time to start as a group.

Put EVERYONE on Zoom. If bandwidth allows and the activity fits, then put all students on Zoom for the synchronous part of your lesson, even F2F students. This will put everyone on the same playing field and make interaction easier.

Try interactive apps. Teachers are reporting great synchronous experiences using Pear Deck and Nearpod, which allow you to create and share interactive presentations with students on their own devices. Tools like Poll Everywhere and Mentimeter let you conduct fast whole-class polls with a few clicks. And YoTeach! offers backchannel chats that are similar to what used to be found on the now-defunct TodaysMeet.

Put direct instruction on video. Not surprisingly, quite a few teachers are reporting that they feel their direct instruction just doesn't work as well via Zoom as it does in a well-planned, pre-recorded video.

Have a backup plan. Use choice boards (general ones prepared ahead of time that can be used over and over) for at-home kids to use when tech goes out. This post about choice boards from Jenny Pieratt offers some things to think about when putting these together.

Differentiate synchronous learning. Here's something to consider: Does every student need the same amount of synchronous learning? Most solutions I'm hearing related to the synchronous/asynchronous question seem to be shooting for one model for everyone. But just like in the old days, it's not likely that every student needs or wants that much face-to-face time with the teacher, even the ones who are face to face. So maybe we can work toward customizing the amount of synchronous instruction for every student, allowing some to work independently or through digital channels more often, while others who need more interaction can get it?

3. Chunk the Time

It can be tremendously helpful to break up the class period into designated chunks, where some students are learning directly from the teacher, others are working in groups, and others are working independently. If you can make the structure visible and predictable for students, even better. The two resources listed below can help you imagine what those structures might look like for you. (Notice that none of the options listed have the teacher lecturing for the entire period. That's important.)

In this post from earlier this month, Catlin Tucker shared three blended learning models that can work in what she calls "concurrent classrooms."

Beth Alexander, director of Teaching and Learning at the Linden School in Toronto, shared a collection of hybrid lesson structures she's been trying, along with visuals like the ones below. Alexander has given me permission to share all of her models in a PDF, which you can download here.

Courtesy of Beth Alexander. All models available in this PDF.

Courtesy of Beth Alexander. All models available in this PDF.

One more tip for this "chunking": When you switch from synchronous to asynchronous, but there will be a time when you go back to synchronous, set up an on-screen timer to let at-home kids know when time is up for an activity.

4. Build Community Intentionally

Having students in multiple locations makes it much harder to build a classroom community, but those relationships are so important for making students feel a sense of belonging and connection. Here are some things teachers are doing to meet this challenge:

Reserve time to get to know each other. As a teacher, you can get to know students-both F2F and virtual-by scheduling short one-on-one meetings with them. To help students get to know each other, do icebreakers throughout the year and assign students to interview each other as a class project. And set aside time whenever possible for non-academic conversations; over time, these will continue to grow those relationships.

Make using names part of your classroom norms. Several teachers mentioned the positive results they got from greeting online students by name at the start of each class period, and others described setting discussion norms that required students to use each other's names regularly. Be sure you're pronouncing student names correctly, too; this will make a big difference.

Create communal spaces online. Slack and Microsoft Teams are two great options for giving students spaces online for general communication. Padlet is another option for structured or unstructured conversations. And Parlay is a robust platform for much more formal discussions.

Use lunch and recess for socialization. Some schools are setting up Zoom sessions for "lunch buddies," where students at home just hang out and talk with students in school. Although you may not get a large response to this kind of an opportunity, think of the social impact it could make on just a few kids to have that small community to visit with every day.

Use video. Flipgrid offers a simple space where students could record short videos that could be shared with the class. One teacher mentioned using these videos to have students record short responses to the prompts that would normally be given for writing in journals.

Play games. Quite a few digital games, like Kahoot!, Quizizz, and GimKit, can be played with both at-home and F2F students at the same time, all while reviewing course content. A few people mentioned Minecraft as an ideal platform for play and interaction. Even a game like Crumple & Shoot can be played where the F2F students shoot the paper wads, but at-home students can still be on the teams.

5. Experiment with Cameras and Screens

Lots of teachers mentioned setups that involved more than one camera and screen so that the same broadcasts can capture different things simultaneously. The number of ideas and combinations along these lines got pretty overwhelming, so I'll just share three big ones:

Two Zooms. When broadcasting, many teachers are setting up one camera to focus on them and another to focus on the board, another shared screen, or a document camera. This puts the "teacher" on Zoom twice but gives students more of a feel for what's happening in the classroom.

Mics and Headsets. Some teachers are putting Bluetooth earbuds in and/or wearing mics on headsets so they can communicate directly with at-home learners without disrupting the in-person class. I think this might drive some people (like me?) crazy, so take this with a grain of salt.

Swivl Cams. A few teachers mentioned using Swivl cameras to track either the teacher or to follow group interactions for students at home to watch.

6. Optimize Discussions

If your synchronous time includes class discussions that include both F2F and at-home learners, these suggestions can help you make the most of that time.

Establish norms. Many students will hold back in discussions if they don't know what the rules are, for fear of messing up in front of everyone. So be sure to establish clear norms for discussion: What should students do if they have something to say? Are there time limits on commenting? What kinds of things are appropriate to type into the chat? Should students write to each other in the chat? Should everyone stay muted or keep microphones on? The clearer these guidelines are, the better participation is likely to be.

Enable the chat. Some students will never feel comfortable unmuting in a large group, but will participate much more actively in a written chat, so whenever you can offer that as an option for participation, do it.

Assign a chat moderator. Have a student or another adult-anyone but you, if you are the one conducting the discussion-moderate the written chat in Zoom so you don't have to multitask. You can occasionally break from the "live" discussion to take questions from the chat, or establish norms where other students can respond to those questions in writing if they have the answer.

Share questions ahead of time. To improve participation from home, some teachers are sending questions to students ahead of time, having students turn in their responses, then calling on individuals to share their responses in the group discussion. This extra preparation ensures a productive discussion and removes some of the doubt students may feel about volunteering responses or having to think of them on the spot.

Repeat questions. When students ask questions, repeat or rephrase them yourself so everyone can hear. This practice helps anyone who didn't happen to hear it the first time, which is more likely in a hybrid situation.

Deal with the crickets. If lack of participation is a problem, you need to figure out the root cause, because it could be any number of things. Start by reading this post about improving student participation. You might also try to add more structure to your discussion by using a strategy like Philosophical Chairs, the TQE method, or the Discussion Game.

None of these ideas are really tested, researched, or optimized in any way, so don't feel like this is some massive to-do list that you have to check off. If you can implement one or two strategies that make things better for you and your students, that's a success.

Probably the worst thing you can do is to try and replicate exactly what you were doing before 2020, time-wise and content-wise. That's trying to force a square peg into a round hole; by doing that, you're just signing up for a ton of frustration.

Years ago I wrote a piece urging teachers to think of your teaching as always being "in Beta." Consider teaching in a post-COVID world to be the most massive project-in-Beta ever. It's going to be messy, but that's how humans learn and grow and adapt. Continue to experiment, fall apart on the days when it's your turn (because everyone seems to need a turn every now and then), ask students and parents for feedback, observe other teachers when you can, and most importantly, keep giving yourself and your students grace.

We're getting through this.

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Some students are in the room with you. Some are home. Everyone is spread far apart. How do you teach this way? How do you build community? Here are some ideas.

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