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A book about friendship and sharing.

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A fun book about the first day of school, with a fun twist at the end!

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A wonderful non-fiction story about the fearless Eugenie Clark and her love for sharks.

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My favorite formative assessment. You can use or create an online quiz to gauge student understanding. It is a fun and interactive quiz for students to complete in real time. Students love it because they get to compete for the highest score.

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I use this tool to post assignments for my students. I can pre-record test audio so students can take math/spelling tests in their own time and repeat words or instructions as needed. I can see what students have and haven't completed, and track their progress all using Seesaw.

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Google Classroom is a wonderful tool for online use. It connects the teacher and the class in real time and can be used to message, share and complete assignments, post announcements and updates, and share links/resources. It is completely customizable for your classroom needs.

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Classroom Dojo is a great way to connect parents, students and teachers. It is a classroom management tool that monitors behavior, allowing the teacher to reward the class or individual students for being on task/ following classroom rules/procedures.

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A collection of interactive song brain-breaks to help the class refocus and resettle (while learning!)

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Road Trippin' USA | Songs for Kids | Dance Along | GoNoodle

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Depending on grade level, this game can be modified to fit your students needs. For example, in a First Grade class you would have students take turns counting in order, and every student who says a multiple of '10' or the wrong number would be out and have to sit down. Play until one student remains. You can make more challenging for higher grades. As student progress during the year, you can also change goals. First Graders could progress to counting by '5's.

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A game to practice listening/responding skills.

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A fun way to practice site words! Student can make their own boards for an added fun.

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Free Fun Math Games For Kids Online | Funbrain

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Math Zone combines logic and numbers with fun and challenging math games for kids online. With a huge collection of educational maths, visit Funbrain here.

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Open-and-go lessons that inspire kids to love science.

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Mystery Science offers open-and-go lessons that inspire kids to love science. The hook, visuals, and activity have all been prepared for you. Less prep, more learning.

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SplashLearn: Fun Math & ELA Program for PreK-Grade 5

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SplashLearn is an award-winning learning program loved by over 40 million kids for engaging Math and ELA practice. Aligned with Common Core and various state standards.

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One student is the 'guesser' and keeps their eyes closed. The remaining students move to a corner in the classroom. The guesser picks a corner. All student in that corner are out and return to their desks. The remaining students repeat until only one student is left, the winner!

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A great brain break game.

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Teachers from around the country can develop and then share the lessons they create. Some materials are free of charge, others have a charge to support the teacher who created it. Teachers are free to share or sell their work to other teachers.

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The National Science Teacher's Association is full of valuable resources and materials. The NSTA shares journals, books, resources, and more. You can find the science standards here, professional learning opportunities and meet ups, and peers/colleagues to collaborate with.

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Congratulations to the National Winners!

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Strategies, tools, activities and advice for new teachers.

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This blog looks at teaching tolerance in classrooms around the globe. It shares articles, interviews and resources on how to have an equitable classroom.

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As battles rage surrounding how we narrate history in the classroom, there are broader debates unfolding about how we approach diversity, equity, and inclusion work within our schools and personal lives. Irrespective of the identities we hold, questions abound. Where do we even begin this work in our schools and in other contexts? How do we find common ground? And why is there such enduring disagreement about the definition and significance of keywords like racism, antiracism, intersectionality, microaggressions, and civility? Is there just one answer?

Topics: Diversity, Racism, Equity in Education

Pamela E. Donaldson, Facing History's Associate Program Director for Equity and Inclusion, and Laura Tavares, Program Director for Organizational Learning and Thought Leadership, recently published an article on the School Library Journal website . There, they offer educators an invitation into equity work within their own school communities centered around personal introspection and self-education, as well as collaborative learning and reflection with fellow teacher colleagues. Below is an excerpt from the piece:

Topics: Equity in Education

Do you ever wonder how we as a society arrived at this place of profound educational inequity, and what we can do about it as educators?

Facing History's most recent Teaching for Equity and Justice Summit explored this timely, complex, and longstanding question in a dynamic, three-day virtual summit with over 300 educators in attendance. Together, we tackled some of the most vexing issues facing educators today and explored rich frameworks designed to empower teachers to orient their work toward equity and justice. Here are some of the core themes that we explored together:

Topics: Equity in Education

Facing History's Chief Officer of Equity and Inclusion Dr. Steven Becton and Kaitlin Smith recently placed an article in the School Library Journal newsletter about the historical contexts that shape educational inequity and what it takes to disrupt it.

Topics: Equity in Education

At Facing History's inaugural Teaching for Equity and Justice summits this summer, we had the opportunity to hear from Dr. Scott Seider and Dr. Daren Graves-two developmental psychologists committed to deepening communities' capacities to educate and care for Black and brown youth. Co-authors of Schooling for Critical Consciousness: Engaging Black and Latinx Youth in Analyzing, Navigating, and Challenging Racial Injustice , Seider and Graves shared a wealth of insights from their research on the importance of cultivating critical consciousness in the classroom and how to get started. Below are some excerpts from their presentation:

Topics: Equity in Education

As part of Facing History's Teaching for Equity and Justice summit series, we recently hosted Dr. Bettina L. Love in a riveting presentation on her work and vision for education. We look forward to sharing some of our key learnings at the conclusion of the second summit, but we'd like to make sure that Dr. Love's paradigm-shifting work is on your radar in the meantime.

Topics: Equity in Education

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Facing Today - A Facing History Blog | Equity in Education

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As battles rage surrounding how we narrate history in the classroom, there are broader debates unfolding about how we approach diversity, equity, and inclusion work within our schools and personal lives. Irrespective of the identities we hold, questions abound. Where do we even begin this work in our schools and in other contexts?

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Blaine Helwig, a former principal, shares a variety of blogs and writings on classroom equity.

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Tell visitors about this category and the type of posts they'll find here.

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A collection of articles about educational equity.

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George Lucas Educational Foundation

How can we ensure all students have equal access to opportunities, support, and the tools they need to succeed? Explore and share proven ways to make this happen.

Sort by:

To encourage kids to reach their fullest potential in math, consider adopting these four mindsets that help every student to thrive.

Learning loss is real and needs to be addressed, but how we go about it should be commensurate with the size of the moment.

We reviewed hundreds of educational studies in 2020 and then highlighted 10 of the most significant-covering topics from virtual learning to the reading wars and the decline of standardized tests.

The pandemic has revealed-and exacerbated-inequities that hold many students back. Here's how teachers can help.

Whether our emotions get the best of us, or we fall into familiar but unproductive habits, here are 7 common classroom management mistakes, and what the research suggests you should do instead.

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George Lucas Educational Foundation How can we ensure all students have equal access to opportunities, support, and the tools they need to succeed? Explore and share proven ways to make this happen. Sort by: To encourage kids to reach their fullest potential in math, consider adopting these four mindsets that help every student to thrive.

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This blog shares advice and resources on how to create an equitable classroom. More importantly, this blog shares what it means to be equitable vs. equal.

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Every student in my classroom deserves an equal chance despite their differences, what can I do to ensure that?...

Simple; equity in education.

Now you're thinking, "How is equity possible when all too often, our education systems reinforce the same inequalities they were designed to overcome?"

It's possible because you exist. Because you can make a positive impact at a student-level where it matters most.

Truth is, actively creating opportunities for equity in education helps remove barriers so every boy and girl can succeed.

Let's dig deeper into what educational equity is and what educators can do to improve equity in the classrooms.

"What I love most about Positive Action is the way it pertains to the real issues students face in today's world!" - Lori Kessinge, 5th Grade Teacher, Critzer Elementary School, Virginia

What Does Equity Mean in Education?

Equity in education is the process of reforming practices, policies, and procedures at the school and district levels to support academic fairness and inclusion.

This ensures every child has everything they need to be successful, like resources, teachers, and interventions.

Equity and Equality

Equality is providing the same opportunities to all students

Equity is giving specific resources and support to disadvantaged students to bring them up to the same opportunity level as their peers

Equity calls for understanding the unique challenges faced by individual students and providing additional structures that help them overcome those barriers.

For instance, think of administering a math test. Since every student has their pen, paper, and a calculator, they're all equal, right?

Yes. But not equitable.

Here's how you solve this challenge by providing targeted support:

Help ESL (English as a Second Language) students understand instructions in an unfamiliar language

Provide text-to-speech technology for visually impaired students

Allocate a quiet space for students with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) to complete the assignment

When you cater to these physical abilities, language skills, and other needs, your challenged students can compete with their peers at the same level.

Why Is Equity in Education Important?

Equity in education goes beyond the idea that equity is morally right because it:

Betters Our Society

The primary goal of public schools in the U.S. isn't only to prepare students for college and lucrative careers but to instill values that make them better citizens.

Additionally, students who attend economically and racially diverse schools express fewer discriminatory attitudes because they learn to see students from various backgrounds as their peers.

These tolerant environments promote:

Creativity

Motivation

Deeper learning

Critical thinking

Problem-solving skills

Integrated Schools Aid in the Reduction of Racial and Economic Achievement Gaps

In the 1970s and 80s, the height of school desegregation, the racial achievement gap in K-12 education closed more rapidly than it has overall in the decades that followed.

This is because many desegregation policies were dismantled.

More recently, something major happened when black and Latino students became less likely to be stuck in high-poverty school environments:

They had smaller achievement gaps with white students on the 2007 National Centre for Education Statistics 2007 Report Card.

In fact, one study showed that switching to complete integration in a district can reduce the current SAT score disparity by as much as one-quarter.

Encouraging, right?

Now let's take a look at what equity in education looks like in the classroom.

What Does Equity in Education Look Like?

Equity in school occurs in two steps:

1. Start by acknowledging some students arrive at school in need of more academic and socio-emotional support than others

2. Ensure students have access to high-quality education

Here are two ways you can start creating more equity as an educator:

Create an Equitable Classroom Environment

Seemingly small classroom changes have the potential to impact you and your students massively .

Equity isn't just a one-time thing but an ongoing process that should be integrated into your classroom expectations and procedures.

Here are simple-to-implement ways you can achieve the goal of equity in the classroom:

Welcome students by name as they enter the classroom, asking them for correct spelling and pronunciation of their names.

Use random response strategies like Numbered Heads Together, color-coded cards, and calling sticks.

Seek multiple perspectives during Q/A sessions using a response like, "That's one idea. Does anyone else have another?". This serves to validate all perspectives presented in the classroom.

Use body language, gestures, and expressions to show the students you value their questions and opinions-smile, nod head in affirmation, and lean toward students.

Identify students' level of knowledge before instruction begins so that you can develop inclusive lesson plans moving forward. To gauge their capacity of knowledge, use tools like:

Word Splash

K-W-L (Know, What, Learn)

Anticipation Guide

Brainstorming

Webbing

Ensure bulletin boards, displays, and instructional materials in the classroom reflect the racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds represented by students.

Keep all religious holidays in mind when creating the classroom schedule aside from the usual school holidays. You can even create a cultural lesson where you guide students as they share the significance of the different holidays in their respective cultures and/or religions.

Use a variety of visual aids and props to support student learning, like multiethnic photos, pictures, and props, and appropriate technology to illustrate concepts.

Give students effective and specific oral and written feedback that prompts improved performance. Go a step further and provide opportunities for students to vet each other through peer reviews.

Explain and model positive self-talk going ahead to share the role of positive self-talk in performing positive actions.

Address Inappropriate Remarks

Truth be told, every student comes to the classroom with their own set of biases and assumptions.

Sometimes, they voice them in inappropriate ways that are informed by stereotypes and misinformation.

Open conversation is important for successful classroom equity, but part of building equity is shutting down insensitive remarks, so students show up as their authentic selves in class.

When a student uses language that defies classroom guidelines, follow these steps:

1. Pause -Stop the lesson at once to focus on the problem so that the important discussion doesn't lose its impact.

2. Address -Draw everyone's attention to the remark without shaming the student. :

a. Identify why the statement is harmful

b. Explain why it doesn't promote equity

3. Discuss -Initiate a respectful class discussion around the biases and background knowledge that may have triggered the student to make the harmful comment.

Doing this can be quite uncomfortable at first, but discussing inappropriate remarks immediately is a powerful way of promoting equity.
How so?
It shifts focus from blaming the student to empowering all the students in the classroom with new healthier perspectives about their peers.

"Positive Action gives children strategies to change negative attitudes to positive ones. The children are actually taught how to help themselves, and others, to be positive when negative thoughts/actions are present. I am able to see what an impact the program can have on children, even as young as kindergarten." - Suzee Fujihara, Teacher at Lihikai Elementary (Lihikai, Hawaii)

How Do You Provide Equity in Education?

Equity education ensures children of every race and gender are set up to succeed.

The best way to provide equity in education is highly contingent on the ability of educators to create an ideal classroom environment.

This is where our adaptable, easy-to-use curriculum comes in. Positive Action can be adapted for a wide range of uses that you can take a look at here.

Some of the uses include:

Special education

Mental health

Multiple intelligences

Gifted and talented education

Multicultural education

Contact us today, and we'll walk you through our curriculum, showing you how it can meet your specific goals as an institution. Take it from one of our satisfied educators:

"Positive Action is a good curriculum and we tied it in with our PBIS. It really helped in making this a safe school where academics and behavior work together so that everybody can learn." - From a Principal in Robeson County, North Carolina

Click the banner below to schedule a webinar with us.

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A Practical Guide to Equity in Education

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Every student in my classroom deserves an equal chance despite their differences, what can I do to ensure that?... Simple; equity in education. Now you're thinking, "How is equity possible when all too often, our education systems reinforce the same inequalities they were designed to overcome?" It's possible because you exist.

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Tips, tools, and resources for creating an inclusive and equitable classroom.

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Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Resources for Classrooms | Common Sense Education

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Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Resources for Classrooms is a list of 36 apps, games, and websites curated by Common Sense Education editors.

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A learning environment is more than just a classroom-it's a space in which students feel safe and supported in their pursuit of knowledge, as well as inspired by their surroundings. Think back to some of the classroom environments you've encountered on your educational path. In your childhood, the learning environment you engaged in was probably vibrant and colorful, with a desk layout that allowed for flexibility if a lesson required more room for movement and physical expression. In high school, your learning environment was likely more focused at the head of the classroom to direct your attention, with rows of desks pointed forward.

But there's more than just aesthetics at play in an effective learning environment. Instructors can also influence a learning environment by the way they teach and the atmosphere they create in the classroom. They can help influence student learning by encouraging student engagement, providing positive and constructive feedback that supports exploration, community among peers, and diversity. Studies have shown that thriving learning environments help increase student focus and retention of information.

As students continue to grow and evolve as learners, so, too, do the environments in which they learn. Learning environments have changed over time and can continue to expand to meet student needs, allowing teachers to continually optimize their learning environment to help students meet their educational goals.

There are different types of landscapes or categories that impact our learning, including our physical environment, psychological environment, and emotional environment. Here's how these three categories can influence a learning environment:

Those vibrant, colorful classrooms of your youth or the rows of desks that characterized high school both fall into the category of the physical learning environment. This category is all about the design of a classroom, including how it's laid out to influence learning, and which spaces are designated for learning activities. This can include the furniture that's used to fill the space and even the equipment a teacher relies on to enhance the learning experience.

In recent years, at-home and distance learning have also become a part of the physical environment discussion. Parents have had to make adjustments at home to ensure their kids have a comfortable space to attend class via video chat and do their classwork off-site. For many, this has meant creating a designated space that helps students feel separate from the rest of the standard home space so home students are encouraged to focus-and to leave school behind at the end of the day once class is done.

Psychological

A positive psychological environment can encourage students to engage with the curriculum-and their fellow students-in ways that can enhance their personal and professional development. By building trust with students and creating a safe space that feels welcoming for all, teachers create a positive learning environment and make sure students have more opportunities to participate, ask questions, take risks, and receive feedback.

School can be stressful at any age, which is why students need a positive emotional environment that supports their educational path. Part of creating the psychological environment's safe space means addressing the emotional environment's need for self-expression and the freedom to express emotions. By supporting student's emotional needs and feelings, teachers help enhance their students' emotional intelligence-which, in turn, gives them confidence. Teachers can also create a supportive emotional learning environment by creating routines students can rely on, encouraging diversity and choices, and celebrating their achievements.

There are a lot of things that parents and both current and aspiring teachers can do to create better learning environments. Some examples include:
At Home

Parents can ensure their kids have a comfortable space where they can attend remote learning or video classes with the supplies they need, good seating, a strong internet connection, and more.

Teachers can set parents up for success by sharing upcoming lesson plans so they can prepare for what's to come, whether by getting needed materials or doing additional reading, and reinforce lessons.

If a student is having difficulty, parents and teachers can collaborate on ways to support the student through the challenge, whether it's through updated teaching methods, tutoring or just additional support from trusted parents.

Make study time more fun with a little music, timed contests and drills, scents that can jog the memory, and other unique learning approaches.

In the Classroom

Consider the layout of your classroom and how it supports student learning. Is there a better way to position desks so everyone can see what's going on at the head of the class? Instead of rows, would semi-circles with the students facing one another create more engagement and camaraderie? Don't be afraid to try new things!

Encourage students to become a part of creating their own learning environment. This could mean having an art day where everyone creates artwork to decorate the walls, or it could mean having an open forum discussion where students can express what they need to be successful in the classroom. It depends on how old the students are and what the class focus is, but students will feel more connected to the environment if they have a hand in shaping it.

Consider employing one of the five most common educational theories to adapt lessons to individual students and their learning needs.

By creating a positive and engaging learning environment, teachers can give their students the physical, psychological, and emotional support they need to thrive and be successful-in school, and beyond.

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A learning environment is more than just a classroom-it's a space where students feel safe, supported, and inspired in their pursuit of knowledge. By creating a positive physical, emotional, and psychological environment, teachers can help students effectively focus and gain confidence. Read on to learn more.

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Walking into my classroom for the first time, I was excited but totally unsure of what I was supposed to do with it. How was I supposed to arrange the furniture? I probably spent a good 2 hours trying to figure this out. What the heck was I supposed to cover the huge blank bulletin boards and walls with?

I am terrible at making posters. If this wasn't enough, getting anything to stick to my walls was impossible; none of the zillion types of tape I tried seemed to work. Who knew taping could be so difficult? This all led to a lot of frustration, wasted hours, and a stressful week leading up to the start of school. To avoid these pitfalls, here are some tips I suggest for setting up your first classroom.

1. Befriend your school custodian. This person is an invaluable resource for any teacher. Whether it is getting your air conditioner fixed to finding a storage place for those broken computers in your room to getting you a comfy teacher's chair, this is the person to talk to. Get to know them. Find out who they are, when their birthday is, and what their cell phone number is (I can't tell you how many times this saved me when I left my keys at home!).

2. Be strategic about where you place your teacher's desk. Where you put your desk depends on how you plan to use it. Some teachers use their desks as a central command station throughout the day. Others use it as just a workspace before and after school and during planning periods. Either way, you'll want to ideally put your desk in a corner that students don't pass by all the time. I would suggest putting brightly colored tape on the floor around your desk and make it clear to your students that they shouldn't go beyond the tape.

3. Create a teaching station. You're going to also want to designate a space as your teaching station. This is a place for you to arrange all of your teaching materials for that day (i.e. copies, pencils, paper, dry erase markers, etc.). This may in fact be your desk, but more likely it will be a separate space that is centrally located. Having a teaching station ensures you don't waste instructional time and invite student misbehavior, having to hunt for something.

4. Set up your entry and exit way. Arrival and dismissal are perhaps the most stressful times of the day for teachers given the amount of stuff that has to get done during these times. To alleviate this stress, make sure your entry and exit way is open and that you are incredibly explicit about how you expect students to enter and leave your classroom. In addition, designate space for students to pick up materials, including pencils, calculators, and warm-ups, and drop-off work, including homework and exit tickets. This does not have to be one space but can be multiple locations that are clearly marked.

5. Figure out your classroom technology. Be prepared for the possibility that your classroom may not have any technology. If you're lucky to have it, make sure everything works. If something doesn't work, submit a work order to get it fixed ASAP. Turn on your computer(s) and make sure everything is updated. Figure out how everything connects (i.e. projector, SmartBoard, document camera, etc.) and spend some time getting comfortable with your technology, as you don't want to have to waste instructional time and looking like a fool fumbling with cords on the first day like I did.

6. Be purposeful with posters and bulletin boards. As teachers, we often make the mistake of feeling proud of ourselves for making awesome-looking, themed posters or bulletin boards (and maybe even pinning pictures of them on Pinterest) but then never referring to them with our students. Don't get me wrong, Pinterest is a great place to look for classroom ideas, but posters and bulletin boards are only as effective as the teacher who uses them. I realized this halfway through last year when a student asked, "Mr. Clay, what does carpet dude mean?", referring to a banner over my board that had "Carpe Diem" written on it. That said, posters and bulletin boards can be an awesome way to invest your students so long as you make sure to refer to and update them regularly. For student work boards, this is really easy if you use sheet protectors, which can also be used as whiteboards by sticking a piece of paper in them (great for class mastery trackers).

7. Go see other teacher's classrooms. A great source of ideas of how to arrange your desks, how to cover up those huge white walls in your classroom, or what kind of tape sticks the best to your walls is to go see what other teachers in your school do. This is also a great opportunity to get to know your colleagues. Important note here, however: don't get overwhelmed by what you see. If you're anything like me, when you walk into a cool-looking classroom, you immediately want to copy everything. However, you don't need extravagant bulletin boards to be an amazing teacher.

8. Prioritize what goes up front. Students spend most of the day facing the front of class. As such, be deliberate about what you put on the front wall. This is a great place to put important information, such as your classroom rules, consequences, big goal, motto, etc. Additionally, you'll probably want to designate some board space for your daily lesson information (i.e. date, agenda, SWBAT, etc.). That said, be careful not to make it too distracting. You don't want students to be confused where to look when you are instructing.

9. Minimize clutter. Classroom clutter can easily distract students. There scientific studies to support this - something about how multiple stimuli present in your visual field compete with one another for your attention, which limits your neural capacity. Regardless, minimize clutter as much as possible in your room to make your life easier. Create an effective filing system. Designate where students should turn in work and where they should put materials. Notice how I didn't say eliminate clutter. A little clutter is okay.

10. Don't be afraid to make changes. The set-up of your classroom is bound to change. If you are unsure about how to arrange your desks, where to put a certain bulletin board, or how to organize your whiteboard space, pick a way and run with it. If a week/month/quarter in, you see the need to change something, go ahead and do it. I was, and still am, constantly adjusting my classroom set-up to make it more efficient.

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10 Tips for Setting Up Your Classroom | Teach For America

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The composition of your classroom can set the tone immediately. Here are 10 essential points for putting it all together.