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How Kahoot Can Help Teachers to Engage Students

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How Kahoot Can Help Teachers to Engage Students

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Short Article

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How Kahoot Can Help Teachers to Engage Students

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12 Ways to Use Kahoot It in Your Classroom

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12 Ways to Use Kahoot It in Your Classroom

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Great Website

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If you haven't heard of Kahoot! yet, you've got to check it out! The teachers in our community frequently rave about the free website teachers can use to play review games and quizzes with their students. Bonus: Kids can log in to the platform from any device, even their cell phones.

Last week, teacher Beth asked for some specific advice on how to use the site: "Can anyone give me ideas for how they use Kahoot! in their classrooms? I'm not sure I'm using it as effectively as I could. Thanks!"

Beth, we've got you covered. Check out these ideas for using Kahoot! in your classroom from real teachers:

1. How to get started: "Go to getkahoot.com and create a free account. You can search the public quiz games or create one of your own. I'm not even that tech-savvy, but I played around with it and figured it out. It's pretty simple." - Dawn K.

After you've created an account, launch a game and then have students input the unique pin at kahoot.it.
2. Tap into the kids' love of technology and competitive natures... "There's a new 'ghost' feature that lets the kids play against their previous score. They love it!" - Suzanne K.

3. ... But still keep the volume at a minimum. "I play calmer music from Pandora if the Kahoot! music is too overstimulating for the students. If they get too rowdy, I limit how often we do it until they get the message." - Jo Marie S.

4. Use the results to direct classroom activity organization. "I use the data as a way to organize and pull small groups." - Renee Q.
5. Assess student understanding. "It works great for assessing where students might be missing a concept or content." -
6. Zero in on the needs of individual students. "You can get detailed reports of which child missed which questions!" -
7. Conclude class with a quick round. "You can use it at the end of class or after notes for a formative assessment. I always have to do it at the end because they get too excited if I do it in the middle of class." - Nikki S.

8. Try it for review (and check out comparable free sites, too!). "I love it for review! I make my own, but also search others and duplicate, then pick and choose questions that work best for the material I'm covering. I love it, and so do the kids. Another new favorite site like this is Plickers. Check it out!" - Stephanie H.

9. Need a last-minute time filler? "Create at least one Kahoot! game for each of your units, then play it when you have a random, unexpected ten minutes to fill." - Erin F.

10. Warm up the class with a game. "I use it as my class starter. I do a quick five questions on topics we've covered or material learned from a previous class." - Darenda B.

On the flip side, you could also do this as a pre-assessment, piquing students' interests and gauging what they already know about the topic by asking questions before teaching the material.
11. Assess students' knowledge before the start of a unit. "I use is it for mental/oral starters in maths and I've also used it to assess subject knowledge before starting a new topic and after, although I think Socrative is better for that." - Emma L.

12. Include a game in your sub plans. "Here's a simple sub plan: The students play a game of Kahoot!, and after each question, have the students explain why that's the correct answer." - Calypso B. Love it!

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12 Ways to Use Kahoot! in Your Classroom - WeAreTeachers

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If you haven't heard of Kahoot! yet, you've got to check it out! The teachers in our community frequently rave about the free website teachers can use to play review games and quizzes with their students. Bonus: Kids can log in to the platform from any device, even their cell phones.

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Educationworld.com

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Education World | Connecting educators to what works

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Education World, connecting educators to what works. K-12 education resources, lessons and news. Classroom strategies and innovation for teachers all over the world

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Short Video

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Short Article

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Reflection

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Managing pace in lessons: some reflections and suggestions

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If you want a lesson to engage learners effectively and maintain energy and focus, you need to pay some attention to managing pace. When you plan a lesson, it is helpful to consider the methods you will use to manage pace. A lesson that is conducted at the same pace throughout can risk students switching...

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VIDEO

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Do's and dont's of microlectures. Based on: Visible Learning meta-analysis & CTML

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How to help learning with microlectures? Consider the Visible Learning meta-analysis by professor John Hattie. This video was made with Videoscribe. Free trial: http://www.sparkol.com?aid=76483 Why would you make microlectures and what can you expect?

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THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT…™MICROLECTURES

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THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT…™MICROLECTURES

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ARTICLE

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VIDEO

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Discussion and Supporting Materials

Thought starters

1. How do mnemonic devices help with lesson structure and pacing?

2. How will "COPS" help students edit their writing?

3. How does frequent questioning enhance lesson structure and pacing?

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Get great ideas for helping with the pace and structure of the lesson you teach. Watch one middle school teacher in action, and get a number of takeaways that you can use in your classroom to improve pace and structure.

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Instructional Pacing: How Do Your Lessons Flow?

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Instructional Pacing: How Do Your Lessons Flow?

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GREAT ARTICLE

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Any of this software will meet your requirement:

- Abtutor (abtutor.com) ~$350 for one teacher station (unlimited students/clients)
- Netop Vision (www.netop.com) ~$1000 for one teacher station (unlimited students/clients)
- InSight (www.faronics.com/products/insight)

We're currently using Abtutor and InSight.

Enjoy,

If you have a Mac lab, Apple Remote Desktop is your friend. I use it in my Broadcast, Video and Multimedia classes. The client software is already built into the Mac OS, and the administrator software is 70 bucks, you install that on your instructor machine.

I was warned it would be a headache to install but haven’t had any issue for the two years I’ve used the software.

We're on PCs and our school system uses NetSupport. It's not perfect but it has done a great job of helping me keep an eye on student machines the few times I actually sit at my desk. Probably the feature I use the most is to lock screens when lecturing. Hope this helps.

We use Netop vision. The program is perfect as you can do numerous things. I have used this program for over a decade.

Here are some of the things you can do with the program

real-time student monitoring

demo from teacher station

ability to limit students use (lock keyboard, lock or limit internet)

ability to remote control computer

https://www.netop.com/edu.htm

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IT'S FREE!!

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Cell phone management idea

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Most of us can't live without our cell phones. Unfortunately, neither can our students. I teach on the college level, and my syllabus states that all cell phones are to be put on "silent", "vibrate", or turned off when class is in session. Sounds good, doesn't it?Yet, one of the most common sounds in today's classrooms is the ringing of a cell phone, often accompanied by some ridiculous tune or sound effect thatbroadcasts to everyone a call is coming in. It's like "technological terror" has entered the classroom uninvited. Inevitably, this happens during an important part of a lesson or discussion, just when a significant point is being made, and suddenly that "teachable moment" is gone forever.

What are teachers to do? Some instructors stare at the offender while others try to use humor to diffuse the tension. Some collect the phone, returning it to the student later.A few have gone so far as to ask the student to leave class.

In my opinion the use of cell phones during class time is rude and a serious interruption to the learning environment. What is worse is the use of the cell phone as a cheating device.The college where I teach has seen students take a picture of the test to send to their friends, use the Internet on the phone to look up answers, or have answers on the phone just-in-case.At our college, this is cause for immediate expulsion without a second chance.To avoid this problem, I used to have my students turn their cell phones off and place them in a specific spot in the classroom before the test was passed out.Unfortunately, the students' major concern during the test was that someone would walk off with their phone.Not exactly what I had planned!

A couple of years ago, a few of us in our department tried something new.Each of us has purchased those long, brightly colored socks that seem to be the current fashion statement.(I purchased mine at the Dollar Tree for $1.00 a pair.)Before the test, each student had to turn off their cell phone, place it in the sock, tie the sock into a knot and place the sock in front of them. This way, the student still had control over their cell phone and could concentrate on doing well on the test, and I did not have to constantly monitor for cheating.

At the end of the semester, we compared notes. Overall, we found that the students LOVED this idea. Many said their students were laughing and comparing their stylish sock with their neighbor's. I was surprised that a few of the students even wanted to take their sock home with the matching one - of course. So here is a possible side benefit....maybe that cell phone away caused my students to the line and study!

If you want some additional help with other irritations that might "drive you up the wall", try the resource Seven Greatest Irritations for Teachers with Possible Solutions. You can find it in my store for only $2.00.

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Sock It Away! What To Do With Those Annoying Cell Phones in the Classroom

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Most of us can't live without our cell phones. Unfortunately, neither can our students. I teach on the college level, and my syllabus states that all cell phones are to be put on "silent", "vibrate", or turned off when class is in session.

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VIDEO

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GREAT ARTICLE

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WORKSHEET

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Cooperative Groups Roles and Responsibilities

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GREAT ARTICLE

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How to Group Students for Cooperative Learning

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How to Group Students for Cooperative Learning

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VIDEO

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11 Creative Ways to Split a Large Group into Smaller Groups

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Lesson Plan Creator

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Logon or create a Lesson Plan Creator account now.

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Strategies from Robert Marzano and John Hattie

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Strategies from Robert Marzano and John Hattie

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These guys know what they are talking about.

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8 Strategies Robert Marzano amp John Hattie Agree On

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Creative Teaching Strategies for CTE Teacher

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Creative Teaching Strategies for CTE Teacher

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Great resource for lesson plan ideas and more!

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Building Rapport

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Great resource for lessons, discussions, projects, etc.

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FRONTLINE delivers thought-provoking journalism that tackles the tough, controversial, and complex stories that shape our times. Explore a variety of issues from around the globe, in this collection of resources from FRONTLINE.

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Presentation Software Alternatives

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VIDEO

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VIDEO

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Creating a Comfortable Classroom Environment

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Creating a Comfortable Classroom Environment

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VIDEO

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Thought starters

1. How does Mr. Van Dyck use proximity and voice control to encourage desired behaviors?

2. What evidence do you see of a positive classroom culture?

3. In what ways is a sense of belonging encouraged in this classroom?

School Details

Buchser Middle School
1111 Bellomy Street
Santa Clara CA 95050

Data Provided By:

Teachers

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Creating a "Comfortable" Classroom Environment

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Students learn best in a positive, safe classroom environment. Brian Van Dyck, a middle school teacher from Santa Clara, California, makes conscious moves in his classroom to create this type of environment. He discusses the value of a curriculum that fosters opportunities for students to have open conversations without fear of judgment from the teacher or other students and shares how he strategically encourages this open, safe environment.

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VIDEO

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Thought starters

1. Why is it significant that students compete for "no prize whatsoever"?

2. How does competition eliminate many classroom management issues?

3. Notice how the energy of the class shifts as they hurry to pass back the cards. Why is this important just before beginning a task?

School Details

Martin Luther King Middle School
1781 Rose Street
Berkeley CA 94703

Data Provided By:

Teachers

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Engaging Students: Make It A Competition

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Drawing on middle school students' desire to compete, Leah Alcala makes the routine task of passing back papers an engaging part of the classroom routine. Whenever she passes back papers, Leah begins in the front of the room and has one half of the room compete against the other half to see who can pass the papers back the fastest.

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New Teacher Survival Guide on Classroom Management

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New Teacher Survival Guide on Classroom Management

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Great 10 Minute Video

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Discussion and Supporting Materials

Thought starters

1. How do students react when Ms. V redirects them with a whisper?

2. Do you see a difference when she tries positive narration?

3. What advice would you give Ms. V to continue improving her practice?

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New Teacher Survival Guide: Classroom Management

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Ms. Vreeland is a new teacher working to improve the management of her classroom. She shares a video of her class with management expert Jackie Ancess. Mrs. V takes what she's learned and tries it out in her class. Watch the before and after.

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Top 10 Evidence Based Teaching Strategies

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Top 10 Evidence Based Teaching Strategies

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Most teachers I know care deeply about helping their students succeed at school, and if you are reading this article, you are undoubtedly one of them. Yet, research has revealed some teaching strategies have far more impact than others. These are evidence-based teaching strategies. Busy teachers have so many demands on their time that it is hard to keep abreast of what the research really says - especially amidst the noise of trendy fads.

That's where I can help. I am a passionate teacher who recently had both my legs amputated. This gives me time to read the research and share my findings with teachers like you.

If you want to make a larger difference in how well your students do, then learn about these 10 evidence-based teaching strategies. Some of them may surprise you!

Evidence-Based Teaching Strategy 1: A Clear Focus

A clear focus enables you to focus everything you do and everything you get your students to do on achieving this intended learning. In turn, this has a sizeable impact ( d = 0.75) ¹ on your students' learning.

Note, the impact of a clear focus relies on you adjusting your teaching and learning activities in line with that focus. It doesn't come from fancy names such as learning intentions or learning targets. You can call them goals, intentions, objectives or anything else - it doesn't matter.

Teaching Strategy 2: Pretesting

The term 'testing' tends to get a bad rap in teaching circles. Yet, when viewed more broadly, it actually a potent teaching strategy that underpins x strategies in this list. Pretesting is the first of these.

Teaching Strategy 3: Show & Tell

I call the second evidence-based teaching strategy show and tell, although the research refers to be various other names. It is grounded in the idea that novice learners learn best with explicit instruction ² and represents the I Do phase of the I Do - We Do - You Do model. instruction should make use of:

The nature of show and tell varies slightly between procedural and conceptual knowledge.

Procedural Show & Tell

With procedural learning, show and tell involves:

Modelling often involves working an example, which has a moderate-to-large impact on students learning ⁴.

When worked examples are coupled with verbal explanations of the steps or actions needed, they have even more impact ⁵.

Conceptual Show & Tell

With conceptual learning, show and tell involves:

Visuals may include text, but they are not text-based. Research on the modality and multimedia effects 3 show that combining meaningful visuals with verbal explanations enhances learning.

However, visuals must be used carefully. See The Use of Visuals article.

Checking for Understanding

Models of explicit instruction, such as the I Do - We Do - You Do framework, advise that you should check for understanding before moving on from this stage.

Strategy 4: Integrate Prior Understandings

Pretesting is a powerful way to activate prior understandings. Yet, activating prior understandings is only the first step. You also need to prompt your students to integrate the new information with what they already understood, with questions such as, how does/is this new information:

Relationships could be sequential, hierarchical, cause-effect or comparative. You can ask your students to show these relationships using some form of a graphic organiser:

And, the impact is even larger in mathematics when integrating prior understandings is coupled with worked examples.

Strategy 5: Retrieval Practice

Research shows that retrieving information from memory is a powerful way to learn. In psychology, we refer to this as the testing effect.

In fact, students who practise retrieving information from memory do far better than students who spend an equivalent amount of time restudying.

You can also ask students to practise using a mixture of the above methods.

Strategy 6: Feedback

Feedback is the breakfast of champions, and it is the breakfast served by extraordinary teachers around the world.

Giving feedback involves telling a student:

Feedback is different to praise. Praise focuses on the student, while feedback focuses on what your student did. It provides your students with a tangible understanding of:

In John Hattie's view, any teachers who seriously want to boost their children's results should start by giving them dollops and dollops of feedback.

If you want to learn more about giving feedback, subscribe to our email list. You will then receive a free copy of our eBook How to Give Feedback to Students: The Advanced Guide. You should also check out our student feedback infographic.

Teaching Strategy 7: Spaced Practice

We know that retrieval practice works well, that it works better than restudying material, and that it gas even more impact when accompanied by feedback.

Yet, research shows that students learn more when they practice the same thing repeatedly with spaces in between than they do when they study the same thing intensely for a block of time.

For more details see Distributed vs Massed Practice.

Teaching Strategy 8: Productive Group Work

Group work can have a potent and positive impact on your students' learning.

Yet, group work done at the wrong time or in the wrong way can backfire. Kids can muck around and leave one or 2 group members to do the work. So, follow these tips:

1. Don't use group work as teaching strategy until your class is routinely behaving well as a whole class

2. When you first use group work, make the task easy enough that students won't need help. Then spend your time watching all the groups, offering praise and positive correction when appropriate.

3. Only use group work once all indivdual students have a basic mastery of the task

4. Choose tasks that have a small number of discrete steps

5. Make group sizes equivalent to the number of steps in the class

6. Have each student complete one step, then rotate roles with repeat tasks

7. Hold groups accountable for their behaviour, effort and results

SHAUN KILLIAN
(MEd., MLead.)

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10 Evidence-Based Teaching Strategies for 2023

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Some teaching strategies have more impact on your students' results than others. Discover this core list of 10 evidence-based teaching strat ..

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HELP!!!!!!

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PowerPoint

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One Pager

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Getting Through Your First Year

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How to survive your first year of teaching | 5 tips from the ISTE Young Educator Network

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Your first year of teaching can be exciting and rewarding, but it can also be overwhelming and confusing. Watch the video for five survival tips for new and first year teachers from the ISTE Young Educator Network.

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Wonderrful Facts About CTE Classes

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CTE teachers already know this: Gone are the days of auto shop and cosmetology. Environmental management, health science and digital game development are just some of the amazing options for today's Career and Technical Education (CTE) students. So the next time somebody says, "You teach career ed? Whaaat? " here are a few things you can tell them.

1. It's much more than vocational ed.

If they think about vocational education at all, most people think of CTE as learning a trade-e.g., how to be a mechanic-but CTE is about much more than that. It's about finding and planning for a career. "Our goal for all our students," says Sandy Addis, executive director of the National Dropout Prevention Center, "is to have the skills, the technology base and the work habits to enter the career area they want." Schools are teaching courses that prepare students for careers in all of the 16 career clusters, from technology to health care to hospitality and tourism.

The ultimate goal is to have our students thinking about their futures as early as possible. Sean Plake, CTE teacher at Stratford High School in Houston, says his health-science courses give students specific knowledge and skills, as well as insight into careers in the medical field.

2. CTE boosts graduation rates.

Want 90 percent of your freshman class to graduate? It takes CTE classes to boost the national average graduation rate of 74.9 percent to 90 percent ( Association for Career and Technical Education). The reason is simple enough: Students have an immediate and practical application for their CTE coursework, which makes school relevant. Hardly any students drop Plake's class-in fact, he's been surprised at just how many students have signed up.

3. CTE doesn't just take place in the classroom.

CTE starts in the classroom, but it quickly extends into the community and online. Local companies often help put the "career" in CTE when they plan a course in collaboration with a school. Students may spend some time in class (e.g., learning how to discuss prescriptions with patients) and some time on the job (in this case, working side-by-side with a pharmacist).

Schools in Colton-Redlands-Yucaipa Regional Occupational Program in Redlands, California, use Odysseyware to provide access to more students who are interested in exploring CTE, and to expose students to the online environment. "We know that when they go to post-secondary," says their superintendent Stephanie Houston, "students are going to need to understand and have some experience with the online arena."

4. CTE raises rigor and relevance.

Sure, the students love their hospitality course or pharmaceutical internship, but being enrolled in CTE courses doesn't mean they're exempt from reading, writing and math. In fact, CTE classes make core English and math classes even more relevant for students, particularly those who are at risk of dropping out.

For example, in addition to the obvious science tie-ins, Sandra Oligny's health-science classes at Zysart High School in El Mirage, Arizona, overlap with math when students do dosage calculations for pharmacology, and she has students submit research papers in the same format as their English courses to reinforce writing and research skills.

5. CTE brings application to a whole new level.

CTE instructors use instructional techniques that make knowledge and skills immediately applicable for students. Oligny's classroom is attached to a lab that's set up like a physical therapy clinic. So, after students have learned about a technique-like how to tape ankles to prevent injury-they go into the lab to try out the technique on one another.

6. CTE is also for college-bound students.

Matthew Gambill, executive director of the Georgia ACTE, recommends that students whose goal is to attend a four-year college also take CTE courses. In addition to knowledge and skills, students can also experience the career they're interested in. If they want to study pre-med at Harvard, for example, taking a health-care CTE course will help them figure out what they do and don't like about that field. "CTE classes," Oligny agrees, "aren't a last resort. CTE is for our students who are planning to go to college or who are going into the workforce."

7. CTE classes are an integral part of high school learning.

Chances are, you know students who are enrolled in CTE. The vast majority of regular high schools-93.6 percent-offered CTE courses in 2008 ( NCES), and more than 90 percent of high school students have taken a CTE course. "CTE isn't happening in isolation," says Houston. "We're not at the back of the campus: We're an integrated part of the academic day." That includes collaborating with general education teachers and making sure students know the academic vocabulary and content they're learning.

8. CTE is for younger kids too!

In the younger grades, CTE is more about developing skills and finding a sense of purpose than choosing a specific path. "We want kids to know what's out there for them," says Addis. "To know that anything they study has relevance and purpose." For example, in Tacoma, Washington, middle schoolers at Meeker Middle School worked with engineers at Milgard Manufacturing to solve the problem of designing a new type of window latch. Starting with clay, the students created a design, then produced it with 3-D printers in science and engineering classes before sharing their ideas with the company.

9. CTE makes students stand out.

"Employers express concern that students don't have the ability to think and reflect on their work," says Gene Bottoms, senior vice president of the Southern Regional Education Board. CTE addresses this with a focus on soft skills that include what Gambill calls "employability skills," like the ability to look someone in the eye and shake his/her hand firmly, and 21st-century skills, such as critical thinking, adaptability, collaboration, communication and creativity. Both sets are addressed in CTE courses as students tackle problems in a team environment.

In particular, when students work on projects, like designing and building a solar hot water heater in an engineering class, they fail over and over before they finally succeed. That builds perseverance and inventiveness.

10. After graduation, CTE is all about the Benjamins!

Taking CTE courses can mean earning as much as $19,000 more per year (ACTE). Over a lifetime, that's a lot of cash! It's even better for women. A study by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago found that one year of CTE coursework increased earnings for men by 14 percent and by 29 percent for women. Some of the boost in pay comes from certifications and credentials that students can earn from taking CTE courses. Oligny loves hearing from students who, after taking her class, have earned health-related credentials that help them get jobs.

11. CTE is in demand all around.

Employers want CTE grads. More than two-thirds of the jobs that are being created by 2018 will require some post-secondary training, but not quite a bachelor's degree, exactly the skills that CTE targets. Students are also interested in CTE. In New Jersey, the demand for CTE high schools exceeded capacity by about 17,000 more interested students than there were seats. "CTE is not just an elective for most students," says Plake. "It is their future."

12. CTE is a community for teachers and students.

Being part of a CTE program brings students together. Organizations like the Career and Technical Student Organizations (CTSO) host local, national and even international team competitions. Being part of a CTSO builds even more soft skills (public speaking, team work), says Marsan Carr, executive director of the Florida ACTE, and shows them what it's like to be part of a professional community.

13. Expect CTE to become the norm.

You can expect CTE and the core academic curriculum to become increasingly connected. "We're on the cusp of creating a pathway through high school that takes the traditional academic core and blends it with CTE to prepare students for a double purpose ... both further study and career," says Bottoms.
Looking for more ideas on how to integrate CTE into your teaching? Check out Odysseyware's award-winning K-12 Core, Elective and CTE curriculum and instructional tools.

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13 Things We Wish People Knew About Career Tech Ed - WeAreTeachers

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CTE teachers already know this: Gone are the days of auto shop and cosmetology. Environmental management, health science and digital game development are just some of the amazing options for today's Career and Technical Education (CTE) students. So the next time somebody says, "You teach career ed? Whaaat?

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4 Important Things for a First Year Teacher 

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4 Important Things for a First Year Teacher 

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Zachary Wright, a national finalist for the United States Department of Education's School Ambassador Fellowship is an assistant professor of practice at Relay Graduate School of Education serving Philadelphia and Camden. Prior to that, he was the 12th-grade world literature and AP literature teacher at Mastery Charter School Shoemaker Campus for the last eight years, teaching the school's first eight graduating classes. Full profile →

Recently, I shared with a colleague that I was about to start my new job as an assistant professor of education, assisting first-year teachers as they embark on on their careers, and she asked me an interesting question that I've been sitting with ever since.

"Who do you want your teachers to be?"

It's a fascinating question, one that can, and has, filled many a book.
1. When a student demonstrates skill deficits, remember that it's not their fault; it's your responsibility.
As such, the ideas below barely scratch the surface, but they're a start.

As teachers, we are charged with providing high-quality education to every single student on our rosters, without exception. Some of our students will be highly skilled, thoughtful, mature, and on grade level. Most won't. Indeed, I've taught entire classes where students have been significantly behind in their reading and writing skills.

But while this can be difficult and frustrating, the fault cannot be laid at the feet of our students. If a child is behind in their ability to read, that is in all likelihood symptomatic of the injustice done to them, particularly given America's education system that links one's wealth with one's access to quality education. It is our charge as educators to support our students by closing those educational gaps.
2. Remember your 16-year-old self.
If a teacher begins to blame their students for their educational shortcomings, which can often take the shape of stigmatizing a school community or by lowering expectations for achievement, two things are likely to happen-one, little learning will occur and two, that teacher will likely soon be seeking new employment.

Our students are kids. It's amazing how many times we have to remind ourselves of this fact, but it's true. Kids screw up. It's their job. Whether it's the 2-year-old who spills their juice so they can learn how best to hold their sippy cup, the 10-year-old who got caught lying about their homework so as to learn the value of integrity, or the 17-year-old who cut class so as to learn the power of consequences, the fact is that kids will make poor choices, often times exasperatingly so.
3. The best classroom management is an engaging lesson.
Before we throw the hammer down and irrevocably assign kids designations as "bad" or "trouble," let's just pause to think about the mistakes we made in our younger years. I, for one, am immensely grateful that I am not stuck with the label I rightly earned from the choices I made as a 16-year-old. We must remember that we are here to empower students to learn from mistakes, not to simply get off on a power trip with punishment and discipline.

I've never been a fan of that teacher adage that advised teachers not to smile until October, thus creating a stern demeanor in the classroom. To me, there are two things wrong with that idea. One, it's inauthentic. Classrooms need to be built on honesty, trust, respect and rapport, none of which can exist when a teacher wears a fear-induced mask.

But in addition, it presumes that in order for a classroom to be managed, a teacher must rely on strict discipline. This is false.

Discipline, routines, expectations, rigor, all have their place in the classroom management handbook and are all vital parts of an effective teacher's arsenal. But there is one thing that outstrips them all.

A teacher who relies on discipline to hold their classroom together is putting the cart before the horse. Simply put, if you want on-task learners, build engaging lessons and deliver them engagingly.
4. Teaching is hard, like really, truly, insanely, and appropriately hard.
A student who is engaged doesn't disrupt, act out, sleep, or do any of the problem behaviors that strict mask is meant to stave off. Instead of planning that disciplinary consequence for that one student who hasn't been engaged all year, plan a lesson for them. Show them you care enough to not give up, and they'll break their backs for you.

And finally, don't get it twisted, classroom teaching is, I believe, the single most difficult job on the planet. Nothing comes close to being onstage in front of young people for more than six hours a day, every day, 180 days a year, not to mention the lesson planning, assessment grading, parent contacting, PD attending, and dance chaperoning.

But the difficulty of teaching is in direct accordance with its importance. It's difficult as only the things that matter most in this world can be.

So lace up those boots, new teachers, and get ready for the ride of your life.

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4 Things Every First-Year Teacher Needs to Know

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Zachary Wright, a national finalist for the United States Department of Education's School Ambassador Fellowship is an assistant professor of practice at Relay Graduate School of Education serving Philadelphia and Camden. Prior to that, he was the 12th-grade world literature and AP literature teacher at Mastery Charter School Shoemaker Campus for the last eight years, teaching the school's first eight graduating classes.

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Staying Organized as a High School Teacher 

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Staying Organized as a High School Teacher 

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I'm not a naturally organized person. In July before my first year of teaching, I remember being at the office supply store in the file/tray/organizer aisle, picking up a single black tray and thinking, "Hmm ... this should do it."

Needless to say my first year was a mess both literally and figuratively. Like a lot of things in teaching, I learned how to be organized by trial and error.

Lots and lots and lots of error.

To save you some error, here are my top five organizational tricks!

The BGT in my class stands for Big Gray Thing because I don't know what else to call this beautiful specimen. A friend donated it to me. I believe normal people call them mail sorters.

I teach three double-blocked class periods, so I have one "column" in the BGT for each class, with different tray labels for vocabulary, grammar, school forms/slips, absent/late work, tests, and then Assignments A through C for work that doesn't fall under the other categories. I color-coded the labels to minimize students putting their work with the wrong class.

I honestly don't know how I survived without the BGT. Gone are the days of huge, towering stacks of work around my classroom or 95 students asking every day, "Where do I put this?" Instead, they know already where to put it OR I simply post on the board where the assignment gets turned in. When it's time to grade an assignment, I just collect the papers across the row of trays for that assignment in the BGT.

During my conference period, I sometimes collect anything in the Absent/Late Work tray and grade that. But sometimes I just spend my conference period spinning in my chair or watching videos of my kitten.

Just keeping it real, y'all.

Oh, Black Binder! How I love thee. Isn't it beautiful?

OK, so it's pretty normal. If I were one of those teachers who are perfectly perfect, I would have some adorable and colorful label on the front that says my name and the year, but I'm not. It's beautiful to me, OK?

Black Binder keeps track of every assignment for every student, but it's a lot less work than it sounds. Here's how it works.

First, let's talk about the binder pages. I have one page per class, with every student listed in the order that their names appear in my online gradebook (this makes it easier to input grades later). Next to each student's name, I have five columns for assignments with enough space for both a checkmark and an actual grade. When you make your page, just insert a table with the number of students you have as your rows and about six columns. Here's a sample page with fictional names and fake assignments:

As you can see, Theon Greyjoy needs to get his act together.

If you save the template with student names and blank assignments, you can just print out this page each time you fill it up (it also makes it easier to add and delete students when they move).

Here's how the binder works when kids turn in work. First, I set a hard deadline for an assignment (i.e., "Wednesday at the beginning of class before my timer goes off" or "Thursday before 3:45 after school"). As work gets turned in, I pull out the stack a couple of times and check off whose assignments I have on the left side of the column for that assignment. Then, the second the deadline has passed, I check for any additions to the stack of work. That way I can immediately hold students accountable and say, "Jon Snow, I'm missing your essay-I'll pick you up from lunch to give you more time to work on it" instead of realizing his mistake at home when you've sat down to actually grade it. (I say this under the assumption that your school is like mine, where missing work is the teacher's responsibility, not the student's. Anyway. Moving right along.)

The BGT also cuts down the "I turned it in!" excuse. It's kind of hard for a students to claim that you lost their papers when they watch you take it out of the stack right in front of them.

I'm telling you. Black Binder. It's the real deal.

3) Posted directions for almost everything

This is an excellent way to reduce the stress of repeating yourself and very easy if you have a projector of some kind. At the beginning of every class, I have a list of what students need and what they should be doing ready on the board (along with a timer of how long they have to do it).

I also post instructions when my students are working on multiple assignments:

when they're taking a test:

and other times they might need reminders. This cuts down on what is probably my biggest teaching pet peeve, which is hearing, "I'm done." When instructions are posted, all you have to do is smile politely and point to the board. Students will get used to this, and pretty soon, "I'm done" will be a distant memory.

4) Hanging files for returning student work

Super easy! First, get yourself some hanging files. Give one to each student and have them write their names on the tab. Then file them in alphabetical order in these hanging file crates, which are stackable to save space. When you're ready to pass back assignments, just grab that class's box and file the assignments in the correct folder. I have my students check their files once a week.

It took me way too long to figure out how to blur out my students' names. Anyway.

Having student files cuts down on:

Not knowing what to do when you're passing back work and come across an absent student.

Students feeling embarrassed or obligated to compare grades from work passed back at the same time.

You tripping over 35 backpacks, gym bags, chair legs, real legs, etc., while trying to hand back work to each student.

5) Table bins for materials

For some reason, it took four years for me to learn that it's better to put a few supplies at each table instead of putting all the supplies in one area. Having supplies at individual tables minimizes traffic, and at the end of class allows you to hold individual tables accountable for their messes instead of not knowing whom to address for a completely destroyed communal supply area.

Because I have only a few double-blocked periods, I have bins for each table AND for each class. It was expensive to buy 18 all at once, but I can't tell you how well this has taken care of the "Someone stole my silent reading book/journal!" phenomenon.

6) Setting a timer for getting started after the bell/transitioning

This works well, but only if you use it consistently. I use a timer every day with my eighth graders at the beginning of class to show students how much time they have to be on task. If they don't need any supplies other than a writing utensil, I give them about 30 seconds after the bell to be situated. If they need lots of supplies or have to move desks or something else that will take more time, I give them somewhere around the three-minute mark. The first week of school I let them get used to the timer, the second week I start giving out small consequences (for blatant violations, like the darling who chooses to talk to his friend about weekend plans for the first minute and 45 seconds, then scrambles to get ready in the last 15 seconds and fails). After the second week when they realize I'm for-real about the timer, I only have to remind my students a few times a year.

I also use the timer to transition between activities. Sometimes I use the actual timer on the board, and sometimes I turn to face a corner and say "I'm going to count out loud to 30 in Pig Latin and when I turn around, I need to see your desk in rows for testing. GO! Irty-thay ... enty-nine tway ..."

It might seem like using a timer is kind of militant (which is what I thought going into my first year when I didn't use it), but I can assure you that my classroom is far from that. Using a timer lets our learning run smoothly with minimal interruptions, which means less wasted time, which means more time for extension activities and other fun stuff. Plus, who wants to be in a class where the first 10 minutes of every day is listening to the teacher plead for the class to get settled?

I just use a Google Chrome window with this link open as my timer, but there are many options online for you to choose from. It just needs to big enough for students to see even if they're seated at the back of the room.

So, I know what you're thinking: Most of these hacks require having supplies (bins, hanging files, a BGT, a projector, etc.), and chances are your principal hasn't given you an American Express Black card* for school spending. I would first recommend asking around at your school to see if you can snag extras that may not be in use. If you're still lacking, set up a project with Donors Choose and see if you can get it funded. If that doesn't work, write a letter to your governor and attach a receipt for your supplies and ask if he/she will refund you because his/her budget cuts have made things difficult for you.

I hope at least one of these hacks will be helpful to you. What are YOUR top teaching hacks?

Looking for more support? Check out our Facebook page, exclusively for new teachers!

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My Top 5 Organizational Hacks for Teaching High School

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Even if you're not a naturally organized person, you can overcome! These organizing tips from a vet are brilliant and time-saving!

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VIDEO

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How to Survive Your First Year of Teaching: Teacher Vlog

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5 Quick Tips for Secondary Classroom Management That Actually

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Last week the online ed tech community was buzzing about the recent changes to Padlet's pricing structure. Padlet is a robust service with millions of visitors so it was only a matter of time until they had to start charging more for their premium offerings and offer less in their free plans. For many teachers these changes have meant that they're now looking for alternatives to Padlet. While none of the following tools have as many features as Padlet, they all provide the core element of a digital wall to which you apply digital notes. Here are six alternatives to Padlet to consider trying.

Dotstorming
Dotstorming was built for people to share ideas in the form of digital sticky notes and then vote for their favorite ideas. It works well for that purpose. Students do not need to have email addresses in order to vote on notes posted on Dotstorming. A free account allows you to have three topic boards at a time. The paid account ($5/month) gives you unlimited access. There is also a school-wide pricing plan. Watch my video embedded below to learn how to use Dotstorming.

Lino
Lino, sometime referred to as Lino.It, provides digital walls or corkboards to which you can add sticky notes that contain text, images, videos, or document attachments. Notes containing video links will play the video within your Lino wall. Images can be uploaded to your notes. And you can attach document files to your notes for other people to view. Like Padlet, Lino lets you change the background color scheme for your walls.

The best feature of Lino is the option to create private groups. You can invite people to join your group via email. Once they have joined you can create private Lino walls to which all members can make contributions.

Wakelet
Wakelet is the newest entry into this market. It offers a clean and easy-to-use user interface. On Wakelet you can create what they call collections. A collection is a set notes that you create. Your notes can include text, videos, links, and pictures. The options for adding pictures are linking to an online image, uploading an image, or by using Wakelet's Unsplash integration. Like Lino, Wakelet requires you to email invitations to your potential collaborators.

Scrumblr
Scrumblr is a site that provides an online space to create and share sticky notes with a group. Scrumblr can be used by anyone to quickly create an online space for sharing stickies. To get started just enter a name for your space. The name you choose will be a part of the URL for your sticky note space. To add notes just click the "+" symbol in the bottom left corner of the screen. Double click to edit your existing notes.

Pinside
Pinside is a free online sticky note service. Pinside can be used to create boards of notes for yourself or boards to share with others. You can create a mix of private and shared notes within one account. Sticky notes on shared Pinside boards are designed for creating to-do lists. As each item on the the notes is completed you and or your collaborators can delete completed items.

Flipgrid
If you have been using Padlet's video recording feature and you haven't tried Fligrid, try it. The basic idea behind Flipgrid is that it enables you to post a video prompt and then have your students respond through video by using the webcams in their laptops or through the cameras on their smartphones or tablets. All responses are collected and displayed in a grid format. Watch my video about Flipgrid right here.

These were last week's most popular posts on FreeTech4Teachers.com:
1. 5 Alternatives to Padlet
2. Reminder - The Library of Congress Seeks a Teacher-in-Residence
3. ReCall Study Time - An Extension to Get You Back on Task
4. Goo.gl Is Being Shut Down - 5 Alternatives
5. How to Quickly Create a QR Code for Almost Anything
6. What Causes Body Odor? - A TED-Ed Lesson
7. New Science Lesson Plans from Storyboard That

Ditch TPT & Keep More of Your Money!
This Thursday at 4pm ET I am hosting a webinar titled How to Ditch TPT and Sell Your Digital Products. This webinar is for folks who have used Teachers Pay Teachers and were not happy with giving 20-45% of their sales revenue away. It's also for those who have ever thought about trying to sell their digital products. I'll show you three ways that you can sell your digital products without using TPT and keep more of the sales revenue in your pocket.

Book Me for Your Conference
I've given keynotes at conferences from Australia to Alaska for groups of all sizes from 50 to 2,000+. My keynotes focus on providing teachers and school administrators with practical ways to use technology to create better learning experiences for all students. I like to shine the light on others and so I often share examples of great work done by others as well as my own. Click here to book me today.

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Last week the online ed tech community was buzzing about the recent changes to Padlet's pricing structure. Padlet is a robust service with millions of visitors so it was only a matter of time until they had to start charging more for their premium offerings and offer less in their free plans.

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32 Interesting Ways to use Padlet* in the Classroom

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32 Interesting Ways to use Padlet* in the Classroom

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32 Interesting Ways to Use Padlet in the Classroom  (Recuperado)

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How to Use Padlet: A Fantastic Tool for Teaching

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Padlet is a fantastic tool to use in the classroom. This classroom how-to guide for Padlet will get you started creating pages and using it with students.