Group items tagged

"With March being National Reading Month, I thought it would be the perfect time to immerse ourselves in STEM-infused literature! Books are so important to growing a STEM mindset, especially with the earliest of learners. Books open doors and windows to worlds and experiences which many students may never have the opportunity to enjoy in person; they give students examples of critical thinking, innovation, persistence, and creativity - all skills needed throughout a student's education and into their future careers. This month, instead of sharing my favorite STEM resources, I reached out to our STEMtastic Discovery Education STEM Community for help, and the response was overwhelming! Asking educators about their favorite books is like asking a chef about their favorite foods; you receive incredibly extensive lists that stretch your thinking to places you never imagined. What started as a list with three categories grew organically to encompass the breadth of literature supporting a STEM mindset in students, educators, and the everyday population."

"Teaching financial literacy in the classroom is one promising way to improve financial capacity for today's young people. Today's young people face an overwhelming number of complex financial decisions. However, many are unprepared to make informed financial choices as they move into adulthood. In fact, three out of four young adults cannot answer basic financial questions. Teaching financial literacy in the classroom is one promising way to improve financial capacity for today's young people. Research shows that by the age of 12, students will develop an economic understanding that researchers describe as "essentially adult". By including lessons on smart money habits early in their cognitive development, we can encourage young people to save money, foster family conversations, a"

"Online reviews of edtech tools tend to focus on technical features with little mention of how teachers can apply each product to the classroom. This can make the process of deciding on an edtech solution overwhelming for new and established teachers alike. To address this challenge, local NJ superintendent Nicholas Diaz (@nicholasadiaz ) presented edtech tools favored by teachers in his district, and called on educators in the audience to share their favorite edtech tools with the greater community.  We've created flashcards for each edtech tool recommended by the NJ teachers and school leaders who participated. It is our hope that teachers consult them when deciding which edtech tool to try next. "

"Audacity is a free, open-source program for recording and editing audio. It's available for Windows, Mac, and Linux computers. For classroom podcasting projects or other classroom audio recording projects, it is hard to beat Audacity. The only trouble is that it can feel a bit overwhelming the first time that you open it up on your desktop. Fortunately, there is no shortage of YouTube videos that will show you everything you need to know and then some."

"Social media overload is real. Being a connected educator can be overwhelming, especially if you have been given a ton of information at once. Do you ever wonder how colleagues stay so connected and make it look so seamless? Let me let you in on a little secret. They all use sites and/or apps to manage their connectedness. Some apps, like Instagram, allow you to set up this feature in the app. Other times, using a different site and/or app is more ideal. I'm sharing a few of my favorite sites and apps to manage my connections, and I'll also share one that came up repeatedly when I asked my PLN for their favorite social media management apps."

"Twitter can be overwhelming if you don't use it regularly. Here are a few tools to discover the best and funniest tweets, and ensure you don't miss out on some of its best moments."

"Starting to integrate technology can be intimidating.  So many choices, new ideas being shared all of the time through social media, blogs, books, Teacher Professional Development, and more. I find the best time to walk away with new ideas is right after a big event dedicated to edtech. With conference season upon us, maybe you recently attended a conference or edcamp or read something and now have a long list of new ideas which can be overwhelming. Or maybe you just are looking for something to change in your classroom or school and need some quick ideas for new, engaging elements to implement in your classroom or with your faculty even for professional development."

"What are the kind of things a 21st century teacher needs to know and be able to do? What about 21st century students? What education technology works, and what is a waste of time? What would a checklist for 21st century teaching look like? Does "21st century teaching" even make sense to use as a phrase anymore? If not, do we just say "teaching"? Does that fit our needs to innovate our collective profession to meet a modern circumstance? These are among the questions today's teachers have to face daily-in the classroom, mass media, professional development, and more. These conversations can get complex, opinionated, stuffed with rhetoric, and downright overwhelming at times. In response, Sylvia Duckworth has made consistent contributions to this conversation by creating colorful illustrations that communicate many of these ideas in easy-to-skim, easy-on-the-eyes, tempting to pin and share graphics."

"It can be a challenge to get middle schoolers interested in reading. The thought of tackling a thick novel can be overwhelming, especially during distance learning. Short stories are always a great choice."

I spent most of my teaching career stressed, overwhelmed, and exhausted. While I love my job, I often felt unappreciated and taken advantage of. Well-meaning people in other professions would tell me I just needed to set better professional boundaries, but that seemed impossible. Then a friend suggested I start with just one boundary and add on from there. This was manageable and I'm now up to five teacher boundaries. It's been life-changing - inside and outside of school.

"Over a rushed lunch period the other day, my colleague took a much-needed breather as she described a pandemic-era staff meeting. "Everyone had masks on," she said, "but their eyes were screaming. I honestly don't know how many people are going to quit before the year is up." As the conversation continued, we discussed the increasing prevalence not just of teacher retention issues, but also of less visible gratitude from those in upper-level positions. Though administrators, department heads and team leaders are doubtless thankful for all teachers do, it doesn't hurt to be a little clearer about how much we wish to support and appreciate one another through these difficult times when everyone is beyond overwhelmed. For school leaders who already have so much on their plates, here are four simple ways to increase an overall sense of wellbeing for teachers without becoming burdened with yet another "one more thing" to do."

"At the beginning of a school year, settling in with a whole new group of students, it can be difficult to navigate heated moments. How do you deal with all-too-predictable disruptions in a way that feels proportional and controlled when there are a thousand daily decisions to make and dozens of personalities in play? When you're overwhelmed, can you really afford to be empathetic?"

"Being a tech coach these days can be a bit daunting. Teachers were thrown into the deep end last year, and they're still overwhelmed. Yet we know as coaches that we have to keep moving our teachers forward to help them find confidence and success with technology integration. In this blog, I'll share ten fun ways that my team and I help our teachers grow."

"With so many schools adopting the use of iPads I find it strange that we aren't hearing more about the incredible opportunities available in iTunes U. Well I suppose it isn't that strange given that schools in the early stages of transitioning to an iPad platform are extremely busy and learning one more thing can seem overwhelming."

"One-to-one technology can transform a classroom. When implemented correctly, students are engaged and excited to learn, and teachers can assess their progress in real-time. The amount of technology resources available for educators can be overwhelming. "