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What do you do to mark the beginnings and endings of classes? I took a class in grad school which started with 5 minutes of reviewing the news relevant to libraries, books, or reading... or Elvis, because the prof was a big Elvis fan and wanted to lighten the tone a bit. It worked as an engaging ritual, marking the transition into the class.

Many classes already use library materials (physical or online) as course readings. Have you looked, though, at the open textbooks and other instructional materials available in your field?

Interested in tools that make course content more accessible to students with visual and cognitive challenges? Two free Microsoft products features their Immersive Reader tool, which reads aloud text for users.

A new resource from Tulane University gives design tips for making syllabi more accessible and engaging. "Countless instructors complain that students don't read the syllabus. We believe students would use the document more effectively if it were designed more accessibly."

This week, we read the last chapters in Small Teaching, which focus on the emotional dimension of student experience. Here is one suggestion from an immunology professor on making personal connections with students as a way to improve their performance in your course.

Many faculty members struggle with how (and whether) to address current events in the classroom. Chad Williams used social media to build a categorized reading list related to the Charleston shootings. It also makes some interesting points about faculty members' potential role as public intellectuals.

Fascinating example of the creative use of typography to explain complex concepts. The example is about the use of color to connect an equation with its definition, but I can easily imagine the same principle working for maps or conceptual models. (And do read the comments about using appropriate color palettes for the colorblind.)

Interesting advice from Kathy Sierra arguing that the point of a presentation is to do something for the audience, not for yourself. Might be a useful reading for getting some students (and faculty and staff?) past stage fright.

Interesting calculator for estimating the amount of time your assigned work may be taking your students, with a review of the supporting research. How does this match your assumptions and expectations?

Rice University's Center for Teaching Excellence has updated their phenomenal course workload estimator to include time spent writing and studying for exams.

Martin Weller's 25 Years of Ed Tech is a valuable reminder that there is a history to the use of computers in the classroom (and it goes beyond March 2020). It's an open access book, available in print and electronically, but I'm enjoying this audio version, released one chapter at a time, read by a terrific selection of experts in the field.

This estimator provides a useful check of how much work your class asks of students. It might be a good tool to give your students directly, as a planning tool for getting all their commitments met.

Terrific ideas about using music and writing as an opening section of every class. This weaves a lot of threads together, from writing and class preparation to the role of rituals in attention.