As a teacher or parent have you ever sat and watched a kid buzz around like a bubble bee and wonder where that kid gets all his energy? I think about all the renewable resources our state of Montana is trying to tap: wind, solar, water, and more. How can ...

Buddy classroom activities pair an older class with a younger one for regular sessions built around a shared task: reading, art, science, or school routines. The 19 ideas below run from no-prep partner reading to school-wide fundraising. Most work best when the same two classes meet on a fixed schedule. Featured ...

The teacher martyr complex is the expectation that good teachers sacrifice their health, money, and personal lives for their students. Hardin argues that framing teachers as selfless martyrs can make inadequate pay and benefits easier to justify because teaching is treated as a calling rather than skilled paid work. Featured Programs: Sponsored ...

One of my friends realized school had let out for the summer and asked me what were my plans for my “time off.” That always cracks me up. Teachers don’t have time off, but that’s a blog entry for another day. Anyway, this pal—a retired Special Education Teacher--also asked how ...

De-escalation phrases for students work best when they name the emotion and offer a choice instead of a command. Seven short lines cover most classroom flare-ups: acknowledge what you see, ask for more, offer a break, give two acceptable options, or change the subject entirely. The behavior usually isn't about ...

Yes, a school kindness campaign can measurably change culture: office referrals fell from 418 to 192 in one year after we shifted our daily focus from discipline referrals to public recognition of kindness, a drop of roughly 54%, without making new rules or consequences the focus of the campaign. Featured Programs: Sponsored ...

Vincent Van Gogh is considered one of the most influential painters of all time. However, few know of his life outside of his famous painting, “A Starry Night.” Van Gogh’s parents gave birth to a still born son just a year prior to having Vincent. The Van Gogh’s had not ...

College readiness means a student has both the academic skills and the self-direction to handle coursework, deadlines, and decisions without someone managing it for them. It's more than GPA and test scores. The gap can show up in motivation, learning strategies, independence, and academic knowledge. Featured Programs: Sponsored School(s) Liberty University Featured Program: Bachelor ...

A passion for knowledge is the drive to keep asking questions after the answer arrives. It can fade when classrooms leave little room for curiosity and inquiry, and it returns when students are given real reasons to be curious. Teachers rebuild it by modeling questions out loud, not only by ...

When I think back to when I was in school, we worked from the start of class to the end of the day. The only time we had breaks was if we needed to go to the bathroom, or finished all of our work. These little moments were few and ...