Sustainable Development Goals in the Middle-Level Classroom

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Problem-solving is a crucial skill we teach our students through in-class experiences to prepare them for their future. One of the most critical problems our students can solve is the challenge of sustaining our planet for future generations. In 2015, leaders from the 193 countries of the United Nations created a plan with 17 interlinked … read more »


Ideas for Finding and Documenting Service Learning Projects

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The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others. Mahatma Gandhi Each year, the United Nations designates June 23 as Public Service Day. This event began with the UN’s resolution of 2013 recognizing and celebrating public service’s value to the community. There are many benefits to performing community and … read more »


Teach Your Students to be Global Digital Citizens!

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What is a Global digital citizen? According to Lee Watanabe-Crockett, “A Global Digital Citizen is a responsible, ethical citizen, leveraging technology to foster community on a global scale through connection and compassion.” Global digital citizenship embodies 5 tenets: personal responsibility, global citizenship, digital citizenship, altruistic service, and environmental stewardship. The internet has amazing potential to … read more »


Supporting Refugee Students in the Classroom

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June 20th is World Refugee Day, established by the UN to honor the courage and perseverance of people forced to flee their home country. Among these refugees are school-aged children entering communities largely unknown to them. With that influx, public school systems have taken on the responsibility of welcoming and supporting these students. Supporting refugee … read more »


21 Free Tech Tools for Knowledge Construction

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Searching for the definition of knowledge construction leads to several different meanings that all begin with the fundamental premise that knowledge is a generative process. This article provides twelve descriptions of knowledge construction! As educators, we understand that knowledge construction is crucial to successful learning. Learning about the different methods that students learn allows us … read more »


Let’s Talk About: Great Outdoors Month

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June is Great Outdoors Month, a time to celebrate our local, state, national parks, and waterways. As we straddle the line between pandemic and endemic COVID-19, we need to balance safety for those still vulnerable and learning to live with COVID19 as an endemic disease. In 2020 we discussed staying close to home with your … read more »


Tech Tool of the Month: Along

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Along is a tool that provides reflection activities, digital check-in activities, and ideas to use with students that incorporate text, audio, and/or video. Students can choose which format they want to use to share their responses. Educators can share questions with some or all of their students to make connections and check in on their wellness. … read more »


Let’s Talk About: Ma Rainey

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June is African American Music Month. Well-meaning teachers may take this as an opportunity to introduce a lesson about African American music. However, without context or connection to the curriculum, the class might fall flat and not engage students as intended. I want to suggest a more culturally responsive approach. Reading Teach Boldly for the … read more »


Sally Ride, Women in STEM, and Tips for Creating a Successful Biography Unit

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“I did not come to NASA to make history.” Sally Ride She may not have come to make history, but she certainly did. May 26 is Sally Ride Day, celebrated on the anniversary of her birth in 1951. Most of us recognize Sally Ride as the first American woman to go to space. Her first … read more »


Creating a Sandbox of Innovation

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Spring signifies new beginnings, progress, and the blossoming of new things. But did you know that May is also National Inventors Month? If it weren’t for inventors, you might be receiving this post through the telegraph or the Pony Express! National Inventor’s Month recognizes the talents of people who have impacted our world with their … read more »