5 STEM-based TED-Ed Lessons to close out your school year

School days might seem as if they move at a glacial pace in the countdown to summer break. Some schools have already closed, while others have a couple more weeks left. Teachers who still have classrooms full of students can use TED-Ed Lessons to liven up these last days and highlight students’ different personal interests.

The TED-Ed platform is especially cool because educators can build lessons around any TED-Ed Original, TED Talk, or YouTube video.

Once you find the video you want to use, you can use the TED-Ed Lessons editor to add questions, discussion prompts, and additional resources.…Read More

3 ways families can support students’ learning at home

For parents and caregivers, supporting your child’s learning can be stressful. Academic concepts are taught differently than they used to be. In addition, we’re all grappling with a scarcity of time and juggling competing priorities. It is hard to keep up–especially if you don’t have the resources to do so.

At Brooklyn Landmark Elementary School, we recognize that part of supporting students’ success is supporting families. Research shows students who have families engaged in their learning are more likely to attend school regularly, have improved social skills and behavior, and achieve high levels of academic performance.

One of our goals is to build the capacity of our families to make supporting their child’s learning as easy and accessible as possible. For example, we offer family coffee chats and family workshops that provide practical strategies and ways to support their own mental health and wellbeing—as well as their children’s.…Read More

How to fund your CTE program

Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs provide students with relevant tools and skills that set them up for success in life and their careers, including those not typically part of traditional academic programs.

These programs offer something unique and, in many cases, tap into a student’s personal interests – even as they still provide a valuable education experience. CTE programs have countless benefits to students, and funding to implement, sustain, or grow your existing CTE programs is crucial. While there are many free resources available, having the funds to purchase basic equipment or upgrade to premium services can make a huge difference.

So where do you start when looking to fund your CTE program? The most significant source of United States government funds for CTE comes from The Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act, also known as “Perkins V” or “Perkins CTE grants.” It’s a grant, meaning you don’t have to pay it back, but the application process is competitive, and you’ll need to satisfy requirements as part of the grant.…Read More

4 steps to a successful SEL implementation

After several years of using a homegrown social emotional learning (SEL) approach, our district decided it was time for a more official curriculum that would support our middle and high school students’ mental health, academic achievement, and overall well-being.

With about 840 students in grades 8-12, we’d already developed a homeroom/advisory period meant to create community among students. Our goal was to develop a “belongingness” within our students and staff.

As we built that out, we started creating our own lessons using some of the PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports) curriculum. We assembled an advisory team of teachers who helped aggregate resources about mindfulness, kindness, and other core topics.…Read More

How staff absences impact educator burnout

The average day in a K-12 school has little margin for error; educators have perfected the art of stretching resources. Yet the typical day rarely goes as planned. Staff absences are on the rise this year, and for each person who is out, others are asked to stretch themselves to make it work.

“We have staff who are consistently giving up prep periods to cover for absences, absorbing additional classes, and taking on higher caseloads,” shared one special education director who noted the extra strain staff are experiencing this year.

Research on school staff absences in the past has focused primarily on the impact on students, and the facts are clear that students suffer setbacks when facing chronic staff absences. These absences have been shown to be more prevalent in low income schools, a scary prospect when compounded with the other areas of disparate impact through the pandemic seen in reduced educational progress and increased mental health challenges in low income schools.…Read More

Celebrating Earth Day with Dynamic Digital Resources from Discovery Education

Silver Spring, MD (Thursday, April 21, 2022) — In celebration of Earth Day 2022, observed on April 22nd, Discovery Education and partners are proud to present educators, students, and families a diverse array of dynamic digital resources inspiring students to explore the natural phenomena in the world around them. Available on Discovery Education’s Earth Day website, this collection of K-12 content is organized by grade band and has been curated by Discovery Education’s team of curriculum experts. Discovery Education is the worldwide edtech leader whose state-of-the-art digital platform supports learning wherever it takes place. 

The wide variety of digital resources now available from Discovery Education are specifically designed to integrate easily into educator’s and school system’s existing Earth Day and sustainability education efforts. Among the resources available on the Discovery Education Earth Day website for integration into sustainability-focused lessons are the following engaging on-demand events: 

Going to the Moon with NASA  
Hear Erica Alvarez, NASA Systems Engineering & Integration Manager for Advanced Exploration Systems, share fun facts about the Artemis mission, explain why it’s important, and discuss how studying the moon helps us better understand and protect our Earth.  
 
Exploring the Ocean with Luke Tipple  
Find ways to preserve our planet and its oceans with scientist and Shark Week host Luke Tipple! Learn about his adventurous career path, his passion for the ocean, and his experiences diving with one of the ocean’s most feared (and most misunderstood) predators.    
 
Growing a Forest with Vooks  
Teach students the importance of conservation with award-winning author Sophia Gholz. Explore her experience writing The Boy Who Grew a Forest, the true story behind it, and how she hopes this story will inspire children everywhere to make a difference.    …Read More

Riverside Insights and 7 Mindsets Partner to Improve Student Well-being with Lessons for SEL

ITASCA, Ill. – March 24, 2022 – Riverside Insights®, a leading developer of research-based assessments and analytics, today announced a new partnership with 7 Mindsets to offer Lessons for SEL, a cloud-based solution featuring a streaming platform of video lessons and social and emotional learning (SEL) content with specific focuses on self-awareness, social awareness, self-management, relationship skills and decision-making skills. 

Unlike other well-being tools, Lessons for SEL offers a complete curriculum of powerful, engaging resources and video content aligned to the CASEL framework to help educators, mental health professionals, and school leaders enhance  the social emotional wellness of their students and staff.  Educators can use the platform to identify relevant topics that address unique classroom needs and tailor instruction to support individual student development. 

“Riverside Insights’ partnership with 7 Mindsets demonstrates our continued commitment to support the whole child and their ‘limitless learning’ by empowering them to unlock their full potential,” said Matt Tebbe, General Manager at Riverside Insights. “Lessons for SEL offers a wide variety of educator resources to promote differentiation within the SEL curriculum and is easy to incorporate into the daily routine, since the platform requires no additional infrastructure and many lessons are only six minutes long.”…Read More

Pikmykid Prioritizes School Safety with Expansion of Features

TAMPA, Fla., Mar. 17, 2022 –  Pikmykid, the leading provider of school safety and dismissal solutions, today announces its latest features to provide schools with the most inclusive resources to implement a safer learning environment for students. 

The Pikmykid platform initially began as a solution for schools to streamline drop-offs and dismissals safely and efficiently but has since expanded to become a fully comprehensive safety platform. The platform now includes access to a safety panic button, enabling school staff to raise an alarm on any device for over a dozen different emergencies that can occur with one push of a button. While this feature will allow staff to take quick action against school violence or other unprecedented events, it can also be used as a resource for more common emergencies, including a medical crisis or power outage. This latest safety feature has allowed Pikmykid to tie dismissal, safety, and parent engagement all into a single, user-friendly platform.

Along with the installation of its safety panic button, Pikmykid has also added a  Daily Health Check-In module to help parents and teachers identify students who may be experiencing COVID-19 symptoms. The customizable health questionnaire allows schools to determine the most pertinent information they need to keep students safe. The survey only takes a few seconds for parents to complete and will provide school administrators a variety of insights about students’ health to ensure a safe and ongoing learning environment. The Daily Health Check-In will also help schools apply social distancing measures during morning drop-offs and dismissal and will limit the number of visitors allowed on school property. …Read More