Teachers Pay Teachers

JULY 7, 2025

A good classroom management system, a novel list, and a set of writing prompts go a long way to set students and teachers up for success. Keep writing prompts on hand 6. For students who are testing below grade level, incorporate the CCSS for language arts that are closer to their actual abilities. Table of Contents 1.

Grades 52

Grades Teaching Teachers Teaching Philosophy 52

Faculty Focus

JUNE 15, 2025

I still assign readings. Try This in Your Class Tomorrow If you want to test this out without overhauling your syllabus, here’s a quick plug-and-play format: Choose a paradox related to your next topic. Write it on the board as the only thing visible when students walk in. But I don’t start there anymore. Something provocative.

Syllabus 98

Syllabus Ethics Art Questions 98

Faculty Focus

JUNE 15, 2025

I still assign readings. Try This in Your Class Tomorrow If you want to test this out without overhauling your syllabus, here’s a quick plug-and-play format: Choose a paradox related to your next topic. Write it on the board as the only thing visible when students walk in. But I don’t start there anymore. Something provocative.

Syllabus 85

Syllabus Ethics Art Questions 85

Teachers Pay Teachers

JULY 21, 2025

ELA class gives middle schoolers the opportunity to write creatively, read imaginative stories, and present their thoughts and opinions to peers. These short ELA activities for middle school get students thinking and writing quickly. If they’d prefer, let them write in a texting or social media format.

Middle School 52

Middle School Middle School Activities Schools 52

Organized Classroom

MAY 16, 2025

Read & Post: Read & post homework assignments every day. Rank & Order: Have students number each assignment in order of “attack”, e.g. what is to be done first, second, third, etc. They also don’t waste valuable time mulling over more difficult assignments. Color Coding: Highlight any tests (e.g.

Students 70

Students Assignments Testing Reading 70

Teachers Pay Teachers

MAY 21, 2025

Like the smile from acing a test or the joy of earning a reward, those flashes of satisfaction are unforgettable. The next day, have students write a secret message using a white crayon on white paper. Turn off the lights and test it out. For teachers, watching students have those aha moments isnt just special: Its the dream.

Elementary School 75

Elementary School Elementary School Science Schools 75

Teachers Pay Teachers

JUNE 2, 2025

High schoolers write a lot every school day. How can you help them improve their writing skills and have fun at the same time? Thats where daily writing prompts come in! Write a thank-you note to someone in your life. Have students write to the prompt before class begins. Do you like watching sports live or on TV?

High School 52

High School High School Writing Essay 52

k12

JULY 10, 2025

Virtual Whiteboards: These online tools replicate the traditional classroom whiteboard—and in some cases, students can even write or draw on them too. Online learning isn’t limited to slides and reading assignments. Creative Expression of Learning: Not every child shines through essays or multiple-choice tests—and that’s okay.

Online Learning 52

Online Learning Quizzes Learning Motivation 52

Teacher Toms Blog

MAY 30, 2025

She's recently learned that his teachers were dangling these mandated breaks as a "reward" for completing this or that assignment. Indeed, the research finds just the opposite: every human ever tested thinks more clearly while their body is in motion. I've been writing about play-based learning almost every day for the past 14 years.

Motivation 104

Motivation Assignments Testing Writing 104

k12

JUNE 24, 2025

I also enjoy writing very much. While I don’t write my own stories frequently, I love drafting new ideas for written pieces. Sometimes more if there’s a test coming up. Sometimes, I need to focus longer on my college classes, so I have to wait to work on a high school assignment until the next week.

Schools 52

Schools Grades Students Online Learning 52

Teachers Pay Teachers

JUNE 30, 2025

Test your students’ funny bones and critical thinking skills with these science-themed riddles and jokes. Students can work on their own or in teams to test their knowledge of facts while solving subject-specific riddles. Test their knowledge of organelles and their functions with scavenger hunt activities.

High School 52

High School High School Schools Math 52

Teachers Pay Teachers

JUNE 23, 2025

Facilitate a respectful discussion when you bring these controversial debate topics or writing prompts for high school to your classroom Are immigration laws in the United States fair? Practice perspective-taking by exploring pros and cons How strong are your students’ arguments when testing against a counterargument?

High School 52

High School High School Schools Counselling 52

Ask a Tech Teacher

NOVEMBER 16, 2017

debugging – write-edit-rewrite; try, fail, try again. Before starting, review the digital citizenship associated with visiting an online site (such as privacy, staying on the assigned website, and not talking to strangers). Students now write directions for which color is poured into what squares to create their drawing.

Grades 234

Grades Activities Art Writing 234

Catlin Tucker

DECEMBER 12, 2023

In our newest book, Shift Writing into the Classroom with UDL and Blended Learning , Dr. Katie Novak and I guide teachers in creating the time and space to support all parts of the writing process in the classroom. If there is only one pathway provided, students may question their ability to complete a writing task successfully.

Assignments 458

Assignments Writing Feedback Motivation 458

eSchool News

JANUARY 30, 2023

Learning a new language is challenging, requiring a student to master four basic skills–listening, reading, speaking, and writing–from scratch. Speaking and writing are about producing the language, requiring a different mental muscle from learners. Writing is essential for professional and long-distance communication.

Writing 276

Writing Skills Essay Language 276

Catlin Tucker

FEBRUARY 26, 2023

Rubrics identify specific criteria relevant to the assignment, along with corresponding levels of performance that allow for more precise grading. When teachers provide students with the rubric at the start of any assignment or task that will be assessed, the rubric serves as a roadmap. How does using rubrics benefit students?

Fairness 546

Fairness Assignments Feedback Language 546

Edsurge

JULY 21, 2022

I've thought about opening it up widely—write a historical novelette (using primary sources, of course), create a sculpture, write a song—but, again, I have no idea how to grade something like that, considering the wide range of talent that my students likely will have. I feel weird about testing them on genocide.”

Assignments 195

Assignments Grades History Art 195

Catlin Tucker

APRIL 22, 2025

When state testing season arrives, classroom routines can quickly fall apart. In this blog, I’ll share six strategies that encourage students to explore, create, reflect, and connecteven during the testing season. Writing a diary entry from that persons perspective. Then, guide them in reflecting on whats changed and why.

Testing 195

Testing Learning Critical Thinking Essay 195

eSchool News

MARCH 29, 2018

Kids love to tell and share stories, but writing nonfiction is different, because they have to take concepts or events and not only understand them, but convey that information in writing. However, with all the standardized tests they take nowadays, kids can’t just make molecules out of marshmallows.

Writing 184

Writing Feedback Special Education Middle School 184

Edsurge

MAY 3, 2024

Texas is turning over some of the scoring process of its high-stakes standardized tests to robots. News outlets have detailed the rollout by the Texas Education Agency of a natural language processing program, a form of artificial intelligence, to score the written portion of standardized tests administered to students in third grade and up.

Fairness 197

Fairness Testing Grades Essay 197

Catlin Tucker

DECEMBER 19, 2014

In the past I’ve had students write a timed five-paragraph argument essay about whether Montag, from Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, is a conformist or nonconformist. I was not prepared for the level of enthusiasm, excitement, and creativity that was generated by this assignment. They were so focused and on task.

Essay 420

Essay Exams English Assignments 420

Edsurge

MAY 23, 2024

When ChatGPT emerged a year and half ago, many professors immediately worried that their students would use it as a substitute for doing their own written assignments — that they’d click a button on a chatbot instead of doing the thinking involved in responding to an essay prompt themselves. Kaufer and Ishizaki were uniquely positioned.

Writing 208

Writing Teaching Essay Language 208

Catlin Tucker

AUGUST 24, 2015

homework, classwork, projects, tests, and projects), I identified the main skills we would be focusing on developing in this class and used those to create my gradebook categories. Of Mice and Men Argumentative Essay: Spelling, Grammar, & Formal Writing Norms. Instead of organizing my gradebook using traditional categories (e.g.

Grades 420

Grades Essay Assignments Skills 420

Edsurge

AUGUST 31, 2017

It is painful when all of the effort that teachers and students put into teaching and learning becomes summarized by standardized test results—especially when hard-working students that have demonstrated massive growth over the course of the year receive poor scores. I wondered how the test would affect him after it was over.

Testing 167

Testing Students Motivation Assignments 167

Catlin Tucker

JUNE 16, 2024

Barriers to Effective Transfer and Application of Learning Assigning the same task to all students without offering any choices can significantly hinder the effective transfer and application of learning. These skills will serve them long after they leave school.

History 382

History Physical Education Art Essay 382

Faculty Focus

OCTOBER 11, 2022

It has been estimated that college students across the globe devote in excess of a billion hours per year to “disposable” assignments (Wiley, 2016). Moving from essential to “renewable” assignments means that the students see the tasks as sufficiently meaningful to be kept and even passed on to others. What a waste!

Assignments 131

Assignments Motivation Science Study 131

Edsurge

MAY 10, 2018

They’re often ineffective as a teaching tool, they’re easy for students to cheat, and they can exacerbate test anxiety. Yet more professors seem to be turning to the format these days, as teaching loads and class sizes grow, since multiple-choice quizzes and tests can be easily graded by machines.

Testing 157

Testing Multiple Choice Questions Quizzes Assignments 157

Faculty Focus

MARCH 18, 2025

While many of our conversations have focused on what generative AI means for student assignments and learning outcomes, there’s another question faculty are askingoften individually and quietly: How can we leverage AI in our own academic and administrative work? Then, share the assignment prompt. And more importantly, should we?

Assignments 80

Assignments Testing Course Design Writing 80

Catlin Tucker

FEBRUARY 7, 2021

I invited Rabbi Elchanan Poupko , a middle school teacher, to write a guest blog and share a strategy for pairing and grouping students for after school work. Last week it dawned on me that I can assign homework to be completed in pairs and groups virtually. Growing up, once we left school at the end of the day, it was over.

Assignments 318

Assignments Schools Middle School Middle School 318

Edsurge

SEPTEMBER 26, 2017

Whether text, video or something else entirely, each of these mediums encompasses a form of writing. The ubiquity and impact of digital writing can’t be ignored. The ubiquity and impact of digital writing can’t be ignored. Increasingly, writing doesn’t mean a five paragraph essay written by hand. engagement and passion.

Writing 167

Writing Teaching Essay Assignments 167

eSchool News

JANUARY 29, 2025

Teachers find AI tools that grade assignments, create lesson plans, and offer personalized student support. When papers need grading or test scores need tracking, AI steps in. AI as an educational assistant AI tools shine at tasks like tracking assignment completion and suggesting practice problems. Will AI replace teachers?

Teaching 318

Teaching Ethics Education Teaching Methods 318

eSchool News

MARCH 5, 2024

These AI tools help students fine-tune their essays before they connect with a live tutor or before they submit their assignments to teachers. AI Writing Review enables students to submit their drafts for lightning-fast feedback. This includes on-demand tutoring along with AI tools that offer feedback on written work.

Feedback 325

Feedback Essay Writing Learning Styles 325

Ask a Tech Teacher

MAY 16, 2023

This post will introduce you to some quick tips for writing a research paper along with the importance of samples. Simple Steps for Research Paper Writing and the Importance of Samples Research papers are academic writings that offer rigorous analysis, evaluation, assessment, and interpretation of a specific topic.

Writing 158

Writing Essay Plagiarism Study 158

eSchool News

DECEMBER 12, 2023

By using the three practical, teacher-tested ideas below, educators can allow students to take ownership of their learning journey. Assignments can even be adjusted so they cover the same standards, but directly integrate student interests like sports, pop culture, or videogames!

Teaching Philosophy 280

Teaching Philosophy Students Assignments Culture 280

eSchool News

NOVEMBER 13, 2023

You can create quizzes for the books your students are reading and assign collections to your students. They get to practice their reading skills, but writing skills as well. For the upper grades you can assign passages and assignments to specific students. I have been able to use it at every level I have taught.

Elementary School 332

Elementary School Elementary School Schools Quizzes 332

Faculty Focus

NOVEMBER 9, 2023

A first-year seminar provides a perfect structure for this assignment, but it could be used in a variety of courses. In this first-year seminar course students get the usual instruction on learning strategies, but more importantly they complete an assignment in the seminar called a Strategy Project Assignment.

Exams 105

Exams Assignments Study Evaluation 105

eSchool News

FEBRUARY 12, 2019

Students are assigned a tech-integrated project and are faced with limited resources and inadequate workspaces to use the latest tools. It’s no surprise that many teachers are hesitant to assign project-based and technology-integrated lessons knowing that the physical state of the building doesn’t support their efforts.

Teachers 280

Teachers Students Assignments Communication 280