Lately I’ve been preparing to teach Multicultural Education at UVU in Spring 2025. While I’ve taught this class before, I’m a bit nervous about getting to the heart of multicultural education in an anti-DEI state and in a place where faith-based groups/beliefs are often on high alert. One thing I know about my students, though, they want happy and healthy students who know they are loved…so it will be great! Here’s something that I found on Cult of Pedagogy that I will likely use in this course, and I know you’ll find it useful, also. After all, it is from my friend Jennifer Gonzalez!
I’ll post the link to the site, but it a nutshell Jennifer and three librarians explore the importance of representation in school AND classroom libraries with practical strategies to build more inclusive collections in both places. They often use the metaphors of books as windows, and sliding doors - emphasizing how diverse literature enriches students’ understanding of the world and fosters empathy - all good things, yes?
One of the things that really stood out to me was the common pitfall of segregating books (that’s really what it is) into “multicultural sections”. Also, the speakers talk about moving beyond trauma-focused narratives and shifting our focus towards stories that exemplify inclusivity, joy and resilience, and narratives that challenge stereotypes. They also speak as fans of magna and graphic novels as genres that often engage marginalized students/communities.
There are lots of tools and resources on the page. This is ongoing, impactful work that shapes how students see themselves and others. We should be doing our part! -Andrew
Cult of Pedagogy Podcast (Episode 237): Curating A More Inclusive Library
Artificial Intelligence for Teachers
Diffit: Diffit simplifies teachers’ work by generating differentiated reading materials tailored to varying student levels in just a few clicks. You can use Diffit.me to quickly produce versions of a text at different reading levels, complete with vocabulary adjustments and comprehension questions. This saves time and ensures each student has access to to materials to match their ability.
MagicSchool: MagicSchool offers powerful tools to save time and simplify daily tasks, from generating lesson plans and differentiated materials to streamlining grading and report writing. MagicSchool quickly adapts content for different learning levels and creating activities like quizzes and games. There are over 50 tools offered to help with teaching tasks including creating rubrics, translation, and communication tasks.
ChatGPT: For lesson planning, ChatGPT can generate creative, standards-aligned ideas for activities and projects. It is also valuable for creating differentiated learning materials (e.g. reading passages, math problems, comprehensions). It can provide story starters, writing prompts, and vocabulary exercises. It is useful for parent communication, helping draft newsletters, updates, and progress notes. It is also helpful for creating rubrics (that’s how I use it!) if you give it the exact parameters!
Eduaide: This site provides tools to simplify planning, personalize learning, and engage students. With features to create customizable lesson plans, quizzes, and activities, you can easily adapt content to different reading and math levels. Real-time feedback tools help monitor student progress, and templates for reports and parent communication save valuable time. The site is a powerful resources for creating efficient, engaging, and tailored learning experiences.
ElevenLabs: This site offers an innovative way to bring audio content into classrooms, using realistic, AI-generated voices that can make lessons and stories more engaging kids. You can create custom audio narrations for reading passages, instructions, or even classroom announcements. You can add variety to your lessons, encourage listening skills, and provide accessible content for students who benefit from hearing information in addition to reading it.
Curipod: This tool offers interactive presentations and activities that make learning engaging and collaborative. With ready-to-use templates and activities, teachers can quickly create lessons that encourage participation and creativity. Curipod features polls, quizzes, and drawing prompts. It allows you to easily adapt content to different learning levels and is a great way to bring engagement into your classroom.
Artificial Intelligence For Kids
Teaching kids to use artificial intelligence early isn’t just about staying up-to-date with technology - it’s about giving them tools to explore, create, and THINK in new ways. Imagine young students discovering how AI can help them solve problems, research their favorite topics, or even create stories and art! By Introducing AI thoughtfully, we are showing kids that it’s not just a “cool” technology, but a powerful learning ally.
Here is what my friend Jennifer Gonzalez at Cult of Pedagogy says. (I mean, if Brené Brown can MJ’s ‘friend’, Jennifer can be mine.) “Great educators do not run from innovation; they embrace it and forge both forward to work with it.” We have been using a certain amount of AI for years - in our vehicles, our fitness watches, and good old Siri & Alexa - the field has grown at a breathtaking pace in the last year or so.
Here is a valuable collection (via Padlet) of AI tools for a variety of content areas. Be sure to scroll across and up & down to see all of the resources: Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Educators.
We have also provided some additional resources that provide good rationales for using AI with your kids:
Read: Why Should Students Create With AI Tools
Watch: Empowering Students Through AI Explorations
Read: Simple Starters for AI Literacy and Digital Citizenship Learning
With the right guidance, students can use AI responsibly and creatively, preparing them for a future where they understand not just how AI works, but also how to use it to fuel their curiosity and sharpen their critical thinking skills.
1,000 Tries
Frustration tolerance is really hard for kids. The fact that every kid now has “Growth Mindset” in their vocabulary is great. Helpful for sure. But when kids are feeling really deflated, like they have run out of time, or everyone around them seems to be “getting it” and they just aren’t, it feels almost a little patronizing to throw a “not yet” at them. I blame the 80’s for this “do it quick, do it right the first time” attitude. We digested it the same way we digested bologna sandwiches. But one of those things we recognized as gross and the other thing we continued to pass along.
I was recently brainstorming with a teacher about how to navigate another, even deeper, mindshift. It’s about kids really understanding that this is not baseball. You get more than 3 strikes. In fact, it’s generally required! But how do we get them to move beyond the baseball mindset? Because this teacher believes in student choice and voice, he thought maybe letting them vote on how many tries they should get would be a good idea. It would invoke the conversation he wanted to have, give him a chance to express his concern, and make them feel like they were empowering each other. I forget the number he thought they might land on, 34 maybe! He was pumped and convinced we had solved this problem. I challenged him with: But what if they didn’t get it in 34 tries and what if they were keeping track? He thought about that. Considered the double shame whammy we just created and seemed stuck so I offered this: What if the norm was 1,000 tries?! How much grace would we have to give kids (and by the way, ourselves and our peers) if 1,000 tries was the norm? Yes, growth mindset is necessary for kids to understand- but there’s still a chance that they believe there is a capacity for the number of tries they get before they start to write their own internal narrative about what it means about themselves as a learner. Don’t let that happen on your watch! When we know better, we do better. You wouldn’t eat the bologna, don’t let them strike out before they get to 1,000!
-MJ
This is not new information, but it might be worth revisiting. The concept of “learning styles” - the idea that students learn best when taught according to their preferred style - has been widely debunked by research. Instead of focusing on learning styles, try using a variety of instructional strategies that engage all students. Are you using hands-on activities? Are you giving kids the chance to talk about what they’re learning? Are you giving students multiple ways to approach content? If you have developed a solid classroom community that is focused on learning and caring for others, take the chance to take your instruction from good to great!
3 Common Myths about Learning - and What Teachers Can Do Instead
Asking For A Friend…
You’ve ended up down the social media teacher rabbit hole, yes? You click on something you like, then on the next thing, then on the next thing, then on the next….. Right. Then there’s the politics rabbit hole that just got a whole lot more interesting (But am I right?).
This quote really jumped out at me for good and not-so-good reasons. First, the not-so-good: I wish I knew the power of this when I first started teaching. Lots of time passed before I started to see the difference “seeing the light” makes as opposed to the “disruption and inconvenience”. Being a teacher is hard work and kids find the buttons to push quickly, don’t they?
The good news, I’m a lot better at this now. A lot better! And that makes me happy! -Andrew
As we begin a new school year we face a whole new group of kids and a whole new set of opportunities. What have you learned about building a classroom community that makes your learning space a better place to be?
Email us! andrew@teachertalkingclub.com
The benefits of including STEM in your instruction are too many to list. The website Engineering for Kids says that some of the advantages of STEM education include developing critical thinking, cultivating curiosity, enhancing cognition, improving research skills, advancing communication capability, and on and on. Next question: Can (or do) your students see STEM career fields as accessible? Interesting and challenging jobs await!
The link below might be a good starting place - it appears to be a good selection of STEM lessons that will likely align with what you are already doing in your classroom. Each link, though, does take you to Teachers Pay Teachers, so use a critical eye…
STEM For A Year Scope
This past week was the For The Love Of Reading Conference, a yearly conference presented by the Utah Valley University School of Education. The conference featured an all-star line-up of writers and illustrators: Jon Klassen, Mac Barnett, Adam Gidwitz, & Carole Boston Weatherford.
On the day following the conference, Jon Klassen and Mac Barnett came to campus to speak with UVU students and high school students interested in becoming teachers. Captivating speakers - but even better together - their talk focused on picture books as artistic experiences for students.
Their latest work together is a retelling of The Three Billy Goats Gruff. Check out the video here as they attempt to read the book to actual goats.
The Utah Valley University Creative Learning Studio (CLS) website houses many resources for teachers. The CLS houses a Math Picture Book Library containing resources for connecting picture books with mathematical problems. These resources use the Launch + Explore + Summarize lesson plan format.
Launch: Introducing the topic or concept, grabbing students’ attention, making relevant connections.
Explore: Active engagement with the topic individually or in pairs, hands on experiences, deepen understanding through active participation.
Summarize: Consolidation of learning, reflecting on discovery, summarizing key take-aways.
To use the resource, click the plus sign connected with the mathematics learning strand, then click the book title.
Here is another resource to help make connections between picture books and math concepts: Mathematizing Read-Alouds in Three Easy Steps (Hintz & Smith, 2013).
This week we offer a new blog - My Shadow is Pink - based on the books by best-selling author Scott Stuart. The main character is born with a pink shadow…loving princesses and dresses…rather than the things that boys are ‘supposed’ to love. In addition to reading the blog post, please take a few minutes to watch the animated short film - also by Scott Stuart.
I had a conversation with some undergraduates (who want to become teachers one day) about banned books. I was hoping to hear their thoughts about teaching students to think critically, learn about and accept the differences of others, and meet each student where they are. Their main concern, though, was staying out of trouble with parents and the public. We have lots of work to do to change that lens.
MJ and I would love to know your thoughts about banning books on controversial topics. We would like to include those thoughts in an upcoming blog. Please send your thoughts/reflections to askingforafriend@teachertalkingclub.com.
If you would like to purchase some of the books from the Scott Stuart series, hop on over to TTCC’s Shop.
-ag
Where there’s a skill, there’s a way…
I’ve been back in school for almost a month and I don’t know about you guys but these seem like the most challenging days for classroom management. We’ve spent weeks going over expectations and practicing procedures . . . and then the second we stop actively practicing and expect to see the “habit” kicking in, things start heading south. Just yesterday I found myself pulling out every card in the deck to try to get a group of second graders to Just. Stop. Talking. What they agreed to “VALUE” during week one, they collectively threw out the window. They might as well have showed up carrying picket signs and throwing union contracts at me. It was the end of the day . . . and they were done. I’m not super proud of the things I heard coming out of my mouth, which didn’t even match my own values or beliefs, let alone help me uphold theirs. Inevitably, when the remorse set in for reacting to their behaviors in desperation to hold on to my own agenda, my reflection came down to one question: What skill are they still missing?
I’ve been a fan of this video for years. I’ve shared it with many of you. Some of you bought in and some of you had an immediate aversion, which wasn’t just to the sound of this dude’s voice and khaki pants. Trust me on days like yesterday, I don’t want to believe it either. I think it’s self-preservation, right? If we know there is something we can do, then we have to keep doing something. The “it’s not me, it’s them” mentality saves us from giving up and hiding under the covers. It also puts a wall between us and them. So, I invite you to watch again with an open heart . . . it won’t solve all your problems, but maybe it will give you a new place to reflect from. -MJ
Artificial Intelligence is here to stay. Are you thinking about how to use AI to create even better learning opportunities? Are you teaching your students how to use resources in meaningful, responsible ways?
Check out this collection of resources that focuses on positive ways to use AI (including resources for parents and administrators).
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a book-gifting program that mails free, high-quality books to children from birth to age five - no matter their family’s income.
Started in 1995, the Imagination Library was started to help benefit the children of her home county in East Tennessee. Since, nearly 200 million books have been provided to young children across the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
“If I’m remembered 100 years from now,
I hope it will be not for looks but for BOOKS!”
—Dolly Parton
Andrew & MJ - You said teaching would be hard, but you didn’t tell us it would be THIS hard! How am I going to keep from sinking? Did I make the right career choice?
We also said, “Give yourself some grace!” We don’t always get things right on the first try. You are learning, they are learning. Kids are pretty forgiving and also resilient. You aren’t ruining them. They won’t ruin you. If something isn’t working, don’t be afraid to pivot. Where are your marigolds?! Asking for help isn’t weakness or an admission of defeat, it’s a healthy part of collaboration!
Have you ever watched a kid drink out of a garden hose? It’s funny but it’s also a perfect example of authentic trial and error. It doesn’t take very many times of getting water up your nose to change your approach. Same is true in teaching . . .
We believe you made the right choice! Keep turning the garden hose on!
Check this one out - Find Your Marigold: The One Essential Rule for New Teachers
In our An Evolution of Classroom Management blog, we mentioned a structure called Jot Thoughts. This is a Kagan structure that’s great for brainstorming, organizing ideas, and documenting inspirations before they fade away. Here’s how it works:
Select a prompt: Choose a thought-provoking prompt or question related to the topic or concept you want to explore. This could be provided by the teacher or collaboratively generated by the group.
Individual jotting: Give participants a brief period of time (typically 1-2 minutes) to individually jot down their thoughts in response to the prompt. Encourage concise phrases, keywords, or quick notes rather than complete sentences. Students share what they have written, move the idea to the center of the table, and continue brainstorming.
Group synthesis: When the allotted time has passed, participants work as teams to identify common themes, patterns, or noteworthy insights from the jotted thoughts. Then the teacher facilitates a group discussion to synthesize and connect ideas.
Here are some additional examples of how to use Jot Thoughts.
Content adapted from artificial intelligence. (Ask AI, 2023)
I have a sign posted in my room with this quote on it. To remind the kids and to remind myself. My goal everyday is to show up unconditionally. No grudges from yesterday. No anxious anticipation about tomorrow. No memory of last year’s issues. I want my kids to know if they're a kid in my classroom, then they belong there and nothing they could do or say is going to make me teach them less. I won’t lower my expectations and I’m not giving up on them.
Last year I was walking a kid back to his classroom and trying to find the right question to get him to open up about why he didn’t want to be in the room. He finally said, “Because my teacher doesn’t look at me the same way you do. I know she doesn’t want me in there. And pretty soon, you’ll look at me the same as she does.” My heart was broken for this kid. His teacher was nice and I knew she was working hard to create a welcoming space. But “nice” isn’t good enough. Kids see through our blank stares and forced smiles. True belonging in our classrooms requires an “unconditional” mindset. -MJ
For Your Classroom Libraries
Remember the Choose Your Own Adventure books from the 80s and 90s? The gist was that the reader became the protagonist in the story - making choices that determined the plot’s outcome. Choose Your Own Adventure #1 was entitled “The Cave of Time” and if you recall, you would have been hiking (more like lost) in Snake Canyon and if you chose the wrong path, you could either meet a Tyrannosaurus Rex OR were lured aboard an alien spaceship!
Cut to the 2017 “reimagining” of the popular series and meet Danny. Danny faces tough decisions throughout the day - like whether to argue with his brother over the Ninja plate at breakfast. The focus here is on Danny having control of how he responds - “getting what we want” vs. “making good choices”. Authors Ganit and Adir Levy (married with four kids) focus on helping readers learn that no matter what external factors present themselves, it is our choice how we react. We all make poor choices sometimes, but our ultimate “super hero power” comes from choosing what’s right over what’s easy - an important lesson for all kids.
You can purchase the What Should Danny Do? books or the set on our Shop page. -ag
‘Build The Change’ Resources for Science
Thanks to the good people at Lego and the non-profit First Book, ‘Build the Change’ course materials use free learning through play materials to engage kids in sustainability and the environment. Designed for use in classrooms, with lesson plans, presentations, and printables. No Legos required!
‘Saving Today’s Dinosaurs’ introduces young learners to the concept of human impact on nature, through the lens of ‘today’s dinosaurs,” birds.
‘Biodiversity & Climate Change’ introduces young learners to the effects of climate change on animals and their habitats, and enlists them to imagine solutions to these challenges.
‘A Future Without Waste’ introduces young learners to a future where people and planet can thrive together.
Human Impact: Saving Today’s Dinosaurs
Target age: 7-12
Topics: endangerment, extinction, examples of positive and negative impact, and case studies of birds under threat from human activity around the world.
Students build their own solutions to real-world challenges using any creative materials available.
Five 45-minute Learning through Play lessons plus plans for a 90-minute “Showcase Day” event can be timed to create anything from a day-long to a months-long Learning through Play course.
Skills and knowledge: biology/ecology, ecosystems/habitats, environmental/earth science, geography, STEAM/design, problem-solving, creativity, collaboration, civic engagement, speaking and listening
Build the Change: Biodiversity & Climate Change
Target age: 7-12
Hands-on creating activities let students create their own real-world challenge.
Nine 45-minute Learning through Play lesson plans plus a 90-minute “Showcase Day” event can be mixed as matched to create anything from a day-long to a months-long Learning through Play course.
Skills and knowledge: biology/life sciences, physical/climate science, problem-solving, design, creativity, collaboration, civic engagement, speaking and listening.
Build The Change: A Future Without Waste
Topics: circular economy, reuse, recycling, pollution, and designs for a better future
Students build their own solutions to real-world challenges using materials reclaimed from the trash.
Five 45-minute Learning through Play lessons plus plans for a 90-minute “Showcase Day” event can be timed to create anything from a day-long to a months-long Learning through Play course.
Skills and knowledge: social studies, environmental/earth science, problem-solving, STEAM/design and technology, creativity, collaboration, civic engagement, speaking and listening.
If money grew on trees, what kind of tree would it be?
Why do round pizzas always come in square boxes?
What’s one thing your dog could say that would completely ruin your image if they could talk?
We want to answer your questions - but not those! Any questions about working with kids, establishing a culture of learning, or teaching in general? Send them our way and we will do our best to provide a common-sense answer.
Email your questions to askingforafriend@teachertalkingclub.com