The Epic Classroom with Trevor Muir Trevor Muir

Coming up with engaging project and unit ideas takes a little creativity, but it's worth it to give students authentic and purposeful learning experiences. Here are my favorite ways to come up with engaging and meaningful project ideas.

Giving critical feedback can be a very difficult task for anyone, especially students who are working with their peers. It is the job of the teacher to model this process, and show how being critical can be different than being negative.

Are grades meant to reflect how much a student has learned; a snapshot of their knowledge and skills at a specific moment in time? Or are they a measure of work ethic and integrity? Is it possible to do both? Let's dive into it.

What if the primary motivation for learning wasn't grades or pressure from parents or teachers?

Research shows that when students are engaged in service learning, they experience measurable growth in social, behavioral, emotional, and cognitive development. And I think we could all use more student engagement right now. Let's dig into it.

Most teachers have been through this exact scenario: You try to start class with a line like, “Okay everyone, we’re going to get started.” And a couple students might glance up at you, indignant that this adult is bothering them. So a little louder you say, “Everyone! Time to start class!” This gets the attention of a few more students, but still the majority of kids keep talking to each other, ignoring the fact that their teacher is in the front of the room with a face that is becoming redder and redder. Finally, you lose your temper, RAISE YOUR VOICE, the room goes quiet, and you are left feeling a little embarrassed, and even more, frustrated that it takes yelling to get your class’ attention. Struggling to start off class or return from a group activity is a challenge every teacher faces. However, as important as it is to get your students’ attention and be as efficient with time as possible, it doesn’t have to be difficult. Here are 10 ways to get the attention of even the noisiest group of students without raising your voice or losing your cool.

When we see young people struggling in the workforce, or data that shows that the top reason people are fired from their jobs is because they don’t have soft skills, I think we have to ask if these skills are being emphasized enough. When standardized tests are primarily focused on one piece of the ideal graduate, or college admissions just look at GPA and test scores, it has a ripple effect on the rest of k-12 experience. And yet the k-12 experience is supposed to be about helping grow students into people ready to take on the world, and thrive in their workplaces, and be pillars in their communities, and know how to solve real problems, and work hard, and have passion, and never want to stop learning. 

So let's talk about how we can frame our student's time in the classroom to help develop them into the Ideal Graduate.