Zach Groshell differentiation, Education, IBPYP, motivation, Pastoral Care, relationships, Student, Teachers

How Teachers Can Prioritize Building Confidence and Risk-Taking

Growing up, I was painfully shy. If I ever dared to raise my hand (or got called on without doing so) all of the other students would immediately ask me, “Why is your face so red?” This created a vicious cycle of not wanting to raise my hand because I didn’t want my face to … Continue reading How Teachers Can Prioritize Building Confidence and Risk-Taking

Zach Groshell BLE, Creativity, differentiation, Education, Inquiry, iPad, Learning, motivation, PD, Play, relationships, Student, Teachers, technology

“The What” vs. “The How” of Education

After reading the above tweet, I've been thinking a lot about this idea that we may very well spend too much time talking about what we should teach rather than how we should teach. And the more I think about it, the more I crave conversations that concern the how of education. Learning-focused conversation is learner and … Continue reading “The What” vs. “The How” of Education

Zach Groshell BLE, Creativity, differentiation, Education, Inquiry, iPad, Learning, motivation, Pastoral Care, relationships, Student, Teachers, technology

How to Set Up a Week of Free Inquiry for Anywhere, Anytime Learning

When I was just a first year teacher, I placed a lot of value on my ability to control student behaviors. While students were quiet and well-behaved to the passing observer, I could sense that I was not facilitating the kind of learning experiences that I wanted from my teachers during my own education. The … Continue reading How to Set Up a Week of Free Inquiry for Anywhere, Anytime Learning

Zach Groshell BLE, Creativity, Education, Learning, PD, Teachers, technology

5 Books To Start a Book Club for Teachers

There is something special about book clubs that you don't get from other forms of teacher PD. I love the feeling of finally being able to share what I've read with a group of likeminded individuals, all of whom have a different perspective on the same source material. In book clubs, everyone comes in as … Continue reading 5 Books To Start a Book Club for Teachers

Zach Groshell Creativity, Teachers

Teacher Draws 180 Unique Whiteboard Illustrations: One for Every Day of the School Year

I wanted to write about something different today, and I hope that it inspires you as much as it inspired me. Lately, I have become interested in teacher creativity, or perhaps the lack thereof in education today. In a profession so concerned with developing our children's creative capacities, the average school can be a shockingly … Continue reading Teacher Draws 180 Unique Whiteboard Illustrations: One for Every Day of the School Year

Zach Groshell Education, Teachers

What do teachers do at school when they aren’t teaching?

Ask any non-teacher what teachers do when we aren’t teaching and they will likely imagine a teacher, red pen in hand, busily editing and marking papers at their desk. As a second grade teacher I do, unfortunately, occasionally find myself in that very position– but the vast majority of my planning time is spent in … Continue reading What do teachers do at school when they aren’t teaching?

Zach Groshell Education, Learning, Teachers

Happy Mathsgiving!

  There's nothing quite like having perfect timing in teaching: when a fantastic opportunity arises for you to give your students a real-life experience about exactly what you’re teaching at that very moment. That’s what happened to me this week. My favorite holiday, like many Americans, is Thanksgiving. Living in abroad in Sudan, November 24th … Continue reading Happy Mathsgiving!

Zach Groshell BLE, Inquiry, Teachers, technology

Teachers Need Tech Sandbox Time

Have you ever met a teacher that had too much planning and nothing to do? Me neither. We fill our planning times and the cracks in between being extremely busy with a litany of time-consuming tasks. That's why administrators and instructional coaches like myself need to give teachers time to just play around with all … Continue reading Teachers Need Tech Sandbox Time

Zach Groshell Education, Learning, Teachers, technology

Seesaw Trick: The Imaginary Student

I have seen a lot of innovative practices in my school this year, and one of these is the clever use of the "fake" or "imaginary" student to organize and filter student work on Seesaw. The purpose of this post is to showcase this hidden feature that all Seesaw users should familiarize themselves with. Classroom News Imaginary … Continue reading Seesaw Trick: The Imaginary Student

Zach Groshell Education, Learning, Teachers, technology

Easy-Peasy Way to Give Great Links to Students

Sometimes the most useful tools are also the simplest. This rings true with e-link. I've already talked about e-link in the past, and I am happy to say that I am still using it. It is the easiest way I have found to give students a bunch of great URLs on one, quick embeddable webpage. Here … Continue reading Easy-Peasy Way to Give Great Links to Students