Rebus Puzzles

Halloween Worksheets

Crosswords, image analysis, and writing prompts for Halloween!

Indirect Power – Lighthouse vs Magnetism

Students explore the idea of indirect power – which can be both visible (a lighthouse) or invisible (magnetism).

Power – Blue Whale vs Krill

Sure, a Blue Whale is huge. But does a tiny krill have more power?

Hero or Not A Hero?

Students will determine what makes a hero a hero.

Random Emoji Prompt Generator

Click up an interesting, visual writing prompt suitable for any grade or purpose.

Not Like The Others: US National Parks

Four US national parks. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Parabolic Curve Art

Create mathematical art with curves that, well, aren’t curvy.

Habitable Planets and Moons Tournament

Which object in the solar system is most habitable?

Writing About Art: Twilight in the Wilderness

Look closely at Twilight in the Wilderness. What do you notice? Now turn those details into a poem you didn’t know you could write.

Not Like The Others: US States

How is each of these states not like the others?

Not Like The Others: Mountains

Which of these mountains is not like the others?

Not Like The Others: Birds of the Tropical Rainforest

Which of these four birds is not like the others?

Create A Civilization: Design A Flag

What makes for a good flag? What makes a bad flag?

Looping Grid Art

Pick a few numbers, draw some corresponding lines on grid paper, and you’ll end up with some interesting, looping math-y art!

A Lunar Survival Mission

A favorite of mine! This task is delightfully complex and ambiguous, forcing students to make choices without enough information and with no right answer. How will they survive on the moon for three days?

Self Portraits: Pointillism

Turn your students into a bunch of Monets with q-tips and some tempera paint.

How Renewable Is That Resource?

Which resource is more renewable? And which is easier to find?

Notice Wonder: Turbine

Your students will be surprised by the size of this turbine… and by what’s hanging from it!

Upgrade Research Questions With Depth and Complexity

Ever ask students to create research questions? Were their ideas a bit… blah? My own students had a very hard time writing questions they didn’t already know the answer to! This video is how I solved that problem: upgrade research questions with depth and complexity.

Game: Notakto

What if you only played Tic-Tac-Toe with Xs and you could play on multiple boards?

Create A Civilization: Calendars

Why 12 months? Why 30ish days? Why 7 days in a week? Your civilization could organize a year in any way you want!

Developing Extension Questions: Zooming In

Every topic has details that get glossed over in a sentence. Zoom in on one and you’ve got an entire unit hiding inside a paragraph.

Developing Extension Questions: Panning

Your textbook covers a topic in one paragraph. But what’s next door? Pan the camera and you’ve got a question worth exploring for weeks.

Depth and Complexity: ❓ Unanswered Questions

This underutilized tool focuses students on what we don’t yet know and even what we can’t know.

Using Creativity Tools To Develop A Learning Exploration: Step Two

How do you turn “go research something” into a structured, creative learning exploration? Kathryn Haydon walks through it step by step.

Disneyland Parking Tram Math Project

A full parking structure. Thousands of people. Trams that hold a few dozen. How many trips? Real math with a place kids actually care about.

Add Layers To Direct Instruction

Take direction instruction beyond a monotonous practice of the same skill over and over.