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Playlist: Bookmarks

What’s In My Brain: Inventions vs Discovery

We’re looking at inventions vs discoveries.

Concept Formation

For Teachers

A model of instruction that moves from specific examples to concepts to one big idea.

Go Beyond “Explain This Quote”

For Teachers

I’d show a quote and then ask, “What does this quote mean?” And that was it!

Why “Analyze” Is My Favorite Level of Bloom’s Taxonomy

For Teachers

Analyze is like a gateway that connects the lower- and higher-levels of Bloom’s. But make sure you’re truly asking an Analyze-level question!

What’s In My Brain: Spain vs Germany

One column is an example. The other isn’t. Can your students figure out the hidden rule before the reveal?

Not Like The Others: Rivers

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

When to Go Deeper? When to Just Move On?

For Teachers

When should teachers take the time to build an advanced version of something? And when should they just let students move along?

What’s In My Brain: Coral vs Water Lilies

Let’s look at saltwater vs freshwater organisms.

Student Introductions With Depth, Complexity, and Frames: Level Two

Once students know the prompts of Depth and Complexity, let’s take them much higher up Bloom’s Taxonomy.

How to Reset Your Brain When You’re Flooded

Allison Edwards explains how changing your senses can reset your brain.

A Character’s Playlist

What playlist of songs best goes with a character’s change over time?

Updating Old Questions: Conflict and Character Change

For Teachers

I update an old question about conflict and character change in the story Hatchet.

Squiggles Collection 3

Everyone starts with the same squiggle. No two drawings end up the same. What do you see?

Squiggles Introduction

What do you see in this squiggle?

Squiggles Collection 1

Everyone starts with the same squiggle. No two drawings end up the same. What do you see?

Squiggles Collection 2

Everyone starts with the same squiggle. No two drawings end up the same. What do you see?

What If… Unreliable Water?

What would the consequences be if a town’s tap water became… unreliable?

What If… Long Life?

What would the consequences be if all people lived much, much longer?

Help Students to Memorize Anything

For Teachers

How to memorize the countries in Africa, the Japanese writing system, or a deck of cards.

How To Let Your Brain Exhale

For Teachers

As a teacher, I was constantly inhaling new ideas. I became overwhelmed. Then, because I was overwhelmed, I’d inhale more ideas – hoping to find a solution to my overwhelmedness. What I needed to do was let my brain exhale.

Not Like The Others: African Nations

Four African nations. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Lesson Makeovers: 3 Big Ideas

For Teachers

After looking at dozens of lessons folks sent in, I came up with three big ideas to address.

Phrases to Join a Discussion

Want your classroom discussions to go a bit more smoothly? Train students to use a few simple phrases and it’ll make all the difference in the world.

Engagement Isn’t The Goal

For Teachers

While “engagement” is fun, it shouldn’t be our main goal.

Categorize and Re-Categorize Countries

Put these countries into groups. Then do it again. Then… do it one more time. How does re-re-grouping the same places reveal new patterns and give new insights?

What’s In My Brain!? Japan vs Jamaica

Is it an island or an archipelago?

From “Identify” to “Analyze” – Famous Structures

For Teachers

Rather than just learning about one structure, let’s climb Bloom’s and think more deeply.

Introducing Universal Theme of Conflict

So what could you do with a Universal Theme of Conflict? Well, here’s an introduction that will get your students’ brains sweating.

Models of Instruction: Inquiry Training

For Teachers

Want your students to ask better questions? Why not train them to inquire!?

Investigating Population Changes

How have the ages of three countries’ populations changed from 1950 to 2020? And what problems might that create?

Introducing Universal Theme of Change

Everything changes. But how does it change? Students brainstorm dozens of examples and boil them down to one big idea.

Introducing Universal Theme of Systems

So what could you do with a Universal Theme of Systems? Well, here’s an introduction that will get your students’ brains sweating.

Introducing Universal Theme of Power

So what could you do with a Universal Theme of Power? Well, here’s an introduction that will get your students’ brains sweating.

Not Like The Others: Types of Diseases

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

An Introduction to Models of Instruction

For Teachers

As a new teacher, I only knew one model of instruction: Direct Instruction. I was like a chef who only knew how to deep fry!

Building Creative Confidence with the Torrance Tests

For Teachers

Here are a bunch of ways to quickly practice creativity with your students for zero dollars.

Brain Needs or Heart Needs

For Teachers

We think of gifted kids as only having academic needs, but – in their own words – they also have many needs of the heart.

Not Like The Others: Snakes of the Rainforest

Four rainforest snakes. One doesn’t belong. But which one? That depends on your argument.

Not Like The Others: Deserts

Which of these deserts is not like the others?

Not Like The Others: Rainforests

Which of these rainforests is not like the others?

Explain Concepts with the Frayer Model

For Teachers

Giving a definition just doesn’t cut it! Use the Frayer Model to explain (and assess!) vocabulary.

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?

Think Like A Historian

Here’s how effects be causes and causes can be effects!

Why “Challenging” May Not Be The Right Goal

For Teachers

So many of us say, “I want to challenge my students!” But, would you want a job that you describe as “challenging”?

Addressing Disorganization

For Teachers

Know any kids who, despite their brilliant minds, have a bit of a hard time keeping things in order, turning things in on time, or remembering to put their names on their papers?

The Curse of Knowledge and Checking for Understanding

For Teachers

How knowing your material well easily becomes a curse… and what to do about it!

Difficult vs Complex Tasks

For Teachers

What separates difficulty from complexity? And why do complex tasks lead to much more natural differentiation?

Complex Task: Academic Tournaments

For Teachers

Who would win in the Tournament of Least Useful Geometric Shapes or Bravest Shakespearean Characters? Create an academic tournament and watch your students’ brains sweat!

Asynchrony (For Adults)

For Teachers

In some areas, a student may be shockingly advanced, while in others… surprisingly average. This is asynchrony in action.

Not Like The Others: Countries

How is each of these four countries not like the others?

Generalization: Change Leads to More Change

Can you think of a time in your life when “Change lead to more change?”

Generalization: Problems Lead to New Rules, Which Lead to New Problems

Problems create rules. Rules create new problems. Can you trace the cycle in history, stories, and your own life?

Invisible Power Can Have Visible Effects

Can you think of times when power is unseen, but we can clearly see its effects?

SCAMPER: Scaffolding Creativity

Asking students to “think creatively” won’t get you far. They won’t know how to start, they’ll get stuck with simple ideas, or they’ll just go completely wild. SCAMPER is a tool for scaffolding the process of creativity.

How Renewable Is That Resource?

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

Student Introductions with Complexity and Frames

How have you changed over time? Students introduce themselves through the lens of change — and learn a Depth and Complexity tool in the process.

Student Introductions With Depth and Frames

Want to introduce the tools of Depth and Complexity and learn more about your students and introduce the Frame graphic organizer? Have I got the activity for you!

Math Curiosity: The Coloring Problem

No video gets me more email from students! How few colors can you use to color in any map so that no two, neighboring regions are the same color?

Building Creative Analogies

We’ll take two seemingly unrelated pieces of content (say volcanoes and the human body) and then build analogies to connect the two ideas. In the end, students can create a skit, comic, or story relating the two concepts.

What Does it Cost to Fill a Car with Other Liquids

Is gas actually that expensive? What if we filled a car up with… orange juice?

Investigating Cost of Living

Would you save money if you lived in Las Vegas and commuted every day to San Francisco?

The Thinking Hats

So… do your students moan when forced to work in a group? Part of the problem is that lack the structure to work well with peers. Edward de Bono’s Thinking Hats are a perfect tool to help with this problem.

Running A Group Investigation Lesson

For Teachers

Learn to lead a lesson that is built entirely on student curiosity.

Depth and Complexity: 📈 Trends

Has something been changing recently? What might be causing that? What are the effects?

Depth and Complexity: 👄 Language of the Discipline

Imagine a construction worker who doesn’t know the name of a screwdriver or a doctor who can’t remember what to call your neck. It’s pretty hard to communicate well without knowing the 👄 Language of the Discipline!

Depth and Complexity: ❓ Unanswered Questions

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

Depth and Complexity: 🚦 Rules

Is there a consequence for not doing something? You may have found a rule!

Depth and Complexity: ⏳ Change Over Time

Want to get students thinking about how a topic has changed or might change in the future? The ⏳ Change Over Time thinking tool is just what you need!

Depth and Complexity: 👓 Multiple Perspectives

Every topic looks different depending on who’s looking. This prompt teaches students to see through someone else’s eyes.

Depth and Complexity: Patterns

Can your students spot anything that repeats? Or that has stopped repeating?

Percents and Credit Cards

Let’s buy something expensive with a credit card and then make only the minumum payments!

Inductively Analyze Website Reliability

For Teachers

Rather than giving students rules to apply to websites, let them analyze websites to create rules.

Historic Social Media

How would people from history have interacted online? Students will develop a conversation online between people involved in the same event from history.

Reduce Anxiety: 5 Question Rule

For Teachers

Adults can limit anxiety by implementing the Five Question Rule.

An App For A Historical Figure

What kind of an app could have helped Abe Lincoln accomplish his goals?

Reduce Anxiety: Brain Plate (Tool 3)

When a student’s brain is full of worries, everything feels urgent. Brain Plate helps them sort what’s real from what’s noise — and actually do something about it.

Reduce Anxiety: Change The Channel (Tool 2)

Reduce anxiety by learning to “change the channel.”

Students and Personality Types

For Teachers

How can our students be so different? And how can we help them to understand themselves and each other better.

Multipotentiality: Excellent at Many Things

For Teachers

Why being good at many things can be a bit of a burden.

Asynchrony: Developing At Different Rates (For Students)

For students! In some areas, a student may be shockingly advanced, while in others… surprisingly average. This is asynchrony in action.

Motivation and Moral Development

Can someone do the right thing, but for the wrong reason?

Creating A Classroom Motto

Starting with specific examples of fantastic classroom behavior, your class will end up with one sentence summing up their expectations. It’s a classroom motto!

The Game of 100

Who can get to 100 first in this simple, but delightful, math game?

Teaching Empathy With Faberge Eggs

The story of the Fabergé Eggs is heartbreaking. It’s also the perfect way to build empathy in your classroom.

Math Project: What If I Bought Apple Stock Instead?

What if you had an original iPod and sold it compared to if you had bought the equivalent amount of Apple stock and sold that?

Think Like An Economist

How would an economist read Goldilocks? How would they see a rainforest? How would they study the American Revolution?

Can Students Solve Your Classroom Layout Problems?

For Teachers

What if your students designed your classroom layout?

Impostor Syndrome

For Teachers

The student who breezes through school may hit a wall in college. Here’s why — and what to do about it now.