TEACH Mag

10 Holiday Light Displays You Won’t Want to Miss We’ve rounded up the best light displays to chase away those winter blues and help you get into the holiday spirit.

Kick off the holiday season with some festive light displays! 🎄✨

Featuring dazzling drive-throughs, twinkling tree canopies, luminous laser shows, and more. Experience the magic at these 10 must-visit locations. 👇

From Crafts to Curriculum: Why Playful Learning Isn’t Just for Kids Playful learning is meaningful for students of all ages. It’s a powerful pedagogy that fosters engagement, ownership, and community.

Playful making can be more than just creating a product. It can be an anchor of identity, belonging, and engagement in the classroom.

#EduSky #PlayBasedLearning #NewTeachers #MeaningMaking

Scripted, Not Silenced: Finding Freedom Within the Frame A scripted curriculum doesn’t take away my ability to teach. It amplifies it.

"We don’t have to choose between structure and creativity. The best teaching lives in the in-between, where we follow a script, but we fill it with our stories, our students’ voices, and our classroom rhythms."

#EduSky #K12 #ScriptedCurriculum

Flipping the Script: Using Comics and Creative Play to Boost ESL Confidence I wanted to create a space where students felt safe enough to take risks, make mistakes, and discover their own voice in English.

"Within a month of adopting this new, creative approach, students were noticeably more fluent. Most importantly, they had gained something invaluable: confidence."

#EduSky #K12 #Education #ESL #ELL #Multilingual #ComicBooks #Reading #Literacy

We’re pleased to introduce our latest digital resource, all about #jazz legend Oscar Peterson! Designed for classroom use, it helps students explore the connections between music, history, and social change through the lens of Oscar’s life and work.

Explore it here: bit.ly/4pfsRzo

#EduSky #K12

Thank you for your contribution! The musical score is incredible.

Breaking the Rules: How Giving Students More Choice Transformed My Teaching When I told my fifth-grade class that they were old enough to take charge of their own learning, something unexpected happened.

"Students became more responsible—not because I told them to, but because their learning had become theirs. They knew they were trusted. And they rose to meet that trust."

#EduSky #Education #K12 #LearningStyles #StudentAgency

Should Teachers Be Allowed to Strike? In Alberta, teachers have effectively lost their constitutional right to strike.

Supporting teachers in their fight is about more than just education—it’s about protecting the democratic freedoms we all depend on.

Severe Weather Disruptions Increasingly Impact U.S. Schools In the 2024–25 school year alone, nearly 10,000 schools were forced to temporarily close due to weather-related incidents.

From strained school budgets to increased learning loss, the rising number of weather-related disruptions can have far-reaching consequences. A recent report from NWEA highlighted what districts can do to better prepare for these events.

“Why Aren’t We Taught About Investments in School?” Rethinking Financial Education for K–8 Students I believe it is vital for some form of investment education to exist in every school. In every classroom.

"So much of the world around us involves money. If we are to help prepare students for the next phases of their lives, money should be a component of every course."

#EduSky #FinancialLiteracy #FinancialLiteracyMonth #InvestmentEducation

Let Me Tell You a Funny Story… Teaching ESL with Laughs, Not Lectures Nothing draws students in, holds their attention, and helps them remember quite like a story.

"By hearing and telling stories, students are able to improve their language skills, confidence, friendships, and vocabulary retention."

#EduSky #ESL #ELL #Writing #Reading

Beyond Fame, Fortune, and Followers: Inspiring Students to Redefine Success I wanted to show my students that success has many faces—and most of them aren’t filtered on Instagram.

Sometimes, the best lessons aren’t always about what we teach. Sometimes, they’re about what we inspire. (And occasionally, they’re about getting relationship advice from an Oscar-winning actor too.)

#EduSky #CareersAndGuidance #Success #Education

Leading Our School’s First (and Last) Justice Committee When my principal asked if I could lead our school’s new Justice, Inclusion, and Belonging Committee, I was both surprised and delighted.

"A JIB team works to create a school culture where staff, students, and families feel welcome, heard, and valued. It seeks to understand the needs, concerns, and challenges of a school, particularly in regard to racial equity."

#EduSky #SocialJustice #Equity

Newly Launched History AI Chat Helps Students to Search World History Encyclopedia World History Encyclopedia’s AI Chat now makes it easier for students to find reliable answers to their questions.

"WHE is entirely free to search, read, and consume, which is why there are thousands of teachers in every country who use it."

Read more here at @teachmag.bsky.social about @worldhistory.org's newly launch #history #AI chat.

teachmag.com/history-ai-c...

Celebrating Heritage: A Student-Led Journey Across Cultures In today’s diverse classrooms, fostering cultural awareness is essential for creating inclusive and engaging learning environments.

"Through this learning activity, students not only achieved significant academic growth but also gained a deeper understanding of their place in the world."

#EduSky #Diversity #SocialStudies #StudentAgency #ProjectBasedLearning

Planting Seeds of Knowledge: Life Lessons from an Educational Farm Waynesboro Education Farm is an ambitious project.

"There are many elements that serve as instruction on the farm, and with the right kind of eyes, it quickly becomes clear that the most important is the food."

#EduSky #FoodAndNutrition #Farming #EducationalFarm

Shining a Spotlight on 10 Banned Books All students have the right to see themselves reflected in the books they read.

#BannedBooksWeek starts on Monday. Let's take this opportunity to reflect on some of the books that have been banned, challenged, or quietly removed from shelves over the years. Whose voices get to be heard, and whose are left out?

#EduSky #Reading #Literacy #BookBans #K12

Explorations in Biology Through Origami, 3D Modeling, and Optical Illusions Blending art and biology through hands-on paper-folding activities is a fun and unique way to engage elementary students.

For children with diverse interests and learning styles, these activities will be critical in helping them understand biological concepts in a creative way. (Bonus: one of them is even fall themed!) 🍃🍂

#EduSky #Science #STEM #Biology #Origami #Art

Empowering Education: Exploring Hispanic/Latinx Representation in Comics Students want to see themselves reflected within the pages of their beloved comics.

For #NationalComicBookDay, check out our recent article by
@msruthy.bsky.social, where she shares several comic and graphic novel series featuring Hispanic/Latinx characters that have resonated with her students.

#EduSky #Reading #Literacy #ComicBooks

5 Things Educators Need to Know to Combat Burnout This Year These essential mindset shifts will help you avoid common pitfalls that lead to burnout.

Because we can’t pour from an empty cup.

#EdChat #Teaching #Burnout #MentalHealth #Wellness #BackToSchool #NewTeachers

Social Media, but with Paragraphs: Using Substack to Reflect and Connect I’ve finally found the perfect space to force myself to stop, step back, and think about what I’m teaching. That place is Substack.

Want to know where all of the thoughtful and reflective educators went? This article in @teachmag.bsky.social by @jennavandenberg.bsky.social sums it up perfectly! Substack is a place to “stop, step back, think about” and share our teaching. #TeacherSky

teachmag.com/using-substa...

The Value of Accessing Professional Development in Your First Years of Teaching In my first year of full-time teaching, I went to every professional development opportunity I had access to.

"These PD opportunities helped me become more confident as a teacher, both in my classroom and in professional settings in general."

#EduSky #ProfessionalDevelopment #NewTeachers

New Book from NYC Science Teacher Strives to Reimagine Education in Urban Classrooms In "Learning Environment," award-winning NYC science teacher Dr. Fox invites readers into his classroom and beyond its walls.

Reading Jared Fox’s LEARNING ENVIRONMENT, educators will gain the inspirational impetus and practical know-how to empower themselves, our students, and their communities. #BackToSchool @teachmag.bsky.social

Break the Ice: The Ultimate Back-to-School Toolkit These simple icebreaker activities, as recommended by K–12 educators, are sure to help make this back-to-school season your best one yet.

Icebreaker activities are essential during the first few weeks of school. Here are 6 fun exercises designed to “break the ice” and help students get to know each other.

#EduSky #BackToSchool #IcebreakerGames

I had some thoughts about Hispanic/Latinx representation in comics… @teachmag.bsky.social published them 🤓

💥 #ComicsAreReading

Read it here: teachmag.com/hispanic-lat...

An image showing the cover and one inner spread for TEACH Magazine's September/October issue.

Our back-to-school issue explores the journeys we take and how they shape us. From reflections on mentorship, to new ways to engage with art and literature, inside you’ll find plenty of strategies to carry into your classroom as the year unfolds. bit.ly/3VLQKBO

#EduSky #K12 #BackToSchool

How to Tame a Chaotic School Cafeteria: 7 Tips for Managing Lunchroom Behavior Does lunchtime feel like pure chaos at your school? It doesn’t have to.

Here are a few simple suggestions to help you trade lunchtime chaos for something that feels calm, kind, and maybe even a little bit fun.

#EduSky #BackToSchool #Cafeteria #ClassroomManagement

Professional and Present: Creating Healthy Boundaries in Your First Year of Teaching Early in your teaching career, there are many areas in which you should consider establishing boundaries.

"The boundaries you make now just might be the key to maintaining and sustaining that enthusiasm you’re currently experiencing, at the start of your career in education, for the long haul."

#EduSky #NewTeachers #BackToSchool #ProfessionalBoundaries #MentalHealth #Burnout

Ditch the Desk and Embrace the Flex I have long believed that comfort and mobility play a significant role in learning.

"Allowing learners to choose their own seats reduces restlessness and promotes responsibility, time management, and self-discipline—skills that are necessary for future success."

#EduSky #ClassManagement #FlexibleSeating #LearningEnvironment #StudentAgency #SpecialEducation

The Secret to a Quiet Lunch Break: Building Student Relationships I’ve learned that building relationships with my students is by far the most effective classroom management strategy.

"When students feel connected to and respected by you, they’ll try to be better for you."

#EduSky #ClassManagement #BackToSchool #RelationshipBuilding #BehaviorManagement