Cool Cat Teacher Blog is at coolcatteacher.com

A new blog has appeared on my main site: Digital Equity: How to Understand The Problems Facing #Edtech From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/digital-equity-how-to-understand-the-problems-facing-edtech/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

Dr. Nicol R. Howard champions digital equity issues for children. What are those issues? How can we help? Today we take a dive into digital equity and the issues we should all consider -- and it is not just those with poverty who may not have access. Hear the surprising thing realized at the end of the show. www.coolcatteacher.com/e482 Related Resources Closing the Gap: Digital Equity Strategies for Teacher Prep Programs ,  Pre-order --- Closing the Gap: Digital Equity Strategies for the K-12 Classroom Standing in the Gap: Empowering New Teachers Through Connected Resources Journal pubs: Howard, N.R. (2018). EdTech Leaders’ Beliefs: How are K-5 teachers supported with the integration of computer science in K-5 classrooms? . Technology, Knowledge and Learning. doi:10.1007/s10758-018-9371-2 Howard, N.R. & Ifenthaler, D. (2018). Integrating STEM Opportunities for Young Learners . Technology, Knowledge and Learning, 23(2), 1-3. doi: 10.1007/s10758-018-9364-1 Nicol Howard, ...

A new blog has appeared on my main site: How to Get Motivated This Monday Morning From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/how-to-get-motivated-this-monday-morning/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

Preventing burnout, finding the right colleagues, communication, the struggle with perfection... these topics are just some of the encouragements that 30-year special education teacher-turned-college-professor Pat Hensley has for teachers everywhere. This South Carolina teacher has a message of hope and encouragement from her experience in education that will help all of us get motivated this Monday! www.coolcatteacher.com/e481 Pat Hensley - Bio as Submitted Pat taught students with special needs in public school for over thirty years. Now she teaches at the university level to preservice teachers and teachers getting their master's degree in special education. She was nationally board certified in 2002 and in 2006 was Mauldin High School's Teacher of the Year and a Greenville County School District Teacher of the Year Top 10 Finalist. Blog:  http://successfulteaching.net Twitter: @ looneyhiker Check out this episode!

A new blog has appeared on my main site: How to Empower Students With Timely Knowledge Using “The Week” From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/the-week/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

Shalini Shankar has been studying Generation Z. From spelling bee's to sports, this generation seems to be professionalizing their childhood. Learn more about this generation so you can be a better teacher for them. www.coolcatteacher.com/e480   Shalini Shankar is Professor of Anthropology and Asian American Studies at Northwestern University. She is the author of three books, including Beeline: What Spelling Bees Reveal about Generation Z’s New Path to Success . She is a cultural and linguistic anthropologist whose ethnographic research focuses on youth, media, language use, race & ethnicity, and Asian diasporas. She is the mother of two Gen Z children.   Blog: shalinishankar.net Twitter: @shalini_shankar Check out this episode!

A new blog has appeared on my main site: 5 Things to Know About Gen Z Kids From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/5-things-to-know-about-gen-z-kids/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

A new blog has appeared on my main site: How Can We Help Lonely Kids and Improve School Safety? From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/how-can-we-help-lonely-kids-and-improve-school-safety/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

Joe Fatheree helped co-organize a recent national summit on school safety in the United States. In today's show, Joe talks about the summit, what schools are doing nationwide on safety, and the need to help lonely children who are struggling. www.coolcatteacher.com/e479 Joe Fatheree's Bio as Submitted Joe Fatheree is an award-winning author, educator, and filmmaker. He has received numerous educational awards, including Illinois Teacher of the Year and the NEA's National Award for Teaching Excellence. He was recently named one of the Top 10 Teachers in the World by the Varkey Foundation. He has served as the Director of Strategic Projects for the National Network of State Teachers of the Year in Washington, D.C. and is the instructor of creativity and innovation at Effingham High School in Illinois. Fatheree's television work has aired nationally on PBS, The Documentary Channel, Hulu, and the MLB Network. He is the recipient of 3 Mid America Emmy Awards and a Telly...

A new blog has appeared on my main site: Standards-Based Grading: How to Start the Journey From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/standards-based-grading-how-to-start-the-journey/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

Standards-based grading -- where students are assessed by specific standards -- is being discussed or implemented in many districts. Today we talk to an award-winning French teacher turned Instructional Technology Program Manager who can help us understand the pitfalls and possibilities of successful implementation. Nicole Naditz will also give us advice for getting started with standards-based grading as well. www.coolcatteacher.com/e478 Nicole Naditz - Bio as Submitted Nicole has been a Program Specialist in Instructional Technology at San Juan Unified School District since 2018. Prior to that, she taught French for 25 years, winning numerous awards for her work designing authentic relevant learning experiences for her students. Her most notable awards include finalist for California State Teacher of the Year, 2012 and ACTFL National Language Teacher of the Year, 2015. Nicole is a sought after speaker and facilitator of professional learning on the topics of literacy, student voi...

A new blog has appeared on my main site: 11 Essential Chrome Extensions (And a New Browser) From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/11-essential-chrome-extensions-and-a-new-browser/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

Extensions can be useful, helpful tools for parents and teachers. There are pitfalls and pluses from each extension and ways to use them in the classroom. In this episode, I'll put my geek hat on and share eleven essential chrome extensions and information on the new web browser, Brave, and why people are using it. In the show notes, I share the links. Enjoy! Extensity Read Write Toolbar Grammarly 3 Ways to ScreenGrab Evernote Google Keep One Note Notion (didn't make it in time for press but I'm testing this one!) LastPass Color Pic Eyedropper Tip: Use with Coolors.co Gmail Notifier Sending Screens to the board (3 ways) Lightcast Sender Airplay (no extension - part of Native iOS) Miracast (no extension - part of Droid OS) Screencastify Too Many Tabs for chrome Link Clump The Brave Browser www.coolcatteacher.com/e477   Check out this episode!

Students need to feel valued. Today's featured educator Crystal Willis from Instagram and TpT as "SunflowersandSped" shares five important tips to help students feel valued. From noticing strengths to not making a simple mistake that makes people feel dumb -- Crystal has practical tips to help all of us better make children feel loved. www.coolcatteacher.com/e476 Subscribe to this show on iTunes or your favorite podcatcher Crystal Willis - Bio as Submitted Crystal from SunflowersandSped is an educator with more than ten years of special education classroom experience. Her credential is in mild to moderate special education with a certification in ELA. She has taught in both public and private school settings for elementary, middle, and high school grades, and is currently helping to oversee the implementation of a special ed program at a private school in Southern California. Crystal uses her IG account to connect with other sped teachers, parents, and students. She ...

A new blog has appeared on my main site: 5 Tips to Help Students Feel Valued in the Classroom From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/5-tips-to-help-students-feel-valued-in-the-classroom/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

A new blog has appeared on my main site: What Happened When I Deleted All My Social Media Apps From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/what-happened-when-i-deleted-all-my-social-media-apps/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

A new blog has appeared on my main site: 5 Ideas for Helping Parents Read with their Kids (No Matter Their Age) From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/5-ideas-for-helping-parents-read-with-their-kids-no-matter-their-age/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

Frederick Douglass said, "Once you learn to read, you will be forever free." Reading is important. Today, we talk to reading expert, Amy Mascott, about how parents and teachers can help older children develop a love of reading.  www.coolcatteacher.com/e475 *** Advancement Courses Sponsor:   Advancement Courses , a 30-year leader in teacher PD, is kicking off their Spring Sale! Use the code COOL 20 to save 20% off each course. Advancement Courses has over 240 graduate-level courses in 19 different subject areas. Topics include teaching foundational topics and emerging trends in K-12. The courses are all online and self-paced. Graduate credit is available with an official transcript from their CAEP and regionally accredited university partners. Thousands of teachers across the country become better at Advancement Courses. My favorite thing is that you can work at your own pace, create things for use in your classroom today, and you can have six months to complete the cour...

A new blog has appeared on my main site: Girls and STEM: The Google 20% Project That Encourages Girls to go Into STEM From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/5-ideas-for-getting-parents-to-read-with-their-kids-no-matter-their-age/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

Girls and people of color need role models who look like them. Today's show is a team of people at Google who have done just that. Komal Singh is a Google Engineer and recruited other Google employees to participate in a powerful 20% time project that encourages girls to go into STEM. Learn about the project, the vision, and how you can share it with girls in. Ara the Star Engineer is a book to inspire girls. www.coolcatteacher.com/e474 *** Advancement Courses Sponsor:   Advancement Courses , a 30-year leader in teacher PD, is kicking off their Spring Sale! Use the code COOL 20 to save 20% off each course. Advancement Courses has over 240 graduate-level courses in 19 different subject areas. Topics include teaching foundational topics and emerging trends in K-12. The courses are all online and self-paced. Graduate credit is available with an official transcript from their CAEP and regionally accredited university partners. Thousands of teachers across the country become bette...

Desmond Tutu says, “Restorative justice says "No, the offense affected a relationship" and what you are seeking for is to restore the relationship, to heal the relationship.” Today, Brad Weinstein and Nathan Maynard, authors of Hacking School Discipline: 9 Ways to Create a Culture of Empathy and Responsibility Using Restorative Justice  help us understand how restorative justice should work and some examples that will help us understand the successful implementation. www.coolcatteacher.com/473   *** Advancement Courses Sponsor:   Advancement Courses , a 30-year leader in teacher PD, is kicking off their Spring Sale! Use the code COOL 20 to save 20% off each course. Advancement Courses has over 240 graduate-level courses in 19 different subject areas. Topics include teaching foundational topics and emerging trends in K-12. The courses are all online and self-paced. Graduate credit is available with an official transcript from their CAEP and regionally accredited univ...

A new blog has appeared on my main site: Restorative Justice and Consequences that Actually Improve Behavior From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/restorative-justice-and-consequences-that-actually-improve-behavior/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

A new blog has appeared on my main site: Will AI Ruin Education or Help It? The Pitfalls and Possibilities of AI From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/will-ai-ruin-education-or-help-it-the-pitfalls-and-possibilities-of-ai/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is only as moral and as good as those who create it. Today, AI ethics thought-leader Joe Fatheree and I discuss this topic. Without discussing the ethics of AI and its algorithms, we risk opening the ultimate Pandora’s box of technology problems when we should instead work to get hope out of the AI box and keep the demons that could misuse and abuse us locked away. I’m not too sure we currently have the moral capacity and knowledge of right and wrong to wisely use AI. Either way, AI is here and we can be part of the conversation or we can sit in the corner and say “Nah Nah Nah I can’t hear you” until AI hears us and builds a cage around our little corner from which we cannot escape because ultimately, the key to any technology is crafted by those who make themselves part of the conversation.   www.coolcatteacher.com/472 Joe Fatheree's Bio as Submitted Joe Fatheree is an award-winning author, educator, and filmmaker. He has received numerous ed...

Need to improve classroom management? Today Darrian Tanner, the Florida State High Impact Teacher award winner for 2016-2017 and 2018-2019 talks about how to help teachers improve their classroom management skills. www.coolcatteacher.com/e471 *** Sponsor: Advancement Courses , a 30-year leader in teacher PD, is kicking off their Spring Sale! Use the code COOL 20 to save 20% off each course. Advancement Courses has over 240 graduate-level courses in 19 different subject areas. Topics include teaching foundational topics and emerging trends in K-12. The courses are all online and self-paced. Graduate credit is available with an official transcript from their CAEP and regionally accredited university partners. Thousands of teachers across the country become better at Advancement Courses. My favorite thing is that you can work at your own pace, create things for use in your classroom today, and you can have six months to complete the courses. Right now, my listeners can save 20%...

A new blog has appeared on my main site: Improve Student Behavior Now! From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/improve-student-behavior-now/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

A new blog has appeared on my main site: 5 Writing Strategies and Tools to Reach Every Learner From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/5-writing-strategies-and-tools-to-reach-every-learner/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

Do your students hate to write? If you need quick ideas to help reach reluctant and struggling writers, Michele Haiken will help us learn more! Michele Haiken, Ed.D. is an educator and ISTE author. She has taught middle school English for the past 20 years and an adjunct professor of literacy for the past twelve years. She is the author of Personalized Learning (ISTE, 2018) and forthcoming New Realms for Writing (ISTE, 2019). Connect with her at @ teachingfactor www.coolcatteacher.com/e470   Check out this episode!

A new blog has appeared on my main site: Unconventional Project Based Learning That Engages Students From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/unconventional-project-based-learning-that-engages-students/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

Noa Daniel talks about how unconventional project-based learning and how we can engage students with learning. If you're struggling with student engagement, this is for you. www.coolcatteacher.com/e469 Noa Daniel's Bio as Submitted Noa is a passionate educator and an enthusiastic learner. She is a classroom teacher, podcaster, blogger. She is also a coach, consultant and Chief Building Officer at Building Outside the Blocks, creating projects and initiatives for students and educators that build skill, autonomy, community, and connection. https://buildingoutsidetheblocks.com/ Check out this episode!

A new blog has appeared on my main site: My Kids Hate Their Desks! (And What I Did About It!) From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/my-kids-hate-their-desks-and-what-i-did-about-it/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

Brooke Markle, a veteran middle-level English educator, realized that her kids hated their desks. They wiggled. They moved. They struggled to pay attention. So, with a limited budget, she decided to change her classroom to give students a choice. The results are exciting.  www.coolcatteacher.com/e468   Check out this episode!

Frank DeAngelis was principal of Columbine high school in 1999 and remained the principal until 2015 when all of the students who were in PreK at the time of the shooting graduated. His story of resilience and leadership is one that will inspire you to be there for your students even when times are tough. He tells his story in " They Call Me 'Mr. De: The Story of Columbine... '" www.coolcatteacher.com/e467  Check out this episode!

Frank DeAngelis was principal of Columbine high school in 1999 and remained the principal until 2015 when all of the students who were in PreK at the time of the shooting graduated. His story of resilience and leadership is one that will inspire you to be there for your students even when times are tough. He tells his story in " They Call Me 'Mr. De': The Story of Columbine's Heart, Resilience, and Recovery " www.coolcatteacher.com/e466   Check out this episode!

A new blog has appeared on my main site: Columbine’s Frank DeAngelis – The Story of Columbine’s Heart, Resilience, and Recovery From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/columbines-frank-deangelis-the-story-of-columbines-heart-resilience-and-recovery/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

A new blog has appeared on my main site: Neuroscience Research: 5 Ways to Superior Teaching From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/neuroscience-research-5-ways-to-superior-teaching/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .

A new blog has appeared on my main site: How a Little Graphic Novel is Inspiring Teachers to Think From https://www.coolcatteacher.com/how-a-little-graphic-novel-is-inspiring-teachers-to-think/ via Vicki Davis at coolcatteacher.com . Please also check out my show for busy teachers, the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast and my Free teaching tutorials on YouTube .