Curriculum, Pedagogy & Grading Resources

SBG Hacks: Homework

Lauren Stewart | Sat, 09/28/2019 - 05:53

As teachers, we know how important it is for students to practice what they are learning and we are ever aware of the limited class time we have to provide those opportunities. We also know that our students have a full schedule of classes, are involved in extracurricular activities, work after-school jobs and may not have a strong support system and structure at home. That leaves us with the difficult question of “what do we do about homework?”

Flipped Classroom: Check For Understanding, Not For Notetaking

Josh Kenney | Tue, 09/17/2019 - 18:28

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Many teachers assess engagement with video lectures by inspecting students’ notes at the start of class. However, notetaking doesn’t necessarily prove the comprehension of the material.

Advanced Chemical Lab Design

Erica Posthuma | Mon, 09/16/2019 - 10:35

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I had the opportunity to develop an advanced chemical lab design course for a small group of ambitious students. I have outlined the resources I used and how I pulled the course together,

A Strategy to Encourage Self-Reflection

Erica Posthuma | Mon, 09/16/2019 - 09:52

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This simple idea can help students learn the importance of honest self-reflection and foster meaningful conversation between the student and teacher.

Critical Thinking vs. Critical Pedagogy

Clarissa Sorens... | Wed, 09/04/2019 - 19:30

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I recently participated in a conference known as the Digital Pedagogy Lab as a fellow, which required leading a workshop (or an equivalent). I chose to structure my workshop around the ideas of critical pedagogy and STEM, and particularly how we use these ideas in a practical way in the classroom (both F2F (face-to-face) and DL (distance learning)). This blog will be one of a two-part series on these topics.

A Strategy to Help Students Support their Arguments with Cross-Cutting Concepts and Core Ideas

Dustin Williams | Sat, 08/24/2019 - 21:57

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In order for students to be fluent enough with the CCCs and core ideas to use them to support their arguments, we teachers need a way to help students become familiar with them.

Chemistry Magnets - Making Chemistry Visible

Doug Ragan | Fri, 08/16/2019 - 22:16

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Doug Ragan been using magnets of elements and subatomic particles for some time to help his students visualize what is happening at the particle level of chemistry. Download the files attached to the post and print out your own set of elements and particles!

Features of Effective Flipped Classroom Videos

Josh Kenney | Thu, 08/15/2019 - 15:06

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Since 2013, I have been creating video tutorials for use in a flipped classroom setting. Over the years, the format of my videos has evolved as I’ve uncovered the best practices in technique.

Accessibility and Inclusion in the Chemistry Classroom

Ariel Serkin | Sun, 08/04/2019 - 15:30

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Having presented on the topic several times over the summer, I am sharing strategies for helping support diverse learners. As we teachers prepare to go back to school, I have summarized my presentation into a list of ways to help your classroom be inclusive for all learners.

Inquiry and Direct Instruction in the Age of NGSS

Dustin Williams | Fri, 08/02/2019 - 14:04

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When it comes to the best approach for student learning, there seems to be two very divided camps: those who promote direct instruction and those who favor inquiry. I have been thinking a lot about this issue for several years now and decided to finally write my reflections down, based on 6 years of experience as a science teacher.