Whether podcasts are a supplement to your curriculum, one of several options for a final product at the end of a unit, or an assessment that each student contributes to in their own way, there are many opportunities for choice, creativity, and reflection during the process. And, there are multiple tools that can be used already available in most classrooms.

As we embrace the challenges that may continue to come throughout the rest of this school year and prepare for the next, we must stay flexible and be willing to take more risks with new ideas and digital tools in our classrooms. Here are five tools that promote creativity and provide fun learning experiences for students and teachers, and even families!

Teaching remotely can be tricky since building relationships in a virtual classroom is a skill that comes with experience. Wherever you are in your online teaching journey, you can still make the best out of any situation. Here are a few tips and tricks that I’ve learned along the way that can make building an online rapport much easier:

Being a teacher has always been a tough job that can drain the last ounce of energy out of you regularly. In the past year, “teacher-tired” has changed into “digitally fatigued,” moving towards a new exhaustion level. Here’s how to overcome digital fatigue as a teacher:

The gap between education research and practice is a big problem that education leaders and policymakers need to address. However, teachers can reap the benefits of educational research by tapping into valuable information to use in their daily practice. This information is widely available online, so why not give it a try?

Regardless of the tools we use as teachers, as long as we foster student agency, we give them the best lesson: anything in life requires complete dedication and engagement if we want it to be a success. They can only achieve this if they take responsibility for their actions, and what better way to start doing so than while learning?

Whether we are in virtual, hybrid, or in-person learning, it is important to have a variety of versatile tools that help us transition between these spaces and also expand the when and where learning happens. Here are four ideas to promote collaboration in digital spaces:

When designing online learning content, teachers and students should not forget that not all images, videos, and texts that are available online can be used freely. So let’s explore five copyright rules that every student and teacher should know by heart:

The principles of effective teaching are evidence-based guidelines to help all educators become master teachers. However, as a teacher, you might find it difficult to apply all of these principles online. They need to be adapted to work online, at least until everyone can safely return to face to face classes.

With the job to provide entertainment to people who can switch a channel any time they get bored, talk-show hosts know how to gain their viewers’ attention. There is no reason that educators can’t adapt some of these techniques, such as the games they play with their guests, for the classroom.