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Back to SchoolGood Teaching

Fresh Starts: Back-to-School Activities from Elementary to High School

by Sara Qualls
written by Sara Qualls

If you’re not back in the classroom yet, don’t worry—your return is just around the corner! Ba-dum tss!

All jokes aside, I hope your summer was everything you imagined it would be, whether that was full on binging and lounging or checking things off your bucket list. As you gear up for a new school year, dive into these engaging back-to-school activities that are perfect for kicking off the first couple of weeks. From elementary to middle to high school, I’ve got you covered with ideas that will help you and your students settle into a groove. Let’s make the start of this year a blast!

Elementary Learners

Classroom Scavenger Hunts

Objective:

Familiarize your students with their new classroom. 

How To:

Stop and look around your classroom. Is there a routine you want them to follow? A place you want them to turn things into? You get the ideas. So now, create a list of items or places that you know your students are going to need to access often. Students can then work in small groups or individually to find each item you have put on your scavenger hunt. Sit back and watch as they tick off items from the list while gradually getting to know your classroom and the expectations you have for them.


Templates/Ideas: 

Check out these editable templates and ideas to help you create your own personalized classroom scavenger hunt.

Classroom Scavenger Hunt Template on Canva

School Scavenger Hunt Template on Canva

Just need ideas or tips to customize your hunt? Check out this blog from Grapevine Quest that has all the tips, ideas, and ways to prepare for this type of activity that will have your students engaged in critical thinking and teamwork.

All About Me Collages

Objective:

Help students introduce themselves and learn about their classmates.  

How To:

Grab some magazines, colored paper, markers, and glue, and let the creativity flow! Have your students make a collage that shows off their interests, family, and favorite things. Once they’re done, they can share their masterpieces with the class.

Templates/Ideas: 

Fantastic Fun and learning breaks down all the supplies you’ll need along with step-by-step instructions on how to lead this back-to-school activity. Check it out here.

Jump straight into learning with this Canva template. 

Have devices in your classroom? Go digital with your students. Explore this idea from Mrs. Amsler’s Artroom.

More Back-to-School Activities for Elementary Schoolers

Back to School Breakout
Elementary teachers, are you looking for a great resource for back to school? How about a digital breakout to kick off your year?

We Have to Save Fred!
Always a favorite, the Save Fred Challenge is great for team building. Plus, check out extension ideas to create a perfect day of learning.

Three Activities for Back-to-School Anxiety
As the start of school approaches, students may be feeling anxious. Try some SEL activities to help destress them.

Middle School Students

Classroom Bingo

Objective:

Help students get to know each other, the classroom layout, and your expectations. 

How to:

Make Bingo cards with various classroom-related prompts, like “Find someone who has been to another country” or “Find a book with a blue cover.” Students will mingle to find classmates who match the prompts and mark off their Bingo cards as they go.

Templates/Ideas:

If you don’t know about Bingo Baker, you’re missing out! You can create your own bingo cards or peruse templates until you find just what you need. Here’s a bingo card tailored for middle school learners. All you need to do is print!

Let the relationship building begin with this Getting to Know You Bingo template found in Canva. Customize it to fit your needs or use it as is. 

Mystery Object Challenges

Objective:

Foster teamwork and curiosity.

How to:

Put a mystery object in a bag. Students take turns feeling the object (without peeking) and describing it to their group. They’ll guess what it is based on the descriptions. Once everyone has guessed, reveal the object and have a discussion about it.

Templates/Ideas:

Explore the reasons why this teacher loves this Mystery Bag activity for her students. You’ll get tips and ideas for what to toss in your mystery bag. 

To use this hands-on activity that ties back to Claim Evidence Reasoning, access the full breakdown and directions of how to use this in your classroom. Check out this Mystery Challenge idea and more from Adventures in Stem.

More Back-to-School Activities for Middle Schoolers

Human Bingo

Human Bingo is a fun and effective icebreaker activity that fosters connection and learning. Learn how to implement it effectively!

Email Writing for Students
In today’s digital world, teaching your students the art of writing an email is a must. This blog has lesson ideas, videos, and resources to help.

“This, Not That” Bellringers
The latest version of the “This, Not That” bellringers includes a change in format and some new activities for back to school.

High School Students

Future Goals Jigsaw

Objective:

Encourage your high school students to begin to think about and share their future aspirations. 

How to:
Have students write down one academic or personal goal for the year on a piece of paper. Collect the papers, cut them into puzzle pieces, and distribute the pieces randomly. Students will work to piece together the goals and then discuss them with the class.

No template needed for this one!

Quote Reflection

Objective:

Create discussion and personal reflection.

How to:

Share a list of inspiring quotes about learning or personal growth with your students. Ask them to pick a quote that really speaks to them and write a short reflection on why it’s meaningful. Then, have them share their thoughts in small groups or with the whole class.

Templates/Ideas:

You can use this activity any time during the school year, but it’s especially great at the start of the year to help students discover or begin exploring their purpose. It’s also useful for helping them develop content for college entrance essays. Check out this lesson plan featuring pre-selected quotes to get students thinking.

Explore this big list of quotes that you can supply your students with. 

Go a step further and have them take that quote or idea and let them go wild with shape clouds. Creating shape word clouds is not only fun but also a fantastic culminating activity. Check out these four free digital tools to get started!

More Back-to-School Activities for High Schoolers

Solo Cup Engineering Challenge
The Solo Cup Engineering Challenge is perfect for team-building. Students and adults love this activity for fun and learning.

Help your high school students set and track their goals with this infographic-style template. It’s designed to set them up for future success by guiding them in setting and monitoring their own goals. Here is a template for goal setting from Lead Inclusion.

Engage Your Students by Creating Your Own Wordle

If you and your students are hooked on Wordle, try “Make Your Own Wordle”! Create and share custom wordles with a simple link—no registration needed, and it’s completely free. If you enjoy Wordle, you’ve probably heard of the Connections game as well. Learn how to create your own Connections game here.

These activities are perfect for kicking off the new school year with a positive and engaging vibe, and the best part is they require minimal prep! They’re designed to help you create an inviting atmosphere right from the start, so you can focus more on connecting with your students and less on getting everything ready. 

Here’s to another fantastic year ahead!

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Educational ResearchScienceScienceWriting

CER Resources for the Science Classroom

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

What if, in six sentences, you could empower students to create amazing work? It’s a preoccupation many science teachers have. Let’s take a moment and spend some time on CER: claim, evidence, and reasoning. Think of CER as a tool for student empowerment. You’ll see some specific examples with the help of AI tools such as Claude, ChatGPT, and an AI Lesson Plan Generator.

Many science teachers use the Claim Evidence Reasoning (CER) approach as a cross curriculum approach. It helps help students organize their thoughts to create better scientific explanations. This aids in constructing arguments and communicating their conclusions. This can be an effective approach which your students can then take to the workplace. (Adapted from source)

Some teachers suggest that schools use CER across the middle school curriculum. In that way, CER is relied upon as a way to teach argumentation. “If you are making a weighted statement, you’ve got to be able to back it up,” says Rachel Jennings Langley. That makes sense, but what IS CER anyways?

Colorful bulletin board explaining how to think like a scientist using CER.
Image Source: Sara Fisher Christensen, Science Teacher

What Is CER?

In a popular science teacher Facebook group, a first-year science teacher asked, “What are CERs? What do you do with them?” She went on to ask, “Is this something I can incorporate with my curriculum for grades 6-7?” After reading the responses, I thought it might be a time-saver to organize them in this blog entry.

“Use the Scientific Method to do the lab. For the write-up, use CER. They compliment each other. CER is a great way to summarize the scientific method.”

Julia Calderon (edited for readability)
Image of the free Battlebots CER Activity.
Special thanks to Jamie Houston Gibbs for sharing this free resource.

Some describe CER as an inquiry-based approach. “[CER] challenges students to explain what they found after completing a lab or observing phenomena,” says Gabriel Higdon. People often equate CER with the Scientific Method, and it’s not, says Higdon. Teachers who have access to curricula like STEMscopes have CER built-in. Some suggest that the Scientific Method should be “ditched.”

A Shout Out

I hope you don’t mind doing a quick shout-out to a science guru, Lisa Soll, at the Education Service Center, Region 20 in San Antonio, Texas. I really appreciate her science efforts and encourage you to drop by and visit her to learn more about science in education.

-Miguel

Ditching the Scientific Method

Erin Sadler (Sadler Science) argues that the scientific method gives the impression that science is linear, leaving out modeling and argumentation. What’s more, students seldom get enough practice on individual components and fail to connect science and engineering (source). Erin Sadler makes some excellent points, culminating in her piece on How to Use the Science and Engineering Practices. For many educators, CER serves as a way to get students to write about certain aspects of the science work they are engaged in. It certainly seems that there are different tools to use in the classroom. In Texas classrooms, CER is quite important.

AI Insight

Did you know you could use the free AI Lesson Plan Generator to create a CER lesson plan? Use this AI tool to create a CER intro activity. View one example.

What Does AI Say About CER?

Now that we have access to content creation models like ChatGPT, what do they say CER is? That is, how have they amalgamated all the information out there to explain CER? Here’s what ChatGPT has to say:

CER stands for “Claim, Evidence, and Reasoning.” It is a framework commonly used in scientific writing and argumentation to structure and communicate ideas and findings.

– Claim: The claim is a statement or conclusion being made. It is the main point that is being argued or asserted.

– Evidence: The evidence is the information or data that supports the claim. It can come from experiments, research studies, observations, or personal experiences.

– Reasoning: The reasoning is the logical connection or explanation that links the evidence to the claim. It explains why the evidence is relevant and supports the claim.

CER is often used in scientific investigations and writing to structure explanations and arguments, helping to ensure that claims are supported by valid evidence and logical reasoning.

Screenshot of Claude AI-Generated Explanation of CER.
Screenshot by author of AI-generated content from Claude.ai chat

As wonderful an explanation as that is, I thought I’d take a page or two from Scott Phillips’ free ebook: Writing in Middle School Science: Claim, Evidence, Reasoning Papers That Work.

Image of a CER worksheet offered by Texas Gateway.
Screenshot by author from Texas Gateway

When to Use CER

Scott Phillips shares that he uses CERs in two ways:

  • Warm-ups at the beginning of class
  • Tests and quizzes

This isn’t the only way you can use CER. You may already be familiar with bell ringers and why they are effective. Hannah Bain suggests using CERs as bell ringers. See her example below:

8th grade bellringer activity for CER practice.
Source: Hannah Bain, Request Access to view: Canva | GoogleDoc

Getting Started with CERs

CERs appear in curricula like STEMscopes and in Texas Gateway. Of course, you can find it in many other places. These videos offer great places to start:

In his ebook, Scott Phillips shares this formula:

  • Sentence 1: Answer the question
  • Sentences 2,3,4: Convert data from number format into sentence format. Exclude unimportant data.
  • Sentence 5: Start with “In science, we know…” then state the scientific principle that supports your answer.
  • Sentence 6: Summarize data, then write “Therefore,” and summarize your answer.

“Avoid writing more than six sentences and do not use the word ‘because,'” says Scott Phillips in his book. Jennifer Weibert (see her slide deck in the “Additional Resources” section below) offers these steps:

  1. Re-state your claims.
  2. Provide some scientific principles/knowledge that you already have about a topic.
  3. Provide data from the activity (lab, gizmo, etc.) that connects to the scientific principles/knowledge mentioned in Step 2. Show that your data can be used to prove your claim.
  4. Wrap up your reasoning with a conclusion sentence that begins with a word such as “Therefore,” “Hence,” “Thus,” or “So,” and re-state the claim.

Another approach from Laurie ‘Cadwaller’ Johnson. Examples from Angela Kopp appear below each point:

  • C- Claim. No explanation.
    • The specimen under the microscope is living.
  • E- Evidence. The most boring sentence (or sentences) that put(s) the info from a data table or graph (quantitative is best; qualitative is ok) into an understandable phrase.
    • The specimen contains cells with a nucleus, cell membrane, and cell wall. When I looked at my cheek sample and onion sample, I saw cells with a nucleus, cell membrane, cell wall (onion). When looking at samples of salt and sand, no cells were present.
  • R- Reasoning. The phrase that ran through your head when you looked at the data and the claim came to mind.
    • All living things contain cells. Cells are the basic building block for all organisms.
  • J- Justification. What information from a society (like the scientific community/research group) or entity supports you as well? Is there a science concept that also supports you outside of the evidence of the investigation?
    • None provided.

Here’s another explanation you can view as a video (5 minutes and 21 seconds):

Another interesting way to think about scaffolding students’ thinking is to include questions. These questions assist student in developing a deeper focus for their question, any claims, and evidence.

Expanding Questions with the Science Writing Heuristic

Worthy of consideration is this heuristic. It includes some questions that spur thinking. You may have seen these questions below as part of the Science Writing Heuristic:

  • Beginning ideas – What are my questions?
  • Tests – What did I do?
  • Observations – What did I see?
  • Claims – What can I claim?
  • Evidence – How do I know? Why am I making these claims?
  • Reading – How do my ideas compare with other ideas?
  • Reflection – How have my ideas changed? (source)

The use of the Science Writing Heuristic can facilitate “students to generate meaning from data, make connections among procedures, data, evidence, and claims.” It can also assist them in engaging in metacognition (source). These can definitely complement the use of CER in the classroom.

Let’s take a look at some more examples of CERs.

CER Examples

In one of many examples in his book, Scott asks, “Will the ball sink in water?” He later states you can ask this question in this way:

Which of these objects will sink or float in the water?

The information provided includes the density of three items. These items include:

  • ball (1.5g/ml)
  • water (1.0 g/ml)
  • corn (0.25 g/ml)

Scott says the CER for these would be as follows:

  1. Yes, the ball will sink.
  2. The density of the ball is 1.5 g/ml
  3. The density of water is 1.0 g/ml
  4. In science, we know that a more dense object will sink in a less dense material.
  5. The ball is more dense than water, therefore it sinks. 

He suggests that you can write this CER in paragraph form:

Yes, some objects will sink and others will float. The density of the water is 1.0 g/ml, while the density of the ball is 1.5 g/ml and the corn’s 0.25 g/ml.

In science, we know that more dense objects (ball) sink while less dense objects (corn) float atop the less dense material (water). Given that the ball is more dense, and the corn is less dense than water therefore the ball will sink and the corn will float.

Wondering how to introduce CER with easier examples? Let’s take a look at some of the responses from the Facebook group.

Examples from the Facebook Group

You can find these and more in the Middle School Science Facebook group. Some are humor-inducing and sure to engage students. Others explain sad events (e.g. the corn starch fire at a Taiwan Water Park in 2015).

A few select examples appear below:

  • Use a murder mystery
  • Give them an Encyclopedia Brown story to solve. (The Case of the Missing Clues.) Then, look at a case from Sherlock Holmes. It’s clear from these how evidence and reasoning are not the same. It helps students, but the skills don’t transfer easily to their own lab write-ups. Hard skill! Explain that in their labs, the reasoning is the science facts/concepts/laws and vocabulary that explain why what they are seeing makes sense.”
  • Drops on a Penny. Count how many water droplets fit on a penny. Students take a guess how many will stay before it flows over.
  • Oreo Cookie Stuffing. Are double-stuffed Oreos really double the filling?”
  • Jelly Bean Nose Test. Does plugging your nose affect the flavor of a jelly bean?
  • Quicker Picker Up Experiment. “My intro to the scientific method and CER this year began with taking notes on what each part of the scientific method was and then watching a commercial about Bounty paper towels. Students tested to see if Bounty really was ‘the quicker picker upper’.”
  • Cold Water. Is the water cold? Students use a thermometer to measure the temperature to find it’s 10C. They make the claim that the water is cold. The evidence is that the water is 10C. The reasoning would be that temperatures lower than body temperature are cool or cold, and 10C is colder than body temperature. For each science investigation, there should be a problem in the form of a question or statement that students investigate. Students should be able to support their claim or hypothesis with the data they collect and explain why that data supports their claim
  • Cornstarch CER. Demonstrate how cornstarch is not flammable unless in dust form. Then, show a news clip of the tragedy that occurred in Taiwan at the water park in 2015. Do a see, think, wonder list with their shoulder partners. Next, at their tables, they discuss each item; the other pair chooses one point that the other group made that they thought was interesting. They then asked that pair why five times concerning that point. It made them give much more information. When done, show them a picture of a color run and ask what they think. In the next class, complete a CER about it.
  • My Dad’s a Space Alien. View this presentation and this video example.
  • Fact-Checking the Internet. Focus on fact-checking the Internet and walk through your CER process. Be sure to check the list included in the Science Lessons That Rock resources in the “Additional Resources” section.

Finally, check out this amazing Wakelet Collection from Collette Taylor-Chovan:

Screenshot of a Wakelet Collection
Screenshot by the author of Collette Taylor-Chovan’s Wakelet Collection

Sentence Starters

Many of the science teachers in the Facebook group reported that they relied on sentence starters for CER. Here are a few I found that may be useful.

View via Canva | View PDF

Additional Resources

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AI/VREnglish Language ArtsESL/ELLScienceWriting

Get CLEARER with Digital Text Analysis

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

While cruising Facebook groups earlier this month, I ran across this question. Having never heard of one of the acronyms, PEARL, I was curious to learn more about it. These days, acronyms are a dime a dozen. But this question resulted in some conversations among the Facebook group:

“Most of our middle and high schools (I’m a curriculum specialist) have all their students write PEARL paragraphs regularly. I’m trying to explain how writing in science is different than in ELA. I want them to use the CER format in science but the admins are telling me it will confuse kids. What are your thoughts?”

At the end, you’ll get access to a new, text analysis digital tool that combines PEARL and CER. Before I share that, let’s explore PEARL and CER first.

Author generated image – Get a copy of all posters (PEARL, CER, CLEARER)

Engaging Students in Literary Analysis

Getting students (or anyone) to analyze what they read has become all the more important in the age of AI. Having some way to articulate what you think about a piece, construct an argument supported by evidence and reasoning can be tough. One approach is the PEARL acronym, although many rely on CER. Let’s review what each of these mean and then consider how they can be combined.

PEARL vs CER

The acronym represents five words or actions, including:

  • Point
  • Evidence
  • Analysis
  • Reader Response
  • Link

As suggested, it may be relied upon in literary analysis. But it has startling similarities to Claim-Evidence-Reasoning (CER). Before we connect the two acronyms, let’s look at how you can use PEARL for both literary and scientific analysis.

PEARL Table

Here’s what PEARL looks like using fictional story, Charles Dicken’s A Christmas Carol. You will also see a nonfiction example featuring the Water Cycle. As you can see from the table, PEARL is versatile for both fiction and nonfiction, including science-related topics.

LetterMeaningExplanationFiction Example (Literature)Nonfiction Example (Science)
PPointThe main argument or idea being presentedThe writer uses the character of Scrooge to highlight the unfairness of society.The water cycle is a crucial process that sustains life on Earth.
EEvidenceSupporting information, quotes, or dataBy referring to Scrooge as a “tightfisted hand at the grindstone”, the writer emphasizes…According to NASA, about 71% of the Earth’s surface is covered in water, with 96.5% of that being in the oceans.
AAnalysisExamination of the evidence and its significanceThe metaphor “grindstone” connotes… which suggests… because… The writer uses the adjective “tightfisted” to… as this means that…The term “hydrosphere” encompasses all of Earth’s water, including oceans, rivers, lakes, and even water vapor in the atmosphere. This vast amount of water is constantly moving through the water cycle, driven by solar energy.
RReader ResponseConsideration of the reader’s reaction and broader implicationsClearly, the writer intends to criticize people in his society who are [specific trait] and selfish. This contributes to the overall impression that…Readers might reflect on how human activities, such as pollution or deforestation, can impact the water cycle. This contributes to our understanding of environmental conservation and climate change.
LLinkSummary and connection to broader contextTherefore, the writer uses the character of Scrooge to inform us of the unforgiving cruelty of life in Victorian London.Therefore, understanding the water cycle is essential for comprehending Earth’s climate systems, weather patterns, and the distribution of water resources, which are vital for all life on our planet.

You can combine all the results of the PEARL to get a final result that reads well.

Get CLEARER About the PEARL-CER JAM

Teaching students PEARL and CER can be valuable. As you might imagine, it’s easy to draw parallels between PEARL and CER. You can arrange the components of a scientific piece of writing to take advantage of both PEARL and CER. Follow these five steps:

  1. Start with a Claim/Point. State your main scientific argument.
  2. Provide Evidence. Present relevant data or observations.
  3. Offer Reasoning/Analysis. Explain how the evidence supports your claim and analyze its significance.
  4. Include Reader Response. Discuss implications or broader scientific context.
  5. End with a Link. Summarize and connect to larger scientific concepts or next points.

If you wanted to, you could even combine PEARL and CER into a new acronym to teach students. This would eliminate the confusion of two different acronyms. What would that acronym be?

Author generated image
Author generated image – Get a copy of all posters (PEARL, CER, CLEARER)

Introducing CLEARER

Well, it couldn’t get any clearer than this one:

  • C – Claim/Point: The main argument or hypothesis
  • L – Literature/Look for Proof: Evidence from text or scientific observations
  • E – Examine: Analysis of the evidence
  • A – Apply: How the evidence supports the claim
  • R – Respond: Reader/audience implications
  • E – Elaborate: Broader context and connections
  • R – Recap: Summary and link to larger concepts

For fun, you can apply CLEARER to another bit of literature. I also have a simplified version of CLEARER below. Let’s take a look.

CLEARER Examples: Fiction and NonFiction

One of my favorite stories is the Three Little Pigs and you can’t get any simpler than the Water Cycle.

CLEARER ComponentExplanationThe Three Little Pigs ExampleWater Cycle Example
C – Claim/PointThe main argument or hypothesisThe story of “The Three Little Pigs” shows us why it’s good to work hard and plan ahead.The water cycle is a crucial process that sustains life on Earth.
L – Literature/ Data (Look for Proof)Evidence from text or scientific observationsIn the story, the pig who built his house with bricks was safe from the big bad wolf, while his brothers who used straw and sticks were not.According to NASA, about 71% of the Earth’s surface is covered in water, with 96.5% of that being in the oceans.
E – ExamineAnalysis of the evidenceIn the story, only the pig who built a strong brick house was safe from the wolf. The brick house shows that doing things carefully is better. The wolf couldn’t blow it down because bricks are strong.The term “hydrosphere” encompasses all of Earth’s water, including oceans, rivers, lakes, and even water vapor in the atmosphere.
A – ApplyHow the evidence supports the claimThis shows that taking time to do things right pays off.This vast amount of water is constantly moving through the water cycle, driven by solar energy, demonstrating the dynamic nature of the process.
R – RespondReader/audience implicationsWhen we read this story, we might think about how important it is to plan ahead and do our best.Readers might reflect on how human activities, such as pollution or deforestation, can impact the water cycle.
E – ElaborateBroader context and connectionsIt makes us want to be more like the smart pig who used bricks.This contributes to our understanding of environmental conservation and climate change.
R – Recap or RememberSummary and link to larger conceptsSo, “The Three Little Pigs” isn’t just a fun story – it’s also teaching us a lesson about being responsible and working hard to stay safe and successful.Therefore, understanding the water cycle is essential for comprehending Earth’s climate systems, weather patterns, and the distribution of water resources, which are vital for all life on our planet.

That’s pretty straightforward, no? Let’s look at a simpler version.

Simplifying a Little For Younger Students

The versatile, structured approach of CLEARER supports critical thinking and evidence-based reasoning. Working with my third grade students, I would revise CLEARER to show simpler explanations of each step.

  • C – Claim/Point: The big idea you want to share
  • L – Look for Proof: Finding facts in the story or experiment
  • E – Explain: Talking about why the proof is important
  • A – Apply: Showing how the proof makes your idea true
  • R – React: Thinking about how the reader might feel
  • E – Explore More: Connecting your idea to other things
  • R – Recap: Summing up your main idea and why it matters

Now that you have an answer to your question about PEARL or CER, let’s take a look at digital tools for text analysis.

Performing Digital Text Analysis

Digital text analysis tools can be a game-changer in your classroom.Here are three ways students can tap into text analysis tools:

  • Analyze literary texts
  • Conduct research projects
  • Create data-driven stories

Let’s look at each one of these through the CLEARER lens while using digital tools. A list of Text Analysis Tools K-12 students can use appears at the end of this blog entry.

Author generated image
Author generated image – Get a copy of all posters (PEARL, CER, CLEARER)

CLEARER Digital Text Analysis

Since the question at the start of this blog entry struggles with literary and scientific analysis, let’s analyze a story that relies on scientific thinking (and is one of my favorites).

Example #1: Analyzing Literary Texts

C – Claim/Point: State the main argument about the text based on initial observations.
L – Literature/Data: Use Voyant to generate word clouds and frequency data.
E – Examine: Analyze the visualizations and data patterns produced by the tools.
A – Apply: Connect the data to your claim, showing how it supports your argument.
R – Respond: Consider how these insights might change a reader’s understanding of the text.
E – Elaborate: Explore connections between the tool’s findings and broader literary themes.
R – Recap: Summarize how the digital analysis supports or challenges your initial claim.

Classroom Use Scenario: 11th-grade students analyze “Leiningen Versus the Ants” using Voyant. They start with a claim about the story’s themes, use the tool to examine word frequencies and patterns, and then apply these findings to support or refine their initial claim.

As you can see from the image below, Voyant Tools does a great job analyzing the text:

Here’s an explanation using CLEARER and Voyant Tools diagram about the story (Get a copy).

Get the Word Cloud Generator For You

For fun, I asked Claude.ai to create a Word Cloud Generator that works in your web browser. There are two versions, the simple one (get a copy), and the one that gives you a word cloud and a CLEARER analysis (get a copy). I dropped in the text of one of my favorite high school stories, Leiningen Versus the Ants, to get the following result:

Image generated by author with Claude.ai Artifact
Image generated by author with Claude.ai Artifact

Give it a spin! As you might imagine, the word cloud might be more useful than the AI generated analysis. Maybe have your students do that analysis part.

Get CLEARER with Digital Text Analysis

By empowering students with text analysis tools, you can help them develop essential skills in critical thinking, research, and data analysis.

Want some more tools in addition to the TCEA Word Cloud Generator with CLEARER Analysis and Voyant Tools?

Here are some text analysis tools that students can use in the classroom, alphabetized by tool:

ToolDescriptionPrice
ATLAS.tiA tool designed to help analyze all types of unstructured data (text, multimedia, geospatial).Custom pricing for education institutions
DedooseA qualitative data analysis software that facilitates rigorous mixed methods research.$11.95/month (basic plan)
f4analyseA low/no-code tool for data analysis that allows users to use analytic methods without coding.Custom pricing for education institutions
HathiTrustA digital library with text analysis tools.Free (for partner institutions)
InfraNodusA visual text analyzer platform with gap insight analysis.Free trial, then €9/month (basic plan)
Lumos LearningA free text complexity analysis tool that evaluates reading passages using various metrics.Free
MAXQDAA qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods research tool that’s particularly well-suited to processing interviews.$49 (one-time purchase, student license)
MonkeyLearnA no-code machine learning platform for text analysis.Free trial, then $299/month (basic plan)
Relative InsightA customer feedback analysis solution that detects linguistic and attitudinal differences.Custom pricing for education institutions
SimpleXAn AI-powered smart console for text analysis.$49 (one-time purchase)
TableauA data visualization tool that can be used for text analysis.Free trial, then $35/month (basic plan)
ThematicA customer feedback analysis solution that can be used in education settings.Custom pricing for education institutions
VoyantA web-based text reading and analysis environment.Free

Did you get a copy of all the posters in this blog entry? Use this handy template link to get the copy of all posters via Canva (which is free for educators).

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10 Critical Thinking Skills for Elementary Students including Activities
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10 Critical Thinking Skills for Elementary Learners

by Sara Qualls
written by Sara Qualls

As students dive into the complexities of the world, it’s crucial to equip elementary learners with strong critical thinking skills. One study shows that developing these skills can really boost students’ academic performance and problem-solving abilities. 

When we foster these skills early, we’re setting up our young learners to analyze information, make smart decisions, and adapt to new situations with confidence and creativity. So, let’s jump in and check out some critical thinking skills activities that can help spark curiosity and strengthen these essential skills in elementary students! 

Fostering Adaptability in Elementary School

Adaptability is the ability to embrace new ideas and adjust perspectives based on fresh evidence or insights.

Imagine being a superhero, using your powers to tackle various challenges—that’s the essence of adaptability! For young learners, developing this crucial skill helps them navigate new situations, embrace change, and recover from setbacks. As they learn to adjust their approaches, they build confidence and resilience that will benefit them throughout their lives. Here are some engaging activities designed to foster adaptability skills in elementary students.

Adaptability Activities for Elementary School

Flexible Schedule
Allow students to create their own schedule for a day or a week, but introduce changes along the way (e.g., shifting activities around). This helps them practice adjusting their plans and managing time effectively, giving them a realistic glimpse into daily life!

Team Building Games: Engage students in activities like or “Tower Building” with limited materials. As they work together, introduce new rules or challenges to see how they adapt their strategies.

Mystery Object
Present an object and ask students to come up with multiple uses for it. This fosters flexibility in thinking and encourages them to view challenges from different angles. You might be surprised by the imaginative solutions they come up with.

Bonus: Solo-Cup Engineering Challenge

Enhancing Analysis Skills in Elementary Students

Analysis is the ability to break down complex information into smaller parts, identifying patterns and relationships.

Imagine taking a complex puzzle and breaking it into manageable pieces—now that’s a skill to cherish! It’s all about spotting patterns and relationships that help clarify the big picture. For elementary learners, developing analysis and critical thinking skills is crucial; it empowers them to ask questions, solve problems, and think independently. Here are some fun activities designed to help young students build this essential, future-ready skill. Let’s jump in!

Analysis Activities for Elementary School

Story Mapping
Have students create a visual map of a story, identifying characters, setting, problem, and resolution. This helps them break down and analyze the narrative structure. Plus, it’s a creative way for them to visualize the story elements and see how they connect!

Compare and Contrast
Provide two similar books or stories and ask students to identify differences and similarities in themes, characters, and settings. They can use a Venn diagram to organize their thoughts. This activity not only sharpens their analytical skills but also encourages lively discussions about what makes each story unique. You can find tools to create your own Venn diagrams here.

Data Sorting
Use a simple dataset (like class survey results) and have students categorize the data, creating graphs or charts to represent their findings. This hands-on activity allows them to engage with real information, making analysis feel relevant and exciting!

Bonus: Make”Choose Your Own Adventure” Stories with Google Forms and AI

Collaborative Learning for Elementary Students

Collaboration is working effectively with others, sharing ideas, and integrating different perspectives to reach a common goal.

Imagine a group of young explorers navigating a treasure map together—that’s the essence of collaboration for elementary students! For young learners, developing collaboration skills is essential as it empowers them to communicate, share ideas, and build strong relationships. By fostering collaboration early on, students lay the groundwork for teamwork in future endeavors. Here are some impactful activities designed to cultivate collaboration skills in elementary learners.

Collaboration Activities for Elementary School

There are many ways to use story dice to promote creativity, writing skills, and more in the classroom.

Group Story Creation
Have students sit in a circle and collaboratively create a story, with each student contributing a sentence. This encourages them to listen to each other and build on ideas, fostering communication and teamwork. Try using Story Dice to engage your students.

Team Building Games
Organize simple team-building games, “Pass the Hula Hoop,” that require students to work together to achieve a goal. These activities promote trust and cooperation among classmates. A favorite activity from young learners to adults is Save Fred. Give it a go!

Collaborative Art Project
Provide a large piece of paper or canvas for a group art project where each student adds their own element. This encourages creativity and collaboration as they negotiate how to combine their ideas into a cohesive piece.

Bonus: Friendship Quilts Bring History, Math, and SEL Together

Building Communication Skills Early

Communication is the ability to convey ideas clearly and effectively, both verbally and in writing. 

Imagine a group of young friends excitedly sharing their favorite stories—that’s the essence of communication for elementary students! For young learners, developing strong communication skills is essential as it empowers them to express their thoughts, collaborate with peers, and build relationships. By fostering communication skills early on, students lay a solid foundation for future academic and social success. Here are some impactful activities designed to cultivate communication skills in elementary learners.

Communication Activities for Elementary School

Show and Tell
Organize regular “Show and Tell” sessions where students bring in an item of personal significance and explain its importance to the class. This encourages them to practice speaking in front of others and articulating their thoughts clearly. Explore six communication games and activities for elementary students here. 

Story Circle
Create a story circle where students take turns adding a sentence to a group story. This activity promotes listening skills and encourages them to build on each other’s ideas, enhancing their verbal communication.

Role-Playing
Have students engage in role-playing scenarios that mimic real-life situations, such as ordering food at a restaurant or interviewing for a job. This helps them practice conversational skills and learn how to communicate effectively in different contexts.

SEL Check-In Templates Feature Image

Bonus: 14 Editable SEL Check-In Templates

Nurturing Creativity in Young Minds

Creativity is the ability to generate original ideas and think outside the box, an essential skill for students as they navigate a rapidly changing world. 

Imagine cultivating a garden of ideas where each student can plant their own unique vision—that’s the power of creativity! For elementary learners, fostering creativity means encouraging imaginative play and exploration. It empowers them to express their thoughts freely and develop problem-solving skills through innovative projects. Here are some engaging activities specifically designed to help elementary school students nurture this vital, future-ready skill. Let’s jump in!

Creativity Activities for Elementary School

Creative Storytelling
Provide students with a set of random images or objects and ask them to create a unique story connecting them. This activity enhances imagination and narrative skills, making it a fun way to develop storytelling abilities. Try the Emoji Writing Prompt generator for some added fun.

Invent a New Game
Challenge students to design a new game with specific rules and objectives. This encourages teamwork and creative thinking, allowing students to express their ideas in a playful context.

STEAM Projects
Integrate STEAM concepts into art by having students create projects that blend creativity with science and technology. For example, they can design a simple machine that performs a specific task using everyday materials or create art using coding platforms. For more inspiring ideas, check out this resource STEM-Tastic Activities.

Empowering Decision-Making in Students

Decision-making is weighing options and outcomes to make choices that align with goals and values.

Imagine being a captain, steering your ship through uncharted waters—that’s what decision-making is all about! For elementary learners, developing this skill is crucial as they begin to understand how to evaluate options and make thoughtful choices. As they practice decision-making, they learn to think critically, consider consequences, and build confidence in their decisions. Here are some engaging activities designed to foster decision-making skills in elementary students, helping them become empowered, thoughtful individuals ready for future challenges.

Decision-Making Activities for Elementary School

Learn 6 tips for encouraging quieter students to participate in classroom discussions.

Classroom Discussions
Initiate discussions about a story or topic where students must share their opinions and justify them. This encourages them to think critically about their perspectives. Worried about the quieter students? You can find tips here to help everyone participate!

Mystery Box
Place several items in a box and have students guess their purpose. They must explain their reasoning, which promotes observation and analytical skills. This hands-on activity makes decision-making fun and interactive.

What If Scenarios
Present hypothetical scenarios (e.g., “What if animals could talk?”) and have students discuss the implications. This activity fosters imaginative and critical thinking, allowing them to explore different outcomes and their effects. You can find 320 creative questions from Making English Fun to get started. 

Evaluation Skills for Elementary Students

Evaluation is assessing the credibility of sources, arguments, and evidence to make informed judgments.

Imagine being a judge, carefully assessing options and making informed decisions—that’s the essence of evaluation! For elementary learners, developing this skill is key to understanding how to analyze information, weigh pros and cons, and make thoughtful choices. As they practice evaluating different scenarios, they boost their confidence and enhance their critical thinking abilities. Here are some engaging activities designed to foster evaluation skills in elementary students, helping them become discerning thinkers ready for future challenges.

Evaluation Activities for Elementary School

Two shelves with the seven book covers from the post on them.

Picture Books Comparison
Have students read two different picture books and evaluate the illustrations, themes, and messages. They can create a chart to compare their findings and share them with the class. This not only hones their evaluation skills but also promotes a love for reading!

Classroom Voting
Present a few ideas for a class project or theme and have students discuss the pros and cons of each. They can then vote, explaining their reasoning for their choice. This activity encourages critical thinking and helps them understand the decision-making process. Need a tool to help with your polling? Try one of these resources.

Product Reviews
Provide students with a simple product (like a toy or game) and have them evaluate its features, benefits, and drawbacks. They can create a poster or a short presentation to share their reviews. This fun activity allows them to practice articulating their evaluations in a creative way.

Inference Skills in Elementary Education

Inference is drawing logical conclusions based on available information and data, even when not all details are clear.

Imagine being a detective, piecing together clues to uncover hidden meanings—this is the essence of inference! It’s all about reading between the lines and drawing conclusions from evidence, which is crucial for navigating complex texts and situations. For young students, developing inference skills is essential; it boosts their confidence as readers and thinkers, helping them understand and engage with the world around them. Here are some engaging activities designed to spark their curiosity and strengthen this important skill.

Inference Activities for Elementary School

Picture Walk
Before diving into a book, take a picture walk! Have your students look at the illustrations and make predictions about the story based on visual clues. This engaging activity encourages them to discuss their inferences as they read, making the story come alive!

Story Predictions
Before finishing a story, ask students to predict the ending based on clues provided throughout the text. Encourage them to share their predictions and the evidence they used to support their inferences. This not only enhances their analytical skills but also fosters a deeper connection with the narrative.

Character Inference
Read a story and pause at key moments to ask students to infer what a character might be thinking or feeling based on their actions and dialogue. This activity helps them develop empathy and critical thinking as they consider different perspectives.

Problem-Solving for Elementary Schoolers

Problem-solving is the ability to develop strategies to tackle challenges, including identifying root causes and generating creative solutions.

Imagine facing a fun challenge and figuring out how to overcome it—that’s the heart of problem-solving! For younger students, developing this skill is key to navigating obstacles, thinking creatively, and building resilience. As they tackle simple problems, they gain confidence and a sense of accomplishment that lays the groundwork for future challenges. Here are some engaging activities designed to foster problem-solving skills in elementary learners.

Problem-Solving Activities for Elementary School

Example Google Forms for solving a digital breakout.

Puzzle Challenges
Provide students with a variety of puzzles (e.g., jigsaw, logic puzzles, digital breakouts or word searches) that require them to think critically to find solutions. This fun and interactive approach encourages them to collaborate and strategize. Check out these puzzle resources and digital breakouts for a quick start!

Math Word Problems
Create real-life scenarios that require students to use math to solve problems, encouraging them to identify the necessary steps to find a solution. This practical application of math not only sharpens their problem-solving skills but also helps them see the relevance of math in everyday life. You can find several examples of real-world math problems here.

Building Structures
Use materials like blocks or recycled items to challenge students to build a structure that meets specific criteria (e.g., height, stability). This hands-on activity fosters teamwork and creative problem-solving, allowing students to learn through trial and error as they bring their ideas to life.

Bonus: The Dump Truck-Incident: An Elementary Problem-Solving Challenge

Research Skills for Young Students

Research is the ability to gather information, analyze it critically, and draw informed conclusions. 

Imagine a group of curious young detectives exploring their world, seeking answers to intriguing questions—that’s the essence of research for elementary students! For young learners, developing research skills is essential as it empowers them to seek knowledge, ask questions, and develop a love for learning. By fostering research skills early on, students build a strong foundation for future academic success. Here are some impactful activities designed to cultivate research skills in elementary learners.

Research Activities for Elementary School

Question of the Week
Present a new question each week related to a subject the class is studying. Have students research the answer using books, articles, and online resources, then present their findings to the class. This encourages curiosity and helps them practice gathering information.

Nature Journals
Encourage students to keep nature journals where they document observations about plants, animals, and the environment. They can research facts about their observations and incorporate the concepts of Claim, Evidence, and Reasoning (CER) to structure their findings. This approach helps them analyze their observations and articulate their understanding more clearly. 

Classroom News Report
Have students create a classroom news report about a recent event or topic they researched. They can include interviews, facts, and their opinions, helping them learn to synthesize information and present it in an engaging format.

Bonus: Resources to Teach Students about News Validity

Incorporating these critical thinking skills into elementary classrooms helps create a strong foundation for young learners. As they engage in activities that promote analysis and adaptability, students are better equipped to face future challenges with confidence. So, what types of activities are you using to foster critical thinking in your classroom? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments!

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Author created derivative critical thinking processes
AI/VRArtificial Intelligence

AI Megaprompts for Coaching and Critical Thinking

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

“Are you there?” I first typed that into an Apple //e computer. The answer was “Syntax error.” I wanted to find the voice in the machine, some consciousness that would talk to me, tell me things, and answer questions. Now, making conversation with technology is possible through AI prompts and megaprompts. I will share my journey of learning to craft these prompts to converse with AI.

What is a megaprompt?

Like many, I had no idea what a megaprompt was. Megaprompts are long prompts that provide structured instructions or questions. These allow the AI to give complete responses when asked a question or given an instruction. Harry Pickens (ChatGPT for Educators) describes the process in this way:

Crafting a megaprompt for ChatGPT involves creating a detailed and structured set of instructions or questions that guide the AI to generate comprehensive and contextually relevant responses.

I summarize Pickens’ instructions below:

  • Provide a clear goal.
  • Give context or background information.
  • Divide the goal into specific steps.
  • Be precise and detailed.
  • Use examples that clarify directions.
  • Say what you want to see.
  • Ask for AI’s response in stages.
  • See what works, then refine the prompt.

When I wrote my first megaprompt, I started with Picken’s megaprompt for ChatGPT. Then, I adapted it to my own use.

Why make megaprompts?

Long prompts, megaprompts, enable more of a conversation to happen with your AI chatbot. Moreover, you can rely on the AI’s vast expanse of information access. For example, for my critical thinking megaprompts, I wanted the AI to do something I could not. That is, keep track of ALL the logical inconsistencies that might pop up in my writing and thinking. Logical fallacies are “common errors in reasoning.” Getting an AI to identify those can be a time-saver, no? Plus, with megaprompts, you can provide the AI with exactly the lens through which you want it to respond.

The Anatomy of a MegaPrompt

I’ve identified the following anatomy for long prompts:

  • Role. Set the role of the AI. Don’t be afraid to juxtapose two different roles. For example, the AI can be a critical-thinking advisor and a jolly professor.
  • Goal. Explain the goal that the AI chatbot should adopt.
  • Context. Provide background information. Include information, questions, and examples.
  • Interaction Guidelines. Explain how you want the AI to interact with the user. For example, ask it to solicit user consent and readiness, provide step-by-step guidance, etc.
  • Interaction Structure. Detail how you want AI to begin, assess user knowledge, dialogue, and how you’d like it to conclude.
  • Task(s). Define the task(s) that you want the AI to perform. Clarify step-by-step guidance, the need for dialogue, and action steps for each task.

Let’s craft a long prompt together that offers suggestions on teaching and learning. For example, combine the work and insights of several authors, as shown in the Amazing Lesson Design Outline (ALDO). Would that not be amazing to have at your disposal as a new teacher or a veteran wondering how to implement John Hattie’s high-effect size instructional strategies or brain-based learning?

MegaPrompt: ALDO Coach

“What is the best strategy to use in a particular instructional situation?” This is an important question to ask. Trained coaches are invaluable assets in helping educators choose relevant strategies for varied instructional situations. Using tools like ALDO in professional development can be a valuable tool in supporting teachers in lesson development. But can AI be trained to use ALDO to brainstorm with teachers? Teachers who might be unfamiliar with John Hattie’s “Visible Learning” might like this kind of tool and guidance. It would simplify their lives. It could also work as a simple instructional strategies coach.

This megaprompt incorporates the information I shared in the Amazing Lesson Design Outline (ALDO):

Rather than break down each component of the megaprompt (you can see it here), let’s see it in action below:

Long prompts like this can be a lot of fun. Let’s take a look at a few others.

MegaPrompt: Critical Thinking

Critical thinking can be a tough area for human beings. It has an effect size of .84, according to the Visible Learning MetaX database. The reason why it’s tough, albeit important to learn, is that there is so much to be an expert at. You have to know quite a bit about a field of knowledge. You also have to understand how to apply critical thinking processes, and you have to do this while avoiding logical fallacies.

That’s where AI can help. I had a lot of fun with this megaprompt and really appreciate the work of Thinking Is Power‘s advocate of scientific literacy, Melanie Trecek-King. Using her ideas, as well as those of Wayne R. Bartz, I worked with Claude.ai to make the following (try not to laugh too much):

Author created derivative critical thinking processes
Author created derivative critical thinking processes

View Full Size | Get a copy via Canva

As a person who recognizes his own struggles with critical thinking, I wanted help. I thought that an AI might be able to do the following more easily than I am able to:

  • Check my reasoning, if necessary.
  • Help me avoid logical fallacies and inconsistencies.
  • Analyze articles and media reports objectively.
  • Avoid appeals to my emotions and my cultural background that might compromise my thinking.
  • Apply a critical thinking model or process on my behalf.

What a brain-saver, right? Some of the critical thinking processes I decided to apply include:

Both Bartz’s and Trecek-King’s approaches are ways to evaluate claims. These are claims that people might make in conversation or in the media. Some of the places I’ve tried the megaprompts include:

MegaPrompt Takeaway

What’s the big takeaway from megaprompts? Long prompts enable rich dialogue with AI, and each AI handles megaprompts differently but effectively. This can enhance learning, creativity, and critical thinking. Will you give megaprompting a try?

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Want to improve your prompts to get better results from AI?
Artificial Intelligence

AI Prompt Engineering: Three Ideas, Two Quotes, and One Question

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Want to be an AI prompt engineer? Or, are you curious about how to set up problems for AI to solve? It’s not as hard as you might think, but it does require an awareness of key concepts. Let’s take a look at this through the lens of 3-2-1. James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, inspired this 3-2-1 approach to blog newsletters. He suggests sharing three short ideas, two quotes, and one question. With that in mind, I’ll share my 3-2-1 with you about AI prompt engineering.

Try the TCEA Prompt Guide Educator to assist you in fine-tuning your prompts:

Try the TCEA Prompt Guide Educator

Three Short Ideas on AI Prompt Engineering

Idea #1: Ask the AI to assume a role.

Say, “Take on the role of a conversational [XYZ] expert on [XYZ].” Note that this prompt should suggest what voice you want AI to use (e.g. conversational, formal, friendly, snarky). Here’s one example that asks Claude.ai to be a snarky English professor explaining how to craft a story to students:

Example Prompt interaction with Claude
Idea # 2: Feed the AI.

Tell the AI what information you want to see in its response as well as the structure you’d like it to use. And, you can hone the AI responses by keeping the conversation going. For the snarky English professor example, in a follow-up prompt, I asked Claude to “number the steps” for storytelling. But you can also request outlines, rubrics, tables, bulleted lists, etc.

Explore TCEA’s AI Resources – More being added every day
Idea # 3: Provide the AI with feedback.

Let the AI engine know what you think about the content generated, then ask it to write you a better prompt. Watch how I thank Claude.ai and the AI’s response:

Example Prompt interaction with Claude

Don’t be afraid to rely on a variety of generative AI options. Some of my favorites include OpenAI ChatGPT, Google Bard, MS Bing Chat, and Claude.

Two Quotes About AI Prompt Engineering

Quote #1: Be an AI whisperer.

“Those who know how to prompt the AI to do their bidding, and to do it faster and better and more creatively than anyone else, is going to be golden,” says Nikhil Dey.

However, some suggest that prompt engineering will not be enough going forward. Instead, they offer a different perspective.

Quote #2: Focus on problem formulation.

This excerpt from Harvard Business Review suggests prompt engineering is “fleeting.” Instead, focus your efforts on formulating problems that enlist AIs to compose solutions:

“…what is a more enduring and adaptable skill that will keep enabling us to harness the potential of generative AI? It is problem formulation — the ability to identify, analyze, and delineate problems,” says Oguz A. Acar.

One Question for Reflection

Question: How would you engineer an AI prompt focusing on problem formulation?

Frame a problem for AI that prompts it to solve a specific issue you are facing.

Here’s an example:

Prompt: Take on the friendly role of a curriculum and technology coach working with a fifth grade team of teachers. You are familiar with high-effect size instructional strategies. Recommend which ones to use when introducing new information. Design a classroom activity using The Jigsaw Method for fifth grade teachers. The activity should introduce students to claim, evidence, and reasoning (CER).

Curious about how this worked out? See the results.

Prompt engineering is an important skill to hone and grow in this AI Era. What do you think about these ideas, quotes, and the reflection question? What prompts have you tried that have worked well for you? Let me know how you’re developing your AI prompting in the comments and what the results have been so far.

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A heat map of San Antonio zip codes.
ScienceScienceSocial StudiesSTEM/STEAM

Exploring Extreme Heat Science: Five Resources for Educators on Climate Change

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

All over the world, people are longing for a cool breeze to relieve the extreme heat. As school begins, it’s important to learn about extreme heat. It is sobering to think that this summer may be one of the coolest ones that people experience from this point on. If you’re a middle or high school science teacher, or even if you’re not, you may be getting interested in the effects of climate change. Let’s explore some school-friendly resources helpful for educating students, parents, and staff about climate change. Let’s start with some vocabulary, then explore the resources available.

July 2023 was Earth’s hottest month on record by a wide margin. July’s global average temperature of 16.95 degrees Celsius (62.51 degrees Fahrenheit) was a third of a degree Celsius (six-tenths of a degree Fahrenheit) higher than the previous record set in 2019…. “It’s a stunning record and makes it quite clearly the warmest month on Earth in ten thousand years,” said Stefan Rahmstorf, a climate scientist at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Research in Germany.

(source)

Clarifying Vocabulary

Before jumping into a list of resources, it might help to clarify vocabulary. You may have heard about these terms in the news or encountered them in reading. Here are some common vocabulary terms relevant to extreme heat.

  • What is Climate Change? This refers to the increase in global temperatures resulting from human-made greenhouse gases. Effects include “loss of sea ice, melting glaciers and ice sheets, and sea level rise.” And, of course, more intensifying waves of heat (source).
  • What is the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT)? This is a measure of heat stress in direct sunlight. To calculate it, scientists use a complex formula. That formula includes “temperature, humidity, wind speed, sun angle, and cloud cover.” The last, cloud cover, provides insight into solar radiation (source).
  • What is a Heat Index? This measures heat stress in the shade. It considers temperature and humidity.

These terms assist us in better understanding how to gauge the heat experienced.

How Extreme Heat Affects Schools

The Summer of 2023 is on track to be Texas’ most extreme with a high number of 100-degree or more days. In June 2023, the temperature went over 100 degrees 250 times. Some school districts are putting heat practices into place to safeguard students.

Consider Dallas ISD’s policy:

Teams can’t practice from noon to 6 p.m. to avoid heat issues. They also take a wet bulb, globe temperature (WBGT) index reading that combines temperature, humidity, wind and cloud cover.

Above 92.1, practice stops. 92.1 isn’t the outdoor temperature or heat index, though. (source)

The heat index and WBGT temperature provide useful information. They assist us in understanding how long one can be outside.

Bar graphs of Climate Change Indicators: Heat Waves.
Image Source: Climate Change Indicators: Heat Waves

As a K-8 educator, how long can you let kids play outside for recess or P.E.? It all depends on the heat index or wet bulb temperature. This comes down to a student’s sweat not evaporating (and not cooling off their bodies). Computing wet bulb temperature can be difficult, but to make it easier, you can use an online Wet Bulb calculator.

Some examples of wet bulb temperatures dangerous to human life:

Get out of the sun within 30 minutes if the WBGT is…

  • 86 (35° C or 95°F with  70% Humidity)
  • 85.6 (37° C or 98.6° F with 60% Humidity)

Get out of the sun after 45 minutes if the WBGT is…

  • 84.7 (38° C or 100° F with 55% Humidity)
  • 85.9 (40° C | 104° F with 50% Humidity)
  • 83.5 (42° C | 107.6° F with 40% Humidity)

Weather.gov has a list of suggested actions and impact prevention. For teachers who may be on “outside duty” this summer, it can be quite dangerous for older and immuno-compromised staff as well as for children.

A chart of the daily average global temperatures.
Image Source: The Visual Capitalist

Looking Back at the Data

An often-asked question is, “Was it really this hot back in the 1890s? How about the 1990s?” The answer may surprise you. You can use Weather Spark to see graphs for weather around the country. This set of charts from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) shows changes. You can see frequency, duration, season, and intensity:

Image of the August 2023, Monthly Forecast, CDC Tracking
Source: August of 2023, Monthly Forecast, CDC Tracking

Let’s take a look at a few resources you may find helpful in your work as an educator. Some are usable with K-12 students.

1. Mapping Extreme Heat

President Biden’s HEAT.gov website is a National Integrated Heat Health Information System. You can find a wide variety of heat-tracking tools online. What’s amazing is how many provide learners with access to a way to map the heat. Some tools like the Climate Change Tracker, allow you to enter a zip code and see the heat index:

A heat map of San Antonio zip codes.
Climate Change Tracker, Washington Post – https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/interactive/2022/extreme-heat-risk-map-us/

Here’s a round up of those that provide raw data and graphs you and your grade 6-12 students can use:

There are many tools available that combine real data with maps. Others offer already-made maps you can view. Scientists update the maps on a regular basis. One example is this interactive map, an EMS Surveillance Heat Tracker (announced 8/9/2023):

As you can see from the map above, you can see how many times emergency services are deployed to assist those affected by extreme heat.

Source: Climate LIVE K12: Natural Solutions for Unnatural Problems

2. Columbia Climate School

The Columbia Climate School offers a series of webinars students can watch. Geared for students in grades 6-12, 8-12, or 9-12, they discuss climate change in easy-to-understand terms. Here are some of their titles:

  • Grades 6-12
  • Climate Justice in New York City
  • Grades 8-12
  • Paying Attention to Critical Climate Messages from the Polar Regions
  • The Climate Symphony: How Climate Variability Impacts Global Rainfall Patterns
  • Grades 9-12
  • Everything You Wanted to Know About Climate Mobility But Were Afraid to Ask
  • Harnessing the Power of Communities to Fight Flooding and Protect Our Waterways

You can check their K12 Student Educators Events page for a timeline. Past events display a link to the recording.

3. National Science Teaching Association (NSTA)

The NSTA offers a variety of videos on its Our Beautiful Planet website. Each seeks to showcase climate science research. Videos are five to seven minutes long and include classroom lesson plans.

Here are a few of the free resources available:

  • A Carbon Free Future
  • Fire on the Mountain
  • Saving Our Shores
  • After the Flames
  • Dust Rising
  • And many more

4. Melting Ice

Source: Land Ice Loss in Antarctica, NASA Global Climate Change

The growing loss of sea ice, glaciers, and more is raising a few eyebrows. There is genuine concern among scientists. Antarctica is losing ice mass due to melting at an average rate of 150 billion tons per year. Greenland is adding to the sea level rise with 270 billion tons of melted ice (source).

NASA’s Climate Time Machine offers a sobering look at changes in the following areas:

  • Sea Ice
  • Sea Level
  • Carbon Dioxide
  • Global Temperature
  • Ice Sheets
  • Ocean Warming

Each offers a time-lapse featuring some change. You can watch global temperature rise from the year 1884 through 2022. It’s amazing to see the map change from blue to red the closer one gets to the present. The Sea Ice map shows changes from 1979 through 2022 as the ice melts.

NASA’s Images of Change also offers before and after views. Consider the change in the snow of the Sierra Nevada from 2022 to 2023:

5. Teaching Climate in Texas

You can model approaches like Claim-Evidence-Reasoning (CER) for students. Given extreme heat waves blanketing the country and the world, you can also use Problem-Based Learning (PBL). Other strategies include:

  • Conducting a lab as well as
  • Encouraging students to take measurements and try wet bulb temperature experiments
  • Viewing relevant videos
  • Reading a story or novel on the topic
  • Working in a school garden (source)

What’s more, you can take advantage of resources such as:

Bonus Resource: University of Maine

The University of Maine also offers a variety of resources and websites. Be sure to explore these to see images of Earth.

Get a copy of this Multimedia Text Set as a Google Doc

When I first started reading about extreme heat, my hope had been to learn more about it. In my own journey to record temperatures, explore what wet bulb temperature means, I learned quite a bit. I have no doubt students in grades 6-12 would appreciate access to information about the world around them. Facilitate their exploration.

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Back to SchoolHistorySocial Studies

Back to School: Primary Sources, Interactive Resources, and Maps for Teaching History

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Are you teaching history or social studies this year and looking for new tools and resources to incorporate into your lessons? As you prepare to go back to school, you may find yourself looking for a few new arrows for your teaching quiver. If so, you will find this roundup of excellent tools and resources for teaching history useful. We’ll explore several categories:

  • Primary Sources
  • Teaching Maps
  • Interactive Resources

Let’s take a look at resources available for teaching history, and how you can learn more.

Did You Know?

EduProtocols resources are available for teaching social studies and history! Explore some resources and watch a conversation about using EduProtocols in Social Studies.

1. Primary Sources

Looking for primary sources to work with in history class? It never hurts to revisit “What is a primary source?”.

There are a lot of history and social studies resources featuring primary source material. Some include tidy searches like Gilder Lehrman Institute. Others require a bit more content curation. Let’s take a look at a selection of primary historical source data:

Some resources specific to Texas:

Pairing Primary Sources with Strategies

You can pair information from primary sources with specific strategies such as:

These strategies allow students to get more hands-on and process information.

Creating Historical Artifacts

What’s more, encourage students to create their own historical artifacts, such as:

  • Digital collections
  • Digital documentaries
  • Digital visualizations
  • Infographics
  • Maps
  • Multimedia essays
  • Social media essays

Digital tools that make the creation of these artifacts easier abound. These options “…allow students agency in demonstrating their knowledge” (source).

Not sure how to get started teaching history with primary sources? Read what Larry Ferlazzo has to say on the subject. He cites several different educators who offer their perspectives and methodology on teaching history with primary sources.

2. Terra Incognita: Teaching Maps

While traveling in England in my youth, I stumbled upon a map store in a small town. It featured beautiful maps and map replicas that captured my eye, whisking me away into the past. I studied the borders of the known world at the time the map was drawn with interest. There was something magical about seeking out dangerous beasts and mythical creatures at maps edge.

Students of history may also find reading maps from yesteryear and making their own maps of great interest. I couldn’t agree more with this quote from the History of Cartography website:

“People come to know the world the way they come to map it—through their perceptions of how its elements are connected and of how they should move among them…by situating the map at the heart of cultural life and revealing its relationship to society, science, and religion…. It is trying to define a new set of relationships between maps and the physical world that involve more than geometric correspondence. It is in essence a new map of human attempts to chart the world.”

—Edward Rothstein, New York Times, as cited at source

Additional Articles on Teaching Maps

You may already be familiar with teaching maps. If not, you might find this collection of TCEA blog entries helpful as resources for teaching history with maps:

Map Tools and Resources

With those ideas and resources for using maps for teaching history in mind, here are a few more tools. You will find these helpful and can apply many of the great ideas in the blog entries to these.

3. Interactive Resources

As an educator, I eschewed interactive resources as distractions from students doing and making. Over time, my perspective shifted as the available tools allowed for more interaction. Here is a list of great interactive resources for teaching history to explore, and you can also find lists of ideas for using interactive resources online.

Want to connect game-based learning with history and/or social studies? Be sure to explore Microsoft’s Minecraft and take advantage of virtual world-building with Minetest (free).

Bonus Tool: Use Curipod to Help Craft Lessons

Let’s take a moment to look at a technology tool replete with lessons, resources, and content. In fact, it comes highly recommended by educator Stephanie Howell who says, “I have recently fallen in love with Curipod” (source: email list message, 07/24/2023).

Want to write lessons with AI help? Wish you had a collection of lessons and resources for teaching history? You might check out the free Curipod website. You can sign up at no cost, and find a wealth of resources online. A search on history yields a host of “curipod” lessons for history and geography. Stephanie Howell shares a walkthrough of Curipod’s tools, and you can learn more about this tool via Curipod’s YouTube channel.

Explore Curiopod on your own and view free tier details

I hope you’ve found these tools and resources for teaching history and social studies helpful and interesting. Do you plan to incorporate some of these in the coming school year? Let us know how it goes in the comments. And if you have a favorite resource or tool to share, please let us know!

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Artificial Intelligence

How to Create a Rubric with ChatGPT

by Emily Horn
written by Emily Horn

As educators, we all know and appreciate the importance of the rubric in providing quality student assessment and feedback. But actually creating a solid rubric that’s clear, aligns with the curriculum, and is well-structured can be daunting and, let’s be real, time consuming. If you’re like me, rubrics are perfect for overthinking. I’ll build one, and then continue to refine and adapt to “improve it,” in hopes of making it airtight. But then, I look at the clock to realize hours have passed. Can this be avoided? Yes. Thank goodness! You can create a rubric with ChatGPT in less than a minute and free up precious time for other priorities. Remember though, ChatGPT’s response will never be 100% perfect for what you need. Editing, reviewing, and revising will be necessary, and you may need to test out tweaks to prompts. But it’s a great head start!

Let’s take some time to:

  1. Review information about rubrics.
  2. Check out an editable prompt for generating a rubric with ChatGPT.
  3. Walk through the process in ChatGPT to see how it’s done.
  4. Take a look at an example ChatGPT-generated rubric.
  5. Try it out step-by-step.

Why Are Rubrics Important?

Before we get into ChatGPT, let’s talk about rubrics. A rubric is a tool that clearly lays out assignment expectations for students. Rubrics generally have four parts:

A picture of a rubric with arrows pointing to the 4 parts. Each part is labeled and defined.
  1. Task description: Briefly outline the task to be performed by students.
  2. Scoring and scale: Provide a numerical and descriptive scale for levels of development.
  3. Criteria or Components: Lay out the components/categories of the assignment on which students will be evaluated.
  4. Descriptors: Define and describe what work at each level of development looks like and the criteria aligned with your curriculum standards.

According to Berkley Center for Teaching and Learning, rubrics help both teachers and students. For teachers, rubrics assist with clarity when it comes to feedback and expectations. With clear expectations, students can focus on what is required of them instead of asking for clarification. Reviewing scored rubrics can also help teachers pinpoint any gaps in learning and adjust instruction accordingly. A good rubric provides consistency and can reduce grading time as well. For students, having defined expectations means less need for questions and reworking and more time for working. It can also give students the opportunity to self-reflect and peer-reflect during the revision of their work using the criteria defined in the rubric.

How Can ChatGPT Help Build Rubrics in Minutes?

ChatGPT is a powerful AI language model that has the capacity to complete a multitude of tasks based on human prompts. With regards to rubrics, if we provide ChatGPT with the necessary information in a clear, detailed, and defined prompt, this AI can assist in quickly developing a well-crafted rubric aligned with learning objectives. But keep in mind you will need to closely review, edit, and revise the ChatGPT-generated rubric, as you are the expert and responsible party for any grade and feedback you give your students. ChatGPT is just, as I like to call it, a brainstorming buddy.

A Template for Generating Rubrics

Here is the editable prompt template I created for ChatGPT-generated rubrics. Feel free to use this template to input your own information for generating a rubric specific to your needs!

Click here for the editable template.

To create a rubric with ChatGPT using the editable prompt, you will need to provide the information noted in bold within the prompt template.

  1. Your role
  2. Task description
  3. Grade level
  4. Skills, standards, goals, or objectives
  5. Scoring scale
  6. Criteria/components

Here is an example of how your prompt might look with the information completed:

ChatGPT will generate the descriptors and table for you! Here’s what this will look like in ChatGPT:

Amazing, right? Now, let’s walk through this process step by step!

The Rubric-Generating Process

First, we will gather the information needed to create a solid ChatGPT prompt. At first, this may seem like a lot, but it’s usually taken from information you already have that can be copied and pasted. I like to copy it into a Google Doc while I’m preparing my prompt, finalizing my prompt in the doc before pasting it over to ChatGPT.

As an example, I will be creating a rubric with ChatGPT for an 8th grade English writing assignment, but keep in mind you can do this for any grade. First, I’ll compile everything I need for the prompt, and then, I’ll show you the ChatGPT-generated rubric. Here we go!

Step 1: Curriculum Alignment

My example assignment will be a persuasive writing assignment. First, I identify the learning objectives, skills, or standards you’d like students to master. For my example, I will use Common Core State Standards for writing and language, but you can use any standards or objectives that align with you assignment! You can also use specific skills or benchmarks outlined in your curriculum or even use “I can” statements based on standards. I copy and pasted the skills straight from the Common Core website, and it took me less than five minutes.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1
Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.A
Introduce claim(s), acknowledge and distinguish the claim(s) from alternate or opposing claims, and organize the reasons and evidence logically.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.B
Support claim(s) with logical reasoning and relevant evidence, using accurate, credible sources and demonstrating an understanding of the topic or text.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.C
Use words, phrases, and clauses to create cohesion and clarify the relationships among claim(s), counterclaims, reasons, and evidence.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.D
Establish and maintain a formal style.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.E
Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the argument presented.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.8.1
Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.8.2
Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.

Step 2: Task Description

You’ll also need to provide ChatGPT with a description of the task you’ll be giving to students, which you will include on the final rubric. This gives the AI additional context. I will use the following description in my prompt:

For our 8th grade English unit on persuasive writing, you have chosen a topic on which to write an argumentative essay. Write your paper based on the expectations taught and reviewed in class and outlined in this rubric, which will be used to evaluate your essay. You may use the example essay attached for reference as an exemplar.

Step 3: Rubric Scoring and Scale

For my rubric, I will use the following points and scoring scale to outline levels of skill development. Here are some additional scales you can consider from The Harriet W. Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning at Brown University. Your scale and scoring choice is up to you! If you want to use points, be sure to include them.

  • Beginning (1 point)
  • Developing (2 points)
  • Proficient (3 points)
  • Exemplary (4 points)

Step 4: Rubric Criteria

Based on the Common Core State Standards I’ve aligned with the task, I will be evaluating the following components of the assignment. These are taken directly from the standards I have chosen for the assignment (and would be taught and reviewed in class). NOTE: It is very important that the criteria/components align with the language and overarching concepts in the standards you chose to assess. If they don’t align, ChatGPT will not generate as expected.

  • Thesis
  • Evidence
  • Explanation
  • Conclusion
  • Conventions

Step 5: Rubric Descriptors

For this step, you don’t need to do anything! This is included in the prompt template and will be generated for you by ChatGPT.

Step 6: Prompt ChatGPT to Generate the Rubric

Here is the final prompt I gave ChatGPT using the editable prompt template and my assignment-specific information. You’ll find my customizations to the template in bold, and it took me about 10 minutes to find, copy, and paste my information into the prompt template.

NOTE: When you paste in the prompt, the formatting will be removed. This does not impact the results generated by ChatGPT.

Want to try it out? Copy and paste this into ChatGPT!

Take a look at what happens when ChatGPT is given the prompt. It’s amazing. Less than one minute!

Step 7: Format and Review

Here is an unedited version of what ChatGPT generated for me based on my prompt, and I was able to copy and paste this into a Google Doc for further editing. When you paste the rubric from ChatGPT, it does keep the table format. Yet another time saver! ChatGPT for the win here, folks.

Once you have your initial rubric, it’s time to review it, revise, it, and edit it carefully to make sure it meets your needs. You can also share it with colleagues to get another set of eyes for additional feedback. And, you can always ask ChatGPT “How can I improve this rubric to make it more specific, clear, and detailed for students?” and see what happens!

Ready to try it out? Here is a walk-through to guide you in creating a rubric for a grade 6 science project.

I hope you find this template helpful in creating rubrics for your students (and getting a little more time for yourself). Is there another template you’d like to see? Let me know in the comments! And if you give this template a try, I’d love to know how it goes for you.

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Digital CitizenshipDigital LiteracySocial Media

Resources for Teaching Students to Fact-Check

by Emily Horn
written by Emily Horn

Teaching students to evaluate, analyze, and think critically about information is absolutely essential. With advancements in technology, communication, and artificial intelligence, it’s easier than ever before for falsified information, photos and videos, and news to spread like wildfire, presented to the world as fact through social media and other avenues. Let’s take a look at some resources for fact-checking, vetting, and analyzing information. But first, let’s look at why it’s so important for students to learn how to assess source credibility. 

What Is Fact-Checking? 

Fact-checking is the process of assessing the credibility, accuracy, and validity of information. The goal is to determine whether information is true or false and whether or not a source is trustworthy and credible. It’s become so important to intercept misinformation that Duke Reporter’s Lab reported a total of 378 fact-checking projects operating in 2022, up from 186 in 2016, and down from 391 in 2021.

Why Is Fact-Checking Important? 

There is a lot of information out there about misinformation and disinformation, its spread, and its impact. With our students being subjected to so much so often, as in daily – especially via social media – teaching them ways to fact check and identify credible sources is more vital now than ever before. We can be a part of changing statistics and helping our students be better informed. And we can do the same for ourselves!

Statistics on Misinformation and Fake News

If you want to dive into 18 gut-wrenching statistics on fake news and misinformation, take a look at this recent article (January 27, 2023) published by TechJury. It references sources from PEW Research, Business Insider, The Economist, and more. They offer some key statistical takeaways, mostly from 2020-2022, with two sources cited in the article from 2016.

Another study, conducted by Poynter Institute for Media Studies, MediaWise, YouGov Inc., with support from Google, found the following: 

  • 62% of respondents think they see false or misleading information online every week.
  • 39% of respondents across countries say they have unintentionally shared false or misleading information.
  • 55% of respondents say they have shared false or misleading information because they say they thought it was true. A third say they shared impulsively.
  • The largest share of respondents in the US are only somewhat confident (36%) that they can identify information as false or misleading. 

Additionally, a 2016 study by Stanford University on student ability to evaluate information showed that 7,804 students across 12 states had difficulty discerning sponsored content from actual news. They also had trouble “identifying where information came from.” The study consisted of five “tests” for middle school students, high school students, and university students. The authors of the study mentioned that, at every level, students lacked preparation and may focus on content rather than on sources when it comes to determining reliability. A more recent 2022 study by Stanford University showed that student ability to identify questionable websites increased twofold with just six, 50-minute lessons. 

That said, let’s look at some resources to use with students to boost their skills when it comes to recognizing false information. 

Resources for Student Fact-Checking 

1. Civic Online Reasoning (COR)

News Literacy Project
Screenshot by Emily Horn | Civic Online Reasoning

This is the curriculum that was tested in Stanford’s 2022 research study, which demonstrated that six, 50-minute lessons can positively impact students’ ability to discern credible information. The curriculum is based on three questions:

  1. Who’s behind the information?
  2. What’s the evidence?
  3. What do other sources say?

There are lessons (lateral reading, sponsored content, news vs. opinion…), assessments (website reliability, home page analysis, article evaluation…), and collections (for the history classroom, for the science classroom, classroom posters, click restraint…). This resource is of great quality and extremely relevant! Highly recommend. 

2. News Literacy Project 

I love this resource! The News Literacy Project has been around since 2008. As a nonprofit (like TCEA), it has a nonpartisan mission for news literacy and a vision for everyone to know how to identify credible news sources and information. New Literacy Project has a lot of resources for educators, including: 

News Literacy Project
Screenshot by Emily Horn | News Literacy Project

Checkology: “Checkology is a free e-learning platform with engaging, authoritative lessons on subjects like news media bias, misinformation, conspiratorial thinking and more.” For more information, read this.

The Sift Newsletter: “The Sift, NLP’s free weekly newsletter for educators — delivered during the school year — explores timely examples of misinformation, addresses media and press freedom topics, and discusses social media trends and issues. It also includes links, discussion prompts, and activities for use in the classroom.” 

Resource Library: “NLP’s resource library includes lesson plans, classroom activities, posters and infographics, quizzes, training materials and videos for educators teaching news literacy.” (Grades 4-12+)

Professional Learning: “The News Literacy Project’s professional learning emphasizes teaching educators essential news literacy concepts they can integrate into the curriculum to provide their students with the abilities, knowledge, and confidence to navigate an increasingly complex and ever-changing information landscape.”

3. PBS Learning: Be MediaWise 

PBS Be MediaWise
Screenshot by Emily Horn | PBS Be MediaWise

PBS offers resources and lessons for grades 6-12 on media literacy and fact-checking which are part of the Poynter Institutes’s Teen Fact-Checking Network. When you go to the site, you will need to change your city in order to proceed. You can share Be MediaWise lessons to your Google Classroom, to students using a link, or to your social media. Lessons offered range from ChatGPT and out-of-context quotes to checking scientific claims and how misinformation spreads. They also offer supporting materials like background reading, handouts, activities, discussion questions, and/or vocabulary.  

4. Five Websites for Fact-Checking 

There are numerous websites available to help students and teachers fact-check information. Here are a few of the top sites for fact-checking:

“When misinformation obscures the truth and readers don’t know what to trust, Snopes’ fact-checking and original, investigative reporting lights the way to evidence-based and contextualized analysis. We always link to and document our sources so readers are empowered to do independent research and make up their own minds.”

“Fact-checking journalism is the heart of PolitiFact. Our core principles are independence, transparency, fairness, thorough reporting and clear writing. The reason we publish is to give citizens the information they need to govern themselves in a democracy.”

“We are a nonpartisan, nonprofit “consumer advocate” for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics. We monitor the factual accuracy of what is said by major U.S. political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews, and news releases. Our goal is to apply the best practices of both journalism and scholarship and to increase public knowledge and understanding.”

“AllSides™ is a media solutions company that strengthens our democratic society with balanced news, media bias ratings, diverse perspectives, and real conversation. We expose people to information and ideas from all sides of the political spectrum so they can better understand the world — and each other.”

“This tool allows you to easily browse and search for fact checks. For example, you can search for a politician’s statement, or for a topic. You can also restrict results to a specific publisher. You can search by keywords and see a list of matching claims and the corresponding fact checks. Keywords can be anything from specific topics to full politician quotes. Basically anything you would also put into the regular Google Search bar.

How do you plan to equip students and build their judgment when it comes to discerning the accuracy and validity of information and the credibility of sources? If you have any resources or activities to add, please showcase them in the comments, and thanks for reading! 

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