During an inservice, our local National Guard did a presentation for us on how they could be a post-secondary option for students upon graduation. They also shared some opportunities they could offer the school such as knocker balls, rock climbing walls and my favorite…the MRE Kits: Chopped Challenge. Keep reading to learn more about this fun event!
Our librarian put together a display of hidden hobbies created by teachers and staff to showcase what they do outside of the classroom. It was a great success, not only with teacher and staff participation, but with student interest. It got me to thinking that the same thing could be done with our students and so the “Showcase: Hidden Hobbies” was created. It’s a great way to feature students who have talent, but may not participate in the traditional extra- curricular activities.
In an effort to add gamification components to her courses and create memorable learning experiences for her students, Jennifer Estes, a North Carolina FACS teacher, created this WIC Healthy Meal Challenge. You’ll have to check out this lesson as it promotes student engagement, risk taking, creativity, critical thinking and problem solving, in addition to covering Jennifer’s course standards!
If you teach about the family, you no doubt include a few lessons or a unit on the family life cycle. In my class, I focus on each stage and do an in depth study around each stage. However, I have to introduce the stages of the theory and have done so in a variety of ways. Normally, I do an iron chef intro, but this year, due to a smaller class, I had to create a different strategy. I will include both versions in this Family Life Cycle Stages & Case Study post.
When I begin my unit on getting a job, I always, always, always start with employability skills. This is where The Puzzle Factory: Employability Skills comes in. This activity is a super fun and engaging way to help students understand hard and soft skills associated with the world of work. Read on to learn how this works!
True Friends vs Toxic Friends was a big hit with my students! It provides discussion as well as interactive, engaging and creative activities! I taught true friends vs toxic friends to a mixed class of high school students, but this lesson could easily be done with middle schoolers as well!
If you teach about Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences and are looking for a fresh project, I may have just saved you some time creating something new! The Multiple Intelligence’s Toy Bag Project is an engaging assignment that can be done hands-on or digitally with your students depending on your time and technology availability!
After teaching my students about communication skills, I decided to spend a couple of days going over the different communication styles. The three communication styles consist of passive, aggressive and assertive. The best part of this lesson was the enthusiam my students exhibited when creating video skits of the communication styles based on selected scenarios. Wonder why? The video skits was their idea, so naturally they bought into it!
Back again with another interactive decision making scenario! This one focuses on making future decisions post graduation. In the Post-Secondary Options: Decision Making Scenario students are introduced to Chris who is trying to decide which direction to go in order to pursue a career of interest. Like the other scenarios I’ve shared, students work together as a group to help Chris make an informed decision!
I have been implementing hexagonal block activities in my classroom for the past couple of years and wanted to find a way to utilize them at the beginning of the year. Because our students will all be returning in person, the “All About Me: Hexagonal Doodle Blocks” will be a great way to ease them back from remote/cyber learning and help all of us reestablish relationships with this creative, hands-on activity.
