Simple elements like lighting, tone of voice, and routines can help young children feel calm and ready to learn.

A classroom full of young children is a busy place with a diverse assortment of wants and needs. Instead of feeling overwhelmed by the presence of so many active little people with so many demands, find ways to create calm by establishing a tranquil environment, being attentive to communication, and embracing routines.

For the past few years, Apple has enjoyed a stranglehold on the education tablet market. With the launch of the iPad 2 several years ago, Apple swooped into the education arena, leaving everyone else behind. Its app store boasts thousands of educational titles across the content area, and the platform has integrated iTunesU and iBooks Author as a digital academic content creation tools. However, the tide is starting to turn. The tablet market is now flooded with devices comparable to the iPad, and the Chromebook, in its many forms, has become a serious contender to Apple's reign.

Corresponding with students via snail mail is a good way for teachers to foster trust anytime—but especially when everyone is physically distanced.

With remote teaching likely continuing into the next academic year, we’ll need low-tech ways to establish relationships with students whom we can’t reach digitally. An ongoing letter communication through the mail is just that—and is also an empowering way to build relational trust with students. That trust, explains Zaretta Hammond, is the foundation on which culturally responsive teaching can change learning trajectories for even our most vulnerable students.

Many students have a tough time learning at home, but teachers can create space to listen to their concerns and guide them to overcome obstacles.

As an educator, I have found the transition to online instruction to be filled with uncertainty, confusion, and self-doubt. There is no handbook offering clear information on how to fully move K–12 education online, and I have tackled the challenges as best I can. I can only imagine that these feelings must be more intense for my students.

Students don’t show up to our online classes wearing name tags that tell us the difficulties they’re facing during this pandemic.

A garden for bees and butterflies helps local endangered species while providing opportunities for standards-based science lessons.

Outdoor education is becoming more popular as educators look to provide authentic, nature-centred learning experiences outside the classroom. Pollinator gardens, which are designed to include flowers that provide pollen and nectar for pollinating insects, are one-way educators can help endangered species in their schoolyards and communities while creating standards-based lessons for students.