RCA’s Core Principles & Values: Consider Core Principle #14 “Push yourself to innovate beyond your imagination,” and Core Principle #24 “Create lasting traditions.” What is the most innovative lesson you’ve implemented with your own students? If none come to mind, push yourself to be innovative right now: how could you make a lesson you’ll be teaching next week more exciting? What lasting traditions have you created with your students? If you haven’t, what lasting tradition could you implement with your students and how soon could you start this?
What is the most innovative lesson you’ve implemented with your own students?
ReplyDeleteWith my first graders last week, to end our math unit of measuring fish, students got to go "fishing" in the classroom. I had students sit in a circle and I put blue paper in the middle for the water. I put paper fish "in" the water. There was fish of all sizes, students had to go "fishing" and they had to decide if the fish was a keeper or not. If the fish was not a keeper, they had to throw the fish back. If the fish was a keeper, they got to keep the fish and they got a fish sticker. They measured Alewife fish and to be a keeper the fish had to be 8 inches long. Students got to put their knowledge into measuring fish and how we can measure accurately.
What lasting traditions have you created with your students? If you haven’t, what lasting tradition could you implement with your students and how soon could you start this?
A tradition that I do with my students is Joke Thursday. I put a joke in our announcements on Thursday and students get to take part in the joke. They look forward to it every Thursday!
RCA’s Core Principles & Values: Consider Core Principle #14 “Push yourself to innovate beyond your imagination,” and Core Principle #24 “Create lasting traditions.” What is the most innovative lesson you’ve implemented with your own students? If none come to mind, push yourself to be innovative right now: how could you make a lesson you’ll be teaching next week more exciting?
ReplyDeleteBefore break we were reading Ben Franklin's Autobiography- This can be a bit dry for students, especially right before break. We dug into his virtues and then students made their own. I let them design their own posters and be creative. I was amazed with their posters and many of them wanted to keep and hang it up at their own house. It really helped it to stick with them as well. This is something I would like to do each year with my kids.
My innovative lessons are usually filling in gaps of things I wish I has been taught when I was in school. Sometimes that deals directly with curriculum. But other times it is just about life or else organization. A lot of times it’s about organizing. I really did not have good time management or organization skills. So I try to show students how I manage my emotional support post it notes.
ReplyDeleteRCA’s Core Principles & Values: Consider Core Principle #14 “Push yourself to innovate beyond your imagination,” and Core Principle #24 “Create lasting traditions.” What is the most innovative lesson you’ve implemented with your own students? If none come to mind, push yourself to be innovative right now: how could you make a lesson you’ll be teaching next week more exciting? What lasting traditions have you created with your students? If you haven’t, what lasting tradition could you implement with your students and how soon could you start this?
ReplyDeleteOne of the most innovative lessons I've implemented with my students is actually in my extra prep Art Club - every year we do a service project, and for the past 4 or 5 years we have made Pet Portraits as a way for the Humane Society to promote their current pet residents. "Adopt a pet, get a free artwork from a local high school student!" Some traditions I do are weekly Quiz Channel competitions (via Youtube), Holiday parties w/Art Club, and Pictionary games with my classes. With high school, some of this is harder to do in a "traditional" format (as you would with younger grades) bc my classes swap out every 9 weeks, so I don't have the same kids all year long, etc.
The most innovative lesson I have done is building a mouse trap car. I would give my students the mouse trap and they had to do everything else at home with their parents. It was then a competition between the students on whose care would go the farthest. My favorite year was when a student's dad also built a car and came in to compete against the students. It was so fun to see what each family came up with.
ReplyDeleteA lasting tradition that I have with my students is an art lesson that is also their parent gift for Christmas. Every year I do a hot chocolate sip and paint with the kids. They pick what we are going to paint and I bring the supplies and hot chocolate. I walk them through how to do the painting and we enjoy ourselves. I also write the names of the students on the back of my painting with the year, so I will remember who I painted with.
The most innovate lesson I taught last week was in reading. We were reading "The Dancing Bird of Paradise" the story about Sahomi Tachibana. The story can be a bit dry/boring for 8 year olds so after we listened to it I shared a video on you tube of Sahomi when she turned 100 and the students were so impressed that she was still alive and danced until she was 95. I also shared a presentation from another teacher who visited an internment camp and the students were so surprised at the living conditions and how the Japanese Americans were treated.
ReplyDeleteA tradition I have every year is that at the end of the year, after state testing we have a "Disney Day". I have so many students that have never left the state of South Dakota so we do a virtual trip to DisneyWorld. They love it so much and ask to do it again before school ends.
RCA’s Core Principles & Values: Consider Core Principle #14 “Push yourself to innovate beyond your imagination,” and Core Principle #24 “Create lasting traditions.” What lasting traditions have you created with your students?
ReplyDeleteIn the school where i teach k-12 vocal music - every student is required to take vocal music through the 8th grade (MS). I have the privilege of teaching every child in our building from the time they are 3yrs old through (at least) the 8th grade. The music program has always been supported by my district & i feel that the students really enjoy the music environment created in my classroom. I retain nearly all of our HS students in HS choir (even though they don't "have" to take the class). I feel strongly that the traditions and expectations that are set for them from the time they begin in my room extends into high school & definitely beyond for my students. They know what i expect from them & i believe enjoy the challenge to uphold those expectations.
The most innovative lesson that I have ever created is the Stock Market Game (1929). This is a simulation where the students experience buying stocks and the stock market crashing just as it did in 1929. They feel the pain. They assume that it has hit bottom and then it falls out again. They cheer, they groan, they (almost) cry. Its priceless.
ReplyDeleteA lasting tradition I have with my students is something we call "Pie Points." I award them for random things throughout each semester. The students keep track on their own. If they get to 250 by the end of the semester they have earned a pie that I make for them! It can be any kind of pie they want, as long as its banana cream. This has become a legendary tradition for my classes. It adds to the fun and excitement of Room 213.
The most innovative lesson I have done was for science class when we were working with systems. We talked about the movie Home Alone, which they all know and love and students were in small groups. They brought a box and then I had multiple totes of random supplies that they were to turn into "traps" like on Home Alone. They had to use pulley systems, push and pull, gears, etc. to make the traps work. The students then had to create a video of a person going through their trap and showing how each trap would work. The students thrived with this project and their creativity was exceptional!
ReplyDeleteA lasting tradition I do every year with my students is the 12 days of Christmas. I let them vote on 12 things they want to do leading up to Holiday break. These activities range from hot chocolate, popcorn, a movie, board games, free time, frosting cookies, gingerbread houses, and even decorating stockings. The kids look forward to this every year and it is so fun to watch the students embrace the season and enjoy the activities with each other. It is also heart warming to watch students have new experiences that have never done some traditions before.
Probably one of the most innovative lessons I taught, had to do with commas. I was teaching ALL of the uses of the comma, and my students were not that enthusiastic. To get them a little more excited, I took a plain white t-shirt and put commas all over it. Then I wrote, "Comma Mama" on the front! I still remember my students entering the classroom and laughing at me and my shirt!
ReplyDeleteDid they learn more that day versus any other? I am not sure, but they were a little more engaged and interested in the comma than they had been!
I still think it's funny even if they didn't! :)
A lasting tradition I have with my students is a holiday review before Christmas. We review everything we have learned up to that point and even have some random holiday trivia to think about! All of my junior high kids like seem to like it, and it's a fun way to review the semester's information.
ReplyDeleteRCA’s Core Principles & Values: Consider Core Principle #14 “Push yourself to innovate beyond your imagination,” and Core Principle #24 “Create lasting traditions.” What is the most innovative lesson you’ve implemented with your own students? If none come to mind, push yourself to be innovative right now: how could you make a lesson you’ll be teaching next week more exciting? What lasting traditions have you created with your students? If you haven’t, what lasting tradition could you implement with your students and how soon could you start this?
I think overall, my most innovated lesson/ unit is my Jump Rope Unit. This is also my most fun unit to teach. Most of my students come in so unmotivated by the jump rope unit, but by the end of the unit they don't want to be done. My goal is always to make this unit exciting, fun, and unique to each student. One of the best lessons in this unit is Create Your Own Routine day. Students are given a list of tricks that they have mastered and from there build their own routine. I also tell them that they can add different gymnastic tricks if they want to. I have had 2 students now do an aerial into a single bounce jump, one student do a roundoff into the criss cross jump, and another student do a front flip into a double under. It is so fun to watch them be creative not only with their minds but also their bodies.
One tradition I have is we have a pre-fitness test and a post-fitness test. Students give their best effort on these tests to break records. If they break a record then their name goes on a huge poster that hangs in the gym. It's fun to see older students come down to the elementary gym to see if they are still a record holder. It is one way that I can keep in communication with my former students. Fitness testing is one of the most competitive things that I do in PE. I feel like the kids love it and just want to do the best they can do, (and are also motivated by the poster!)
What is the most innovative lesson you’ve implemented with your own students? My most innovative lesson is teaching would be building a mouse trap boat and racing them in a large tub of water every student was excited to learn about propulsion and force.
ReplyDeleteWhat lasting traditions have you created with your students? My lasting tradition is a helper buddy wheel and the wheel points to who will help others when I am working with other students. It is helpful because the helper has an opportunity to quiet help/teach classmates.
One of my most innovative lessons involved having students match pictures to objects by crawling through tunnels to retrieve a picture and then returning through the tunnel to match it to the corresponding item. This activity integrated primitive reflex work, coordination, and cognitive matching skills all in one engaging experience. It transformed a simple matching task into a whole-body learning opportunity, which is especially meaningful in Early Childhood Special Education.
ReplyDeleteTo make a lesson next week more exciting, I could bring the experience directly to the children. For example, if we are exploring winter, I could place real snow in the sensory table, incorporate hot cocoa as a snack while counting marshmallows for math practice, and embed literacy and language activities around the theme. This makes learning immersive and memorable rather than worksheet-based.
Regarding Core Principle #24, “Create lasting traditions,” one tradition I have created is greeting every child daily and announcing who is absent, followed by saying, “____, we wish you well!” When students return, they often ask if we thought about them, which shows how meaningful this ritual has become. This simple tradition builds belonging, community, and emotional security—foundations that are just as important as academic learning.
RCA’s Core Principles & Values: Consider Core Principle #14 “Push yourself to innovate beyond your imagination,” and Core Principle #24 “Create lasting traditions.” What is the most innovative lesson you’ve implemented with your own students? If none come to mind, push yourself to be innovative right now: how could you make a lesson you’ll be teaching next week more exciting? What lasting traditions have you created with your students? If you haven’t, what lasting tradition could you implement with your students and how soon could you start this?
ReplyDeleteI think that lately my most innovative lesson is my butterfly adaptation lesson/lab. The day prior we talk about the principles of natural selection, adaptations, and the different sources of genetic variation. We do some walk through problems where students read about an animal and they have to pick out the various principles. I was scrolling through tiktok last year and came across a teacher discussing her adaptation lab. I decided to start implementing it last year and the kids love it. It really puts the concept into a perspective that they can understand. They are given a butterfly cut out in which they need to "adapt" in order to survive in our classroom environment. As the day goes on classes randomly notice the butterflies and then its a contest to see whose butterfly is the last one found.
Creating lasting traditions is a tough one for me to decide on. To me, I don't know that I have any traditions that I would note. I asked a student if he thought I had any traditions and he pointed out that some of my labs he would view as traditions. One example is our mining lab. I make a pan of brownies and within them are chips that the students have to mine with minimal disruption to the soil. The student said that this is something that students talk about each year and when they sign up for the class, they anticipate the brownie lab.
I would say my most innovative lesson I've implemented with my students lately was when I started a cooking class. This went over really big and they thought they would just cook and eat but it entailed so much more. First, we had to find recipes, learn measurements, decide how many the recipe would feed, make a shopping list, budget our money, go shopping and then the cooking and eating began.
ReplyDeleteThe lasting tradition that has been created is one girl wanted to go to the prom three years ago. We all got together, someone donated a dress, arranged transportation, arranged and paid for dinner. Now every year she wants to go and the younger ones are talking about when it's their turn.
While I don't currently teach lessons with my role, however, during my internship I had the opportunity to creating multiple guidance lessons to students in an elementary school. This lesson was actually one where all of my professors had to come to the school to watch so I wanted to be sure that I made this one as creative and engaging as possible. I incorporated a lesson on friendship and teamwork with a short story, then I paired the students up and had them work together to create an image using random objects such as a string, a button, and a few beads. These students went above and beyond my expectations of what I thought they'd make and it ended up being one of their favorite lessons.
ReplyDeleteIn terms of traditions that I've done with students while incorporating various guidance lessons, one tradition is always starting off by getting the students' attention with either a quick question such as "any plans for the weekend?", favorite ice cream flavor, or different icebreaker games. I think this has been a great tradition to do with the lessons because it gets the students engaged, excited, and communicating with each other. This is something I found that students always look forward to when we come to their classroom for lessons. Another lasting tradition just in my role as a school counselor is always asking students their plans for after school or for the weekend after we have lessons or if I'm meeting with them 1:1. They are always excited to share a piece of their life or something they're looking forward to and it's another great way to continue building that rapport with the students.
I try to push myself to innovate by making lessons more interactive and meaningful rather than just informational. Especially because it feels like the opportunities for School Counselors to teach in the classroom, at the high school level, have become more limited over time because of the variety of demands associated with our role and the needs of our students. One innovative activity I’ve implemented is a Future Pathways Challenge lesson where students explore potential post-high school options, including college, the military, the workforce, a variety of careers, a gap year, etc. even if this would not be their preferred or decided pathway at the time. By using stations that include real-world scenarios, guest speakers, and hands-on tasks students can explore options they may not have otherwise considered. Students reflect on their strengths, set goals, and create a potential roadmap for the next steps in their lives. This engages students beyond a traditional lecture and helps them see their options in a tangible way.
ReplyDeleteRegarding lasting traditions, I have a reflection board in my office. Students are welcome to leave a note about a challenge they overcame, a goal they achieved, or a lesson they learned, whether they want to keep it folded and private or share it anonymously to encourage someone else, or are welcomed. This tradition creates a sense of continuity and community and allows students to see their growth over time while encouraging resiliency. This simple space makes achievements visible, fosters pride, and reinforces that our work together is meaningful.
One of the most innovative lessons that I think I have implemented was a walking field trip to a cemetery that is just down the street from our school. Students drive by it on the way to school but don't really notice it. I decided to use it as a way to connect to community and those that have come before along with the science concepts of weathering and erosion. Kids seem to enjoy seeing who lived here before them and can connect with those that came before while applying scientific concepts. It's something that I have done yearly since I have been at my current school. Hopefully this helps in creating a lasting tradition of community and pride in the community.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think about Core Principle #14, “Push yourself to innovate beyond your imagination,” my mind goes back to a 9th grade physical science class that turned into a mini engineering lab. My students built vertical-axis wind turbines out of plywood and one-gallon food cans from the school kitchen—two levels high—and they were genuinely shocked when the blades actually turned in the wind. I challenged that first group to see if they could go three levels high or if the added weight would cause too much friction and ruin the functionality. They made it work, and one of those students is now the science teacher in that very classroom. (I see you, Ms. Sparks!) In that project we studied and computed rotary motion and forces, friction, air resistance, energy transformations, and renewable energy, but more importantly, students experienced themselves as designers and problem-solvers, not just note-takers. That’s the kind of innovation Principle #14 pushes me toward—less “follow the lab sheet” and more “let’s see if we can make this work in the real world.”
ReplyDeleteOver the last six years, I’ve extended that same spirit of innovation beyond my own classroom. I worked for a non-profit organization teaching teachers how to do STEM in any subject, creating hundreds of design challenges for everything from kindergarten to high school physics. One of my favorites is a challenge I built for our open house STEM nights, where families tackle a hands-on problem together. I had several goals, but one of the biggest was to get parents to see that making things appropriately challenging—and not helping too much, letting kids struggle a bit—can produce deep thinking and real independence. My hope was to plant a seed for a new tradition, not only in their households but also in teachers’ classrooms: a shared understanding that productive struggle is a gift, not a punishment.sciencebyslim.
Looking ahead, I know I can still push myself to innovate in everyday lessons, not just big projects and public events. Instead of “covering” a concept next week, I can turn it into an experience: transform the classroom into a small research lab, assign roles (lead scientist, data analyst, communicator), and have students present their findings as if they were pitching to a real client or community group. Simple additions—music as they rotate through stations, visible challenges on the board for students ready to go deeper, or a competitive/team element—can turn a solid lesson into one that feels memorable and a little bit magical, aligning with Solutions #11 and #19 to create moments that have a lasting impact and make learning magical.
Core Principle #24, “Create lasting traditions,” shows up in the quiet patterns of my classroom as much as in the big events. Over the years, certain traditions have taken root: the way we normalize and celebrate productive struggle, the expectation that everyone explains their thinking (not just the “fast finishers”), and the end-of-unit reflection where students name something they can now do that used to feel impossible. These rituals repeat every year, and former students often come back remembering not a specific worksheet, but the feeling of being pushed and supported at the same time. Going forward, I’d like to formalize at least one more tradition: a recurring “Living Lab Day” each term where students know in advance that they will be the ones designing investigations, testing ideas, and sharing their learning with an authentic audience—maybe another class, families, or community partners. It’s a simple way to live out both innovation and tradition: consistently carving out space for work that students will remember long after the unit test is forgotten.
When I think of my innovative lessons , 2 come to mind
ReplyDelete1. "Congrats you are having a baby" - Students are told they have to answer questions about their baby that is coming tomorrow. They have to pick a name, answer how they will buy formula, who will change the blow-out diaper, the boys have to answer a question about how they will support their partner and if they are okay with how her body has changed. The kids LOVE this assignment, as it puts things in perspective.
2. "Roll the Die - alcohol game/acitivty"
Students are in groups, each students rolls the die to see what their outcome is from consuming alcohol - for example " you drove home drunk and crashed your car, you got a dui and your friend passed away", or " you got tipsy and danced on the table at the party in your underwear , someone recorded it on snapchat and now the whole schools has it". The group must choose who had the worst consequence. The kids LOVE this game - as it really puts life/ consuming alcohol into perspective.
Next week, our school will be participating in the standardized state testing. I’ve always thought that I should try to develop a schedule that would allow all students to participate in physical activity during their encore classes. If it goes well, it could become something that our building adapts each year and hopefully helps improve our students test scores. Another tradition that I would love to bring to my current school is one that I previously did in my last building. We participated in a “Superstars” unit where students were teamed up and had to complete a variety of team challenges while competing against other teams. It is a lot of work to set up but knowing how much my previous students enjoyed it, I need to push myself to put forth the effort for my current students.
ReplyDeleteOne of the most innovative lessons I’ve implemented as a high school history teacher was a mock court case activity. Instead of simply learning about historical events through lecture or reading, students were placed into a simulated courtroom setting where they had to argue different sides of a historical issue using evidence, reasoning, and critical thinking. Students took on roles such as attorneys, witnesses, and jurors, and they were required to defend their positions using historical facts. What made this especially powerful was watching students who are usually quiet or disengaged become fully invested in the process because they were responsible for building and defending a case. It turned history into something active, competitive, and memorable, and many students still reference that experience long after the unit ends.
ReplyDeleteOne tradition I’ve built with our football program is a special teams camp focused specifically on our specialized positions. Rather than treating special teams as an afterthought, we dedicate intentional time and energy to it through a structured camp that highlights its importance to the overall success of the team. Over time, this has become something players take pride in, especially those who participate in those roles. It has helped build identity, accountability, and excitement around what is often overlooked in many programs. It’s now something players look forward to each year, and it has become a meaningful part of our team culture. Both of these experiences have shown me that innovation and tradition are not opposites, they actually work together.
I do try to create lesson plans that are interesting and innovative. I have a few that I particularly enjoy doing. One of my lessons I enjoy is having students create a magazine style pictorial history the 1920s era. Students collect photos from the era of the key events, people, celebrities and fads of the time and write captions of what is depicted in the photos. Another assignment I enjoy doing in my World War II unit is an assignment in which students design a video game on a WWII campaign or battle. They describe the game and the historic background and weaponry used in the battle and create a cover and booklet with key information in a video game case. I also enjoy doing mock Supreme Court hearings of famous cases or mock Congressional hearings.
ReplyDeleteMy tradition is my daily joke of the day. I tell a joke at the beginning of each class period and students will remind me if I forget. It is a fun way to begin class and an attempt to connect with students.
An innovative project that I did with my class while I was in the classroom, surrounded the book, Dear Mr. Henshaw. Each student created a lunchbox and used the book to create different parts of the lunch to summarize the book, favorite parts, etc. We put them on display in the school so that other students were able to see their hard work. This was a fun lesson because it was individualized and each student was able to build it in a way that they wanted and make it their own.
ReplyDeleteA tradition that we had in the classroom was that we also shared writing. When we did this, I made hot cocoa and we called it the "writer's cafe". The students felt like they were little adults going to a cafe to share their work. They were proud to share their writing and get applause from their classmates.