Blog - Page 18 of 47 - John Spencer

Aug 24 2020

5 Ways to Get to Know Your Students in Virtual and Hybrid Environments

By John Spencer Distance Learning, Empowering Students, Podcast 6 Comments

As an educator, you are a community builder. From day one, you getting to know your students on a relational level. It’s often in the little things, like sending an email the first time they miss a virtual class session. It’s what happens when you…

Aug 12 2020

How to Make Virtual Meetings More Interactive for Students

By John Spencer Distance Learning, Podcast 11 Comments

Video conferences can be exhausting. You might notice that students who are highly engaged during an in-person session suddenly disengage in a virtual meeting. Often, there are challenges with video lag or simply the inability to see the room entirely. I created the following visual…

Jul 29 2020

Improving Student Collaboration in Remote and Hybrid Learning

By John Spencer Creativity, Podcast 14 Comments

In this latest article, we explore how to improve collaboration in distance learning by empowering students to own the collaborative process. Listen to the Podcast If you enjoy this blog but you’d like to listen to it on the go, just click on the audio…

Jul 20 2020

The World Needs Your Voice

By John Spencer Podcast, Professional Development 4 Comments

This is my latest article in a series on owning your professional learning. When we think of professional development, it's easy to think of skills you might acquire, concepts you might learn, or ideas you might explore. However, professional development is bigger than this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pw53uRedr5U&t=2s…

Jul 14 2020

Making Rest a Priority in the Summer

By John Spencer Creativity, Podcast 11 Comments

This is my latest article in a series on owning your professional learning. Teaching is an exhausting gig and when teachers take the time to rest during the summer, they able to find a place of renewal and restoration. Research has demonstrated that rest is…

Jul 06 2020

Pajama PD: Taking an Anytime / Anywhere Approach to Professional Learning

By John Spencer Creativity, Podcast, Professional Development No Comments

This is my latest article in a series on owning your professional learning. I love the concept of "Pajama PD." It's the idea that you can engage in deep professional learning without having to dress up nicer or go anywhere. Don't get me wrong. I…

Jul 02 2020

How to Read 50 Books in a Year (Even When You’re Busy)

By John Spencer Creativity, Podcast, Professional Development 8 Comments

This is my latest article in a series on owning your professional learning. According to a Pew Research poll, over a quarter of the U.S. adult population said they hadn't read a book within the last year, whether that was in audiobook, ebook, or physical…

Jun 29 2020

Make Something Awesome This Summer

By John Spencer Creativity, Podcast, Professional Development One Comment

This is my latest article in a series on owning your professional learning. Genius Hour (or 20% Time) projects begin with a simple idea: give students a dedicated period of time to pursue their passions, interests, and questions in a creative way. Made famous by…

Jun 26 2020

Three Book Club Opportunities

By John Spencer Professional Development One Comment

In my previous article, I wrote about how teachers can use book clubs as a way to own their professional development. These book clubs can be in-person or online. They can be synchronous or asynchronous. You might go more open-ended or have things a little…

Jun 22 2020

Why Every Teacher Needs a Mastermind Group

By John Spencer Creative Collaboration, Creativity, Podcast, Professional Development 4 Comments

This is my latest article in a series on owning your professional learning. In this series, we explore what it means to own your professional learning. This article focuses on mastermind groups. These groups are self-initiated and democratic. Members meet together to provide accountability, structure,…