Shaped

A community-driven blog supporting educators, building lifelong learners,
and shaping the future of education.* 

Latest Posts

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Teaching World Languages: The Co-Constructed Feedback Process (Pt. 1)

A veteran Spanish teacher shares how to build on a typical interpersonal speaking performance assessment in order to make it easy for others to implement co-constructed feedback in their own classrooms.

Jori Greenhill
Spanish Teacher

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Teaching Supreme Court Cases: Engel v. Vitale and Religion in Schools

Teach your students about a controversial Supreme Court decision in 1952 regarding the role that religion should play in public school classrooms.

Shaped Staff

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Podcast: Future Skills for Fact-Checking Online Fakes

Listen to a podcast on teaching media literacy in the classroom and developing effective media literacy programs in schools, featuring Katy Byron (MediaWise at Poynter) and Erik Palmer (author and former teacher).

Onalee Smith
Shaped Contributor

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How to Use Short Films as a Resource for Teaching World Languages

A Spanish language teacher provides tips for incorporating using short films as authentic, relevant resources in World Languages classes.

Karly Enright
Spanish Teacher

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Wordless Picture Books in the Classroom: Telling Stories Through Illustrations

Wordless picture books can teach kids to gather information from visual clues. These books with no words allow them to move from merely describing what is happening to narrating a story.

Susan Steinway
Archivist, HMH

Kindergarten Math Games And Activities

3 Kindergarten Math Games and Activities for the Classroom

These math activities for kindergarten focus on addition and counting. Use these kindergarten math games for the classroom to show how mathematics is found everywhere in students' world.

Shaped Staff

Teaching Metacognition In The Classroom

Teaching Metacognition in the Classroom: Just Think About It!

By focusing on metacognition in the classroom, students can continually monitor their learning. Teaching metacognition also allows students to apply their most effective learning strategy to the task at hand.

Michael DiSpezio
Author, ScienceFusion and HMH Science Dimensions Programs

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Podcast: Teaching Impeachment and Controversial Issues

Listen to a 15-minute conversation about how teachers can facilitate difficult classroom discussions, particularly considering questions that may arise about the impeachment inquiry currently in the news.

Onalee Smith
Shaped Contributor

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How This Superintendent Saved a School Through University Partnership

Dr. Shaun Nelms, superintendent of Rochester East Upper and Lower Schools, answers questions about how partnering with the University of Rochester saved his school from closure.

Jordan Friedman
Former Shaped Editor

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Developing a Student Exit Slips Strategy for Formative Assessment

By developing an exit slip strategy in the classroom, you can more easily complete a formative assessment of your students' understanding of a given lesson.

Amanda Bratten
Senior Assessment Specialist, Learning Sciences, HMH

Thanksgiving Classroom Games Activities Crafts

9 Thanksgiving Classroom Activities, Games, and Crafts

Looking for Thanksgiving ideas for school? Explore 9 Thanksgiving classroom activities, games, and crafts to help you celebrate the holiday.

Jordan Friedman
Former Shaped Editor

6 Tips From Literacy Experts

6 Literacy and Leadership Tips Every Educator Should Know

Implement these tips from our literacy experts and leaders in education to better support all students in the classroom.

Onalee Smith
Shaped Contributor

Mofongo Spanish Lesson

Try Some Mofongo With Your Turkey This Year

Get your students talking about different dishes and the cultural influence they bring to the Thanksgiving table. Better yet, have them practice speaking in the target language!

Liz Rigg
Shaped Contributor

Introducing The 5Th Annual Ecr Report

Exploring the State of Teaching in the 5th Annual Educator Confidence Report

With the 2019 ECR, you can understand the realities facing the teaching profession today, including both the triumphs and challenges.

John "Jack" Lynch
President, Chief Executive Officer, and Director, HMH

Learning Sciences Complex

Why Is Applying Learning Science So Complex for Teachers?

To kick off a blog series focused on debunking learning sciences myths, HMH's VP of Learning Sciences explores the four learning pillars for teachers to maximize student outcomes.

Rachel L. Schechter, PhD
VP Learning Sciences, Learning Sciences and Research Advisory Board Chair

14 Fun Wrap-Up Activities for Students

Explore 14 fun wrap-up activities that can enhance student engagement and solidify learning.

Melissa Williams
Shaped Contributor

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Celebrate STEM Using Hands-On Experiments and Science Stories

On November 8 (and every day), try these quick, simple and easy STEM Day activities for elementary students—created by the Kitchen Pantry Scientist and author of STEAM project books, Liz Heinecke.

Liz Lee Heinecke
STEAM Author; The Kitchen Pantry Scientist

Classcraft ow to Foster a Creative Classroom Environment

How to Foster a Creative Learning Environment

Learn how to foster a creative learning environment. Explore 7 ideas for constructing a creative classroom environment.

Mary Dean
Shaped Contributor

*The views expressed in our blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of HMH.