5 Easy Ways to Build Student Engagement in Real Time

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We’ve all been there: walking into a classroom where a teacher is delivering a well-intentioned wonderfully planned direct-instruction lesson. But honestly, nobody wants to sit and listen to a teacher talk for 45 minutes straight.

Recently, I was able to visit, and guest teach, a classroom. The teacher had asked a common question: How do I incorporate more student talk and collaboration during a directed lesson, and stay on pace?

The lesson involved converting milliliters to liters. We started off the lesson with a quick video introduction supplied by the curriculum. Instead of letting it remain a passive video, we looked at how to transform direct instruction into an active, high-engagement experience using simple, fast-pasted micro-routines.

1. The Power of “Think, Pair, Share” (In Under 90 Seconds)

Student discourse and collaboration do not need to be long, drawn-out, 20-minutes projects. They can, and often should, happen in quick micro-bursts.

  • Independent Processing (Think in Your Head: Before opening the floor, pose a question and require a few quiet seconds. This processing window is non-negotiable. Whether you have multilingual learners or students with processing differences, giving them a moment to formulate an answer internally changes everything.
  • Micro-Partner Talk (Quick Pair Share): Students turn to their assigned partner for a fast, 10-20 second conversation. Because partnerships are pre-established, there is zero wasted transition time. This quick conversation allows students to practice their answer, and in some cases, have one ready to go in case they are picked to share.
  • Whole-Group Discourse (Multiple Perspectives): Bring the room back together and call on several students. Never accept just one answer; even if the first one is correct. Ask multiple students to share, sometimes they will have the same answers and other times they will not. If you hear two different answers, don’t give them the solution; turn it back to the class: “We have two different ideas/answers here. Let’s discuss which one makes sense and why.”

2. Low-Stakes “Wait and Return” for Hesitant Students

What happens when you call on a student and they freeze or don’t have an answer ready? Instead of rescuing them or moving on, use a wait and return strategy:

  • Tell the student you see them, let them know you will come back to them, and move to a few other students.
  • This gives the hesitant student a safe window to hear pees articulate their thinking. Even if the student ends up parroting a strategy or answer they just heard, they are still actively listening, processing the concept, and staying in the learning loop. This also sends a powerful, but silent, message that everyone is expected to participate and “I forgot,” doesn’t get you out of it.

3. Non-Verbal & Kinesthetic Checks (100% Participation in 5 Seconds)

If you rely solely on hand-raising, you are usually only assessing the 3-4 eager students in the class. To get an instant pulse on the entire room, build in simple physical signals:

  • Thumbs-to-Chest: Ask students to put a thumb against their chest (a private, low-stakes position) to show if they agree, disagree, need re-explaining, or have an understanding of the concept.
  • Fingers for Multiple Choice: Ask students their level of understanding with a 1, 2, or 3 (1 being little and 3 being complete). You can also ask student a question with three possible outcomes and have students hold up 1, 2, or 3 findgers on their chest on the count of three.

These quick kinesthetic movements force every single student to self-reflect and take a stand, giving you an immediate visual understanding of each student before moving to the next segment, problem, slide, etc.

4. Whiteboards as “Thinking Pads” Before Partner Talk

When students are asked to talk to a partner, they sometimes freeze because they don’t know where to start. Before opening up partner discourse, have students jot a quick diagram, record an answer, or sketch a visual model on an individual dry-erase board.

  • Having their thinking written down gives students an immediate anchor during partner talk.
  • Students can compare their processes side-by-side, spot differences in their work, and practice justifying their answers, aligning directly with Mathematical Practice 3 (Cconstruct Viable Arguments and Critique the Reasoning of Others).

5. Address Misconceptions in Real Time

When a shared misconception surfaces during partner talk or whiteboard check, address it right away. Because you took the time to engage all students throughout a lesson, you are more likely to catch the misconceptions early in order to address them immediately.

Pause the lesson, highlight the competing ideas as a whole class, and facilitate a quick 2-minute clarity check. By addressing gaps in the moment, you ensure every student moves forward on solid ground and understanding.

Keep It Fast, Keep It Frequent

Adding student engagement to a direct-instruction lesson doesn’t require throwing out your slides or abandoning your curriculum. By embedding 60-second processing pauses, whiteboard jots, and non-verbal signals, you transform passive listeners into active thinkers who are held accountable, and keep your lesson moving seamlessly.

What is your favorite low-prep way to get 100% student participation during a direct-instruction lesson? Share your go-to strategies in the comments below!

Offloading Cognitive Load in Division: The Power of the ‘Division Tool Box’

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Sometimes all it takes to transform a complex math standard is a fresh perspective and a small shift in approach.

Recently, I joined a 5th-grade class to model a strategy that lowers cognitive load during multi-digit division: pairing the partial quotient with a front-loaded division toolbox on a MathReps mat.

Multi-digit division can be taxing on working memory. Students must estimate, multiply, subtract, compare, and track place value all at once. By introducing a structured “Toolbox” before solving, we offload that mental friction so students can focus entirely on the division logic.

How the Division Toolbox Works

Before diving into the problem, for example, 8,275 ➗ 28, students fill out a pre-printed multiplication bank on the right side of their template:

  • Basic facts: 28 x 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
  • Tens place value: 28 x 10, 20, 30, 40, 50
  • Hundreds place values: 28 x 100, 200, 300, 400, 500
A math worksheet showing division and multiplication problems using the number 28, with calculations and steps outlined in green ink on an orange background.

Why Only Go Up to 5?

Capping the facts at 5 keeps setup quick and manageable while accomplishing several critical pedagogical goals:

  • Reinforces Place Value Patterns: students instantly see that once they know 28 x 2 = 56, then 28 x 20 = 560, and 28 x 200 = 5600 simply involves shifting the place values by factors of 10 (thus reviewing a previously learned standard).
  • Promotes Working Smarter: creating a bank of known facts up front eliminates mid-problem computational stalling.
  • Encourages Flexibility: teachers often worry that students will be limited if facts only go to 5. In practice, students quickly notice when they can combine partial quotients! For example, if a student needs 90 groups of 28, they will pull 50 (1400) and 40 (1120) from their bank, eventually combining them into 90m (2520) as their efficiency grows.

Step-by-Step: Solving 8,275 ➗ 28

With the Tool Box ready, solving becomes a low-stress series of subtractions:

  1. First Chunk: Looking at 8,275, students reference their Tool Box and select 28 x 200 = 5,600. They subtract 5,600 from 8,275, leaving 2,675.
  2. Second Chunk: From 2,675, they select 28 x 50 = 1,400. Subtracting 1,400 leaves 1,275.
  3. Third Chunk: From 1,275, they select 28 x 40 = 1,120. Subtracting 1,120 leaves 155.
  4. Final Chunk: From 155, they select 28 x 5 = 140. Subtracting 140 leaves a remainder of 15.
  5. Summing Partial Quotients: Adding 200 + 50 + 40 + 5 yields 295, with a remainder of 15 (295 (r) 15/28).

Right beside the partial quotient work, the large rectangle represents the dividend (8,275). This dual layout lets students view the same mathematical decomposition through two distinct visual lenses at once.

Setting Up Future Success

The teacher and students were receptive to the routine.

Using partial quotients in 5th grade doesn’t just make division accessible today; it builds the conceptual foundation students need for 6th grade, when they transition to standard vertical algorithms with deep place value understanding rather than blind step memorization.

Here’s the FREE template

How do you help your student manage cognitive load during multi-step math routines? Have you tried building a ‘Toolbox” first? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

A math worksheet featuring a division symbol at the top, followed by blank equations for multiplication by 1 to 5, 10 to 50, and 100 to 500, structured for student practice.

Building Teacher Confidence with Conceptual Math and CRA Models

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We have spent a lot of time discussing how essential it is, even in upper elementary, to introduce new concepts through concrete models and representational drawings before reaching abstract algorithms.

Take 5th-grade division, for example. Conceptually, division is about equal sharing and place value decomposition. Yet the traditional long-division algorithm – abstract and not officially introduced as a standard until 6th grade – remains the default in many classrooms.

This brings us to a sensitive, fundamental question: How can we expect teachers to facilitate Concrete-Representational-Abstract (CRA) math instruction if they were never taught math conceptually themselves?

Curiosity, Privilege, and the Luxury of Time

When state standards shifted years ago, I felt a deep, natural curiosity toward the “why” behind conceptual math. I spent countless hours searching online, watching instructional videos, and making it a priority to master these strategies.

But I also recognize that doing so was a luxury.

I had both the internal drive and the time, a rare commodity that many teachers simply do not have. Today’s educators are balancing relentless daily pacing, administrative demands, grading, and personal lives. Expecting time-strapped teachers to independently research, digest, and master complex conceptual math frameworks on their own time isn’t just unrealistic: it’s unfair.

Being Honest About the Learning Curve

Educational worksheet demonstrating division and multiplication concepts with sample calculations.

Most adult educators grew up in a system dominated by procedural memorization. When faced with a new representation or conceptual strategy, it is completely natural to feel uncertain.

I’ll be the first to admit: using base-ten blocks for multi-digit division is still a struggle for me. Instead, I found my footing by bridging the Area Model directly alongside Partial Quotients. It wasn’t an instant shift for me, either. I embedded this exact bridge into my 5th-grade MathRep template, pairing Area Model and Partial Quotients with a “Division Tool Box” (multiplication facts) to give students multiple visual entry points.

Fourth-grade division also remained a struggle for many years. It wasn’t until I sat in a colleague’s classroom, watched her model the strategy with her students, and recorded the lesson that it truly clicked for me. (You can watch that pivotal classroom division lesson on YouTube!).

Overcoming Defense Mechanisms with Vulnerability

It can sometimes feel unsafe or uncomfortable for a teacher to admit, “I don’t understand how to teach this conceptually.” Instead, insecurity often manifests as understandable pushback: “This method is too confusing for students,” or “Why can’t we just teach them the standard algorithm?” While time and pacing concerns are real, we have to ask ourselves: Are we shortchanging our students’ future math understanding by skipping the concrete and representational foundations now? Short-circuiting the process might save ten minutes today, but it costs years of mathematical intuition down the road.

How We Move Forward: Actionable Steps for Leaders & Coaches

Building teacher capacity requires safety, embedded support, and visible leadership across all levels of a district:

  1. Low-Stakes Math Warm-Up Demos: Coaches and site leaders can facilitate short 10-minute conceptual warm-up demos during PLC meetings or staff gatherings. Experiencing these routines as adult learners demystifies the tools without putting anyone on the spot.
  2. Professional Development on Manipulative Literacy: We cannot hand classrooms new math tools without some explicit training on how to use them during contracted work hours. Professional development must focus on how physical tools connect directly to written representations.
  3. Admin Vulnerability: When administrators step up, sit alongside teachers in workshops, and openly express their own learning curves, it transforms the culture. Vulnerability at the top creates psychological safety in the classroom.
  4. Accepting the Limits of Coaching: As coaches, we offer support, model lessons, and provide resources. But real systemic change requires district and site leadership to champion these expectations alongside us.

Partnering with Parents: Demystifying “New Math”

Parents feel the exact same frustration when homework comes home looking vastly different from how they learned math. If we want parents as allies, we have to equip them with context:

  • Share Worked Example Sheets: Send home completed MathRep sheets or visual guides that clearly label how strategies like the Area Model connect to basic multiplication facts.
  • Leverage Short Video Clips: Many modern curricula include parent portal videos. Sharing short 1-minute video demonstrations (via newsletters or class communication apps) helps families understand the “why” behind visual models.
  • Reframe the Goal: Help parents see that conceptual math isn’t about throwing away algorithms, it’s about giving their children an insurance policy so they never have to rely solely on blind memorization.

How did you shift your thinking toward conceptual math instruction? What strategies have helped your team build confidence with new models? Let’s keep the conversation going in the comments!

Strengthening Number Sense: The Power of Concrete Learning

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Building strong number sense in the primary grades is foundational to everything students encounter in their future mathematics journey. As instructional leaders and educators reflect on student data and classroom dynamics over time, it becomes clear how much our instructional tools and routines shape students’ deep understanding of numbers.

Looking back across our district’s journey, many of us have spent years navigating curriculum models that leaned heavily on structured, daily lesson pacing. Often, these programs moved quickly from introduction to procedural practice. While the intention was to maintain consistency across classrooms, an unintended gap formed: the crucial stage of concrete exploration was frequently bypassed.

The Value of the Concrete-Representational-Abstract (CRA) Sequence

Diagram illustrating the CRA (Concrete-Representational-Abstract) model, showing a triangular structure divided into three levels: Concrete with objects at the bottom, Representational with drawings in the middle, and Abstract with symbols at the top, labeled with '245' for the abstract level.

True conceptual understanding begins in the concrete stage, especially when students encounter a concept for the very first time. For instance, when third graders learn multiplication, physical manipulatives (or tactile tools like playdough) allows them to feel, arrange, and internalize the meaning of equal groups.

When a curriculum moves straight to representational pictures or abstract symbols, students miss the opportunity to ground abstract math in concrete reality. Over time, this gap shows up in upper-elementary classrooms as a lack of foundational number sense and automaticity with basic operations.

What Our Pilot Classrooms Are Teaching Us

As our district pilots two new math curricula this school year, the observations from our piloting teachers have been eye-opening and deeply validating, albeit troubling.

  1. The Power of Student Discourse: The new instructional models center heavily on student talk, exploring how students arrive at answers rather than just whether an answer is correct. Teachers are seeing firsthand how dialogue exposes gaps in basic skills while simultaneously giving students the language to rebuild those foundations.
  2. Identifying the Gaps Early:Piloting teachers have noted where students need targeted backfilling in basic addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Recognizing these missing pieces is the first step toward addressing them systematically.
  3. Re-Evaluating “Pacing and Fidelity”: The conversation around “curriculum fidelity” is evolving. I know we all cringe when someone says “fidelity to the curriculum”. Strict adherence to a textbook’s pacing can unintentionally prevent teachers from responding to what the students in front of them actually need. Meeting students where they are conceptually must always take precedence over covering the next page.

Looking Ahead with Optimism

It takes courage for a district and its educators to pause, reflect, and acknowledge when a long-standing tool is no longer serving its students.

While transitioning to a new adoption takes time, and many of our teachers are balancing current materials for one final year, the mindset shift is beginning. Teachers across our schools, whether currently piloting or not, recognize the need to strengthen core number sense and are taking proactive steps in their daily routines to support their learners.

Our goal isn’t to look back with regret, but to use these shared observations to inform a better path forward, one that honors concrete modeling, values student discourse, and empowers teachers to make the best instructional decisions for their students.

How is your district or school balancing curriculum requirements with hands-on conceptual learning? What strategies help you integrate concrete tools into daily instruction? Let’s keep the conversation going in the comments below!

Teach Regrouping with CRA: Place Value Disks and Wipebooks

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When teaching multi-digit addition and subtraction with regrouping, it can be tempting to jump straight to the standard algorithm. But when students simply memorize steps without understanding why place values shift, procedural errors quickly multiply.

To build lasting mathematical capacity, we need to honor the CRA (Concrete-Representational-Abstract) learning model.

In my latest video demonstration using MathReps 3.2 on Wipebooks, I break down how pairing physical place value disks with expanded form addition helps students bridge the gap between concrete reasoning and abstract algorithms.

Why This Bridge Matters

Physically counting, bundling, and trading number disks alongside written expanded form gives students a visual and tactile anchor for place value. They aren’t just “carrying a 1”, they are physically exchanging 10 tens for 1 hundred.

By using dry-erase Wipebooks, students can move, erase, and manipulate numbers in a low-risk environment before transitioning into traditional symbolic math.

Check out the full video walkthrough here, and grab ready-to-use templates on MathReps.com!

How do you help your students visualize regrouping in place value? Do you use number disks, base-ten blocks, or expanded form? Let’s discuss in the comments!

Scaffolding MathReps

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Recently, I walked into a fifth-grade classroom during their morning math block and was immediately struck by the culture of learning in the room.

A yellow sheet with a table displaying numbers, including thousands, hundreds, tens, and ones places, with calculations showing various forms of the number 276,734.60.

The teacher was guiding her students through their daily MathRep, specifically a 5th-grade decimal and place value frame focusing on expanded form, word form, and powers of ten (276,723.46).

Because they were still in the early stages of introducing this particular MathRep, the teacher introduced a simple, high-leverage tool to scaffold the routine: a large, yellow place value chart that students could use alongside their work.

What made this visit so special wasn’t the tool itself, but how the students interacted with it

Student Agency in Action

The yellow chart provided a visual representation, helping students align digits across place values, from hundred thousands down to thousandths, especially when working through the “Multiply the number by 10, 100, 1000” section.

Here’s what stood out:

  • Self-Advocacy: Some students needed the scaffold, but many did not. The students who needed it felt completely comfortable recognizing their own learning needs, and grabbing the chart without any hesitation or stigma.
  • Fading Support Over Time: The teacher reported that as the week progressed, their processing speed increased, they completed their MathRep faster, and their overall conceptual understanding grew noticeably stronger.
  • Low-Threat Confidence Building: The scaffold served as a safety net, allowing students to engage with complex 5th-grade decimal standards with low anxiety and high success.

Friday Assessments and Strategic Record-Keeping

When Friday arrived, the teacher didn’t abruptly pull the rug out from under her learners. Students were still allowed to use the yellow place value scaffold during their weekly MathReps check-in. The teacher simply noted in her grade book which students utilized the support.

This approach honors where students are in their learning journey while providing the teacher with accurate, actionable data on who has reached independent mastery and who still benefits from visual anchors.

Embrace the Scaffolds

When implementing MathReps (or any daily math routine), it’s vital to remember that our students enter the room at different entry points. Scaffolds, whether they are place value charts, dry-erase overlays, or concrete manipulatives, aren’t crutches; they are bridges to independence.

By normalizing tools and letting students drive their own support, we help them build fluency, accuracy, and, most importantly, mathematical confidence.

How do you normalize scaffolds and tools during daily math routines in your classroom? Let me know in the comments below!

Why Does This School Year Feel Harder Than Ever? (And Why You’re Not Alone)

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We are only six weeks into the school year, but if you talk to teachers in the staff room, in the hallways, or during trainings, a single overwhelming theme emerges: everyone is stressed and exhausted.

It doesn’t feel like the typical “start-of-the-year chaos” that usually settles down by mid-September. Instead, it feels like we are walking on quicksand or trying to stand on a moving plate of jello. There doesn’t seem to be solid ground anywhere.

If you are feeling overwhelmed right now, I want to say this clearly right up front: you are not alone, and it is not just you.

It’s Not One Big Thing—It’s the Stacking of Everything

When teachers ask why this year feels so heavy, there’s no single villain or easy answer. It is the cumulative weight of dozens of competing priorities, mandates, and logistical hurdles all landing on a teacher’s shoulders at the exact same time:

  • Schedules in Constant Flux: Between push-in services, IEP pull-outs, assembly schedules, and weekly collaboration meetings, finding a solid, uninterrupted 45-minute block of core instruction feels almost impossible.
  • Shifting Pedagogical Focus: Teachers are navigating shifts toward Standards-Based Learning, working alongside external consultants, and adapting to new instructional coaching models, and in some cases, all while piloting new math curricula in real time.
  • Logistical Friction: Field trips stall because of transportation shortages or budget constraints. Meanwhile, state and local clearance inspections (Williams Act) require “uncluttered classrooms”—a near-impossible demand when new curriculum adoptions arrive with multiple bulky storage bins and materials that teachers are expected to house inside their own rooms due to a lack of storage.
  • Evolving Student Behavior: While the vast majority of our students are kind and wonderful, student behaviors feel visibly heightened compared to even a decade ago. A colleague who returned to the classroom after just a three-year hiatus noted a drastic shift in student dynamics and stamina.

To be clear: this is NOT a bash on my district or its leadership. These systemic pressures are happening in school districts across the country. It is simply the reality of modern education.

We are fortunate in our district to have strong community backing, supportive parents, and incredible students. But even in a great environment, the sheer volume of daily adjustments is taking a toll.

Finding the Bright Spots

I don’t have sage advice, a magic silver bullet, or a 5-step plan to fix the system. This work is hard, and some days it feels unsustainable. It’s important to acknowledge our reality.

But I do know that even in the middle of the quicksand, there are bright spots worth holding onto:

  • A campus hosted a beautiful cultural celebration day that highlighted our diverse community.
  • I watch teachers every single week who, despite the fatigue, are actively looking to improve their craft.
  • I see educators implementing routines like MathReps and EduProtocols, finding moments of genuine student success and engagement in the middle of a chaotic day.

I See You

If you are going home at the end of the day feeling drained, second-guessing yourself, or wondering why everything feels so much harder this fall, give yourself some grace.

You are juggling a mountain of expectations while building a safe, loving environment for your students every single morning. It has to get better, right? Until it does, know that I see you, your colleagues see you, understand what you’re going through, and are walking through it right alongside you.

How is the start of the year feeling in your school or district? What bright spots are keeping you grounded right now? Let’s support each other in the comments below.

Engaging Students with Parts of Speech EduProtocols

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In my last blog post, I shared a story about coaching alongside a third-grade team that includes one of my former 5th-grade students.

Beyond our fun Skippyjon Jones read-aloud moment, my primary focus with this team has been elevating student writing. To help students become stronger, more intentional writers, the team wanted to introduce a classic EduProtocol: Parts of Speech.

To kick things off, I modeled demo lessons in each of their classrooms. By last week, the teachers were ready to take the reins and lead the protocol independently.

From Nervous Energy to Classroom Excitement

While heading over to visit my former student’s classroom, I ran into another third-grade team member. She was equal parts excited and nervous, mentioning she was planning to run her first solo Parts of Speech lesson later that afternoon. I promised to stop by.

When I popped into her room, the magic was already happening.

She was projecting a visual prompt on the display (an image of a sleeping kitten cozy in a blanket) alongside a collaborative word bank grid. The students were completely hooked and actively engaged.

How She Structured the Lesson

Her instructional execution was a textbook example of scaffolded support:

  1. Whole-Group Brainstorming: Together as a class, they generated targeted word banks across four columns based on the image: nouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs.
  2. Guided Modeling (Sentence #1): She walked the class through constructing the first sentence together on the board, demonstrating how to pull words directly from their generated lists into a coherent, grammatically correct thought.
  3. Independent Application (Sentences #2 & #3): Once the structure was clear, she released the students to craft their own unique sentences for slots two and three, with the requirement that they pull from their shared vocabulary bank and use the parts of speech correctly.

Teacher Insights and Next Steps with Snorkl

The third-grade team is already noticing positive gains. Students are identifying parts of speech much faster, though the team noted that distinguishing between adjectives and adverbs still requires ongoing practice. Because EduProtocols rely on repetition and familiar frameworks, they will continue to refine these concepts in upcoming sessions.

Their next iteration? Tech integration via Snorkl.

The team plans to have students dictate their finished sentences into Snorkl, combining oral language practice, immediate feedback, and sentence construction into one seamless routine.

Seeing teachers move from watching a demo lesson to confidently leading high-engagement writing protocols in their own rooms is what coaching is all about. I’ll keep you posted on how their Snorkl dictation integration goes!

How do you help your students bridge the gap between isolated grammar practice and active sentence writing? Let me know in the comments below!

The Lasting Impressions We Leave

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Living and working in the same community for decades (yikes! Has it really been decades?) is an interesting experience.

When you stay in one school district for as long as I have, “interesting” can quickly turn into “wild,” the good kind of wild. Over the years, I’ve taught hundreds of students. As time has marched on, I’ve started seeing second-generation learners, teaching the children of former students.

Now, in my role as an instructional coach, I get to experience one of the rare, incredible highlights of a long career: coaching/teaching alongside former students who are now district teachers themselves.

A Third-Grade Classroom Reunion

This year, I have the privilege of working with a team of teachers that included one of my former 5th graders.

Part of our lesson routine involved me reading a picture book aloud to her 3rd-grade class right after recess before launching into our lesson. When I walked into her room, she had three picture books laid out on the front board.

Normally, I let the students vote on which book they want to hear. As I scanned the options, my eyes immediately zeroed in on a Skippyjon Jones book; a hilarious, animated series I have loved reading to children for years.

I turned to the class and asked, “Which book should we read today?”

Before the kids could pick, my former student stepped in and said, “Actually, there is a specific book I would like you to read.”

She turned to her 3rd graders and explained that when she was a 5th grader in my class years ago, I used to read to them all the time, and one memory she has was listening to me read Skippyjon Jones. When she was pulling books for my visit, she specifically pulled that title so her students could experience it, too.

So, I dove right into full Skippyjon Jones character mode: silly voices, animated accents, and all. The students loved it, the teacher loved it, and I had an absolute blast.

“You’re My Favorite”

After the story, we transitioned into our scheduled Snorkl lesson. As I walked around the room supporting students with their tasks, I used one of my classic, go-to phrases:

“You’re my favorite.”

Anyone who knows me knows this phrase means both everything and nothing at the same time. I’ll say it to one student, then I’ll walk away, look at the very next student, and say, “You’re my favorite,” too. To me, it simply means: You tried hard, you’re on the right track, and I see you.

As I said it to a few 3rd graders, I heard a giggle from the back of the room. I looked over at my former student and asked, “Do you remember that?”

She smiled and said, “Yep. There are a lot of things I remember.”

Learning Has to Be Fun, Too

Standing in that classroom was a powerful reminder of how teaching works.

Sometimes we get so bogged down in standards, pacing guides, data trackers, and curriculum pilots that we forget a fundamental truth: the things we do and say leave a lasting impression long after the academic content fades.

Decades later, my former student didn’t recall a specific worksheet or a test score from 5th grade. She remembered the silly character voices. She remembered the goofy phrases. She remembered that learning in our classroom was joyful, safe, and fun.

As educators, everything we do leaves a mark. In the end, my hope for all our students is that alongside mastering academics, they carry fond memories of the silly stories, the animated read-alouds, and the playful moments that made them love coming to school.

Because at the end of the day, learning has to be fun, too.

Have you had the opportunity to work with a former student? What was it like?

What are some of the fun and lasting memories you make in your classroom?