EP301 5 ways to make an old lesson feel fresh and interesting again (with Betsy Potash of Spark Creativity)

Angela Watson's Truth for Teachers

Bored with your curriculum or instructional routines? I’m talking with Betsy Potash of the Spark Creativity Podcast about easy ways to make things feel fresh and interesting again.

Often we switch things up in our teaching to keep ourselves from getting bored. But, too much change can create unnecessary work for us. It can also waste class time for students as they spend more energy on figuring out how to complete an assignment than on practicing the skills we want them to learn.

So, Betsy’s identified 5 open-ended activities that you can add to your rotation of go-to strategies, and incorporate them in unique ways throughout the year. We’re talking about how to use the following in gr. 2-12 classrooms:

• podcasts • stations • hexagonal thinking • escape room design • one-pager

Betsy will definitely spark your creativity as you listen to these easy-to-understand activities which you can plug into the lessons you’re least excited to teach. These ideas will get students actively engaged in learning and boost your energy and enthusiasm as a teacher.

Click here to read the transcript, see photos of the lesson ideas, and get links to Betsy's templates.

Resources mentioned:

• Spark Creativity website and podcast
• Learn about student podcasting in a free PD series
• Free Digital Toolkit for Hexagonal Thinking
• Video: Using hexagons to build critical thinking skills
• Free escape room toolkit
• Guide to creating one-pagers
• Angela's Teachers Box of Tricks on TPT / Truth for Teachers shop