Tips for Launching Your Modern Classroom

The start of the school year is officially here.  One question we've heard from many educators is:

"How can I roll out a Modern Classroom in a way that makes sense to my students?

We've been helping teachers launch Modern Classrooms for years. Here are three tips, each from a real teacher's "Unit 0:"

1) Record an introductory video: In this opening video, English teacher Emily Culp explains to students what a Modern Classroom is, and how it will work.  Not only does this model the process of blended instruction, but it also creates guidance that can be shared with parents, administrators, and students who join her class later in the year.

2) Make learning the rules an active process. In her first lesson, Health teacher Erica Talamo pushes students to discover for themselves how their class will work.  This engages students, and prepares them for the style of self-paced learning they'll be doing for the rest of the year.

3) Check for understanding. Don't just assume that your students know how your class will work!  Follow Physics teacher Shane Donovan's example, and give your students a mastery check that covers class rules and expectations.  Students can't start learning content until they understand how the class will function.  See Kate Gaskill's Unit 0 Quiz for another example -- her mild/medium/spicy versions allow for effective differentiation.

Changing the ways in which you teach and your students learn won't happen overnight -- as discussed in Episode 2 of our podcast, blended, self-paced, mastery-based learning requires constant reinforcement. But if you can start the year off using these recommended practices, your students will be well on their way to success in your Modern Classroom.