Common Sense

Introduction Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) teaching starts with questions. When you design an investigation that sparks genuine curiosity, adjust a lab on the fly as students dig deeper, or find just the right phenomenon to make a concept click, you’re doing the work that defines excellent STEM instruction.

Making sure students are prepared for their futures has always been a goal for schools and educators, but achieving it is only getting more complicated. With the speed of AI development and its uncertain impacts on careers, it's hard to know what skills students will actually need to give them access to the jobs—and lives—they want.

Everywhere you turn, and in online tools we use, there it is—AI. Artificial intelligence is hard to escape. That's why AI literacy has become essential. But make no mistake: AI literacy isn't about learning how to use ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini. It's about understanding what it is, how it works, and how it impacts us. And while digital literacy has also become an essential life skill, AI literacy addresses additional concerns.

Internet connections to and from schools are abuzz with research, educational games, learning management systems, and digital citizenship lessons. But occasionally, students are accessing content they shouldn't. Sometimes that means games, sometimes social media—and sometimes pornography.

Educators are always under pressure to help students achieve. So when you've worked so hard to boost students' skills, you certainly don't want them to lose ground over summer break. We've come to know this knowledge and skill loss as "the summer slide": Though there are differing statistics about how it's measured—and even its existence—most teachers would attest that kids forget stuff over the summer. The other truth is that summer is meant to be a break.

As educators, we're always thinking ahead: next week's lesson plans, that upcoming standardized test, a unit's final assessment. And setting ourselves and our students up for success with frontloading and frameworks allows us to provide reminders about expectations instead of initial instruction.

Introduction Creativity has always been at the heart of teaching. We’re not talking just about art projects or creative writing (though those are equally important), but also about the creative work of instructional design. Every time you differentiate instruction, redesign a lesson, or brainstorm how to engage a reluctant learner, you’re being creative. You create the spaces that allow students to harness their own creativity, supporting their ideas, their iterations, and their refinement.

Practice active listening with these science, math, tech, and engineering podcasts Artificial Intelligence Classroom Media & Tools Math Science Computer Science In our screen-focused society, visual stimulation is often expected. But the art of active listening has never been more important. Happily aligned with that need, podcasts have never been more popular! And there are lots of great choices out there for kids, including podcasts that cover STEM topics.

Our learning reviews and philosophy Our expert reviews are unbiased, trustworthy, and free evaluations of educational technology tools. We connect educators with transformative learning experiences that develop students' and teachers' creative and critical skills, give them meaningful agency, and help learners build conceptual knowledge. We believe that properly resourced, well-prepared, passionate, and creative teachers make learning happen—not tech, tools, or resources.

Schools everywhere are grappling with AI. Students are using it, teachers are learning about it, and districts are beginning to create their own policies for it. Dive into our free resources to find practical ways to address AI in your classroom (or school). Take our free, foundational course for educators. Build a clear strategy for AI in your school or district with our comprehensive toolkit. Use quick, grab-and-go lessons to help your students think critically about AI and its impacts.