PRACTICAL

WAYS TO

4.0
A Guide
By Matt Miller (@jmattmiller)
Great teaching ideas.
Ready for class now.
If you're like me, you're constantly searching for
fresh teaching ideas. The best ones are
plug-and-play – something you can apply in class
tomorrow. If that’s what you're after, you've come to Engagin
g,
the right place. meanin
gful
teachin
g is to
Here, you'll find over 100 of the best ideas I've
ugh.
gathered from hundreds of blog posts over more
Here, y
ou’ll fin
d
than 10 years. I've focused on the ones that can be
ideas y
implemented in the classroom quickly – hence, the ou can
impleme
"practical ways" title. nt righ
away, t
saving
Each entry in this ebook includes a brief explanation time. you
of a textbook-ditching idea. Click the blue link for
further details and other ideas.

If you’re stumped or have questions about anything

in this book, feel free to contact me at
[email protected] or on Twitter at
@jmattmiller. If I don’t know the answer, I know lots
of people who might!
 Teach and learn like
an influencer!

1.
Put those social media skills to
use! Social media influencers
often make a plan when creating
their content. Your students can
show what they've learned by
following the same content
creation plan that their favorite
influencers use! This template
walks them through the steps --
and focuses on helping them
show what they know from your
class.

2. 4.
Create a Spotify playlist. Music “Post” an Instagram Story.
says a LOT. The lyrics have a Instagram Stories is a pretty
message. The song and album titles popular feature, and it’s a great
do, too. Use this template as a storytelling tool. Have students
way for students to explain why create their own Instagram story
certain songs make their list and demonstrating a skill to teach
their criteria for the list. others through video with Google
Slides.

3. 5.
Tweet for someone. What would Create your own Amazon product.
happen if a character in a story Amazon's product pages are how
you’re reading tweeted about an we gather information and evaluate
event in the story? Now, you can products with images, descriptions,
let students create those tweets categories, and ratings. Students
with Google Slides. can describe and critique objects,
people, places, and more that
they're studying with product
pages.
6. 8.
Create TikTok videos with Share tips and tricks. Students
Google Slides Let’s use an app can create tips and tricks videos
that millions of students already for anything they have
have access to — Google Slides experience with. If your class can
— to recreate the experience justify students sharing about
instead of using the app. Use the more broad topics, this could be
TikTok-inspired Google Slides really fun and effective.
template below to get your
students creating!

7. 9.
Create an unboxing video. Record a product review. Students
Unboxing videos are a hit on can identify something to review.
YouTube. Videos of people opening Share pros and cons relate to the
electronics, toys, makeup, and more reviewed item. Insert opinion,
are viewed millions of times on sharing why something could have
YouTube. been better or why it's really good.
Conclude with an overall opinion in
light of everything shared.

Use social media-inspired

lessons for class
10.
Practice digital citizenship skills through social
media. How would you reply to a social media post
by your classmate? What about a post by a
celebrity? How about your great-aunt? Replying
appropriately on social media is a skill! Give your
students practice doing just that!

Social media is just one of the seven key ways to make

learning with tech UNFORGETTABLE in Tech Like a Pirate!
You'll get practical ideas, downloadable templates,
step-by-step tutorials and more. Your students will be
engaged and begging for more!
Make activities interactive
11. 13.
Make slide presentations Write “Choose Your Own Adventure”
interactive with Pear Deck. Get stories. Remember those stories where
students engaged in new material you pick what the characters in the
by adding hands-on slides they book do, then turn to a specific page to
can interact with. Here are 20 see what happens? Students can create
ways to use Pear Deck. them using Google Forms. Click here to
see how.

12. 14.
Creating eye-popping Make comic strips out of
infographics with Google new content. Students can
Drawings. They’re eye-catching. use images, speech bubbles
They summarize information and more to create fun,
succinctly. They’re very visual, engaging comic strips to
whether you’re viewing on a demonstrate learning.
page or a printed version hung
on a wall. They’re easy to share.

15. 17.
Write blackout poetry. Have Add speech bubbles
the students take a picture or to a historic photo.
screenshot of an article. Add a new twist to a
Paste that image into Google lesson by letting
Drawings or Slides and blackout students speak — or
everything except the words think — for the
chosen for the poem. characters.

16. 18.
Make an "app" with Google Slides Create a shared presentation.
or PowerPoint. Hyperlinking images Create a PowerPoint or Slides
to slides within a presentation gives presentation and then create a
kids a fun opportunity to create an slide for every student in the
"app". This "Phone App" template class. Share the presentation with
from Slides Mania has an already students and assign each student
created app like user experience. a slide number. Students can use
it as a quick "do now" activity, as
an exit ticket or other types of
formative assessment.
19. 23.
Animate a concept with Google Create a how-to book with Book
Slides. With a few steps and some Creator. Teaching someone how to
creativity, Google Slides can do something is a powerful skill
become a powerful animation tool and how-to books are always in
that most students -- little to big -- demand. Encourage your students
can wield. to write their very own how-to book
for their classmates or even for
others outside of their class.

20. 24.
Design your own locker. Students Create your own interactive
can design a locker to introduce resource room. Use this fun
themselves or to showcase a digital resource room to make
concept. They simply copy items important resources for your class
from the other slides in the really easy to find! You can delete,
template to add to their lockers. change or add to this room and fill
Then they can explain why they as many of the shelves, cubbies,
chose those items and why they are tables, and boards as full of
important.. resources as you'd like.

21. 25.
Create a digital picture book. Build a Digital Portfolio. A digital
Write a compelling story with portfolio is a great way to
images by creating a digital showcase the work done over the
picture book slideshow course of a semester, year or even
presentation. Try this Google over several years. In this lesson
Applied Digital Skills Lesson with students will learn to use Google
your class. Sites to create a webpage to
share their work.

22. 26.
Animate from audio. The Create an interactive
Animate from Audio feature in presentation. Utilize the
Adobe Express allows users to incredible presentation
create simple character templates or insert content
animations using audio. Use directly into Genially. You can
animations as a lesson hook to add interactive spots where
capture students' attention at the videos or text can be added.
beginning of an activity or have Check out our Free Time Choice
students use it to explain their board made with Genially!
understanding of a concept.
Transform worksheets to WOW!!
Can we turn a worksheet into a
"WOW" experience?

We're about to find out!

Here are 6 ways your classroom

technology can help transform
your worksheet to "WOW".

27. 30.
Try Wordwall instead of Show comprehension with
vocabulary matching. Wordwall Booksnaps. Booksnaps are a fun
can check the accuracy of students' way to talk about what you've just
work immediately (timely read. Students take a picture of a
feedback). You can use images as page of a book, then mark it up
the keyword and/or the definition, with underlining, emojis, and other
which creates verbal/visual visuals to annotate and comment.
connections in the brain.

28. 31.
Do a brain dump for short answer Use Google Slides for interactive
recall. Brain dumps are a recall mapping. This template uses
activity based on the concept of draggable icons and the scribble
"retrieval practice," something tool and polyline tool to draw lines
cognitive science shows improves and shapes. It also lets students
long-term memory. Brain dumps in bring in images, which isn't as easy
Socrative are quick and easy with to do in a worksheet.
the short answer option.

29. 32.
Create a list with Wakelet.
Label a system or complex item
Wakelet lets students create
with LearningApps. These labeling
collections. It's kind of like
and matching activities can be
Pinterest for the classroom. Create
done quickly and easily when
collections organized in columns,
digital. Students can check their
rows, grids, a scattered "mood
answers for immediate feedback.
board," and more.
 Work smarter, not harder with
Artificial Intelligence

33.
Once you try out an AI assistant
like ChatGPT, you start to realize
... the better you prompt it, the
better results you can get. Want
to level up your prompting skills?
Use this AI 101 for Teachers
prompting guide slide deck to
learn the basics about interacting
with these AI models that
ChatGPT and other AI assistants
use.

34. 36.
Capture creativity with Microsoft Create interactive slides with AI
Designer prompts in the classroom. and Curipod. Just tell Curipod what
Designer is a graphic design app that you want to build a lesson about.
uses AI to help users create Include any objectives or standards
professional-quality designs quickly. you want to meet. It'll create a short
Creating fill-in-the-blank prompts is a slide presentation about that topic
unique feature that makes this tool with text, facts, images, and more.
exciting and fun use for teachers and
students alike.

35. 37.
Use AI to create images for class Make lessons relevant with
with Ideogram.ai Teachers can MagicSchool. MagicSchool is
spend countless hours looking for packed with dozens of teacher tools
the right image for a learning to help you save time, get more
activity, a slide presentation, or a done, and be creative. Utilize these
lesson. Now, AI offers a new tools to make your lessons more
option to save you time and get relevant to your students. Try a
exactly what you want. creative writing assignment based
on fortnite or get your students
analyzing Taylor Swift song lyrics.
38. 40.
Use AI to provide student Create a custom student-facing
feedback with Brisk Teaching. chatbot with SchoolAI. SchoolAI
Brisk Teaching is a Chrome lets you create Spaces, custom
extension that adds a little "B" icon student-facing chatbots that
in the bottom right corner of your interact with students how you
Google products. Click the icon to want. When you give your students
open up all sorts of AI capabilities a link to that Space, they can
including giving feedback on interact with the AI with your
student writing. specific instructions.

39. 41.
Help students reflect with Differentiate instruction with
MirrorTalk AI. MirrorTalk creates Diffit. Meet your new lesson
instant custom questions about planning assistant: Diffit. Diffit
whatever students are learning. allows you to get leveled resources
Then, it creates an in-depth AI for literally anything. You can adapt
analysis of student responses to existing materials for any reader,
show gaps in understanding or generate “just right” resources for
next steps. MirrorTalk uses what any topic and then edit and share
students say to create questions for resources with students.
them to ask to dive deeper.

Get a handle on
AI in the classroom
42.
Classroom AI 101: Create guided notes for videos
with AI. Choose Your Own Adventure books were
always a hit for me in the school library. Just
imagine ... your class content ... presented in
engaging storytelling format ... giving your students
choices to progress through the story.
It's easier than you might think!

AI for Educators is a readable guide for educators.

It also paints a picture of the future our students will face --
and provides questions you can help them grapple with.
We can use AI to empower teaching and learning. And it can
start today.

We canGet AItofor
use AI EDUCATORS
empower on
teaching and Amazon
learning. And it can
start
 Teach with
TEACHFLIX is a collection of videos – sorted into categories – that you can use with your
students in class. We’ve found our own favorites – and curated suggestions from others.
Download the ebook Teaching with TEACHFLIX for all of the activities below.

43. 46.
Create a wordsplash. Have students Have students create their own
watch a video and write down 12 YouTube Channel page. They can
important words. After the video create and upload their own video
swap your page with a partner. and suggest real or fictional
Watch the video again and listen for related videos.
the words they chose. Cross them
out as you hear them.

44. 47.
Design a Movie poster. Students Create a storyboard
can make a movie poster to go along summary. Have
with the video. If this movie was students create a
being shown at the theater what storyboard that
would you highlight to get people to summarizes the video.
watch? Try to include a catchy quote
or tagline to draw people in.

45. 48.
Make your own quiz! Watch any 4 step summary. Watch the
TEACHFLIX video then create a video. Then summarize what you
multiple choice question for the learned in just 4 steps.
concept they just learned about.
 Turn your classroom
into a Game Show!
49.
Bring Family Feud to class or
professional development. Grab
some data or gather some with a
survey. Then turn it into a fun
Family Feud experience. It’ll
supercharge a class or a staff
meeting!

50. 52.
Play the part! Bring the music and
Test your knowledge with a Who
your best game show host voice to
Wants to Be a Millionaire style game.
really get the class involved.
Use this template based on the famous
TV quiz show, give the correct answers,
and win!

51. 53.
End the year with an Epic Review Go tech free with Head Bands!!
Olympics! The end of the school year is Head Bands with index cards is the
high time for review. Make your perfect, tech-free, game show style
experience EPIC with the review to end option for vocabulary review.
all reviews!

54.
Play Jeopardy to review or preview content. Edit
this one-round Jeopardy-style game with 20
questions to make the game for your class.

Alternative: Have you heard of JeopardyLabs? It's

an online version of this where you don't even
need Slides or PowerPoint. Free, too!
55. 58.
Play Kahoot! Kahoot! is the Practice content with a
granddaddy of the game show computer game. Blooket is a
review games. In a standard gamification tool that helps
Kahoot! game, questions are students learn and review
displayed to students on a concepts through different types
projector or display. Students of game modes with an element
respond on their own devices. of competition.

56. 59.
Review with Quizizz. Quizizz Pair Quizizz with the Fast and
takes the excitement of a Curious EduProtocol. By using
gameshow-style review game and Quizizz in this way, you reduce (or
puts the whole experience in the eliminate) your need for
students’ hands. worksheet-based homework.

57. 60.
Turn a worksheet into a Gamify learning with
scavenger hunt. Using Flippity's Power-ups. Gimkit Power-ups let
scavenger hunt template and easy students earn more points per
to follow instructions you can question, get additional points
create your own customized when they hit a streak, and even
interactive scavenger hunt. lose less points when incorrect.

Enroll in the Game Show Classroom online course!

What you'll get...
● Tools to make activities more like a game
● Ideas for turning the classroom into a game
● Design tips
● Inspiration to build your own games
 Engage students with
digital escape rooms!
61. 62. 63.
Save the school! In Save the Visit the magical
this escape room the school…again! If you world of Harry Potter
school has lost power have younger students from your classroom.
and students must or those new to escape If you or your students
solve a series of rooms try Mission are Harry Potter fans
puzzles to turn the School Blackout Jr. An then they will love this
lights back on. Try simpler version of our Magical Escape virtual
Mission School Mission School escape room.
Blackout and see if Blackout escape room.
they can escape in
time.

64. 66.
Take your students on an
Celebrate the holidays with a
Animal Adventure. Try our zoo
digital escape. The holidays are a
themed escape room for younger
perfect time to introduce escape
grades or use as an introduction
rooms to your students. Our
to escape rooms. Made with
Digital Escape Rooms page has
Microsoft Sway. one for almost every holiday.

65.
Get over 40 Digital Escape Take learning to a whole NEW level
Rooms to use with your class. with the Getting Started with Digital
Visit our Digital Escape Rooms Escape Rooms Online Course!
Wakelet collection for ton of free
escape rooms plus resources for
creating your own.
Explore the world with your class
67. 70.
Explore the hidden world of Visit the American Museum of
national parks. Journey through Natural History from your
some of the world’s most amazing classroom. This virtual field trip from
places. See the Kenai Fjords, Hawaii the American Museum of Natural
Volcanoes, Carlsbad Caverns, Bryce History explores how plate tectonics
Canyon and the Dry Tortugas. explains specific Earth formations.

68. 71.
Travel back in time. Time travel isn't Take your class on a trip out of this
possible... yet but these virtual field world. Some places we couldn’t
trips and tours are just about as travel to even if we wanted to!
close as you can get! So why read Virtual field trips can take us under
about history when you can immerse the sea or even up into space. Check
yourself in a historical experience? out our Planet Earth and Space
Check out these virtual field trips sections and take your students to
below and visit even more some incredible places.
destinations.

69. 72.
Have students keep a travel Gamify your virtual field trip with a
journal. Ask students to jot down Kahoot. Kahoot has partnered with
their observations while on your loads of organizations like National
virtual field trip. Use this virtual field Geographic, The American Museum
trip observation journal or create of Natural History, Nature Lab and
one like it for your kiddos to use. more! Check out all of their games
and find one that fits. Play before
your trip and again after to see how
much your students learned.

For MORE virtual field trips

plus tons of activities,
ideas and lessons you can
use in the classroom check
out our Getting Started
with Virtual Field Trips
online course.
 Discover ’s
Buried Treasure
73. 77.
Use the grid view to see all of Turn ANYTHING into a podcast.
Google's NotebookLM
your slides at one time. This is a
summarizes the sources that you
great option for those provide into text -- and even
collaborative Google Slides audio! -- resources to help you
presentations because you can understand it better. Google calls
see all of the slides in real time. it "your personalized AI research
assistant."

74. 78.
Save images in a Google Doc. Have Copy a link to highlight. If you
you ever opened a Google Doc with want to send students or
images in it and wanted to save the colleagues to a specific spot on a
images? (Hint: Right-clicking the website in Chrome just highlight
image doesn’t do it.)
the text then right click to
You can grab images
out of a Google Doc. highlight link to text. This creates
Learn how! a link to that exact spot when it's
clicked.

75. 79.
Copy formatting with the paint Use Google Keep to keep
roller. There it sits. The paint organized. Use the mobile app to
roller icon is on the far left of the take notes while on the go or type
toolbar in many G Suite tools. But them into Keep in your web
what in the world is it for? This browser. Add images, create
one has perplexed me for a long labels to organize and even color
time. It’s for copying formatting code.
and it’s a neat trick!

76. 80.
Generate Live closed captions in Use voice typing to save time.
Google Slides. Google Slides Docs will let you type with your
transcribes your speech live and voice. In a Google Doc, go to
displays it at the bottom of the Tools > Voice typing … and click
slides in your presentation. Check the microphone. It will dictate
out the how-to’s and those ideas what you say. (This also works for
in this video. typing speaker notes in Google
Slides.)
81. 85.
Discover a virtual art gallery in Send someone a link to your
your pocket. With the Google Arts Google Doc that forces them to
and Culture app, you can explore download a PDF version. Copy the
some of the world's best art right URL (link) to that document. In the
from your own home or classroom. URL, find the word “edit” and
Pocket galleries use augmented delete it — and everything after it.)
reality to allow you to wander After the slash, type
through a virtual art exhibit. “export?format=pdf”. Share!

82. 86.
Play in a blob opera. A ridiculously Create immovable backgrounds
fun machine learning experiment in Google Slides. If you use
by David Li, the blob opera lets you templates in Google Slides,
create, record and share your own chances are someone will
opera song. Absolutely no music accidentally move something you
experience required! put in place! Create immovable
backgrounds instead for objects
that need to stay in place!

83. 87.
Try an art inspired crossword Make the most of the
puzzle Another one of Google's Chromebooks in your
experiments, these crossword classroom. Learn some of my
puzzles allow you to test your favorite tips for making the most
cultural knowledge or discover art of Chromebooks in the classroom
through unexpected pairings. — for students and for YOU!

84. 88.
Try AR in Google Search! On Create an emoji
your Android phone, iPhone or writing prompt in
iPad, go to google.com or open Google Sheets.
the Google app (it also works in There loads of fun
Safari) Search for an animal, ways you can use
object, or place.If there is 3D Google Sheets and
result is available you'll see a 3D tips to save you
icon, click on View in 3D. time too.
 Boost long-term learning

89. 91.
Recall information visually. Brainstorm with PowerPoint
Sketchnoting (aka "visual sticky notes. Sticky notes in
notetaking") and infographics are PowerPoint makes brainstorming
a great way to do this. Plus, easy! The sticky notes stay in
they're very brain friendly. place. Students can open the
Infographics often use icons and PowerPoint file any time and none
other illustrations paired with of the slides have fallen off the
text. Here are my infographics wall or been moved around.
resources.

90. 92.
Recall from Now, then, and way Engage students in self testing
back. Ask students to write down BEFORE a quiz Quizlet flashcards
(or type in the template) something can be a great way to do
they remember Now: Something self-testing ... and a Quizlet Live
they've learned recently. Then: game is a fun way to get practice!
Something they learned not too long Check out these 6 new ways to
ago. Way Back: Something they play a Quizlet Live game.
learned a while ago.

93.
Try a brain dump. The idea here is simple: get everything you've learned out of your brain.
Put it on paper. Tell it to a friend. Record it on a video. It's like a dump truck. Tip the bed
over and get that stuff out of the truck! It can be as simple as asking students to write out
everything they remember about yesterday's class on a sheet of paper.

94.
Stop and jot down two things. At any point during a lesson, stop and have students write
down Two Things about a specific prompt. Here's what I love about this strategy. First, it's
easy and doable. Anyone can come up with two things. Second, it encourages retrieval and
participation. It's something you can do at any point during class.
Upgrade your assessment tools

95. 98.
Reflect and share with Padlet. Use 3-2-1 self reflection. Using
Padlet is a web app that lets users this idea students will identify
post notes on a digital wall. Those (three things they did well, two
sticky notes have images, links and concepts they need to practice
videos. Padlet provides an excellent more, and ask 1 question of their
collaborative space for students to teacher. You can modify this 3-2-1
share what they have learned. reflection template to fit your
Students can class or use it as it.

96. 99.
Go tech free. Using play-doh or Encourage peer feedback with
aluminum foil create a model that two stars and a wish. A
represents the big idea for the protocol like “two stars and a
concept we just studied. Using a wish” can be an effective tool for
post it note or index card create a supporting students as they
title and short sentence to describe work on giving constructive
your art. feedback to their classmates.

97. 100.
Create a graffiti wall. Give each Try the TAG method. In the
student a place on a large paper to TAG method students will "Tell
create a piece of art with words something good", "Ask a
and/or pictures that represents the question" then "Give a
big idea of the concept you are suggestion".
studying.

101.
Utilize the create a question function in Google
Classroom. Students not only get a platform to have their
voices heard, but they also learn to engage with their peers
by responding directly to them.