❄️ I’m still stuck in the snow …
I’m teaching a live synchronous HS Spanish class via Google Meet during a snow day.
It’s been a wild week! I heard somewhere that the snowstorm that blew through the United States last week impacted half of the entire U.S. population!
My area was hit as well. Being in central Indiana, we got ~8-10 inches of snow (plus below-zero wind chills and drifting snow).
⛄️ We’ve been out of school all week! Yep, no in-person school Monday through Thursday. Monday was asynchronous elearning, where we assign work and students complete it on their own time. By state law, we’re only allowed a few asynchronous days each year — but we don’t have the same limits with synchronous, live elearning days. So on Tuesday through Thursday, I taught my high school Spanish class from my home office via Google Meet.
PS: If you’re looking for remote learning activities, templates, and ideas for elearning (like me), you’ll find 100+ ideas here (from COVID shutdown times).
📙 New book update: I’ve been working furiously to finish edits for my upcoming book, AI Literacy in Any Class. Being home has been helpful, and I’m starting to get close! I’m hoping for a March release, so keep your eyes open for it!
🤠 TCEA Conference in San Antonio, Texas: The TCEA Conference starts this weekend and I’ll be there! (And yes, if you’re not at TCEA, I’ll still share resources from the conference afterward.) My TCEA schedule is below.
🆕 New template alert: We have a new Google Slides/PowerPoint template to share! In today’s 💡 Big Idea, you’ll find the LinkedIn profile template. There’s so much you can do with it! (Go make a copy of it here now if you want!)
Inside:
⏰ Future-proof your curriculum. Give teachers time back.
👀 DTT Digest: 4 resources worth checking out
📆 Conference Schedule: I’m heading to the the TCEA Conference!
💡 The Big Idea: NEW! The LinkedIn Profile Template
😄 Smile of the day: How we REALLY spend snow days ❄️
👋 How we can help
⏰ Future-proof your curriculum. Give teachers time back.
This message is sponsored by TeachAid.
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TeachAid generates complete, standards-aligned units in minutes. Localized to your school context, teaching models, and district goals. Teachers get ready-to-use materials. Leaders get consistency across classrooms. Everyone gets time back.
Works for any subject, grade level, or pedagogy. Safe, school-controlled AI that strengthens instruction instead of replacing it.
Free school pilot: We handle full setup, team onboarding, and implementation support. No cost, no commitment. See results in your classrooms before deciding.
👀 DTT Digest
4 teaching resources worth checking out today
💎 Google's buried treasure! — Check out 20 hidden tricks and tools you might not have heard of.
🗂️ Create your own templates in Google Docs and Slides — Great templates can drive great classroom learning. Learn step-by-step how to make your own with Google Docs and Slides.
🎨 Design a 2026 Starter Pack with Adobe Express— Set meaningful goals and intentions for 2026 and design a personalized starter pack that reflects you using a template from Adobe Express. Check out this video for a walkthrough of the activity.
🎉 100th Day of School ideas — Do you teach primary or know someone who does? Check out the latest issue of What’s New in K-2 where we highlight some of our favorite ways to celebrate the 100th day of school.
📆 CONFERENCE SCHEDULE 📆
🤠 I’m heading to the the TCEA Conference!
I’ll be at TCEA in San Antonio, Texas, next week.
This is one of my favorite conferences — the TCEA Conference in San Antonio, Texas!
✅ If you’ll be there: I’d love to meet you — at any of the sessions below or otherwise!
❌ If you won’t be there: Don’t worry. Like other major conferences I attend, I’ve got you covered. I’ll share slides, video, and other resources from the conference when I get back.
SUNDAY (Feb. 1)
10:00am — 🎙️ TCEA Session: One Size Fits None: Differentiated Instruction with AI (Room 217A)
Noon — 📚 FREE Book Giveaway/Signing: Sponsored by St. Jude/ALSAC (Booth 265)
100 copies of my book, AI for Educators!
1:00pm — 📢 Expo Hall Session: Visual Learning + Adaptive, Immediate Feedback in Kami (Kami Booth 853)
2:00pm — 📢 Expo Hall Session: 10 Ways to Make Learning Relevant with MagicSchool (MagicSchool Booth 1424)
3:00pm — 📢 Expo Hall Session: Using Writing "Mini Bots" to Scaffold Student Writing (SchoolAI Booth 562)
4:00pm — 📢 Expo Hall Session: Supercharge Student-Led Learning with Knowt (Knowt Booth 1533)
MONDAY (Feb. 2)
I’ll be spending most of my Monday in with Brisk Teaching (Booth 872)! Swing by and say hi
9:00am — 📢 Expo Hall Session: How to Trim Hours Off Your Grading Time with Brisk (Brisk Teaching Booth 872)
9:30am — 🎙️ TCEA Session: AI and Cheating: Real Talk from the Classroom (Hemisfair C1)
11:00am — 📚 FREE Book Giveaway/Signing: Sponsored by Brisk Teaching (Booth 872)
50 copies of my book, AI for Educators!
11:30am — 📢 Expo Hall Session: Ditch That Tool (and Save That Time) with Brisk (Brisk Teaching Booth 872)
1:00pm — 📢 Expo Hall Session: Create an Entire Unit Plan with Activities in 10 Minutes with Brisk (Brisk Teaching Booth 872)
3:00pm — 📢 Expo Hall Session: How to Trim Hours Off Your Grading Time with Brisk (Brisk Teaching Booth 872)
3:30pm — 🙋♀️ Q&A Session: Special Q&A Booth Takeover (Brisk Teaching Booth 872)
💡 THE BIG IDEA 💡
🆕 NEW! The LinkedIn Profile Template
We all want our students to leave our classrooms with more than just a grade. We want them to have a way to pathway into the career they want to pursue.
But showcasing their skills and talents through a resume on social media is a skill that they need to learn and practice.
That’s why we created this LinkedIn profile template because it turns the "scary" world of professional networking into a low-stakes, high-reward creative project.
It’s a place where students can draft their professional identity without the pressure of hitting "publish" on the actual web.
The best part? It guides them through the process of creating a great LinkedIn profile. Including clear prompts for:
The "Elevator Pitch" Summary: Crafting a hook that actually gets read.
The STAR Method: Turning "I worked at a coffee shop" into "I managed high-volume transactions with 98% accuracy."
The Visuals: Planning a header and headshot that scream "ready for work."
Assign this template in your learning management system (LMS) where students make their own copy. Then, they’ll be getting started with their professional (or fictitious!) LinkedIn profile.
Features of the LinkedIn template
SLIDES AND POWERPOINT: We’ve created it in both Google Slides AND PowerPoint format. Open our template page here to make a copy in either one. You can share the “template preview” page directly to students so they can make a copy. OR, you can make your own copy — then adjust it and add custom instructions before assigning it to your students.
EDITABLE TEXT: Everything is editable, from the name and location all the way down to the places of employment, the “about me” section, and the various skills. Students can make this their own!
SWAPPABLE IMAGES: All of the images can be changed around. That includes the profile picture, the banner at the top, and all of the organization icons. Students can download icons of all the places they’ve worked (or want to work). Or, if you have Google Gemini AI image creation with Nano Banana active, it will create images for you.
TIPS FOR LINKEDIN PROFILES: Off to the side are suggestions on how students might fill in the various sections of the profile. If this is new territory to them, this can give them a starting point.
5 ways to use this template in the classroom:
Pair with Career Dreamer from Google Labs: Have students use the Google Career Dreamer tool to discover roles that match their interests. Once they’ve identified a potential path, have them fill out the template as their "5-Years-From-Now" self. It’s a powerful activity that helps them see exactly what skills and experiences they’ll need to acquire to make that dream profile a reality.
Co-create a profile as a class: Instead of a solo assignment, complete one template together as a class on the big screen. Use a fictional "Super Student" as your subject. Ask the class: "How do we turn 'I’m on the soccer team' into a STAR-method bullet point for the Experience section?" Completing one together helps lower the barrier for students when they go to write their own.
Create a fictional profile for a character or historical figure: Ditch the traditional biography or character sketch! Have students create a profile for a figure from history or a protagonist in a novel.
Imagine Jay Gatsby’s "About" section or Alexander Hamilton’s list of skills and endorsements.
Students have to cite evidence from the text or historical records to "prove" the experience and skills they list, making it a high-level critical thinking exercise.
Reverse-engineer their dream job: Have students find an actual job posting for their "Dream Job." Using the template, they must "work backward" to fill in the Skills and Experience sections. If the job requires "Strategic Communication," they have to figure out where in their current life (clubs, sports, or volunteering) they are already practicing that skill. It’s an eye-opener for how classroom skills translate to the workplace.
Have students “endorse” one another: Once students have a draft, have them print their templates (or share them digitally) for a "Profile Critique" session. Using digital comments or sticky notes, peers can leave comments or "endorse" each other for specific skills they’ve witnessed in class projects. It builds classroom community while teaching the importance of professional social proof.
😄 Smile of the day
I’m going on “consecutive snow day #4” over here …
👋 How we can help
There are even more ways I can support you in the important work you do in education:
Read one of my six books about meaningful teaching with tech.
Take one of our online courses about practical and popular topics in education.
Bring me to your school, district or event to speak. I love working with educators!
