The discussions in our community are 🔥🔥🔥
I’m so thrilled with our new online community. We just crossed over 1,800 members! Hundreds have checked in with an introduction, and we have LOTS that are regular participants in our discussion threads about … well, EVERYTHING.
It’s a great place to learn from others, share, and connect — for free.
🔗 You can always get back to it here: ditch.circle.so
📲 Get the mobile app to access it easily! (iOS/Apple) (Android/Google)
One of the big things our community wants to learn: how to navigate and balance AI. So I asked them: What should AI in edu look like? There are LOTS of responses.
Other great discussions:
🤸 Does being nice cause students to act up? (12 comments)
📝 We just gave you our NotebookLM cheat sheets … What cheat sheets should we make next? (16 comments)
In other news …
We’re getting closer and closer to the end of the school year! Our 💡 Big Idea has tons of downloadable templates that are perfect for the end of the year.
And it’s Teacher Appreciation Week! Below we share LOTS of deals for teachers this week.
Inside:
📺 TONIGHT: Free student AI literacy webinar!
👀 DTT Digest: 4 resources worth checking out
👥 Community: What should AI in edu look like?
🎯 Quick Teaching Tip: Teacher appreciation week deals
💡 The Big Idea: End of year templates to help students thrive!
😄 Smile of the day: The best teacher appreciation gift 🎁
👋 How we can help
📺 TONIGHT: Free student AI literacy webinar!
I’m teaming up with Holly Clark for a free webinar about student AI literacy!
We’ll be discussing concepts right out of my new book, AI Literacy in Any Class — practical ways teachers can level up their teaching AND integrate small AI literacy lessons for students.
DATE: Monday, May 4
TIME: 8pm U.S. Eastern time / 5pm Pacific time
COST: FREE
There’s no registration, so just set a reminder in your calendar with this link and show up!
BONUS: Holly has already recorded FOUR WEBINARS in this series — and you can go watch the replays right now.
👀 DTT Digest
4 teaching resources worth checking out today
🗣️ Write report card comments easier with SchoolAI — The Report Card Comment Wizard helps you write honest, professional, and guideline-friendly comments in minutes.
✏️ Writing activities for Teacher Appreciation Week — To celebrate everything teachers, WeWillWrite is dropping three exclusive, brand-new writing sets.
✨ Celebrate May the 4th — This Star Wars Day Explore Board is a ready-to-use activity for your class. Each square offers a unique and engaging way to connect with the Star Wars galaxy.
ICYMI 🪪 50+ creative ways to play with paper flashcards — In a world with tons of technology and new innovations, a very traditional method — flashcards — still helps students strengthen long-term memory. Check them out and give one (or more) a try!
👥 FROM THE COMMUNITY 👥
🤖 What should AI in edu look like?
As my shirt says … AI has become my new teaching assistant.
I’ve been reading through hundreds of introduction posts in our Ditch That Textbook community lately, and I’ve gotta say: the message is loud and clear.
While we are all at different stages of this journey, we are united by one massive, "onion-layered" question: What is the actual place of AI in our classrooms?
Here is a look at the wisdom being shared by the Ditch That Textbook community and what’s top of mind for all of us right now:
Saving teachers from the “crisis point” — I’m seeing a common thread in your posts about the drudgery and overwhelm of modern teaching. You’ve pointed out that great teachers aren’t leaving because they’ve lost their passion for kids; they’re leaving because the "work about the work" is too heavy. AI can be a lifeline.
Wrapping our brains around AI — One thing I love about this group is the honesty. No one is claiming to have it all figured out. You’ve shared that "figuring out AI" is your #1 struggle. You aren’t just asking "How does this tool work?" You’re asking, "How does this tool make my students' lives better?"
The “caring teacher” standard — A huge theme coming from your comments is that AI isn't a "set it and forget it" solution. For AI to work, it has to be in the hands of caring, responsible educators. Technology is the co-pilot, but the teacher’s heart and intuition are what keep the ship flying in the right direction.
You can join the free DTT Community to read ideas like this, connect with other educators, discuss, and share ideas of your own.
🎯 QUICK TEACHING TIP 🎯
🎉 Teacher Appreciation Week deals
Whether you're looking for a caffeine boost to power through grading or finally snagging that tech upgrade you've been eyeing, Teacher Appreciation Week is officially here to deliver the goods. We know that a few discounts don't make up for everything you do, but it’s a great time to lean into the perks you’ve definitely earned.
From free breakfasts to "stackable" savings on classroom supplies, we've rounded up some of the best verified deals to help you treat yourself this week. Grab your school ID, update your ID.me, and dive into these top picks:
🌯 Chipotle: 100,000 Free Burritos (Verify your status through ID.me by May 12 to be eligible for the drawing)
🍔 Whataburger: Free Breakfast Entree (May 7) (Show your school ID)
🥤Shake Shack: Free ShackBurger with $10 Purchase (May 4-1, in-store only with a valid ID)
✂️ Michaels: 15% Off Entire Purchase (Year-Round & Stackable) (Watch for "stackable" coupons in their app this week!).
🎯 Target: 10% Off Storewide (Through the Target Circle program.)
📲 Samsung: Up to 30% Off Tech (Through the Samsung Education Offers Program.)
Find even more deals:
All the Best 2026 Teacher Appreciation Week Deals and Freebies: Beyond just the food and retail perks, the post highlights year-round savings and a massive giveaway hub where teachers can enter to win prizes all month long!
💡 THE BIG IDEA 💡
📝 End of year templates to help students thrive!
These templates help put a bow on the end of the year.
End the school year on a high note! 🎓✨
As the school year draws to a close, it’s the perfect time to reflect and celebrate the journey. Dive into our updated blog post featuring 20 FREE end-of-year templates that will help students and educators alike to capture those memorable moments and plan ahead.
Here are five of our favorites:
😍 My Year in Emojis
Use the visual language of emojis to help students express their feelings and experiences throughout the school year. Students can choose emojis that represent different moments, subjects, or projects, providing a fun and concise way to summarize their emotional journey.
📈 By the Numbers
Provide a quantitative approach to reflection, prompting students to consider their progress through numerical data. It includes sections like "Subjects Taken," "Projects Completed," "Days in School," and "Books Read," encouraging students to reflect on their academic year by quantifying their achievements and experiences.
🎶 Spotify Wrapped
Our popular recap template is great for the end of the year. Students can highlight key "tracks" or learning experiences, "artists" or influential figures, and overall "genres" or subject areas that defined their academic year. Use it to help students review a chapter — or a unit — or a semester.
💡 Simple End-of-Year Reflection
The End-of-Year Reflection template offers structured prompts that guide students through a comprehensive review of their academic year. These prompts include questions about their proudest accomplishments, biggest challenges, areas of growth, and goals for the future. You can edit the prompts for students.
💭 End-of-Year Takeaways + Kahoot!
In this challenge, students use Adobe Express and Kahoot! to create a graphic summarizing their learning from your class this year. There are lots of templates to choose from depending on your grade level and subject.
Other end of year templates …
We have lots of other templates to choose from that help you and your students look back on the year in fun ways …
🏆 Top 10 Video — A Top 10 video is a fun way for students to show what they've learned in a way that's fun to watch!
📝 Sum up your school year — Help students craft vibrant slides with amazing animations, beautiful graphics, and engaging audio to share what they have learned this school year all within Adobe Express.
📖 My School Year Portfolio — Teachers can use this remixable student portfolio template from Book Creator to encourage students to reflect on their growth and create a collection of their best work.
🥇 My Learning Awards Board — This template lets students pick their favorite projects, activities or accomplishments in the year — top 3 style — and write about them.
🕵️ Learning Dossier — Like a spy, students will compile a dossier — only they’ll be examining a project or assignment they did. They’ll point out certain parts that they’re proud of (or that they could do better next time).
📅 What’s Going On This Week — This template helps students to organize and prioritize their work for the week. In just two pages, it helps them figure out when they have time to get work done — and how to balance it all with their personal lives.
😄 Smile of the day
What we REALLY want for Teacher Appreciation Week …
Source: Ranker.com
👋 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!
