Vicki A. Davis's Blog, page 5

How Can Students and Teachers Build a Good Personal Brand?

From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis

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Today’s students and teachers are building more than a career — they’re building a reputation. In this inspiring episode of Cool Cat Teacher Talk, host Vicki Davis is joined by guests Elisabeth Bostwick and Dr. Will Deyamaport to explore how to build a good personal brand in education and beyond.

Whether you're a teacher guiding your students or someone working on your ow...

News Roundup: What’s the Latest in Edtech and AI Right Now?

From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis

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There is so much news happening now. I'm personally finding some of the voices I follow to be useful. Their commentary on happenings assists me. I decided to return to a format I often used a decade ago. (Yes, my blog is almost 20 years old!) So here we go with the “News Overview” post, where I share what I'm reading. I also give my take on it. This post includes just the su...

How to Help Every Child Feel Like They Belong

From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis

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I was that student who felt like I didn't fit in. Every teacher has them. And in this week’s episode, I met a principal who makes it his mission to reach those very kids. Principal Carlos Ramirez doesn’t just talk about belonging—he walks students home to prove it.

Carlos Martinez is the 2024 Principal of the Year as named by the Association of Latino Administrators an...

Fun Grammar Strategies That Actually Work

From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis

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Grammar can be tough to teach. I've heard some teachers say that it can't be fun. On the contrary, my remarkable teacher friend! Patty McGee is just a joy. She finds a way to make grammar fun and even suggests grammar manipulatives.

I had a very exciting realization when I graduated from high school. Literally. I would never have to diagram a sentence again. (It was the o...

Teaching Math in 2025: Dan Meyer on Tools, Trends, and True Engagement

From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis

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Dan Meyer has long been a powerful voice for how to teach math in engaging ways. In today's “edtech tool Tuesday,” he starts the show with a shocking assertion. “These are very powerful devices. They can be used to powerfully dull a student’s mind.” Oh my! We don't want that. But how do we teach math today?

Dan emphasizes the role technology can play to surface the ideas ...

Uncertified Teachers in Texas? 56% of new teachers. The Impact & Solution

From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis

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Imagine sending your child to school only to find out their teacher has never been trained. No coursework. No classroom experience. Just passion—and a paycheck.

Jacob Kirksey found that students lose an average of three months when placed with an uncertified new teacher.

That’s the reality for more than half of first-time teachers in Texas, and it's a growing trend acro...

8 Powerful Insights About Early Childhood Education

From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis

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Love to Learn is the #1 New release on Amazon in Early Childhood Education. Isabelle C. Hau is the author of this book about the Transformative Power of Care and Connection in Early Education. She has so many great things to say! Let's dig in!

The #1 New Release in Early Childhood Eduation on Amazon is from Isabelle C. Hau, the executive director of the Stanford Accelerat...

5 Ways to Help Students Succeed in School and Life

From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis

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Coach Daron Franklin “Coach Frank,” shares five of his tips to help us teachers be successful in both school and in life.

Daron Franklin also known as “Coach Frank,” is a former Algebra I teacher turned human performance coach. His practical advice to help teachers reach kids and to help kids reach their goals is spot on. He talks about strategies for improving student mo...

NEW: Daily Education and News for Schools 5/5/2025

From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis

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This week, there continues to be news about AI. ChatGPT and some other tools are giving themselves away to college students. Notebook LM has rolled out new features making it a more popular tool for studying finals than probably anything else (we talked about this last week as well.)

Additionally, there's some interesting research about back lash against brands and people who use AI and AI-generated images to wri...

How to Actually Engage Students Who Have Zero Attention Span

From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis

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Dr. Marc Isseks, author of Captivate: Engaging and Empowering Students in a World of Digital Distractions, talks bluntly about cell phone policies and his opinion that attempting to ban cell phones is pointless. He also discusses the ways that you can engage students who have a short attention span (sometimes it feels like zero, but there are a few seconds — 3 seconds. Some would say that is zero!)

His thoughts o...