INSIGHTS & IDEAS

The Education Table Blog

Practical strategies, research, and perspectives from the Novak Education team to help educators strengthen instruction, leadership, and inclusive systems.

New teacher with students
Leadership

The Best Ways to Welcome New Teachers

Help new teachers feel welcome and appreciated with these helpful tips from fellow admins and leaders A teacher’s first year of teaching at your school comes with a lot of ...
K.C. Knudson and Michael Woodlock · August 1, 2022
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Pacman game image
Engagement

Engaging Through Gamification

Have you ever made a game to make something mundane more fun? If you have ever had to take care of little kids I’m sure you have to pass the time! Let’s see how many blue cars we ...
Jeff Horwitz · June 16, 2022
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Social Emotional Learning (SEL)

In Response to Uvalde, Making Change Happen.

Senseless. Unthinkable. Horrific. Preventable. Unfortunately, sharing these words with you today has become all too commonplace. We cannot fathom the pain of those who went to ...
Novak Education · May 25, 2022
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Better Meeting Guide
Leadership

Better, More Productive Meetings...Yes Please!!

A Guide To Better Meetings This wasn’t the first nor the last. In fact, it is probably more the norm than the outlier, and sadly, we can virtually promise you that you have been ...
Chris Bronke & Dr. Erin Ludwick · May 4, 2022
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homework grades reflect learning?
Assessments

Do homework grades actually reflect learning?

Districts nationwide are reviewing their homework expectations in light of research studies that suggest that current homework practices are inequitable and fail to yield ...
Katie Novak · April 14, 2022
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Using Cogens to Improve Student Experience

In our society and world, the old adage of “the customer is always right” rings true so much so that many successful companies have utilized this motto as the cornerstone of their ...
Mirko Chardin · March 7, 2022
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Are you being Mindful in the classroom?
Social Emotional Learning (SEL)

Mindfulness in the Classroom

Many schools and districts are focused on building inclusive and equitable systems that better meet the needs of all staff and students. Certainly, this requires a focus on ...
Guest Blogger · February 7, 2022
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UDL in Voc-Tech!

When I first started teaching video production, back in the ’90s, in a college career and tech program, I didn’t know what UDL was and I certainly didn’t use the framework to plan ...
Tom Thibodeau · January 13, 2022
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