Helping students to build 21st-century skills is a priority for today's educators, but how? How do you infuse 21st-century skills seamlessly into the curriculum or learning day? I like to promote 21st-century skill-building with inquiry-based learning strategies.

Experiential education is taking the world by storm, especially our mid/post-pandemic world. 

If you are an aspiring or even practicing experiential educator looking for more information about experiential learning or could use a boost of inspiration, I highly recommend that you start by reading some books about experiential education written by the experiential learning greats!

Right now is a great time to start. It’s the beginning of summer (for many of us), so head to the library, grab a few books about experiential education, and hit the beach or the park to get your experiential reading on!

But where to start? There are a ton of books out there about experiential education and not all are created equal. How do you know which ones to read? 

I’ve compiled a list of 10 experiential education books to start with. These books are just a few of my favorites, written by some of my personal heroes, all of which have paved the way for what it means to be an experiential educator in the 21st-century.

Any time is a good time to jump on high school resume builders for students, but summer is a GREAT time for high school students to bolster resumes for colleges and careers.

Resume building is good for younger students, as well, not necessarily in terms of college and career readiness, but for developing life skills such as work ethic, teamwork, and responsible citizenship. 

​This post has the best high school resume builders for students out there. Let's dive in.

Teaching high school entrepreneurs to start their own businesses is a great idea! Just reading this blog post is a great first step. But teaching students how to create their own high school businesses can be slightly overwhelming, and I get it.

​Let's talk high school entrepreneurship that is engaging, effective, and not overly complicated for anyone involved.

If you were to ask me, "how can I make my summer school program fun and engaging?" (and not just fun and engaging for the kids), I would say, "make personalized, self-directed project-based learning the foundation of your summer school program".

It doesn't matter what subject you teach, whether you're a classroom teacher or a home educator, or whether you're a rural or urban educator. My answer would be the same across the board. No question. Run a project-based summer school program.

This is a great time of year to take learning outdoors! Learning outdoors can and should happen all year long, but in my neck of the woods, the sun is finally shining. It is springtime, and at last comfortable enough to be outside without 3 under layers and a snowsuit.

So let's take learning outdoors! This post offers strategies, tips, and activities for outdoor learning. Get kids that would otherwise be cooped up indoors learning out in the sunshine instead!

Spring is the perfect time of year for citizen science! It's warming up outside, students are getting antsy and exhausted, testing is underway, and breaks are badly needed. On top of that, things start to get active in the world of wildlife, especially in temperate regions like Minnesota. Animals emerge from hibernation, migrating species begin their long journeys to their summer sanctuaries, and it's breeding season for many organisms. ​

'Tis the season for road trips! Whether it be a spring camping trip with students, a summer road trip with your own children, or a cross country trip with just you and your dog, take full advantage of learning activities for road trips along the way.

​Learning is powerful beyond the walls of a classroom. Hitting the road opens doors to learning experiences that couldn't be achieved in a classroom.

What are some examples of self-directed learning activities? This is a popular question among educators that have an interest in student-directed learning, and know the benefits, but aren’t sure about semantics.

Before getting into great self-directed learning activities, let’s review what student-directed learning is and why this blog post is worth reading.