Priming the Pump: Using Anticipatory Sets in Teaching about Electricity


Roy Bentley, Educational Innovationsby Roy Bentley and Ken Crawford

Madeline Hunter (1916–1994) was an American educator who developed a model for teaching and learning that was widely adopted by schools and is still used today.  Hunter believed that teachers made hundreds of decisions every day in their teaching.  Over time, she created a system to assist teachers in making those decisions.  She called her system “Instructional Theory into Practice.”  ITIP gives teachers concrete methods to improve their instruction.  You can use ITIP with any subject, including—in our case—teaching the basics of electricity.

Read the rest of this entry »


July 20, 1969: My Apollo 11 Memories


Ted Beyer, Educational InnovationsBy Ted Beyer

There are certain days in history that pretty much anyone who was alive at the time can remember as though it was yesterday.  Times of trial and triumph.  Heart-wrenching times like September 11th, or the day Kennedy was shot, or the Challenger.  And then there is the day that we landed on the Moon.

Read the rest of this entry »


Why I LOVE Working at EI


Tami O'Connor, Educational Innovationsby Tami O’Connor

There are plenty of reasons I love my job.  I think it’s important to enjoy what you do, but I more than enjoy working at Educational Innovations—I just love it!  There are some simple benefits like breakfast on Fridays and the ever-filled candy bowl (much to my doctor’s dismay), but one awesome thing is that people bring their dogs to work.

As of today, we’re up to four.   It’s been scientifically proven that having dogs at work is a health benefit. (I guess that cancels out the candy bowl.)

Read the rest of this entry »