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VariQuest Blog

The VariQuest Visual and Kinesthetic Learning Suite Blog contains resources on classroom ideas, lesson plans, industry news, events, and offers throughout education.

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Lessons/Activities/Templates | Student Engagement | Grade Level: Secondary (7-12) | Grade Level: Intermediate (3-6) | Featured Topics: Classroom Celebrations/Holidays | Academic Subject: Interdisciplinary | Featured Topics: Lessons and Activities | Academic Subject: Mathematics

[Lesson Plan] Pi Day Activities for Upper-Elementary and Middle School Students

By: VariQuest Visual and Kinesthetic Learning Suite
March 11th, 2024

Circumference, diameter, radius, apple, cherry, rhubarb?! "Pi Day" is celebrated annually on March 14th (Get it - 3.14?!) and we're here to help you celebrate! According to piday.org, the concept of celebrating Pi Day on March 14th was started by physicist Larry Shaw at San Francisco’s Exploratorium science museum in 1988, earning him the title "The Prince of Pi!" Every year there since, a circular parade features each person participating holding one digit in the number pi. In 2009, Congress passed Resolution 224, which designated March 14th as Pi Day hoping to cultivate a higher level of enthusiasm for math and science among American students. In this lesson plan, designed for students in upper-elementary and middle school grades and customizable for the needs of your classroom, students will work through activities coupled with printables to explore the concept of Pi. Created in partnership with Cathy Henry, educator and founder of The Curriculum Corner and Free Word Work, you'll explore common terms and discussion questions related to circles and spheres (and if-you-so-choose, tasty bakery treats!)

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Lessons/Activities/Templates | Grade Level: Post-secondary (12+) | Grade Level: Primary (PK-2) | Grade Level: Secondary (7-12) | Grade Level: Intermediate (3-6) | Featured Topics: Classroom Celebrations/Holidays | VariQuest Tools: Cold Laminator 2510 | Featured Topics: Lessons and Activities | Featured Topics: Templates for FREE download | VariQuest Tools: Motiva 400 | Engage Every Learner Content

[Free Holiday Printables] You've Been SOCKED!

By: VariQuest Visual and Kinesthetic Learning Suite
December 5th, 2023

While everyone has different holiday traditions and celebrates this time of year in different ways - we can all agree that spreading kindness and joy is one of the best! We've put together some printables to do just that! Maybe you remember a time of doing "Secret Santa" - or maybe you've done "You've been BOO'd" during the fall months - this fun holiday activity for your classroom or school building is appropriately called, "You've been SOCKED!" For this activity, you'll put together door hangers and a fun little Christmas surprise (made more fun if it's an actual sock ;) ) and secretly deliver them to another classroom to hang on a door, or you can have students gift them amongst each other on lockers, cubbies, or desks. Inside the sock or delivered bag can be treats, prizes, or simply a hand-drawn card or picture - anything to spread a little cheer!

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How to Write a Grant eBook

How to Write a Grant eBook

This helpful guide includes an explanation of the grant process, including a checklist (with samples!), and useful links and resources to find funding!

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Lessons/Activities/Templates | Academic Subject: English Language Arts | Grade Level: Secondary (7-12) | Grade Level: Intermediate (3-6)

[Lesson Plan] How to Write a Research Paper: The Writing Process

By: VariQuest Visual and Kinesthetic Learning Suite
November 16th, 2023

We ask Google, we ask Alexa, we ask Siri...but what questions and answers do we need to find, ourselves? The skill of writing a research paper doesn't just develop writing skills or focus on learning more about the subject at hand. It also teaches students to gather proper information to make informed decisions when faced with options in their lives. To catapult these critical thinking skills into play, we at VariQuest have put together a substantive lesson plan unit, split into two parts (to make it easier to digest and teach!) and this second and final portion focuses on the writing (and editing) portion of the process. Get Part 1: The Research Process here! From writing introductions and conclusions to proofreading to publishing, these lessons are designed in a writers'-workshop-style to guide students through all the important steps in writing a research paper. Using the example of The Great Barrier Reef, all lessons come paired with a handful of helpful printables - including anchor charts, discussion cards, reference pieces, and more!

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Lessons/Activities/Templates | Academic Subject: English Language Arts | Grade Level: Secondary (7-12) | Grade Level: Intermediate (3-6)

[Lesson Plan] How to Write a Research Paper: The Research Process

By: VariQuest Visual and Kinesthetic Learning Suite
November 8th, 2023

Research-writing has changed a lot over the years, and with the prominence of artificial intelligence, those changes are only going to continue. As students learn the important skill of responsibly researching for their writing, we at VariQuest have put together a 42-page booklet, split into two parts (to make it easier to digest and teach!) and this first part focuses on the research portion of the process. From choosing a topic, to learning to paraphrase, to writing a thesis, these lessons are designed in a writers'-workshop-style to immerse students in every important step of writing a research paper. Using the example of The Great Barrier Reef, each lesson is paired with a handful of helpful printables - including anchor charts, discussion-prompts, and more!

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Lessons/Activities/Templates | Academic Subject: English Language Arts | Grade Level: Secondary (7-12) | Grade Level: Intermediate (3-6)

[Lesson Plan] Artificial Intelligence for the Writing Classroom

By: VariQuest Visual and Kinesthetic Learning Suite
October 16th, 2023

There are so many questions when it comes to Artificial Intelligence (AI) and how it will affect humankind in the future. At its best, it can help us learn and understand even more about the world around us - making tasks easier, helping us remember important appointments, and simplifying the search for information. At its worst, it could take away our jobs, our creativity, and our critical thinking skills to rely (too much) on technology. Of course, one area we're all very concerned about is - how will this impact the lives of young people, who are growing up in an AI-focused world? Because it's unrealistic to ignore AI technology and the fact that students will be navigating this option with or without adult supervision, helping your students in the classroom make responsible decisions about how to use AI is a great first step.

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Special Education | Career & Technology Education (CTE) | Grade Level: Secondary (7-12) | VariQuest Tools: Cutout Maker 1800 | Academic Subject: Career & Technical Education | Featured Topics: Funding | Funding | VariQuest Tools: Motiva 400 | VariQuest Tools: Perfecta 2400STP | VariQuest Tools: Perfecta 3600STP | VariQuest Tools: Perfecta 2400PRO | Engage Every Learner Content

Got CTE Funding? We've got Resources.

By: VariQuest Visual and Kinesthetic Learning Suite
September 12th, 2023

Trying to figure out how to best spend your Career & Technical Education funding - or use other funding for career & technical education programs? Let's take a look at some options.

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Lessons/Activities/Templates | Student Engagement | Grade Level: Primary (PK-2) | Grade Level: Secondary (7-12) | Grade Level: Intermediate (3-6) | Featured Topics: Lessons and Activities | social-emotional learning | classroom management

[Lesson Plan] Building Community With Kindness

By: VariQuest Visual and Kinesthetic Learning Suite
August 16th, 2023

In the 1960s, The Beach Boys scored a hit with the song, Be True to Your School about being proud of the school you go to and defending it to others. Are you proud of the school you represent? School pride might come from belonging to a group, or defending your choice to go there, but pride can run deep within the culture. When you build a culture of kindness, you're building a community of pride stemming from everyone feeling safe, involved, and supported. With this in mind, we partnered with Cathy Henry, educator and founder of The Curriculum Corner and Free Word Work, to create this Building Community With Kindness Lesson Plan for K-8 teachers. It is designed to help students and staff work together to build classrooms of individuals that strive to help others and spread kindness throughout their schools and communities.

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Lessons/Activities/Templates | Perfecta | Student Engagement | Academic Subject: English Language Arts | Grade Level: Secondary (7-12) | Grade Level: Intermediate (3-6) | Featured Topics: Industry News and Trends | VariQuest Tools: Design Center Software | Featured Topics: Student Engagement | Featured Topics: Lessons and Activities | VariQuest Tools: Perfecta 2400STP | VariQuest Tools: Perfecta 3600STP | VariQuest Tools: Perfecta 2400PRO | Engage Every Learner Content

Writing Prompts for Students: Using ChatGPT

By: VariQuest Visual and Kinesthetic Learning Suite
June 22nd, 2023

You can't escape reading about Artificial Intelligence (AI) advancements and how they are changing the world every day. From self-driving cars to robotics to digital assistants and language processing tools, technology is quickly infiltrating every aspect of our lives that our minds used to control themselves. How long can you go without utilizing the technology to ease tasks in your day? "Hey Google, ______" And this means that our children and students are using the technology, too - and are probably better at it! Growing up with the instant gratification of using a search engine to find an answer and asking Alexa to play any song in the world, it's no wonder they're using the tools in their immediate toolbox to "learn" and get things in the quickest and easiest ways. BUT...what does that mean in terms of cultivating critical thinking in the classroom?

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Lessons/Activities/Templates | Career & Technology Education (CTE) | Student Engagement | Grade Level: Secondary (7-12) | VariQuest Tools: Cutout Maker 1800 | Featured Topics: Student Engagement | Academic Subject: Special Education | VariQuest Tools: Cold Laminator 2510 | Featured Topics: Lessons and Activities | Kinesthetic Learning | VariQuest Tools: Motiva 400 | VariQuest Tools: Perfecta 2400STP | VariQuest Tools: Perfecta 3600STP

[Toolkit] Building a Student-Based Enterprise

By: VariQuest Visual and Kinesthetic Learning Suite
October 25th, 2022

As educators, we prepare our students not only with the tools needed to succeed in reading, writing, and arithmetic, but we're also preparing them for success as they move into adulthood beginning college and careers. As such, many schools consider implementing student-based enterprise programs, to teach students real-world skills in exploring all the facets of running a business - from research & development to manufacturing to accounting to marketing. And because we know every educator could use extra tools to keep in their teaching "toolboxes" - we've put together a comprehensive booklet that just might help.

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Perfecta | Student Engagement | Grade Level: Post-secondary (12+) | Grade Level: Secondary (7-12) | VariQuest Tools: Cutout Maker 1800 | Kinesthetic Learning | Project-based Learning | VariQuest Tools: Perfecta 2400STP | Academic Subject: Reading | VariQuest Tools: Perfecta 3600STP | social-emotional learning | visual learning | VariQuest Tools: Perfecta 2400PRO | Engage Every Learner Content

[Videos] What are the Best Educational Tools for Schools? #variquestvalue

By: VariQuest Visual and Kinesthetic Learning Suite
May 4th, 2022

Have you ever wondered why we choose to work for VariQuest? We've got a whole team of dedicated employees and in our new promotional video series, #variquestvalue, you can hear their unique stories and perspective on our brand and the value our products and services bring to our customers!

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