Kids know that the beginning of the school year doesn’t involve a lot of work. There are introductions to make, schedules to learn, and rooms to find. But the beginning of the year doesn’t have to be completely lesson-free. 


There’s still time to become a thinkLaw partner before the school year begins! Get started with a quote request.

1.Think about the Rules

The first training that I have with each new thinkLaw partner school focuses on training teachers to look for ways to build critical thinking skills using lessons in every subject as well as everyday activities. For thinkLaw partners, it becomes muscle memory. 

If you want a taste of what that’s like, involve your students in setting your classroom rules to develop student buy-in and set the tone for the year! Pressed for time? Skip the prep and try our Writing Classroom Rules lesson on Teachers Pay Teachers. 

2.Think about your Three-Day Weekend

Labor Day isn’t just an excuse to grill out—the holiday began as a protest in New York City and recognized as a national holiday in 1895 by Grover Cleveland. In 1985, workers averaged 12 hour days, 7 days a week with no breaks and no paid time off. Children as young as 5 were working in dangerous and unsanitary factories. 

Labor practices have improved insignificantly since then—but are they perfect? Ask your students. What issues concern them the most (child care, maternity leave, health insurance, the minimum wage, etc.)? What solutions can they propose?

3.Think about the Environment

Fall is a great time to get outside with your students—if you’re down south, the weather has started to cool down, and if you’re up north, you need to enjoy the sunshine before temperatures drop. 

For thinkLaw partners, this means taking full advantage of the thinkLaw Environmental Justice Toolkit. Like all thinkLaw products, our toolkit features a teacher guide with easy-to-prep facilitation tips, PowerPoints slides, student work pages, probing discussion questions, writing assessments with scoring guides, and premade Braincandy questions.

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