#ThePresentIsAGift: thinkLaw’s December 2018 Newsletter

A Message from Colin Seale, thinkLaw Founder and CEOColin Seale and The G Word producers

Colin talks to The G Word documentary producers about being one of 12 students identified for gifted and talented program in his Brooklyn, NY elementary school.

‘Tis the season for candy canes, Santa hats a-plenty, and “survival work.” But what if instead of limping over the finish line we saw the present as a gift? Embrace the energy of the holiday spirit and use it to double-down on your mandate to unleash the full potential of all students. End 2018 with a bang with those project-based learning activities and powerful instructional strategies you’ve been saving for the right time. Try out some of thinkLaw’s holiday-themed lessons from our TpT store to maximize student engagement. And take time for yourself and your students to reflect on all you have accomplished and persevered through in 2018. I am grateful to have you in our corner and wish you all the best for the holidays and a bright new year!

Help Your Teachers Make the 21st Century Critical Thinking Shift with a Spring 2019 thinklaw “Thinking Like a Lawyer” Training

Find out how thinkLaw’s training on Socratic method and other powerful “Thinking Like a Lawyer” inquiry strategies are transforming instruction from “what” and “how” to “why” and “what if” across all grade levels and subject areas (including math & science). Our professional development calendar is filling up quickly, so request a quote to lock in your date soon and see how your teachers can seamlessly integrate powerful and practical tools into their instruction for 2019!

What are our partners saying?

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thinkLaw’s Top Three

Preparing for a 21st century workforce

Too many educators believe that if we just taught every student how to code, or if we just put every student in a career and technical education program, then somehow all students will be 21st century ready. Read more about why a more holistic approach to critical thinking is our only hope for future-proofing our students.

Education is an equity issue

“I, like far too many educators, bought into the fundamentally unfair myth that gifted students “will be just fine.” This is simply not true, especially for students whose giftedness intersects with their socio-economic status, race, home language, and other traits that leave gifted learners under-identified and underserved. We are long overdue for the moment when the most hardcore education-for-all advocates recognize our systemic lack of support for gifted learners as an urgent equity issue.” Check out Colin’s powerful case for gifted education as an equity issue.

Critical thinking for English Language Learners

thinkLaw challenges educators to reframe how they think about the tremendous assets their ELL students bring to the table. What decades of educators have been calling limited English proficiency should be reframed to be Emerging Bilinguals. After all, these are the global citizens every multinational employer is begging schools and universities to produce. Read more about how to terminate the “Not My Job” mentality and unleash the full potential of ELL students.

thinkLaw Updates

thinkLaw Curriculum Approved in 1800+ Districts Nationwide through BuyBoard
thinkLaw’s award-winning curriculum helps educators teach critical thinking using real-life legal cases in upper grades and fairy tales and nursery rhymes in lower grades (because there are a lot of shady characters in children’s literature). Want to adopt thinkLaw but don’t want to deal with the paperwork of district approval? Good news! Our curriculum is now BuyBoard-approved, meaning that almost ALL Texas districts and 1800+ districts nationwide can adopt thinkLaw without any additional approval. Get your quote now and equip your teachers with the concrete tools they need to tap into our students’ inherent sense of fairness and justice. Take a look at our Common Core and TEKS-aligned K-12 sample curriculum to see for yourself why hundreds of educators across 15 states have joined thinkLaw’s critical thinking revolution!

Critical Thinking for the Holidays
Ring in the holiday season with rigor and engagement using holiday-themed lessons from thinkLaw’s Teachers Pay Teachers store! Get your younger students thinking critically about the lyrics to popular carols (link coming soon) and have your older students analyze a real-life legal case about a neighbor’s out-of-control holiday decorations and 4 other hilarious holiday-related lawsuits.

Request a Quote

Request a quote

Plan ahead for the Spring Semester and see how you and your students can join thinkLaw’s Critical Thinking Revolution with our award-winning curriculum and professional development workshops! Request a quote here and a thinkLaw representative will be in contact within 48 hours. If you have any additional questions, set up a time to connect for a quick call by clicking here.

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