Teaching Strategies

How Learning Happens

In this series, we explore how educators can guide all students, regardless of their developmental starting points, to become productive and engaged learners.

November 16, 2018 Updated February 22, 2024

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How can schools better align their practices with what the science says about how human learning happens? Our popular video series—featuring Linda Darling-Hammond, president and CEO of Learning Policy Institute, Pamela Cantor, MD, founder and senior science advisor of the Center for Whole-Child Education (formerly Turnaround for Children), and Karen Pittman, partner at Knowledge to Power Catalysts and cofounder and former CEO of the Forum for Youth Investment—pairs research insights with a variety of illustrative strategies from schools, all grounded in the science of human learning and development.

These techniques have resonated with educators everywhere: They are focused on taking advantage of the incredible opportunity to help children reach their full potential by creating positive relationships, experiences, and environments in which every student can thrive. In fact, the science is beginning to hint at even more dramatic outcomes. Practices explicitly designed to integrate social, emotional, and cognitive skills in the classroom, the research suggests, can reverse the damages wrought by childhood trauma and stress—while serving the needs of all students and moving them onto a positive developmental and academic path.

Brain-Based Learning
Bringing the Science of Learning Into Classrooms
Years of research prompt a group of scientists to ask whether we should rethink the way we do school.
Heather Riley, Youki Terada
Social & Emotional Learning (SEL)
The Science of Learning and Development
The research is clear: Strong relationships with educators help students develop the cognitive skills they need to learn and thrive.
Mental Health
Getting Started With Trauma-Informed Practices
When teachers use strategies tailored to children who have experienced trauma, all students reap the emotional and academic benefits.
Community Partnerships
Learning Opportunities in Out-of-School Time
Research shows that creating optimal conditions for learning wherever kids spend time can boost student motivation and engagement—whether in or out of school.

Professional Learning
Building Adult Capacity for Social and Emotional Learning
By taking one day a month to provide staff with training and support, this organization equips adults to better care for the young people they serve.
Family Engagement
Engaging Families With Social and Emotional Learning Strategies
When teachers bring parents in to see what their children are learning, they strengthen the home-school connection and help the adults build skills, too.
Social & Emotional Learning (SEL)
Showing a Path to the Future Through Role Models
Research shows that when organizations hire staff that reflects the demographics of the children they serve, it can have a powerful impact.

Classroom Management
Building a Belonging Classroom
In order to learn, students need to feel safe, cared for, and emotionally connected to their teachers and each other.
Classroom Management
Fostering Belonging With Classroom Norms
When students help create their classrooms' rules and culture, they’re more engaged and invested in learning.
Formative Assessment
Boosting Engagement With Notices and Wonders
When students make “I notice” and “I wonder” comments on course content, teachers can see what they know—and what they need to learn.
Communication Skills
Encouraging Academic Conversations With Talk Moves
Sentence starters that students use to join a class discussion encourage both academic thinking and social connectedness.
Social & Emotional Learning (SEL)
Elevating Student Voice Through Senior Talks
High school seniors build confidence by documenting their growth and learning in a speech presented to their families and the school community.
Arts Integration
Celebrating Cultural Identity Through the Arts
When afterschool program Ballet Folklorico teaches kids traditional Mexican dance, they build not only social and emotional skills, but also community.

School Culture
The Power of Relationships in Schools
Research shows that students who feel safe and supported by adults at school are better able to learn.
Social & Emotional Learning (SEL)
Making Connections With Greetings at the Door
Research shows that greeting students as they come into class bolsters a feeling of belonging and readiness to learn.
Social & Emotional Learning (SEL)
Cultivating Trust With One-on-One Time
For many struggling students, consistently spending informal time with a trusted educator supports emotional well-being and academic growth.
Teacher Collaboration
Knowing Every Child Through Index Card Rosters
By regularly reviewing students’ behavior and learning as a team, teachers can ensure that every student is seen, supported, and celebrated.

Teaching Strategies
Inviting Participation With Thumbs-Up Responses
A quick assessment strategy replaces raised hands, encouraging more students to contribute by accommodating their different processing needs.
Literacy
Motivating Students With Book Choice
Letting students choose books to read helps them develop a sense of autonomy and ownership over their learning.
Assessment
Developing Confidence Through Delayed Grading
Giving students time to explore ideas with no immediate grade pressure helps motivate them to be creative and take intellectual risks.
Communication Skills
Scaffolding Discussion Skills With a Socratic Circle
Students deepen their understanding and build a sense of community by engaging with their peers’ reasoned arguments.

Maker Education
Learning Problem Solving and Growth Mindset in a Makerspace
Makerspaces build students’ cognitive abilities while fostering independence, perseverance, and self-regulation.
Social & Emotional Learning (SEL)
Teaching Self-Regulation by Modeling
When teachers explicitly recognize and respond to their emotions in class, students learn to engage in these processes themselves.
Brain-Based Learning
Developing Executive Function With Priority Lists
Explicitly modeling the process of prioritizing tasks builds students’ ability to organize and manage their time.
Student Voice
Developing Agency With Student-Led Conferences
When students lead meetings with their parents and teachers, they gain a voice in their education and develop skills like goal-setting and metacognition.

Mental Health
Creating a Positive Learning Environment
When students’ mental, emotional, and physical needs are met, they’re more likely to love school—and they learn more.
Environmental Education
Moving From the Comfort Zone to the Challenge Zone
When we are faced with challenges, our brains are activated to learn new things—so long as a foundation of safety, belonging, and trust is there as well.
Classroom Management
Demonstrating Self-Regulation With Tone of Voice
When teachers model self-regulation by using a voice that is calm, neutral, and assertive, they help students feel cared for—and ready to learn.
Mental Health
Activating the Brain With Movement Breaks
Research has shown that short movement breaks help students get focused, improving both skill-building and knowledge retention.
Social & Emotional Learning (SEL)
Getting Ready to Learn With Mindfulness
Research shows that taking some time each day to practice mindfulness as a class helps students prepare themselves for learning.

Community Partnerships
Connecting School and Afterschool With Shared Practices
In Tacoma, a community-wide effort to better serve children is underway, and the first step is common language and shared best practices among the adults.
Environmental Education
Bringing Core Content to Life With Outdoor Education
When students step out of the classroom and explore the concepts they’ve learned about, they deepen their understanding of science, themselves, and the world.
Social & Emotional Learning (SEL)
Scaffolding Academics With Social and Emotional Skills in the Afterschool Space
The often-overlooked hours after school can be a great opportunity to build in lessons around self-regulation and decision-making.
Student Wellness
Using Athletics to Teach Social and Emotional Skills
Sports can be a powerful way for young people to build self-regulation skills, set goals, and develop confidence—and physical activity develops brain architecture.

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Bringing the Science of Learning Into Classrooms