Have you used templates before? Templates create layouts for documents for you to use with your students which can enrich the activities you are doing in the classroom. Using templates can save you loads of time. Templates can also be thought of like graphic organizers, many of them are designed for assignments and help deepen understanding of topics and units. 

You might be saying wait a second, “I thought graphic organizers are only for organizing a student’s thoughts”, and you’re right. The basic definition of templates means that they are reusable files that you can assign to students. The big thing I want to reiterate is that templates are reusable, so you’ll want to build a good one you can use repeatedly. 

The other nice thing with templates is the fact that there are so many free ones created and available online. You could find one and then edit and tailor it towards your course and assignments. The workflow would go something like this: hand out file, students and their work, students turn it in. 

Here are a couple more reasons that I love templates and I think that you will too: 

• Templates have the ability for you to create consistency and uniformity in your digital classroom. This will make it easier for students to navigate and use your classroom materials.
• Templates are typically very easy to update. This will save you time (i.e., work time) and provide consistency with either your assignment or digital classroom. 

Since I care about you and I love to gather resources for you, here are some of the best places that I have found to find templates! 

If you have any ideas, post them below in the comment section.  We’d love to hear from you!