Shaped

A community-driven blog supporting educators, building lifelong learners, and shaping the future of education.* 

 

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Instructional materials

Learn why educators nationwide should assess their instructional programs to determine whether they are designed to help students overcome learning loss due to COVID-19.

Dr. Donald Bucolo
Education Research Director, Core STEM

Renee Behring
Education Research Director, Core ELA

WF1348154 Shaped 2021 Blog Post Teaching Product of Prime Factors 2025 Update hero

In this lesson, use factor trees to teach students the concept that a composite number is written as a product of all of its prime factors.

Richard Blankman
Shaped Executive Editor

Ancient greece lesson plan

Known for its architecture, democratic system of government, and impact on science and the arts, ancient Greece is an important topic often covered in middle and high school social studies.

Shaped Staff

Charlemagne Middle Ages Activities

Use these downloadable resources to teach students about Charlemagne and the Early Middle Ages.

Shaped Staff

Hero Update Halloween Math

Here are fun Halloween math activities for middle school and high school students. Try these activities to celebrate Halloween in your math classroom and ensure that your middle school and high school students can enjoy the holiday while in school.

Richard Blankman
Shaped Executive Editor

The Keys to Vocabulary Word Specific and Generative Instruction thumb

Shane Templeton, HMH Journeys program consultant, shares how efficient and effective vocabulary instruction can inspire a curiosity and appreciation for words.

Dr. Shane Templeton
Foundation Professor Emeritus, Literacy Studies, University of Nevada, Reno; Into Reading Program Author

WF2163400 Shaped 2025 Blog Post Free Graphic Organizers for Reading Comprehension Update Hero

Try these free graphic organizers for reading comprehension for all grade levels to help students visually organize their thoughts about literature.

Shaped Staff

Hard to reach students 104b71eb860de3cd4fcc287f64c7c979 v2

If you find yourself pulling away from or avoiding connection with hard-to-reach students, try leaning in instead by following these five steps.

Janice Mace
Senior Counselor, National Center for School Mental Health at the University of Maryland

Grades Science Activities Hero

Explore a variety of scientific learning activities to engage students in the great outdoors.

Shaped Staff

Benefits of independent reading in the classroom

There are various benefits of independent reading, including improving your students’ fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. Read more about how you can empower your students to become lifelong readers by providing an independent reading library.

Alicia Ivory
Shaped Editor

Shaped Staff

WF1167618 culinary arts hero image

Learn about the role of math in cooking in the "Math Meets Culinary Arts" episode of HMH's Math at Work web series.

Shaped Staff

WF1338420 Financial Literacy Hero 2025 Update

Use these financial literacy lesson plans and activities for middle school to teach students about topics ranging from salaries to wages to creating a personal budget.

Shaped Staff

WF2161378 Interactive Read Aloud Strategies hero

What is an interactive read-aloud? Learn interactive read-aloud strategies to build strong student-teacher relationships in the classroom.

Monica Fitzgerald
Reading AIS Teacher, Gillette Road Middle School

3 5 Sea Tutrle hero image 6699dd8b7813014bf9718f78f267b2d1 200903 171605

Explore a variety of learning activities to engage students in scientific exploration of the great outdoors.

Shaped Staff

Absolute monarchy lesson plan

Download this absolute monarchy lesson plan to teach your students about rulers including Frederick the Great and Louis XIV.

Jordan Friedman
Former Shaped Editor

WF926906 Math Expressions Gr K 0 Z1 A6360 copy

Ease elementary school students' transition from arithmetic to algebra by introducing them to algebra concepts throughout the elementary grades.

Shaped Staff

Math Tech in Classroom

Read about integrating technology in the math classroom and how math technology can be used as a tool to support teaching.

Dr. Matthew R. Larson
Past President, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM); Senior Fellow, Math Solutions

Integrated curriculum no subject is an island hero

Learn the benefits of an integrated curriculum, along with how instruction can be integrated across subjects and standards.

Richard Blankman
Shaped Executive Editor