The K12 Zone Report
December 3rd
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Winter Wonderland Is Now Live in All National Zones
The Winter Wonderland has officially launched across all National Zones — and it’s a great opportunity to bring your students in for seasonal activities, live events, and fun interactives throughout December.
Students can access it through:
Canvas → Resources → K12 Zone → Available Worlds
Tips for Teachers
• Take your class into the Winter Wonderland: It’s an easy way to boost engagement, build classroom community, or add a fun winter-themed activity to your lesson.
• Add it to your classroom zone: A Winter Wonderland mini-scene is available in the K12 Zone Scene Library if you’d like to bring winter activities directly into your own classroom world.
• Encourage exploration: The Wonderland includes crafts, avatar updates, games, and cozy seasonal areas your students will enjoy checking out.
If you have time this week, consider guiding your class through a quick tour — even a few minutes in the Wonderland can spark excitement and help students feel more connected.
Winter Wonderland Activities in the K12 Zone
There’s a full lineup of seasonal activities happening throughout December, and we’d love for you to share these with your students or bring them into your classroom sessions.
Baking with Bouchra — Today at 5 PM ET
A live gingerbread cookie-making session in the Baking Zone.
Students can join through any National Zone portal or use: https://zone.k12.com/baking
Upcoming Winter Wonderland Events
Holiday Karaoke — Wednesday, December 10th @ 5 PM ET
A fun, end-of-season karaoke event to wrap up the 12 Days of Winter Magic.
Winter Esports Showdown — Friday, December 12th
Live gameplay and grade-band sessions hosted by Stride Esports:
• Grades 3–5: 4:00–4:45 PM ET
• Grades 6–8: 5:00–5:45 PM ET
• Grades 9–12: 6:00–7:00 PM ET
Esports Championship Week
• Monday, December 15th @ 7 PM ET — Smash Brothers Championship
• Wednesday, December 17th @ 7 PM ET — Rocket League Championship
Polar Express Read-Aloud — Thursday, December 18th @ 5 PM ET
A cozy holiday read-aloud perfect for all ages.
Join the K12 Zone Teachers Team Channel
If you haven’t joined the K12 Zone Teams Channel yet, now is the perfect time! This space was created specifically for teachers and staff who use the K12 Zone, and it’s quickly becoming one of the best places to connect, collaborate, and get inspired.
Inside the channel, you can:
💡 Ask questions and get quick support from the K12 Zone HQ team and other teachers
🌟 Share creative ideas for classroom zones, activities, and student engagement
📸 Show off what you’re doing — screenshots, events, bulletin boards, student creations, and more
📚 Learn from other schools and see how they’re using the Zone in innovative ways
🚀 Hear about new features and updates early so you can plan ahead
This channel is designed to help you feel supported, spark ideas, and build community with others who are using the Zone every day.
Whether you’re brand new or a Zone pro, we’d love to have you there!
Introducing the New Scene Marketplace
A new feature is now live in the K12 Zone: the Scene Marketplace! This update makes it easier than ever for school teams to share creative scenes and discover high-quality layouts to use in their classroom worlds.
The Scene Marketplace is available to World Admins with Designer, Manager, or World Owner permissions.
What You Can Do
• Submit your own scenes for others to use
• Browse and acquire scenes created by other schools
• Drop Marketplace scenes directly into your world
How to Submit a Scene
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Save a copy of your scene (if you haven’t already)
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Click the Scenes icon in the lower left
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Click the orange + to create a new scene
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Add a title and description, then select Create Scene
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Open the Scenes drawer and switch to Table View
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Under Actions, select Submit to Marketplace
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Review or update your scene info and submit
You’ll see a Status column showing whether your scene is pending, approved, or needs revisions. If a scene is rejected, feedback will be available and you can resubmit.
A quick status summary also appears in the upper-right corner of the Scenes drawer.
Helpful Resources
• How to use the Scene Marketplace: https://youtu.be/ZeGPGliqY84
• How to save your zone as a scene (recommended regularly and required before submitting): https://youtu.be/qoRop4vTqtw
Encourage your team to save scenes often, share their creativity, and explore scenes created by educators across the network.
Update Coming Next Week: A New, Easier Available Worlds Page
Next week, students will see a refreshed Available Worlds page when they access the K12 Zone. This update is designed to reduce clicks, simplify navigation, and help students quickly find the right world to join.
Here’s what’s changing:
• Students will now see which of their friends are online and what world they’re in
• Entering a world will be faster — now just one click
• Each world will show a picture so students know what it looks like before joining
• Students will see how many users are in each world
• Closed worlds will move to the bottom and display when they will reopen
These updates make the Zone more intuitive and student-friendly, especially for younger learners or those who need visual cues to navigate.
How Teachers Can Help
• Share this update with your students so they know what to expect
• Consider doing a quick walkthrough in class once the new layout is live
• Encourage students who rely on visual support or routine to explore the updated page early
A small change like this can make a big difference in reducing confusion and helping students get into their worlds more confidently.
Zone Pro Tip of the Week: How to Add a Whiteboard Using Miro
Classroom Zones don’t include a built-in interactive whiteboard yet — but there’s a great workaround you can start using right now.
Our team found that Miro, a free online whiteboard tool (https://miro.com/), can easily be embedded or linked inside your Classroom Zone. This gives you a flexible, interactive space your students can use during live lessons.
What You Can Use Miro For
• Modeling during lessons
• Brainstorming or idea mapping
• Checks for understanding
• Collaborative class work
• Quick draw-and-share moments
How to Get Started
I recorded a quick walkthrough showing how to:
• Set up a free Miro account
• Create a board
• Embed or link your whiteboard into your Zone
• Use it during instruction
🎥 Watch the walkthrough here: https://youtu.be/kHc4mXj1nbM
If you decide to try it, I’d love to hear how it works for you — how your students used it, what you liked, and any creative ideas you come up with. Your feedback helps us as we work toward adding an official whiteboard tool in the future.