Educator Alexander's Newsletter
NOVEMBER NEWS
November Educational Resources from Smore
- November Weekly Update gives every household the same clear schedule all month
- Parent Teacher Conference Template gets conference resources to families who missed a slot
- Thanksgiving Newsletter Template thanks your community before break, so draft it early
- Plus, share all four November templates with your staff in one link.
Google Certified Innovator Academy Is Coming Back--London Application Due December 3, 2026
The Google Certified Innovator Academy is coming back next year—and for the first time ever, all 2027 global cohorts are dedicated exclusively to active classroom teachers!
Next year’s academy centers on the real-world challenges educators face in their classrooms every day. Whether you're finding new ways to spark student curiosity, reach every learner, or tackle everyday hurdles, you’ll be backed by dedicated mentors and a global family of educators cheering you on.
Eligibility & Requirements:
- Role: Must be an active, practicing classroom teacher.
- Innovator Challenge: Must focus solely on classroom practice and student impact.
- Leadership Recommendation: Requires a signed Letter of Support from a principal or headmaster.
Applications are open now for London, with additional cohorts across North America and Asia-Pacific announcing soon!
The EQed Leader™ Has Been Released!
I met Dr. Phyllis at a conference and was very impressed! I am reading her two books right now!
The EQed Leader™: Leading People. Strengthening Relationships. Shaping Culture.
Leadership is more than a title. It's about how we show up, how we treat people, and the influence we have through our everyday actions and interactions.
In The EQed Leader™, Dr. Phyllis Donatto explores how emotional intelligence shapes effective leadership, strengthens relationships, and influences organizational culture. Through practical insights, relatable experiences, and intentional leadership moves, readers are encouraged to become more self-aware, lead with empathy, and make meaningful adjustments that positively impact the people they serve.
Because how we lead matters.
Explore the Book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HKTSQ7ZP
Dr. Phyllis Donatto is an author, executive leadership coach, and founder of FTH Dimension Solutions, LLC, specializing in emotional intelligence, leadership development, and organizational culture.
Celebrate Native American Heritage Month in Your Classroom
Explore Native Stories From the Revolutionary Era
Center Native history in your classroom and showcase how Indigenous perspectives — especially from the Revolutionary era — are foundational to our understandings of American history. Use resources from the Ken Burns film The American Revolution to help your students analyze the complexities of the war and explore how some Native nations made strategic choices about alliances, defended their homelands, and fought to maintain their sovereignty as the new nation took shape.
Explore Native Stories From The American Revolution:
- Native Nations Before the American Revolution (3-5)
- Conflict Over Land and the American Revolution (6-12)
- Native Nations and British Colonial America: Sovereignty, Diplomacy, and Resistance (6-12)
- The Meaning of Democracy During the Founding Era (6-12)
- Native Americans and the American Revolution (9-12)
- The Stockbridge Community During and After the American Revolution (9-12)
- Tsi'yu-gunsini (Dragging Canoe) and Resistance to American Expansion During the American Revolution (9-12)
- Joseph Brant/Thayendanegea: Native Sovereignty During the Revolutionary Era (9-12)
Discover the Scientific and Cultural Impact of Indigenous Knowledge
Kick off Native American Heritage Month with this exciting collection that will help your students dive into the scientific and cultural impact of Indigenous creations on the past and present! From erecting water management systems to building sustainable communities using Adobe brick, your students can analyze the “Indigi-Genius” solutions applied by Indigenous communities to architecture, food, farming, design, engineering, and so much more.
Meet Native Americans Who Are Changing the World
Being Native American isn’t something that you can turn on and off — cultural ways, traditional values, and how you interact with the world around you are all factors that impact how Native Americans live their lives. In these four video clips from Native America, you’ll meet Native people from around the country, such as the members of the Dancing Boy Express, who are inspirations to their communities and working to make the world a better place.
Explore More PBS LearningMedia Resources
- Why Do We Celebrate Native American Heritage Month? | All About the Holidays (K-5)
- What Is an Indigenous Kitchen? | Sovereign Innovations (6-12)
- Cherokee Leadership, Alliances, and the Fight to Protect Cherokee Land (1771-1883) | Freedom's Shadow (6-12)
- Play a Beading Art Game | Molly of Denali (K-2)
- Native Americans Past and Present: Challenging Misconceptions (6-8)
- What Does "Warrior" Mean to You? | The Warrior Tradition (K-5)
- Bdote: A Birthing Island | A History of Minnesota's Sacred Landscape (6-12)
- A Challenge to the Enduring Myth of Pocahontas | NOVA (6-12)
Just Added 👀 Resources Your Lessons Have Been Missing
Embark on Science Adventures With the New Middle School Science Collection
Engage your middle school students with a broad range of phenomena using this collection of media resources aligned to physical, Earth, and space science standards! Spark curiosity and investigation using stories that make science meaningful by connecting it to the real world. The resources also provide opportunities to engage your students in science and engineering practices to develop explanations of the world around them while exploring related STEM careers.
Watch New Episodes of Mister C's DIY Science Time
Join Mister C and his wacky science crew as they complete fun DIY science experiments using materials that can be found in your household or classroom! From learning about forensic science to exploring the appetizing science of cooking, your students will have a blast investigating the world around them using hands-on experiments, demonstrations, activities, and the accompanying support materials.
Episodes from the new season publish weekly to PBS LearningMedia. Stay tuned for more!
Check Out The American Revolution Courses on the NEW Ken Burns Channel on YouTube
We’re excited to announce a new partnership bringing Ken Burns’s acclaimed films and classroom resources to YouTube! In collaboration with Ken Burns, PBS LearningMedia is bringing digital courses from Ken Burns in the Classroom to the official Ken Burns YouTube channel — making engaging, curriculum-aligned history content more accessible to teachers and students.
Each course includes:
- Classroom-adapted film segments designed for busy class agendas
- Integrated YouTube quizzes for real-time comprehension checks
- Free teaching materials from PBS LearningMedia to spark discussion and critical thinking
Explore the courses for free on the official Ken Burns YouTube channel today!
Help Build Students' Emotional Toolkits With I Feel Talks
Support elementary-level learners as they build emotional awareness by naming, describing, and understanding feelings like happiness, fear, sadness, pride, calm, loneliness, and embarrassment. Watch these short videos to see real kids sharing honest stories about their experiences with topics like tech safety and friendship, then guide your students as they practice recognizing feelings and building emotional literacy using the attached teaching tips.
Explore More PBS LearningMedia Resources
- Learn About the "Great Dying" With Eons: Life and Death on Pangea (6-12)
- Chaos and Escape: How Day Care Teachers Saved Dozens of Children on 9/11 | Retro Report (6-12)
- Nighttime Exploration in the Neighborhood (PreK-2)
- Remembering Dolly Parton | PBS News Hour (6-12)
- Primary Source Analysis: Civil War Graffiti in Mammoth Cave (6-12)
- Take Off on a Bicycle Travel Series to Explore Climate Change | Rolling Thru (9-12)
TCEA TECH BLOG GOODIES
Thanksgiving Classroom Activities and Games for 2026
Five Google Forms Tricks You Might Not Know About
10 Play Dough STEM Challenges for the Classroom
Parent-Teacher Conference Tips Every Teacher Can Use
How Schools Can Make Data-Informed Screen Time Decisions
The Clock is Ticking: Accessibility Deadline Upcoming for School Websites
Educators Can Get Office 365 for FREE
A Couple More Google Updates
November 2026 Newsletter
In this month’s Google for Education newsletter, discover how to bring subjects to life through immersive explorations in the Gemini app, explore how educators can instantly create a quiz with a simple prompt, and prepare learners for meaningful community conversations with The Great Thanksgiving Listen from StoryCorps. Read on for more!
Three Things to Know
Bring learning topics to life with immersive explorations in the Gemini app, a helpful way to enhance everyday lessons or enrich field trips. Simply visit the Gemini student hub or prompt Gemini directly to try it today.
Step inside with immersive explorations
You can now create a quiz in Classroom with a simple prompt, grounded on your content – a preview allows you to see the questions, all prefilled with correct answers and quiz settings.
Bring The Great Thanksgiving Listen into classrooms with Gemini
Prepare your students for The Great Thanksgiving Listen from StoryCorps. Sign up for a special webinar with bestselling author Jason Reynolds, and use Gemini to help learners generate personalized interview questions for family and community stories.
Events
Register to hear from Google for Education product experts, partners and your peers - with 3 sessions every month.
Celebrate Science and Peace with us this November. Join our English session on collaborative inquiry (Nov 19) and our Arabic webinar on data for community harmony (Nov 26). Connect globally to bridge divides through practical scientific collaboration.
Extra Credit
Google for Education is now on TikTok
Discover productivity tips, creative lesson ideas, and workflow hacks for educators. Follow our page to connect with the educator community and stay inspired.
Discover traditional and modern Native American art
Explore the history and evolution of Native American art through artist spotlights and traditional techniques like weaving and pottery. From ancient horsehair pottery to creators inspired by video games, this collection highlights how indigenous artists preserve heritage and push boundaries.
Celebrating aviation from kitty hawk to the cosmos
Bring history and STEM to life with this YouTube playlist celebrating Aviation History Month. Discover the incredible stories of engineering triumphs, historical milestones, and aviation legends that transformed how we see and explore the world.
Ignite curiosity through flight and fossils
Spark curiosity with two new playlists designed for National STEM Day. Learners can dive into the thrilling evolution of flight to explore aerospace engineering, or travel back in time to investigate fossils and the prehistoric world.
Dr. Desiree Alexander, Educator Alexander Consulting
Dr. Desiree Alexander is an award-winning, multi-degreed educator, speaker, and author who has been in the educational field since 2002. She is the Founder CEO of Educator Alexander Consulting, LLC and the Deputy Director for the Associated Professional Educators of Louisiana. She consults with members of several schools/businesses and presents at conferences globally.
Dr. Alexander is lifetime certified in Louisiana in Secondary English Education, as a Reading Specialist, as a School Librarian, as an Educational Technology Facilitator, as an Educational Technology Leader and in Educational Leadership 1. She is certified in Texas as a Principal, in English Language Arts and Reading for grades 4-8 and grades 8-12, as a Reading Specialist for grades EC-12, and as a School Librarian. She holds multiple technology certifications, including, but not limited to, IC3 certification, Google Certified Trainer, Innovator and Partner, Apple Teacher, and Microsoft Office Specialists.
She holds a Bachelor, a Master + 30, and an Education Specialist Degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Louisiana State University, a Master of Library Science from Texas Woman’s University and a Master of Educational Leadership with a concentration in Educational Technology Leadership from Nicholls State University. She also holds a Doctorate in Education with a concentration in Educational Leadership from Lamar University.
She is the author of Ready to Be an Educational Leader: Your Guide for Passing the SLLA 6990, the 2024 Common Sense Education Ambassador of the Year, a 2024 Common Sense Ambassador of the Year, a 2024 Illinois Digital Educators Alliance Conference (IDEAcon) Thought Leader, 2023 Louisiana Association of Computer Using Educators (LACUE) Conference Featured Speaker, 2022 & 2021 Texas Computer Education Association Conference (TCEA) Featured Thought Leader, 2020 International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) Featured Voice, 2020 Future of Education Technology Conference (FETC) Featured Presenter, 2019 Customer Commitment Award Honoree from Better Business Bureau's (BBB) Torch Awards for Ethics, a 2019 Shreveport National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) Mover and Shaker, a 2017 Young Professional Initiative 40 Under 40 Awards Honoree, 2017 Center for Digital Education Top 30 Technologists, Transformers & Trailblazers, 2017 Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) Learning Media Digital Innovator for Louisiana, 2016 Associated Professional Educators of Louisiana Member of the Year, 2015 Librarian of the Year for Louisiana Librarian Association, 2015 Campus Teacher of the Year in the Zachary Community School District and 2014 Leader of the Year for Region 2 Louisiana Association of Computer Using Educators.
Email: educatoralexander@gmail.com or desiree@educatoralexander.com
Website: https://www.educatoralexander.com
Phone: 318-759-7591
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