ABCDE's of Learner Needs: Engagement (Part 2)

The ABCDE's of Learner Needs: Engagement

The ABCDEs of Learner Needs: Developmental Appropriateness

August 24, 2026: Craving Competence by Center for Inspired Teaching

August 17, 2026: What do we mean by belongning? by Center for Inspired Teaching

This week we’re looking at the first of the ABCDEs of Learner Needs: Autonomy. We want to have a say in what happens to us! But this feels like a big ask in school where the expectation of the teacher is to ensure students learn certain things in certain grades well, on time, and in preparation for the learning that comes next. Where can students find choice within those constraints? Today's podcast looks at the small things we can do to start building learner independence.

Brady Maiden shares a joyful exploration of how she brings the ABCDEs into her work with high school students. She also speaks to how this framework shines a light on what she needed and how an amazing teacher met those needs, back when she was a high school student herself.

Check out the activity mentioned at the opening of this podcast: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JkuxFVuHKrnGqATVMrjkYgphrebnNbb-/view?usp=sharing

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In this episode from our archives, Kaneia Mayo Crumlin shares a wealth of insights and advice for connecting with students in the early days of a new school year, and for creating intentional opportunities for them to learn about themselves and each other.

This week's interview from the archives is a beautiful illustration of what it looks like when a teacher designs everything she does with students at the center and improvisational thinking as her guide. Lacey Hunter forever changed the way we think about the questions we ask young people, especially when it comes to favorite colors!

Chiara Monticelli, teaches Italian at Hardy Middle School in Washington, DC. In this interview from the archives, she talks about what it’s like to teach in a classroom with no desks, a choice she made years ago to change up the learning experience for her students.