Jenn Dean and Ben Cogswell’s early elementary version of EduProtocols presents a unique and invaluable resource for educators seeking to unlock the full potential of their primary-grade classrooms. EduProtocols are versatile and flexible lesson frames that enable educators to seamlessly integrate curriculum content, effectively deliver instruction, and maintain a low cognitive load for students. The book highlights the importance of building a positive classroom culture, establishing clear procedures, and implementing a Smart Start approach to ensure a smooth and successful implementation of EduProtocols.

What sets this book apart is its progressive, practical, and edtech-friendly approach tailored to young learners. By adapting these established EduProtocols to the primary grades, the authors have created a systematic and accessible framework that dramatically increases student engagement and promotes the development of twenty-first-century skills.

This book contains the following EduProtocols:

• Little p*ARTS EduProtocol

• Little Random Emoji Writing EduProtocol

• Fast and Curious EduProtocol

• MathReps EduProtocol

• Sketch and Tell EduProtocol

• Racking and Stacking EduProtocols

• Smart Start EduProtocols

• Smart Start: Fast and Curious EduProtocol

• Smart Start: Sketch and Tell EduProtocol

• Smart Start: MathReps EduProtocol

• Final Thoughts and Call to Action

bout Benjamin Cogswell

Ben Cogswell has been teaching in the Alisal Union School District in Salinas, California, since 2006. Although Ben is currently a kindergarten teacher, he started his journey as a sixth-grade teacher. He loved teaching ancient civilization, pre-algebra, and Harry Potter. When his district adopted 1:1 technology, he saw a new world of possibilities open up.

As a kid of the eighties, Ben had the privilege of growing up with a computer, and he loved fun learning programs like Math Blaster and Kid Pix. So when he found out he had the opportunity to teach with a class set of iPads, he was over the moon. He enjoyed the challenge of integrating technology into his classroom. Within the fi rst year of 1:1 implementation, the leadership in his district noticed his passion and asked him to step into an educational technology coaching role.

In this role, Ben trained teachers across the school district and introduced programs like Seesaw and Google Classroom, along with education models like the 4Cs and SAMR. Ben built the educational technology department from the ground up and started district-wide technology conferences that are still running to this day. With this experience, he also began presenting at conferences at the state and national level through organizations like CUE Inc. This work has allowed him to collaborate with other edtech leaders including Jon Corripo and learn about EduProtocols.

Although Ben loved coaching, he loved teaching even more and returned to the classroom. As a sixthgrade teacher, Ben witnessed so many students struggling to read that he decided to teach kindergarten. Over the past six years, Ben has enjoyed the challenge of shaping young minds, using technology to enhance their learning. He loves seeing students’ eyes light up as they learn to read.

Ben received his BA and teaching credential from the University of Pacifi c and his masters in TESOL from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies. Ben has won several awards, including the Teacher of the Year 2020 from his school district, CUE’s Blended and Online Educator of the Year in 2019, the CUE Gold Disk Award in 2023, and the KSBW’s Crystal Apple Award. Ben has been featured twice in the New York Times and has appeared on MSNBC for his work in the kindergarten classroom. He holds numerous certifi cations such as Google Innovator, Adobe Innovator, and Seesaw Certifi ed Educator.

Ben currently lives in Salinas, California, with his wife, Jenny, and four children. He loves spending time outdoors hiking and running with his dog and loyal adventure companion, Koko.

About Jennifer Dean

When Jenn decided to become a teacher, she knew right away that she wanted to teach in the TK-2 classroom. When she decided to go to college to become a teacher, she enrolled in the early childhood educator program that would give her an Illinois early childhood teaching credential. Jenn is proud of the fact that she completed her entire university experience through online schooling, allowing her to serve as an early childhood paraprofessional in pre-kindergarten classrooms in Illinois, getting hands-on experiences while completing all her coursework. After graduating and receiving her early childhood education certificate from the state of Illinois, Jenn became a full-day pre-kindergarten teacher, where she began to learn and implement best practices such as play-based learning, student agency and voice, cooperative learning strategies, and Universal Design for Learning (UDL).

As she continued her career, she became a second-grade teacher in a beautiful small town called Galena, Illinois. While teaching there, she was introduced to a learning experience platform that was founded on her same beliefs, Seesaw. Jenn began using Seesaw with her students and families and jumped right into the world of integrating technology in ways that supported the 4Cs and UDL and truly fostered a love of learning. She also became a Certified Seesaw Educator. After a great start to her teaching career in Illinois, Jenn and her family decided to move to California, where Jenn continued teaching second grade. There, she continued her passion for teaching in innovative ways and was subsequently introduced to the world of CUE (Computer Using Educators). She began her second masters in instructional technology and became a certified Google Educator and Trainer.

As she dived into this world, she learned more ways to be an innovative teacher who could leverage technology and pedagogy and wanted to share those ideas with others. As a result, she started presenting at local CUE affiliate conferences, as well as the larger Spring CUE conference. By sharing these ideas, she developed a Professional Learning Network (PLN) of like-minded educators. Jenn was named Coachella CUE Outstanding Teacher of the Year in 2018, leading to her eventually becoming the president of the Coachella CUE affiliate. In this role, Jenn was able to bring educators in the Coachella Valley together to collaborate, connect, and create. She was also named Coachella CUE Affiliate Leader of the Year in 2019. This led her to pursue serving CUE at a higher level, becoming a member of the CUE Board in 2022.

Currently, Jenn teaches first grade at Amelia Earhart Elementary School of International Studies in Desert Sands Unified School District in California. She is a mom to a beautiful boy named Jack, a dog named Charleston James, and a cat named California. She is very passionate about meeting the needs of all students, using technology in effective and balanced ways, and of course all things EduProtocols and Seesaw.