Share Ideas · Collaborate · Reconnect
Borrow My Best Routine
Trade one dependable classroom or work routine another educator could try tomorrow.
Time10–15 minutes
Group size2–100 people
FormatPartners, Rotating pairs
MaterialsNone
What this accomplishes
Each educator names a small routine that saves time, supports students, or keeps the day moving. Partners ask one practical follow-up, then rotate so everyone leaves with several field-tested ideas.
- Exchange practical educator-tested strategies
- Build confidence in peer expertise
Before you begin
Materials
- None
Preparation
- Choose whether to focus on classroom, family communication, planning, meetings, or any useful routine
What to say
“Think of one routine that quietly earns its keep. It does not have to be innovative—just dependable enough that someone else might want to borrow it.”
How to run it
- 1
Give everyone one minute to choose and mentally outline a routine.
- 2
Pair participants and give each person two minutes to explain the routine and when it helps.
- 3
Listeners ask one question beginning with ‘What makes that work?’
- 4
Rotate partners once or twice.
- 5
Invite everyone to write down one routine they may borrow, adapt, or ask about later.
Prompts to use
What routine saves you five minutes or five headaches?
What do students or colleagues know exactly how to do in your space?
What simple system keeps something from falling through the cracks?
What is the first step someone would need to try it?
Adapt it to the room
Small group
Stay together and let each person share one routine with a two-minute limit.
Large group
Use table pairs and signal rotations from the front of the room.
Virtual
Use breakout pairs and ask participants to paste a one-sentence routine into chat afterward.
Accessibility & inclusion
- Allow participants to share a routine they have observed rather than one they created.
- Keep a seated pairing option.
- Provide the four guiding questions in writing.
Debrief, if useful
What idea are you most likely to adapt?
What patterns showed up across useful routines?
Why it works—and what can go wrong
Why it works
A tight focus on small routines makes expertise easy to share and keeps the activity grounded in practice rather than polished success stories.
Watch out for
- Do not frame borrowing as copying without context.
- Remind participants that a routine may need adaptation for different students, roles, and settings.