August 3, 2026
By Jenna Fournel, Chief Curiosity Officer
Listen to the Hooray For Monday podcast for Jenna’s conversation with our colleague Brady Maiden who runs the Speak Truth Program.
We talk often at Inspired Teaching about the ABCDEs of Learner Needs, a framework that helps us think about the conditions that must be met in order for our students to thrive. We like to use this as a diagnostic tool to help us consider the unmet needs that are often behind unwanted classroom behavior. But this week it was my pleasure to talk with my colleague Brady Maiden who runs our Speak Truth program about how the ABCDEs can also be a planning tool – a resource for reflection when we’re striving to create what she calls a “brave space” in which students feel empowered to “speak up and speak out.”
Please listen to our full interview for a joyful exploration of how she brings the ABCDEs into her work with high school students. Brady 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.
Brady has created a version of the ABCDEs that she uses with students in Speak Truth to foster a shared understanding of what everyone can expect as learners in that space. Below you’ll find this framing along with some guiding questions to help you consider how this could be adapted to your own classroom.
In Speak Truth, the ABCDEs of Learner Needs are met because:
- Autonomy – You get to design and lead. (What can your students design and lead this year?)
- Belonging – We co-create safe spaces where every voice counts. (How can students play a role in co-creating your classroom culture?)
- Competence – You’ll grow your skills in leading, listening, and responding. (How will your students build their competence this year?)
- Developmental Appropriateness – You lead the convo with your peers. (What lessons can I use to create a connection with my students?)
- Engagement – We keep it real and relevant. (What makes learning feel important for your students?)
- Fun – You will create discussions that bring connection and joy. (Where is there room for students to play big in their learning?)
May your needs as learners be met this week!
2026 ABCDE Resource of the Week
ABCDE Museum of Me Cards and Activity
This simple but powerful activity is a great way to explore the ABCDEs of Learner Needs. Participants choose an item that represents a time when each of these needs was met in their lives. They display these items along with an explanation of what they chose to share in little museum displays on their desks.
Hooray For Monday is an award-winning weekly publication of Center for Inspired Teaching, a social change nonprofit organization that champions the power of curiosity and is dedicated to transforming the school experience from compliance-based to engagement-based. Inspired Teaching provides transformative, improvisation-based professional learning for teachers that is 100% engaging – intellectually, emotionally, and physically.
