Home About Chris Aviles

About Chris Aviles

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Chris Aviles is a STEM teacher at Monmouth Beach middle school in Monmouth Beach, New Jersey where he runs the renowned MB Makes program and Dolphins esports team. He is also the founder of Garden State Esports, New Jersey’s non-profit scholastic esports organization for students, run by teachers. 

Chris has won numerous teaching awards and has been featured in places like ABC News, NBC News, EdWeek, CNET, Scholastic, Times for Kids, EdSurge, Upworthy, and Tech & Learning magazine. He is the author of two books: The Edcorps Classroom and The Esports Education Playbook. You can always keep up with Chris on his blog TechedUpTeacher.com.


Chris Aviles is a teacher at Monmouth Beach middle school in Monmouth Beach, New Jersey where he runs the renowned MB Makes program and Dolphins esports team. He is also the founder of Garden State Esports, New Jersey’s non-profit scholastic esports organization for students, run by teachers.

The MB Makes program is Monmouth Beach school district’s 21st century life, innovation, and careers program for 3rd to 8th graders. In MB Makes, Chris use social entrepreneurship for real, relevenat learning. Students find problems and sell solutions as they start real businesses that turn a real profit. Through their success students have the opportunity to give back to their community.

Part of the MB Makes program includes the Dolphins Esports team. As coach of the Dolphins, Aviles and his players take on all comers including other middle schools, high schools, and colleges. To help other schools in New Jersey bring esports and all its benefits to students, Chris founded a nonprofit Garden State Esports.

Chris is also a recovering high school English teacher. Before coming to Monmouth Beach, Chris taught high school English for ten years. It was back then that Chris stopped whole class instruction and started blending learning. To further engage and motivate his kids, Chris turned his classroom into a video game using Gamification, Game-Based Learning, and yearlong Alternate Reality games.

It was at this same time that Chris decided to document his evolving pedagogy on a blog. So in 2013, Teched Up Teacher was born.

Chris is passionate about the crossroads where education and technology meet because he has seen the amazing things that can happen when you tech-up teaching. Chris is considered an expert in Gamification, Game-Based Learning, Passion Projects, Project-Based Learning, School Gardens, Blended Learning, Esports, Makerspaces, and Entrepreneurship in the classroom. He holds a Masters in Educational Technology from Boise State, is the founder and President of Garden State Esports, a North American Scholastic Esports Federation Mentor and Community Leader, and Google Certified Innovator!

Chris has won numerous teaching awards and has been featured in places like ABC news, NBC news, PBS, EdWeek, CNET, Scholastic, Times for Kids, EdSurge, Upworthy, and Tech & Learning magazine. He is the author of two books: The Edcorps Classroom and The Esports Education Playbook. You can always keep up with Chris on his blog TechedUpTeacher.com.

Chris would love to come to your school and put on a workshop or speak at your event.

Feel free to contact Chris if you have any questions, need some advice, or just want to say Hi!

Still Curious? Check out some of Chris’ greatest hits below.

Two River Times - THE FH GIZMOS, FAIR HAVEN’S YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS
NBC News - New Jersey Middle School Esports Team Is 1st of Its Kind
NBC News - Using Fortnite in the Classroom
PBS NJTV - Forming the Foundation of Esports in NJ
The Journal NJ- Fair Haven Students Innovate, Educate and Donate
ABC News - Start Here Podcast - Thursday 9/6: I'm One of Them
ISTE 2016 - Emerging Leader
Center for Digital Education - Top 30 Technologists, Transformers and Trailblazers
Scholastic - Fall 2017 Cool Teacher
EdWeek - Educators Battle 'Fortnite' for Students' Attention
Dr. Matt Farber - Character Building with Esports
STEM Everyday Podcast - Esports and Gamification in the Classroom
Future Ready Schools - Student-Centered Initiatives
CNET - Mindcraft - The Video Game That Builds Kids Brain Cells
Times for Kids - Game Changer
Tech & Learning Advisor
Raspberry Pi Foundation - Tackling Climate Change and Helping the Community
Minecraft: Education Edition Blog - Innovation, Creativity, and Pixel Art
Top 20 Influencers in Education Technology
NJ Journal - Students Enjoy a Harvest Lunch
Red Bank Green - Fair Haven: School Startup Spins Profit
EdSurge Contributing Writer
Teachercast - Top 10 STEM Educators
Upworthy - This teacher is using video games in his lesson plan.
Microsoft's Educast - Minecraft In The Classroom
District Admin Magazine - K12 Embraces Video Games
Scholastic - How Edcamps Are Changing The Face Of PD
Minecraft: Education Edition Video - Student Engagement
Local Press - Here Here Here
CUE -Google Teacher Academy
Asbury Park Press and this Letter to the Editor
Minecraft Education Blog
Best Foot Forward NJ - And so PARCC Begins!
Daily Genius - Minecraft In Education
Imagine Easy Blog - Three Google Docs Hacks to Boost Your Students’ Ethical Writing
iNACOL Teacher Talk - The Fresh Air Curriculum
KI Furniture - KI's Educational Furniture Transforms Learning Environment at Barnegat High School
PollEverywhere.com - A daily closure poll is better than mind reading for a superstar English teacher
Schoology - Passionate Learning Starts with the Community Not the Textbook: A Call For Informal Learning
Schoology - Don't Just Talk About It...

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