We started school a few weeks ago and I am still getting to know my students. I teach at a small school, around 400 students, so I know faces and names before they come into my classroom. The students know me as well, even before they enter my classroom. You develop a reputation outside of […]
Opinion
Starting the New Year Full of Possibilities
This year is brand new. Â If it is your first year or your thirtieth year teaching, it is new. Â You have never been in this situation or with these exact set of colleagues or with these kids. Â It is easy to see the negativity in education, it is everywhere. Â You can ignore the truths […]
Stolen Pens and Broken Tape: How to Create Boundaries in Classrooms
One day, I walked into my classroom to discover I had less pencils than the day before. I hadn’t given any out, so this made no sense. Then I found a broken white-out tape dispenser hidden among my things. I sighed and put things in my desk that I didn’t want taken. A few days […]
What I Wish My Students Knew…
Last year, a teacher asked her students what they wished their teacher knew and it opened the eyes of teachers are around the United States. We all keep things inside and the only way for people to understand us is to let them out and share because only then can we begin to see each […]
Love Us, Love Our Teacher Eccentricities
Teachers are weird creatures. We wear so many hats and flip back and forth so many times during a day that it can leave people we encounter wondering what kind of alien being has overtaken our bodies. Think about it: we save the most random stuff, come up with ideas off the tops of our […]
What to Consider when Tragedy Occurs during the School Year
Here in south Louisiana, we are recovering. The Cajuns are a strong, passionate people, and I assure you, we will come back stronger than ever. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers. In the midst of tragedy, we discover who we are and what we believe, and we choose to believe in humanity and […]
What's More Important: A Degree Or Experience?
Several districts in Kansas have decided to employ non-certified teachers to place in classrooms. I am torn between thoughts on this being wrong or right. The educated teacher in me says no way! Teachers who are responsible for the education of others should be educated themselves. They should go through the ropes of being disciplined […]
Recharging Your Teaching Battery During Summer Vacation
I’m standing on the north rim of the Grand Canyon, far away from wifi and cell service and anything familiar at the start of my summer vacation. I’m fascinated with the lighting strikes and thunderstorm moving rapidly along the opposite rim. Amateur photographers snap images in 20-second intervals, trying to capture an unforgettable moment but […]