As a student with a math learning disability, there are a lot of difficulties I experience in the classroom that get in the way of my learning, including “memory, language, attention, temporal-sequential ordering, higher order cognition, and spatial ordering” (WGBH Educational Foundation, 2002). Many times, as I sit in the classroom, I feel like I […]
Special Education
The Grieving Year: A Major Professional Error
During the 2014-2015 school year, I landed a brand new job. This teaching gig seemed to be exquisitely designed for me. I had just received my Master of Fine Arts degree in creative writing, and I was excited by an opening at my county’s most prestigious arts school. The job ad for a creative writing […]
How Far is Too Far to Save a Life?
The phone rings at midnight. That’s never a good sign, right? We imagine our relatives in a terrible accident, something gone wrong for our parents, or our children in trouble. But when you are a school administrator, you have to figure there is a chance the school caught fire, got burgled, or generally something went […]
Just Keep Swimming: What Dory Teaches Us About Disabilities
My kids and I loved Finding Nemo, so when I found out that there was going to be a Sensory Friendly viewing of Finding Dory, my husband and I jumped at the opportunity to go see it with our two boys, one of whom has autism. The movie was definitely meant for kids, but what […]
More Tales from the Dark Side… Best Parent Conference Ever
You are sitting at your desk after a long Thursday, drinking your cold coffee. No, it’s not iced coffee; it’s just left over from this morning. You open your email and your stomach turns over. The subject line of the email says Parent Conference Scheduled, and it’s from your principal.” The email tells you that you […]
Dewey in 2016: Still Relevant?
When I was pursuing my master’s in education, I spent a great deal of time examining the philosophies of various critical theorists. Vygotsky, Piaget, Freire, Montessori, Gardner, Pestalozzi and a whole host of other big educational names became part of my courses of study. Knowing these philosophers and their perspectives even helped me pass Florida’s […]
Tales from the Dark Side… of Parent Teacher Conferences
I have a friend who retired after many years as a Superintendent of Schools with many accolades and awards, a highly respected professional. When interviewed by her local paper, she was asked if, given the chance, would she make the same career choice? Her answer wasn’t completely clear to the reporter, but it struck home […]
A Teacher Requests Her Students Not To Be Tested
I have had the immense fortune of being able to be in front of children in many different capacities for 25 years. It truly humbles me to know that for 25 years, parents have trusted my professionalism, training, care, creativity, and judgment when it comes to their children. My experiences include both regular/general education, and […]