For the last 500 years, Western Civilization has dominated the world. When I say Western Civilization, I specifically mean Europeans who’ve colonized every continent on earth, and also the Americans who continue to dominate. Such domination means that institutions such as governments, schools & economic systems, are put in place and maintained by those in […]
Posted inFeatured
Strategies to Help With Literacy and Math in the Summer- The Educator's Room Lunchtime Hangout
Watch our video with elementary school rock star, Lori Rice! Watch the video below, and subscribe to our channel!
Posted inFrom the Front Lines
How I Created a Professional Development Training and Lived to Tell About It
Through my experiences as a teacher, I have found that we all learn so much when we are able to sit and have conversations with each other. Those conversations are so valuable that they are evidenced in classrooms throughout our schools, districts, states, and country. A conversation between or with teachers generates ideas, methods, activities […]
Posted inFeatured, Instruction & Curriculum
Habits of Mind: Questioning and Posing Problems Through Summer Reflection
“To be or not to be, that is the question” — William Shakespeare. [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”] As the school year ends and we move into summer there are things we do as educators and […]
Posted inFrom the Front Lines, The State of Education
The State of Education: Montana
By Peggy Cordell Two state educational issues in Montana are receiving some attention these days. The first is an issue of equity in school funding. Our bicameral legislature has struggled to find a fair funding formula between large (urban) and small (rural) school districts. Through the years, legislative school funding measures have passed and lawsuits […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, Instruction & Curriculum, Principals' Corner, School Improvement
The Necessity of Failure: The Challenge of Assessments
I have just finished grading final exams for high school sophomores, and I can’t help but wonder if I am guilty of cheating. Balancing high standards with opportunities for retakes shapes my approach to developing assessments. In my view, a student who fails one section of multiple choice should have the opportunity to write more […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum, Literacy, Parents
Working with Struggling Readers at Home
For most of us, summer is already here. Your child has survived the school year and is ready to move onto other things – video games, camp outs, vacation, sleeping in late, etc. However, if your child struggles with reading, your child cannot afford to completely take the summer off. Following are tips I have […]
Posted inElementary School, Featured, Kindergarten, Uncategorized
Refugee Students: Who will advocate for the UN-Common students who got Left Behind during the Race to the Top?
By Jennifer Healey Portland, OR The notion that ALL students can be lifted up and freed from their circumstances, past language barriers, out of poverty and away from war and crime and drugs, upward and onward toward a glorious middle-class future, is absurd. If we insist on being a country with an elite high school […]