I love to learn. I would be the person in college for the rest of my life if I could fit it in with everything else I do. So when I came across Harvard’s open classes, I was in heaven. Several universities, many Ivy League, offer open classes that are free online and can be […]
Classroom Management
Posted inTeacher Leaders
School Safety Doesn’t Mean What You Think
School safety is paramount to most parents. They want to believe that their children can go to school, get an education and not be bullied or threatened. The current problem in our schools is that those who make decisions about the safety of schools seem to be more focused with attacks from strangers rather than […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Common Core, Elementary School, English Language Learners, ESOL, Instruction & Curriculum, Instructional Strategies, Kindergarten, Literacy, Special Education, Technology
5 Ways to Use Emojis in the Classroom
I realized almost immediately that I wasn’t getting through to my Kindergartners… again. I asked a class full of 5-year-olds to identify feeling words, and I got the same generic responses – happy, sad, mad. Year after year, I struggle with how to teach my primary students, especially my English Language Learners, to use precise […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Instructional Strategies
[The Rural School Chronicles] A Toolbox for Working With Challenging Students
At the beginning of this year, I noticed a boy who is in one of the homerooms I work closely with. Stationed at the end of a hall to watch students as they come in, near his room, I would see him approach. Head down, eyes down, every day; a look on his face that […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Common Core, Current Events in Education, Featured, From the Front Lines, Opinion, Uncategorized
Standardized Protesting
Most Americans are quite aware of their First Amendment rights, namely their freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and freedom of the press. One of the most often overlooked freedoms in that all-too-important amendment is the freedom to protest, and it’s something that teachers should consider when it comes to standardized testing. They can standardized […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, Instructional Strategies
Teaching in a Time of Coercion
Last week, my fellow TER writer, Jessica Classen, wrote about being kinder to our students in the classroom. It reminded me of some research that came out a few years ago about how the levels of depression and anxiety rise in societies that have higher levels of coercion. I have been thinking a lot about how we […]
Posted inAdult Learning, Child Development, Classroom Management, Confessions of a Teacher, Current Events in Education, Elementary School, Featured, From the Front Lines, High School, Instructional Strategies, Kindergarten, Middle School, Opinion, Parents, Professional Development, School Improvement, Special Education
The Mental State of Teaching
“The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another.” – William James Is anyone else climbing into this boat and dropping anchor? I know I am. My life has been turned upside down since January with personal struggles, professional struggles and just day-to-day struggles that seem to be heavier than […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, Opinion, Principals' Corner
Deskside Manner: How Doctors Have An Unfair Advantage Over Teachers
Last week, we explored several what teachers can learn from doctors in my first article on “deskside manner.” As some of our readers and Facebook followers pointed out, there are some serious discrepancies and disadvantages that teachers have in comparison to doctors. Let’s explore some of them: 1 – Teachers need to see 20-30 students at a […]