Last week, a friend told me about a principal in my large urban school district who took the blocks out of a kindergarten classroom. There are stories in this district of all play materials, including crayons, being removed from kindergartens. In New York, the story of a principal canceling the kindergarten show made national news. […]
Classroom Management
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, Instruction & Curriculum
Life Through the Lens of a Yearbook Advisor
My dad is a professional photographer so cameras have always been a part of my life. Perhaps that’s why being on one end of the camera or on the other makes very little difference to me…it’s all good! As a child I was taken in-tow from job to job with my father; I posed for this poster, that spread, this advertisement, […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured
4 Steps to a Happy Ending to the School Year
Spring break is behind you. One morning, some wisenheimer shouts “Only 25 days of school left!” Even though you have been secretly counting down, you know this is it: the beginning of the crazy year end behavior. The students’ attention begins to diminish, and noise and classroom chaos climb frantically. Here are four steps to […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Middle School, Opinion, Social Studies
It's Not Just a Classroom; It Could be a Museum
I think every teacher has been asked the following question: What does your ideal classroom look like? I know some teachers think about the answer to this question every day. Some answers include an interactive whiteboard, a few computers or tablets – preferably iPads and MacBooks or Chromebooks, and round tables over desks. In a […]
Posted inFeatured
NO MORE YELLING AT STUDENTS!
It’s loud. I’m tired. I’ve tried getting these 35 students under control 3 times already this hour. I’ve had enough! Do your work! Pay attention! Listen to me! It’s time to go to the principal’s office! A recent article in The Guardian has labeled yelling as “emotional child abuse,” and it’s opened my eyes to […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Elementary School, Instruction & Curriculum
Packing Up Your Clip Chart
My philosophy in teaching, and in life, is to leave things better than you found them. Each person is placed here for a purpose and a reason. As an educator, it is my role to foster the strengths within each student and help them reach their potential. This task, while difficult, is best done with […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, Instruction & Curriculum
A Tale of Two Field Trips: Perilous Yet Rewarding
I recently took 11th and 12th grade on a field trip to Yale Repertory Theatre to see These Paper Bullets, a “modish remake” of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing. We had arrived early enough to have a little time before the show to stroll the sidewalks of Yale/New Haven and grab a cup of coffee before filing into the University Theatre. The weather […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Instruction & Curriculum, Middle School, Technology
How I Flipped My Classroom
It was just over a year ago when I first heard the term “flipped classroom,” and I recall wondering what part of the classroom was flipped. I saw pictures of desks and books upside down, but never thought much about the concept. I never thought this theory would lead to a new approach to the […]