It is spring…well, according to the calendar. The news of snow from the local meteorologists and my students climbing the walls for well over a week finally put me over the proverbial edge. With six weeks of school still before us I knew I had to do SOMETHING to make a positive change. Who better […]
Classroom Management
Posted inClassroom Management, From the Front Lines
6 Ways to Not Take Work Home To Your Family!
If someone told me 11 years ago that I could still be a teacher and not take home any papers to grade, lesson plans to write, or parents to call, I would never have believed them. How can teachers not take any work home? That’s part of the unwritten portions of a teacher contract of […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, Opinion
Administrators, Listen to Your Teachers Before Assigning Classes
I do not pretend that I can fulfill the role of an administrator. In fact, I have no desire to become an administrator – I do not want that kind of stress. I respect those who effectively transition to the part; we need you! Instead, I would like to offer some advice to administrators that […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, Instruction & Curriculum
Did You Lose More Than Daylight Savings Time?
Daylight Savings Time is a practice I don’t understand. In the spring it costs an hour. Time is precious and something I hate to waste. Every year I dread the clocks springing forward and watching precious time being taken away. I read an article recently published on Edutopia about “Beating the Clock in the Classroom” […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, From the Front Lines, Instruction & Curriculum
The Role of Physical Activity in the School Day
[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”] First Lady Michelle Obama’s recent re-branding of the Let’s Move! program into the Let’s Move Active Schools has renewed the focus of physical activity into the school day. This new emphasis […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, Instruction & Curriculum, Opinion, Parents
Being a Parent and a Teacher…an Impossible Combination?
For the past 9 years, I have been a full-time mother, wife, teacher, student, psychologist, therapist, maid, taxi driver, personal planner, party planner, reminder service caller (is there such a thing?), etc. The list goes on and on. There is not a minute in the day where I am free to do what I please. […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, From the Front Lines, Principals' Corner
Hold that Intercom! Interruptions are Educationally Costly
The crackle of the speaker..and then the voice. Twenty-six ninth grade brains stop working on the task at hand. They wait for the name. “Jane Doe report to the office.” The 26 ninth grade students either: A. dismiss the announcement entirely and try to get back to work; B. snicker quietly to themselves because they […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, Instruction & Curriculum, Literacy, Mathematics, Social Studies
"I'm Done!" – Challenging Students Who Finish Early
“We have noticed our child is not reading near the amount of books he read last year,” a set of parents commented at conferences. “He still has a passion for reading and he reads at home, but we are not getting new books as often.” This same student loves Tuesday in my classroom. Tuesday is […]