Posted inConfessions of a Teacher, Current Events in Education, Featured, From the Front Lines, Opinion, Social Justice

A Sit Down with BadAss Teachers

Some of the most vocal teachers today are self-professed Badass Teachers, or BATs for short. They’re full of opinions with action to match. We at TER sat down with Marla Kilfoyle, Executive Director and Melissa Tomlinson, Asst. Executive Director to learn more about this movement.   Jake Miller, The Educator’s Room: How did Badass Teachers […]

Posted inConfessions of a Teacher, Opinion, Social Studies, The Traveling Teacher

Recharging Your Teaching Battery During Summer Vacation

I’m standing on the north rim of the Grand Canyon, far away from wifi and cell service and anything familiar at the start of my summer vacation. I’m fascinated with the lighting strikes and thunderstorm moving rapidly along the opposite rim. Amateur photographers snap images in 20-second intervals, trying to capture an unforgettable moment but […]

Posted inConfessions of a Teacher, From the Front Lines, Instructional Strategies, Middle School, Special Education

The Working Hours of a Special Education Teacher

Special education teachers work hard. People see smaller class sizes and equate that with less work, but that’s a fallacy. I can tell you that in my small class, I’m planning three different lessons and within those three lessons, I’m modifying within levels. In my inclusion classes, I modify assignments, and teachers look at it […]

Posted inConfessions of a Teacher, From the Front Lines, Middle School, Uncategorized

Teachers Who Won’t Be Silent Anymore: Ebony Murphy-Root

Bullying is a huge problem in our schools today. When a student is being bullied we, as teachers, encourage students to tell a trusted adult and it will be handled from there. In a perfect world, the responsible party would intervene, an agreement would be reached, and appropriate consequences will be issued. But what if […]

Posted inConfessions of a Teacher, Featured, Special Education

My Most Frustrating Wonderful Student

In honor of Selective Mutism Month, The Educator’s Room will continue to bring  your stories about selective mutism and how this condition affects both students and teachers.  By Anne Tenaglia *All names have been changed along with any personal information Amari Grady* may have been the most frustratingly wonderful student I have taught. He passed […]

Posted inConfessions of a Teacher, From the Front Lines, Special Education, Uncategorized

Cyber School Chronicles: Why I Chose a Cyber Charter School to Educate My Children At Home

  A few months ago, my husband and I started to seriously discuss homeschooling our youngest child.  The one with Selective Mutism.  The one that although has struggled since he entered preschool as a three year old, has made incredible progress with his social anxiety.   His academic performance is within the normal range, he ended […]